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Super embarrassed by what happened yesterday. I had 4 viles of blood drawn, ate a small protein bar & went to Walmart to exchange a sweater. Guess who was laying on a bench halfway passed out about 20mins later. I should have gone straight home after getting my blood but during my pre-op days a quick snack was enough to give me an hour or 2 of energy. Not anymore. Thankfully I wasn't alone & my brother brought me an electric wheelchair bc I couldn't walk. My vision & feeling in my hands came back & I was able to walk to the car. Not doing that again

Would probably be best to ask this as a new question rather than on an existing thread for fed insurance. Also be advised surgical programs have their own waiting lists and COVID may strike again so switching a plan that already has coverage to get surgery sooner may not be worth your time. My three month long wait from my insurance ended up being 17 months.

Hey y’all, this is my first post. I had the sleeve on 11/21 & it’s been bumpy. Surgical pain was really bad, which surprised me. I didn’t expect to be pain free but I certainly wasn’t expecting what I got! I ended up needing 2 units of blood & a cardiac consult before I left bc my pulse was so high. They decided it was due to low h & h and uncontrolled pain. They have pumped me completely FULL of IVF. I came home 14 lbs heavier than I went in! I’m 5 days post op & have just now reached my surgery weight. My big issue is that I’m hungry. Stomach growling & roiling churning hungry. So weird. I was not expecting this at all. For full disclosure purposes, I cheated pretty badly on my preop clears. Like BADLY. Do you think I ruined it? That I will never lose my hunger, or just that my hormones need to level out? Any advice or insight would be greatly appreciated!

Looking for folks to follow and build with who are o a similar surgery timeline. I’m getting the sleeve on December 5. Let me know if you’d scheduled similarly and would like to share experiences and support here. Please feel free to introduce yourself in the comments. I’ve included my own intro below. ABOUT ME: I’m Sarah, a 40yo woman from nyc. I have a senior level professional job as a consultant and work from home most days of the week. I hate failing and I think that’s why weight has been such a hindrance for me, it’s feels like a personal failure. Im pretty active and close my Apple Watch rings most days. I love to swim and do swim laps 30-60 minutes/day - 4-5/days a week. Outside of swimming I love to read, wander the hiking trails in Central Park, volunteer for campaigns and causes I care about, writing, and travel anywhere are everywhere in spite of dreaded airline seats :) My WLS decision: I’ve been overweight most of my life but for a few years after a prior 120lb weight loss associated with disordered eating about 10 years ago. Needless to say most of that weight was gained back in recovery and then some yo-yoing down 50 and up 60 every other year to follow. I imagine many of you can relate to this story. Though I’ve thought about wls surgery for sometime my blood panels and other levels were still in healthy range only my weight was an outlier. But then COVID came and especially terrified me - I was scared if I caught it I would be at risk to lose my life. I made efforts on my own to lose weight and like past attempts I shed 50lbs and was really good for 6 months but then something happens at work and I prioritize that above myself and before I know it I’ve gains it back. This last year I found myself of the gain side of the yo-yo and for the first time being afraid to sit in some chairs, after break a plastic deck chair. I noticed I was keeping myself in bc I was disgusted with myself, holding myself back from dating, from living, and carrying myself with little confidence, with little to look forward to. The tipping point: I went to my nieces dance recital and could barely squeeze into the auditorium seat. I needed to make a permanent change. Two months later I had my first consult for surgery and here I am ready Dec 5 surgery.

Yesterday was a little tough with the belly button pain, I realized talking, walking too fast and standing too long puts pressure there. Add that I have some coughing and feel like it will burst. Other than that the bigger incision sometimes feels sore and is getting easier to get on bed, still a little struggle to get off bc of the belly button incision. I managed 40oz of water, 4oz of shake and 2oz of broth. Hoping to do better or at least the same for today. Sent from my SM-G960U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

I have one! Its very effective but I can't use it for long periods yet bc it destroys my muscles lol. It's a lot harder than it looks if youre like me who isn't used to working out. If you are, you'll love it!

Hi you were right I had a stricture which has narrowed my digestive passage and is not letting any food or water pass through. I had an endoscope yesterday but they said it would be too painful to dilate unless they put me to sleep so they are doing that today. He said it could take a few tries so please send your thoughts that it’s only going to take one I’m fed up of not being able to eat or drink 😟

Thank you for sharing what you are doing. You mention grass fed collagen. Since we don't have Amazon in my country, it's expensive to order here. Do you think marine collagen is as good? There are several local products with marine collagen, very popular but expensive, albeit not as expensive as ordering from overseas. I didn't know there were different kinds of vitamin C, will definitely look into that. Are the dr. Berg hair supplements large? I have serious trouble still taking large pills and supplements, due to nausea and gag reflex. I looked into gummy supplements that my hairdresser recommends, but they have a lot of carbs.

I have not seen any family other than my mom, dad & brother since my surgery. Luckily my neighbors are absolute angels & said such nice things to me But I am TERRIFIED of seeing the rest of my family. They are kind but are very blunt. I told my parents to not tell them about my surgery & I worry they'll slip up bc my family is the type to want to know all most intrusive things. But even without them knowing about the surgery I know they'll want every detail. "high protein calorie deficit" is all I'll say, since that is in fact also true!

