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I agree - I'm surprised your surgeon didn't bring this up with you. Normally gastric bypass is recommended for people with reflux. as for your other questions, 1 . Does GS affect your breathing in any way ? Haven't heard of this issue 2. is there any vomitation of blood in the mouth after surgery haven't heard of this - but it seems plausible since it's stomach surgery, so I suppose it could happen 3. Can I smoke my vape with nicotine after GS we were told no smoking/nicotine 4. Is it hard to swallow (water/protein drinks) in the days after GS for some, yes - but for most, no. 5. What happens if I miss my Vitamin tablets for a couple of days , will I feel weak ? a couple of days shouldn't be an issue, but I wouldn't make a habit of it. We have a few sleevers on here who were given the go-ahead to stop taking certain or all vitamins based on their lab results - but it'll be awhile before that kind of decision (might be...) made. In the mean time, you should be taking them regularly. 6. I suffer from Heartburn (gastric reflux)will my heartburn tablets be ok to take after the surgery yes, you can take heartburn meds, but again, I'm a little surprised you'll be getting sleeve surgery since you suffer from heartburn. Sleeve can make that worse. It's not inevitable - and it doesn't even happen to the majority - but the risk is big enough that many surgeons will recommend bypass instead of sleeve for heartburn sufferers.

I have heard of this before. When we are overweight we loose ourselves and hide behind family and try to stay as small as possible and hide in the shadows. Gradually we are no longer the people we were. I used to work in a Adult Education College. Every two years a new full time Art Course began. There were lots of middle aged ladies took the course and over the 30 hour week they put in these ladies slowly changed, their personalities and confidence began to blossom. You could physically see it happen. Many of these ladies left their husbands. They were different. My husband was finished from his very physical job because of his ill health and lost all his confidence. It really shook him and he changed for the worse. I was his verbal punch bag. I took it for 2 years. I found somewhere else to live and gave him the ultimatum. You stop all this mental cruelty and go back to the man I love or I am gone in a week. With in a day he was back to the man I know and deeply love. He had it all but couldn't see it. What I am trying to say in a roundabout way is confidence or lack of it, changes us. It changes the people around us. I would put a plan in place just so you have a bolt hole. Try speaking to your husband, tell him how you feel, try counselling. You never know you may meet in the middle again. You will always know you tried everything

Hi I'm going for my gastric sleeve surgery in September in Istanbul turkey and I have a few questions? 1 . Does GS affect your breathing in any way ? 2. is there any vomitation of blood in the mouth after surgery 3. Can I smoke my vape with nicotine after GS 4. Is it hard to swallow (water/protein drinks) in the days after GS 5. What happens if I miss my vitamin tablets for a couple of days , will I feel weak ? 6. I suffer from Heartburn (gastric reflux)will my heartburn tablets be ok to take after the surgery Sent from my LE2123 using BariatricPal mobile app

