ShoppGirl

Yea the gowns are backless. Lol

Some programs frowned upon it but my program allowed mashed potatoes on purée stage. They are most likely on the menu of soup is not. Just keep in mind like already mentioned this will not satisfy protein so you will want to make that up the rest of the day.

The only thing I needed were my comfy pajama pants under the gown and my extra long phone charger. I used my iPad cause I brought it but could’ve lived without it to be honest. I had to shower right before I left for hospital with the special soap so I just wore the same thing home from the hospital with fresh undergarments. Ooh and I did freshen up with a washcloth and put on deodorant and brushed my teeth of course. I wasn’t allowed to shower so I didn’t really need my other toiletries. Honestly you don’t need much.

Incredible progress. 👍

Waiting for insurance is the pits. I have heard that once submitted they have 30 days to either approve or deny it. Perhaps you could call the insurance and ask if they received it and when (and also whether what I heard is true in all cases). I’m the mean time I agree with starting your healthy habits. One thing that was hard for me to get used to was taking the vitamins. Perhaps take a regular (non bariatric) version but take it at the same times a day you plan to take the bariatric on (also order those soon cause they take a while to shop for whatever reason and take advantage of auto ship and adjust the date based on your surgery date if you want or just stay a little ahead. Also, getting used to logging calories and water intake. You can make adjustments to calories or not it’s up to you but getting used to logging them and your fluids are things you will eventually have to do (having some idea how much water you naturally drink now may be good to know as well cause I not everyone drinks 64oz Exactly. I actually drank way more than that). Another thing that was an adjustment for me was not drinking before or after meals. Perhaps practice some of these things now and you will be ahead of the game by the time you are approved. Your surgery time will be here before you know it.

When it came to purée foods I had to stick with foods that are supposed to be purée because I have issues with consistency but for people who don’t you can have a lot more variety. You can purée almost anything. Just add more sauce or gravy to thin it even more in the beginning and be creative with flavors.

I took it for several months after sleeve. Just a spoonful a day in my crystal light. I used the generic powder at Walmart. Much cheaper. Like arabesque I discontinued it once I was eating larger portions and more variety.

Looks like you’ve got tons of advice here but I will add what worked for me. I had this issue once and I took milk of magnesia the first time it worked like a charm but the NP said to start taking benefiber daily to prevent it from happening again. I took a spoonful of the generic powder one from Walmart dissolved in my crystal light each morning. I continued that until my servings got much closer to normal serving size and I was actually eating some fruits and veggies. At that point I weaned off of it and I’ve been fine since. Many people do have to remain in something preventative forever though.

Not everyone has to do the pre op diet. It varies greatly between doctor and amongst patients. I personally had a low carb type diet for a week and just the normal liquid thing the day before. The purpose of the diet is to shrink your liver so that it’s not in the way during surgery. If your doctor doesn’t require it then they don’t think you need it. Count your blessings. For many people the preop diet is the hardest part.

Okay so I have been following but not posting much for a little while. I have been frustrated, feeling like I don’t have much advice to offer others because I have been searching for my own answers and very embarrassed about my weigh gain. Anyways, for those of you who don’t know me, I had my surgery March 9, 2021 at 235 (5’8”). I lost pretty steadily down to 169 but then stalled for months on end until my appetite came back and I started gaining and continue to gain. I have been struggling uphill while searching for answers ever since. The bariatric team blames my psyc meds but the prescribing dr claims they are weight neutral meds. My family dr agrees and showed me an article about the cravings they cause but he ordered thyroid and diabetes tests too which came back fine but I continue to gain so I made an appointment with an endocrine doctor thanks to a few people on here who suggested it. I finally just seen the endo doc and My cortisol was elevated on the suppression test so I just completed the two day saliva test which hopefully will bring some more answers but what they have said so far is that it’s probably sub clinical cushings which takes a while to confirm. I thought about waiting until I had more info but they said it will be another two or three weeks for these results and I may need more tests after that. I guess MY diagnosis is not really the point anyways. My point is I have recently learned of three things that could be the culprit of my weight that were never tested before surgery and I wonder why they don’t mention these tests pre surgery. I mean They are simple blood tests. I even googled to see why the cushings thing isn’t investigated since it doesn’t resolve with bariatric surgery and all I could find was one article that said it is of course suggested if you present with any of the classic symptoms but in terms of a blanket requirement for people considering bariatric surgery this person felt it unnecessary because it’s not extremely common. I guess maybe that’s the view of my doctor too but I sure wish I was presented with the option at least. I am just curious whether these are things that are tested or even brought up by other people doctors prior to surgery or what others think about whether they should be. And perhaps to give some people things they can investigate first if they are on the fence about surgery. I just feel like the surgery was never going to work for me because it seems likely that the root of my issue is still there. I am maintaining SOME of the loss but according to what I understand about what I have read so far, left untreated I will steadily continue to gain. I know this is still up in the air and not a super common thing regardless but I can’t be the only one struggling with this pre or post surgery and I hope my experience can help someone else struggle just a little less cause watching everyone around me try to be polite as I slowly put the weight back on has felt even worse than being obese was to begin with. I am trying to hang In there for answers and give myself grace but it’s hard to not feel like a failure as I continue to gain and everyone now knows I had surgery and of course I have to wonder if I blew my one shot at surgery because I am doing these tests after instead of before surgery. Regardless, if you are someone who doesn’t really make a ton of poor food choices but just eats more than “normal” because you always feel hungry, consider a cortisol test before surgery. I wish I had.

