ClareLynn

Others can suggest goals but … it’s your body and ultimately your goals. My surgeon didn’t give me a target either. Just shared stats on average weight loss for my procedure. I have two goals. One is how much weight I need to lose to be healthier and feel like I can move freely. Another is a lower weight that I used to be a while ago. As I get closer I’ll find out how achievable that second goal was and adjust as needed.

I have BCBS and had to have my doctor provides notes from my visits over the past 6 months showing that she talked with me about diet and exercise. It also had to include my weight. All but one of my visits were virtual (I saw her every 3 months for diabetes) and they accepted the notes. Think she also wrote a letter.

I do better with “thin” shakes that don’t have thickeners. I’m able to sip much more often that way. I’ve also had lots of success with protein jello from bariwise and mixing unflavored protein into jello pudding to get extra protein in.

I like to break stalls with epic poops 💩

This is why they want you on a backup method of birth control (like condoms or an iud) since your contraceptive pill may not work as well for the first year.

Yeah, I guess that’s what is bothering me. It doesn’t feel very good to keep pushing back the goal posts on how much I have to lose to make any difference. Thanks it helps to hear that it did resolve for some people after a while and otherwise hey even normal weight people have these problems too. I had really believed the “losing weight will fix everything” and with no improvement after 93 lbs lost, was feeling real bad about myself.

I've read here on this forum that RNY is better at reducing GERD. I had very bad GERD before surgery due to a hiatal hernia and at the time didn't know that RNY was better than VSG for people with GERD. My surgeon recommended that I do the loop duodenal switch (SADI) which is a VSG with extra intestine work. My GERD is exactly the same after the surgery as it was before. It didn't change at all (though to be fair I still have the hernia). It's mostly controlled with 40mg omeprazole 2x a day. I think it's nice to still have a working pyloric valve at the end of my stomach and would make the same decision again if I had to.

What did your surgeon say when you called today?

I have been having trouble with most shakes because they have sucralose (gives me diarrhea), aspartame (gives me migraines), inulin/chicory root/prebiotic fiber (gives me mean gas), or milk (makes my stomach upset). So I have been unsuccessfully trying to get enough protein without any dairy or protein shakes, just meat. I just tried a new protein powder: Muscle Feast which is a whey protein isolate. I tried the chocolate flavor which is sweetened with stevia. I like that it completely dissolved in almond milk without clumping or being gritty. It only lightly foamed which quickly subsided after a couple minutes. It is very thin. It only uses sunflower letchitin for thickening. I didn't mind thick shakes pre-op but post op, I want it as thin as water so I can get it down. It has a bitter aftertaste. I usually don't get an aftertaste with stevia when I bake but this stuff definitely hits the back of your tongue. After a couple ounces though I didn't notice the aftertaste anymore thankfully. I think it's a wee bit too sweet and will probably dilute it a bit to make it less sweet. I am really sweet aversive post-op so to someone else this may not be sweet enough at all. Just thought I would share since I hadn't seen this brand mentioned on the forums before. If anyone else has a protein powder that is just isolate + cocoa + stevia, let me know because I'd like to try a few more powders before making a lifetime commitment. 😉

That is how my gallbladder attacks feel. I’m getting it removed in two weeks. I recommend calling your surgeon to figure out what’s wrong.

I have gallbladder removal surgery scheduled for February 3rd. He said that I should feel a lot better a couple weeks after it is out. He thinks it's been making me feel bad for weeks and that may be what has been slowing down my ability to drink and eat enough. The physician's assistant said I would be back to work in 3-5 days (I work from home). Hopefully I recover quickly because after 5 weeks of leave, I feel like it puts me in a bad spot at work to have to have another surgery again so soon.

Well I never got to the part where I had to drink half and half. 😅 My gallbladder didn’t show up on the HIDA scan after three hours which the technician said meant something is blocked and they will probably take it out. Just waiting to get home now and call my surgeon.

I’m at the hospital and I guess there is a shortage of the radioactive stuff. The test is being delayed while they wait for it. Though I’m hanging out in the waiting room so I can still have the test today. Also the cck is in short supply lately so even though my order says HIDA scan with CCK they are going to give me half and half instead to simulate a fatty meal. I’m not even sure I can drink 8oz of milk stuff in time for the test (5min). I’m lactose intolerant and can’t even drink that much water in an 30 minutes. We will see what happens!

