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A dozen years since my sleeve. Maintaining my weight... I am now 67 years old. I have been bone on bone on both knees for years. I finally had the first knee replacement. Let me tell you.... this is no joke. I am very stoic and don't get crazy about anything. The level of pain in the first few weeks was epic. However the thing that has me totally entranced is that I am now in Physical Therapy doing my rehabilitation. And getting stronger for the second knee replacement that I will get in late Spring... After 4 grueling sessions; I am walking, moving well, and have almost 100% function in my surgical knee. I can't get over the comments from the PT and surgeon - About how my "normal" weight allowed me to do so well. My weight is still high. I know that. But I am comfortable where I am, and this is where I have been for a few years, and is my lowest adult weight ever. HECK. NORMAL WEIGHT ? No one is commenting on me being super obese, or needing to lose weight. Instead the focus is on strength and eating well, and getting stronger . What a huge difference.

Sorry you guys are dealing with this! Are either of you on a PPI (proton pump inhibitor), this could be something like omeprazole. Typically the over the counter dose isn't high enough, so it is best prescribed by your doctor. Some people end up taking it twice a day. Omeprazole never worked for me, I take pantoprazole in the morning and Dexilant in the evening. Both are prescription. Bariatric patients typically need a PPI after surgery to protect their stomach from acid and help the sutures heal. Our new tummies are still producing the amount of acid we produced for our whole stomach, which is obviously too much acid for a little tummy. This can cause pain, nausea, vomiting, a feeling of not being able to swallow because acid is washing into the esophagus and irritating it. It can also cause that classic heartburn feeling... If you aren't on one, tell your doctor you want one. If you are on one, it's possible it isn't working, you may need a higher dose or a different medication (some people metabolize omeprazole too quickly). In addition to this, it takes a while for our new tummies to heal the nerves that were cut and our fullness cues and stomach sensations can be different than they were before. Fullness may feel completely different and very uncomfortable. After I eat I feel pressure at about the middle of my stomach and a feeling of heaviness sitting there. It is my signal not to eat anymore. If I persist, I'll start hiccuping and sneezing aggressively, and sometimes vomit. I am very careful not to get to that point. But I can eat a normal bariatric sleeve portion for 3 months out... Sometimes heavy proteins like meat sit very heavily in new stomachs for the first year. It isn't unusual to not tolerate beef or chicken breast. Proteins should be moist (like chicken thigh in a sauce), with small bites and very thorough chewing. You'll probably eat a smaller portion of them than you would yogurt or eggs. Fish and other seafood are the easiest meat proteins for us to digest because they are lighter and softer, so try that if beef and chicken are too heavy. If after a few weeks on a PPI you are still not able to at least advance to moist fish without pain or vomiting, I'd be requesting an endoscopy or other imaging to ensure there isn't a stomach stricture or scarring getting in the way of you eating. Strictures aren't super common in sleeves but they do happen.

