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Fiber supplements suggestions
Darktowerdream replied to dukegal1213's topic in Gastric Bypass Surgery Forums
It’s really important to get a blend of both insoluble fiber (bulking fiber) and soluble fiber (prebiotic fiber that feeds the healthy bacteria in your gut) it’s usually best to get fiber from foods. I’m still working on this myself but I’ve got other gut issues. i didn’t finish what I meant to say so had to edit: benefiber is only prebiotic and is what dextrin. Psyllium fibers are just no good either. Chicory is an excellent prebiotic fiber. At first it is hard to fit in fiber especially with foods but I never trust the fiber supplements they sell in grocery stores. You can try making chia pudding for fiber. Also adding milled flax seeds will give you soluble fiber, insoluble fiber, healthy fats plus protein. You can mix flax in a lot of things. Milled flax seed is one of the best sources of both types of fiber. a good fiber blend is also gentle fibers, I Think found it in vitamin shoppe or vitacost.com https://www.jarrow.com/product/327/Gentle_Fibers I forgot Inulin is also a good fiber. I’m pretty sure it’s a prebiotic fiber. im trying to find ways to not use laxatives. Cascara sagrada is a good natural laxative. Also Ayurvedic supplements (I studied holistic health but my memory is getting worse over time so I can’t recall the name) I did find this interesting article on the subject of fiber after bariatric surgery https://www.njbariatriccenter.com/constipation-weight-loss-surgery-dont-suffer-silence/ -
Can anyone provide a phone number for Medicaid. I live in Atlanta and I've called so many numbers. All I'm getting are automated. I would like to speak to someone to see if my Medicaid covers bariatric surgery. I'd hate to get well into this and find it's not covered. Please help!!!!
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ASMBS Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Numbers Estimate for 2018
Alex Brecher posted a topic in General Weight Loss Surgery Discussions
Here are the ASMBS Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Numbers Estimate for 2018. Comparison to Previous Years The ASMBS total bariatric procedure numbers are based on the best estimation from available data (BOLD, ACS/MBSAQIP, National Inpatient Sample Data, and outpatient estimations). -
Why cant I lose weight naturally?
GreenTealael replied to tonbra32's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Hi welcome! Genetics is a humbling ***** I wanted start by saying IMHO Intelligence level and metabolic (or any favorable) genetics are not necessarily correlated. E.G. Stephen Hawkings. (Also IMHO more likely in our current societal structure intelligence and environmental factors have a stronger correlation -such as food scarcity/deserts and access to nutrition education- but the jury is still out...) I, likewise, hold a Master's but will put it in a folder to collect dust when it comes time to talk about my health. Family history, lifestyle, exercise, etc. those things mean more to the physcians. Unfortunately those people never truly understand so you will likely be wasting your breath. Unless these people are the gatekeepers in your process or highly HIGHLY important in your life, do you really owe them a presentation? A lot of Doctors call this a set point, YouTube bariatric surgeon Dr. Weiner. He talks about this often This surgery does not ONLY alter the physical digestive pathways but also metabolic changes occur. Best to attend a few seminars, talk it through with a Surgeon you trust and research on your own while you decide. There is A LOT of research out there, mostly medical journals easily found on Google Scholar or through other portals using your Uni's Alumni House access codes 😉 Good Luck 💙 -
Reaction to incision glue?!
Lynnlovesthebeach replied to Megan Catherine's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
My incisions were closed with staples and I had the same reaction. The Bariatric Fellow that saw me at my post op appointment before my bariatric surgeon freaked out! She said she had never seen such a reaction. A couple of days after they were removed and using hydrocortisone cream the rash was gone. Surgical staples are now on my allergy list. My ortho doc said they use cheap metal for those and allergies are not uncommon. He had to use a "zip line" to close my incision after my hip replacement 4 months ago. It's plastic and looks like a zipper. I also can't wear cheap earrings so it makes sense. By the way, the internal staples are a higher quality metal. -
CHEWABLE MULTIVITAMINS???
Megan Catherine replied to New&Improved's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
My favorite are from celebrate bariatric vitamins! I take the quick dissolve ones! Due to my lab work I take d3 and b12 along with my multi and calcium! Celebrate also has a great deal for $9.99 and they send you a big bag of vitamin/protein samples to try! Highly recommend! Good luck! -
Does anyone know if the staples left from sleeve gastrectomy are safe in an MRI four years post op? I tried to call my Bariatric surgeons office, but have not heard back and his MA was less than helpful. My daughter is having an MRI tomorrow, and I’m not sure if it will be safe for me to go in with her. Thanks!
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I swear this is not a paid review, but I eat the Bariatric Pal Lite Entrees a few times a week that you can buy off the store on this site. Super quick.