I have stage iv endometriosis with multiple laparoscopy surgeries and so much adhesions you can feel them through my skin. I had to have physical therapy to release the worst ones. The surgeon wasn’t concerned about them at all and did my surgery with the davinci robot (7 incisions).

When I applied to have surgery they measured my height and I had lost an inch since when I was a teenager. It bumped up my BMI and helped qualify me for surgery. Who knew you can get shorter?! 😅

The burning and uncomfortable stomach feeling when trying to eat better sounds like my heartburn. It’s worse when I eat less, and carbs like bread “soak up the acid”. I often confuse feeling hungry with acid reflux symptoms. Just a thought in case you haven’t considered worsening acid reflux. When I have it under control it’s much easier to eat the way I want.

Turns out I have gallbladder sludge? Gross. Next up is a HIDA scan to see how my gallbladder is doing. It's been over 3 weeks with constant pain from this, so I want some resolution but also... I really don't want another surgery! So far my attempt to return back to work isn't going so well because I feel so sick all the time. Thank god I'm working from home so no one can see me with my heating heating pads hunched over typing. 😅

I had a loop duodenal switch (SADI) and took off 5 weeks as the surgeon recommended. I was really bad off and in/out of the ER the first two weeks. Later I’ve been dealing with other things like gallbladder pain, trouble swallowing… let’s just say I was so thankful I took the time off. I would have been in pain trying to sit in the office all day and needed a lot of time to push fluids and food. Hell it’s still hard 7 weeks out to work and take proper care of myself. Y’all who took off just a few days amaze me.

This is why I didn’t tell my family and said I was getting a hernia repaired. I didn’t want to argue or talk about any of it. I’ll let them figure it out later when I’m feeling and looking better.

I am having similar pain (stomach and back) that comes and lasts for hours then eventually goes away. I saw the surgeon and when he pressed on my gallbladder it hurt. I’m getting an ultrasound Tuesday to check for stones. Definitely ask your surgeon about the pain!

I contacted them yesterday and they fixed it this morning.

I had the loop DS 7 weeks ago and have lost 33 lbs (83 total). My three week stall ended up lasting a while 3 weeks. 😅 I am really happy with my progress. I feel well. My face looks like me again, and I keep sitting awkwardly on my now saggy stomach. I can still only eat 1.5oz at a meal and am not hitting any goals but the surgeon is happy with my progress.

I am 6 weeks post op and am struggling with the same things! I keep my water right in front of me but if I’m drinking then I am not working (need two hands to type). So I haven’t been getting as much water since going back to work. Luckily I work from home so at least the bathroom trips aren’t an issue. I’m not sure how I would deal with that in an office…

I had my 6 week checkup with the surgeon. He said that if the hernia is still bothering me at the 6 month mark he will go back in and fix it. He's hoping that once the swelling goes down more it will cause fewer problems. It's such a small hernia I'm surprised it is so troublesome! Since I guess I just love trouble, I'm having an ultrasound of my gallbladder next week to see if it needs to be removed. Fingers crossed that it stops hurting and behaves! 😂 He reassured me that I don't have to try to eat/drink as much as the dietician keeps telling me which is a big relief. With everything going on in my insides, I am seriously not hungry and eating is very uncomfortable.

The swallow test showed my little hernia buddy again, which is slowing down how quickly things move into my stomach and is causing a backup. So it's not exactly normal for it to back up but he thinks it will get better as I heal over another few months. I chatted with the surgeon about when my throat backs up and he wants me to take a lot longer between sips, minutes, and don't even try to get in 64oz a day. He said he doesn't expect someone even 3 months out to get that much water and trying to hit the goal just won't work until things loosen up in there I guess. I loooove that my surgeon and dietician say completely different things. I'm going with what the surgeon says and just eat/drink whatever fits down the hatch easily without trying to hit these goals. She was really riding me hard about not getting 64oz an 80g of protein and doing whatever it took to cram it in.