Victoria Wank

Sorry for the semi-duplicate post. I was falling asleep while I was writing it, and some of it disappeared. Good luck with your GP, surgeon and dermatologist. I have also dealt with hives, even before my original gastric bypass surgery. We couldn’t find any causal reason. After trying several medications alone, my doctor and I decided to try a “cocktail.” I was on 4 medications, but I only recall Ranitidine and Zyrtec. It worked! I had the gastric bypass a few years later, and the hives left me alone.$!

I have also dealt with hives, even before I had the surgery. One day they just appeared. Long red welts on my abdomen and thighs. I went to an allergist, who couldn’t determine any cause for the hives. I was diagnosed with Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria (hives that have been there for longer than 2 weeks without apparent cause. After trying several medications alone, my doctor and I decided to try a “cocktail.” I was on 4 medications, but I only remember Ranitidine and Zyrtec. When the hives showed up again, we tried a couple of different combinations and finally landed on Doxepin and Benadryl. If I go a few days without the meds, the hives start itching again. During one stay in the hospital, the doctors gave me a topical cream called Sansa. It’s helpful.

I suspect you feel the construction of the chair, because you have less padding. Buy some memory foam or gel cushions.

Maybe the fact that you are practically starving yourself is the problem. Even with the weight-loss, your body still needs enough calories, including protein, carbs, and fats to burn. That’s when you start (or continue) losing weight. When you start eating too few calories, your body reads that as famine. It holds onto whatever calories it can. Your best bet is to eat enough calories that you and your body don’t think you’re in a famine.

I know exactly how you’re feeling! I get the feeling of food being stuck in my stomach pouch. It’s very uncomfortable. The only thing that makes it feel better is throwing up. I’m okay with soft foods (mashed potatoes, oatmeal, Cream of Wheat, pudding, protein shakes). The only solid food that I’m confident in eating is Ritz Toasted Chips. I can stuff myself with those chips and dip and have no problems. Only recently have I been able to handle chicken, and even then, I have to be careful. Beef still gives me problems, although ground is better. I have to try the trick where you add water to ground beef.

I’ve been undergoing revision on my 2004 gastric bypass. I’ve noticed that my hair looks and feels thinner. I hadn’t connected it to the revision. Thank you!

You’ll stop losing weight at some point. Don’t freak out, but eventually the surgery stops working. Also, your body knows when to stop. Then you have to learn how to maintain without the help.

You’ll stop losing weight at some point. Don’t freak out, but eventually the surgery stops working. Also, your body knows when to stop. Then you have to learn how to maintain without the help.

I had problems with water, too. It was uncomfortable, just sitting in my stomach pouch. I found that if I added sugar free drink mix, I could get it down. Now there’s “Cirkul.” They’re flavor cartridges, with sugar free flavors. You get one of their bottles, plastic or stainless steel, and you screw in one of the cartridges. Put ice and water inside, and turn the dial until you get to the strength you want. It may help get the water down. Don’t gulp the water at first. Save that for later when your stomach can handle it.

I had that, too.

Oddly enough, I find it easier to eat grains than protein. There are low-carb cereals available on the internet, as well as some health foods supermarkets. There are also recipes for low-carb cereal. Don’t be afraid to try it.

I would doubt that any insurance company would cover all plastic surgery. It’s generally considered to be cosmetic.

It’s a very different situation. I had RNY back in 2004. I lost a lot of weight and maintained it for 18 months. Then it started creeping back on. When I was finally ready for a revision (somewhere around 2014-ish, different team), the team kept losing my endoscopy results. I finally lost interest. In the last few years, I’ve felt ready to try again. My insurance has changed, as have revision methods. My insurance approved a procedure called Endoscopy with Argon Plasma Coagulation. They make the opening to the stomach pouch smaller by zapping it and creating scar tissue, making it smaller. I had the first procedure in 2022. Unfortunately, the surgeon didn’t tell me that there were more to come. No one reached out to schedule the next procedure. I assumed that the revision consisted of that one procedure. That’s why I thought the revision wasn’t working for me. When I spoke with my surgeon, she was surprised that I had done as well as I had with just that one time, as well as the fact that no one had contacted me to schedule the next procedure. I’ve had the second procedure, and I have continued to lose weight. I know the stalls are maddening, and if it continues for more than a few weeks, talk to your surgeon.

