Search the Community

Scheduled for 10/17. I am on day 3 of preop and I feel better today than I did the last 2 days. It’s a struggle - I keep thinking of the food I want to eat. Popcorn. Pumpkin cake. Rice!! Ughhh

I had my VGS on 10/16- and was losing pretty regularly. I have noticed a stall just recently and I even went up a little. I was just released to regular food though so I know I’ve eaten more carbs lately. I’ve got to get back to my protein shakes but the taste of them makes my tummy upset. the worst part is trying to get my water in- it’s been next to impossible. I’m just not thirsty or tempted to drink. Sugar substitutes trigger dumping now so additives like crystal light are out. I’ve done lemon and orange zest and it works for a day or two and then it’s back to the drawing board. Coconut water (urg empty calories) and Gatorade are now my go to- so frustrated.

@BlueParis I think the hardest part about this process is accepting that the weight loss happens over a full year, or sometimes even more! The stalls make it feel like it will never happen, even though it will. Just not as fast as we want. But you'll get where you want to be eventually if you keep doing the right things. I've been thinking about it and one of the things I think makes it hard for me right now is that part of my brain never really accepted or acknowledged the size I was when I reached my highest weight. I look at myself in the mirror now and even though I haven't been this weight in 25 years and the last time I was close to it was 7 years ago, in my head, this is what I looked like all along, so I don't see the difference. I'll admit, I saw a photo of myself from last summer and was shocked at my size. Did I really look like that? But I look at myself now and all I feel is the frustration I had in my mid-20s of "when will I lose this weight" because it feels like the last 50 lbs never even happened. I'm just back to a place where I recognize what I'm seeing in the mirror instead of pretending it's not there. @RonHall908 I'm also struggling with sleep. I started tracking with my Fitbit and I don't get what I thought I did. I go to bed around 10:30 and I don't have to be up until 7:00, so I always thought I was getting plenty, at least 7 hours and close to 8, but in reality, I wake up at 5:00 this time of year because of the sun coming up. In the past 3 weeks since I started tracking, I've averaged 6h7m and only hit 7h twice. For comparison, my tracker says I've had an average of 1h9m of REM and 1h13m deep sleep, with 45m awake and 3h44m light sleep. For the most part, I'm energetic. I get over an hour of walking in almost every day, with 38m in the moderate zone according to my tracker. I don't drink any caffeine. But I do have about 30 minutes between 2:30 and 3:00pm when I can barely keep my eyes open. After that, I tend to have a second wind and am wide awake by the time 9pm rolls around so going to bed earlier isn't a great option. I try to relax and read, but I still don't fall asleep until close to 11pm, and I can easily stay up until after midnight if I don't stop myself. Maybe this is just what my body wants?

Was given the all clear to try regular coffee if desired. Yesterday was my birthday and I chickened out of getting a birthday skinny mocha. Today I did end up trying a small one and my god. This is probably hour 2 of dumping. Anxiety? Check Heart palpitations? Check Nausea? Check General uneasy feeling? Check 0/10 do not recommend!

Try exercise snacking. Multiple short bursts of exercise throughout the day. Each burst adds to your total for the day. So say 3 x 10 min sessions = 30 mins of daily exercise. Much easier to slot in your busy day. This is what I do. Try to add things during your work day like going for a walk in the your lunch break, walk/jog up any stairs you have at work. Hand weights, resistance bands are handy things to use at home at night. Some stretches (yoga based) can help you relax after work too & are great for flexibility. I have a mat on my living room floor in front of the tv. Put on Great British Bake off & do a session of stretches & bands. I also like wall push ups. (I stand about 90cm - 3 feet - from the wall & do 60.)

