Jillian K8

My surgery is in two days so I'm thinking WAY down the road but I'm curious - does anybody use a healthy meal delivery service like Hello Fresh, Hungryroot, etc? I'm a single mom of two with a demanding job and I wonder if it might make sense to use a service like this (eventually) to take the pressure off meal prep once or twice a week. In your opinion, are any of these services bariatric-friendly, specifically the keto plans?

Same boat. I can't do anything protein drink, protein water, protein powder. Probably same reason too (I got the flu on 3 days PO and violently puked up my protein drinks for 24 hrs). I recently tried the Koia brand and they're pea protein/vegan and it's much gentler on my stomach but I still nurse them. My doctor is happier with me getting protein from whole foods and not rely on the artificial nutrition so she says not to worry and just try my best.

Aw man, hope things turn around soon!

I had the bypass on 3/16 and have only lost 16 total. From what I've seen, that's technically low-average for bypass patients with a 300 lb starting weight. I don't really care though because I know it'll come off. I'm meeting my protein and water goals and walking 1-2 miles per day. Something's gotta give, you know? I think a lot of us are just primed to hold onto weight until the bottom gives out. But I will say the non-scale victories are something to celebrate! I can sleep through the night now, my high BP has reversed, no more GERD to manage. Hopefully you have some nsv's to look forward to. I made a list of 15 things I look forward to from this surgery that can't be 'found' on a number on a scale. I made the list for this exact scenario - when you feel like you've stalled or get discouraged. If you don't have one, I definitely recommend making one. Hopefully that helps!

I'm 12 days post op and having the strangest experience today. I'm feeling stress, for seemingly no reason, in my stomach. Hard to explain but I'm stressed for no particular reason and I'm feeling it in my stomach ONLY - knots, cramps, anxiety. Almost like the feeling you get when you're about to go on stage or waiting for a roller coaster. I woke up feeling great and happy so I have no idea where this is coming from. Have others experienced this? Gut/brain connection thing maybe? Healing related?

I'm 5 days post-op and basically just getting started with my water intake because I've been in the hospital this whole time (I caught the flu the day after my surgery). My doctor says all she cares about is me getting my water in, but try protein shakes if I can. Well, with the 1 million meds I need to take and all the puking and diarrhea I've had - I REALLY need the nutrition. She told me that the shakes count towards the liquids to reach my goal - does that mean I can alternate between a sip of water, sip of shake, sip of water, etc? Or do I have to wait 15 mins between each substance? I ask because the shakes make me thirsty and I can only handle about 3 sips of shake per day before I get grossed out. It's been a tough recovery. 😢

This is very helpful, thank you so much!

I'm 5 days post-op. I caught the stomach flu while at home and had to be readmitted so I'm writing this from my hospital bed. Prior to this morning, I couldn't keep down little tiny sips of water because I would puke it back up. I'm much more stabilized today and they want me to try to get some pudding in to get a little nutrition to help my stomach process all these meds that have been pumped into me. I took three little baby bird bites from the spoon and then had a sensation like there's a frog in my throat. Is that what 'feeling full' feels like or do you think this is still the stomach bug trying to act up?

OMG this is so exciting! Thank you so much for your tips. It helps me look forward to surgery in 2 days. 😊

Interesting! Good to hear 👍

Same. I assume some of these Keto meal kits are higher in fat than is probably good for our stomachs though.

So I saw this TikTok where instead of recording your pre & post-surgery weight, you buy a pair of jeans that you hope to fit into (like a couple sizes down) every so often. This helps you see tangible results and hopefully mitigate some of the body dysmorphia, at least better than numbers on a scale can. My surgery is on Thursday so I went to Target to buy my "incentive jeans" for my first milestone. This is the#1 store where I've wanted to buy from - off the rack - because it's usually my style AND I've seen them be more inclusive with sizes in the past couple of years. I've seen sizes 18 & 20 on the rack in the normal trendy section so I was really excited to go get my "incentive jeans" (I'm between a size 22/24 and was going for size 18)... So as luck would have it, I go to Target today and they apparently went back to small sizes, large majority of the clothing was size 10 and under... I found ONE pair of size 18 that I didn't like that much that was hidden away in a corner and they were $70 and I just.... Sighhh. My mind couldn't let me 'go there' for $70. All I could think was that I'm wasting $70 because I literally cannot conceive of myself that 'small' anymore. I guess that's a good argument to buy the jeans but all it did was plant fear and doubt in my head. So no real reason for posting this other than to kvetch about Target being jerks and to acknowledge where my mind is at pre-surgery. I don't think it'll ever stop shocking me how much this world hates fat people. Even corporations will risk profits just so they don't have to put plus size clothing on the rack! Bonkers.

This is really helpful feedback, thanks! I'm definitely going to revisit after surgery. I unfortunately donated TEN bags of clothes in 2020 where I held onto my older sizes in hopes that one day I'd fit into them. 🤦 So I have to do the shopping when I drop sizes but I want to wear something that I WANT TO WEAR that I COULDN'T before. Something fun and trendy. I'll happily purchase new clothes every so often because it'll be a reward for going through all this crap. Haha. All the money I used to spend on food, I'll just spend on clothes instead! 😂 J/k but I think do think it's a good problem to have and it's definitely a privilege that I acknowledge. I'm just so sad for the plus size folks that will have to continue to put up with the fashion gatekeeping.

That's an amazing idea!

I'm rounding the corner to my March 16 surgery date and have been on the diet for two weeks (I started a few days early to give myself some rope). *My* scale says I'm down 17 lbs from my highest weight but of course I don't believe it because my doctor's scale is always a +4lb difference - old thinking patterns creeping in. 🥴 I feel a lot better and it is noticeable to others and my clothes fit better.

March 16th!! 🎉

I know! Maybe it was an off day but I can't imagine the whole damn store was out of everything over size 10. I went with my 14 yr old daughter and were all excited to go shopping in the same section together but it was a total bust. Laaaaaaame.