I joyfully kissed all my shakes away on day one week three. It was always my goal to rely on real food to get all my nutrients in & not depend upon supplements or meal replacements. My surgeon was also okay if I was not hitting my protein goal while going through the first stages as long as I was making an effort so that took off some pressure. But as @ShoppGirl said it does depend upon how much you can eat. (I wasn’t able to eat much but usually hit 40-50g of my 60g protein goal.) I found a good high protein yoghurt (15-20g) & a yoghurt smoothie (22-30g) to keep my protein closer to goal. I also did things like make my scrambled eggs & rolled oats extra milky to get in a little more protein. But being lactose intolerant I realise this isn’t quite as easy for you. Were you given a caloric goal or a recommended carb intake or limit? How many extra carbs or calories are you getting in by consuming lactose free/dairy alternative products? Because we eat so little it would take a lot to really have a negative impact on your weight loss. I drink a lactose free milk because I can’t drink a lot of ordinary milk. (No issue with other dairy though.) And even though it has about double the calories, it didn’t have an impact on my weight loss. Milk alternatives can actually have fewer calories than cows milk (per 100mls): Full cream cow’s milk – 281 kilojoules (67 calories) Rice milk – 255 kilojoules (61 calories) Regular soy milk – 241 kilojoules (58 calories) Oat milk – 213 kilojoules (51 calories) Reduced-fat cow’s milk – 191 kilojoules (46 calories) Reduced-fat soy milk – 153 kilojoules (37 calories) Skim cow’s milk – 142 kilojoules (34 calories) Sweetened almond milk – 123 kilojoules (29 calories) Sweetened cashew milk – 123 kilojoules (29 calories) Coconut milk – 95 kilojoules (23 calories) Unsweetened cashew milk – 73 kilojoules (18 calories) Unsweetened almond milk – 69 kilojoules (16 calories) Same with carb content. Macadamia milk: 1 gram of carbs/cup Hemp milk: 1.3 grams of carbs/cup Soy milk: 1.6 grams of carbs/cup Almond milk: 1.99 grams of carbs/cup Flax milk: 2 grams of carbs/cup Coconut milk: 3.38 grams of carbs/cup Oat milk: 9 grams of carbs/cup cows milk: 12grams of carbs/cup Have a chat with your dietician. They should be able to recommend lower calorie or lower carb alternatives if your intake is excessive for you to try. PS - Stalls rarely have anything to do with the calories or carbs you are consuming but are a natural part of your weight loss journey. Your rate of loss is never constant but zigs & zags, ups & downs & plateaus. Your body stalls or takes a pause (as I heard a surgeon say recently) to catch up with the changes - surgery, weight loss, change in diet or activity, etc. Think of it as your body is stressed & it needs time to recover & accept the changes. Just like you do if emotionally or mentally stressed.

Pantoprozole (Protonix) is also available OtC. Depending upon insurance details, OTC may or may not be cheaper than Rx - OTC omeprazole is usually around $15 at Costco for 42, sometimes on sale for a few bucks less. Use the one that works best for you. Also try Pepcid, which is an H2 inhibitor and is generally considered friendlier to our systems long term than PPIs such as the -azole meds above. The PPIs are also known to have a problem with rebound reflux if you stop them suddenly, so it is usually better to wean off of them over a couple of weeks - cut the dosage in half or spread the dose timing, or intersperse a dose of PPI with one of H2I. Some may never have a problem with dropping them, but if one does, try tapering off the med.

We’re all different in how much & what we can eat. Were you given any portion size recommendations? I scrambled my eggs from purée stage & two eggs were breakfast for three days. It took me months to eat one egg. (I remember ordering one egg scrambled at 8 months while on holidays.) Still can’t eat two eggs three years out. Tread carefully because all your cut nerves are still healing and your full signals & messages you’ve had enough aren’t getting through or aren’t getting through in the same way. It’s why portion size recommendations are helpful at the beginning. (I was told 1/4 - 1/3 cup from purée.) Burping signals you are swallowing air while eating not that you are full. Also aim to eat until you’ve had enough (do you need the next bite or just want it) not until you are full. It takes time for the full message to get through so when you feel full you’ve really eaten too much. Sorry soup made you sick. I loved soup. Could it have been too thick or something in the soup - a flavour or ingredient??

Thanks @kristieshannon. I spied it last summer but decided it against it. It was on sale (40% off 🎉🎉) last week & the only skirt & top left were in my size. Obviously always meant to be mine so it now lives in my wardrobe. Love you in that blue. And congrats on commencing ‘official boyfriend’ status. So happy for you.

Good point. My doctor had a month’s prescription for Protonix filled prior to surgery. It’s an acid blocker and I will take it at least for another few weeks.

I was prescribed pantoprazole for 30 days after surgery as well. They would not refill that script even tho i requested it. But i have not had any heart burn since tho a few weeks after surgery it was strong. My primary doctor gives me a script for Omeprazole. Which is available over the counter at any store but its much cheaper with a prescription.

