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Hiya. I have rny since june 2019 and have been taking kratom for about a month now. I used yo just down it in a few oz of coffee but cant do that any longer. I get powder online and then put it in capsules myself. I can get down the big ones (000) but they do make smaller caps if needed. It absorbs really fast for me (all meds do for me). Takes about 15 to 20 mins even in the gelcaps i just take a lot of water with them (normally about 6 pills total with 20oz of water in about a span of 15 mins.). I take 2:1 ratio of a certain red with a certain white and it makes me feel good plus takes my pain from an 8 down to about a 4 (i have chronic kidney stones). If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask!! :)

It's normal! No, it will not trigger "starvation mode". Your hormones and metabolism hit a "reset" with surgery. Your body won't recognize it is in "starvation" mode for a long time. And by then, you will be eating more. Drink your water. Eat your protein. Don't worry about anything else! But... if you do meet your protein goal you can add in a few healthy veggies that are on your plan. (although at 10 days it is a bit soon for veggies).

Focus on protein. I personally observed calories, but did not "control" them at 10 days out, other than to follow my doc's and RD's rules which were lean, dense sources of protein to my protein goal which was 60-74g/day protein + low glycemic veg + low fat. That automatically kept my calories super low. I was around 300-450cals at Day 10.

No equipment like PELETON, treadmill, etc. I have total knee replacement and arthritis in ankles. Also have severe sciatica/low back pain. I don't have cable but do have Roku streaming device. Not interested in paying $10-15 a month. I can get gym membership for that. Sent from my SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

Just had my surgery 10 days ago! I was very excited, but very nervous too--even thought about backing out a couple of times as the day drew near! Honestly, the first day after surgery was the worst, not because of pain, but because they kept trying to get me to drink fluids, and I just didn't want to. I had some nausea, but no unbearable pain--it was more like an achy discomfort, like when you have a tummy ache. The doctors were great with intravenous pain medication so if I got too achy they gave me this very cool stuff that made me feel oh, so nice, and put me right to sleep...lol I was sent home the day after my surgery with pain pills, but never needed to take them--a couple of Tylenol did the trick for any residual soreness. Really, by day 4 I felt completely normal, as if nothing had been done at all! Just get ready to enjoy a few days of pampering, and a reason to get some extra sleep. Aside from feeling a little groggy from the anesthesia, you will be fine in a day or two and ready to begin your journey to freedom!

You are 10 days post op. I am 7 weeks and I still can only eat 600 calories a day. You need to focus on your protein and water as much as possible. I know it's scary, but also try to weigh yourself only once a week so you don't obsess about the scale. Just try to feel better, and keep getting that water and protein in. If you are still super worried about it, contact your surgeon or your dietitian. They should be able to give you some peace of mind, as well, but mine had told me to focus on water and protein and not the calories for about six months. I only count mine so I can keep track of my protein intake. Try to take a deep breath and realize that you're on your way to being healthier and feeling better, and you just gotta hang in there. The people here are lovely and supportive- thank you for expressing your concerns so we can help. ❤️

I am 10 days post-op. I am working hard at getting in my fluids and protein. Yesterday, I counted up my calorie intake out of curiosity and found that, with 64 oz of fluid and 75 g. of protein, I was only taking in 600 calories. Is that normal? Won't my metabolism switch into "starvation mode" and stall my weight loss? In fact, I have not lost anything appreciable in 3 days, so now I'm worried that this, like so many efforts before, will fail. Yes--lol--I've been burned by dieting many times so I have an incredible fear of failure in this regard. Should calories matter? I am setting myself up for another let down?

