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Found 17,501 results

  1. NickelChip

    February 2024 Surgery Buddies?

    @BlueParis you're looking great! I'm impressed you can stand in those shoes. I think I would end up in the hospital if I tried. And congrats on finally getting below that magical 70kg marker. I'm happy to report that after 7 weeks of very pokey weight loss in which I only lost 4 lbs total and stalled out completely for 2 of those weeks, I have now dropped 4 lbs in 4 days. I cannot begin to express how relieved I am. I know it will slow again soon enough as a pound a day isn't sustainable, but I plan to enjoy it as long as it lasts. NSV for me this week! So, I had gotten down to around 205 lbs back in 2017 through my hospital's nutrition program. Naturally, I bought some clothing back then, though unfortunately I regained steadily over the years. Because I had moved house 4 years ago, I purged most everything in my closet. This included almost all the smaller clothing, plus the remnants of my old "professional" wardrobe that was also in smaller sizes from a good 20 years ago. (I should say, I don't regret that too much as the clothing was way out of style and I never have cause to wear suits these days anyway.) But I did happen to hold onto one springy sort of dress that I guess I must have thought was too nice to get rid of, just in case it ever fit again. Well, I pulled it out of the closet the other day to wear to my daughter's special event at school and not only did it fit, it was loose. I honestly struggle to see the difference when I look at myself in the mirror sometimes, but there's no denying how clothing fits, and I know this dress never fit me loose back then like it does now.
  2. I've been reading it isn't uncommon to have to change shoe size when you are losing weight, especially if you carried any weight in your feet. I totally didn't expect that, it was the one clothing item I thought I could indulge in while losing weight! Now I know better. I haven't lost enough weight to change shoe sizes yet but I'm prepared for it now... LOL I hope you find some much comfier shoes, Skechers makes some nice slip on ones!!
  3. catwoman7

    Bouncing weight loss for past week??