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Brachioplasty (arm lift) - are you happy with the results?
mousecat88 replied to rs's topic in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
My bariatric office didn't care because I exceeded their weight loss expectations by a lotttt; they said I would only get to 165 at best. The plastic surgeon also had no opinion. He said I can do it whenever I feel I am ready. My weight has been between 129 and 133 for 6-ish weeks now and my dietitian said if I lose more weight, I need to gain it back so if I go lower post-plastics, it won't really impact the plastics because I'm supposed to gain it back. If that made sense. I am one year post-op today. If I wanted insurance to pay for my tummy tuck, I would have to be 18 months post-op. I don't think they'd approve it anyway since I don't have rashes or anything so I'm just paying myself now. I'm so ready for this. I had a breast reduction in 2017 and I am SO GLAD I did because my boobs would be SO DROOPY after all this weight loss (they were a 48H and taken down to a 46D.... and are now a 36B). So even if I lose (or gain) a little more weight... I doubt it will have any real impact on my skin. -
So I will probably get a lot of kick back from this, but here it goes. Alcohol seems to be such a compromising issue for so many folks. The truth of the matter is, that NO amount of alcohol is good for you. Yes, there are antioxidants in red wine, but even very light alcohol consumption increases risk of throat, mouth, and GI cancers. Alcohol is a very strong chemical that is damaging to living tissue. Period. Think about why an alcohol swab is used on your skin before a shot. It cleans and kills. There is absolutely no reason for a bariatric patient, of all people, to drink alcohol. Yet, it is so hard to make the total break. It is the same argument I hear all the time with patients who smoke - "I just smoke 5 cigarettes a day," "I just smoke a pack every week," "I just smoke socially." When we all know that ANY amount of smoking is not good for health. All I am saying is that if we make this huge effort to improve our health with WLS, and we are willing to make total lifestyle changes to be successful in the long run for life, why do we try to compromise and flirt with seeing how much we can get away with concerning alcohol? Is it our addictive nature? Is it social pressure? It is a bit of rebellion? I believe it is a issue that is worth exploring deeply for each person and really asking the hard questions about WHY it is so important to continue drinking at all when there is absolutely no benefit, and only harm that can result. So fire away at me. I've said my 2 cent's worth and won't bring it up again.
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Well I am the Dexilent success kid, as long as I take it I have no further ulcer production, but I grew them while on Omperazolr both times, while under my gastroenterologist and my bariatric surgeon's care- just extremely LUCKY my insurance co-pay is only $8.30 because I COULD NOT AFFORD the OTC pricing. I take 60 mg but have been told the 30mg size will go generic in 2020 if not yet this year. An interesting FYI, my Doctor Needleman wrote a script for2 of!30mg capsules , Wal-Mart went and changed it to the 60 mg they had on hand anyway! Did they ask first? DOUBT IT STRONGLY, I once worked at Wally World but not in THAT department, and I know how devious they CAN be and often are. Like anybody that works at a place 11 YEARS, I know the skeletons and what closets they are hidden in.
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I had been Struggling at over 300 Pounds since I quit smoking back in 2008. When I quit I was @ 275 and ballooned to over 300 in months. I looked at bariatric Surgery in 2010 and actually took my insurance required classes and decided not to because of the restrictions of certain foods and told myself I could drop from the 315 i weighed at that time. In 2016 I had got to my heaviest at 366 pounds. 2017 was the year I said i was making changes and dropped to 333 I also started looking at bariatric surgery to help me, then i started taking the weight loss surgery classes again from Kaiser. After the 12 weeks of classes I had dropped to 310, and by March 2018 I was 306 on surgery day. Now I do say why didn't I do it sooner, we all end up saying that after, but I do recognize that mentally I was not ready 9 years ago. I did meet one guy who decided not to have surgery and has lost 60lbs on his own, to date and I commend him on his hard work and changes. I know that the surgery was the tool to help me make the correct choices to keep myself at a healthy weight. Good luck with your decision. 👍
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Doctors' philosophy on this vary from a few weeks to never again depending upon their experiences. The basic issues are: Healing - alcohol is somewhat corrosive to the stomach lining so one needs to give things a chance to heal first, Alcohol tolerance - rapid stomach emptying means it tends to hit faster, and with less (i.e., a "cheap drunk") so care must be taken there, Transfer addiction - we can no longer satisfy whatever addictive tendencies we have with food, so it is easy for transfer that addiction to something else, like alcohol, drugs, shopping, gambling, etc. What was a casual habit of a glass of wine with dinner occasionally can easily turn into full blown alcoholism. Liver health - starting as morbidly obese, or worse, our livers are not usually in very good shape to begin with (hence the "liver shrinking" pre-op diets that are often prescribed) and the liver is further stressed from its role in metabolizing all that fat that we are rapidly losing. It doesn't need any more stress from ingesting a known liver toxin like alcohol (not a judgemental thing, just our physiology at work). My surgeon is also a biliopancreatic (livers and pancreas) transplant surgeon, so he is in the no alcohol as long as we are losing weight camp (and ideally forever) and indeed we sign a contract to that effect - he doesn't want any of his bariatric patients coming back onto his transplant table! Those are the issues in play, and some aspects bother different surgeons to different degrees, so they have different policies. Check with what your surgeon's policy is, and decide for yourself - we are all adults here.
