SleeveToBypass2023

I appreciate it

I had a total abdominal hysterectomy on May 7th. I was in the hospital for 3 days and 2 nights. The initial surgery took 3 hours because not only did they remove my uterus, cervix, fallopian tubes, and ovaries, but they also had to call in general surgery to detach my intestines from my uterus (was attached with lesions in 3 places). My heart actually did really well and there were no complications.....with that. But it wouldn't be me if there wasn't something wrong somewhere. Ok, so I get back to recovery and seem to be doing well. Blood pressure is a little low, but all in all, not too bad. About an hour into my recovery, the nurse notices a lot of blood. She checks me and apparently I was hemorrhaging blood and clots. I went through 3 big pads in 25 minutes. Just as I came to, I was told I would have to go back into surgery on an emergency basis. My surgeon was with me and actually held my hand the whole way back to the OR and while I was being prepped. The 2nd surgery took almost 2 hours but they got the 2 places that popped internal stitches on the vaginal cuff re-stitched. I was in recovery again for another 2 hours and then was FINALLY allowed to go to my room. My husband was extremely panicked and white as a ghost. He made all the necessary calls and told me he was scared. I felt awful for him. I had to get 2 units of blood because I lost so much. I'm normally on the low side of normal because I'm chronically anemic. My blood pressure was also extremely low for over a day. They gave me a 1/2 liter saline bolus while I was getting the blood transfusion because my blood pressure was staying around 82/39 and thereabouts. It was around 4pm on day 3 that my blood pressure stabilized enough to go home (it stayed around about 93/55 for 4-5 hours). Since I've been home, I sleep a lot, I walk 3-5 times per day, I just finally got off my pain meds and can get by with tylenol. I'm not cleared to drive or exercise, but I walk the apartment complex a couple times a day and that seems to do well. Still have some pain at the incision (it's about 6-7 inches long at the bikini line) and the muscles and nerves under the incision ache sometimes. I can only sit at the computer for about 15 minutes at a time, so this is the first chance I've had to type this out. I had to go to my doctor yesterday because 2 stitches on the right side of my incision popped and I had to be re-stitched. That really sucked, but it is what it is. I'm on leave from work for 6 weeks (well, 5 now). I normally heal well, but this one is really slow going. I'm already on estrogen patches (Climera) but I was told it takes anywhere from a couple of weeks to 2 months for the estrogen to fully kick in and get my hormones regulated. Lemme tell ya, I've been riding the crazy train, complete with night sweats, hot flashes and flushes, and insane mood swings. Can't wait to feel normal. Initially, I gained 13 pounds of water weight in the hospital, but it's slowly working it's way off. Once all the water is gone, I can't wait to see how much weight has actually dropped since my lady parts were removed (everything together, including the huge fibroids, weighed 3 pounds) so I'll start weighing myself again in about a week. That's about it!! So glad to finally be done with everything. Once I'm fully healed and on the other side of this, WATCH OUT!!! lol

Unfortunately, it doesn't get a whole lot better. My stomach frequently sounds like it's possessed by a demon and trying to break free. Especially during quiet time or sexy time. Sometimes Gas-X helps, but more often than not, I just sound crazy.

It's in my signature lol It's 180.

Thank you!!!

Thank you both so much!!!

Thank you for the links and thank you for the compliment!!!

Thank you!!! It's getting hot and I just wanted a change. And with the long hair gone, my natural waves came out more

How are things going now?

So how did it go?

If you look at my signature, you can see my highest weight and my initial surgery weight. I was on 2 diabetes meds and about to have to start insulin. I was on a blood pressure med, a cholesterol med, and 2 different anti-inflammatories because my joints hurt so bad whenever I walked. Every single bit of that is gone, I'm off those meds, and I couldn't be happier. My only regret is that I didn't do the bypass sooner.

Awesome, congrats!!!

I take the BariatricPal Multivitamin w/ 45mg of iron. They're awesome.

Everything @NickelChip just said. This, this, this!!! Also, just be careful with the fruit cups and bananas. Other than that, looks good. I personally would incorporate a little more meat in there. I eat red meat once or twice a week. There's also keto bread, keto slim bagels, and keto blueberry muffin mix at WalMart (I use all of them and love them). Blueberries and strawberries are also fantastic, as are apples in moderation. Avocado is another go-to (personally, I love avocado toast in the morning). Smoothies made with almond milk, collagen powder, greens, and fruits of my choosing go a lot farther for me than a protein shake. Mostly because you want to get your protein from foods you're eating instead of drinks and snacks. I love Propel water, and I also love Gatorade Zero. I eat almonds (plain, smokehouse, hickory smoked, mesquite, all the things). Put a handful of almonds, some meat sticks or cubes, and cheese cubes in a container or baggie and you have a delicious, compliant, protein packed snack. I usually do that and also take mixed fruit (I'll slice a small apple and add a few strawberries and a handful or so of blueberries and that's my 2nd snack of the day) with me to work and it gets me through (I'm a clinical medical assistant so I'm on my feet a lot).

My surgeons office cared about protein, fluids, carbs, and healthy fats for the first 6 months. Then they said to watch calories, but not really before then. They said to keep calories between 700 - 900 on non work out days and 1000 - 1100 on work out days. I did that for a while, but now I have that increased a bit since I'm farther out and do heavier work outs and have a job where I'm on the go all the time (clinical medical assistant at an infectious disease office).