    if you're following your diet, then it's either hormones, water retention, and/or full intestines. With any of those, your weight will go back down within a couple of days. Those are all very normal fluctuations. If they're playing with your head, just cut back on how often you're weighing yourself - maybe just do it once a week.
  4. Stories from the other side (i'll be 6 yrs post op this Oct): Sleep: about 1 month after surgery, i was able to sleep through the ENTIRE night without getting up to pee or waking myself up with snoring for the first time in YEARS (decades?). it was (and still IS awesome). I am always well rested and have seemingly endless amounts of energy during the day. the only thing that is a bit of a downer is that i can no longer sleep comfortably on my stomach (which was my previous preferred sleeping position), i've long suspected my lack of stomach padding now seems to contribute to hyper-extending my lower back when i am on my stomach. so its back and/or side sleeping for me now. no biggie though, i've got used to it. Activity: as per my aforementioned endless amount of energy, i am like an energizer bunny during waking hours. i've become a bit of an exercise addict (who me???) and am probably stronger and fitter than i have ever been in my whole adult life (and i'm 52 yrs old for effs sakes). i also LOOK the fittest i have ever looked in my entire adult life...and i was already fit-ISH up until my mid-30s. it's funny and mind-blowing (and ridiculously ego-boosting) when the young 20-30 yr old girls in my Pilates and yoga classes come up to me after class and tell me that they aim to be able to do the things that i do in class, and, wait for it...want to LOOK like me. cray. zee. Fashion: don't even get me started. even before i ran out of "skinny" clothes to wear during weight loss phase, i was already in the throes of being an over-the-top-clothes-buyer (and shoes, and purses, etc lol) i've calmed down a little bit compared to those first couple years, but i do admit i could probably calm down a little bit more. i have way too many clothes in my closet (some of which i haven't even worn in public yet). not sure when i will cure myself of this habit, but i'll enjoy it until i do, ha! one last thing not on your list the deserves mention: CONFIDENCE. i found that i am just bursting with it (maybe too much as i really do think of myself as the absolute BOMB.). but the confidence is not just feeling good about and trusting myself, but it translates also as feeling good about others, trusting others, patience with others and self, calm, peace, courage, all the good stuff! of all the things, the confidence is the one i value the most. thanks WLS. (and thanks ME for doing what i needed to do to get here).
  5. I had the sleeve surgery 9/26/16 and did well with it till I had my gallbladder removed in 2018 then I developed severe gastric reflux. My surgeon found that my bile duct got stuck open after they removed my gallbladder. With the bile constantly running in my sleeve it eroded it causing some precancerous changes. Once my insurance approved for a second surgery we went with changing over to a bypass in June of 2020 to fix the problem. I was very happy that we ended up doing the revision because I no longer had to sleep sitting up and my stalled weight loss finally started back up again and I was able to continue my weight loss journey. Fast forward to the present of this year I have been holding a good weight of between 137 to 145 lbs and no health issues really I just still struggled with dumping a lot cause my new pouch didn't always like food but I maintain weight with the help of shakes. Then in August of this year for some reason I just started getting where I didn't feel well and I dropped like 17 lb like it was nothing. I contacted my surgeon because I was concerned because of how weak and tired I had felt and I've noticed like vision changes my muscles or shrinking rapidly I was becoming dehydrated and all kinds of new things that I wasn't prepared for. My surgeon ordered a upper scope and a lower which come back very good. My lab showed that I did have a couple vitamin deficiencies so I increased my vitamins I actually have to go redo my labs here because I also ended up getting sick and went in the ER in my liver counts were high and they never been high before so we're checking those this week. But now I'm having a harder time eating and getting my body to absorb my nutrition even the protein shakes aren't helping maintain my body weight I am dropping weight still pretty rapidly I'm down to 124 lb now and my immune system seems to have been weakened because I get sick super easy and I try to stay away from other people otherwise that makes it harder on me and I guess get wiped out. I am currently waiting for my surgeon to call me back because I'm getting more concerned about how we come getting it's getting harder to do every daily things such as washing my hair folding my clothes and putting them away my muscles hurt and they're tired and weak and they get all cramped up. I'm blessed to have this surgery but I was never expecting that I would get this new very weird complication of just not being able to eat very well and to maintain weight. I trust my surgery team he's wonderful I'm hoping they can figure this out I'd really do not want a feeding tube or a PICC line I work with the public and that's even getting hard to do and I've almost thought about applying for disability until I get this figured out so I can quit losing weight by exertion. I'm just wondering is anybody else going through something like this or they just out of nowhere started losing weight again and they just can't seem to get it to stop. I'm worried not only for myself but for my family because my kids are still pretty young and I'm not ready to leave this world yet I still have a lot to live for. Hw: 268 SW 221lbs LW 124lns Height 5'2
  6. BadgeNC

    December Surgery Buddies!