Finishing up my breakfast and then it's time to get ready to go back to work FINALLY!!! WooHoo!!! It's about time. I hate not working. So glad I was cleared yesterday to go back starting today. Oh, and I'm now down to 233 pounds. I'm 33 pounds away from my goal weight!!!! I started off at 421 pounds when this whole journey began. I've lost a total of 188 pounds from my highest weight. I've lost a total of 155 pounds since my surgery in May 2022 (I was 388 pounds on surgery day). Bariatric surgery, changing my relationship with food, changing my diet, working out and changing up my routines, all of it is why I'm here now. 33 more pounds to go, ya'll!!! I'm in a size 16/18 in clothes (down from 28/30), I'm in a size 6 1/2 ring (down from size 10), I'm in a size 10 shoe (down from a size 11), and I wear 18" necklaces (instead of the 22" and 24" necklaces I wore before). Yes, I've had complications. Yes, I've had several surgeries. But things were found that I never would have known about. Silent killers, they're called. Has it been annoying and painful and frustrating? ABSOLUTELY. Would I do it all again anyway? ABSOLUTELY. I've STILL gained so much more than I've lost. I have 1 more surgery (my hysterectomy) and then I'm completely done. And honestly, I'm still way way healthier than I ever was before. I only wish I would have just done the bypass to begin with and skipped the sleeve. But then again, like I said, the conditions I didn't know about wouldn't have been found without the complications from the sleeve that led to all my procedures. Everything happens for a reason. I firmly believe that. And I'm almost on the other side of all this, so I can speak into existence that nothing else will go wrong, things are looking up, and I'm getting my life back but as an even healthier and better version.

Hi everyone! I'm 13 days post op today. I had my gallbladder taken out at the same time because I had gallstones. My surgeon also removed a cyst from my belly button so I expected this surgery to be a difficult recovery but it hasn't been. I stayed only 1 night in hospital, had no trouble with getting myself in and out of bed or using the bathroom, I could drink fluids, I was walking laps, and I had no trouble swallowing pills, so they released me before noon the day after surgery. At home my pain was 6/10 for 2 days then 4/10 for 3 days. The pain was mostly attributed to the spot where the liver retractor was, probably inflammation too. I didn't need to take prescription pain medicine, I only needed Tylenol for the first 5 days. I've been pain free since day 6, and I've been doing great with staying hydrated at home thankfully. I had my first post op checkup on Monday (2 days ago) and everything looks great. They cleared me to start stage 2 Soft foods which has been going well too. I can resume playing sports and start lifting weights in approximately 3-4 weeks. I can't explain why it how my recovery has been so quick and easy. Before surgery I suffered for years with chronic fatigue, GERD, and insulin resistance. Which seem to be resolved as of now. I stopped my metformin a week before surgery, and my blood glucose is now in the normal range! My next goal is to ditch my CPAP machine. I have so much energy and feel better than I have in years. This is why I wanted the surgery, to fix my health issues. Weight loss is just a bonus!

Congratulations everyone! I consider myself a veteran almost 6 months after my gastric bypass. Getting this surgery was the best decision of my life! Whatever you are going through, hating your liquid diet, pre op fear, post op pain, stool issues after surgery, fear of the surgery itself (I was so scared that I considered not doing it until the moment they rolled me in the operating room), please remember that is ALL worth it. My diabetes went away after 15 years of Metformin and Insulin, and for the first time in over 10 years ALL my annual health test came back perfect in the normal range. You will do great!

I haven’t been very public about my surgery journey, but I’m not very public about any of my health stuff.  If people ask, I’ll ease in slowly and gauge interest, but usually keep things short. [[I’m okay- aka I’m still not great but not is particularly bad. We’re working on it- meaning my doctors and I Ah, it’s going, meaning it’s pretty bad but you don’t really care about it. ]] For my weight loss- I did it primary as a potential benefit to help my health issues, not particularly for looks. There were two people who pretty much immediately started commenting as soon as I lost like 10 pounds.  Other than that it was only in the past 1-2 months that I have started getting regular comments.  And I am struggling to figure out how I want to deal with them.  If it is strictly compliments, I’ll just say thanks and move on. [I’m still supperrrr awkward about it, but 🤷🏻‍♀️] [I also don’t particularly like the attention, and it makes me want to dress to hide the changes.] But when people continue and ask what are you doing or what’s your motivation or anything like that that’s where I am struggling a little bit more. My goal for the surgery was focused on my health. It also is a little difficult because my health issues are caused my genetic issues, and while weight loss likely will help in the long term, I haven’t really seen any improvements since losing weight.  So it can be awkward for those conversations if other women ask how I have lost weight or if I’m feeling better.  I don’t wanna tell anyone, yeah I don’t really feel better, because I know that for most people it would.  So for those of you who aren’t really sharing about your surgery, what do you say if people ask about how you lost weight? How do you respond when people compliment you? All of that…

Hello! I’m new here. ☺️ I’m 36 years old and had my sleeve done on 08/15/23 at 250 lbs. … It’s only 09/01/23 (2 weeks out) and I’ve lost 16 lbs at 234 lbs. My ultimate goal weight is 150 for a height of 5’5” so I’m hoping to lose 100 lbs. I am a new mom and have a 6 month old at home. I not only want to be able to keep up with him better, but just feel generally better about myself. I already feel an improvement. 🙂

