Search the Community

My liver doesn't process toxins well, so the anesthesia is still haunting me (Day 10). Just letting it ride it's course. This, too, shall pass.

You look great. I feel the same way when I look in the mirror. I never noticed I was putting on 5, 10, 15, etc pounds but I look and expect to notice when I have lost 2! Others say I look much smaller but I still don't see a HUGE change. Keep up the good work, you DO look smaller!

My A1c was 10.8 in March. The surgeon wants it lower than 10 in order to do surgery. I had rechecked a couple of weeks ago and it was 9.8. They did my chart review and I passed. Now I am just waiting for insurance company to give me an answer. I called them and they said it would probably be Monday before they have a decision. I am confident I will get approved but I still worry about the denial stuff.

I was told nothing over 10# for 6 weeks. I have my 6 week appointment this week..so, we'll see what 's next!

I think I must a Protein bar SNOB. . . there are so many I could NOT eat I found these at Sam's Club "Think Thin Protein Bar"; there is a variety pack and they are awesome. The white chocolate ones taste just like a zero candy bar. Here is the nutritional information: Chunky Peanut Butter Brownie Crunch White Chocolate Deliciously natural nutrition 0g sugar 20g protein Gluten free Kosher dairy I also like the Nature Valley® Protein Bars -- 10 grams of protein.

HI @@rking! Sorrry you are about to hit a blizzard. nice to see you are eating solid foods. On what date was your surgery again? Mine was on Nov 17th, and I have been eating solid foods for about 10 days now. My weight loss is also slowing down. I probably need more calories because I have been walking for about 40-50 minutes a week also. Anyway I love to eat the Starkist Thai tuna that comes in a pouch. It is really good. Keep warm.

Hey Kaybug, I agree, it matters not what you're losing at this point. Try to get away from the old diet mentalities. The fact is, you have your band in and the weight loss will happen and it will continue past the first 10 pounds. Isn't that great?! No more stressing over every pound. Just relax and let the time go by. Now, be prepared.. it is possible that you will gain a few pounds prior to your first fill. As the swelling goes down in your tummy, there is less restriction and hunger will return, so you'll gradually eat more. This is very common but doesnt always have to be true. If you watch your calories and stick to your post-op diet, no cheating with ice cream and stuff, then you won't gain. If you do though, it's no great loss because once you start getting fills you will lose that weight. This is definitely the time to be thinking about healing, not losing weight. They won't tighten you down yet because you aren't even eating solid foods yet, and youre still swollen. How would they be able to tell what you can truly eat? Some people find they don't even need a fill once they are on solid foods. *hugs* I was scared to death to put anything new into my mouth. I'm gradually getting over that but there are some things I choose to keep a healthy fear of - breads and pastas of any kind being at the top of my fear list. If you take small bites, and really concentrate on chewing until the food is almost nothing before you swallow, then you'll be ok. If you start to chew something and find it stringy or worrisome, spit it out. One more thing, I was so scared to get that first fill that I almost got upset in the Dr's office. But once it was done I felt silly. It was completely painless. Not even a sting. Hope I've helped some. I sure do remember being where you are now. Try to relax, you're doing fine.

Hey Steph, I use isopure from GNC. I use eight ounces of milk (around 10 grams protein) and then the appropriate amount of shake (25 grams protein). So with two protein shakes/day I get in 60 grams of protein. Did you just get your surgery? You can try walking around with a pillow around your tummy, just press it in. If you're just out of surgery (I'm sorry I don't know where you are in this process), it gets better in only a few days!! About a week after surgery I was able to drink a lot more. I always have water by me and take two big sips (prob around 2 tablespoons total?) and then I do it again in like five minutes. I don't time it or anything, I just try not to overdo it. With the protein shakes I am able to get in around 8 glasses of fluid/day. It was hard the first week though. Linda

Water. Water. Water. Then some more water. And protein. Make sure you are staying low calorie, lower your carbs and throw in some cardio. I am working on my last 10 as well. It feels good to be that woman who I always wanted to punch in the face for saying, "if only I could lose this last 10 pounds" lol. Good luck. My doc and trainer told me 64 oz of water is just a starting point. Half your body weight (in oz ofcourse) is where you are aiming. Good luck.

I was sleeved 3/10. Just today I feel like I can drink and not get that burpy feeling every time! Last night was the first night that I layed down for bed and my stomach/throat didn't "talk" to me!

I quit cold turkey the day before surgery. I really haven't been tempted other than wanting something besides water to drink. I don't honk I had withdrawal symptoms but if I did the pain of the surgery covered that up. I was sleeved on 2/19 and I haven't had a Diet Coke since 2/18. So quitting cold turkey worked for me. Granted right before surgery I weaned myself from the Diet Coke. I went from drinking 6 or more a day to only drinking 1. So that also helped as well.

