Deb9386

Thank you for your prayers 💗 I understand about you feeling guilt. I feel guilty still about my son's death and think that somehow I should have prevented it. He hadn't been well, but went to Asia for an extended trip and died while there - I "knew" if you see what I mean that he wasn't really well enough to go but didn't talk him out of going. I could have persuaded him not to go I think and he wouldn't have died - so I blame myself for not listening to my "inner voice". As a parent it's hard not to feel guilty if your child dies. It's such an unnatural thing that a child dies before their parent. It's very hard because our sons & husbands so often don't talk about their pain - mental or physical; they hide it from us. Do you have other children?

Hi Lynda - I'm so sorry to hear this. You must be hurting so much. My son died unexpectedly 2 years ago and I understand just how devastating a loss it is. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Debbie

Wow! That's an amazing weight loss in 2 weeks! Congratulations!

I'm only 6 weeks out from a bypass so can't really offer much advice, but could you maybe speak to a bariatric dietitian and see if they can offer advice? I think you may be right about restaurant meals, because I've worked in a restaurant before and the amount of oil they used to cook (and the cheap quality of the oil) is a bit of an eye opener. Hope you manage to resolve it.

I agree with Starwarsandcupcakes. I still can't eat chicken or meat at all - too dense for me, but can easily eat 4oz of high protein yoghurt. I was told to prioritise fluid intake first (at least 2 litres per day though my dietitian said I'd be working up to this for the first few weeks and that I should contact her if I couldn't take in at least 750ml per day). And secondly to prioritise at least 60g of protein per day. The diet plan I was given didn't have measurements of food, it was for calories per day. I'm 6 weeks out from RNY bypass and supposed to now be having at least 800 & no more than 1000 cals pd. As with your diet plan I was told to work towards having 3 small meals and 2 snacks but I still have to have a protein shake to get my protein in. I wouldn't be able to do it with food alone. As an evening meal I've just had half of a small baked potato [30g/1oz] (only the inside, not the skin), with 60g/2oz of canned tuna and teaspoon of low fat mayonnaise. That seems to be similar to your meal plan? As a snack I'd have for example the protein shake (146 cal/22g protein) or maybe 50g high protein yoghurt with about 10-20g fruit puree. Reading the various threads here I'd say everybody seems to have a different tolerance for what and how much they can eat? So I'd say aim for the regular pattern of eating, but eat what you feel you can tolerate.

I was told to walk as much as I was able from day 1, but other more strenuous exercise should wait till my 3 month check up. But I had a hernia repair at the same time as the bypass, so this may be specific to me. I'm thinking about starting a dance exercise dvd soon though as it's just a bit more energetic than walking.

😆 yes - I've dreamt about eating the foods I love and which I can't eat any more!

It is scary - I was very anxious about the endoscopy and particularly about the surgery. But it really is amazing that the surgery (in my case RNY) means that you don't feel the hunger and can't over eat because of the restriction. My bloods went from borderline diabetic to well below within 10 days after the bypass. I knew my liver was "fatty" but my surgeon showed me the photos and told me it was borderline cirrhotic - losing weight is the only thing I can do to improve this. So I know I made the right decision. These days it's a very safe procedure but you're bound to feel anxious about it - everybody does.

I had RNY bypass so not sure if it varies according to procedure but at 2 weeks I was struggling to get 500 calories per day in, but always managed the 60g protein & 2 litres water specified. As I went on from 2 weeks to 5 weeks my calorie intake was about 600-700 calories (still doing 60g protein) and now that I'm 6 weeks out I'm taking in between 800-900 calories per day and still losing weight e.g. lost 3lbs in the last week. I'm eating some carbs (they're on my diet plan) but haven't been counting them as such, just sticking with what's on the plan. I don't want to eat less and lose more quickly - my skin is already looking rather saggy tbh and I think rapid weight loss would make this worse.

I've been just the same since my surgery! I normally wear a t shirt and shorts, even in the depths of Winter but I'm freezing all the time now. I've been complaining to my husband that this is the coldest Winter ever.....I've had to borrow slippers from my daughter and buy gloves for the first time in decades.....

Yes ↑ me too!

I haven't but that sounds miserable and hope you feel better very soon.

I make a point of always keeping a drink by me. Also I've used high protein soups quite a lot which I've been told I can count as liquids. I found it very hard at first to drink enough fluid, but it's getting easier.

I just ate it straight. I still haven't found anything I can tolerate to have with it unfortunately (5 weeks out).

I've stalled too from the middle of week 4. I'm just going to take everyone's advice, carry on with the plan and keep my fingers crossed for the weight loss to restart.

I'm with you on this. I'm only 5 weeks post-op but have realised things I didn't know before my wls. I thought that I ate when I was "down" or depressed. Actually I've realised since surgery that I want to eat when I'm bored. But I've been more weepy than usual since surgery and I think that the sweet stuff must have been releasing serotonin which helped my mood [although it's hard to tell at the moment as the lockdown /situation we're in here is so depressing anyway]. I doubt that I will become addicted to exercise to fill the serotonin gap as I have never liked sport, so my only real option is not to have the trigger foods in the house at all.