I appreciate you responding and your suggestions. I don't know about beef jello..I have texture eating issues. Is it just like regular jello? My day goes like this: Breakfast: Coffee w/heavy cream (1 tsp), my multivitamin chew, 1 calcium chew, .5 mg taurine, 2.8 grams magnesium glutamate, 2 tsp collagen protein w/hyaluronic acid all in my coffee, 1 pro/prebiotic 3 strips turkey bacon at 30 calories each and one egg or 2 egg white egg bites with 1/2 teaspoon red pepper Lunch: 1/2 cup turkey chili w/mushrooms and teaspoon G. Hughs chili Thai dipping sauce (no sugar 5 calories 2 carbs) with 1 tablespoon Fage Greek yogurt or Atkins protein bar. Dinner: Fairlife Core Elite protein drink (42 grams) or above chili 1/2 cup or 3oz chicken breast w/broccoli florets - 2 IF I have a snack: its .5 cup fair life chocolate elite core creami protein ice cream 10+- protein grams. This is all I eat for a max of 800 calories. I lost 21lbs before surgery (started diet before surgery May 29th) and lost 50lbs since surgery on August 21 to today. I just don't understand why I've only lost 21 lbs in three months and only 3.8lbs this last month.

I am currently in my pre-op liquid phase. Surgery in 10 days. Im drinking Protien2o, SEEQ (its a clear liquid whey, pretty sweet), and Chocolate Fairlife. I do like some of the Premier Protein drinks as well, but my doctor requested I stay away from coffee, and those happen to be my favorite flavors. Jello has been great too when I feel like I need to chew something. Also, pickle juice has helped cut cravings and is a great electrolyte replacement. 😉 I'm currently looking for a good bone broth. With the cold weather coming I would really love something warm in my belly. I've tried Bare&Bones Chicken bone broth and hated it. Made me very hesitant to buy anything else.

Sorry to hear what you have gone through and are still going through. I know exactly how you feel about wondering if the surgery has been worth it, I wondered the same for many months after mine but I can now say 10 months later that I see the light and know I could not have lost the weight I have done so far without the surgery and I can now finally feel the benefits. I have posted about it before on the forum but a recap to show you how s**t things can go..... I had my surgery 4th July 2023 and suffered severe pancreatitis brought on by the surgery (iatrogenic according to the medical reports) which resulted in me having a drainage tube fitted to my belly area and being hospitalised for one month. Three days after being released I collapsed at home and had to return to hospital via ambulance. There it was discovered that I had a leak in the stomach where the sutures hadn't sealed. I spent a further two weeks in hospital where I had to get clips put in to close the hole/leak. I then lasted 13 days at home before becoming ill again. I went in for a gastroscopy to check on the clips and turned out the clips did not do their job and I had leak back plus two abscesses (1 on stomach, 1 on pancreas). Spent a further three weeks in hospital on a feeding tube before getting all clear to go home after another round of clips were put in and passed their tests. Next time I lasted 15 days at home before having to be readmitted for another month! I never felt fully better but wasn't sure if that was just me recovering from all the trauma or still symptoms. I had a blood test one morning and that afternoon got a call to say I was to come back to the hospital immediately as my CRP was 180. Turned out the hole had opened again and I had an infection. Was put on a feeding tube again for the month and had a drainage tube fitted to my back, had so many different medications, a transfusion, tests etc it was exhausting. I was then sent to a hospital in Belgium to have a tube/coil like thing inserted in my stomach help the hole heal. I was finally released from hospital November 1st 2023. Like you I couldn't do things, I couldn't even stand at the kitchen counter to chop veg without feeling like I was going to collapse. The effort of having a shower and getting dressed some days was too much for me and it took me many months to get to my energy up to more than being able to something small each day. It is really only since mid-February that I can say my energy improved. My weight loss was also slow when in hospital as they were pumping me full of nutrition (via the feeding tubes) but it sped up once I was at home. I had the tube in my stomach removed three weeks ago and had another round of tests to make sure that the hole had healed and I have passed with flying colours. So far so good, no pain or discomfort which is such an improvement. The only thing I suffer with now is a bit of reflux and occasional terrible exhaustion. I was out for dinner on Sunday night and almost collapsed at the table the exhaustion came on so suddenly but I was ok a while later. I don't let it stop me, I have so much more energy than pre-op but I just know I have to pace myself and rest when I can. Basically, I just want to let you know that after all of the above that I have been through I now feel the relief of the surgery and the weight loss. I am now at the weight target the surgeon set for me, 75kg, though I will aim for a bit more and I no longer cry myself to sleep with pain or stress or the fear to make plans for the future. It has taken 10 months for me to get here, I am at the stage now that probably those who have a successful surgery would have been at months ago with their recovery from the op and getting back to a 'normal' life. I am going to see a psychologist through my hospital service for the medical trauma which has helped me as well. Do make sure that you go to the hospital if your symptoms worsen, or don't improve, and ask the doctors to check your levels just to be sure that there is no infection still there etc. Rest when you can, I don't know your situation but if you don't have to get up and go out during the day for work/kids/shopping etc. then don't, just take the time to heal and recover. Also ask for help if and when you need it and also say no to things that you may not want to do if you don't feel up for it - being a control freak these are things I am trying to learn to do.

