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I try eating regular food, like salmon, grilled chicken, vegetables, salads, and almost everything comes up about 5 minutes after i wat. I am not eating fast. I can not eat eggs at all. If i forget to take the acid reflux medicine for a day im a mess for days after with acid reflux

First, congrats on losing 162 lbs...that's quite an accomplishment! Weight loss does slow down the further out you get, and it does require a little more effort than those first months when the surgery did most of the heavy lifting. As for the cravings, have you been giving into them regularly? People often find that once you introduce sugar into your diet regularly, your body tends to crave it more. If this is the case, try to white-knuckle it for a few days, and the cravings *may* reduce in intensity. Try drinking lots of water when you want to reach for some dessert? Try finding something that will keep you busy: do you like to exercise? Maybe re-organize a room in the house, read a book, gardening? Also there have been lots of folks here who have had success with IF (intermittent fasting)...essentially you limit your eating time to certain windows of the day (or week). It may be easier to say, "ok, I can't have this food right now, but I can at 4pm" vs. saying you can't have it at all. If you are interested, here is a beginner's guide to educate yourself: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-guide Good Luck!

Sixty three days? That sounds like a long time. One of my coworkers tested positive and she only had to quarantine herself for 14 days. If you live in a house with a yard try to go outside into your yard as much as you can. Start a garden or plant some flowers. Get some good books. Binge watch something new (but fast-forward over the food commercials!😁) Maybe do some sort of needlework to keep your hands busy. I know it's tough being stuck at home, so hopefully this virus is just a speed bump...good luck!

@Tracyringo Eating seems to be a bit more problematic atm. The MGB seems to be "more forgiving", so to say. But then again maybe I can't remember some issues I had during the first months after MGB. When I eat too fast or too much or too heavy foods I get a stomach ache. Can be from mild to wanting-to-crawling-up-the-walls. I never had that with MGB. However, my stomach is quite a primadonna since years so please take this answer with a grain of salt. The worst are dense high-protein/fat combinations. It's almost a guarantee for at least mild issues and a brick like feeling in the stomach. These things are very individual though. It makes me remember what one of the dietitians said to a fellow patient: "I can't tell you what to eat or not to eat. You have to find out what foods you tolerate or not. I can recommend eating dairy and chicken but when dairy makes you feel queasy and chicken makes you vomit the advice is worth nothing in the end." Regarding restriction: for me it's stronger than with the MGB right now but I guess in some months it will be about equal. Mind you, the revision was less than 3 months ago. Hunger signals are the same, they're very mild. I was supposed to start on solids three weeks after surgery in stead of four weeks. I was quite glad I could progress to solids a week earlier but have to say progression was less easy this time. While I struggled through the liquid/puree phase this time I also don't think it would have been possible to start solids earlier than this. I had awful cravings this time for "normal" foods like tofu with rice, cucumbers, whatever... Some people suggested this was because I was already at a normal weight when I got revision so maybe you're going to experience something similar, no idea. How much I can eat varies from meal to meal and that feels kind of frustrating. What's too much and causing issues one meal might be the right amount or even not enough the next time. In general foods with a high water content (e. g. fruit, raw vegetables) I tolerate best and usually don't cause issues so cherry tomatoes berries and grapes are favorite snack foods right now. I don't eat meat so I can't answer only part of your question. Strength and the like I'm hesitant to reply because I had not only the revision but also another little surgery regarding trocar hernia. The upper abdominal wall still feels strange when I exercise but in the end it was the fifth laparoscopy plus trocar hernia surgery, so I guess I simply have to be patient. I also feel quite stressed and exhausted these days because of work, lots of rather sh*tty 24 h shifts and on-call duties. I'm glad I'm going on vacation on Saturday for two weeks. After that I'm going to re-evaluate what might be surgery related and what might be stress related.

I head to Vegas to start Fast Track at Blossom, in 2 days, with surgery in 7 days. I have heard nothing but good things. The few negative reviews I’ve read were about billing issues, but by and large, they are well-reputed, so I’m feeling confident. I too initially looked into heading to Mexico, but was uneasy about coverage of potential post-op complications. Plus, once I found Blossom, realized it was all outpatient and got a great quote, I went full speed ahead.

Interestingly enough some people never seem to lose that feeling of hunger. Nobody will ever know if these patients never lost physical hunger at least temporarily in the first place or if they're confusing "head hunger" with "physical hunger". There is no test that can differentiate between the two. Acid reflux is the devil. Bile reflux is the devil's big fat mother. I got two revisions because of these issues, both times associated with hiatoplastic because of hiatus hernia. My second revision was on 26th February and this time eating is more "problematic" so to say. The MGB seems to be more "forgiving" than the long limb RNY in some way. Or maybe I just don't remember several issue I had in the first months after MGB, not sure. In general dense foods tend to give me stomach ache and sometimes sit in the stomach like a brick and I hate this feeling so I understand not wanting to eat heavy/dense foods. It's always hard to tell via internet. Regarding the vomiting after dense food it might be that you're eating too fast or too much or don't chew well enough or a combination of this. However, this is something only you can tell. Maybe you could try a denser food, chew the heck out of it, stop after a few bites or set a timer to e. g. 20 min and take your time. Regarding the reflux you could play around with different foods. I'm sensitive to e. g. dairy, dry red wine and in general very fatty foods, with nuts and nut based foods being an exception. The combination of high protein and fat is the worst regarding my stomach issues. It also can help having a time span of about 2 h between last meal and going to bed. However, if your reflux is that bad you might consider revision to RNY anyway regardless of weight.

