RobertaMSN

Fantastic! I'm really interested in hearing more about the fasting you've been doing, if you don't mind. My weight loss has been average to slow and wonder if fasting might help speed it up, though I feel great and am content with my progress. Congratulations!

Wow, had never thought about the smaller-sized clothes meaning you can pack more into a carry-on suitcase plus mix-and-match more easily! Awesome - one more non-scale victory to add to my list.

Fantastic topic! I'm six weeks post- op and so far my non-scale victories are 1) Much better sleep - my sleep apnea and snoring are gone (after 40 lbs lost.) Incredible. I now sleep through the night when before I would awaken every couple of hours sometimes knowing I was choking. 2) Much lower food costs - and since I had to pay for the surgery myself (BMI was 34) I've calculated my lower food bills will pay for it within three years and after that it's money in the bank making for an easier retirement. As you can imagine prior to my pre-surgery liquid diet then now post-surgery I was spending a lot of money at the grocery store plus sometimes eating out. I could eat a huge amount at one time and was used to doing so. Now I average about 850-900 high quality calories a day and love seafood - no, not the breaded stuff I used to eat but salmon, shrimp, lump crab meat, etc. 3) My plantar fascitis is gone and I can now walk without pain or worry, though I make sure to always wear good support shoes with gel inserts - no way do I ever want that again (like walking on shards of broken glass.) Am looking forward to joining a local once-a-week walking/hiking club when they start up again after winter. 4) Lower blood pressure. Prior to surgery it was 140/90 - doctor ready to put me on medication. At my one month post-op check it was 100/60! The nursing assistant took it twice because she couldn't believe it but when I was younger and thin that was normal for me. My resting heart rate was 62 bpm but prior to surgery was 85 bpm. So my heart is not working nearly so hard. I don't know what my A1c blood sugar is now since it won't be checked for a couple months but it was pre-diabetes before surgery. Since I'm virtually off sugar and starches it has to be in the normal range now plus I no longer have to get up multiple times each night for the high blood sugar side effect of having to go to the bathroom frequently. 3) Planning to travel with my sister - before we couldn't share a room because of my snoring and choking from sleep apnea waking her up so we would have had to pay for separate hotel rooms, making it much more expensive so a lot less trips would be possible. Now we can share a room with separate beds saving money that can be used for more trips. And because my plantar fascitis is gone we can explore each location fully with long walks. We're planning on spending Xmas and New year's 2020-21 in Paris

Me, too - gave away my sugar free jello because it causes pain (am six weeks out.) But I'm only taking in 850-950 calories a day so it's no longer needed, thank goodness. It did help me with weight loss prior to surgery, though.

Yes, the IV fluids may have contributed to higher blood sugars but also the stress of surgery will make it temporarily rise. As a nurse monitoring diabetic hospital patient's blood sugars was a daily routine because illness and injury causes the body to react by elevating blood sugar. Depending on the level of illness or trauma it can go out of control, though recent studies show the higher blood sugar levels may help the body heal - when overly controlled patients sometimes developed heart problems so it may be a necessary part of the body's healing/defense process. Not to worry.

More great advice from Dr. Duc C. Vuong regarding hair loss after weight loss surgery.

This is what I was talking about plus those who want to be liked and considered nice so say you look fine when you're obese. So glad to see you have so many wonderful, supportive people around you! Note: This forum must stay positive and supportive of everyone's posts or I'm gone.

Great question - am learning a lot reading the varied responses. I've told my super supportive, loving sister and one cousin but no other family members since they are not really a part of my life and never ask how I am. Six months ago I moved to a new area within a small, close-knit neighborhood. I decided to let it be known about my surgery because: 1) Two neighbors recently had cancer, one died and the other is in remission - they both suddenly began losing a lot of weight due to the illness so I didn't want to worry anyone. A couple of them have become close and truly seem concerned about my welfare as I am theirs - I didn't think it fair to tell them but swear them to secrecy. 2) I didn't want to lie when they asked how I was losing weight. I'd feel bad about doing so, saying it was only a change in diet, etc. when so many need help with weight loss and struggle as I have. Plus I've read that the guilt from lying can cause patients to sabotage their own success. However, if I was still working I would have kept it a secret from coworkers - one of the reasons I left the workforce early was all the malicious gossip and backstabbing in every place I ever worked. No way would I give them that ammunition. And 3) It was a test to see which of my new neighbors were not people I wanted to allow into my life (other than living close by.) Fortunately they all became super supportive once I explained my health issues due to excessive weight and told them I won't allow negativity. Some of the kindest ones meant well by saying, "Oh, you don't need to lose weight, you look great" while I was at 240 lbs! I straightened them out right away and think they were trying to be kind and to be liked for being nice. It's interesting that fat shaming is terrible, but those who do the opposite and enable those of us who have serious weight problems by telling us we look great and don't need to lose weight are perhaps worse in the long run. Kindly put honesty is better from the appropriate close people in our lives.

