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Update***** It’s been an extremely difficult process. I’m emotionally defeated😭. My hair has continued to fall out not shed but completely fall out to the point I look sickly. I have seen derm. Had a biopsy done. Basically all my hair entered the shedding phase at once. On top of that I have some hormonal issues that has resulted in female/male pattern hair loss as well. Only thing left to do is take the clippers and even then there’s not much left. My surgeon actually looked me in my eyes last week and said he was so sorry I was going through all this. It’s not a lack or protein, biotin, or any nutrient deficiencies. I’ve literally done everything right according to my surgeon. I am literally in tears every time I look in the mirror. Just wanted to voice my frustrations in a safe place.

I am also a "stick to the plan" person. You're way too early to eat anything not specifically allowed. Revisit this with your nutritionist when you hit 6 weeks and see what they say.

We all lose at our own rate. There isn’t a date by which you must lose your weight. I always felt if my dietician & surgeon were happy I should be happy too. As @catwoman7 said the last 20lbs (about 10kg) can be the hardest & take the longest to lose. While I reached my goal at about 6 months I kept losing for another 11 months & lost another 11kgs (which was the weight my body wanted me to be at - my new set point). The last months I was losing grams each week. So, yes not everyone reaches their goal, but it may not be over for you yet. You are still losing. Remember a loss of 1-2lbs (0.5-1kg) a week is considered a healthy rate of loss. We just had a medically supervised kick start in the beginning. Congrats on your weight loss so far.

I had my surgery on the 13th as well, although my surgery was the sleeve. So here we are, a day away from our first week with our new internal mechanics. Iʻm just going to take a minute to congratulate us both for being brave enough to do this. While I understand that the "food onboarding" process differs from procedure to procedure and even surgeon to surgeon, I hope youʻll consult with your surgeon or program before you eat solids. My program considers sugar free jello a liquid. Would that suffice? I get it, believe me. I made my husband go to our local Pho restaurant last night and buy me just Pho broth because I couldn't stomach one more sweet drink. Regarding meds, I had to switch a couple that were time release to rapid release so that they could be safely crushed for daily consumption. Did your doctor tell you that all medications and supplements had to be liquid, chewable, or crushed for the first month? Mine did, and while the chewable vitamins and calcium are a treat because I get to chew them, crushing the others and trying to mask their awful taste with a protein shake is disgusting. I'm not getting used to it. Like you, I'm not in any pain and for the last two days, even the gas has been minimal, so I must've finally expelled all that surgery gas. Again, congrats on your big decision and hang in there.

I didn't have issues with the surgery but had the same because of Pneumonia. To make matters worse I was abroad with a language barrier. I had to learn to sit, stand, walk and feed myself again. Even talking was difficult because of all the time the ventilator was in. I was in hospital 5 months. I had a long time to think about things. It was very tough on my family. So with bariatric surgery you get the natural regret for the first weeks of recovery because its a massive new learning curve and then you have all this other stuff that has happened to you, and oh boy its scary. Give yourself time to let your brain process what has happened to you. Yes it was a lot BUT you have survived. You cant go back and change your actions so look to the future and embrace every new day you have been given.

I had been keeping a daily notebook since the start of January as I wanted to be prepared in case I was asked about my meals at my last check-up (I wasn't asked) but it was just a note of what I ate or drank, no nutritional info. Last week I started using My Fitness Pal. The reason I started tracking on the app is that my weight loss has slowed right down plus I wanted to be sure I was I was getting enough protein in each day as I have started to increase my exercise. I don't live or die by the tracking but finding it helpful as I can see already that I have been having less sugar than I thought and also more protein than I realised so am happy with that. Blonde me never realised that the daily scoop of collagen I put in my coffee also counted towards my protein 😂

I agree with @Arabesque, track your food and see what you're eating, how much, and how often. The further out we get from our surgeries, the easier it is to slowly get off track. Our stomachs stretch out a little and we notice we can eat more, so we do. Definitely reach out to your dietician and see if you guys can come up with a way to get back on track. It's normal to have the weight loss slow drastically as time goes on, but if you aren't where you want to be yet, there's ways to fix it. But definitely start tracking your food and liquid intake, reach out to your dietician, and make sure you're moving your body. Even if you don't do full workouts, make sure you're moving every day. Park at the far end of a parking lot, take stairs instead of the elevator, take a walk a few times per week...anything to get your body moving.