No, they advised against solid food for four weeks, but sometimes I play fast and loose. I have followed up with dietitian, but I knew as much about diet and nutrition as she does before the surgery. My obesity was simply from alcohol consumption, poor choices, and putting a sedentary career first. I have long since known what had to be done to accomplish weight loss. There was 8 years or so period before I was married where I was akin to an amateur body builder, although I never competed or cared to. I hear you about the old eating habits. I don't plan to keep it up, but I was just being honest about why I have only lost a pound or so in the last three days.

For anyone who may stumble upon my initial thread and be looking for their own encouragement. I had a complete reversal of opinion by day two after surgery. Could easily drink 150-200 ounces a day, eat solid food by day 3 or 4, and have no problem drinking carbonated beverages by before the first week, even with a straw. I have only had one of my incisions that has ever been tender, and its only when I completed turn my shoulders past 90 degrees. I have not gone back to exercising, but feel like I could have probably performed the majority of a strength training regime after the first week (probably would want to exclude anything that heavily involved your abs directly). I have been hiking a lot just because there is not much to do during this coronavirus shutdown, but I have not felt the need to constantly walk as others have described. I know that everyone recovers differently, brings their own preconditions to the surgery, but from the second day on, it has been a cake walk for me. All of my concerns about not being able to drink/get dehydrated were unfounded. I have not pushed myself, but I know that I can chug a bottle of water at least 60-70% as fast a pre-surgery (if it has been 20-30 minutes or more after eating solid foods). I am not having any bathroom issues, no gas/bloat, no hormone swings (yet), no hair loss (yet).

Well I had my sleeve done on 9/20/12; now I’m awaiting approval from United Healthcare Choice Plus for revision surgery. Why? Severe acid reflux which I never had prior to my sleeve. I’ve also gained back about 55 lbs. I know I just can’t continue waking up w acid coming from my nose any longer. Every day is the same. I try to stay away from trigger foods but that doesn’t stop the reflux issues as I can drink water and have problems now. My hubby is more worried about the revision than I am at this point. I just want to be done w the reflux. I’m going for the cardio test while I await the 15-30 day approval process. I haven’t been on here in a long time...I’m back 😉. Now I’m just looking up videos and trying to soak up all the knowledge while I wait. Fingers crossed for a fast approval.

Yes I 100% agree! I actually did a lot of thinking and decided to try out intermittent fasting and honestly it’s helped me so much! I definitely eat way less food and smaller portions now and feel completely satisfied. I do allow myself a few cheats here and there but it’s been working for me the past couple weeks and I’ve actually started to lose weight again and feel more energetic!

I was getting monthly Vitamin B injections for the sleeve after surgery because I had to take a lot of other vitamins, but going to my doctor's office got old fast so I switched to tablets.

I’m headed there next Weds. My fast-track will be the extended version, so I’m flying down on Weds with surgery set for the following Monday.

I could never stop myself at 2-3 bites unless I would feel full or queasy. This is something I guess I'll never get: the minuscule amounts of food and calories some people on here subsist on. You need a second try, and that's that. How many things in life did your family members fail at before they succeeded at second or third try or maybe never succeeded at all? It also doesn't matter if they were right or not. Still not their business. I absolutely understand. That's why I totally get that you want to lose weight really fast. Like fast. However, you're putting yourself under a lot of toxic and unnecessary pressure.

I can totally relate to your fears. My gerd was so bad presurgery, but bypass was not going to be one of my options. I wanted the sleeve. My heartburn was terrible right after the surgery, the heartburn pills helped tremendously! Then I changed my diet drastically, to mainly plant based. My gerd will flare up if I eat too fast...sometimes that damn tofu scramble just gets me all excited 😆 Also I am very careful to allow about 45 min to an hour before and after my meals before drinking anything. The longer I wait the better off I am. I don’t take any heartburn meds now.

Many type II diabetics "cured" by weight loss surgery. I was pre-diabetic in Dec with fasting blood sugar 115 and A1C 6.2. After diet and losing 20 pounds in prep for surgery, no longer pre-diabetic. Sent from my SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

Don't get me wrong but how much weight loss did you expect during this time span? Revisions tend to lose slower. Yes, I can absolutely understand the need to get back down with the weight fast but this is not a matter of weeks as you already know. Expect at least as much time to lose the excess weight this time as you needed before. And tell these toxic family members of yours that your weight and diet is none of their business. Might need a bit of yelling but it's worth it.