Thank you for these responses. Truly. I’m asking myself (and others like you who have been through this) these tough questions because like most, I assume, I have doubts about maintaining. I’m not sure I have the will to eat so little... forever. I absolutely admire those who do. But I find myself wondering if they are simply more disciplined than I am. I’m going to do some more reading about how the surgery “resets” metabolism. Easy to say but what does it really mean and how does this happen? While I understand the removal of the part of the stomach that creates a hunger hormone I’m not sure how it’s all reset for the better since you immediately move forward by eating so little and it seems hunger does eventually return. Yes, I will be talking to my surgeon and dietician. As a matter of fact my husband is an excellent internal medicine doc so I have the “ medical” resources handy. I also know their insight can’t compare to those who have lived it. So thank you so much. incidentally, on the HCG diet forum 10 years ago everyone thought it all worked so well and was a huge gift, reset etc too. Now it’s been recognized as a significant detriment to long term heath. So I’m determined to make sure long term living in the real world is possible. __________________________________________________ Is anyone here 10 years out and successful? Again, thank you greatly! Most long term surgery patients have no need for site. They have moved on and life is normal. I hope one is around to answer your question. Surgery isn't for everyone. enjoy researching and do whats best for you, Long term can be done. I will be 6 years out in June, 254 lbs to 130 lbs I've been maintaining in the 130's years out. Pre surgery: My past diets attempt's were not realistic or sustainable long term. I would regain with extra weight each time. I questioned if surgery would work, will i feel deprived/starving, would I regain, would I regret this? Surgery is nothing like my past diet attempts. (I've tried them all) My experience I have no regrets in my decision to have surgery. Hunger feels nothing like before surgery. Post-op It's manageable. I now have a sensation of full and I'm satisfied on the amount of food I can eat with the sleeve. First stages: Your stomach restriction is tight after surgery, Your stomach is healing and calories are low, Real food stage: Surgery restriction will slowly relax. You will be able to eat more food and calories. Food is still flavorful and I don't feel deprived.( I eat healthy versions of pizza, hamburgers etc ) My tasted buds have changed. I now love food that I didn't like in the past. Maintenance phase food plan: After you reach your goal weight, You increase calories, fats and carbohydrates to stop your weight loss. I indulge within reason. When I have a slight gain, I go back to weight loss phase calories to stay in my weight range.

Yesterday Monday, March 2nd Maintenance : 5'2" / 1yr4mths PO Sleeve / 114.1 lbs ---------------------------------------- Went to bed early-ish last night (around midnight) but then woke up at like 4:30am. 🙄 Met up with the gal pals for dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant, but nothing on the menu spoke to me, so I just had a coffee and a 2-day-old cookie that I forgot was in my purse, hahahaha. ---------------------------------------- 10:00am - skinny tea latte + 2 chicken wings + 1/2 cherry tart square 1:00pm - salad greens w/ vinaigrette + carrots + 4 oz pan fried chicken in bacon fat 5:00pm - 1 Vietnamese coffee + 1 oatmeal raisin cookie 9:00pm - salad greens w/ vinaigrette + carrots + 1 fl oz pumpkin seeds + 2 oz fresh figs + 4 oz pan fried chicken in bacon fat 12:00am - 2 fl oz gin + 4 squares dark chocolate --------------------------------------- Totals: 1532 cals - 68g Protein - 132g NET carbs - 65g fat ---------------------------------------

I am utterly ashamed of myself. I have not been following the plan. I initially lost 60 pounds with 30 mre to go to reach my goal but I have been eating sweets and have gained 10 pounds! I promised myself I would not do this after my surgery but here I am and I can't seem to get back on track, get motivated. Help me someone!

Yassss, my VSG is scheduled for March 10 @ 9:15AM!!! Wishing ALL my March siblings #continuedsuccess on your journey!!! 🥰🥳😇

Unfortunately this happened to a friend, his wife had WLS in 2017 and in about a year and a half she lost over 100 lbs. He was never in full agreement with her decision for having WLS, his reasoning was that he liked his women "plump". She really became focused on living a healthy lifestyle. She had cosmetic surgery and visits a nutritionist and physical trainer 3x a week. She began pushing her new healthy lifestyle back on him, probably because she felt he wasn't making much of an effort to support her. He is about 5' 10" @ 299 lbs but did not consider himself obese and insisted he would never have WLS when the subject came up. I could not understand why he was complaining so much about his wife's new appearance after the WLS. To my eyes she was a completely different women, she looked almost 10 years younger. It did not take long for other men to notice her new found appearance and with the husband proving no support or interest she ended up filing for a divorce 2 years post-op.