    Figured I'd join in! Had DS surgery on 12/18. Pre-surgery weight (about 1-week before) was 415, currently down to 375. Had to spend 4 nights in the hospital due to some complications (had very LOW blood pressure for a couple days due to kidney's not working properly) but improved each day. Felt very little pain (unless coughing/sneezing). Glad to be a part of the community here. Currently in pureed food stage, looking forward to the soft food stage in another week!
  7. My mom had gastric bypass a few months ago. Her doctor wanted her to have it because she was Type 2 diabetic and in danger of a lot of other health issues that would be solved by losing weight. She is 69 years old. Things were going well at first - she felt well, she was able to eat as needed, and was losing the weight. She is about 5'5" and I'm not sure about her current weight, but she's lost quite a bit and can now fit into like size large in women's (she was at a 2XL or 3XL before). But recently she has become very weak and has fallen several times (which is dangerous at her age). She went in to the doctor and they were initially convinced based on scans and blood work that she she had fatty liver that had advanced to cirrhosis, and they said it was Stage 3 cirrhosis (and that her only hope for survival would be a liver transplant). The doctor also told her that she was severely malnourished, comparing her to starving kids in other countries. He said that was the cause of her weakness, along with the liver issues. A biopsy was done on her liver and she's Stage 1 of fatty liver, which means she can turn it around with diet and exercise, and we're all very happy about that. However, she is still extremely malnourished. The doctor's solution was that she eat more protein. She has been focused on doing so ever since her surgery; now she is trying to up her intake even further. And despite trying to get as much protein as she can, her last blood work showed that her protein is at a 2, which is apparently really bad. So a couple of questions for you - Have you heard of anyone going through something similar to this? What did they do to improve their nutrition and overall health? (Because at this point the doctor is now recommending undoing the surgery so that she can absorb protein better, but I don't want my elderly mother to undergo surgery again.) How can she up her protein? She is already eating large amounts of protein at every meal and snacking on it throughout the day. She is also eating plenty of vegetables. I know you're not supposed to get your protein from drinking, but would that be helpful here? Just to make sure that she's getting enough? And how many grams of protein should she be eating a day? What kind of vitamins should she be taking, and at what dosage? She is very low on like Vitamin D and B, and assures me that she's taking OTC vitamins that her doctor recommended. I know that's not good enough if you have absorption issues and gastric bypass, and I also know that doctors' recommendations (especially those who don't focus on bariatrics) often recommend way below what is needed. (Her vitamin levels are bad enough that the doctor wrote her a prescription for vitamins to take once a week.) She told me she takes the Fusion brand Multivitamin every day (designed for bariatric patients) and a calcium/Vitamin D that is 1000iu twice a day. Looking at the label for the multivitamin, it seems low to me. Any and all advice/help/suggestions would be most welcome. Thank you!
  8. ChunkCat

    Surgery Failure

    I agree with this. At your starting weight you should have been offered a Duodenal Switch or a SADI procedure. If you weren't, I'm assuming it is because your surgeon can't perform those surgeries, so just offered you the sleeve? If you were offered these options, why did you opt for just the sleeve? My highest weight was 320. Two surgeons agreed I should have a traditional duodenal switch. I did the research and agreed with them, though originally I just wanted the sleeve. I was terrified of the switch portion of the surgery, especially because I've had ulcerations of the small intestines due to my autoimmune disease. So my surgeon called and consulted with my GI doctor and together they decided the DS was the best option for me and worth the risk because of how many benefits it would offer me. So I decided to accept my fear and go with the DS anyway. I'm so thankful I did and that it was an option offered to me. It has changed my life in so many ways for the better... The sleeve is the first part of a duodenal switch, that's where the sleeve operation actually came from. The intestinal part can be added at any stage by a surgeon qualified to do it, but only a small percentage of surgeons can perform it, as it can be rather complex. We see revisions from sleeve to DS all the time in my support group.
  9. Not sure if you guys like country but there is a song from years ago by Kasey Musgraves That comes to mind when I think of this chat. Here are the lyrics, but of course you can just google and give it a listen for the heck of it if you want. “If you save yourself for marriage, you're a bore You don't save yourself for marriage, you're a horr-ible person If you won't have a drink, then you're a prude But they'll call you a drunk as soon as you down the first one If you can't lose the weight, then you're just fat But if you lose too much, then you're on crack You're damned if you do, and you're damned if you don't So you might as well just do whatever you want So, make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, or don't Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points If you don't go to church, you'll go to Hell If you're the first one on the front row, you're self-righteous son of a- Can't win for losin', you'll just disappoint 'em Just 'cause you can't beat 'em, don't mean you should join 'em So, make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, or don't Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points Say what you think (say what you think) Love who you love (love who you love) 'Cause you just get so many trips 'round the sun Yeah, you only, only live once So make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's what you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, I would And follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points”
  10. Deep6