I am 18 days out and have had nausea the last 10 days and moderate to severe pain the last 5 days on my left side right under the margin of the ribcage towards the center that is constant and then there is pain in my left shoulder that is very sharp and intemittent, worse when I lay down. I have not had any fever and went to the ER yesterday because my surgeon's office said I needed an upper GI. They drew labs ad did a flat plate xray but said they will not do a barium swallow on emergency basis even though my surgeon's office requested it on the phone ( I live 100 miles away from surgeon and went to a local ER). The tests came back normal so I have no explanation for my symptms. My surgeon's office was irritated with ER but it was too late in the day by that time to get an upper GI scheduled at surgery hospital. They told me to go back on clear liquids 48 hours and basically lay around with my head elevated until my appt on 08/2 when my surgeon gets back from vacation unless I get worse or develop fever then to come back to the hospital ER where I had surgery. I should have gone there to begin with but felt to bad and car rides are excruciating for me right now. I can't decide if i should be woried about a leak or maybe I pulled something due to the hernia repair they did as well or if maybe this is just something some people just go through. I am VERY frustrated right now and want my life back. I SOOO tired of feeling bad and the timing SUCKS because my surgeon is out of town. I would like some advice/feedback from anyone who has had these issues and/or what I could/should do to get through this.

I'm the same guys I constantly 'graze' sometimes without even noticing that much. Apparently it's a lot easier to control hunger post op as the hunger hormone ghrelin is removed but I've found putting little memos on my fridge and cub board helpful and drink water and wait 10 mins most of time time it goes away. But your completely right most of it is in our mind. Let me know how you go best of luck!

How is everyone doing so far that have been sleeved this month? I go in in 6 days but I am down 10 lbs on my pre op diet so far. Saying prayers for all us March sleevers as we begin out journey to a new us!

We are sleeve sisters! I, too, had surgery on 10/17. Congrats on your weight loss! I am looking forward to being back in the 1's.....someday. I've been stuck at the same weight for almost 3 weeks. Though I know it will pass, it's so frustrating when you're in the middle of it.

I after to agree with one of the other posters. Lap Band is something to take very seriously. You have to be commited in everyway to be successful. On that note, being diagnosed with pcos myself, I can understand your struggle. Metformin also did nothing for me. None of the pills and diets worked. With so much stacked against you its hard to lose weight. Trust me, I totally understand. Then trying to throw getting pregnant in the mix.... forget it. My Dr at one point told me that we would not help me get pregnant until I lost X amount of weight because the risk of sever complications was high. I did have to agree with him but it was horrible the first time he mentioned weight loss surgery. I was 271lbs at that point. I too have never had a regular cycle and had little hope after 17 years of getting pregnant. After more depression and more failures in dieting, I finally got the band. #1 to be healthy. I had given up having children especially since I was pushing 34. Each time I went to the Dr, something else was wrong. High blood pressure, high blood sugar, sore knees, bad skin.... the list goes on and on. I had surgery 10/2009 at 291 lbs and do not regret one single moment!! It has been the best decision I have ever made. Within 4 months I stopped all 7 of the medications I was taking. I never actually had cysts in my ovaries and was cleared of pcos. Fact: most people diagnosed with pcos do not actually have cysts or they can clear up. So I went on birth control because I was still having irregular periods. I stopped taking my BC on Nov 24, 2011 and found out on 12/26 I was expecting my first. I understand that each situation is different, but after 17 years of heartbreak and tears, I can finally say "I'm gonna be a mommy"!! If you are prepared to work hard nothing is impossible!!! Good luck and keep us posted on our decisions!!

So I am officially 2 weeks post-op today. Thought I'd share my experience for those interested. We'll start with the stats. I've lost 18 lbs since the surgery, and 64 lbs since I started this process 8 weeks ago tomorrow. The surgery apparently went very well, doctor said it was one of the smoothest he'd had. There was awful pain post-op that lasted about 5 hours. It really was bad, probably the worst pain I've ever experience. It quickly subsided after that, and I have really had a pretty easy time with it since. I went home the day after surgery, and began adding Protein shakes and Water on day 2 post-op. Things went well, and I was able to get my required 60 grams of protein and 64 oz of water almost right away. The afternoon of Day 8, for what seemed to be no reason, I started feeling very nauseated, and extremely tired. By Day 9, I could not stomach the thought of Protein Shakes of any sort (which I absolutely hate since surgery BTW). Day 9 consisted of me just basically just getting in my water, and even that was a struggle. By mid afternoon I was feeling so horrible, and I thought I was having the beginnings of a panic attack. I was sweaty, dizzy, and felt like I was going to pass out. I decided to take my blood pressure out of curiosity, and it was 98/45. I was obviously a bit freaked out, and called the doc. He speculated that it was most likely that I had lost so much weight so fast that I was probably over-medicated now for my high blood pressure. I was taking 10mg of Amlodopine and 100-25 of Losartan-HCTZ. He had me stop the Losartan completely, and take half of my Amlodopine starting the next morning. I felt better (but not great) on Day 10, but by Day 11, I was 100% back and feeling great again. I had started a tiny bit of applesauce on Day 9, tried yogurt, but could not stand the taste. Day 11, I added in cottage cheese, and Day 13 started with some roasted sweet potatoes. food has been absolutely no issue whatsoever. With the exception of the BP issue, nothing has made me nauseous, and while I have no sense of hunger, I also have no sense of feeling full. I actually find the process frustrating as I feel I am trying to sort out quantities, frequencies, etc by myself. And while it's going very smoothly, I have a lot of self-doubt about rather I'm "doing it right." My doctor does not give quantity guidelines as he feels it varies so much from person to person. He also does not give calorie guidelines as he doesn't care about calories as long as people are putting the "right" foods in their bodies (I know this is VERY different from most). I reached out to the BariatricPal community and asked to see what their doctors recommended in regards to quantity, which has been helpful. I saw that there were recommendations not to exceed 4 oz per meal, so I have been sticking with that, but I can definitely eat 4oz of cottage cheese with no problem at all. Never get a sense of fullness (again, I'm also never hungry), never feel back pain/pressure, or pain/pressure in my chest or any of the other symptoms I hear about. All in all, I consider myself very lucky. Things have gone as close to perfect as possible. Even the blood pressure issue, while unpleasant, is exactly what I was hoping to get from the surgery. And while the food re-introduction is stressful for me, it couldn't be going better. Just thought I would share my experience to-date for those who maybe going through the same thing, or about to be! EDIT: Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention, I'm only about 7 lbs away from not being morbidly obese for the first time since I can remember (probably at least 15 years). He's to being severely obese (for now)!

