Arabesque

There are some people who continue to feel hunger after the surgery. Be careful you’re not confusing real hunger & head hunger. Real hunger feels different. I feel like something is wrong & restless. I never want a specific food, favour or texture. And there is a reason why I feel hungry - like I haven’t eaten for a few hours. It does take time to work out your cues for real hunger. The other issue to consider is you’re still healing. Someone recently posted their surgeon said it can take 8 weeks or more to fully heal internally after a sleeve. This includes your nerves which were cut which is why our messages for hunger, satiety, etc, aren’t accurately felt, or in the case if your restriction not felt at all during this recovery period. It’s why we have to be careful of how much we eat & drink. I always say all because you can doesn’t mean you should. You may be able to eat a portion larger than you’ve been told or drink more but the signals telling you stop or warning you of danger aren’t working properly. Go slowly making small changes. Best not to push to see how much you think you can do. There’s lots of little things to learn about post surgery, consider & most importantly learn about yourself. But you’ll get there. All the best with your recovery.

Aah. So you’re pre op. I thought because you said up you reached your goal you were post surgery. In that case, yes, it’s likely they just want to check you will have all you will need from after your surgery. Let them know you are concerned about doubling up on some of the vitamins & see what the say.

I only discovered it because I went back a little later to add something to a post & I couldn’t. 😊

So sorry you’ve been experiencing this. Have they done any other tests besides just the endoscopies like an abdominal ultra sound or contrast scan to see if there is an issue below your actual tummy like adhesions or a twist, etc? I don’t know either really just a suggestion. Hope they find some answers for you soon.

@ChunkCat is right. Eggs can be difficult for some. Also on purée try to keep your food still pretty runny - like at the very least ‘gloop’ of your spoon. You may need to make yours even runnier by adding additional stock, gravy, water, milk, etc. And yes, while healing you can have weird muscle spasms & strains. Remember your tummy is a muscle & it has to heal from being cut. Lots of nerves also were cut during your surgery & other abdominal organs are moved about while they operate too. So the spasms & other weird feelings are understandable. Someone posted recently that they’re surgeon told them it can take 8 weeks or more you heal from a sleeve. So you may continue to have these spasms & twinges for a while yet. But do check with your surgeon to be sure - better safe than sorry.

I use it edit a lot too. My finger & brain aren’t always in sync especially on the small keyboards on my phone, iPad, etc. Though I think most easily read around typos these days so it’s not as much as an issue. Unfortunately the edit button is only active for a little while after you post & then a little later it vanishes from your post.

Learning to eat slowly can be challenging. Over time you can speed up again or find you’re subconsciously timing your bites with whoever you’re eating with. I found putting my cutlery down & sitting back from the table helped. I still take a long time to eat - 30-45 mins to eat a meal though it used to be longer - up to an hour. The slowing your eating is also to ensure you haven’t eaten too much before you recognise your full signal. This signal can take 20+ minutes to kick in so if you eat quickly you can eat more than you actually need & are then are over full. I often have a very slow full message which is also why I eat slowly. I also can’t drink more than two mouthfuls at a time. I was having trouble swallowing a med for my Meniere’s vertigo one day. It starts to dissolve when it gets moist & even just putting it in your mouth it will stick. Took a 4th swallow to get it down & then I swear within seconds up all the water came … & the med.

I second what everyone has said so far. Unless you started in excess of 400 or 500lbs you’re doing fine. If the number in the scale is bothering you (&it can do a number in some people’s heads), maybe reduce how often you weigh yourself - you don’t have to do it every day. Weight loss is never one straight downward line on a graph. It zigs & zags, goes up & down, & plateaus. Our bodies have different needs each day, we don’t eat & drink the exact same things every day, our activity is different day to day so our weight loss won’t be exactly the same day to day. We may be retaining fluid (hormonal or diet related), constipated, have diarrhoea, etc. as well which will affect the number on the scale. Also don’t forget you can include your shakes & soups in your fluid intake for the day so you may be closer to your fluid goal than you think. My plan was also no bread, pasta, rice like most are. I still don’t eat them as like @Spinoza they sit heavily in my tummy and limit what else I can eat & I’m 4.5 years out. I still follow the eat my protein first, then vegetables. (I only have two serves of carbs a day & they’re whole/multi grains - complex carbs - not the more highly processed simple carbs.) If you are concerned speak with your team. I always told myself if my surgeon & dietician were happy with my weight loss I should be too. All the best.