    Insomnia

    Anxiety is awful. I used to stress out majorly due to my career, but even having been retired for ten years, I still have problems sleeping. I work out like an animal, now that I've lost most of my excess weight, and keep myself mentally engaged in a lot of things, but I still suffer from insomnia. My one doc, who I've used since the mid-90's, still has me on diazapam (addictive, but at some point for me, it just doesn't work so I stop and clean out) and Mirtazapine, which definitely puts me down most of the time. Only problem with the latter is that I don't wake up til 11am. Not good if I'm attempting to live a normal life. But, he's against sleeping pills and I get it. The other things, like Melatonin, just make me woozy. I'm in way better health as a result of the surgery and working out constantly. I'm consuming lots of protein through drinks plus food. I feel good. The lack of sleep can definitely ruin your day. I don't know what the current thinking is in the medical community. I trust my guy but still, it kinda sucks to have to medicate to get sleep. I'm real big on integrative medicine. Maybe there's an answer there. Dunno. Nice to see you folks!!!!
  11. ShoppGirl

    Lost my way

    What do you mean. Did you reach your goal and start to regain or is it something else? I see you are about 40 pounds from your goal now so it certainly seems doable to turn it around if it’s regain. My first piece of advice as someone who regained all their weight and just had revision surgery a week ago is to reach out to your team. My second step would be to reach out for support here or otherwise and you have already done that. I did neither because I was too embarrassed and you can see where that led me. When I finally did reach out to them I wished I had done it sooner because they treated me with nothing but compassion and just wanted to help. For me the only real option was revision but you should have plenty others. My guess is their first plan of attack will be to go back to the basics. Reading labels, Logging your food and counting macros. Protein first, smaller portions and reaching your fluid goals. Seems like from your profile you are pretty active anyways but trying to Incorporate more activity if that has slipped a little. Just go back to it like you are just out of surgery. Well past the staged return to eating I guess but fairly early out anyways. Some people even start with the “pouch reset” Of a liquid diet for a week or two although most say that there is no real evidence that does much to reset anything. Make an appointment with your team now and start logging what you are doing for a week or so giving them a starting point and let them advise you of what you need to work on. There are other options now if diet alone is not enough but if you enjoy healthy eating anyways its likely portion size has increased a little more than you realize and that’s something you should be able to change. Once you do figure it out try to make changes one at a time if necessary to make them more manageable. Set lots of small goals to keep yourself motivated But most importantly keep reaching out to your support networks such as posting here as well as keeping in touch with your team. Your sleeve is still there. It will be a little harder than it was the first time but people have certainly done it. You have already taken the first steps Of recognizing the issue and reaching out here just keep taking steps and before you know it you will be losing again. Keep us Posted on any ups and downs so we can cheer you on. You can do it!!
  12. SleeveToBypass2023

    Surgery Failure

    Any new updates? The fact that you got to 302 after sitting at the other weight for a while means something is working. Update your info on here. Maybe make a ticker. I like to come on here and look at my signature when I get frustrated because it's a visual reminder that I need to keep on keepin' on and trust the process. As long as you track what you eat, when you eat it and move your body every day, you'll get there.
  13. New To This23

    October 2023 surgery buddies

    Hi everyone, My 3-month mark was January 27th, 2024 for RNY. I was cleared to eat regular food in the normal way (not liquid, puree) 2 days before Christmas. I just had my labs done today, and my 3-month checkup with the clinic is on Feb 12th, where we will go over labs and diet expectations. So I will know more then. From my highest weight, I have lost 61lbs/27.69k so far, since surgery on October 27th I have lost 39lbs/17.69k. I feel like I should have lost more, but I am right on track. I was exercising at the gym 6 days a week since mid-November, up until 2 weeks ago when I got snowed in. I am hoping to get back to the gym tomorrow, but I am overwhelmed looking for a new job/career change and I would like to move to Nevada. I have noticed that the exercise seems to help me with the weight coming off and I have been building muscle too, especially in my arms and legs (most excited about arms). I take full body measurements every month on the 27th. I started doing this the day before surgery in October and I have found it very encouraging, especially since I struggle with feeling I should have lost more. I would suggest everyone do this, there are some great cheap templates you can download from Etsy. The first month after surgery I lost 0lbs, nothing and I was super upset, how can no weight come off when all you get to eat is protein shakes, and it's a struggle to get them down? So I guess I hit my stall right out the gate. My surgery did go very well. I only stayed one night in the hospital, and I was eager to get home, I did throw up the entire time after surgery (that day and the next day) but I did not have pain or gas and I was able to walk around easily. TMI but I did start my period the day before surgery, so FYI bring your own pads to the hospital, the ones they have are terrible, and no you can't use a cup or tampons. I will let you know how my lab report turns out and what they tell me on February 12th. Oh and anyone living in Las Vegas or Henderson NV and can help with a job, that would be awesome I have a bachelor's in Business Management with an emphasis in Entrepreneurship, and I can learn to do anything quickly, but I would need to make enough to afford an apartment on my own. (it's worth a try)
  14. ms.sss