My insurances have language that I just had to follow the facility/program's "procedure" to be approved for surgery, but they don't require any specific time frame either. So if you go to a clinic that requires 3 monthly visits, 5% body weight loss, nutritionist classes, etc... then you will have that long of a wait. It depends on your clinic and your weight, comorbidities, tests you need/already have done, etc... Mine was more just how long it took me to get my new primary insurance to kick in as well as see 1) the nurse 2) a psychologist 3) the nutritionist. They recommend 5% body weight loss, but mostly just don't want to see any weight gain. Mine went like this: Late Oct. 2019: I sent in my interest paperwork online to clinic Nov. 20th: First nurse visit Nov. 21st: Labs drawn at my GP Dec. 4th: Psychologist Dec. 11th: Second nurse visit Jan. 2nd: Nutritionist They sent in the referral to the surgeon. Jan. 29th: Surgical consult, scheduled endoscopy and surgery! Mar. 2: Endoscopy (for atypical GERD) Mar. 16th: 2 hour group nutrition class Mar. 19th: Last pre-op appt. with surgical staff Mar. 26th: Surgery day (the day I wanted anyway so I could use Spring Break to avoid using too much sick leave)

Hey guys, I’m hereeee 🤗 10 days out and feeling pretty great. I can drink everything as if all was normal but try to pace myself. I’m on purée and I’m usually full at about 2oz. Mostly I’ve been eating puréed chicken breast with garlic roasted hummus or refried beans with some cheese and guacamole. I’m not sure what I want for dinner tonight. It’s so weird to see such small portions and there are times where I wish I could eat regular food in regular portions. I noticed I really enjoy watching my husband enjoy his food. It’s weird but so satisfying.. I’ve been trying to get all Of this into a routine.. not really having luck with that yet. What are your routines like?

Hey all! Here we are in post-surgery I had my sleeve done 3 weeks ago today. It seems longer, to be honest. Today was my first day back at work; I usually work until around 6, but by 3:30 I was pretty tired and not getting anything done, so I called it a day. I am on "Soft" foods now; There is a little more variety, which is great, but it takes a lot longer to eat it! To give you an idea of what I'm eating, I had a hard boiled egg and 1/3 of a mashed banana for breakfast; 2 oz of rotisserie chicken for lunch, and a protein drink for a snack. I am having a turkey sausage and cauliflower rice for dinner. I'll still need some protein and of course fluids so I'll have a cup of bone broth later this evening. I'm not really hungry, but I do know when it is around time to eat. I feel really good overall; I went to the gym yesterday and did some water exercise (nothing too strenuous and no core work, not that I am exactly good at core work); Went for a 20 minute walk at lunch just to get some steps in and the blood pumping a bit. I am averaging 8K steps a day, a couple of times I have gotten my full 10K in. I did get a cold (!) after being at the hospital to see my surgeon last week; I think the flu at the beginning of the month, then the surgery, how low my calories are, and not being able to take the vitamins until I was 10 days out has left me pretty susceptible to all the germs floating around at the hospital. Hopefully a cold is the worst I'll do, given the news about the corona virus. I've only lost about 13 pounds since surgery, which I should not say "only"; 13 pounds in 3 weeks is pretty ok with me. I know some people lose a lot more, and probably some less, and I'm happy with slow(ish) and steady right now. I'd love to hear how you all are doing! Hope everyone is healthy and healing and happy.

I'm in the same boat as you. I had my surgery in April 2019 and hit my weight loss goal. Then I started to increase my calories by reverse diet so I could gain lean muscle. I was doing a weight lifting routine and was frsutrated like you. The only way I know for sure that I've gained any muscle is I had a few dexascans done which showed a 3lb increase over several months, I also lost a percentage of body fat so I took it as a win. Keep in mind I was still in a large calorie deficit for most of that time. From what I've read there are a lot of variables that go into how fast and how much lean muscle you gain on different routines. I would say get an accurate measure of body fat % and lean muscle mass and track it over time. And keep grinding, my dietician who helped me on this path likes to remind me that a lot of those you see posting on facebook have been at it for a long time.

