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The holiday season always comes up faster than expected. That is even true this year when so many other things have been different. It is time to start thinking about gifts for the people you love. If they include bariatric surgery patients who are pre or post-op, we have the perfect gifts for you. First up are something your loved one is sure to love: favorite desserts. If they are missing creamy, starchy, sugary foods, you can be the one to give them their faves without guilt. Here are just a few favorite desserts you can gift this year! Gingerbread Cake Mix Nothing says, “Happy Holidays!” like gingerbread, but can your bariatric surgery friend really afford to be eating gingerbread this year? Yes, she certainly can if you give her a high-protein, low-carb version such as BariatricPal Gingerbread Mug Cake Mix. It has 130 calories, 12 grams of protein, and 1 gram of sugar. Even better than giving ready-made gingerbread cake or cookies, giving Gingerbread Cake Mix lets the recipient make it herself, which means the delicious smell of cinnamon and ginger can waft through the house. It is easy to make just by mixing a packet with water and microwaving it. Each box contains 7 packets. Creamy Cheesecake Cheesecake is not the standard choice for a smart dieter, but BariatricPal High Protein Creamy Cheesecake is no standard cheesecake. It has about half the calories, saturated fat, and sugar as the same size serving of regular cheesecake, along with 12 grams of protein to make it more filling. If cheesecake isn’t cheesecake without the graham cracker crust, you can easily make your own without adding the 20 grams of carbs per serving that a traditional one has. Just crush sugar-free Catalina Crunch Keto Cereal - Honey Graham instead of graham crackers to use in the crust. Each serving has 10 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber. You can make an entire cheesecake using 7 servings of Creamy Cheesecake mix, or make your cheesecake in muffin cups for single servings. Each box has 7 servings. Pumpkin Spice Blondie A bariatric surgery patient could feel a little down after an entire autumn of passing up pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin lattes, and pumpkin muffins. How about giving a gift of a pumpkin dessert that comes without guilt? Eat Me Guilt Free Pumpkin Spice Blondie knocks the socks off the competition in taste and nutrition. The entire blondie has only 170 calories and 4 grams of sugar, or 90% less sugar than a slice of pumpkin bread from a bakery-cafe. With 22 grams of protein, it has as much protein as chicken and can be eaten for a meal, snack, or dessert. They come in single and 3, 6, and 12-packs. There is no shortage of desserts that are suitable gifts for bariatric patients and anyone else who is on a weight loss journey. By the way, remember that your favorite bariatric surgery patient can be...yourself! Go right ahead and give yourself the gift of weight loss and pleasure all in one with your favorite low-carb desserts!

I started to regain as well. Fortunately for me I have a group of family and friends who have had bariatric surgery and we counsel each other. Here is what I have been doing to combat the weight regain. 1- First and foremost I stop eating after 7PM and don't start eating until 8AM the next day. This has a double effect. First it's an intermitent fast AND it stops me from eating/snacking before I go to sleep. As I found, two very important steps to take as it does have a positive effect on your body's ability to lose weight. 2- ANY exercise that I can get I do. Whether it's walking stairs, doing yard work, walking instead of driving. 3- I don't eat processed foods. They are empty calories and have no nutritional benefits what so ever. 4- I don't snack. I eat only when I'm hungry during my 8AM-7PM window and eat to get the feeling of fullness. 5- Adhere strictly to the 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after rule for drinking water. I hope this helps.

Butterfly, your entire post is very true and inspirational. Another bariatric success story.

So, I have been contemplating bariatric surgery for about 10 years. Kept putting it off, but now I have to have hernia surgery. Doc said he can do both the hernia and the sleeve at the same time, so I'm thinking two-fer sounds like a good idea. I'm not looking forward to worrying about what I eat the rest of my life, but I know that it will be good for me, and the fact that he is already going to be rooting around inside, makes this a little bit easier of a choice. Is there anyone else in here who had both done at once?

Hey everyone! Just a quick intro!! My name is Chris. I'm 45 and had gastric bypass in 2015. I lost 180 lbs and have kept it off! As you all know, sooooooo many things in your life change after surgery. More than just weight loss. One thing that changed for me was that I went back to school. I found it so interesting during the process leading up to, and all the changes afterwards, just how psychological eating is for us. I also noticed and was very frustrated by the way people, including myself, had been and still are treated as a big guy as opposed to a small guy. If you have been through the process, you know EXACTLY what I mean. So, I went back to school at Cleveland State University, and am on track to becoming a clinical psychologist! My specific interest is, working with bariatric patients! (big surprise right??). As a part of my senior project, I am doing a research paper on bariatric surgery and self esteem. I'm interested, of course, in surgery patients. But anyone who has lost a large amount of weight is also of interest to me. If you are interested in helping my by taking a simple survey I have created, it would be really awesome! it is all anonymous, and only will be used for my paper in class. Nothing to be published. That will be another study in the next couple years for grad school!! It would be awesome if anyone would be willing to participate! If you want any more info, or want to know more about me. Just ask!! Here is the link : https://forms.gle/TQy3fAreLdjmRQYq9 I think that link works. IF there is an issue and you'd like to help, please let me know and I'll email you a link. Lots of love and thank you everyone!! Chris P.S.- Anyone who has not had the surgery but is thinking about it. 1. Make sure you are REALLY ready. 2. Don't be scared. It saved my life. 3. All your feelings and emotions are normal and valid. Please feel free to take the survey even if you haven't had surgery. I'm interested in your feelings too!!!!!!