Great job! One suggestion that I’d say is that during your treadmill time, start doing intervals. It doesn’t have to be drastic, but you’ll burn calories longer (after workout) by doing them. You are trying to get your heart to about 70-85% of max during the interval. Not sure if your age, but for 35 y/o that’s about 130-157. When I first started my base speed and incline was 3.0mph and an incline of 3. I’d stay there for about 3 minutes and then push my speed to 3.5 and incline to 6 for 30 seconds. As I got stronger, I’d increase the time I spent at the higher speed/incline until I was at a minute.

I was advised to slowly decrease the Shakes as I was able to eat larger portions. If you can only eat an ounce of chicken you aren’t going to be able to get enough protein from food. Well technically if you also eat a bunch of yogurt you can but you get my point. I am over a year out and still have a shake for breakfast everyday but that’s more for convenience and cause I like the taste of it (the caffe latte by premiere protein) many people get off them alltogether. But my advice would be to calculate your protein (not counting the shakes and yogurt) for a week or so and see if you consistently get to 30 or 60 or something like that and drop a shake as you can or just calculate for each day if you eat a lot of variety and have a shake or yogurt as a late snack if you need it.

Question??? How did you transition from mostly using shakes to getting your protein from food sources? I started really tracking what I am eating due to my 3 week stall. I'm noticing that due to my milk allergy that most of the shakes and yogurts I eat are a bit higher in carbs and calories than I would like and noticed I am more reliant on the shakes than food to get my protein in. How hard was the transition? Should I gradually start eliminating the shakes? Thanks for any info you could share.

Hopefully that's it! I've been so active and barely eating but I am not getting on that scale because it has so much control over my mood. I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing and maybe in a couple of weeks I'll check but I'm slowly realizing how much power the number has over me and how I need that to not be a thing because I am sick of hating myself. Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

Agreed. I started my road to morbid obesity later in life (in my early 30’s). So when i was bigger, i still thought i was smaller and would bang my shoulders on walls not thinking I actually needed to give my myself a wider berth to round corners, lol. Or i’d pick our clothes thinking they would fit and be suprised/disappointed when they were way too tight. Then, later, I suppose i was big long enough (im 50 now) to ingraine in my head that there was no effing way i would fit into a size 2 when i lost the weight after wls. Im 3.5+ years post now (and over 3 years at my current weight/size), and the weird surprises about fitting into things are long gone. To the OP, As with all things, its just a matter of time before you get used to stuff and it becomes your new normal. But its a fun kind or surprise so go ahead and bask in it! Good Luck! ❤️

After wls, it took 10 days till i pooped. After plastics is took 13 (a record which in recently tied during and just a little after going on vacay) Pooping regularly is a lot different for me post wls. Before i used to go 2-3 A DAY, post its more like once EVERY 2-3 days. During weight loss phase, i took Benifibre every day with my morning protein shake nowadays (3.5+ years post), i just go with it sans the fibre. But generally if i haven’t gone after 4 days (unless im on vacay), then i’ll take a dose or Miralax; and if that doesn’t work in a day or two, its time for a glycerine suppository. I almost always go after the first suppository. Twice, though it took 2 days of suppositories before i got to see any poop. In any case, from what ive read constipation is just an reality after wls we need to learn how to deal with in our own ways. Good Luck! ❤️

The first 2 weeks I hit my protein goals because I bought the protein shakes and flavored protein water. But I could only get about 48oz of fluids. And it took all day and into the evening before I could even do that. Around week 3 I was able to hit the right amount of fluids, and now, and almost 9 weeks out, I drink way over the required amount. Your stomach is still healing, so if you can't hit the goal within the first couple of weeks, don't be hard on yourself. Just do your best. You'll get there.

I avoid them. I'm almost 9 weeks out, and I know that they can add a lot of carbs and calories (I like fries with ketchup, mashed potatoes with butter, cheese, and salt, and baked potatoes with butter, sour cream, and salt). I do like the skins, as well, but my dietician said no potatoes for the first 3 months, then only once per day and a very small amount, with none of that extra stuff on it. I can't eat plain potatoes, so I just stay away from them.