Hello @ms.sss I actually really do appreciate your response. You are pretty accurate in your assessment, lol, I definitely have my moments but for the most part I tend to be pretty agreeable and sometimes that bites me. i have taken A little breather after yesterday’s meeting with my surgeons’ PA and waking up to a stranger taking their time to say I should too makes me realize I’m not just being overly anxious. Thank you!! I did make a call just now to see if the only other surgeon I would consider does this procedure and he does not So I guess the most obvious options at this point are to just go with the bypass instead or to ask ALOT of questions and pose some really uncomfortable ones about the surgein and that team that I may not like the answers too. Regardless I realize I need to slow this bus down a great deal and really think this one through. My thoughts so far are, when the surgeon sits down with me and my list of questions IF I feel better that HE has done his research and both he and I are confident he has this, then I just need to worry about the aftercare. I need to be bold and require that he gives a way to get HIM, post op if I have any urgent concerns. And I need to know who he turns to if he doesn’t know the answer. I know for my first post op appointment I will see him but maybe I can see him ever so often past that. Especially if I am feeling lost. The PA said yesterday that I may get him or the surgeon if I called with questions immediately post op and he claimed he wouldn’t just give me an answer to give me an answer but it sorta felt like what he did for a half hour with my questions. I am just going to have to go out of my comfort zone a bit and bluntly say that I don’t feel like the rest of the team is prepared to handle my care with this particular procedure. I must get the point across that the PA just can’t answer all my questions at this point and I wouldn’t feel confident in his advice about any post op questions. Or, Perhaps he could just make the PA do the research now? I mean he is practically a doctor. They know how to learn things. I just don’t think he has tried with this procedure yet. He did seem to know alot about the DS, Just not this modified version. I can ask to meet with him again after he has had a chance to prepare and see how I feel with him. My gut has gotten me this far?? As far as the dietician goes. I think I just need a list of what macros he wants me to stick to and to know what type of carbs really count and I think I can take it from there at least witb the help of this community. I also think I can shop around for a different dietician once I have the requirements If I feel like I even need one. I’m hoping that the dietician gets the exact requirements from the surgeon in preparation for our meeting in two weeks. If not I will need to ask him that when I meet with him as well. I guess the skinny about the surgeon, though is that I am going to have to pump the brakes a bit and put on my big girl panties. I need to have some awkward conversations and just mentally prepare myself that the result could be that I don’t get exactly what I thought I wanted.

I'm now 6 weeks post-op and have the green light to start introducing regular food items after having successfully gone through the liquid and soft phases. I'm curious what everyone else is consuming daily for calories. I've looked through all of the materials I was provided and the only thing that's stressed is maintaining a minimum of 70g of protein; no mention of calories anywhere. I had my first post-op consult with my bariatric nutritionist two weeks ago and specifically asked her and she said they don't publish calorie targets because....'everyone is different'. I've been working to stay around 900 cal/day and she seemed satisfied with that provided I'm hitting my 70g target. I've lost just under 45lbs to date, so it's working, but I'm wondering where others are for comparison. What say you...?

So since losing 65 pounds since surgery Sept 13 2022, people say you lost weight?Then if I say, yes I had sleeve surgery, they say stupid $h!t like, you could have lost it without having surgery…Well, if that was the case would I have been overweight for 18 years out of 36? Or you didn’t really need surgery… 🙄 Tell that to the three bottles of pressure pills, I was on and my blood pressure was still too high! I don’t understand why people feel it’s their right to tell you their stance on YOUR body and YOUR health??! But, I don’t see a lot of judgement from people in my community when women go get bbl’s and lipo. People REALLY think that they know what it’s like to be obese. They act like I cheated. My daughter who is 18, (away at school), said but you kinda did cheat! I said how is being nauseous every other day, taking vitamins, not being able to eat anything I want and working out cheating? I said it was just a kickstart. She said well, she never really thought of it that way. I think people think you go get bariatric surgery because they are lazy and want an easy way out. There is no easy way out of obesity. The surgery doesn’t change your mindset. You still battle with food at times. It’s like I want to do something to inform people that, just because your obese, that doesn’t mean your lazy. If you were dying and the doctors do a surgery to save your heart or kidneys, then does that mean you cheated? Bariatric surgery CAN and HAS saved peoples lives. Including mine! Why is it still such a stigma around it?!