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Lower body lift APPROVED!
damzelindistres5 replied to damzelindistres5's topic in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
Yes. I had a few things, documentation from my bariatric surgeon, documentation from my OBGYN (sorry if TMI but my loose skin was causing irritation in my public region), documentation from my primary where I had 2 yeast infections inside my belly button due to the skin fold. I had visits spanning from about 5+ months before I decided to see a plastic surgeon. -
Hey November surgery friends. We're getting close! I'm thinking about you, Friday peeps for sure. Sending you happy healthy vibes. I'm having my surgery in Mexico and just made a post-op appointment at my local bariatrics practics for follow up care in mid-December. That was my last important hurdle to jump to give me peace of mind. My head is full of dreams as I make plans now for a special 30th Anniversary cruise with my hubby in March. I won't be at goal weight, but it's fun to think that I'll be snorkeling and dancing with more ease!
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Seeking Boston surgeon for revision
Megan Catherine replied to onmyway11's topic in General Weight Loss Surgery Discussions
I got my surgery done last week by Dr. Julie Kim! She’s actually the first dr to perform bariatric surgery in Massachusetts, if I’m remembering correctly! highly recommend! I went through Mount Auburn Weight Management Center at Mount Auburn Hospital! Good luck, Megan -
CHEWABLE MULTIVITAMINS???
Bianca S. replied to New&Improved's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I am on all chewables- my multivitamin, calcium citrate (I use Bariatric advantage chews), Vitamin D3 and a disolvable under tongue sublingual B12. Going to get my blood work done first time this week after surgery for my 3 months and we will see if they are working. -
Two weeks out and sometimes I have to run to bathroom
BQT posted a topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
Sorry if TMI, but who else can I ask? Doing protein shakes and was so happy to finally that delicious premier protein drink you guys recommended , except about thirty minutes after at work I had to run to the bathroom ... this didn’t happen when I tried it yesterday. Never happens with Bariatric advantage... happened a couple times with other drinks like quest and iconic protein. As you can tell my dr didn’t give me much of a pre or post op consultation . Also what is “dumping “ -
CHEWABLE MULTIVITAMINS???
Nice1 replied to New&Improved's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
My doctor recommended Bariatric Fusion chewable. I found the orange cream flavor on Amazon. 4 chewables a day gives you all the iron, calcium, B12, etc. you need and they taste good. Sent from my SM-G973U using BariatricPal mobile app -
Anyone do either a thru-hike or "pilgrimage" after surgery?
momof3_angels posted a topic in General Weight Loss Surgery Discussions
Just curious, have any of you done a thru-hike or pilgrimage after bariatric surgery? In particular, has anyone done the Camino de Santiago after bariatric surgery? How was it? How did you handle eating? Did you gain/lose/maintain weight? Insights you can share? I had surgery Sept 4th. I am losing weight at a nice pace. I have just reached a BMI under 30. I am walking 6 miles a day now (still easy walking, but at a brisk pace). I am just beginning to do Yoga/Pilates again (when I can get my daughter to dance in time for me to get to class). And I have just booked a flight to Paris/back from Barcelona... but in between I am planning on doing the Camino de Santiago (French Way) from St Jean Pied de Port! I am super excited. I am planning to up my fitness routine steadily until I leave. I am already buying any gear I don't have and trying to figure out how to keep weight down in my backpack. Buying smaller clothes will sure help that! Hopefully I am a Medium by then if not smaller. Anyhow, any tips on what you did to get you through a thru-hike? This is my first thru-hike. I have always wanted to do one, but I am using this as more motivation to keep going on my weight loss and getting fit. I selected this one because I don't have to carry my tent and all my food for many days at a time, and I SHOULD have an actual bed to sleep in every night. Anyhow, excitied, nervous, and really not sure how I will be handling food by then. I am doing better with hydrating now. I am eating small meals without problems. I have never gotten sick from anything I ate or overeating. -
Changing Habits Prior to Surgery
Lauren87 replied to Lauren87's topic in Gastric Bypass Surgery Forums
This is very informative, thank you! I am hoping to get the ball rolling before I even meet with the bariatric team so that I'm really in a good space when I begin the process. I have begun incorporating more movement into my days and prioritizing protein, but I know I have a ways to go before I'm at a point where I'll see weight loss. It sounds like you're in a great place and I'm sure you're going to do great post-op! -
115 pounds lost is phenomenal. How did you do it? Did you have to adopt a different strategy for the last few pound The last pounds can be painfully slow. We have less body fat to burn. No different diet or strategy . Reaching a lower BMI was not important to me. Its just where I ended up. I wish there was less emphasis on BMI. The goal to me is healthy. You said “The final pounds of weight loss are difficult and - because of the type severe restriction to get there - are not often sustainable” I agree that severe restriction is not sustainable. I did not use severe restriction to get to my BMI. I used bariatic basics and the calories/macros that kept my body in weight loss mode. Many do Bariatric basics, Keto, intermittent fasting, whole 30. Vegan paleo Etc. These are weight loss phase diets. You said "Ketogenic diets are not really recommended long-term for bariatric patients" Maintenance phase diet is a totally different long-term food plan.(ask your office for your plan) My instructions add calories, carbs, and fats to slow/stop weight loss. It’s been sustainable for me at five years out. You said " There's a risk that if I go back to a diet with 'forbidden foods', I may start thinking about it too much again (which - for me - would be counter-productive). You may want to work with a counselor to address this issue. Restricting and thinking about food too much is counter productive. I hope you find your own balance with all this. None of this is easy, right?
