NickelChip

I have noticed a hiccup/belch type of thing that will happen as I get near the end of my meal that I think means I'm getting full. I've often had only one bite left at the first hiccup, and I've eaten it without any kind of pain, but maybe that means that was just the right amount for me.

To rule out the possibility of a post-op leak, I did a swallow test the morning after my surgery (with a thinner liquid, not that chalky stuff). I got to watch on the monitor as the liquid went down my throat, into my pouch, and through to my intestine in the amount of time it took for me to carry on some chit chat with the imaging tech. It was less than a minute before the liquid was nearly all gone from the pouch and traveling through my intestines. Having watched it with my own eyes, I feel the evidence is pretty strong that waiting a full 30 minutes to "empty" your pouch of water is nonsense.

Take a few deep breaths, and then watch this video for reassurance from a bariatric specialist:

A final update for this thread: I had my gastric bypass on Feb 21! Check in went smoothly. I changed into my hospital gown, got my IV inserted, and was given a number of medications to take before being moved to a waiting area where I got onto a gurney. The various members of the surgery team came by to introduce themselves and check on various things. Finally, the anesthesiologist came by and gave me "something to relax" via my IV port. A minute later, I was being wheeled into the hallway, and that's the last thing I remember until waking up in my hospital room. I never saw the inside of the OR, and I have no memory of the recovery area afterward, either. The surgery itself took much longer than anticipated, about 6 hours. I was fine and safe the whole time, but the surgeon ran into some issues with my small intestine and a small abdominal mass (sent to pathology and was benign) that required additional steps. Because of this, I was surprised to wake up in my hospital room and discover it was already 9pm when my surgery began at 1pm! My poor mom had been so worried because we thought it would take maybe 3 hours max. The nurses checked on me several times that night. I was able to get up to use the toilet on my own, and the only real challenge was the IV pole having to be dragged along. I was very fortunate that I ended up with no roommate. It wasn't technically a private room, but no one else was assigned to it while I was there. In the morning, my surgeon came by and explained what had happened during surgery. He was concerned because some of the stitches ended up under more pressure than he considered optimal, so he wanted me to do a swallow test before I could have anything by mouth, including water. They got me in for that and it turned out okay, so about an hour after returning to my room, I was brought a bottle of water and a cup of red sugar free jello. I have to say, it was nice to have water because my throat was dry, but I really didn't care about eating. I did because they told me to, and I know at this point I hadn't had a single thing in my belly for over 40 hours, but I just didn't care. I felt zero hunger. But I at the jello, and later they brought me a popsicle, another jello, and a chicken broth. I ate it all over the course of about an hour. It was fine, but again, I just ate it because they told me to. Because I got such a late start on fluids after surgery, they kept me an additional night, just to be sure. But on Friday morning around 9am, I was discharged. I had a protein shake when I got home and worked all day on fluids. I was tired and a little sore, but my pain had been minimal enough that I was only on Tylenol. It worked well enough that I only had a few moments of real pain, mostly when shifting position that required the use of abdominal muscles. I was fortunate to have someone staying with me for the first few nights home, and my parents kept my kids (ages 12 and 15) with them for the first week so I wouldn't have to worry about all their activities and food. It took a few days to discover what worked best for me, which ended up being hot tea (decaf and herbal) instead of flavored waters as I'd been having pre-op. For the first week, I've met my 64oz fluid and 60g protein goals most days, but as time has gone on, I've become completely turned off anything with artificial sweetener and every protein shake except Syntrax Nectar Natural, which I can still manage. I definitely wasted a lot of money on shakes I won't be drinking, but I'm glad I had them for the 2 week pre-op diet and to take the pressure off finding things to try when I got home. Yesterday, I was allowed to start soft protein foods. So far, I've had tuna salad (2 Tbsp), refried beans with a sprinkle of melted cheese (1/4 cup), and 1 poached egg. No issues with anything so far. Tonight I will be cooking some haddock with pesto for dinner. I go in for my 2 week post-op appointment with my surgeon next Tuesday and hope by then my weight will be a little lower. I lost 15 lbs on the 2 week pre-op diet, but my weight was higher by about 5lbs when I got home from the hospital thanks to the fluids and swelling, and I'm only just back to where I was the day I went to the hospital. Still, 15lbs in three weeks isn't bad. As for other incidentals, I have been taking Benefiber daily in my morning tea and it really has helped. I had the first BM (very loose and not a lot) before leaving the hospital on day 2, and have managed to go at least every other day since, and daily the last couple of days, so I'm very grateful for that. My energy levels have been decent, but it's only today that I feel like I don't need a noon nap. Going without caffeine has been a struggle, but I'm getting used to it. After all the wait, I'm so glad to have this behind me and be able to focus on a healthy future!

