vegasgirl44

Princess, your chili recipe reminded me of some I made preop. All I used was one can of black beans, undrained, 1 lbs of ground turkey breast, and one can of those stewed tomatoes-Mexican style and undrained. Then I got one of those low sodium chili mixes like Lawry's or McCormicks in the little package. I basically followed the instructions on the back of the package and it was soooooo good. And very easy. I can't wait to have it again in a couple of weeks. It is chock-full of protein and the tomatoes are good for source of potassium, which I have been lacking. I can tell because I'm prone to leg cramps and usually eat a banana, but I can't have bananas now. Yummy! You made me so hungry. LOL!

I do not advocate drinking milk one day post op at ALL. I'm following the instructions of my surgeon. Clear liquids does not include milk. However a clear liquid does include Isopure or IDS whey bullets or some other source that I don't know of. Therefore, I absolutely stand by my advice. Plus, I don't see what advice you are disagreeing with. Walking, drinking clear liquids and protein are all part of the healing process. Perhaps you ladies should go back and look at your postop instructions. I said ABSOLUTELY nothing about weight loss being a priority and I don't believe DEBSKI did either. I would NEVER tell someone to go against the wishes of their surgeon. I have lost 26 lbs in this process. I must be doing something right. Good luck!

I so feel your pain.....at least the big belly thing. I feel about 6 months pregnant, if not more. It's so annoying because I've lost 26 lbs so far and I still feel fat. I just want it to go away. Plus the pain in my shoulder is horrible at times. When I toot, I want to throw a party.

Insurance companies don't care if you lose all your co-morbidities, etc., and don't have to take meds anymore or save them money "down the road" because they are banking on the fact that somewhere soon down that road, you won't have that insurance anymore. If you have surgery, they pay for it, and then you get another job, and they are out that money. I have BCBS of Tennessee and I suppose my company, PSI Solutions Inc. decided to opt of of that. Bummer! I had to go self pay. I got an account with CareCredit and I am already having to make payments starting Sept 10th. I don't care. To me, it's like a car payment. Say Hello to my new car, people!

I had surgery on 8-14 and my postop was today. I came home and "celebrated" with 4 of those little sugar free pudding cups for lunch. Needless to say, I have had nothing the rest of the day. This is the first day I have felt was restriction feels like. The pressure and tightness bordering on being uncomfortable and near pain. I'm sure I ate them too fast, and of course, I should have stopped at 1 or 2. I think the idea is to try new food little by little. A little bit at a time and slowly. I honestly think that if I ate roasted chicken right now, I would have to stop soon. But I'm with the rest of you about the refried beans. I bought a couple cans of those, some sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes, and some other things yesterday. I can't WAIT for week 3 to get here!

My stomach is still poofy from surgery, so I would give anything to be able to pass gas right now. It's not leaving my body and then travels up to my left shoulder, no matter how much I walk. Is this gas still leftover from having your surgery, or is this just a new condition that has resulted from the surgery? At least you guys are laughing about it. LOL!

I would suggest some more concentrated protein drink that doesn't add a lot of calories. For example, Isopure and IDS whey bullets. They are clear liquids. I think you need more protein. That was my problem a couple of days ago. I was ravenous. Also, I have been walking vigorously each night, at least a mile. Doing that and drinking water while you are walking pretty much diminishes your appetite. Trust me. I had gained 6 lbs in surgery and I had NO food for 2 days, being hooked up to an IV the whole time. I still have a gas tummy, but I don't feel gassy. I must have gas though, because I have had intermittent left shoulder pain that gets quite painful. Whether I walk or not. Good luck. I think we have all been there at one time or another.

I had surgery on 8-14, went for my post-op appt today, and my doc showed me pics of a giant hiatal hernia he fixed while in there. To say I was stunned is putting it mildly. I had no symptoms of any kind.....ever. But he said it's pretty common and I suppose a large population has them, especially if you're obese, tend to lie down after eating, burp a lot, etc....And it can get worse. So, hiatal hernia gone. Learn something new everyday, I suppose.

Charlie, try the fruit punch bullet and mix it with some Crystal Light fruit punch and it's pretty good. I've never tried the other flavors. Good luck.

Ok, I'm about 5 days postop and my belly looks like it's about 8 months pregnant.... still. I drink water and walk every day. I've tooted appropriately and BMd more than I thought necessary. I'm tired of this. Has this happened to anyone else and when did it go away? I don't see my surgeon till Wednesday. Any thoughts? Advice?:biggrin:

Paula, I'm right there with you. I actually cheated yesterday and had cream of chicken soup 3 days early, but I'm back to clear liquids. I would suggest taking in more protein. Get those IDS bullets, mix half a tube with crystal light and sip it for a while. You need protein to keep you full. Yesterday, I was starving. Hence the soup. Today, I'm upping my protein and I actually feel ok....less weak also. Good luck!

littlefroggy, you must be talkin' to me! I gained 6 lbs in surgery and it's taken me since last Thursday to take it off. I think I've just about lost it all. Now, I'm back to my preop weight loss of 21 lbs. I saw a post of someone who lost 17 lbs in 5 days! I thought I was gonna cry! I think it's fluids and gas. My tummy looks like it's about 7 months pregnant. Don't be surprised if yours stays bloated for a while. Someone else had surgery on July 29th and she said her tummy is just now going down. I had to go back to my fat jeans for today. It's kind of discouraging, but just know that there are other people in your boat with you. Good luck! You will be fine.