Hey All! I'm a newbie here, but I've finally decided to start the process and get information about VSG. I feel mentally ready for it and that it's time, as I've been going round and round with the decision for years. I go back to my new PCP on 3/10 of this month to discuss it more and get bloodwork. I gave her a head's up at my initial consult that this was something I wanted, and she said let's see if you are a candidate at your next appointment. I already made my appointment with the weight loss center for the information center on 3/25. They advised they do not need a referral from my PCP, but to have my most recent labs sent over. When I called the weight loss center, I was advised that after the information session, you will be contacted within a week for the actual consult with the surgeon. I've been doing a ton of research so far, and I see a lot of folks have a 6-12 month supervised diet mandate with the insurance. After contacting my insurance company, they sent me the policy and advised that they have lifted their 6 month restriction. My policy states the following is needed for approval. BMI 40 and over or BMI of 35-39 with co-morbidity. Individuals should have documented to respond to conservative measures for weight reduction prior to the consideration of bariatric surgery and these attempts should be reviewed by the practitioner prior to seeking approval for the surgical procedure. HOWEVER, following that statement, it says "As a Result, some centers require active participation in a formal weight reduction program that includes frequent documentation of weight, dietary regimen, and exercise. However there is a lack of evidence on the optimal timing, intensity and duration of non-surgical attempts at weight loss, and whether a medical weight loss program immediately preceding surgery improves outcomes." HELP- what does this mean? Psych consult I'm pretty clear on the other first and last requirement, but the 2nd one has me spinning my wheels slightly. When I called my insurance to ask for clarification, I was advised that a letter of support from my PCP would likely suffice. My only hesitancy is that I just started with a new PCP, and I'm wondering if she will approve me off my BMI alone, or want to try conservative measures first since I am new patient there. If she doesn't provide letter of support, will the nutrition classes that the surgeon will inevitable require satisfy the letter requirement, can he be the one that writes it or does this text indicate that it needs to come from my PCP? I plan on calling the center during their business hours to ask if they've encountered this insurance wise tomorrow, as they were closed today. Any one run into this issue with their insurance policy? Any insight or perspective offered would be awesome.

Actually, I'm kinda looking forward to that! Right now, when I see people I know, they expect to see some huge change, and I'm not quite there yet--only 10 days post surgery. I've lost some weight, but not enough to notice. I am looking forward to people checking out my new look, and noticing the new me, especially this summer Take it as a compliment--they are amazed by how great you look--and you do look GREAT!

For me personally, Boston Stoker coffee always seem to go right through me. I can't even finish my second cup before I have to head to the bathroom. Doesn't matter the flavor or roast, but definitely the brand. That is the only coffee I tend to avoid for physical reasons. I don't like Starbucks anything since they use Sumatran beans and they just have too much of an earthy flavor. I prefer the "fruity" beans like real kona. Dunkin Donuts coffee is a great bean in my opinion and it is available reasonably priced at any grocery store around here. Maxwell House is too astringent to me, but Folgers is a fine everyday coffee IMO. As for the caffeine levels, I honestly don't pay attention to it since it doesn't appear to be a problem for me. I take my regular supplements with water after I am done with coffee in the morning around 10:30. I'm back to coffee by 4 though until about 7 or 8.