You can bake your faves and package up the rest in little treat bags and drop them off at an assisted living facility. They love to get treats and some of those people don’t have a lot of family that’s close by so they don’t get many visitors. Someone even popping in to say hi and dropping something off real quick makes their day.

Your hunger will come back eventually but if you are truly having a hard time getting in calories maybe try adding healthy fats to increase calories without increasing portions. Things like oils and dressings or avacado and nuts (if you can have them) or nut butters will increase your calories pretty quick.

If you do get to the point that you need fluids, contact your team first. They should be able to arrange for you to get them without going to the ER. I had to get them and I did go to the hospital building but it was a different part. I thought for sure I was going to be sent to the ER.

Perhaps they would let you keep a bottle of better dressing there so that you can eat salads at least if you can’t bring your own meals entirely. (And maybe a ziplock with sOme lean protein to add to a salad). Or if your friends with who is cooking maybe they will cook it with the spray instead of using oils?? I know when I worked at a retirement community in the restaurant they bent the rules a little making certain to end up with an extra chicken breast since that’s all I really liked On the menu. That was years ago though and I was tiny tiny so of course everyone wanted to make sure I ate something back then. lol. Bringing food would probably be the easiest solution if they will let you. Regardless of where you go whether it’s work or play you will likely have to bring food with you the majority of the time in order to stay on track so it’s not a bad habit to get into. Depending on your usage, You may consider investing in a really good cooler if they won’t let you keep it in The fridge. I bought a yeti cooler post surgery and they are not cheap but it’s amazing. Keeps stuff cold with ice for days and for hours with just ice packs- in the car in the summer even!! The only issue I have are the size choices. I got the smallest actual cooler. The hopper I think and it’s still kinda big for a short outing but for drinks and food for the day it would probably be perfect. Regardless it easily fits bottled water standing up which is not a given with coolers. I keep a ziplock filled with crystal light packets in my purse and carry my water any time I leave the house which has probably paid for the cooler by now (I’m over a year and a half out though).

I hope your co silt went well and you are on your journey towards bypass now. You may have a 3-6 month requorement if you are going through insurance where you have to go in each month and get your weight checked while you try to lose weight under a doctors supervision. That seems to be a requirement by many companies. From then it just depends on how quick you get approval back from insurance and can get scheduled.

I didn’t have any either. I think maybe it depends on what happens during your surgery to warrant them.

Also, have you had your height measured recently? We shrink as we age so you may have a little higher BMI than you think of your doctors are like mine and just use the old measurements for years.

I only recently had elevated cortisol levels and am literally researching Cushings today as I await further testing. There is something called cycling cushings that often leads to delay in diagnosis because the initial test can not pick it up? Just a thought.

My husband bought me a fancy scale for Christmas that measures the body fat percentage and all that. I never use those functions. It is pretty consistent in terms of weight though. Better than the cheaper ones I have used in the past.

Oh wow. So sorry to hear this. I hope you get a date soon.

If is great that you are getting as much ready ahead as you can but also if you have someone who can pop by and tidy a few things while you recover it may be a good idea to call in that favor (if you have someone at home who can do it. Even better). It drove me crazy just to sit and look at all the things that needed to be done and not just get up and do them for days.

I woke up with one on after surgery. I have to admit it was a nice stand in for not having a bra on. Kinda lifted the girls or at least felt like it cause there was fabric beneath them. Lol. I was advised that I could use it or lose it as I desired. I took it off to shower and never put it back on because I didn’t notice a real difference. I have heard people who carried a lot of weight around their bellies say it helps though. I think it’s just a preference thing.

I just got my invite to my cousins annual cookie day. I didn’t go last year because of COVID but this year I’m a little anxious about it. Everyone brings the recipe and ingredients for whatever they want to make. As long as I bring an healthy snack I will be able to resist them while I am there but of course at the end of the day there are SOOOOO many cookies and everyone pressures you to take some. I was thinking maybe I would just go and help and not make anything for myself so if I took one or two of the others it wasn’t too bad But, if I could find a descent recipe that’s not too difficult It may be fun to try it. Does anyone have any good cookie recipes that are lower calorie and carb. I am in maintenance.

I thought the Hershey ones were good too. I have made keto brownies and they weren’t bad at all. Never cookies but I will for me. Especially after seeing all those cookies and not being able to eat them. Lol

Yea I suggested making some and they politely steered me in another direction. Lol. That’s okay I will make whatever and just not eat them I guess.