Hi there, I’m 3 weeks post op today and 52 years old . I did not do a great LRD and probably didn’t lose anything . The day after surgery I was 14 st 9 and today I am 14 stone 5 lb!!! I have been working hard to get my protein in averaging 80g per day and now I’ve managed to increase calories up to 700-800 per day as my fatigue was so bad. has anyone else had such a poor initial loss? thank you

Quick update, I had my first doctors appointment in roughly three months today, I weighed in at 286lbs, though it should have been less because it's cold in Texas right now and I was in jeans, shoes, and a hoodie, lol.. but anyway, everything is going really well! I dropped another 10lbs this month and the doctor said that I'm averaging about 10lbs a month, which is normal. He says that before long, the stomach will start to stretch more and that I'll be hungry again soon, which I don't really believe but hey, he's the doctor, right? I still can't really eat more than 3 bites or so without getting sick and have been mostly eating soup lately because of the weather and that I can take a little more in with the liquid. I've been drinking a lot of coffee and sweet tea, which I know isn't good, but I figure since I'm not eating that much, it's okay to get some calories in through drinks. I have 1lb to go until I hit the 100lbs lost stage and I only have 61lbs to go to hit my goal, so I really think I'm going to reach my goal before next summer, which would absolutely amazing. It's frustrating at times to see my family indulging on fast food and remembering a time when I could down a double whopper and a large fry with ease. These days, I can't take two bites of a burger before I'm ready to throw up, but to anyone reading my journey, it's absolutely worth it!

Oh man what I wouldn’t give to be able to chew anything lol my program is strictly liquids and doesn’t allow any fruits or veggies so I’m SOL congratulations you’re one day closer to surgery 🎉🎉🎉 I had my pre-op testing today and can’t believe I’m only a week away from surgery. Praying for a safe procedure for all the pre-ops still in waiting and a speedy recovery for all those post-op’s… 2024 is going to look much healthier for us all ❤️

I'm 2 weeks out and I think I have pooped a total of 4-5 times since the surgery; the first time was 3 days post-op. A couple of times it was a real struggle!

I've had 2 holiday seasons with family (who don't know I had surgery) and just coming up to my third! I've handled them all differently. The first was really tough because it would have been less than 6 weeks after my op so I just didn't go. Last year I made sure my partner was sitting next to me and then put most of my food (we get a huge loaded plate each) onto his, in small increments. I also ate 'in reverse order' - carbs first, then veg, then a tiny bit of meat (which halts everything for me, LOL). This year I will be able to eat like half a normal dinner (so a quarter of the massive dinner we seem to get served). I'll push the rest about on my plate and feed some to the dog. Like lots of the *always thin* people have done for years. At various times over the last 2 years I have disposed of food - into bins and occasionally wrapped in serviettes into my handbag, LOL - and hidden food (eg ordered a chicken salad where I eat the salad and then hide all the chicken under the last few leaves). Just to deflect attention. People who can be open about the fact they have had surgery just quote the surgery. If you're telling folks you're on a strict weight loss diet for your health that works too. I do (really do) understand the special pressures of a family Christmas and I hope you get through it well. It gets better, I promise.

I cant afford a therapist, but I have a mental health therapist if that makes sense at all. My insurance doesn't cover the therapist that helps with food behaviors, which is so strange. I feel like this is happening because I'm feeling a bit stressed out with Christmas approaching. Since it was starting to get out of hand last week. Plus my birthday is tomorrow as well, but I don't feel like im as stressed out about that as much as I am for christmas. I have things I need to do before Christmas like go to the orchard to get apples, go to the store to get a few things for christmas dinner, go to the bank, pay bills, I have a tattoo appointment, I need to meet up with someone to give them their gift, I have my birthday dinner on Friday then my friends and I are going to the movies. I then also feel like maybe I was lacking sleep because my son would sleep when he got home from school until midnight and refused to go back to bed and every few seconds would ask me a question or turn the light on. Thankfully he's on a schedule now. So, basically I'm just stress eating? I would love to not bring junk home or if it needs to be here, then I would at least love for that stuff to be out of sight because yes "out of sight out of mind". But I get "just because it's there, doesn't me you need to eat it". If it's there I'm super tempted to eat it because for one it's there and two, it's easy to eat. *sigh* yeah I come here because like a lot of people, I do struggle still. Why does food have to be the enemy when it's our friend? Maybe I should just put whatever is in my sight up in the cupboard. If I don't do it, I don't think it will. Then I'll be forced to grab and apple or a banana. I dont ever skip my vitamins. That's one thing I make sure to do. Why won't my brain do that with the protein and water? Priorities man, those are priorities! My family is my support system and my team. I also come here every now and then for support or I message people on youtube and tik tok for some support. It does help. But I feel like I need to give my family a little reminder that I need more support especially when it comes to the bad stuff to keep it out of sight. I want to find snacks that have high protein in it like beef jerky snack packs. I can't stand protein bars. I've also been really liking cracking nuts, almonds, pecans, Walnuts and Brazil nuts, like I've only really liked almonds, but found I like all of those nuts now and I stopped eating them for a week now. Want to snack on those again. I want to like coffee, but I can't stand it made at home now after surgery 🤣 I wanted to give proffee a try. I also have fairlife ready to drink protein shakes left, but they may be expired, if not, I was thinking about trying to make a smoothie with it.

