amylynns

I've never had a "horrible" dumping experience. I'll get really nauseous if I eat too much, too fast, or don't chew my food fast enough. It passes within about 20-30 mins. If I eat something with too much sugar or fat, I'll get really warm, face gets red, heart races....for about 10 mins. It's not pleasant by any means, but I've never had to throw up, or the other end, LOL. I know a lot of people do though. You just have to be careful with what you eat. Every time I've had one of these bad experiences, it simply means, I WON'T eat whatever it was that caused it!! It is NOT worth it to feel yucky! It's a life change for sure!! But SOOOOOOO worth it to lose the weight! For my first 5-6 months, I was pretty miserable, so many things made my nauseous. I questioned my decision, but once I really figured out how to deal with my feisty stomach pouch and things calmed down, I would MOST DEFINITELY do it again!! No regrets at all!! I won't lie to you--it is a whole new challenge with food. At least for me it was. Instead of being obsessed with my next meal and what I was going to eat, it's now, "Crap, guess I should eat something today?!" But NOTHING sounded good, no cravings, nothing. I simply eat to nourish my body now. I CANNOT use food as a coping mechanism, so I'm forced to deal with my feelings and work through them, rather than stuff them with food! It's a good thing! But just a new challenge! Good luck to you!!!

@Luna222--Oh my gosh!! So scary!!! So glad you're ok! So now what? No more pills? When I started back on my meds, my head felt like I was in a fish bowl for a few days, but that's about it. I think mine is a time release one too! But if I miss a dose, it's not a good deal! I get very anxious and my stomach does flip flips, gets nauseous. It took me a while once to figure out that I had missed a dose and that's what was happening. Damn meds!

@smiley922---Whoohooo!!!! Awesome job!! That is just amazing!! @PinkPolkadot619--I might try that! It's getting more loose as the day goes on! Bad, stretched out fabric! WOW!

@India928---Good luck to you!!! I've also had the band, I definitely wish I'd just done the bypass from the beginning. The band was just not a good deal. Although I know it works for some. I just ended up with complications, but had lost 85 over the first 2 years. Then ended up gaining most of it back the last 2 years I had it.

I chose the bypass for a couple reasons. 1) I was told with my reflux, it was the best option and 2) my weakness Is sweets and with the bypass, high sugar foods are difficult to digest. Unfortunately I STILL have reflux. They're a bit baffled as to why. I still have a hiatal hernia, which I thought would also be gone, but.....nope. So I'm taking 2 different meds for it, but I still have it most everyday. BUT....I cannot eat much for sweets, which is a good thing for me!! I've lost 91 pounds since October 2014. So it's working!

Oh, for crying out loud!! I wore a different, NEW, skirt (long, maxi type skirt) today and it's falling down too!! Geesh!!! One of my lady customers came in while I was pulling it up and she says, "I have that same skirt! It's falling down, isn't it?!" She said she had to buy a size smaller than she normally wears with these type of skirts. Good to know! I of course tossed the tags and receipt...duh. Maybe I can have someone take it in a bit.

I had ALOT of nausea off/on for the first 6 months. I still have it if I eat too much, too quickly, don't chew enough, or drink with my meal.... In the beginning, I had to go back to soft/mushie foods for about 2 weeks, even though I'd been advanced to meats, etc. I lived on cottage cheese for several days. It's the only thing that didn't make me sick. Hang in there! Make sure you're chewing well, eating very slowly, not drinking with your meal,etc.

@PinkPolkadot619---Wine at dinner is what I was missing. The first time I tried anything, it burned my stomach. So it was a long time before I tried again. Then at Olive Garden one night I tried their little sample they give of wine. The sample lasted me throughout dinner. It was a perfect amount. Didn't get sick at all. Way to go on your 5K!! That is awesome!! You look great!!! :D

@PinkPolkadot619-My Dr. actually said try not to drink any alcohol at all. But once in a great while is alright, depending how I tolerate it.

I can only drink room temp water. I am 8 months out and still have nausea issues if I drink too much, too quickly, or too cold. :-)

The dressing I mentioned is by Kraft. I'm a die hard Hidden Valley Ranch girl but....way too many calories. Once in a while I treat myself to it. But not often!

@Beni---Awwww, thank you Beni!! It was hard waiting, for sure--but so worth waiting for!! I should get some of your chickpea recipes, LOL! I forget about them!! My go to for a quick Protein fix (snack) are these new (to me) little Sargento snack packs.(7g of protein) They have a little portion of cheese cubes and then nuts/dried fruit. Love them. They're 180 calories, but if I'm getting that hungry feeling about 3pm, they do the trick! (although I try and choose Greek yogurt, since it has a lot more protein, but I do get sick of that) As far as meals, I am SO with you on the taco salad! When I fix the family tacos, I make extra meat and then for several days I'll even have it for breakfast! My other favorite meal is salad. I add grilled chicken breast, black Beans, a sprinkle of a nut mixture I made up, cheese, and I found a yummy dressing. (Lite Asian toasted sesame) It's only 45 calories per serving. Sometimes I eat that for lunch and dinner, LOL.

