JoiaRox

FYI - I had a follow up with my doctor and NUT today and asked, specifically, about calorie intake. They told me that they could care less how many calories I eat or how much weight I'm losing (or not - he said "I don't care about weight loss right now, it will come later") - it's all about protein, fluids & vitamins. I told them I'm eating roughly 800-1200 calories a day...not even an eye blink from them on that. I love my people .

Who says you have to eat what you cook? Make them their dinner, then sit with them and enjoy what you're able to eat. While cooking 2 different meals sounds arduous, I find that it doesn't take much time to heat up/cook my food. You physically CAN'T eat "normal" food, so why subject yourself to it? I think it's about refocusing your meal time about the people and the conversations, not the food. Master that and you'll have the sleeve licked

Heck, I'm scared at just the "no protein requirement" piece of it! I've been told to consume a minimum 70g/day to help with healing, hair loss, muscle development, etc. I've seen the protein requirement, although varied, from just about everyone on this board. How can this NUT not have one?!

Here's to a flawless surgery and a speedy recovery!! Welcome to the June sleevers club!!

Anxiety won't go away until after the sleeve is done, in my opinion. Read, read, read (as the poster above said), but once it's done...ta da! Sure, you'll wonder if you did the right thing at your first stall (I've been stuck at 288 for a week now!!!!), but it can't be undone...then you live with it!

I had it done in two procedures - my doc feels that it is safer to take the band out, let your stomach heal from the trauma, then get sleeved approximately 3 months later. I was happy to take the safer route, and I'm now happily sleeved (would be more happy if I could get past this stall!). Every doctor is different, so I guess it all comes down to what you're okay with! Personally, I absolutely LOVE and TRUST my doctor (he is not the same doctor who I was banded with), so I was going to do whatever he said. I have heard of people on here who had to be "re-sleeved" because of the "all in one" procedure - apparently not enough stomach was taken out because it was so enlarged/irritated after band removal. You may want to talk to the "all in one" doc about that!

Just found out that we got approved for the townhouse we wanted - I'll be a Germantown, MD resident on August 1

My best advice is to get busy reading throughout this site - you'll find TONS of helpful information, stories & opinions that will (most likely) answer many of your questions - even the ones you didn't know you had!

Looks like they got overheated! Unjury warns that temps over 140F will curdle the protein...doesn't look so safe to me!! Ewww. I'd gag just trying to swallow that!

With the hell that I went through?! You betcha! Where can I sign up?!?!

It's a medical fact that smoking messes with your healing process - with such a major trauma to your stomach, doctors will either highly recommend or require that you quit smoking prior to your surgery (I've seen the statistic of a month out). Regarding that, though, I was a pack a day smoker until a few months ago. I talked to my doctor about switching to vaping (e-cigarettes) and he was fully on board. He even enjoys seeing what new paraphernalia I've bought to go with my new habit! I completely gave up smoking the moment I picked up my first e-cig and am a happy vape-r ever since! In fact, I vaped IN my hospital recovery room! Essentially, my doctor feels that nicotine will ultimately be proven to be as safe as caffeine - it's the 4,000+ toxins/tar/tobacco in cigarettes that are the real barrier to healing. Consult with your doctor - mine is now recommending vaping nicotine as an alternative to his smoking patients. Yours may do the same!

I've never tried the chewable version, but many people here swear by the dissolvable strips! Since those are okay post-op (and widely used), I'd guess the chemical composition of the chewable version is okay! Then again, I'm not your doctor .

If that's wrong, I don't want to be right! I've been "having fun" with my protein shakes as well and my doctor has no complaints. My doctor could care less how many calories I consume (or not) - he's all about making sure I get 70g of protein, 64oz fluids and all my vitamins in per day. I end up with about 1,000 calories, on average, per day. I wouldn't necessarily use this website as a source of nutritional information - we're all different, and all of our surgeons have different "ideals" for our journey.

Not in Westminster, but work in Rockville! Although I live in VA at the moment, I'm moving up to Montgomery County this summer .