Welcome lisab6889 to the March 20th group! March 2 Skywolfe, Earthquake88, AnnieK1073, Rearguard, Slimmy-Mommeee, onmyway11 March 3 Glannin, BigInJapan, Byrd0315, Katheryn0303, Tamarita, CammyC, Kristyle, mooki March 4 lucia.vsg March 5 KSMermaid, gucci2018, ERYNN123, gcampbell99 March 6 Pansypicker, Amber77, LeeLee Luv March 9 Angie526, AuntCyn, highlyundermedicated, Nette200486, Wendy128 March 10 Confidently_Me, Nermada, Wellness Warrior, NewEnglanderGal, Amy Franks, finding.me March 11 MaineDoc, 3charrm, lily66, asnirak March 12 ronjsteele1, anyu3379, Jay2016 March 13 Q75j25 March 14 Amie March 17 Mello1 March 18 Hop_Scotch March 19 medicpup2, MMurphy1015 March 20 JessicaMNCat, fiddlinjellybean, LisaB6889 March 23 KingTeresa 2006, Believe0xandx0conquer, RPilch March 25 Sozamy March 24 heavenlyscrts, jDubs, AngienHarry, SleeveCanadian, Learning2LoveTina, Melodyadea March 26 Cia2020, OnMyWay1956, Marthalynn, richiewho March 27 Ayemeeb, Eribur March 30 Stanlak, Starla K, Milly221 March 31 KhoricRitter

@3sonsitk welcome! 96 ounces of fluid is a lot!! I struggled to get to 60. I did not have a pureed stage, instead I did day 10 to 20 on smooth foods, and I just started soft. Chicken bone broth was and is a miracle to me, it tastes great and gives you a little protein, to boot. I also found a high protein mushroom soup mix on this site I like. I was sick of the sweet taste of everything else. Good luck! Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

Thank you for these responses. Truly. I’m asking myself (and others like you who have been through this) these tough questions because like most, I assume, I have doubts about maintaining. I’m not sure I have the will to eat so little... forever. I absolutely admire those who do. But I find myself wondering if they are simply more disciplined than I am. I’m going to do some more reading about how the surgery “resets” metabolism. Easy to say but what does it really mean and how does this happen? While I understand the removal of the part of the stomach that creates a hunger hormone I’m not sure how it’s all reset for the better since you immediately move forward by eating so little and it seems hunger does eventually return. Yes, I will be talking to my surgeon and dietician. As a matter of fact my husband is an excellent internal medicine doc so I have the “ medical” resources handy. I also know their insight can’t compare to those who have lived it. So thank you so much. incidentally, on the HCG diet forum 10 years ago everyone thought it all worked so well and was a huge gift, reset etc too. Now it’s been recognized as a significant detriment to long term heath. So I’m determined to make sure long term living in the real world is possible. Is anyone here 10 years out and successful? Again, thank you greatly!

Now 10 months post op and down 109lbs from my peak. Calories are edging higher now in the 1200-1600 range. With respect to meals my brain feels totally retrained on how much to eat. My challenges are sugar and slider food which is extremely calorie dense but not offering the same restriction. Below is my weekly chart to give everyone a sense of what the rate of loss looks like. Still not exercising as much as I should which is the last thing hindering my progress. I am quite good at making excuses not to do actual exercise and much prefer things activity based.

@geets : yay another member, another set of clothes to ohh and ahhh over You look great...and like 10 years younger (and like 4 inches taller)! P.S. love those yellow shoes 💛

Yesterday Sunday, March 1st Maintenance : 5'2" / 1.33 yrs PO Sleeve / 115.0 lbs ---------------------------------------- Went to an Italian buffet for Mr's grandma's Bday. Its really not worth it for me to eat at buffets, nor was I really interested in the spread that was on offer, so I opted out of eating and drank 2 vodka caesars instead (I ate some garnish! hahha). Mr. joined me in solidarity and skipped the buffet and just had a couple beers himself. Its funny cuz some relatives commented afterwards that the next time we get together for buffet, they are just going to order drinks too, LOL. ---------------------------------------- 9:00am - 1/2 skinny tea latte 11:00am - 5 chicken wings + 1tbsp hot sauce 3:00pm - 2 vodka caesars (each one had a gherkin + a mini pepperette as garnish...which I ate off the first one, but my nephew ate the garnish off the second one, LOL) 7:00pm - salad greens w/ vinaigrette + 1 oz orange segments + 3 chicken wings + 2.5 oz pan fried chicken in bacon fat 10:00pm - 3 chicken wings + 1 tbsp BBQ sauce + 1/4 of a cherry shortbread square + 2 fl oz Amaretto --------------------------------------- Totals: 1371 cals - 76g Protein - 99g NET carbs - 58g fat ---------------------------------------