400 does seem pretty low for three months out & that’s coming from a low calorie eater while losing (I was about 900 at 6months & took almost 3 years to get to where I am now at about 1500/1600). Though you can only eat what you physically can eat (quantity & quality). Best advice is to speak with your dietician to see what they recommend you should be consuming - we have different needs. Then work at slowly getting to their recommendations. They may be able to suggest some things you can add to your eating plan to boost your calories & nutrition (which is equally an issue to watch).

Foamies can be unpleasant if you eat too fast or too much or something that is too dry or too coarse. I find it can happen if it’s something my tummy decides it doesn’t like (like it recently decided it didn’t like eggs anymore though I’d been eating them without issue for 4 years). But I wonder if it may be dumping because of the nausea & tiredness which you don’t get with the foamies. While generally caused by fats & sugars, other things can set it off too like starch heavy foods & even dairy in some. But yes certainly needs a visit with your surgeon to see what’s going on.

Didn’t have one & didn’t need one. Got in & out of bed & up & down from sitting (chairs, sofa, toilet) pretty easily. Sure a little discomfort the first couple of days but really less than having sore strained muscles after a strong workout. I just went slowly & carefully. So it’s a 1 for me. I do like the suggestion to just hire one if you find you do need it.

@summerseeker is on the money. You’ve just had pretty major surgery & have lots of sutures & stables holding your new digestive system together. It is easy to forget when we can’t actually see the wound. You’ll probably experience cramps, spasms, discomfort for a while until you’re more fully healed. Though it will happen less frequently & less intensively as you recover. Don’t forget too your tummy can be pretty fussy/sensitive about certain foods & liquids for a while which can make finding what you can tolerate eating & drinking challenging at times. Lots of trial & error to begin but it really does get better & easier. I found warm drinks more soothing too (I even warmed some of my shakes) but yes some say the colder the better. I also used to dilute my shakes & soups at first to make them both thinner & make the flavour less intense. All the best.

Firstly, stalls are a normal part of weight loss. Frustrating & stressful though they can be. While on average they last around 1-3 weeks they can last longer. It just depends upon how much time your body needs to reset itself (metabolic rate, digestive hormones, etc.) in response to your current needs at your lower weight. You just need to let your body taker the time it needs - don’t stress it more by making more changes. Not everyone reaches their goal weight. The average weight loss is about 65% for sleeve & bypass of the weight you’re to lose to put you in a healthier range. So, if my maths is correct, you’ve exceeded that average so far - yay! Doesn’t matter what weight your surgeon wants you at, your body will greatly influence your final weight - your new set point. There are also lifestyle & personal preference choices to consider too - what weight are you happiest at & allows you to enjoy your life as you want without you having to restrict your choices to maintain your weight. Our rate of loss slows as we get closer to our final weight. Sometimes it’s so slow it seems like we’re not really losing at all. And remember it doesn’t matter how long it takes to reach your stabilised weight - you’ll get there in the time that’s best for you. Don’t give up yet. Stick to your plan. Stay off the scales for a week or two. You may be surprised when you eventually weigh yourself again.

Congratulations on reaching your goal weight. Yay! I’m going to push a different view. Do you need all of those vitamins (& yes we have different needs)? Do your blood tests show you are lacking in anything? Or do they say you have more than enough of any you are taking? Find out if you need any specific ones & then take those. Remember excessive amounts of some vitamins can have side effects & other we simply pee out what we don’t need. Yes, some do have issues absorbing certain vitamins & minerals though it isn’t as common with a sleeve as with bypass. I only had to take a multivitamin & briefly vitamin D while I was losing. My surgeon said I could stop them at about 8 months by which time I had passed my goal. My blood work was great & still is 4.5yrs later though we did eventually pick up with my regular blood tests that my vitamin D levels drop in winter so I take a vitamin D mid autumn to mid spring. I do have a malabsorption issue with protein which began after my gall was removed. Malabsorption after gall removal can happen but with protein is unusual.

You’ll be fine. It’s your pre op diet & your misunderstanding (& that’s what it was & not a deliberate choice to not follow the plan) of something that is new & different to what you know &/or are used to is understandable. Liquid diet so you think soup & maybe yoghurt would be okay. I mean you didn’t eat a giant burger & fries. You realised & are getting back on track so all good. Oh & this likely won’t be the first & only time you misunderstand something & ‘mess up’ through this. I would think we all did at some point. All the best.

Nothing like a back handed compliment. And sometimes mothers can be the best at them. 🙄🙂 I’ve had people who comment about my loss even 4+yrs out - congratulatory & also you’ve lost enough/too much. And I’ve had people who’ve not said a word. I was at church & the minister asked, with great concern, if I was okay. Pretty obvious she feared I had some terrible disease. I said I was well & all was good.