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Dr. Mast vs Dr. Cheng Reviews
Jazzy1125 replied to Jazzy1125's topic in POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
i did some additional digging, and asked 2 co workers for assistance in research.. Dr Mast specializes in breast reconstruction where as Dr Cheng specializes in all the contouring. I have decided to go with Dr. Cheng for the arm, thigh and tummy tuck. While i want the breast lift done, it is least of my priorities. I will decide down the road, and if i end up doing it, it will probably be Dr. Mast since that is his specialty unless Dr. Cheng and i come up with a different plan. there are 2 other reasons.. Dr Cheng is local, and part of the hospital where i attend support group meetings but did not have the surgery. According to the folks at the support group, if anything is done via their hospital then that automatically makes me part of their bariatric program instead of having to pay a 300 fee to get in, just to get further follow ups if needed. I do not foresee needing them as i will be a year out in 9 days and have not had any issues (knock on wood). but if the need arises, choosing Dr Cheng also provides me that benefit of seeing their bariatric drs, without having to foot an extra cost. -
I have no fixed opinion about this issue - I'm just interested to hear other people's views and approaches. I've got to the point where my BMI is about 27/28ish and I've lost oodles of weight. I've only lost a pound in the last 7 weeks or so, but I have lost inches, so I'm not too worried. However, I think my weight loss is beginning to 'bottom out'. Ideally, I should lose another 14-20lbs, and to this end, I was thinking of using a ketogenic diet for a few weeks. However, I've had some conversations with medical types about it recently (a retired doctor who's a friend, a bariatric nurse and the nurse at the local GP's surgery). They all said slightly different things, but the common threads of what they said were: If reaching the BMI-25-target is important to you, then by all means try! The final pounds of weight loss are difficult and - because of the type of severe restrictions needed to get there - are not often sustainable. The differences in health benefits between a BMI of 27ish and 25 are negligible. Ketogenic diets are not really recommended long-term for bariatric patients. I might still lose more weight using a balanced diet (with small portions) and although it would take longer, it would be more sustainable. From my own point of view, I had stopped thinking about food so often and I felt that this diminished importance of food in my mind was good for my mental health. There's a risk that if I go back to a diet with 'forbidden foods', I may start thinking about it too much again (which - for me - would be counter-productive). However, I know that some of you guys have achieved (and surpassed) that magical BMI of 25. How did you do it? Did you have to adopt a different strategy for the last few pounds, or did you just keep on plugging with the good habits you had learnt? As I said, I'm not here to pre-judge; different things work for different people...I'm just interested in hearing about a range of strategies that work.
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my personal little official thread
mousecat88 replied to mousecat88's topic in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
Theoretically, yes. BUT, apparently FMLA does not have to be approved for cosmetic surgeries. I recently got a warning that if I used ANY more sick leave, I would be fired. I missed a lot of work this year due to bariatric complications and most recently my back injury, and didn't know enough about FMLA to know I should have requested those issues be covered so they weren't. They had already approved the FMLA for these dates and if I go and change the dates and ask for new FMLA forms to be completed, I am 100% sure they would deny it. I am going to really go over all this next Monday with the plastic surgeon. I also have an appointment scheduled with my rheumatologist on December 6th, the Friday before I would be returning to work post-op, in case I move forward with the surgery but am still in pain. He would be able to prescribe antiinflammatories or something else to hopefully get me through.
