lizonaplane

I'm so sorry you're having such difficulties. It sounds like you should definitely reach out to a bariatric therapist. I'm also having a lot of difficulties because I didn't expect to be hungry all the time. I hope you can find some healing.

Yeah, but what the heck is it? Is it animal, mineral, or vegetable? I've never heard of it. NVM. I just googled it. It's creole seasoning. Not my thing.

What is tony chachere's?

I would agree that it sounds like it might well be GERD, so a stronger PPI is a good way to start. I would also suggest working on increasing your fluid intake for a variety of reasons - keep a water bottle with water or flavored water or something in your hand or right next to you as much as possible so you can sip sip sip all day. Try different temperatures of water, different flavor packets, etc. Hope you find a solution!

Talk to your doctor. Did you change your eating (lots of salt?)? Exercising more or taking your blood pressure right after exercise? Did you take your blood pressure at a place like CVS? Those are not very accurate if you are still on the bigger side. Did you or the doctor use the right size cuff? That makes a huge difference! Did you increase/add/lower any medication?

I agree with @ShoppGirl. You have options, and now is the time to focus on losing weight after surgery. You would have a hard time taking in enough nutrients right after surgery to sustain a fetus. I would talk to your surgeon and an OB/GYN right away!

Yeah, I still have half a protein shake with about 10 oz of iced decaf coffee to start my day plus another protein shake in the afternoon. Otherwise I'm not even half way there!

Congrats. Yes, in the beginning every day gets a bit better in terms of pain and being able to move around.

Oh, I only use the free version too... guess the fancy schmancy charts are out of reach for me, too. I will be starting to go out to eat more because I'll be traveling for work soon, and I'd really rather not be eating out so soon (I'll be five weeks out when I start traveling) but I'm dying of boredom being stuck at home...

It could be the fat - the ricotta bake, avocado, and hummus are all relatively high in fat and fat can cause dumping in some people. But definitely talk to your surgery team and see what they say. I hope you find an answer!

I have tried Trutein, an egg based protein, and it didn't seem to clump any more than the whey ones. I didn't like the flavor I chose (birthday cake). I've heard that mixing in a blender helps reduce clumping with protein powders. I also found the pea protein drinks (didn't try the powders) to be like sand. I hope you find something. Sorry you're in such a tight spot ☹️

That's a question for your surgery team, but if you don't like their answer (or don't get one), you can try it and see how it goes. I've read that it does introduce more air into your stomach. Or maybe someone here will answer with their experience. I am only three weeks out, and I can't chew gum do to dental work. Hope you get an answer!

I've seen that people vary on this, especially right after surgery. I found that I really preferred very cold drinks and the first day or two enjoyed sucking on ice cubes (some people said crushed ice, but I don't have an ice maker in my fridge so the small ice cubes were my only option). In order to keep my drinks cold while I could only drink slowly, I would keep bottles of water and flavored water in the fridge and rotate them as they got too warm. I still do this. I drank hot broth in the first few days after surgery, so that didn't bother me either. Good luck on your upcoming surgery!

Yes, I was nervous about everything until I woke up from surgery. And even now, three weeks post-op, I'm still nervous, but about different things. It's normal (especially if you're an anxious person by nature, or have clinical anxiety).

I haven't had a sex drive in about 6-7 years. I'm only 3 weeks out from surgery but I have lost 65 lbs since preparing for surgery. People said it would get better with losing weight, but it hasn't improved at all. I asked my gyn about it a few years ago and she said it was my age (I was about 38-39 at the time). I was sort of shocked, since I know older women can still enjoy sex. Sex is also painful for me. I'd eventually like to date again (haven't dated since 2015), but I feel like this is a big barrier.

That's why I weigh everything - then it doesn't matter how much the "contents may settle during shipping". Since I'm just 3 weeks from surgery, most surgery centers tell you to do volume, but my center just said "no one can tell you how much to eat". So I'm weighing everything so I can figure out the protein.

I have never suffered in my career due to my weight. I make a great salary and have never had trouble going from one company to another when I felt like the team I was on (or the manager) was just no longer a good fit. And I would always get a raise when I did that. I'm extremely well suited to my career and it's very demanding. Prior to COVID, I flew 2-5 flights a week to cities all over the US working on cancer trials. Since COVID started, it's been a slower pace with less travel, but I still make the same salary. For me, I always had confidence in myself as an employee and a person. I had no confidence in dating or sports, but to me, those were more about my weight. To me, my ability to be a good employee is about my ability to communicate, solve problems, and be dedicated. I'm hoping that losing weight will help me have more energy for the short nights and long days on the road and when I travel for fun. Also, I might eventually like to date again... or not.