My stomach suddenly decided to reject solid food. They did several tests and could find no actual problem (such as stricture). Everything I ate would cause severe cramping and vomiting. My pcp that works with the bariatric program lovingly refers to me as a difficult case

I had Dr. Shillingford do my surgery. I hear that they have an amazing bariatric wing in the hospital they do their surgeries in. Unfortunately, due to Covid, I had mine outpatient with a nurse attendant at the Hampton Inn for one night. That being said, I have had no complications and I am not depressed because I have been out to dinner several time and as Gator says above, I can still eat, just not as much! I'm down 44 pounds in 3 months (7/30 was my surgery date) and feel great!

Gulf Coast Bariatrics Very good surgeon - No i do not miss food because i still eat all the time - Just smaller amounts - For example for lunch had 4 CocoNut Shrimp and coleslaw. Before would have eaten 25 and fries and coleslaw Its the food that is killing you -

I guess I should’ve been more specific. I am not looking for brands of fruit punch. I am looking for bariatric friendly recipes for a party punch.

The decision whether to have the surgery or not is a very big decision because once you have the surgery you can't exactly go back and change your mind... I bounced around back and forth about whether or not to have WLS for about 10 YEARS. I did numerous diets and nothing worked. Eventually it was the realization that if I DIDN'T do something about my weight and my declining health because of that weight then I wouldn't be around to watch my three nieces grow up. I was a little over month away from my 32nd birthday and 389 pounds with a BMI of 61.8 (I'm 5'6.5, they don't give you that half inch on this site) when I took the first steps by seeing the bariatric surgeon I learned my brother was going to be having another daughter. And 2.5 months AFTER my surgery I learned my sister was pregnant again and just 2 weeks ago gave me my first nephew. I'm not going to tell you that surgery is the option for you, because every person is different. Surgery is very much a tool to help you get to heathier eating habits that'll help lead you to a healthier you. It is in no way easy. People who tell you WLS is the easy way out are ridiculous and know absolutely nothing about everything involved. It's a life choice. I will be on vitamins, expensive vitamins, for the rest of my life. But do I regret it? No, I don't. Would I do it all over again knowing everything I know now? Yes, I would. But again, this is very much my own choice and you are your own person. I was 321 pounds on my surgery date and the last I weighed was a little over a week ago and I weighed in at 218 which is 103 pounds since my surgery and 171 pounds overall. I suggest you weigh the pros and cons. Think long and hard about everything WLS would mean to you and how it would change your life. It's understandable that your husband is worried because surgery of any kind has risks, but the risks nowadays for WLS are pretty low. Go over statistics with him if it'll help relieve his mind a bit. Take him to appointments with you if you feel it'll help. Maybe sit him down and explain just why this step is something you feel you NEED for yourself.

Hi Misty, I am in NYC. I saw Dr Chaio at Mercy Medical center on Long Island. He was the only one at the NY Bariatric group that would take my insurance. But the NY Bariatric group routinely does revision surgeries so if you have private insurance you can check them out!

Years ago I was required to do 3 monthly visits on Cigna, however same policy this year for 2nd surgery there was no such requirement. This time it was only one visit with the nutritionist, one psych clearance, one letter from pcp stating he recommends bari surgery for me. Second point - my surgeons office initially told me my plan didn’t cover Bariatrics at all. I called Cigna myself and in fact it was covered at 100%. 🤷‍♀️

Ok so my sister is having a few of us over for a Halloween party since she’s not taking the kids out trick or treating. She’s making the usual sugar filled party punch. naturally this isn’t something us bariatric patients can have, so I want to make a bariatric friendly punch to take. Any ideas?

My experience was similar to yours, I only lost 25 pounds in the first two months; however, my loss continued at a steady 10 pounds per month for quite a while after that. I know it seems like it takes forever, but at 10 pounds/month, it wasn't long before it started adding up. I was even more impatient because I had a cousin who had the bypass a few days apart from me and when I compared our progress it seemed like I was losing SO. MUCH. SLOWER. But comparing with other people doesn't work well because a lot of things go into the rate of weight loss, such as your activity level, your dieting history, your natural metabolism rate, how much you have to lose, etc. Are you sticking closely to the eating plan your bariatric team gave you? Drinking enough fluids? Getting your protein in? Eating more real food than processed stuff? Do you feel the restriction from your surgery and are you stopping when it kicks in (or just before)? Are you logging what you are eating? That really helped me, especially early on. One thing my surgeon warned me about was including too many excess carbs in my diet, especially refined carbs. So you might want to make sure you're not overdoing it there. If so, you are doing all the right things. You've lost 28 pounds in two months, so you're averaging 14 pounds per month. That's actually good and will quickly add up to a big weight loss. If you keep losing at that rate, you would be 84 pounds lighter in 6 months! Just keep going, you'll get there...