WHOOOO! I needed a "formal" dress for a Charity event. I walked in, saw a dress I liked, grabbed a size. Tried it on an BAM! DONE!!!! Never in a million years would this happen. Normally it would be 45 stores, 2 weeks of looking and basically finding something I hate but fits.. WHOOOOO HOOO Also- I HIT MY FIRST "ORIGINAL" GOAL THIS WEEK! This was what my surgeon and myself agreed on from my initial appointment and I am perfectly fine here.. but my "updated" goal is just there to be able to say I lost half of my original body weight!

So glad to hear that the blisters are okay. I’m certain you will love the proffee if you are an iced coffee person. You can do it with any shake if you do better witb another brand. I personally like the caramel and I’ve only seen it in the premiere but you could do fairlife In chocolate or vanilla too if they settle better for you. I really like their core power shakes. You can do it with any type of protein drink honestly. They do have a generic at Walmart in Carmel that’s cheaper and tastes just as good but the macros are not quite as good. For The coffee I got the Folgers instant singles packs.They have them at Walmart for a buck a box. I make a cup of hot water in the Keurig and mix it in and then put it over any big tervis cup full of ice. I use half for one proffee but if you really like coffee you may like it stronger which I would make it the night before and skip the ice. The protein 2.0 With electrolytes is 15g but the one without is 20g. I get the strawberry watermelon on Amazon. I actually was confused about the cause of the low magnesium. We talked about all the changes I had made and I thought she said it was the B-12 that can throw off magnesium but it was actually the electrolytes in them drinks. Anyways I cut back to one of them electrolyte drinks a day and took the magnesium supplement and the cramping is gone so just be careful with those that you don’t do too many. The crochet group went really well. It was so good to see everyone since it’s been 3 weeks. It was also pretty cool to get dressed in normal clothes and be able to see a difference in my body. I have lost 27 pounds and I couldn’t see it in my track pants and athletic shorts but I could see and feel it on my normal clothes which aren’t nearly as uncomfortable as I expected with the binder on. Anyways, they have been such good cheerleaders for me in all of this. And said they can tell that my mood is so much lighter and they are so glad that I am on the other side of it because they knew how stressful the decision to do this was for me. I brought my purée egg salad with me. I could’ve waited and ate it when I got home since I was only gone for 3 hours but I thought they would get a kick of my tiny two ounce container and they did. I told them that many people who got their stomach cut actually eat like 1 ounce at this point and they were amazed by that. They wanted to be sure I was allowed spices at least which I thought was pretty comical. I told them I was missing my Ms. Dash because it’s big chunks and one suggested putting some in the food processor to make it more of a powder which I’m anxious to try. I’m trying to stay away from salt since it’s been a month that I’ve gone without so if it’s ever a good time to kick it now is. Another lady also suggested a product called no salt. But I think salt is pretty sharp so I’m gonna try to just stay away from it at least for now.

Hello to all my surgery buddies, I've read some really amazing posts on here and just want to say thank you to all of you that show support to each other. It can be a very scary time, specially for those of us who are alone in our process to recovery. I had my gastric sleeve surgery on February 8th, I am 17 days post op as of this post. I still struggle a bit to consume even liquids. I burp a lot, and feel bloated all the time. I also have a constant feeling like everything slowly creeps up in my esophagus and just sits there. My pain levels are actually quite low, and my surgery incisions are healing quite well. I'm just worried about my stomach, my doctor wanted me to start introducing some solids slowly, but I told him no way I can barely tolerate liquids. So he has me on liquids for another week. I hope I am not one of the unfortunate few where the surgery will have long lasting complications and although I will lose the weight, my quality of life will be lowered because of all this discomfort. Thanks for reading, I wish everyone here a speedy recovery.

WHOOOO! I needed a "formal" dress for a Charity event. I walked in, saw a dress I liked, grabbed a size. Tried it on an BAM! DONE!!!! Never in a million years would this happen. Normally it would be 45 stores, 2 weeks of looking and basically finding something I hate but fits.. WHOOOOO HOOO Also- I HIT MY FIRST "ORIGINAL" GOAL THIS WEEK! This was what my surgeon and myself agreed on from my initial appointment and I am perfectly fine here.. but my "updated" goal is just there to be able to say I lost half of my original body weight!