I'm supposed to have my surgery on Dec 27th at Mt Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA, with pre-op tests scheduled for next week. Today, I get an automated message from my hospital to check MyChart. I did, and it showed my pre-test appointment as canceled. My surgery date is also gone from my upcoming visits. No explanation. Meanwhile, my insurance approval appears to have gone through. I called the weight management center's office and the receptionist mumbled something about surgeries being canceled and someone would call to explain. No one has called all day. I emailed, too, but nothing. Now the office is closed for the day and I'm so worked up over this, I won't get a wink of sleep. It wouldn't be such a big deal if it had to be delayed, except I am currently on an insurance plan through the healthcare marketplace as I am self-employed and my husband has been unemployed for a bit. But he starts a new job in January and I have no idea what the health insurance situation is going to be in terms of coverage. I am so stressed right now I could cry.

I had gastric bypass 8 days ago and I haven't felt hungry at all since waking up in my hospital room. If I didn't have times set for when I need to eat and how much, I would just not eat because if anything I feel an uncomfortable fullness like I've just stuffed myself with a massive holiday dinner just by drinking a couple sips of water. But I agree with @catwoman7 about the 2 week pre-op diet being the hardest part. Although after about 4 days, you become resigned to it and stop feeling so hungry. My advice is remove all temptation from your home and office areas before you start. You can't eat what you don't have.

If that net number is a result of having 25g of fiber, that's really good. Your digestive system will thank you! It's suggested that everyone should have 25g of fiber a day, and very few people get that.

Honestly, this seems way off-base, with the exception of 60-80 grams protein, which is completely sufficient for most people (but not all!). Your calorie estimations are much too low for the vast majority of people in maintenance mode. So rest assured, you won't be on 650 calories for life! Also, 25g carb is extremely low carb and not a lifestyle most people are eager to embrace. If a doctor insisted on 25g carb for life as the only way to succeed, I would seek out a second opinion for sure. From what I see people saying around here, 1200 to 1500 is a much more realistic calorie range for the long term, although that is for maintenance, not for weight loss or for early days after surgery. If you eat to maintain your current weight right now, that would seem to go against your goal of losing 20-50lbs more. I have two suggestions. First, check out some bariatric cookbooks because they will tell you appropriate portion sizes for maintenance as well as give you some ideas for what types of foods to be eating. My favorite is Kristin Willard's Bariatric Meal Prep Made Easy: 6 Weeks of Portion Controlled Recipes to Keep the Weight off. She's a registered dietician specializing in bariatrics and every recipe has a gorgeous color illustration. Second, take a look at the Portion Perfection brand bariatric plate. It's kind of expensive, so you may not want to buy it, but the concept is really good. Basically it's an 8 inch plate (with a one inch rim all the way around, so a 6 inch circle of eating space). There are lines and illustrations to divide up the plate and show you where to put your foods and how much. If you're a visual person, this may really help. Other than that, you may want to check out some of the nutrition videos as well as the weekly podcast done by Dr. Matthew Weiner (Pound of Cure). I find them so insightful and he and his dietician, Zoe, are very keen on plant-based nutrition, which may be perfect for you. Edited to add: Here is a link to a dietician article about post-op goals that might help: https://www.mybariatricdietitian.com/mbd-blog/portion-sizes-after-weight-loss-surgery

Keep your mind focused on what you want to achieve that this surgery will help you to accomplish. Avoid internet horror stories. If you want info from medical professionals to calm your nerves, try the YouTube videos from Dr. John Pilcher. Not only is he extremely knowledgeable but his voice is so calm it can put you in a trance.

My homemade protein shake was much better this morning than the commercial ones. I did 8oz Fairlife milk, 2 scoops Syntrax Nectar unflavored, and 2Tbsp powdered peanut butter. Smooth and easy to drink. A couple drops of vanilla would probably make it even better. This afternoon, I had 2 Tbsp (1/8 cup) of tuna salad. It took about 25 minutes to eat and was really nice. It's been about an hour and I seem to be tolerating it well. I might do refried beans with a tiny bit of melted cheddar cheese for dinner.

Given that the NHS is government run, maybe you should send a letter to your MP as well. It couldn't hurt to make your complaints known to an elected official, even if, like here in the US, they don't do much. Sometimes they can surprise you by being effective.