The pre-op diet exists to shrink your liver so that the doc can access your stomach more easily; while my doctor said I'd inevitably lose weight on the pre-op diet (I lost 10 pounds in the 10 days I was required to do it), the lost weight wasn't the priority. Before everyone else jumps on to it, think about why you ate the sweet bread - was the taste really worth the feeling afterwards? You can kick food's butt, and the sleeve will be a useful tool to help you do that, but you've got to remember that only YOU are ultimately accountable to YOU. Brush yourself off and make a promise to yourself that you'll do/be better.

While I can't address the first part, the leak test to which you refer is, I believe, what was done the day after my surgery before I could be released from the hospital. Essentially, it's a fluoroscopy. I had to drink gastric thinner followed by barium while standing in an x-ray machine - they watched the liquid go through my new sleeve to see if there was any bubbling in spots and to ensure the liquid went entirely through my digestive tract. They do this to make sure there are no leaks in the newly stapled stomach line before they can release you - part liability, part safety of the patient .

Sounds to me like you're already AT goal. Why does a number on the scale have to define that? If you're happy & healthy, that's all that matters! I have a goal in my signature below that's somewhat arbitrary - I don't intend on reaching 169 exactly, but I may go above or below it depending on how I feel when I'm in the area!

I like to refer to the sleeve as my "forced behavior modification." I can deal with head hunger, but when legitimately hungry will choose not-so-healthy foods...and eat a truckload of them. Ergo...fat. That's changing now Keep your chin up - it will be here before you know it!

Yikes! I'm so glad my doctor doesn't do this!! I had a shot before surgery and one post-op while in the hospital...that was it! Eeeeek!

I am on Day 2 of mushies after 2 weeks of "full liquids" - and OMG - Taco Bell's Pintos n' Cheese tasted like gold to me (it was the first thing I ate). Right now, I just sat down with a bowl of Hormel Turkey Chili w/beans - added 1 serving of cheddar cheese, blended it into a puree and heated it up! Just got home from grocery shopping and stocked up on soups (other than "cream of" because I'm sick of them), tuna, greek yogurt etc. - anything that can be blended into yumminess in my "Magic Bullet!"

The Unjury chicken soup powder is not only DELISH, but is relatively thin. Should be great for you!

Check with your surgeon, too, as carbonation isn't "outlawed" for everyone post-op.

I gained a little less than 30 pounds between my LapBand being removed and my sleeve being put in (I had to wait 11 weeks) - lost 10 of that on my pre-op sleeve diet. While not happy with that, I also had to recognize that I'd been starved for 2+ years with a BADLY slipped band - my body had survived on high calorie drinks. When I could eat again? I did. My doctor knew I'd gain weight and had no problem with my weight. Luckily, I didn't have to buy new clothes, but I sure was tight in mah pants by the time I started my pre-op sleeve diet! Bottom line is...I agree with the poster above . Don't beat yourself up over the gain. If your clothes aren't fitting and you don't want to buy new ones (which, I'd agree with - they won't last long once you start losing again!), you've got to deal with this head on! Alternatively, check out thrift/consignment stores for cheaper summer clothes - it won't be too long!

I'm only a couple of weeks post-op, so I know I won't be drinking for awhile - but, I've read that many people warn against alcohol on here post-op. Apparently, the smaller stomach allows the alcohol to be processed much more quickly making you a "lightweight" - so go slow with whatever you choose! Pre-op, back in my wilder 20's, Diet Coke & rum was a fave of mine - Diet Coke mixes well with many different alcohols. Alcohol, by nature, is relatively packed with sugar. You'll be hard pressed to find one that's "good" for you. If you want some extra Vitamins, go with a screwdriver - Orange juice & Vodka. Pre-op for my LapBand removal, I was on a very strict low carb diet (no more than 50g/day). Prior to going to a St. Patrick's Day party at a bar with friends, I researched the carb counts of various beers - ultimately, I decided that even the low carb beers weren't worth my time. I think the lowest I found (that was carried at the bar) was somewhere around 17g carbs per bottle. Sorry, I'd rather expend my carbs on something I can EAT!

I sometimes get amazed at the lower weights people "start" and "end" with in their signatures - I take a step back and have to remember that I'm relatively tall (5'9") and that my weights are okay for who I am . While I do have a "goal" in mind, I've also never been close to it as an adult (goal is 169, lowest adult weight was 216) - so I have no idea how I'll look/feel when I get closer! Who knows, I may love 180! We shall see!