Yikes! I forgot to say good luck to you tomorrow. You will be great! Bonnie

Debbie, just put your cursor over the graphic of one that you like. For instance, many people use different sites for different graphics. So, for the ticker, put your mouse over the ticker graphic, click on it, and it will take you to a site where you create a user and password and you can create your own ticker. It takes a little getting used to. I had to do it a couple of times before I got it right. Then when you are done, you have to copy and paste your code onto your signature line in your User Control Panel. Then pick any graphic you like for the August Allstars, and you pretty much do the same.

Misty, I can't even have my regular protein drinks until next week. I have to have clear liquids now and so I have to get that by my IDS protein bullets and Isopure. I just crave something will some real flavor and substance to it. Hence, the cream of chicken fiasco.

I'd be interested in the chicken salad freezing thing. I LUV chicken salad and if I could make a bunch and freeze it, that would be awesome. Keep us posted!

Cutie, I'm so jealous that you can have real food so soon after surgery. It just amazes me how all these docs are so different. I won't be eating real food till probably the end of September sometime. Geez! I'm still on clear liquids, but last night I got RAVENOUS and needed something with flavor so I made a can of special request Cream of Chicken soup and sucked it down. It was sooooo good. I feel like I cheated and I kept thinking "OMG! I hope I didn't ruin my band healing!" I do know I need more protein, so I'm gonna start sucking on those Whey Protein Bullets I bought, I guess. I don't need my damn hair falling out! Sheeeeeet! LOL!

I'm just so amazed at all the people who've lost so much weight since the surgery!!! I've still got about 1 lb to take off to get back to the morning of my surgery. But I lost 21 lbs postop. I know I'm losing, but I'm just so mad that I put on that much weight having surgery. Grrrr!! Yjgirl...did you lose any before surgery? I just find it astounding that you've lost that much weight in less than a week. Wow!

Lauralee, I know how you feel....I'm just trying to get the 6 lbs LOST that I GAINED the day of surgery! I am frustrated too, and can't imagine having to wait the 3 weeks that Mommymj had to wait for the swelling to go down or the MONTH for Hilda. Wow! I dread going back to work on Thursday. The people I told will wonder what happened and the people I DID NOT tell will just think I'm PREGNANT! It's funny because I just haven't read many posts talking about this particular problem, so I feel so isolated. I'm glad (but sorry for you guys, too) that there are other people who feel like I do. Thanks everybody!

cakegal, I guess you can be glad your scale is moving. I gained 6 lbs WITH the surgery and have finally just about lost it as of this morning. It's so frustrating. And I DO feel like I have a baby in there. Today will be the first day I wear my regular clothes to take my daughter to a doc appt and I'm afraid of how they will fit. It's not like I can suck it in. Grrr!!

You know, you could be right! I would think that before I left, they would have told me about it. But most likely, they forget to take it off. And that's exactly where it was on me. So, my port site should be around that biggest incision then. I just can't feel it at all. See, Trish, that should make you feel better already. LOL!

I think that's normal. I have 6 holes. 5 of them are practically healed. The biggest one down closer to my waistline hurts the most and pulls when I get up. The funny thing is that I have no idea where my port is??? I don't know if that big one is the incision or not because when I got home, there was a strange metal button snap pad under my left breast off to the side. I wondered if this was the location of the port? Does the port location require stitches on the outside or just the inside? So see. Don't feel stupid. My questions are weird too, which I hope to get answered when I see the surgeon on Wednesday.

Wow! I can't believe you are home 4 hours after surgery! I know you feel great now and everything, but just take it easy. Sometimes day 2 can be worse than the op day. You don't want to overdo it. And I don't know about the dehydration thing. I was hooked up to an IV for over 24 hours. Good luck!

Jenbug, I hear ya! I could eat an entire rotisserie chicken right now. I have no idea why chicken, but it just sounds so good. I see my doc on Wed, and then I begin my second week postop of cream liquids. Not even mushies yet. Today is the first day I feel weak. I had gained 6 lbs postop and finally lost 3 of that yesterday, but today I feel like I need some real food. Trying to get the protein in with the ISOPURE drink. It tastes a little like weak KoolAid to me. And forget the 3 Tablespoons of this and that. I have been eating 2 Jello cups at a sitting, 1 cup of chicken broth, 1/2 cup Isopure, etc. I know the reason for the initial liquids is to help the stomach form around the band, but how could sucking on a chocolate bar prevent that from happening? LOL!

THis is crazy, but I feel so frustrated. If I was just on a high protein diet like my boyfriend, and I had a craving, I would just submit to it. But now that I have the band, I simply CAN'T cheat. It's not even an option like it is for him. I know that's the point. But for crying out loud! What I would do for a roasted chicken and chocolate bar right now. And I'm sitting here trying to figure out if I'm really hungry. I don't think I am, but the point is that I'm not satisfied. I just hope that in a few weeks when I start eating real food, I can be satisfied again.