Not strange at all! Anesthesia can affect our mood and takes a while to get out of the system. Then the weight loss itself releases hormones that can trigger PMS on steroids 24/7 in some people. Plus, you just had a major surgery, depression is not unusual after major surgery. And on top of it all, bariatric surgery is stressful! The water and protein requirements are a full time job that first month at least! I'm 3 weeks out. It gets better once you can add food. Just focus on that water! If you get all your water in you'll feel a little better. Food will make you feel better still and will help you feel a little more normal. Hang in there! And if by change you are on psych meds you may need to talk to your psych if you continue to have mood issues, you may need a change in dosage. It's less common in the sleeve but it does happen for some people...

Hi Eva! My mouth has been extremely dry since the surgery. I am lots and lots of sips of water. Had a little Gatorade Zero with Protein yesterday, but that was pretty much all I had besides water. This morning I had 4 ounces of a protein shake that I sipped over about 45 minutes and it felt fine. And I'm still sipping lots of water because of the dry mouth. I would LOVE to guzzle it and I've had to stop myself a couple of times from doing so! I HAVE felt little hunger pangs that are very temporary -- about three of them since yesterday and then they go away. I occasionally feel a little "woozy" -- like slightly lightheaded, but nothing major. I have felt VERY tempted to overdo it and go back to my regular schedule because I feel so okay. My sister, who is a operation recovery room nurse, is here visiting with me during this for a week, and she's very helpful. I almost cried when I asked her to please get up in the morning to feed my kids breakfast, make their lunches and get them to school (they are teenagers) so I could sleep in because (a) I hate asking for help, and (b) I feel like I need to do those things. But she of course insisted on doing it because I need to rest for a few days. I'm working from home this week (and maybe next week too) and I'm already answering emails. I knew my biggest struggle would be to slow down and take time for me, so that's just what I need to focus on every day, all the time.

I'm guessing it could be a stall, but when I do lose, it's soooo little and it takes soooo long. I can tell you this.....my body might like this weight, but I sure don't. There has to be a way to force my body past this point so I can lose the rest. No way do I want to stop 50 pounds away from my goal weight. No way, no how.

Did anyone else eat solids before time line given, or is it just me? I gave in to eating pasta in the second week (I had the endoscopic sleeve on the 18). I was vigorously Chewing every bite like 100 times before swallowing. Now I’m freaking out wondering if my sutures are going to break