2 C fresh spinach (packed well), 1 "purely inspired organic protein" shake (20g protein) plus 1/2 scoop "Pure Protein 100% Whey" protein powder (another 12g protein), 1/4 C plain unsweetened kefir, a little ground cinnamon, 1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa, and very little frozen fruit for some added flavor such as 1" of a frozen banana plus 1 cube pineapple, or 1 slice peach and a few raspberries. Too much fruit = way too many carbs. You can substitute some other greens such a kale or baby lettuces. I just use the spinach. Whip it up to a liquid - I use a Ninja bullet. I'd love to see other's green smoothie recipes if they want to post them

Me, too - got chest tightness and it felt like food was sitting way too high up - like in my esophagus. I'm carefully measuring everything by volume and learned the hard way to start with about 2 oz of a high protein food, eat super slowly, chew thoroughly, assess before each bite if I need this, and absolutely stop if it feels at all tight in my chest which is a sign for me of one bite too many. If I feel okay after that 2 oz then I try another 1 oz of protein. It was absolutely miserable the one time (hopefully the only time) I ate too much and too fast - I had to lie down and it took about an hour to feel better. I'd sat down to eat my dinner having made 3 oz of protein plus some veg (before I learned not to make so much at once) and got an upsetting phone call, after which mindful eating went out the window and believe me, I suffered for it. I get a lot of veggies in my morning green smoothie but now am eating a small cooked veg portion (2 oz) maybe an hour after my protein portion at lunch and dinner. This is helping me get good nutrients and fiber without sacrificing the necessary protein - I don't want to add back in another protein shake. I'm supposed to wait a few weeks more before trying salad. I've heard if you take a bite and realize before swallowing that it may be one too many then spit it out. When in doubt, spit it out. Sounds gross but if with people you can either excuse yourself and head for a bathroom or discretely put it into a paper napkin (if available.) Believe me, it's better to spit it out then to suffer. Especially if out at a special dinner or something it would be awful to feel that pain and ruin the evening.

I've been adding 1/4 C kefir to my breakfast smoothies plus eat 1 C plain Greek yogurt daily, but am not currently taking any in pill form.

Wow! You are doing incredibly well, FluffyChix! I'll definitely be following your advice.

My guidelines are 3 oz of protein with 1 oz vegetable for lunch and dinner (as FluffyChix says below, by volume), and a green smoothie for breakfast (but very little fruit), supplementing with up to two protein shakes to get enough protein. Dr. Duc C. Vuong on YouTube says when able, try to make the veg at either lunch or dinner a small salad cut into very small bites - haven't gotten to the point of trying it yet and imagine it's more than 1 oz.. He says to watch the protein amount - too much is just as bad as too little and it depends on how active we are and if we did anything extra such as go on a long, hard hike. He also cautions against relying on protein shakes and to pick high protein foods for meals. I've been following his advice and taking very small bites, then chewing at least 20 times before swallowing - essentially making everything into a soft food. So far, so good. Apparently everything must be moist. He says patients "push their sleeve" one extra bite per meal, so to be mindful of stopping when satisfied and to question each bite "Do I need this?" There's debate as to whether or not it actually can stretch, but he says the body adjusts to tolerate more food and has seen patients back up to eating a large plate of food at a time and it's junk food - and regain the weight. Bear in mind I'm new - only got mine on Dec. 2, 2019. But so far, so good. I've learned a great deal from Dr. Vuong - more than from my nutritionist in the program.

Yep - looks like every surgeon has different guidelines. Mine is two weeks prior to surgery on high protein liquids then another four weeks post surgery. Then I can try solid foods (from a specific list) and up to two protein shakes per day to make sure to get enough protein. On Monday Dec 30 I get to try solids - am curious to see what I can tolerant. Great advice here on trying one thing per day to see how it goes, and I'll definitely get some vegan meatballs. For breakfast forever it will continue to be a green smoothie with very little fruit. Lunch and dinner is up to 3 oz of protein plus 1 oz cooked veg though clearly that's down the line since others say they could only take in a spoonful. My directions are that if I react badly to any food to go back on the liquids for 48 hours.