At 8 weeks my rny bypass plan would be the soft eating and the diet sheet I've been given includes carb options at each meal. At the evening meal, 1 slice of wholegrain bread is one of the carb options i.e. at the evening meal you can choose between 1/2 cup mashed potato/sweet potato/risotto/4-6 wholegrain crackers/1 slice wholegrain bread. The amount of bread you've been told to have does sound a lot? But it always surprises me how different the eating plans are from one doctor to another. Fwiw, I think that 25lbs weight loss in 8 weeks sounds pretty good!

I'm 5 weeks tomorrow and also finding it hard with the fluid/protein/calorie intake, though I've been told only 60g protein pd - 90g would be really hard. The only protein shake I can stand is an iced latte flavour 22g protein (Ufit brand), and it has to be ice cold. Just about the only other liquid I can drink without feeling sick is water and I'm still having to sip sip sip all day to get enough in. My saviour protein wise has been high protein yoghurt - 25g in 200ml yoghurt which I eat through the day (I buy a UK supermarket own brand). I buy plain which I add some pureed fruit to and also fruit flavoured. I've also been eating protein heavy soup which I've been told can also be counted towards my fluid intake which helps there. I can't seem to get eggs, meat or fish down at all yet without it sticking. Because most of what I'm having is very liquidy I'm not worrying about the "no fluids half hour before/after food" atm. I'd never get anything eaten if I did. I'm hoping it gets easier!

Wow! Congrats - that's amazing!

I've lost 18 lbs since surgery 4.5 weeks ago, so average is 4lbs per week; I'm walking for about 40 minutes per day but can't exercise properly yet as 1 of my incisions still hasn't healed and also I had a hernia repair and stomach still quite tender from the surgery generally. My dietitian's plan is to have at least 800 calories per day, with at least 60g protein and I'm just about managing this, though I'd say I'm more usually nearer to 700 calories per day than 800. I just can't manage more.

I've kept my wls private, only telling my husband and (adult) children. I'm a private person anyway and don't really feel it's anybody else's business. Plus there's a LOT of judgment over wls here in the UK - the surgery is a lot less common here than in the US I think - and basically you're labelled as a "fat slob who can't be bothered to limit what you eat" and who takes the easy route of having most of your stomach removed! Nobody cares about the research showing that some people are genetically pre-disposed to weight gain and excessive hunger and that the wls actually works on a hormonal level. But my decision to keep it private has been helped by Covid as we basically haven't seen anyone socially or otherwise for months....

It's miserable at first after the bypass. I didn't have a bowel movement in the hospital, but I did pass gas. The walking really helps with the gas, so you need to walk as much as you possibly can. It sounds as if it's starting to get better as you can keep some pureed food down. I wasn't allowed purees until 10 days after the op; it was just liquids. Hope you start feeling better soon.

Ooh, I like the sound of your scales! What make are they?! I weigh myself twice daily - at night last thing before I go to bed and then first thing in the morning after using bathroom. This is partly because I'm interested in the fluctuations, and partly because in my (35 year) yo-yo struggles with my weight I've found that when I stop weighing daily is when I start putting weight on. Not losing, or putting on a lb or 2 doesn't worry me because I'm charting my food/drink intake and I know that if I eat 800 calories pd I will lose weight over time.

I'm 4 weeks post RNY today. As above if unsure ask your dietitian or doctor, but some ideas: I'd say log your food and fluid intake to make sure you're taking in enough fluid and so that you know what your calorie intake is. My dietitian told me about a patient who had complained he wasn't losing weight during the liquid part of the diet and when she delved into it, he was liquidising mars bars. I doubt you're doing this but always worth recording your intake I'd say? I've always been told by doctors that building muscle can add weight (or mean that you don't lose weight), so maybe your exercise regime is building muscle at the expense of a weight loss? I haven't experienced a stall (yet!) but many people say they do have this at about 3 weeks? Only other things I can think of would be constipation or fluid retention? Good luck!

I'm in the puree stage too. I've been relying on Skyr & Greek yoghurt plus cottage cheese for my main protein intake. I don't seem to be able to tolerate eggs, or pureed meat/fish yet (other than in soups). I've been liquidising frozen bags of fruit (with a small amount of added water) then freezing in 20g pots so that I can add them to the yoghurt which adds a bit of variety - cherries, stewed apple, blueberries, pineapple. There's no added sugar in the fruit or the yoghurt. I've made and liquidised chicken soup which is good for protein, and also bought a smooth fresh pea & ham soup which has a high protein level and no added sugar or sweeteners (that's from a UK store but I'm sure there will be equivalents in the US). I've also been having reduced fat houmous which has a reasonable level of protein. To be honest, I'm just concentrating on getting through this phase!