Okay I finally received my coverage booklet and I do not see Bariatric services under Excluded and Exemptions. So I am assuming that Bariatric Surgery is covered. They only have two things you need to qualify: BMI 40 and take part in nutrition program. I am so excited can’t wait until my first meeting with the Dr. on Jan.21, 2021. I pray everything goes smoothly.

I cant seem to figure out where I can update my surgery stats, any help would be appreciated.

Write a pros and cons list....hopefully for you the pros far out-weigh (no pun intended!) the cons. Remind yourself every single day of the pros. Have you thought about some counselling with a bariatric related counsellor or therapist? Hopefully they may help you work through some of your anxieties.

I'm currently on the 6 month pre op diet for bariatric sleeve surgery in January 2021. I'm struggling quite a bit with this diet. Anyone else?

Psychologist here--I just thought I would chime in with a few thoughts. Competence is a legal issue and everyone is assumed to be competent to consent to whatever unless someone (lawyer, doctor, family member, etc.) raises the issue of whether or not someone is competent. Competence is specific to the task, so someone might be competent to make a will but not competent to consent to treatment. Not likely, but never say never. The purpose of the psych eval is to try to determine if there are psychological factors that would be a contraindication to surgery. Undiagnosed and untreated eating disorders, or Munchausen Syndrome, or using food as an antidepressant or antianxiety agent. The MMPI is widely used for a variety of purposes. I personally would not use it when evaluating someone for a bariatric procedure, but I have a sneaking suspicion that some insurance won't pay the clinician unless they use tests specified by the insurance company. There are consistency measures built into it in case someone decides to answer randomly or without reading the questions carefully.

I had to fill out a questionnaire then had a teleconference with the psychologist. It was a lovely discussion and he sent my approval to my surgeon the next day. Guess I was lucky. But he is on a board of Bariatric providers writhing my community, maybe that experience helps?

So I had a surgery date scheduled on the 1st day I seen the Dr for bariatric surgery (scheduled about 3 months later). I was giving a list of tests and specialists I had to see before a certain date to receive insurance approval. My EGD is in about 2 weeks. My surgery is January 22, 2021. Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

SF popsicles, SF greek yogurt, SF jello, SF pudding, ricotta cheese with cocoa powder or peanut butter and sweetener, SF hot chocolate, protein cheesecake. try bariatric foodie for recipes. not sure what diet you are on but good luck!

I found some recipes on bariatric foodie and bariatric bits websites that look pretty good. I am currently on my last day of liquids so tomorrow I get to transition to "mushy" food good luck!

Behavioral change is always tough and it will take time. My approach is to face the temptation instead of keeping my head in the sand. We recently lived in Italy and took many a cooking class while there.Cooking class is the thing we do together so we are both very comfortable in the kitchen. When my lovely and supportive wife whipped up a batch of pasta with blistered tomatoes, garlic, and shrimp last night for her and the kids, I was salivating. It smelled delicious, but I know in time I will be able to enjoy a bite or two. For now, I only had my broth (homemade chicken stock as the other stuff taste so processed and it’s super easy to make so let me know if you want the recipe). I got myself into this, I have to get myself out. I don’t want to punish them and I know I will eventually be around all the food again and now is the time to build the resistance. Have you heard the one about the alcoholic who walks into a bar....well, no difference than a bariatric patient walking into a bakery. I’m not really sure if I am hungry or not as there is a big mental aspect. I equate it to a recent amputee still feeling their appendage. Going from a 3500-5000 calorie a day diet to a 300 calorie a day diet is a shock to the body and mind. My stomach gurgles all the time, but I think it’s healing vs hunger. I think it’s time to eat as I am watching TV as that is what I did in the past hungry or not. Adjustment takes time so give yourself a break and keep focusing on your weight loss goal, ideal dress size, exercise goal, or whatever gives you strength. You can do this!

Honestly, when it comes to 14 day pre-op diets, no one is much more experienced than you. I mean, it's 14 days that we never have to repeat again, if we do it right. Now, we can tell you what we like... well, not me since I don't do protein drinks... but someone will tell you what they like. But as everyone has their own preferences that may not help much. Heck, someone will tell you the one you hate is one they love. Obviously, you are wrong to dislike it, So, here we are. If the Doc gave you an example drink, then you can look at stats and just get others that compare favorably. It's only two weeks, so make the best choice you can. Even if it's horribly wrong, it's only two weeks. I don't work for [looks at top of webpage] of Bariatric Pal. I have never purchased a bariatric product from this site, or any site, or any store, or from anywhere ever as far as I can recall. Thus, I am speaking from a perspective of complete and unimpeachable knowledge regarding [looks at thread title] protein drinks. Bariatric Pal and most other sites that offer protein drinks and powders offer a variety pack of different flavors, brands, and packing styles of products for the express purpose of allowing you to test competing products until you find something you can actually stomach. Do it, stick with it, and in 14 days you'll be having surgery. Then you get a whole new set of concerns. Good luck and enjoy the ride. All sorts of ups and downs, twists and turns. It's a thrill a minute. Tek