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Okay, so I'm sure this is TMI. I'm almost a year out, and recently, like in the last month, I've started having some stomach issues. First, I can't poop. I started using Benefibre because I thought that I wasnt' getting enough Fiber or maybe it was the Iron pills. That stuff just makes me bloated and gassy. So, I stopped taking the iron pills. Still can't poop. So, now it's like I can't go unless I take a laxative. I don't know why. Just all of a sudden I can't go to the bathroom. My other problem is I think I've developed a hernia. I blame crunches! I notice when I clinch my stomach, it feels like something in my navel moves up into my stomach. I don't see a buldge or feel one, but I swear I can feel something that feels like it's poking through something. It doesn't really hurt, but it's uncomfortable. The other thing is, I now eat LESS than I did a month ago. Maybe it's from being bloated. But, after 2 or bites of whatever I'm eating I'm full. Not only that. Whenever I drink something, too, it's like it just sits in my stomach, and it takes a long time to drain. In fact, my stomach is back to making those gurggling noises it used it when I first got sleeved. None of this is painful, but it's just drastically different. I haven't done anything differently, so I don't know why these things have changed. I guess when I go at the end of the month I'll find out.

I would never yell or shake my finger at you for cheating and I doubt most on here would either. I "cheat" all the time. I had pizza for lunch 30 minutes ago! The only difference is I only ate one small piece instead of half a pizza like I used to eat. That's only 110 calories and will keep me full until dinner. I know people are driven by the healthy eating and I totally agree. If i eat something that Jillian Michaels would smack me for, I just make sure to eat a small amount . It's win, win for me. I am still losing and not neglecting myself. All is not lost, you messed up one time and you'll mess up a lot more than that. We are all human and we didn't get in to the situation of needing the band by making right choices to begin with. You just need to make sure you follow doctor's orders in the first few stages until you are healed from surgery. And BTW, every time I have to go on liquids before and after fills, my stomach gurgles, even when I am not drinking anything. I heard it was because your stomach is churning like it is supposed to but has no substance to break down. My BMs are also a lot more runny, (TMI, I know). Good luck and never give up hope on yourself!!

Sorry- I know the last post was so positive- but I am 8 months out- and I its still the same- pretty much- now if I eat a lot of carbs- it bulks up a little but not much! Good Luck- at least I am regular now- I know everyday what time I am going lol sorry tmi -

Well I was prone to throwing up ever since surgery- and still have days of nausea- then I got the flu from the kids too- it was actually a lot easier- cause your food goes thru quicker so mostly I had the runs (sorry tmi) - with nausea - but it wasn't as bad as it used to be before the surgery.

Ok so today my shoulders are KILLING me so I decided to take a hot bath in my jacuzzi bathtub. I hadn't taken a bath ( I'm a shower person) since before my surgery in june. When I finish a bath I always drain the water and get out after the tub is empty. I've always had to move my hinny to release the trapped water behind me. Most of you all know what I'm talking about. Well, tonight after the water drained, I did my shimmy and low and behold... NO WATER!! my butt has shrank so much that no longer trap water behind me! Woo hoo!!!

just like everyone said. everyone is different. i was pretty sore after my band. of course it didnt help that i got my period (tmi?) just a few days afterwards so i think that added to the pain. i would be careful tho. i was 2 days post op and i thought i was fine so i went to take a shower and ended up banging on the wall for my mom. i was dizzy, light headed, and could barely walk. i just tried to do to much to soon. so take things slow. i would say a week after and i was bad to normal.

Ohh I forgot to mention ( I know we were talking on FB ) anyhow, sorry if TMI but how have your BM's been? I remember having excruciating pain one time in the abdomen and honestly turned out to be I was constipated.

Hello all, I had my surgery on Dec.19, and somehow survived Christmas without cheating. I did however try some soft solids on thursday and friday, which didn't cause me any discomfort. New years eve I had real solids, ie. some chicken, shrimp. other than feeling really full, it went okay. So Sunday I had some more solids... 3-4oz of lamb, a few bites of greek salad, and some steamed vegetables. Everything that I've eaten I've made sure to chew like crazy. - Concern = about 12hrs after the meal, woke up with a major stomach ache, diarrhea, nausea. Stomach ache lasted about 12hrs, felt like there was a brick in my right side, which gradually got better as the Water I was sipping constantly flushed through me. It's now the next morning and I'm still having diarrhea, slight nausea....... Is this something I should be getting checked out? or can I attribute it to eating what my body was not ready for?

Yep, they gave me Milk of Magnesia in the hosp. I'm having the opposite problem -- all liquid coming out. Sry...TMI I suppose, but if anyone has had a similar experience let me know. I'm only 2 days out from surgery though, so this may well just work itself out.