There are some who are slow losers. Nothing wrong with it. It’s just one of those things. Still extremely frustrating though. At the same time, I think it’s possibly too soon to judge. You are losing & that is always a win. Doesn’t matter if it takes a little longer than you may have hoped to lose your weight. As many say, it’s not a sprint but a (lifelong) marathon. What has your surgeon said or your dietician?

They do toss you about a bit after the surgery when they move you to a bed. Plus there’s a lot of poking & prodding your other abdominal organs during the surgery. I think we can hold a lot of tension in our bodies after the surgery too - stress & also trying to protect out wound sites & abdomen so muscle spasms can occur. My back went into spasm on day 2. The pain was awful - couldn’t sit, stand, lie down,… I was in hospital & they kept me in another day. I do agree, that if it continues, occurs more frequently or worsens contact your team. Hope it improves soon.

I go to fruit. Blueberries, cherries & grapes are like little bursts of sweetness. Mango, watermelon, peaches, nectarines, lychees, etc. always seem more sweet. Even a crispy apple can help ease the sugar craving (try sprinkling a little salt on a slice as it can sometimes compensate for the sweet). I found a freeze dried mango product too which actually tastes very sweet to me now. I say, if something tastes sweet & says it has no added sugar it has to have something added to it that makes it taste sweet - i.e. usually an artificial sweetener. (Unless it’s sweetened with a sugar substitute like agave or honey.) Good luck.

I did a lot of minced meat dishes - just made sure they had gravies or sauces with them to still keep them moist (rissoles/meat balls, savoury mince, bolognese sauce with zucchini noodles, etc.). Chunky soups with meat & vegetables, casseroles/stews, omelettes. Would freeze up appropriate portions & then defrost & reheat for work lunch & dinner. Made life very easy only have to cook or prep a meal every few days & to have a variety of options available in my freezer.

That’s hilarious. I wonder where I got toothache. Don’t think brandy would help with a headache 😉.

Ibuprofen was the only thing that worked for me too. Might as well have a mint than an paracetamol or acetaminophen. And codeine messes with my head. It was two years before I was allowed to take it again with strict instructions: half dose, not on consecutive days & not regularly. In the last two years I’ve taken an ibuprofen a handful of times (& that was through an unpleasant Covid & several times my back went out). Check with your surgeon is always the safest. They may have different advice to mine & others. In the meantime try a cold compress or freeze a wet washer & suck on that, dab peppermint oil around the tooth or sip peppermint tea, dab vanilla extract around the tooth. There over the counter gels which numb the area available too. You can always rub some brandy around it - it was the old wives treatment for teething babies. 😁

Not everyone loses their appetite & hunger but the majority do. You could be experiencing not real hunger but head hunger. In this case wanting to eat to sooth & comfort yourself after what has been a pretty major surgery & stressful/emotional time. Plus the more you can’t have food the more you want it. Also stomach acid can make you think you’re hungry & at the moment you’re still producing the same amount of acid as you used to but consuming way less. Are you on a PPI to reduce this acid at the moment? Try distracting yourself: read, play a game, craft, call a friend or family member, go for a short walk around your home as you’re able, etc. Try sipping a warm drink like a green or herbal tea that can help too. Congrats on reaching those fluid & protein goals so soon.

My thoughts, like @GreenTealael, was fluid retention from any IVs you were given. Plus your body just may have held on to everything while fighting the sepsis - it’s a terrible thing if they can’t get on top of it. Hope you are recovering well & yes stay off the scales for a few days or week or so.

Frustrating I know but remember a stall when your body shuts down to reassess your new needs. It’s when it resets things like your digestive hormones, metabolism, etc. to support the changes you’ve made & weight you’ve lost so far. Stalls last as long as your body needs to do this & the stall will break when it’s ready to move forward again. Let your body do what it needs to do. Don’t stress it more (you’ve already been putting it through a lot) by making changes to your activity or calorie intake or food choices except for the accepted changes required by your plan. I used to describe stalls as when your body needs to take a breath. It closes the door, climbs into bed & pulls the covers over its head saying I’ve had enough & I can’t deal with this at the moment. The day always comes when your body gets up & says yep I’m ready to face the world & you start losing again. Most tend to have their first stall around the three week mark but it can happen before or after then. They tend to last 1-3 weeks but for some it’s longer & for some it’s only a few days. Mine were the few days type.