La El

I got the pills because I was afraid I could not tolerate the chews because presumably they are sweet. I gag with anything sweet. Sadly, I ordered three months worth. I may need to make a trip to the drug store and try different forms.

Anyone else in Kentucky?

Today is the first day I have felt good when I got up. Okay…bad terminology. I’ve been feeling good, but super weak and dizzy from time to time. Today I felt NORMAL! Thank you, Jesus! I’M BACK!!!! 🤣 Sleeved on 9/2…down 29 lbs and I feel good! I was starting to get worried there. So…vitamins. I am taking the Bariatric Pal Multivitamin One. It is not going to be sustainable for me due to the sheer size of the capsule. I cannot fathom taking this every day for the rest of my life. Has anyone found a smaller size? Even if you have to take 2. I just can’t keep gagging this down every day. Second…anyone try the dinner mints for their calcium? I originally ordered the calcium pills. They are as big as the vitamin (or higher) and I would have to take 9 a day! That’s not happening. Was going to try the chews or mints next. Any suggestions? Hope we are all doing great!!!!

Yes! I can’t use any of the things I was depending on. No G2Z with protein, no protein shakes, no popsicles, no sf jello, no sf pudding, no yogurt….nothing sweet. It makes me so very nauseas. Blech. Sweet tooth is gone! During my week of full liquids, I pretty much lived on Progresso’s Creamy Chicken Soup broth and Manhattan clam chowder broth. They were all that tasted good to me.

I had my two week follow up today. 23 lbs lost. Staples removed. Everything is looking good. They did permit me to move on to soft foods a day early, so today I had that glorious fried egg that I’ve been craving. I also had about half a cup of cottage cheese, and I made Ricotta bake and had about half a cup of it. Tomorrow I’m making some refried beans with red sauce and cheddar…like Taco Bell used to make. I may survivor this after all. 😂

What will you do if after surgery you can no longer tolerate anything sweet..like the shakes, jello, pudding, etc? I ask only because I relied on those items and my Gatorade Zero w/protein and after surgery I have not been able to stomach any of them. I would not have survived if it weren’t for creamy chicken soup broth. 😂 Just something to think about. Tastes sometimes change drastically, apparently.

Maybe it will be. That hasn’t been my story, but it has certainly been others.

My first week was clear liquids and protein drinks weren’t allowed. This week I have been allowed, but they are just sickeningly sweet to me. I was able to get down a third of an Atkins shake by cutting the whole shake with about 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Mostly I’m living on Creamy chicken soup broth and it hits the spot. So good. Before surgery, I loved the Gatorade Zero with Protein. Now I hate it. Ditto on sf pudding…yogurt…protein shakes…anything sweet. All I want in this life is a fried egg with half a piece of toast.

I’ve probably met water goals but protein? Not even close. Doing the best I can and as I am allowed more foods, I will get closer to my goals.

So stinking proud of you! Feeling like a failure in comparison (not really…we are all different) but I am so glad you could skip the nausea. It is truly the worst. Congratulations!!!!

Thank you! Surgeon said it went beautifully. He said I must have followed his directions to the letter because the liver was perfect. I don’t understand why some have a two week liquid diet and others a two day diet. Anyway… The first ten hours or so of the gas pain was awful there was no way to turn for relief. It was in my shoulders and neck and truly unbearable. Then I started the walking and it very quickly started working its way out. I ended up staying in hospital until yesterday. The nausea has been brutal. It would come in huge waves. I was able to get up and walk fine and the pain was next to nothing except when you twist or use core muscles to try to sit up. That one large incision can cause a great deal of pain. It’s like a tearing feeling if you aren’t careful. I am doing fine with hydrating with water. Not so well with broth and protein. But…better today than yesterday. The nausea is much better today. I have slept a lot. I got up and showered on my own and overall feel much better. None of this is pleasant. There are some moments that you think will never end, but it’s doable and I am not sorry.

I got the call to be at the hospital at 10:00 am tomorrow. Surgery is around noon. Here we go!

So it turned out that there is two days of clear liquids and then nothing the morning of surgery. The letter posted to MyChart was pretty far off from what I was told at my appointments today. I am deeply grateful I did not have to do weeks. I applaud those of you who are doing that because I know it is NOT easy!!! So today is your big day!!! Yayyy!!!! The first in our group. You will do great. We are all cheering for you!

Today was my pre op appointments. I first met with the resident, then the surgeon and then the nutritionist. Then I went for my Covid test and then on to anesthesia and finally the lab. It was a busy day, but I managed to stop on the way home for a hair cut. 😅 I am starving!!! Today I drank three Gatorade Zero with protein, 3 sf jello cups, the broth from a can of chicken noodle soup mixed with a packet of ProCel for an extra 10 G protein…and probably half a box of sf popsicles. Okay, not really…but a LOT of popsicles. One more day and then surgery. Hopefully I won’t be hungry anymore after that. A big, fat taco with mild sauce would taste so good!

I've changed the way I'm eating anyway. I keep feeling like there must be some mistake, but the letter I got was pretty clear. I still want to shrink my liver...just in case. 😂 Why make it harder on them than it has to be?

September 2....just a few more days away. I've had no pre-op diet. In fact, I can drink water all the way up until 2 hours before surgery. I'm so confused about this. They are very casual about it.

This is exactly what I did. I went from the high salt nicotine to zero nicotine and had zero symptoms of giving up nicotine. It was like magic. It took three weeks for me to test nicotine and cotinine free on the Amazon strip tests, and at 4 weeks, I also tested negative on the blood test ordered by the surgeon's office.

I've been receiving all of my pre-surgery appointment check-ins. I see the surgeon on Aug. 31, then have a COVID test done, and then see anesthesia. The countdown has begun. FMLA still hasn't responded to papers submitted on July 31, so if I have to appeal or provide more info, that leaves me no time in which to do it. Things like that add so much stress, but I'm trying hard not to get caught up in worrying about it. How are my September peeps doing????

Found it...finally! It was in the only place I had not looked for it...hehe. I will add a ticker as soon as I start dropping weight. This pre op stuff...well, I have lost and gained and lost and gained the same few pounds since I started the process. Its looking like I may be 3-5 lbs. heavier than my first visit. Or perhaps not. I still have a couple of weeks.

I've clicked on everything and can't see a way to edit the My Surgery tab.

Done...well...not completely. I seem to be a little dense and cannot figure out how t o edit that section. 😚

My surgeon doesn't require a pre-op liquid diet, either...just the day before.

New here! My surgery is scheduled for 9/2. I joined here on the suggestion of someone I watch on YouTube. They said it was really helpful to have a place to discuss things with people who are at the exact same stage you are. Good luck to us all!