My surgery is on the 29th. I'm on day 4/10 of my liquid diet and I'm struggling not to cheat and have a slice of turkey, or the egg whites of a boiled egg.

Had my surgery on the 10/30/23 7 day post op started at 355 lbs current 325 lbs been getting a lot on brain sabotaging can’t stay out of my phone look up symptoms of what I think is pain been to the er once because I thought something was wrong they give me a ct scan everything was good no blood clots even then I’m still thinking I have blood clots I feel great I’m up beat heart rate normal blood pressure normal idk know why wondering if anyone else is having this issue

Had my surgery on the 10/30/23 7 day post op started at 355 lbs current 325 lbs been getting a lot on brain sabotaging can’t stay out of my phone look up symptoms of what I think is pain been to the er once because I thought something was wrong they give me a ct scan everything was good no blood clots even then I’m still thinking I have blood clots I feel great I’m up beat heart rate normal blood pressure normal idk know why wondering if anyone else is having this issue

*raises hand* me too! i had a breast lift with extended arm lift (i.e., adresses the "side boob" issue) back in 2019...also had a tummy tuck all in one surgery. it depends i think one how long your surgeon is comfortable with u being under as well as how fast he/she works. my doc had a policy max of 6 or 7 (can't remember) hours under general anesthesia i think. he said he was done with me in under 6. personally, despite the recovery being very "challenging" (to put it mildly, ha!) i'd still do it all in one shot vs 3 separate surgeries: the healing was unpleasant enough that i was glad i only had to do it once (vs. three!!) but im a baby and was NOT a good patient so...i know of others on here whose recovery was a walk in the park. anyway: arm lift, breast lift tummy tuck...so so happy with them. the breast lift was actually the surprise favourite for me. being able to go bra-commando and remain perky is AWESOME. good luck! ❤️

You look great and have made fantastic progress. You have nothing to worry about. What you want to look at are your NSVs (Non Scale Victories). Here are a few of mine: I was able to fit in normal sized chairs at doctor's offices and the movies I was finally able to properly cross my legs when sitting My clothes were getting looser and not fitting as snugly I was able to wear 18" necklaces and they didn't fir like a choker My ring size went from a 10 to a 6 I could sit at a booth in a restaurant and there is plenty of space between my stomach and the table and I wasn't squished up against it I can wear bracelets and anklets now I am no longer diabetic, no longer have painful joints, no longer have high blood pressure, and am off all the meds for those issues When the scale isn't doing what we think it should be doing, look to your NSVs. That's what REALLY tells the tale with what your body is doing. Now, having said that, you gotta get back on your bariatric diet and re-dedicate yourself to it. The trick is to not undo all the progress you made. For me PERSONALLY, I can't let things like holidays and birthdays and special occasions be an excuse to go off my diet. I know that if I do, it'll be 10x harder to get back on track. So I make sure ahead of time that I have things I can eat that are compliant with my diet and still taste really good and allow me to be included with everyone else. Just keep that in mind going forward and you should do great.

Hello All! I had Surgery on 10/18/23 😊 I am usually in Facebook support groups, but lately they are too busy being negative and quick to tear others down. So, I am here for new scenery. I also noted most the talk and experiences are VSG, and less RNY Gastric Bypass. They are always talking bad about Bypasses until they need a revision to Bypass from VSG. So far I am doing really great! there's some hard moments, such as post op pain, gas, and one episode of dumping. (I think i ate too fast. Eating and talking). I am down -22 lbs. I will be one month post op on November 18th!