    Mrs

    i've been buying creams, lotions, botox, masks, fillers, microneedling, morpheous8, light therapy, RF treatments for the past 4-5 years. i apply moisturizers and sunscreen and masks like its going out of style. honestly, i probably could have had 2 face lifts with the amount of money i've dished out so far. nothing stops the effects of aging (nor weight loss) permanently, and few things effectively pause it. surgical face lifts are the most effective (and longest lasting) defence against aging, sagging, wrinkling skin. i'm seriously contemplating getting one, but i scar horribly so im hesitant. long story short, creams and moisturizers will do little for damage already done, but can assist in keeping future damage at bay. microneedling, morpheous8, light therapy *may* work, but you require several sessions to determine if it will even work for you. botox and fillers have immediate effect, but don't last long and require ongoing treatments to keep up. face lifts are expensive (and surgical!) but will probably make you look 10-15 years younger for about 10-15 years...but then you'll need another one for touchup or upkeep. ....or we can embrace our aging faces (something i personally would love to do, but honestly am not ready to do yet hahahhahaha) ❤️
  15. GreenTealael

    successful Total knee replacement !!!

    This is amazing news! How does it feel now compared to immediately post op? Do you feel like you are healing faster at your current weight? Speedy recovery
  16. I'm 5 weeks post op RNY, I eat 3 meals of protein, 2 oz per meal, and add 1 cup of fairlife milk and a protein shake. If I'm feeling hungry I'll add 2 oz of greek yogurt or protein pudding for a fourth meal. I usually feel a bit hungrier on days that I swim. I exercise every day and I can tell when I got too into it, I feel tired and hungry. So far the easiest to digest have been ground turkey, smoked salmon, chicken, tuna, and cottage cheese. I'm still drinking chicken broth when I feel like I need more salt and if I forget that, I crave chips. I also pretty much eat my weight in sugar free popsicles.
  17. Hi there! I just signed up on this forum and have a surgery date of January 30 for gastric bypass. My sister had it done about a year and a half ago and has had great success so I decided I was ready to make some big changes in my life. im currently trying to keep my required 10-lb weight loss on the books. I officially achieved it in October and I meet with my doc each month. In November I had lost an additional half pound but ended up in the ER after my appt because I was so dehydrated from fasting to make my weight goal. So embarrassing ugh. Now, thanks to the holidays my next appt is January 2, but I’m up eight lbs and they will cancel my surgery if they see that. I have 18 days to lose that weight again and I’m scared I won’t make it. I’m mad at myself for being lax after my last weigh-in. I know that part of losing weight pre-op is to start making changes gradually but I’m struggling. I guess that’s normal for many of us. I’m really excited about getting the surgery but also a little depressed because it will force me (and is now forcing me) to completely change my relationship with food. That’s scary. But I see how happy and energetic and positive my sister is and I want that in my life too. Anyway, I didn’t mean to get depressing lol but I’m trying to be honest about my feelings which are all coming at me at the same time! Its crazy.
  18. Thanks @LisaCaryl @NickelChip @RonHall908 For your support yesterday ... t'was a very angry day for me because it bought up a lot of the disregard I've had to deal with these last few years because of my weight! Today is a better day. I'm just off to meet my physio ... who will no doubt make me do squats but who also emailed last night that he'd found a list of fat friendly doctors in my area for me ... Also I'm a metric girl... and I've hit below 80kg - I'm 79.6kg this morning (175.1lbs) ... and breaking that 80's barrier hasn't happened for me since 2021 so I'm very encouraged this morning. also I took liquid iron the parmacist reccomended no problem at all... and she mentionned my visible weightloss in a very chic, discreet and also commercially savy way ... bascially asked me if I wanted to get myself a new lip gloss or shampoo at the pharmacy too... I asked her why and she said with a smile "to congratulate yourself on these little changes you seem to be making" . She won, I got an expensive pharmacy face cream... 🙂 Do you folks have very dry skin? Mine is really not great at all... especially my legs.
  19. I so agree with the above comment especially the “recovering Type 2 diabetic “ part. Anyone of us past 2 years out is there with you, I know I am. I definitely partook of the holiday cheer this year and I’m so “puffy” right now. I’m concentrating on wellness for the new year. I do look for inflammatory foods that trip me up and eliminate them from my orbit for a while to get back to evenness. (Don’t know what else to call it?) Aside from food and movement changes, I struggle with stress. I noticed if I journal, walk, talk to a friend, goof off on a guitar, extra water weight just falls off. Sometimes I need an extra mineral or vitamin (Magnesium and vitamin D I’m looking at you.) I don’t know if any of this helps, but keep trying. There even could be a metabolic reason behind the weight creep. It doesn’t hurt to ask a trusted medical professional. You are not alone in this.
  20. catwoman7