Hey there, I'm 6 days out from gastric bypass too and the only things I'm having right now are protein shakes, water, broth, and little bit of zero sugar yogurt or unsweetened kefir. Focus on fluids first, protein shakes second, and anything else only when your goals are met for hydration and protein. I'm finding hot tea (decaf) and broth go down much better than cold stuff, so you could give that a try and see if you are the same.

I spoke with the nurse last night and tomorrow I get to begin the soft proteins phase, which will be one week post-op. I'm going to the grocery store tonight. I will have to start separating food and liquids, waiting 30 minutes after drinking to eat and then 30-60 minutes after eating to drink. This is going to be a challenge because it takes me forever to drink anything. Part of the problem is I am developing an aversion to my protein shakes and anything sweet or artificially flavored. I think it's time to start making use of my unflavored protein and Greek yogurt to make my own shakes because the commercial stuff is just tasting terrible. Soft proteins include cottage cheese, string cheese, ricotta, flaky white fish, ground poultry, refried beans, tuna salad, eggs, yogurt, and tofu. My eating schedule when I begin soft proteins will be: Breakfast soft protein 16-20oz fluid plus a protein shake between breakfast and lunch Lunch soft protein 16-20 oz fluid plus a protein shake between lunch and dinner Dinner soft protein 16-20 oz fluid plus a protein shake after dinner/before bed

Excited and nervous pretty much sums up my mental state from last July when I started the surgical program to last week when I finally got the surgery!

Excited and nervous pretty much sums up my mental state from last July when I started the surgical program to last week when I finally got the surgery!

I am enjoying the chicken soup flavored shake from Bariatric Fusion, which is funny because when I tried it pre-op, I thought it was terrible and nearly threw it out. Now, it's great. Celebrate and Unjury also make protein shake soups. I was also able to mix the unflavored Syntrax Nectar into a cup of organic tomato soup and it blended really well.

I'm on day 5 post-op and hot decaf tea and bone broth are by far the winners. I struggled all day yesterday with water and felt bloated the whole time, but got 16oz of hot bone broth down with little trouble. Today, I filled a 32oz thermal cup with hot tea and a dash of milk and finished it off in three hours without even noticing. It only got harder to drink at the last few ounces when it had cooled to lukewarm. I opted for warm chicken soup protein "shakes" today too because the sweet, cold ones sounded awful. I did have some luck with the Celebrate brand CLR protein water (pink lemonade flavor), although the taste is kind of intense and the price is shocking. But I bought 8 of them with the hope they might help in this early stage, and they do.

Try adding a scoop of Benefiber to your soup every day. It will blend right in and the fiber should help a bit. But passing gas is a good sign, or at least the nurses in the hospital were very pleased when I answered yes to that question.

Try the Bariatric Fusion soft chews. They come in multi, iron, and calcium. They are all the texture of a Starburst candy. I was given samples by my dietician and they were wonderful. I would have opted for them if they weren't the most expensive option. I went for just the calcium as a soft chew and did the chewable, chalky type instead for the multi and the iron to save money, but if you need a really palatable option, these are the way to go.

Applesauce is included on my list for full liquid diet, along with cream of wheat and yogurt. I'm not having to do blood thinners now that I'm home from the hospital, and I just have Tylenol for pain relief. My main concern with blood pressure is whether it will go back up so that I'll need the meds again. I haven't had such good readings in years, even with meds!

I crushed my thyroid pill and emptied the omeprazole and ursodiol capsules into a little bowl and mixed all three with 2 Tbsp of applesauce. It took about 10 minutes to get that down. I'm going to need to check with my primary care doctor because my blood pressure the morning I left the hospital was 92/54, so I have not been taking my blood pressure med since they told me to stop it the day before surgery. I need to go check it at one of those machines at the drug store later today.

My surgery was 2/21 and I was released from the hospital yesterday morning. There were some minor issues that caused the surgery itself to take longer, and the doctor wanted to do a swallow test before I was allowed anything to drink, so I ended up needing the extra night in the hospital. I'm not in much pain when I'm sitting or lying down, but it's tender when I'm walking around. It doesn't help that both arms hurt from IV and blood draws. Yesterday I managed about 32oz of water plus just under 2 Premier Protein shakes. Hoping the tenderness goes away soon. No hunger at all, which is just kind of weird to realize.

I have to say, decaf tea is like a cruel joke. It looks and tastes just like regular, and yet I am still asleep when it's done. And then it's noon and I'm asking myself how I can still be tired after drinking all that tea!

Hey there! I don't have any advice to give but I just wanted to say I'm hoping for the best for you. I'm sure your surgeon will be able to help. Just keep trying to do what you can and hopefully it will get easier each day. And hooray for the 13 pounds!