I imagine price might have something to do with the reason your doctor is starting with this one. I've never taken it, but I looked up the price and it's very affordable, like under $10 at some pharmacies. If this works for you, affording it long term will be a breeze. The newer GLP-1 drugs might sound so much better in terms of effectiveness, but at over $1k a month, I'd be praying for something else to work!

I don't know if this helps, but when I saw the nutritionist last week for my last pre-op appointment, she suggested choosing three regularly spaced meal times, 4 to 6 hours apart. I've decided on 8:30, 1:30, and 6:30 because it works best with my daily work schedule. She said to eat what I could of "real" food at the mealtimes, but not to let myself keep eating beyond 30-40 minutes. My goal is 20-25g protein at the meal, but let's say I managed to eat 10g for breakfast. In that case, I would want to supplement 10-15g of protein shake at 11am (halfway between breakfast and lunch). If I managed to eat 20g of protein at lunch, then I could skip the supplement between lunch and dinner. But if I only got 5g protein at dinner, I should supplement with 15-20g of protein shake a couple hours after dinner. That way you're trying real food first, but not letting yourself get behind as the day goes on. She said it would take quite some time to ween off protein supplements completely and that was fine. Eventually, she wants me to be at 3 meals and no snacks with 60-80g protein per day. If you don't want to rely on protein shakes but you find you can easily eat something like a Greek yogurt in between meals, you could do that instead. But basically it's just going to take time, and even after you are at a point that you can usually get all 20-25g of protein in a meal, there still may be some days where you can't and you need a supplement.

First off, kudos to you for wanting to regain your strength and build muscle post-surgery. It's important to start slow and progressively work your way up. Since you're 7 months post-op, you've likely received guidance from your healthcare provider, but here's a general idea: Start with low weights or resistance bands to ease into it. Focus on full-body workouts to maintain balance. Try 3 sets of 10-15 reps for each exercise, gradually increasing weights and reps as you get stronger.

That makes total sense to me. I am 19 days out, and I felt prepared before surgery. However, the restrictions, the effort to get in fluids, the different sensations, the lack of solid food, the changes in the internal plumbing... I could not have prepared for any of that. One must experience these things to really understand them. That's one reason that I am very grateful for this support forum! So many people can understand where you have been and where you are going. There are people here who are 10+ years out, and they are still very willing to share their wisdom and experiences for us newbies. I'm sending you internet hugs and so many well wishes for tomorrow! It is rough at first, but every single day does get a little bit better

Sounds a pretty okay weight loss to me especially if you experienced a stall of 1-3 weeks. You’re averting about 3lbs a week - nothing wrong with that. There is no ‘this is how much weight you must lose by this point’ rule. We all lose at our own rate. Some faster some slower. You lose at the rate that is best for you. There are averages which can be used as a guide but never a rule. Doesn’t mean you won’t lose your weight. (Don’t be influenced by the weight loss seen on tv programs. They lose large amounts in the beginning because they started at twice your weight & have lots to lose Their rate loss slows as they progress.) Is your surgeon concerned? Is your dietician concerned about your loss so far? If they’re okay you have nothing to worry about. You’re certainly not failing. You’ve lost 19 feckin’ pounds. Celebrate every pound you lose. I didn’t have to count calories & didn’t have to track my food so never had to discuss it with my dietician. I checked out of my own interest so I I know I was low calorie eater. Around 300 calories in the first month & was barely eating 900 calories by 6 months when I reached my goal. At 17 months when my weight stabilised I was eating 1300. Now I eat about 1500+/-. I was & am healthy & my blood work was is always excellent. I never could have physically eaten more than I was at any stage. But that is my story. Yours may be different & that’s okay. I’m a little taller than you & not very active (not running miles or spending hours in the gym) I don’t need the calories a taller, more active person needs. Ensure your dietician isn’t trying to fit you into the one size fits all average calorie intake box. The average calorie intake for a woman is said to be 2000 calories - I’d be the size I was before surgery if I ate that much. To lose they say I should eat 1500 so I’d never lose weight either on those recommendations.

Check your blood sugar when this happens. This sounds like what happens to me and it is reactive hypoglycemia and happens if I eat too many fast digesting carbs. My glucose will go into the 50’s and I need to eat 5- 10g or so fast acting carbs to raise it back again. (But not too many or it will keep swinging) This is something I have developed since having sleeve surgery over 10 years ago and the only way to control it is with diet and not eating high sugary volume of stuff.