Hi all! I had surgery on the 28th. I am having feelings of being "hungry". Like a growling in the stomach. Is this normal? It literally feels like I am starving like I would be when I had a normal size stomach. Then when I drink fluids it feels like pressure going down and then I burp a bit. Am I not sipping slow enough? I am trying to get my fluids in but the best seems to be the SF Popsicles and decaf flavored tea. As for the incision site I was having some pain but the hospital sent me home with an abdomen binder which really helps. I am taking the Loratab and am trying to stay on top of the pain. Also, I still haven't had a BM (I know TMI) but is this normal? I am passing gas. I can't believe I just posted that but I want to make sure I am on the right track! Other than that I am just hoping that I am doing this right. I hope you all have a happy new year! I will be ringing it in with chicken broth!

Hey Biggie, Welcome to the forum. The first 5 days, I was convinced that I had made a mistake. I hurt (gall bladder came out, too), I felt like a balloon, and I was scared to drink too much. I had a real turn-around at day 8, and I've felt great ever since. Gas-X, lots of walking, and I don't measure my Water. I drink to keep my urine clear or very pale. Probably TMI, but it works for me.

Careful with the Mylanta/Maalox, it has magnesium in it which is a laxative! It worked great for my gas too but after a couple of days it gave me diarrhea!! ( I know, TMI!) I did best with GasX and Tums for the awful gas pains and Pepcid AC helped with the heartburn.

I have no idea if there are any studies about low carb after WLS. I just wanted to say that your nut probably isn't too worried about high carb foods because she knows that most WLS patients can't eat much anyway. For me, bread and rice still make me uncomfortably full, so I don't eat them much at all. Mashed potatoes, otoh, go down very easily, but they fill me up fast as well. By the time I eat my Protein for the day and add in some veggies, I'm usually too full to put in much in the way of carbs anyway. Add in the fact that simple sugars are too sweet and make me have diarrhea (not dumping, but def changes that function, sorry TMI), and I don't eat much sweet anyway. So, those high carb, low nutrition foods are out most of the time as well. There are several on here who advocate eating carbs before working out, and their reasons sound very valid to me. You will figure out what works for you and it will be right! Good luck!!

Welcome to VST!! I'm glad you decided to post. It's nice to see who is hanging around. Congrats on having a surgery date! As for telling people, that's entirely up to you. Just so long as you have a support system in place to help you with recovery, you should be fine. On the hair loss, I suggest Biotin. It's relatively cheap at the drug store and you can sometimes find it B1G1 at Walgreens and CVS pharmacy here. It's way cheaper than a lot of those miracle hair regrowth potions sold on television, so I'd def try the biotin before paying big money for something else. I've been taking biotin since 2 months post-op and I've had a little thinning, but not as bad as I expected. You're right, it is normal to be worried and scared before surgery. And you've got a lot of time before yours to get through. My best advice for dealing with the anxiety is to write your fears and worries down then look at your list. Figure out what you can do something about and do it! Then, pray, meditate, or literally burn the list and let the issues you can't do anything about GO. For example: I was terrified that I would die on the operating table, no, I was CONVINCED I was gonna die. So, I made sure my estate planning docs were put together, then I talked to my surgeon about my thoughts. He reassured me that he would not let me die, but I still had that doubt. I made sure I told my friends and family that I loved them, put the estate planning docs where someone could find them if they were needed, then put my faith in God and my surgeon. Once I relaxed about it, it made things much easier. Obviously, I lived! You're in the right place to research and ask questions about anything that has you worried. There is NO question that is TMI on this board, I've found. Good luck on your journey!!

Hey everyone and Merry Christmas Eve!!! Surgery was Wednesday and I've had diarrhea ever since. Did this happen to any of you? Its just a huge annoyance because it's the kind that you have to run to the potty for and it's hard to move fast because of my incision pain. Just wondering if this is normal.

I absolutely loved your blog and how positive you are!! I am newly banded 3 days post op now and some of the comments on here have me concerned. lol Also, I wanted to ask if you best1 or Kath109 have either one tried the UNJURY brand protein??? I have tried several kinds, some so bad I was even gagging( sorry tmi there) But the Unjury brand is so much better. I have been mixing one scoop of their chocolate with a packet of Chocolate Carnation Instant Breakfast, That gives you 33 grams of protein, but it does also have 340 calories. But honestly it taste like extra chocolate milk!! This is how I have gotten my protein and survived the liquid preop and I am doing 4oz of this at a time for my post op too. Its also awesome mixed with a low fat sugar free pudding! Hope this helps with your protein and Good Luck to you on your weight loss journey!

