Crick

I HIT GOAL, you guys!!!! I am so excited and loving life! 😍VALIDATE ME, VALIDATE ME, VALIDATE ME! 😁 102 total lbs lost:)

Hello, I had surgery 3/3( gastric bypass) then bowel obstruction surgery on 3/12( surgeon obstructed my bowels during the first surgery). Yesterday I made 6 weeks and I’ve been good with my food no vomiting but I measure everything and I learned yesterday when my nose starts to run stop eating( lol). The only meats I’ve tried so far is chicken and salmon. I’m terrified of eggs( I’ve heard horror stories). I’m still working on getting my Fluid in I literally sip all day in between meals and still can’t get to 64oz. Maybe tomorrow I’ll start waking up at 5:30am. I’ve lost 44 pounds since surgery and 54 all together. This week I hit a stal 😞 probably because I’ve been housebound from all the rain. I’m still working on getting Protein and calories up it’s hard when you are not hungry 😞. I hope everyone is doing great on their journey and I would love to hear where others stand ❤️.

I highly recommend the Davis Clinic at Memorial Hermann. They have a really good program for pain/nausea management post-op (with a little help pre-op) - I think it really helped and the surgery was truly a piece of cake. I’m 11 weeks post-op and lost about 45 lbs (I had lost close to 70 pre-op on my own). Did the sleeve and have been really happy.

Oh yes, my surgeon’s office is all about doing plant-based diet and you will drag meat from my cold, dead hands. I will eventually even add occasional treats such as cake and ice cream and other goodies I bake - just not so soon after surgery. I did a body scan and RMR test last week and met with a sports-based nutritionist and she not only agreed my Protein goal was good (I’ve been aiming for 65 g/day, my program said 40 was sufficient), she was all about including meat and also increasing my protein up to 80-90 g.

I will include the birthday cake I made last week for a friend (one of the few who knows I had surgery) - she told me I didn’t have to but I’ve missed baking. Since it’s a tried and true recipe I didn’t have to taste it and managed to have all of it leave my house without so much as licking the frosting bowl. It’s a 3 layer chocolate cake completely from scratch.

I had no issues taking my pills after surgery other than I took them one at a time instead of all together like pre-surgery (and one of them is a pretty large pill). I probably waited 30 seconds between each one at the beginning but now I can take up to 3 at a time. I do take my Multivitamin separately at night because of the size and it kind of has a weird taste, but then take my Vitamin D and nighttime med right after that - no waiting.

I didn't heed my nutritionist either on most things, not so much on goal weights (which she had none), but just food/lifestyle choices. I am finding that there are alot of nutritionists that go by a set manual and prescribe the same advice to everyone they deal with with little to no customization (i mean, your experience is just another example of this).
I hope that folks do their own research and make decisions on their own observations based on THEMSELVES (along with taking their team's advice into consideration) vs. accepting all that is told to them by a single source.
Clarification: I an not endorsing non-compliance to your surgical team. Merely a suggestion to educate yourselves as much as you are able, or can stand.

I liked my surgeon's approach. He gave me the stats on how few people get to a normal BMI and said he would be happy if I lost half my excess weight. But he went on to say that the statistics are just averages and some people lose more and some less. And there was nothing stopping me from being one of those who lose more, so we would see! And so I did. It's good to understand the statistics but you don't have to assume you'll be average.

Hello,
My surgeon obstructed my biles on 3/3 which caused me to throw up my biles for a week. I had emergency surgery to correct the issue on 3/12. ( oh my goodness never knew how major of a surgery that was). I’m home now feeling a lot better just grouchy because my new belly doesn’t like artificial sweetener like my old belly did lol. Thank you so much for checking on me.

When I think of "getting back to the basics" in regard to healthy living.... I think of fruit, veggies, Beans, lean meats, whole grains, sunshine, evening walks, tea on the porch, and throwing a toy for my dog.
Oooo...and a good book. On a porch swing. With the fireflies coming out.
Not sure why this particular idealizations happens in the summer. Huh. Winter basics could include a down comforter, and Fall basics should have something with apples or cider. LOL
But yeah....I think my idea of getting back to basics is different.
And that's totally cool. You do you, girl! It's all good.

I don’t understand doctors who say “you should lose x in this many weeks”. I don’t know how tall you are, but it would appear to me using 5’5’’ or so as an average you were on the lower end of folks who had WLS. My weigh-in surgery date was around the same as yours and my weight at two weeks was 212. My doctor just has had me focus on Protein and fluids and following the food steps (full liquid to purée to soft to regular). I would just focus on your protein and Water and when your back is better then you can do some walking. This is a marathon, not a sprint - you are in this for the long-haul! Good luck!!!

I had lost over 50 lbs on my own before I consulted with the surgeon, and at that point my BMI was around 40. By the time of my surgery, my BMI was I think a 37, which is relatively low for WLS.
Back when I was in my late 20s, I lost 140 lbs on Weight Watchers, but eventually the weight crept back on. I know what is needed to lose weight, but maintaining it is another thing. This surgery is a tool to make it much more likely to be successful in the long term.
My only regret is not doing this sooner. Good luck with your decision but honestly this is one of the best things I have ever done for myself - and I speak as a recent patient (8 weeks post-op today).