You and I have the same surgery date, 12/2! And I've lost about the same since surgery - it turns out there's a standard three-week stall. Check out the discussions under POST-operative weight loss surgery Q & A - they have been super helpful to me. I'm now stalled after three weeks having lost 12 lbs since surgery but only 2 lbs this past week, and 8 lbs two weeks prior. In a couple articles I read online it says the liver was shrunk for surgery but works to get back to a normal size afterward and it takes - yep - three weeks. Sometimes this stall can last several weeks but afterward there can be a sudden, large loss. Apparently there will be multiple stalls along the way. The articles also said not to go below 600 calories a day as that can backfire as the body tries to store what it can during what it perceives as starvation time. I know many don't believe in starvation mode and I'm not sure it isn't just a myth. But to stay healthy it makes sense that at least 600 good quality calories a day is a good idea no matter the reason. Also, the weight loss rate depends on several factors. Males lose faster, those who are much bigger initially lose faster, women after menopause slower (that's me), etc. I'm reminding myself that prior to surgery it took me six months to lose 11 lbs. on my own...and my pre-diabetes and non-alcoholic liver disease labs and my borderline high blood pressure had not improved at all, though my cholesterol levels did. Post-surgery all are now in the normal range! No diabetes looming for me (like my mother), thank goodness. Here's wishing us both good luck during the dreaded three-week stall. We'll get there! I'm greatly encouraged by some of the posts about the three-week stall under the Post-op Q & A where the stats show those posting lost all or most of there weight and reached their goals despite having stalls and slow weight loss overall.

For one day post op I also had severe left shoulder pain but it went away by the next day. It's better to be safe and call your doctor but Wineguy is probably right - it's probably gas-related and your body would be reacting more to a leak as he says. It's hard not to worry, though. I was also worried at first and was thankful when it went away. What helped was going for a walk outside the next day which helped clear the gas and resultant shoulder pain. If not in too much pain overall perhaps try going for a walk and see if it helps.

It must be frustrating especially if your program touted no hunger post surgery. It's true that everyone is different and some do have hunger again right away. The good news is you still have a much smaller stomach so as long as you don't "push your sleeve" one extra bite at a time you'll still lose weight - assuming you're following a good eating program. Have you watched any of Dr. V's YouTube videos? Look under "Duc C. Vuong" - he's a bariatric surgeon from New Mexico who posts a huge amount of extremely helpful content. One of his videos talks about this. Good luck and I wish you the best in your journey.

Not sure - what I see after clicking on My Surgery are open fields allowing data entry, then save at the bottom. Hope you are able to figure it out soon. Good luck!

Fantastic - congratulations! I'm looking forward to being where you are. Had surgery Dec 2, 2019 and so far am so happy. Can't wait to see what the next few months takes away.

My successful gastric sleeve surgery was Dec. 2nd and I'm doing great! No complications, little pain - haven't seen the need to take any of the pain med - and no nausea except one dry heave episode the first night, probably from the anesthesia. Right now it basically feels like I did a really hard ab workout yesterday. My surgeon has his patients continue on a high protein liquid diet for one month post-op, the same as two weeks prior. Forever breakfast will be a green smoothie with only two small chunks of frozen fruit, mainly spinach, protein powder, water, and some kefir. I started taking Barimelt vitamins prior to surgery and really like them. I'm losing a pound a day, though will only weight myself at home one day a week. Of course the weight loss will slow down but it's amazing right now. I have no hunger at all so have to keep careful track of when I've eaten and how much, but food journaling is an important habit to get into and keep and it's helping - once I waited too long and got a headache, probably from hypoglycemia which resolved immediately after eating. Everyone is different but so far my experience is an extremely positive one. Good luck!

Mine is scheduled for Dec 2nd. I'm so excited! This forum is great, plus I've watched so many YouTube videos - they are super helpful (even the "wish I hadn't done it" few.) Am on the pre-surgery high protein liquid diet which my surgeon has his patients continue for at least another four weeks post. Don't mind it at all, luckily. Like the green smoothie from Dr. Vuong - but I only add two small frozen pineapple chunks to avoid the blended fruit = sugar problem. I'm looking forward to seeing how we do here on this thread. Good luck, everyone!