Hey jasleeve Welcome home - i guess you had some issues - but its so good to see you. maybe you already posted, i'm just seeing you now. My WLS was 12/15/11 When I came home this past Saturday (surgery was on thursday), i hurt so very much, right side was killing me My really horrible times were when i got into the bed to sleep (wasn't very successful, and when i laid down trying to go to sleep) come to think of it, any motion like that. my husband had to help me alot.. By Wednesday i could tell i was "healing" a bit, slowly, but last night for the first time i could actually sleep on my side. You know we all heal differently. One girl said on the board that she left the hospital after 3 hours. I think everyone on the board was shocked. Other people say there back to work in a couple of days! WOW - like i said we're all different. Again, we all heal differently. I still can not bend over without some pain. My DH actually had to help "wipe" me a couple of different times in the bathroom ! TMI So anyways, i am definitely not totally healed, but i'm on my way. And I think you're almost right next to me, almost caught up I still take a nap at least once a day - so you do the same, relax you're getting better all the time kathy

You had said you aren't getting the required liquids (64 I think you said). I stall quickly if I don't drink enough. I carry a 2L jug around everywhere ( yes it's big lol) and I know I need to finish that each day. The cheese is good, but it sometimes makes me constipated ( sorry if tmi) making me seem to stall.

@Felicia - I know it is so hard, doing all this work, being good, and not seeing the reward on the scale. I stalled for 6 days in my 2nd week (apparently I hit my 3 week stall early, LOL) and it was very depressing, especially since I am still adjusting to my new lifestyle. Plus I was having serious energy problems which made it difficult to get back to normal life, making it even easier to get depressed. Remember that a pound of muscle weighs more than a pound of adipose tissue (fat). You're being very diligent about Protein and nutrient intake; I have a theory that our bodies, right after surgery, and sucking up every ounce of nutrients and protein we put in it and rebuilding tissue like crazy after years of sub-optimal nutrition. (I can't back this up with proof but it makes sense to me). I also read on this board somewhere that the switch from glycogen burning to fat burning requires a detox period during which your body tends to hoard a little extra Water than usual... again, can't prove this, but based on what I know about metabolism it makes sense. Plus... TMI warning... how's your poop? If I have a BM I almost always notice a lb or two drop on the scale the next day. I did the math once... 3500 calories to lose one pound. I figured that I required 1800 calories a day to maintain my weight. I'm hovering around 600 calories a day intake... this means a 1200/day deficit. That means 1 lb every 3 days. If I'm weighing every day, I'm only going to see a loss a couple times a week. My conclusion is that I should only weigh myself once a week. So far I haven't been able to stick to that @likasulema - Most likely you were stitched up using dissolvable stitches internally (which will just dissolve away over time) and the outside was either done with dissolvable stitches too (if you can see them) or more likely, incision glue. At least that seems to be the consensus on this board. Neither one will have to be removed by your surgeon.

You know that miraculous restraint I mentioned in my previous blog?? Well, scratch that! I caved yesterday. In my defense, I was sick. I skipped breakfast (I know, BAD!), then had 4 or 5 tortellenies(sp) from the healthy choice soup and threw the rest away. About two hours later, I took some meds to help with my horrible cold and the headache that came with it. 45 minutes later, I was throwing up muccus (I apologize for the TMI). It was awful! It was the first time I had thrown up since surgery and I am so nervous that it hurt something. I was at my moms and had such a horrible taste in my mouth, that I grabbed the first thing I could find and ate it...which happened to be a chocolate rice krispy treat. That was the first thing I've had sweet since surgery. That wasn't the only thing I had either but I won't bore you with the details of the day's menu and my bad choices. I did still manage to stay under my calories, but they certainly weren't GOOD calories! Then this morning I get to work and the post man brings in a Harry & David treat basket! I feel like crying. I had one chocolate covered cherry (50 calories) and that's all I'm planning on having. I didn't have breakfast yet again (not on purpose, I thought I had something in the fridge, but I didn't). I feel like crying! It's funny because I helped throw a bridal shower on Sunday and there were sooo many yummy treats but I didn't cave then! I didn't even have the baked zitti (which I LOVE!). I had 4 meatballs. 2 for Lunch, 2 for dinner. I actually skipped breakfast that day too. Totally not like me. Also, another bad thing I've been doing, is taking a sip here and there either right before and/or right after eating. It's not a lot. Just sips. I feel like it's really unrealistic to not drink anything at all an hour before and an hour after eating. I'm trying my best and most of the time I succeed, but I just can't help myself. I know I just need to jump right back on the band wagon. I've proved to myself I can do this. I just hate this feeling of guilt!! I hate feeling like I'm on a diet. Oh and another interesting story! I went to pick up a friend from the airport and we stopped at Cheesecake Factory on the way back. The cool thing about that place is that they tell you how many calories is in EVERYTHING and they have a separate menu for people who are trying to eat better. Anyways, I ordered the crab bites (suuuuupppperrr yummy!!! and only 400 calories!) and a peach smoothie (300 calories). My friend that was with me told me I needed to eat more...that I was starving myself. I thought that was hilarious! Actually, that was the most calories I've had since surgery (counting my breakfast and lunch that day). Miraculously, I lost weight over the weekend. 1.2 pounds to be exact. Very odd. I have a feeling my bad behavior from yesterday will catch up to me though. I pray it doesn't, but these things have consequences! I also heard that we are having pizza delivered as a Christmas gift to us on Friday. I love pizza! I just want to cry :*( I'm afraid I'm starting to become obsessive and psychotic about food. I didn't want that. I don't want to be weird about this. I just want to be NORMAL!! Anyways, that's today's rant!!