Thinkin of you Chantrella. Hope all is well.

I had lost over 50 lbs on my own before I consulted with the surgeon, and at that point my BMI was around 40. By the time of my surgery, my BMI was I think a 37, which is relatively low for WLS.
Back when I was in my late 20s, I lost 140 lbs on Weight Watchers, but eventually the weight crept back on. I know what is needed to lose weight, but maintaining it is another thing. This surgery is a tool to make it much more likely to be successful in the long term.
My only regret is not doing this sooner. Good luck with your decision but honestly this is one of the best things I have ever done for myself - and I speak as a recent patient (8 weeks post-op today).

Three years out....stomach still sounds like deep Water sea creatures mating.

I had lost over 50 lbs on my own before I consulted with the surgeon, and at that point my BMI was around 40. By the time of my surgery, my BMI was I think a 37, which is relatively low for WLS.
Back when I was in my late 20s, I lost 140 lbs on Weight Watchers, but eventually the weight crept back on. I know what is needed to lose weight, but maintaining it is another thing. This surgery is a tool to make it much more likely to be successful in the long term.
My only regret is not doing this sooner. Good luck with your decision but honestly this is one of the best things I have ever done for myself - and I speak as a recent patient (8 weeks post-op today).

The fact that EVERYONE says "my only regret is not having done it sooner" is what keeps me going most days when I am so afraid and having doubts about going through with it! Thank you for sharing your story!

I had lost over 50 lbs on my own before I consulted with the surgeon, and at that point my BMI was around 40. By the time of my surgery, my BMI was I think a 37, which is relatively low for WLS.
Back when I was in my late 20s, I lost 140 lbs on Weight Watchers, but eventually the weight crept back on. I know what is needed to lose weight, but maintaining it is another thing. This surgery is a tool to make it much more likely to be successful in the long term.
My only regret is not doing this sooner. Good luck with your decision but honestly this is one of the best things I have ever done for myself - and I speak as a recent patient (8 weeks post-op today).

I had my surgery in mid-January. You will be on a recovery floor and those folks will have all been tested. I really wasn’t too worried because the staff doesn’t “cross-contaminate”. Honestly, not having the surgery and staying obese is a bigger risk. I didn’t sleep with a mask on but you will know when they come in because nothing in the hospital is quiet. I pretty much kept it on during the day (I stayed 2 nights because my white blood cell count hadn’t come down enough that my doctor wanted to check it again the following day) once I was “up” from surgery.
I don’t know where you are located, but I felt very comfortable at the time with the precautions my hospital was taking and we were not in a situation here at the time where the hospitals were overwhelmed. You can also ask what precautions your hospital is taking when you do your pre-op work.
Good luck - you got this!

"One of the most famous examples of the flaws in the Body Mass Index system is Arnold Schwarzenegger. When the former California Governor was in the prime of his bodybuilding career, he was 6'0” and weighed 235 pounds. This gave him a BMI of 31, putting him in the obese range."
BMI is flawed. It doesn't differentiate muscle from fat. Human anatomy is weirdly individual. Like most things in life... one-size-fits-all isn't always accurate.
You can be a fine boned person with a lot of extra chub...and still have a normal BMI. You can have low body fat and be running marathons...and have an overweight BMI. It's a flawed scale.< /span>
Why is this important to remember?
Guess what I'm saying here...is that no one knows your body like you do. No one knows at what point in your weight loss you feel mean and lean and healthy. The numbers are a good rough guideline, but leave room for individual anatomy.
Lot of different body types out there.
(I'm also not saying....ignore your BMI if it's 31 and you're NOT a body builder...lol) Ya'll know what I'm saying. I don't have to explain.

I gained 10 lbs after surgery. It was gone after a week (along with some other weight), but it could take as long as two weeks. Don’t stress about it - it’s perfectly normal and it will go away shortly.

I’ve heard that some people find their tastes change after surgery. I would really recommend you have some broth and Protein Shakes you like ahead of time. I didn’t prep anything - it’s a lot of trial and error as you move stages. I have not found that my tastes have really changed - I’m off of the soft foods as of this week and got my favorite dish from my favorite restaurant yesterday. Granted, I just ate 1.5 oz of the fajita meat with .5 oz of the cheese and a couple of spoonfuls of salsa - no tortillas, or chips, or anything else - but it tasted so good. And it will probably last me 6 meals or so!

So, I made the infamous ricotta bake last night. I browned some ground Italian sausage and spread it on top of the marinara and under the mozzarella. I scanned the wrapper and measured - did .5 oz per serving which only added 30 calories (and 3 G Protein and 2 fat). Very yummy and helped satisfy my craving for something resembling pizza. I’m on week 2 of the soft food stage and it tasted awesome.
Also, George Bush Sr was right about broccoli. I’m ok with most vegetables but that one will make me vomit. You can drown it in cheese and it doesn’t make it any better.

My doctor told me specifically it didn’t matter from a surgical standpoint - it only mattered from my comfort level. I slept on my stomach from 6 nights post op and I haven’t looked back.

I’m so glad! It makes such a huge difference when you can sleep in your preferred position!