I think everyone does in some form. Doesn’t mean it will happen though. Yes, a bounce back regain of 10-20lbs is a real possibility but it doesn’t happen to everyone. Whether you regain or not I think depends on a number of factors. Some you can control & manage & some you can’t. Complacency - letting the new good eating habits slide. Not dealing with emotional & psychological issues behind your eating habits. Health & medications - some medications are renown for increasing your appetite or a health situation may arise that limits you in some way. Unsustainable way of eating to maintain - too restrictive & stops you from enjoying & living your life as you want. Life - sometimes throws crap at you & good intentions are the first to go. Commitment - accepting the changes you make have to be forever. I had 40 years of losing & gaining weight. Every diet, dieticians, medications, exercise plans, you name it I did it. I’d stick to it, lose weight & as soon as I stopped I would start regaining again almost immediately. Simply because I went back to eating the exact same way as I did before. I had a low & a high weight I bounced between until the last 4 or so years & my weight exploded. Nothing worked then so surgery was my only solution. Am nearing 5 years & have basically maintained my initial stabilised low weight. Never have been able to keep weight off like this ever. I had a medication glitch but we sorted that & I lost the 5ish lbs I’d gained without doing anything. I work at it every day. I established a way of eating that was sustainable & works for me, my needs & my life. Same with my activity. Don’t exercise as such just do four x 5 minute sessions of resistance bands & stretches 6 days a week - wouldn't burn 20 calories. I’m okay with that because it works for me & I’m happy to do it You have to be mentally ready for this because that’s where a lot of the battle is. Sure the surgery gives you some tools, but for me, the time it gave me while those tools were at their most effective was the biggest win. It was when I examined my relationship with food (the why, what & when I ate) & worked out what I needed to do make be the most successful. I wouldn’t stress about something that may happen because it simply may not. Just be aware of it. You never know what the future will bring & you’ll have built a wealth of knowledge & strategies & have a support team (doctor, dietician, therapist) to help you get on top of it. All the best.

I woke up in recovery hungry, genuinely hungry. I would have eaten seafood if they'd offered it and I hate seafood. I'm one of that minority that didn't lose my hunger, in fact, I wasn't hungry before, it came back after surgery! Not fair! LOL I find hydration is important for controlling hunger. I had to have a stern talk with my body about how shakes are nourishment and head hunger was complicating the picture because I just wanted to chew on something. Sugar free popsicles helped. I was on liquids for 2 weeks post surgery, strict liquids, no cream of wheat or yogurt or pudding. I agree with Arabesque, distraction is your friend. As is drinking your shakes on a schedule and hydrating all throughout the day... I saved my popsicles for the evening, when I'm most used to eating a meal. Your doctor is mistaken if they assume being hydrated or having shakes takes care of hunger. It doesn't for everyone. Each body is different. Just remind yourself this is a finite period of time. Try warm broths to alternate between the cold, sweet shakes.

My hunger is back (started around week 8), not as bad as it was before...but so has the head hunger. If I crave certain things I know it is head hunger so I ignore it. Glad you got it done!!

I'd suggest kindly saying to them "I appreciate your worries about how I will change, change is scary! But what I need from you right now is your support, it will really help me succeed going forward and I know we will find many more ways to have fun together!" I went to see my family for the holidays. The road trip down and back was hard but I packed all my protein goodies (shakes, meat sticks, protein bars, protein chips) and the trip was a breeze from a post-surgery perspective. We went out to a pizza and beer place when we got there and yes, everyone else got pizza, except my sister and I, who got wings! Everyone else had cider, I had unsweetened tea. Everyone worried if I'd have something to eat or drink but it wasn't an issue in the end, and the best part of the meal was not the food, it was the conversation and laughter! I haven't lost that capacity post surgery! There is a thread around here where I wrote about my first post surgery experience eating out, I'll go find the link for you, it might be worth the read. https://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/444708-sick-after-eating/?do=findComment&comment=5014658 Last week I ate out with friends post Christmas so we could exchange gifts. I'm 2 months out. I had a red thai curry, no rice, and fried tofu. It was delicious and again, the best part of the meal was visiting with them and exchanging gifts! I didn't miss anything in the meal and they didn't try to push me to have anything that wasn't good for me. I really value how much support I've gotten since I've let people know about the surgery. Not everyone is supportive, of course, but they don't matter. The majority support me and celebrate all my wins and that is what I needed from them!