Most, if not all, of us have experienced a stall in weight loss not long after having the surgery. Check your bowels; you may be constipated. Just stick with the program. Talk to your surgeon, if you don’t see progress. I did that and discovered that I had had only the first of several procedures in my revision surgery.

The major fatigue will get better. It’s a result of the surgery. As for the “3-week stall,” check your bowels. Have you had a bowel movement since the surgery? I ended up in the ER with severe constipation. The doctor prescribed Miralax and Lactulose.

Have you spoken to your primary care physician? Perhaps he/she could order some labs to see what your levels are. May be an answer there.

Check your constipation. I found that being backed up often accompanied a stall. You’re in the 3rd week, which means you’ve been consuming only liquids. You don’t have the fiber intake you used to.

As far as chicken goes, dark meat is much moister than white meat. Pieces that have the bone in and skin on tend to be more moist, especially if you bake them. You can take the skin off afterward if you want.

As far as chicken goes, dark meat is much moister than white meat. Pieces that have the bone in and skin on tend to be more moist, especially if you bake them. You can take the skin off afterward if you want.

Thank you for clarifying and for reminding me about water weight. Yesterday my scale told me I had gained 4 pounds. I couldn’t figure it out, until I remembered that I had been receiving IV fluids for almost 48 hours when I was in the hospital (not surgery-related).

You shouldn’t be experiencing a slow weight loss at only 2 weeks out, especially if this is the original bariatric surgery. Even with a revision, you shouldn’t be stalled (speaking as someone who has been). Looking at the ingredients in your meatball shake, though, I’m not surprised. The meatballs, ricotta and Parmesan are heavy, even though they’ve been blitzed. It sounds like you’re trying to move through the food stages to get to “regular” food again too quickly. This reminds me of a scene in an episode of “ER,” where a bariatric patient swore he was drinking his shakes. Turns out, the ingredients were pizza, an entire fried chicken dinner, and any kind of fast food you can think of, all blended in a blender. We all understand how it feels to be so desperate to get to solid-(ish) foods. The best thing we can do is follow the plan to the letter (and keep after the constipation, that’ll weigh you down, too). Take care, and keep up the good work.

Probably the best way to purée chicken is to blend it in a blender or food processor with chicken or other stock until it’s the texture you’re looking for. Add a thickening agent, such as tapioca flour, if needed. Yes, chicken meat can be dryer than other meats, but the dark meat is moister

Okay. But by eating mashed potatoes, you’re eating both vegetables and carbs. I’m with you on the fish, unless you’re making something like salmon mousse. There are websites that sell low carb versions of some of our favorite foods, including Bariatric Pal, Bariatric Eating, and Diet Direct. My post-surgery regimen went: liquid (broth, shakes), soft foods (yogurt, ricotta, cottage cheese, eggs), soft cheeses, soft fish, hard cheeses, flaky fish, chicken and low carb veggies, the rest of the meat group.

I’m surprised at the mashed potatoes. Haven’t you and your surgeon ever heard the phrase. “If it’s white, it’s not right”? That means pasta, potatoes, sugar, bread, and rice. I’m not sure about the hunger pains, but maybe it’s that the part of your brain that controls hunger hasn’t quite caught up to the new body chemistry from the surgery. Now that you’re able to eat soft foods, you can satisfy the hunger pains. Also, don’t gnaw your arm off. That’s meat, and you’re not allowed to eat that yet😄😉

When I was preparing for my original gastric bypass, my surgeon was worried he might not be able to do it laparoscopically because of my weight. He needed my liver to be smaller. He was actually “threatening” to not do it at all, unless I lost enough weight. I bought all kinds of Atkins shakes, and that’s all I consumed for 4 weeks. I lost 30 pounds. It was enough to keep my surgery. He also recommended clear liquids for the first week afterwards. I bought chicken stock and added red pepper flakes to it.