@PinkPolkadot619---One of the main reasons I chose the gastric bypass over the sleeve is because I KNOW sweets are my weak area. And I needed something to help control that. A close friend of mine had the sleeve and the only thing she can't physically eat is oatmeal. (of all things?!) She can eat any dessert. I didn't "Want" to be able to eat them easily. Now....I "can" eat a small amount of sweets if I'm really having a craving. Like, one bite of a cupcake. Or 3 pieces of snack size candy. I cannot do ice cream, well--maybe one bite, but it's too much of a temptation to eat more. And then I regret it. I tried just a baby size ice cream cone, and got very sick. So for me, getting sick keeps me in line, I like that I get sick when I eat something I find I can't tolerate. Then I KNOW it's not worth it to eat it. I don't eat the sweets often at all. But once in a while I just crave a small treat. I was happy to find out I could drink a Mai Tai in Hawaii, but I can only drink maybe 1/2 glass of wine. Then I get nauseous. (must be able to tolerate the hard liquor in the mixed drink?) But, I do get tipsy VERY quickly!! LOL! But my metabolism is so fast, that I don't stay tipsy long either, LOL!

Oh goodness, glad you got the measuring cup mishap figured out! I had to go to just Tylenol when I got home from the hospital. Anything else I tried made me nauseous. It didn't do a "great" job of pain relief, which is one of the reasons I was in tears most days. But I also got dehydrated twice, which they say increases pain. Glad you're home and recovering! Your wife has done awesome!! That's super! So glad you have a great support system, that helps so much with recovery. Take care!

Thank you!!! You had your surgery, didn't you? How are you doing?? What's your post-op diet like? I know different Dr.'s have different diets, etc. I had 2 weeks of all Clear liquids before and 2 weeks of clear liquids after. Then on to other liquids for 2 more weeks. Then mushie foods, etc. Not that I felt like eating afterwards anyway.... Hope all went well and you're feeling alright. Don't be hard on yourself! Take daily baby steps! I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how quickly the weight drops after gastric bypass. I'm in awe of how much I've lost in 8 months. The 5-6 months of hell (for me) after surgery were so worth it. The most important thing that was stressed to me after surgery was, Get in your Protein and your liquids. It's SOOO hard to even sip, sip, sip liquids, but do the best you can. I had a lot of tearful days, didn't realize how hard it would be to just drink even. My poor little 9 yr old daughter would just hug me and cry with me. It was hard on her. She's happy we're through that stage too! (I'm not saying you'll have these same issues though--I think it's different for everyone) So your wife had the sleeve done? How long ago? That's great she's done so well! I have a good friend who had it done about 5 years ago. She lost just about 100 pounds. This last year, she's gained back about 15. But I think she looks better at this weight than she did at her lowest. Better get some work done! Hope you're doing well!

@Luna222--Hey there! Missed you! I'm doing good. (If you read back a little ways, I just got engaged! Whoohoo!!) So you're still stuck?? Are you measuring too? Wondering if you're toning and losing inches? TMI Alert!!---I've been stuck at about 158-159 since I got home from vacation. But it's also been at least a week since I've really "gone to the bathroom." And I take a mild natural pill to help keep things moving and still nothing...UNTIL this morning. Whew!!! Pretty sure that scale will have moved when I weigh again tomorrow morning. Wowzers! (sorry... )

@@brown eyed gal--That must be your body's way of dealing with what it doesn't like. I told my mom today (who was also at the meeting) it's a nice reminder for me to not eat crap.....

@@brown eyed gal--Maybe onions grilled in butter? I cannot do butter at all. I had a business meeting for lunch today, at pizza Hut. UGH....I had a salad from their buffet--lettuce was brown. Had ranch dressing because the rest of the dressing looked like they had a film on top of them. YUCK. Ate one super skinny piece of sausage/mushroom pizza. Stomachache within 10 minutes of eating. I knew it was going to happen. I didn't throw up. Just did some deep breathing with my peppermint oil and it passed in about 20 minutes.

That's odd, I had the lapband back in 2008 (removed in 2013) and I was also told no NSAIDS.. Different Dr.s must have different rules I guess? I was told no creams with NSAIDS in them either because they absorb into the blood stream, but you could check for sure with your Dr? Have you ever tried those hot pack things? I've used those too. Like a portable heating pad.

I use Young Living Essential Oils. I have to apply them every couple hours for the first day of my period, where a dose of Advil used to do the trick. You could try Tylenol too. I went to Tylenol for pain when I got home from the hospital after surgery because the narcotics made me sick. Tylenol worked great for me for pain.

I just sent you a friend request. :-) (amy Johnson Snyder)

@PinkPolkadot619---I've heard of it happening to other people too, thinking, "how would they not realize their pants are falling off, LOL" Guess I know now! Haha!

@PinkPolkadot619--Thank you!! You look amazing in that dress too!!! Funny thing happened today, or not so funny maybe! I'm wearing a skirt today that I've only wore one other time. It stretched out pretty quickly that time, so I washed and dried it, trying to shrink it just a bit. Well, I was walking along at work and it felt odd in the back. I went to adjust it and realized it was half way down my tush!! Ooops!!! Glad no one saw me!!! Guess I won't be wearing this one again!

We just got back from Hawaii last Tuesday and I'm still not back in the work mode! Not only did I hit my personal goal of 160 while on vacation, I got engaged! Definitely take this time to focus on YOU! And remember, you might have some days where you think "what the neck have I done?!" But I promise it'll be worth it! Sending positive healing vibes to you!!!

Sorry...just saw this message now. Yes, we sure can compare notes! Your surgery is Monday right? Good luck!!!