Any, can I ask what hospital and who your doctor was for the prep and surgery? I was surprised to hear you say you didn't have a pre-op diet - so no liquid diet for a week or 2 before your surgery? A lil FYI: beware, this site is super pricey for the items you mentioned. Try WalMart online....same stuff for way cheaper!!! A 12-pack of Premier shakes is $25 compared to here at almost $40. Walmart also has a nice organic chicken bone brone broth, Pacific Foods. Important to follow pre and post surgery guidelines but we still need to watch our spending power too. I hope you are doing better.

Hi All, First Post I'm female in the UK and nearly 59 years old. I have been a fat toddler, a fat child, a fat teen and a fat adult. I have yo-yo dieted all my life, with each yo-yo lasting for a shorter period and resulting in a new high-point when I would inevitably bounce back. In July '23 I reached a new all time high 24st 9lb (345lb) I was about to start the diet again, about to go through the same loop but just couldn't face it. I made an appointment with a bariatric surgeon, discussed my history and options and agreed that a gastric sleeve was a good fit for me. I was told I was too heavy for their practice and I needed to lose 56lb before I could have the surgery. The surgery was booked for Jan 2nd '24 and I started dieting. As is the practice here I had an assessment with a psychologist who confirmed I was a suitable candidate and a dietician who again confirmed I was a suitable candidate but in the process managed to make me feel like I had already failed, in her words I was "Much heavier than most people who come to us" As she was a gate keeper and I needed her approval to progress I did not complain. That time will come. Following my initial consultation on the 8th Aug I started dieting to get down to the target weight. I have never had difficulty in losing weight I simply cannot maintain any losses. My normal pattern is if it takes me 6 months to lose the weight I will regain it and 10lb in the following 12-18 months. By the day of surgery I had lost 75lb and was already feeling so much better. I considered carrying on with just dieting and not having the surgery but I was already beginning to see my discipline weaken and I knew it would be the same old story. Surgery went well, I had very little pain or discomfort and by and large I cannot complain. I'm currently on the pureed stage of the diet and doing OK managing to keep protein and fluid levels up though I struggle with the fluids some day. I have lost 13lb in the last 21 days but have hit the dreaded 3 week plateau. Early days but I have no regrets - to be without hunger for the first time in my life is such a relief, I feel good and am doing more and more each day. I am already starting to live the life I want and i can see so many more benefits ahead and believe they are attainable and retainable. I wish I knew why I have struggled so much with my weight - there is no one trauma or set of childhood issues I can point at. It is not that I have a compulsion to eat everything in sight there are so many foods I can just ignore, I have no interest in sweet foods of any kind or greasy deep fried foods. But I cannot resist bread, pasta , rice etc and my down fall has always been the second or even third portion of these carbs. For this reason if no other I hope the VSG will not only prevent that behaviour but I also hope it will give me enough time to re gain control before considering a second helping. My parting thought for this post is that as I have gone through my journey thus far the one thing I have found is that my story is not that unusual, my problems are not unique and most importantly that they are not the result of some moral failing or fundamental weakness. There is more to life long obesity than can simply be solved with "diet and exercise" and having finally found medical professionals who believe that is the case I see this year and this journey as a new lease on life that I am going to grab with both hands. Koshk - newbie

I've always heard that, too, but I don't know if there's hardcore research behind that. Although that said, it's probably a good idea to break it up regardless, so you're getting some protein several times a day (at least three times - maybe more if you're allowed snacks between meals)

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!

After surgery did you get the “bariatric burr” did you feel colder than usual?! If so when did it happen, right after surgery or a few days/weeks after?

I'm having rib/back pain too and am a week out. I figure it has something to do with being on the table, then in a hospital bed. Plus my stomach and abs feel like they've been overworked so that is bound to have an affect on my back. I'm moving carefully still and find if I've been sitting it is hard to stand up straight at first. So I think my muscles are all bunched up around there trying to protect my vulnerable belly. A heating pad has been helping! But if the pain continues and seems to be getting worse, definitely let your team know!