I was definitely a deviled eggs person!! They are so easy to pack in a snack box with some cheese, deli meat, and when safe, some cucumber and cherry tomatoes! I think I did pickles until I was cleared for raw food. I did not do chicken well unless it was chicken thighs in a sauce. I ate mild thai curries, shredded pork bbq with a no-sugar sauce, salisbury steak, turkey in gravy, meatloaf, pho with no noodles, just the meat and veggies, deviled eggs, tuna, swordfish, etc... Honestly by week 8 I was cleared for most foods so I ate whatever, within reason, protein first, then a little veggies, maybe a bite of starch if I had room. Lots of whole foods, as little processed food as possible. My fat requirements are higher than most people so I was more generous with the cheese and eggs than someone else might be. I ate a fair bit of deli meat at first because it was soft and easy to eat in small portions. Poached meat would be good too.

Thanks so much for responding. I spoke with the nutritionists as well which she made me feel so much better too. She told me not to worry about what I did bc everyone in the beginning is learning as it is a brand new way of life we're adjusting to so I did feel better about that. It's been a week now and I been on track. So I am looking at your weight loss tracker. You started around the same weight as me and as of now you're 228 lbs, is that right? That's amazing! That gives me hope. ❤️

It was a mix of everything for me - holiday last year where I could barely move due to ridiculous pains in my knees that wouldn’t stop. I thought it was a Rheumatoid Arthritis flare initially but nope, just Osteoarthritis because I’m fat. I was so miserable. The holiday was ruined and hubby was really worried. Had physio and steroid injections when we got back home but nothing worked. I was 55 but felt 85. It felt like I had nothing to look forward to, life seemed very small as I didn’t leave the house. Pain is constant, nothing touches it, sleep is continually disturbed and I just felt unhappy generally. I wasn’t depressed but it was a very fine line I was walking, and I knew it wouldn’t take much to tip me over into depression. I’ve always been able to see the positives in pretty much any situation but I couldn’t this time. Hubby has his own mobility problems due to nerve damage in his lower back from an op that went wrong, and all that kept going through my head was how were we going to manage with everything? I was the one who had kept everything ticking over but I couldn’t do it anymore. I hated my body, never let hubby see me naked, couldn’t play with my granddaughter, clothes were chosen just because they fit not because I actually liked them etc etc. I spoke to a female GP about HRT as I had just started it but had to change how I took it because of my weight. I was having a major panic because HRT was the only thing stopping me from acting like a crazed homicidal manic! My GP was fantastic, I actually felt listened to for the first time. It was then that I asked about what I could so about my weight as I’d had enough and nothing was working. Every time I dieted, I put it all back plus more. I’d had Orlistat that didn’t work and had looked at the jabs but couldn’t afford £250 a month. My GP didn’t hesitate and talked me through my options, saying she would support me. She referred me that week and, after a bit of hoop-jumping, I’m now on the WLS pathway. I already feel better about things and I’m excited for the future 😊

I don’t enjoy food, good question. Took me two years to learn not to over eat. We know what happens when we over eat. I eat small amounts thru out the day 3/4 a cup 4 times a day at max. Now I wake ip in the middle of the nite eating Quality food . It either comes up or goes out in unpleasant ways. The odd thing is. one week I’m starving.I can’t seem to fuel my body. The next week I have no appetite it’s been one hell of a roller coaster ride. Thanks for pointing out allergies many would’ve thought that. Im good . nausea medication any suggestions over the counter? Besides that, going out with friends and eating is embarrassing. You take three bites done in 5 minutes. Mean time people are conversating and eating for an hour. I miss the days of indulgent .

Yeah, while I work for myself so don't have to deal with coverage or time-off approval, I was somewhat grateful February was the option the doctor gave me. I had already rearranged a lot to accommodate the December date, and when that fell through, it left me scrambling. Turns out the week in February they gave me is pretty ideal, so I'm glad about that, even if the countdown is killing me. Between now and then, my main focus is on getting back to healthy foods after the holidays and developing a better schedule for meals and exercise that will help me be a bit more regular about both.

I agree. Definitely contact your surgeon. It could be just swelling. It could be a stricture. But you really shouldn’t be experiencing strong pain a week out (except from the surgical gas pain but even that should be reducing each day.). Most of us throw away our opioid pain meds by day 3 or 4 & often don’t need any pain meds after then either. Yes, meeting those fluid & protein goals can be difficult in the beginning. I’m another one who struggled at first (one shake & a cup of soup each day from day 4 & really nothing before then except a few sips of water). As long as you are making an effort & slowly getting closer you’ll be fine. Be aware of possible dehydration though. All the best. And push to get a response from your surgeon asap.

Most definitely yes!! Felt like I had done a core muscle marathon. 😂 It lasted a few weeks but now at 1 month post op it's gone. It is there to remind you to take it easy!!