I’m scheduled for December 5. I’m skipping thanksgiving with my family bc we can’t seem to make it out if a family gathering without a COVID outbreak and I do not want my surgery delayed. I’m going through the emotions as well. It’s the first time I feel nerves about the procedure and long term after effects. Not nervous about the liquid diet so much. I just had my 4 hour nutritional class Thursday and was surprised we aren’t on liquids only longer. I’ve been able to do a juice cleanse for 21 days in the past so I know I can get through the liquid only portion of this. Right now I’m particularly fixated on concerns around hair loss which I am just learning is a potential side effect.

@GreenTealael Here ya go! Still delicious! haha 287 cal. 24g protein ATE IT ALLLLL 😋 I attached the recipe also, I actually made a double batch (Fed other people too) but used half the butter required and added baby carrots. I don't think the butter was needed, so next time I make it I am going to skip the butter all together and see how it is. I also used the Au jus mix and not brown gravy mix. Meal prep tip: add some juice to each dish so it doesn't dry out.

At my place they offered some underwear bc a nurse saw a pad I took just in case mine started. Its the same material has the blue hairnets they have lol & dont worry about being naked! not only do they give you a gown, but the give you the giant sized ones that fit like a banket. You will feel more than okay

Hey August Buddies! I finally broke through my last stall - I hovered at 203 forever... but it finally broke through with more exercise. I have been doing a regular regimen for my hair and **knock-on-wood** it's working. So I wanted to share with you what I'm doing. 1. Daily take high-quality grass-fed collagen in my water. This is what I currently use: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074T8HKGF It has no flavor and dissolves great! 2. Collagen works best with a REAL FOOD vitamin C. It helps the body absorb and utilize collagen better. Not just a regular Vitamin C Ascorbic acid. Here is the link to what I use, and I swear by it. Here is the link: https://shop.drberg.com/vitamin-c-complex 3. I take 2 supplements a day of Dr. Bergs hair supplements. Here is the link: https://shop.drberg.com/hair-formula-capsules 4. Three times a week I massage my head to bring blood flow to the roots of my hair. Even pull and tug on my hair to give it circulation. 5. I use Morrocan oil on my hair after a shower. I try to only wash my hair twice a week to help keep its moisture. So overall, I am trying to hydrate from the inside and from the outside, and so far it's working!! I've seen a little increase in hair loss, but nothing compared to when I was on Keto full-time. I'm also doing intermittent fasting for 16:8. I eat for 8 hours a day and then I'm done for 16. It really helped me get over my stall too. Hope this helps!

I am currently pregnant after RNY 12 months post op. My on told me to stop taking my bariatric Vitamin due to the excessive amounts of Vitamin A and start taking a prenatal vitamin and a Multivitamin and to make sure I am getting enough Protein, Calcium, iron and Water. Bc of the bypass I am a high risk so they are going to be watching the baby close but they at this point have no concerns. She said the baby will get what it needs from you regardless but it’s super important to take care of yourself especially where calcium is concerned because it’ll take its toll on your bones. Good luck!

Thank you!! 1. No sleep apnea. Was evaluated before surgery, and I have an Oura ring to measure my sleep. I’m sleeping through the night (actually much better than pre surgery !!). 2. I’ll def look into probiotics. This is a good idea. 3. Looked at it being psychosomatic- this was actually my first thought bc it made zero sense to me, but my therapist doesn’t believe so. I do thankfully see a therapist who recommended getting to the bottom of any physical causes. Next step is seeing an endocrinologist to see if there are any hormonal issues causing it. It was such an acute onset and nothing really has changed in my life or routine post surgery and this fatigue started abt 2 weeks ago and it’s just wiping me out. I’m confident the mystery will be solved!

I am still dealing with extensive fatigue. They increased my water intake to 100 oz a day to see if that helps. I used to drink abt 128-150 pre surgery and so maybe 64 oz wasn’t cutting it. I’ve tried it this week but it is not doing much. I’m hoping it helps soon bc I can’t keep up like this. my blood work came back- they ran it twice- all of my vitamin levels are optimal so they have no idea what is causing me to feel like this. I’m forcing myself to exercise - walking or peloton - stretching / yoga etc just to keep my body moving, but it is not helping the energy levels. what a rollercoaster! edit- to top it all, I’m in a stall also. Hovering around 190-193 lbs. Trying not to get discouraged and remind myself that this is a process, but man it’s been tough!

I start my 2 week liquid diet on 11-14. I am so glad to hear that it hasn't been as bad as imagined. I really think that I am also at the point of doing whatever I need to do, I am fed as well. I am so grateful to have found this site for support. It seems like the days are dragging to get my surgery date of 11-28.