hey My name is Traci, and I have been where you are, and it truly sucks ass. In Feb and March of this year I was the same way. It killed me to get up and get off the couch. I would rather of stayed in bed than I would walk around the house. The more I didnt want to do anything, the more I gorged on food. I drank over 24 Mt dews a week, fountain drinks every single day...32 o's...and just really didnt care becuase what the heck, I was already fat, what was a few more bites or one more drink??? I started my weight loss journey In April. Got approved and was within 1 month away from surgery....I was sooooo ready. The start of May I bought a single speed bike from Walmart, and started riding 2-3 miles. Damn, it use to just kill me..... Once I was approved, I went in for my surgery consult, and immediatly started the liquid diet....DAMN...that was the hardest thing.....I cheated, but not in big ways...Like I would have some lunch meat or something...but no huge things. My surgery went so well, and I was determend to make this work. At first there is not real tightness in the band, so it is definatly will power to stay motivated. The first few months I lost 10-13 lbs each month. The past few, I am down to 6-8. It stinks. I started cyclying more, and bought a hybrid bike with gears, and have been riding usually on the weekends anywhere from 15 miles to 42. I just completed my first 40 mile ride last weekend.... Some days it seems like it is harder than others, and I slip and drink a soft drink or 2, or eat something I shouldnt...but............. Last night I was able to go into a NORMAL store and buy a dress.... It was a awesome feeling and wonderful motivator. Dont give up on yourself......Just know that it is normal to eat allot before the procedure is done, it is what they call last supper syndrome, and allot of people do it everyday until there surgery. IT IS NORMAL> As far as being tired....that will get better....try walking just a little....any little bit will make you feel so much better....and soon, you will be walking miles. Please feel free to PM me, or email me any time if you would like to talk. I am from Indiana... Traci

I find it interesting the various pre-op diets we're subjected to. Every doctor has a different flavor, for sure! My doctor put me on a 10 day diet that allows me to eat as many calories as I want to...the only caveat is that I can't consume more than 50g carbs per day. I'm halfway through, as today is Day 5, and I'm sick of meat and cheese! LOL! Luckily, I found some other options while grocery shopping today - and even got a low carb hint from a barista at Starbucks! SOOOO happy to enjoy a latte today! The countdown's on...only a few days left now!

I'm getting sleeved in the morning at 10:45! Please don't get yourself worked up over the IV and needles. It only takes a min and shouldn't be a bother. I had a drainage tube for a previous surgery and it really wasn't a big deal. You will be just fine and good luck tomorrow!

Thanks for this thread. I'm going through the exact same thing. I lost 20 pre op and 21 post op. Surgery was 10/6. For the past 1 1/2 week I've still been at the same weight. I'm waiting for this stall to break. I was getting frustrated but this thread has relaxed me. Thx again!

Hi all! I am newly banded. I am 10 days post op and feeling pretty good. I have lost 10lbs but haven't started any activity yet. I feel like this week things are not moving. Should I be concerned? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I really ain't sure, my story is kind of confusing as I was going through the stages of surgery preparation in adolescence but once I turned 19, they've put me on the adult route (apparently it's quicker?)So now I don't know if I have started again or continuing but I've been told that this is the appointment I've been waiting for and then in 3 months I find out if I have been accepted/rejected. Thank you for your help, really helped. I have been nervous as to what it's about since I received the letter haha xx

this is not true i know one of the contestants personally and what you see is what it is. the weight loss is in a week. the only thing that we do not see in it's fullness is how many hours they spend in the gym. they actually spend 8-10 a day in the gym instead of the few hours we see. that time is broken up all during the day but it that much time. this is why they loss the weight that they loss.

I'm not a. Mom but I do have PTSD and major depression....I had my surg 10/19/12. I can tell you that your illness won't go away but the surgery gives you hope. I'm off my blood press meds and diabetes meds... That in itself has put a smile on a hopeless situation. I stay in treatment. And take it one moment at a time. No regrets.