This is absolutely FANTASTIC!!! Congrats, you look wonderful

Also, grapes are sugar bombs and bananas are higher in sugar and carbs. I would limit those. I love strawberries, blueberries, and apples. You only need 60-70g of protein on non work out days and up to 90g on workouts. No need to go as high as you are. I like meat and cheese cubes for a snack, almonds, sugar free jello, and if I really want to splurge then keto brownies. The packaged snacks should be a RARE treat since they have a lot of other unhealthy things in them. Better to have fruit and other compliant snacks. Meal prepping is your friend.

Right off the bat, I say drop your carbs to no more than 50 or 60g per day, get rid of the packaged snacks, and make sure your fluids are where they need to be every day. On days you work out, you need more calories and carbs and fluids. On days you don't, you need less. Make sure you change up your work outs, too. And keep in mind a couple of things. Muscle weighs more than fat, and you've had a kid. It may not be possible for your body to get where it was pre pregnancy.

Ok I'm the QUEEN of stalls lol So here's what I can say. Take from it what you will. Cold hands and feet: I have that, and for me, it's due to weight loss AND low iron. I'm anemic, so I take a bariatric vitamin w/ iron and an additional iron supplement w/ vit c and it keeps my iron levels at the lowest part of normal. When it dips down, my hands and feet are like literal ice cubes. Breaking a long stall: So I tend to gain 3-5 pounds when a stall hits and then lose the same 1-3 pounds over and over until it breaks (and I lose like 6 or 7 pounds all at once). My stalls can last anywhere from several weeks to 3 months. It SUX. When I have a stall, I change up my work out routine to confuse my body. If you do the same things in the same order every day, your body gets used to it and gets complacent and the work out becomes less affective. So I add new things, take things out, add or take away reps, etc. I pay extra close attention to what I eat and when. On work out days, my fluids, protein, calories, and carbs MUST be higher because if not, my body thinks it's starving and holds on to everything. I prioritize fluids, protein, and low carb above all else, but I still make sure that I'm at a calorie deficit while getting in enough to prevent my body from thinking its starving. I also only weigh myself once per week and pay special attention to NSVs, because even when the scale isn't doing what you want, your body still is. Fat gets redistributed, you slim down, that's when you see you drop sizes in clothes, rings, etc... When I work out, I keep my calories at around 1300 - 1400 depending on what work outs I do. I drink an electrolyte drink (Propel or gatorade zero) and an additional 64oz of fluids at LEAST. I keep my protein at 80-90g, my carbs at 40-50g, and healthy fats at 40-50g. When I'm not working out, I keep my calories at around 1000 - 1150, my fluids at around 64oz, my protein between 60-70g, my carbs between 20-30g, and my healthy fats between 20-30g. We need less when we aren't working out. We need more when we are. Just keep at a deficit while still providing more when working out. And make sure you change up the work outs. Right now, your body is really confused. You have to be patient with it, but at the same time, show it who's boss and shake things up to get it going again. You still have time to get where you want to be. Make sure you're not grazing through the day, be mindful what you're eating, when, and how often. Go back to your bariatric diet basics if you need to. You got this.

I could technically start looking now, but I want to give it a year AFTER I hit my final goal weight to see how my weight holds and how bad the fluctuations are (if there are any). I also want to give my body a rest. I have basically ZERO boobs and my butt just went and eff'd off. In a perfect world, I'd like to get a lower body lift, upper body lift, boob job, and whatever I need to correct the turkey neck I now have. HOWEVER, I don't know that I can realistically do all that. So a boob job, tummy tuck, and my neck are really my must haves. Everything else, I can work around with my clothes. I just don't want to undo the plastics by getting them too soon and then losing more weight and needing them done again. I'd rather make sure my body and weight are COMPLETELY stable before I invest that kind of money.

I'm ugly crying!!! I made it to ONEderland!! Omg!!!! 4 more pounds to go to hit goal!!!

I agree with @swimbikerun. Don't go off of us exceptions. It's actually not common to lose a lot with a revision. Go into it expecting about 50% less weight loss than what you had with your initial surgery. Then if you lose more, it's a pleasant surprise. But if you don't, you're already prepared for that.

This is something that never stops. You have to watch what you eat, how much you eat, how often you eat. You have to move your body more. Prioritize protein first, then veggies, then carbs, then healthy fats. Fluid intake never stops. You have to get 64oz at least. Avoid the slider foods, avoid grazing. Cut the salt. And switch to sugar free and no sugar added sweets if you really can't stay away from them (I have never been a big sweets person. I'm not even a huge fan of chocolate). This is something I would thing your surgeon and nutritionist would have gone over with you before you had the surgery. This isn't a magic cure all. It's a tool to use to get your weight and health where it needs to be.

Detox is a fad. Our bodies have kidneys and a liver. They do all the detoxing we need. Now that we've had these surgeries, we have to be more mindful about what we do and don't eat. I would stay away from these fads, increase your fluids, stick to your bariatric diet, move your body and exercise (sweat is a good way to flush out your system, too) and leave the detox stuff alone. They don't provide a real benefit and they can actually do harm.

You have to get back to basics. Remember why you did the surgery and go from there. Are you moving your body and exercising? How much are you eating and how often? If you're having coffees, have them plain black with the ready made protein shakes added in. You always want to prioritize protein, then veggies, then carbs, then healthy fats. Fluid intake is an absolute MUST. Since caffeine dehydrates you, you need to increase your other fluids to compensate for it. Watch your grazing and slider foods, salt and sugar intake, and watch the bad carb intake (you don't have to completely eliminate them but definitely limit them).