Hi everyone, I'm sorry this is TMI, but I'm 4 days post op and have been having diarrhea, I'm wondering if it's because I haven't eaten anything but liquids, jello, and pudding and that's why it's causing this. Any thoughts? Thank you!

I got sleeved this past Thursday December 15th, in Lexington, KY at Central Baptist Hospital by Dr. Weiss. Right after surgery I felt a ton of gas, I was out of it couldn't really focus on family and friends. With every sip I took there was a big bubble of gas that came up from my stomach and out like a belch, I didnt pass gas until my second day and the third day I had a bowl movement that was crazy ( I KNOW TMI). My doctor used the OnQ pump which was great. I never really had pain, except one of my incisions was sore which is till sore today. I stayed in the hospital for two nights and I thought I was going to go crazy with all the tubes running out of me in every direction. I havent been hungry since surgery but I have been really thirsty. In the hospital they served me popsicles, broth, a protein shot and lemonade. I drunk the protein shot, popsicle, and lemonade. Here at home I've been eating Campbells Chicken broth and I add unflavored whey protein to it to help get my protein in. I've also added the whey protein to my juice or drinks. I did purchase some isopure drinks which I will drink half at a time because they have around 40 grams of protein per bottle. The unflavored protein really mixes well with warm food as well as cold drinks. This is the ony way I can manage to get in my protein and my liquids for the day. My doctor sent me home with liquid loratab as well as something for the gas, nausea. Oh yea after surgery my blood pressure went up. Before surgery I always had perfect blood pressure. The doctor said that sometimes the surgery can drive up the blood pressure. Overall I'm doing fantastic. I've slept on both my sides the first night just fine. When I got home I was able to walk up the stairs and sleep in my bed comfortably. The only issues I've had is one of my incisions are sore. I've been walking a lot and sipping a lot. It takes me a while to finishe my liquids but that's not a huge issue. I really can't complain, I've kept everything down, and I have a good amount of energy. I do take all of my vitamins and suppliments so I wont be deficient. Anyway I hope all the December Sleevers are doing well!!!!

Kinda a weird question here, hope it's not TMI for anyone, My apologies if it is. Here goes...I have a good amount of loose skin in my stomach area and noticed a new "roll" that is right over my belly button area. Needless to say, there isn't a lot of air circulation and I've had some issues with a very sore, and inflamed belly button. I went to the doctor who gave me some prescription strength hydrocortisone cream which cleared it up after a few days, but I'm sure it's going to return. I'm wondering about skin removal surgery. Has anyone checked into that yet? And, if so, what are your insurance requirements. My one year bandiversary is on 12/30 and I cannot believe it's been a year and how much easier it is to get around! I don't hardly grunt and groan at all anymore. :-)

Sorry guys but I have to ask. I am struggling to get in my Protein. I was told to up it to at least 60 but more like over 100. So ONE day I decided to drink 4 of the Premier Protein costco drinks that have 30 grams each of protein. I got in 120 grams and the very next day I literally thought I would DIE. I had major bathroom issues like never in my entire life. Nothing would work. And I mean NOTHING. I thought I was going to have to get a stick of dynamite. Sorry for being so out there but it was horrifying!! I had to go to the doctor. They told me a lot of protein like that can really mess you up. Maybe my body wasn't used to it or maybe that brand of shakes who knows. All I can say is it has taken me a full WEEK to even get my body back on track. I'm on daily doses of miralax, Fiber pills, blueberries, prune juice..whatever is powerful. I never want that to happen again. I was actually scared!! LOL...I know it sounds ridiculous but it literally frightened me to death!! So how are you all really getting in these high amounts of protein and NOT having to live on laxatives b/c I really don't want to do that. But I've noticed that the higher the protein the faster the weight loss

Ok, sorry if this is TMI, but I have got to talk about it! My BMs after surgery hurt!!! Due to the smaller amount of veggies/fiber I am eating I think is causing me to have harder BMs. What should I take to help this problem? I drink lots of Water already. I can't live like this anymore! I dread going bc it hurts!! I have been dealing with it off and on for 2.5 months now. J Banded 9/22