Most insurance companies require that your BMI be higher than 40, or 35 with co-morbidities like diabetes or sleep apnea ... and you often have to be able to show you can lose some weight, so losing weight to get to a BMI of 60 wouldn't disqualify you at all. Also, the surgery center probably has an insurance specialist who knows what your particular insurance company requires and can help you set up all the appointments and everything else. I had 4 months of nutrition classes required by insurance, so I decided to live a bit like I would live after surgery during that time. I did lower carb and higher protein and lost about 50 lbs prior to surgery. Of course, my problem was that I got to the point where my BMI was going to be too low for surgery, so I started eating junk again (throwing food funerals!) when I got closer to the pre-op "shrink the liver" diet. My BMI was about 40 or 41 day of surgery, down from 49 when I called the surgeon and started the program. Any weight you can lose now is weight you will not have to lose after surgery. I found that will higher protein, lower carbs, and low added sugars (I still ate fruit and occasionally small amounts of ice cream), I was less hungry and had fewer cravings. I'm actually more hungry now after surgery, which sucks because I can barely eat anything (although I'm only 3 weeks out and most people say they are not hungry).

I'm only three weeks out and I don't know how to do those snazzy pictures, but I'd say most of my calories are still coming from shakes. Second, tuna fish, third, refried beans, fourth cheddar cheese that I mix with beans and eggs. I'll have to look at how to do those graphs! I mostly use the app on my phone, so I will have to try it on my computer again. The only junk food I've had since surgery was a sugar free pudding. It's easy to be good this soon out; I'm hungry but I can only eat a little bit at once and I have very little food in the house.

I just had surgery 3 weeks ago and I'm hungry all the time, although I can't eat very much at once. Has your hunger settled down? Everyone always talked about not being hungry after surgery and then they just tell me I'm not really hungry!

I think that's pretty normal. I'm just a few weeks out from surgery, but I am already nervous about this. Have you considered talking to a bariatric therapist? Also, agree with above posters about tracking your intake and keeping up with exercise. While exercise does not have much role in losing weight, it's been shown to be pretty effective at keeping weight off - provided your eating is in check.

Like @Hop_Scotch said, stalls are common and a normal part of any type of weight loss, not just with surgery. Sometimes you just have to keep doing what you are doing. Sometimes it can be helpful to track your intake for a few days to see if you're eating more than you think you are - like on MyFitnessPal. Make sure you're drinking enough, following all your surgery center's guidelines, etc. Plus, weight loss always slows down as you get further from your surgery date and closer to your goal weight. You can't expect to keep losing at the same rate as the first month. Don't Panic!

I feel a pain on my right side near the largest incision whether I'm walking or not... I feel like the weight loss is slower than expected, but I know it depends a lot on your starting weight. I have lost 15 lbs in the 3 weeks since surgery, so I think that's fine. My surgery BMI was 40 I believe, so I think you won't see huge weight loss unless you had a really high BMI. Plus, if you lost a lot of weight prior to surgery, you won't see much weight loss right away. Also, this is not a race... many people who lose slowly can lose all the weight they want to, it just happens over time.

Most things I've read here say that people were not hungry at all after WLS... I was hungry from about the second day. All the time, except right after a protein shake. Then people said it would get better with solid food. I started soft foods a few days ago, but although I feel tightness in my chest and back, I feel hungry right away after eating. I was not given an amount to eat ("no one can tell you how much to eat") but we were told not to eat for more than 30 minutes. This morning for breakfast I ate 1 scrambled egg with 4g of cheese and 1/2 oz (14g) of deli turkey. Last night for dinner I ate about 1/3 cup of refried beans with a bit of cheese. How do I know if the "hunger" is hunger (I feel like I could eat anything, I'm not craving anything, so I don't THINK it's head hunger) or something else? I am drinking more than 80oz of water a day, so I don't think it's thirst. I guess it could be GERD, but I am taking the omeprazole. Any ideas?

I'm facing the same thing - and my surgery was one day before yours. I attributed it to my friend's dog stepping on me, but it's still going on when moving around, not on my incision exactly. When I posted about the dog, someone mentioned nerves regenerating. I hope that's what this is!