Elisabethsew

Good luck with the new surgeon on Monday.

Do you work for a surgeon that is unable to do the VSG procedure and is losing money to surgeons who can? What are your qualifications? Have you had any kind of weight loss surgery? For a first post, I can't see any value in the information you've presented here. Would you like to answer the questions posed of you? I early await your reply.

I find this all quite interesting. coffee still does not smell or taste "right" to me and I've noticed this with several other foods. For example, I make a graham cracker crust for cheesecake which includes adding melted butter to the crackers. It used to smell and taste wonderful but now the taste is "off" and so is the smell. You're an experienced sleeve patient at goal so I guess this taste/smell thing must be a life change. What turned you off about the indian food?

Amy, Congratulations on your success. You're well on your way to your goal!

Susan, how are you doing? Give us an update when you're able to.

I'm not sure who you're asking but mine was Dr. Geiss for the band and Dr. Aceves for the VSG revision.

Just out of curiousity, did you revise to a sleeve?

I prepared some homemade lasagna tonight and cut a piece that was about 4" square to have for dinner. It was about 2" high and I was only able to eat about 2/3 of the portion. I am learning to listen to my body telling me I am full. Since I never had restriction with the band, this is a whole new learning curve for me. Taking "one more bite" would have resulted in an over stuffed and uncomfortable feeling. My "normal" way of eating would have been to consume a piece double the sizee I cut and go back for more. It's new, but nice, to "feel" full after a reasonable amount of food intake.

As Dr. Aceves tells patients, and as experienced sleevesters will tell you, you CAN eat more than you should with the sleeve. I could easily take in 500 cal at one sitting if I sat here with a pint of ice-cream. Soft foods go down easier than hard Proteins (which I have yet to advance to). If that woman wanted to pig out on calories, she could. I love cooking, have a passion for baking, and often entertain in my home as well as join friends out for dinner. I can't relate to that lady you met. I savor the laughs, the relaxing, and the being with people.

I was very dehydrated from the long plane trip and working the night before I traveled. My IV blew less than 24 hours post-op and that did not help the dehydration. After I was home for 2 days, I stood up and passed out. I emailed the post-op coordinator and, because I was getting no protein in (can't do the protein drinks), I got the OK to use Soy Slender drinks. That got me through the clear liquids and full fluids and it's often my breakfast now. I don't like cottage cheese or yogurt but I do love the ricotta cheese. Bumble Bee makes a little tuna salad packet. It's less than 100 calories for the canned salad and 8 g of protein. I tossed the crackers and just ate the tuna salad for lunch today... not bad as far as prepared foods go.

it just seems very strange to me that an obese person is sad and depressed that she can't pig out at food fests. Heck, if I were 2 years post-op and at goal and could only eat proper portions of food, I'd be doing the happy dance daily. LOL.

I think weight loss surgery increases fertility and any OB/GYN will tell you the more weight you lose, the easier the pregnancy for mom and baby. The fast that a pregnant woman's blood viscosity increases 50% is reason enough to lose weight, stay active, and decrease the chance of emboli.

I never had heart burn or reflux and then I got banded and all the trouble started. It's the main reason I got rid of it and yes, the surgeons did tell me to for a bypass and not the sleeve. Well, I had a revision to a sleeve and the heart burn and reflux are history. I am now on a soft diet and still remain "cured" and sleeping flat on one pillow in bed is heaven.

I've been warned that you have to be careful on a soft diet not to take in too many calories. Soft calories can add up. I've finally gotten myself rehydrated so I have to make sure I stay that way and keep drinking. So far, the full feeling definitely keeps me from eating too much.

Congratulations! You're only a little more than a week before you're surgery.

Yes, we did miss you and I'm sorry to hear that you're having trouble with your gallbladder, diarrhea, and dehydration. Thankfully, I never had to deal with the diarrhea. Actigall (also called Urso) is a medication that is used to dissove gallbladder sludge and prevent gallstones and crystals. I had my gallbladder out a few years ago and landed in the ER several months post-op with the exact same pain. I thought they forgot to take the damn thing out but, as it turned out, I was suffering from small gallstones and crystals. When they take your gallbladder out, the common bile duct is preserved so you can still have gallstone problems. Most surgeons will NOT take out a functioning gallbladder (assessed on a DISIDA/HIDA scan). See if you can get an MD to Rx Urso 250-500 mg 3 x day with meals. Enjoy your first day of soft foods and keep us posted on your progress.

Now that I think about it more, bending would actually assist in getting rid of the CO2 gas post-op.

I find that people either have problems right away with the band or a few years out. It's considered the safest weight loss surgery and is the least invasive in terms of procedures. All weight loss surgeries require learning to eat healthier and adopting an exercise plan so none are guaranteed. I guess the big decision for you to make is waiting for sleeve procedures to gain approval versus not waiting and having the band placed. When the band failed me, the U.S. surgeons wanted to place another band or see about getting me approved for the bypass. I don't absorb Iron and get intravenous iron treatments when my ferritin is low. Malabsorptive procedures are not in my best interest. Self pay in the U.S. for sleeve surgery was quoted at $25,000 for the surgery and a one night hospital stay. I used saving and borrowed money from my sister to have surgery in Mexico. A virgin sleeve is $9000.00 and a revision is $12,500 with Dr. Aceves. That included the transportation to and from the airport, the hotel stay, the transportation to the hospital, pre-op testing, the surgery, medications, and a three night stay in the hospital. It was a big expense for me and it was hard for me to spend that money on myself but I deserved a better quality of life. I don't regret my decision.

I went back to work 7 days after surgery and had no problem bending. Two weeks post-op and I was out planting flowers for over 3 hours. The next day, my thighs hurt but my stomach/abdominal areas were just fine. LOL.

You can have anything that is not a solid food. Dry chicken is a solid but chicken salad is soft. Toast and bagels are not allowed but soft bread is. Soft fishes are allowed but lobster and shrimp are not. A meatball, the inside of a baked potato, mashed potatoes, textured soups, soft cheeses, oatmeal, etc. are all part of a soft diet. For dinner last night, I made some mashed potatoes and a piece of talapia that was about 3" x 3". I took one teaspoon of the potatoes and then went to the talapia. I slowly ate the talapia over about 30 minutes but could not eat more of the potatoes. Protein first is definitely the rule and my body is craving it.

Keep in mind that this is a sleeve/revision to sleeve thread but there are plenty of people who have done well with the band and continue to be successful with it.

The one thing you have going for you is that you had good restriction with the band so you know how to listen to your body and adjust your eating. I had the band for 3 years and one day and could always eat as much as I wanted to. This is a brand new experience for me... a positive one.

Did what she say to you make you think twice about your decision to have the revision?

Do you have a lot of weight to lose? If you have the sleeve, 60 to 80% of your stomach is removed. THAT gives you restriction as the amount of food you can consume is markedly reduced. If you have gastric bypass, the size of your stomach is reduced (restriction), the pyloric sphincter at the bottom of your stomach is removed so food dumps into the intestine, and some of your intestines are cut out resulting in malabsorption. The amount of malabsorption depends on how much intestine is removed. I did not want the dumping syndrome or the malabsorption but some people need both.

What strikes me is that someone can mourn the loss of food to the point of being sad and depressed. I love to cook and bake and what I enjoy most is watching the enjoyment OTHERS have consuming it. Sure, it's nice to sit down with guests and share the meal but it's really the social occasion and being with people that makes it memorable.