I’m actually headed to Blossom next Wednesday. Apparently, they can use certain benefits from your policy even if it explicitly excludes Bariatric Surgery. As it was explained to me,with my specific policy, they are able to use an out-of-network general surgery benefit to assist with costs. I wound up only paying $6k out of pocket. Blossom is literally the only way this would’ve happened for me, because I was hard and fast on not paying anymore than $7k for it.  I think it’s utterly ridiculous that most insurance plans these days won’t cover it, yet they’ll pay for you to get your foot cut off from diabetes complications or other ailments that could probably have been FIXED with bariatric treatment. It’s maddening!

Hey! I’m headed there next week. Will be there from the 20th-27th for the Fast Track program. I hear so many great things about them and being a nurse myself I have a scrutinizing eye for things being up to par medically, so I’m not worried. Even though I’ve been coordinating from way on the East Coast, I feel 100% secure with these folks. I was so afraid I would have to push my surgery back, but I’m so glad I won’t. With all of the Covid changes they’ve put into place, it’ll be a bit nervewrecking to have to go to all of the appointments and into surgery l, alone, but I’m confident it will be great. All of the information has been so well laid out on their websites, videos and info pamphlets. I am thoroughly impressed by them so far.

Many take 6-7 months start to finish. I was fast tracked. First surgeon consult May 20 - surgery Sept 4. Of corse, I do think it took 1-2 months from my PCP to get to the surgeon. Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

I hate the shower scenes, there is no good reason other than drama to show those poor people in that compromising position. Even when I watch it I always fast forward through the nakedness.

first of all, yes, you're not as big as a lot of bariatric patients, but I've been working with patient groups for the last three years, and they come in all sizes. There are always some in your BMI range (or at least who appear to me to be in your BMI range), so you won't feel like the lone ranger. as for food volume, a lot of us (not all - but most) lose their sense of hunger for several months, and many don't have much interest in food for awhile. It was a magical time...at least for me it was. No interest in food? Ha! I wish it had lasted forever! So you may not miss the volume as much as you think you will. Plus you'll fill up pretty fast on not much food. I had RNY rather than VSG, but it's similar - I used to be able to eat half a large pizza at one sitting, and it would be physically painful for me to do that now (even though I can eat much more than I did during those first few months post-op). So unless something is REALLY great and I want to eat it with abandon, it doesn't bother me that I can't stuff my face anymore. Plus I'm very used to eating around 1500-1700 calories a day now (but I'm in maintenance - I didn't eat that much during my weight loss phase). If I eat much more than that, I feel horrible - like a stuffed goose. So anyway, it's not very often anymore that I wish I could eat like I used to. a lot of bariatric patients who have serious food addictions work with a therapist - so you may find that helpful if you're still having issues with that after surgery. It seems like many bariatric clinics have a therapist on staff....and if not, they can refer you to one who's familiar with food issues. EDITED to add that I agree 100% with the poster above - if you can't get a handle on the addiction, you're not going to be successful with this, so definitely seek counseling if you're still having problems with it after surgery.

Oh ok Friday! You got this Good Luck 🍀 and know we're rooting for you. Take advantage of the pain meds to get up and walk as soon as you can. Walking all the air they put into you before going home. Make sure you have all your pills you'll need at home to stay comfortable. Don't push yourself to do too much too fast. Stick to your surgeons instructions. They're not mean they're trying to help you so there are no complications. Be patient with yourself. New normal is weird. If your surgeon is like mine he wants you to have best possible outcome (then his numbers look good too) 😂 You go GIRL! 👏🏻 🎉

$0 for both the questions above. I have an own personal issue with paying out of pocket for something that can be covered legitimately under other means...even if it means delaying/waiting for it a bit (but that's just me!). Everyone will have their own reasons for paying/not paying to fast-track their surgery...so if one has the means, and wants to fast-track, then go for it. It's your money, you can spend whatever and how ever much of it as you want! Good Luck!

Hang in there! I go on Wednesday so I'm getting a bit of nerves as well. Though right now my excitement level is way overwhelming the fear factor. I won't have any family support for my hospital stay, but that just means I'll work extra hard to get out as fast as I can. You're going to to just fine! Use a positive mantra or something tomorrow while you wait. We'll all be here for you when you wake up; come out to the forums when you feel up to it. Good healing!!

Medicare covered everything prior and the $4000 covered everything surgery related and 7 days in private hospital private room; multiple tests in Hospital; television, food. no motel just petrol and had to buy my own vitamins and medication after I left hospital all surgeon consultation now covered as well it was an all inclusive package for the $4000- No actual psych clearance needed just a referral and a good discussion with the surgeon and of course all my labs and medical history sent to him it was a very simple process here in Australia... Oh I've had to buy my own protein shakes I know some hospitals give out protein... $4000 is a small price to pay for a new life 😛 & a fast track program! It's 8.5 months since I started my own pre-op diet and I've lost a total of 152lbs and been maintaining now a few weeks at 170lbs...