    Post Op Blood Work

    High B12 is common after surgery. Mine is always over 1000. In fact, I know vets who swear they feel better if theirs is over 1000. The only time my clinic ever said anything about my high B12 level was when it went over 2000 a few years back. And even then, they just suggested I cut back a bit on my supplement. Otherwise, it's met with a shrug. weird liver numbers are also pretty common after surgery. Rapid weight loss is hard on livers. My liver numbers didn't settle down until I was a year (or maybe more) out...but they did eventually stabilize (i.e., in the normal range). P.S. those hemoglobin and MCHC levels are so close to normal that I wouldn't worry about them. Your doctor or surgeon will let you know if they're in issue, but I'm guessing they're probably fine.
  21. Hi everyone! I am just reaching out for some guidance. For those of you who have gotten gastric sleeve, do you think it is worth it? Those who have type 2 diabetes, did this control your blood sugars/improve A1c? I've never had surgery before, and I am thinking of doing this, but I am terrified of recovery and how my body will react with such a huge change. I am T2DM and have PCOS and weigh 250 lbs. I've always yo-yo'd with my weight and now I've found it very difficult to lose it, and I want to be able to feel good about myself again. I don't know anyone close to me who has done it, I've been relying on TikTok users telling the audience their story.
  22. Adipocyte Apoptosis

    Wegovy vs bariatric surgery

    Thanks for the recommendation! I will look into that YouTube channel. Honestly, I feel like I took Wegovy before I had admitted to myself that I was ready to undergo surgery. It had always been in the back of my mind, but I never thought that it would be something I would do. It's hard to give up the lifelong hope of being able to lose weight on your own. I took a class on weight loss where we discussed energy homeostasis and the different survival mechanisms our bodies have to prevent us from starving, i.e., stop us from losing fat storage so we don't die. It was very eye-opening to the types of changes that must take place for sustainable, long-term weight loss. Bariatric surgery has a ~75% success rate compared to the ~10% success rate seen in conventional weight loss attempts, and it's BECAUSE of the physiological changes made in your body due to the anatomical change made to it during surgery. That, paired with practicing healthy behaviors for both physical and mental health, leads to more permanent weight loss. I've been able to maintain my post-Wegovy weight loss for months now, but achieving additional weight loss has just been impossible.
  23. The Greater Fool