So you sound like me. I lost 30 pounds in 2 weeks (yes, you read that right....2 weeks) and then hit the mother of all stalls. I gained 5 pounds and it lasted 2 weeks and I was MISERABLE. I vented a lot on here, I changed up my work out (longer walking, more frequently), I really watched what I was consuming (stall started at the very end of my liquid diet and then during my soft food stage). Once it broke, it BROKE. I lost 6 pounds lol Now I lose at a much slower rate (about 4-6 pounds a week on average) but I'm seeing changes in my body. Stalls, for me anyway, are the WORST part of the surgery. And my surgeon said the more you lose pre-stall, the slower you'll lost post-stall (and he was right!!). Now I'm 2 months out and have lost 43 pounds (so an average of 21.5 pounds per month) and I'll take that all day long. You'll get on the other side of this and when you see the scale move again, you'll be so happy lol It's hard because I know you're used to seeing huge weight loss every day/week. And while it'll be slower, it'll be steady and manageable. Just keep yourself busy. Distract yourself. Don't weigh yourself every day. Stick to your bariatric diet and keep exercising. And look for non-scale victories. Those will really make a big difference.

It took a week for all but 1 of my incisions to stop hurting. It took another week for my biggest one (the one they removed my stomach from) to stop. And then it was another week before the abdominal muscle under that incision to stop hurting. I took my Oxy pain meds for the first week. After that, just Tylenol, except for when I bumped my incision into the corner of our island. I was in agony, so I took it for another 2 days after that lol But that first week? Oh yeah, pain meds all the way. You have them, that's what they're for, use em and give yourself some relief.

I agree with the above posters. Definitely reach out to your surgeon. Something isn't right. You're 3 1/2 months post op. You should be eating all normal foods and keeping it down. It sounds like a stricture, and while it's a fairly easy fix, it's something you should absolutely have taken care of right away. I worry that you've lost 72 pounds in 3 1/2 months because you're malnourished and your body is literally starving. Please reach out to your surgeon.

It was day 5 post op before I went, and honestly, it was very little. I tried Miralax, didn't help at all. Took Colace, it took a day to work, but OH MAN, when it kicked in, I was worshipping the porcelain gods all day LOL Now I seem to go every other day on my own, but if I go more than 2 days, then on day 3 I either take Colace (if I don't have to be anywhere that day lol ) or I take Milk of Magnesia (works within an hour, tastes NASTY nasty nasty, but I go a respectable amount and not like I'm trying to set a world record like with the Colace). I will say, when on the liquid diet, I really didn't go a lot. There just isn't much to poop out. Once I hit soft foods, it got a bit better. Now at 2 months out, it all depends on what I eat as to how often I need to use something to help it along.

depends on how far apart you are spacing it. Sure i could. but it would take me like a half hour to eat one egg. Then i could eat another or so. but eat slowly and chew chew chew. Dont over do it since you are so fresh out of surgery. Most people are on liquids only for at least 2 weeks post op then they move to puree stage then to soft food stage.

Thank you for adding me. My surgery date is July 5th. I'm nervous. About a week ago I started questioning myself if I was doing the right thing. As of today I definitely feel like I am doing the right thing. Glad to be in this group. Sent from my SM-G998U using BariatricPal mobile app

I just had to remind myself of that 1.5 weeks ago! I got absent-minded one evening while snacking from a can of wasabi-and-soy-sauce almonds and ate WAY too many of them, and I woke up in the middle of the night feeling the worst I've felt since surgery -- I even had my first foamies. I couldn't eat any solid food other than fruit for two days afterwards. My ill effects are always delayed: I seem to be able to eat whatever I want while I'm eating it, but anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours later is when I'll pay. I'm gradually learning to keep certain things out of the house because I will definitely overeat them -- like Wheat Thins, those particular flavored almonds, and some honey roasted sesame sticks that I just bought (so good!).

If they gave you narcotic pain meds this is the time to use them. I took my liquid pain meds the first week and it made a huge difference. By week two I didn’t need it anymore and had no real discomfort. Don’t hesitate to use prescribed meds if needed.