Welcome - I'm pretty new also. I'm right in the middle of my 2 week liquid diet and it's been ok - I thought it was going to be the absolute worst, but it hasn't been... I think I was finally fed up enough to do whatever it takes. The tools that saved me are an immersion blender, a little bullet blender, and a stir tool (it's a milk frother for coffee, but I don't froth things ) My food staples have been Fairlife 0% fat milk, protein powers (mostly chocolate and vanilla), PB2 powdered peanut butter, blended soup so no chunks (Bean with bacon, cream of chicken, and I made some butternut squash soup), Bare Bones bone broth, sugar free popsicles, Premier clear protein. Most you can order on Amazon. You can do it!

Pre the exhaustion zap I was working out between 30 min to an hr depending on how much time I had. 30 minute peloton class + 30 min of strength, stretching, walking, yoga- whatever I felt like at the moment. Then boom. Could barely get out of bed. I asked the surgeon abt the protein yesterday after reading your comment and he said to actually try to increase it… I guess I have to figure out what is the sweet spot for me. They did liquids and banana bag in the ER. My new water goal is 80-100 oz. I was averaging 50 or so bc it makes me really nauseous. Will be trying some flavor packets and see if that helps. @leo thanks for the suggestion! I will look into this one. So glad to have this community.

sigh. I was in the hospital for 4 days. I swore I wasn't going to be one of those people who had to go to the ER bc I've been getting all of my fluids, protein, vitamins, etc but one of my medications made my blood pressure shockingly low. I couldn't even stand up & walk without almost passing out. dad had to call 911 to take me to a local hospital. All that work just for a medication to set me back. Plus the hospital food was NOT great in terms of protein. They served a lot of ground beef dishes which was a shock to my system. Back home now & gonna get back on track

I actually did but didn’t think anything of it bc my daughter was sick as well. I spent 48 hours with stomach issues and couldn’t eat anything. I was really weak but back to normalish by 3rd day

OMG this just made me try crossing my legs for the first time since I lost my weight. I never crossed my legs bc it was difficult & uncomfortable. Now I can!! I'm glad I saw this

I was expected to leave same day but I stayed 1 extra day because my anemia started acting up & they wanted to make sure I didn't have any internal bleeding going on (even tho I know it happened bc I stopped eating so many iron rich foods in my pre-op diet) My tips: don't wear normal fitting clothes. Wear clothes that are extremely loose on you! Because of the gas they pump into you my pants felt tight! It was very uncomfortable in the ride back home. Also take a throw pillow for when you walk to the car to compress your incisions. It'll help stop the pain! Also don't forget your phone charger. I did & I regretted it lol

I had to arrive at my hospital at 630am and my surgery was at 830am. They did a pregnancy test and gave me some medication for anxiety to calm me down. They had to get an ultrasound machine to put my IV in. The nurse had to stick me a couple times because my veins like to run away lol. That was kind of uncomfortable but it happens to me nearly every time I have to get blood work so I anticipated it beforehand. Then the surgeon came in and talked to me and I asked her to take a picture of the part of my stomach she takes out. That ended up being pretty cool to see. They wheeled me to the surgery room. It was super bright in there. The anesthesiologist asked me where we would be going on vacation to. I said Disney World! And he said, alright everyone we're going to Disney World!! And then everything went black lol. Immediately after surgery I woke up in a lot of pain (no idea what time it was at this point). They gave me IV pain med pretty quickly after hearing me shout IT HURTS lol. It wasn't so bad after that. Fell asleep. Spent probably a couple hours in the holding room before they put me in a private room around 230pm. I got the hiccups a few times and that was not fun. I had nausea every time they gave me a pill. I got that "watery mouth" thing that comes with nausea. Luckily I never threw up. I would just call for a nurse every time and they'd give me IV zofran which shut that up real quick. I barely had any gas pain, but I got an ice pack to put on the top of my stomach where it was. Didn't need it after the first night. They put IPC thingies on my calves to prevent blood clots (they squeeze you on and off), which made me feel anchored to the bed. I didn't really want to move around anyway. They fed me diet juice and jello but I barely touched them because I didn't feel hungry at all. When I finally peed they had to do an ultrasound on my bladder after to make sure it was voiding enough. Mine ended up being fine. They woke me up every 4 hours or so to check my vitals, even in the middle of the night. The next morning was uneventful. I felt way better and could drink the Boost Glucose Control protein drinks they were giving me. I had no issues getting them down other than not liking the taste very much. They gave me these little 1oz medicine cups to keep track of my water intake. Every time I drank one I checked a box. Their goal was at least 11oz every 4 hours. I doubled that with no problems. They also gave me a ton of drink variety that I didn't even touch; lemon tea, chicken broth, jello, diet cranberry juice, and sugar free popsicles. They took me off the IV and IPC things and I was able to walk around every hour or so. I watched a lot of tv. Then around 1pm the doctor cleared me to leave and an hour later I was finally discharged and got to go home! The only thing I'd really suggest to bring is a long phone charger chord. I didn't end up needing much else! Good luck with your surgery! I know I spent a lot of time reading other people's surgery stories beforehand so I'd be prepared if anything came up. I can say the whole process was a lot easier than I expected it to be!!

Everyone else I have fed it to liked it. haha But yea, it is a 12in pizza so there will be a lot left unless you share it. haha I usually take it for lunch the next day too.