    Deciding between bypass & sleeve

    I went with Bypass because the sleeve wasn't an option back when I had surgery. The lab-band was an option and all the sales points for sleeve now were the selling points for lap-band then. The problems with lap-band weren't well known at that time. If the sleeve was available I'm pretty sure I would have still chosen Bypass. Other than being extremely over weight, my core health was pretty solid, but I could see that about to change. I was a binge eater and wanted a surgery that would restrict meal volume which I believe both Bypass and Sleeve would have achieved. I also wanted the additional bit of malabsorption that comes with the bypass. Then comes the possibility of dumping which at the time I had surgery was about a 50/50 chance. I hoped I would get dumping and as it turned out, I dump on both sugars and fats. It took an amazingly few bouts of dumping to keep my eating in alignment with not dumping. So with restricted volume and very limited amounts of sugar and fats, how could I not succeed? Good luck, Tek
  24. ChunkCat

    December Surgery Buddies!

    Courtnay, I am so sorry you had such an awful experience... I had some nurses that really irritated me and treated me poorly but an orderly found me crying because I was in so much pain and stressed by the nurse and so she reported the nurse, which was uncomfortable in the moment because I had to talk to a bunch of people, but really made them treat me decently the rest of the time! You can definitely have the bypass later once the sleeve takes off some weight. This happens sometimes with DS surgeries where they end up doing the sleeve first and then the intestinal part later once some abdominal fat is lost. Livers can be really tricky. Mine was still "plump" during the surgery, I just happen to have an extremely skilled surgeon who was able to work around it, but he told me sometimes that isn't possible. And I really want to say this, what happened to you IS NOT YOUR FAULT!! I'd find a therapist that deals with trauma, specifically medical trauma if possible, to help process this experience. Later down the road if your weight loss isn't stable you can consider converting to bypass or DS, you have options now with the sleeve! I know it isn't what you wanted, and I don't understand why the doctor didn't just close you up and try again later if you felt so strongly about it, but hindsight is always 20/20 and the good thing is that the sleeve DOES take off weight and that weight loss will help you feel a lot better. You should be on a good PPI with your heartburn, twice a day if needed. Omeprazole was always useless to me, so I use pantaprazole in the morning and Dexilant in the evening, both are prescription and they work wonderfully, no food triggers at all. You don't have to suffer with heartburn and reflux, they really should sort your meds out for that. It will make nausea and eating a lot easier. Oh and a few weeks out my digestive system was very testy. I had IBS before and it was grumpy post surgery. Fairlife shakes make me run to the bathroom for days for some reason! I like the Syntrax Nectar fruit flavors, they are like juice. Seeq is also good, it is like juice too, they are water based protein drinks, not creamy milk ones, and my digestive system handles them both better. You can get samples of Syntrax from Bariatric Pal and samples of Seeq from their website. Sending you lots of love... I hope things ease up soon and those hormones calm down, they are really rough after surgery! ❤️
  25. NickelChip

    1.5 years post op weight regain

    I highly recommend looking at the videos on the Pound of Cure channel on You Tube, which go into detail about how to eat to lower your body's metabolic setpoint. Foods that are ultra-processed and high carb push your body's setpoint, the weight it wants to maintain, higher, where nutrient dense foods like leafy green vegetables, beans, nuts, and seeds, make your body want to maintain a lower weight. As I have been preparing for surgery, I found the Pound of Cure book on Amazon and implemented many of the basic changes it recommends, such as cutting out processed foods, breads, sugar, and artificial sweeteners, and eating more vegetables, fruits, and beans. I lost 15 pounds in around 3 months without counting calories or ever feeling hungry. And I can also say that in the past several weeks, as the holiday treats have infiltrated my house, I have not been as good about eating that way, and to no one's surprise, my weight has shifted upward. I will be returning to better nutrition as soon as the last of the ham, sweet potatoes, and pie from Christmas dinner is out of the house! I recommend starting with these videos that I've linked below (and then, if you're like me, binge watching the rest of Dr. Weiner's channel). I find his advice to be a common sense approach to nutrition that you should be able to implement long-term without a lot of pain. Hope this helps!

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