Reading a lot about tiredness and fatigue, is anyone feeling the other way at night? I’m struggling to sleep! I feel tired but ever since the op I have not got to sleep easily, have tried walking further in the day, reading etc but doesn’t seem to help!! (I’m 3 weeks post op on Tuesday) Feeling really positive otherwise though, the weight is coming down and the pureed stage doesn’t seem to be bothering me so much!! Just need to keep up with protein water to ensure I’m getting enough in, as only manage a few mouthfuls of the pureed food! Xx

I spoke with the nurse last night and tomorrow I get to begin the soft proteins phase, which will be one week post-op. I'm going to the grocery store tonight. I will have to start separating food and liquids, waiting 30 minutes after drinking to eat and then 30-60 minutes after eating to drink. This is going to be a challenge because it takes me forever to drink anything. Part of the problem is I am developing an aversion to my protein shakes and anything sweet or artificially flavored. I think it's time to start making use of my unflavored protein and Greek yogurt to make my own shakes because the commercial stuff is just tasting terrible. Soft proteins include cottage cheese, string cheese, ricotta, flaky white fish, ground poultry, refried beans, tuna salad, eggs, yogurt, and tofu. My eating schedule when I begin soft proteins will be: Breakfast soft protein 16-20oz fluid plus a protein shake between breakfast and lunch Lunch soft protein 16-20 oz fluid plus a protein shake between lunch and dinner Dinner soft protein 16-20 oz fluid plus a protein shake after dinner/before bed

Yes, it will pass (though they are still frustrating & upsetting) but it doesn’t necessarily mean your weight loss is over. I lost another 11kgs (24lbs) in about another year after I reached goal. And many others will tell you the same. While they lost the bulk of their weight in the first 6-12 months, their weight loss continued very slowly for another 6-12 months or more. So it’s not over until it’s over. My surgeon & his colleague also suggested I increase my calories when I was dropping below goal. I said I can only eat what I can eat. My dietician made a couple of suggestions like adding full cream milk powder to any milk based drink or dish. I tried it but found it very sweet. Over time, I was able to eat more both in volume & calories & was eating a wider variety of food sources just like I had along the whole way until my loss stopped at about 1300 calories. I eat about 1500/1600 now & maintain at basically the same weight. Maybe touch base with your dietician for some ideas or things you can swap in much like @ms.sss suggested. Remember to celebrate the weight you have lost & every pound you lose next even if it takes weeks to lose it. You got this.

Had my surgery on Monday. My pain only lasted a few days. Gas-X really helped for me. Not even taking Tylenol anymore. The more you move around the better. Small sips of beverages was the key for me to not overload. Not having any problems getting my required amount of liquids. Right now only doing one to one and a half protein shakes a day with a coffee cup full of strained cream soup. Hot decaf tea really helped me. My doctor told me it would be hard to get 60 plus grams of protein in the first week just to shoot for 30 to 40. I'll be on liquids and soups until next Thursday for my post-op appointment.

I had a week of intense abdominal pain, difficulty getting up and down from chairs and the bed, pain while walking, and pain while sitting up. I'd also had a hernia repair performed. I was mostly able to fetch for myself and had prepped like @Arabesque mentioned. Friends came by to move the trash and recycle bins for me. By week 5, I had no more pain and most of my lifting restrictions were gone.

Hi Everyone! My surgery is on 12/28. I'm on Day 3 of the Pre-Op diet. Some advice I'd give is that if you are a coffee/tea/soda drinker to try to stop drinking it before the pre-op diet because the caffeine withdrawals on top of the calorie deficit are rough. Glad I stopped drinking caffeine a couple of weeks ago so it's less difficult.

I buy 6pk Hanes at Walmart and they are inexpensive. So, outgrowing them is not a problem to replace while I'm dropping sizes. Hanes Women's Cotton Bikini Underwear, 6-Pack - Walmart.com Bras are a bit harder to fit into...literally. I buy at thrift shops and will, until my weight stabilizes. I buy stretchy full cups and use bra extenders when needed. Sometimes the cup is right, but the smaller band sizes don't fit around me. I'm able to wear for longer periods of time using the extenders. I am now wearing a couple bras I bought a couple months ago. No longer spilling out of them and no longer needing the extenders. I'm having a harder time with pant sizes. I tried on jeans today I couldn't fit into a few weeks back. I guess I waited too long because now they are too big to even wear so they went into the donate pile. Makes me super happy :)