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I have Independence BCBS and hoping to hear by 10 more business days.

And I guess you turned into a February 2019 after all! Good luck whenever it happens.

My vitamins are liquid and kept in the fridge. I am hardly in there anymore so that's why I forget so easy... I started setting reminders so hopefully it'll help lol. In other news lol, today is day 19 - when I DO remember to take my vitamins, I take Mary Ruth's daytime and nighttime liquid vitamins. I went over them with my NUT and Dr and the only downside/ question they had was that each one has 8g of carbs per serving. Sad ( or not so sad?) part is... that still keeps me well under their goal of 50g of carbs so they are okay to take. I love the liquid vitamins over pills. Pills sit like rocks in my stomach, and these are GF so with having CD I don't have to worry. Which is super nice! Sent from my SM-N950U using BariatricPal mobile app

@Kay07 hey gorgeous wonderful pic with matching smile - you look great i agree, 2019 will be a great year for you, followed by many more!! when you got it - flaunt it☺️ kathy congrats

My surgery date is in 10 days and I’m having doubts and hoping I made the right choice. I’m so scared of the procedure and the hospital stay and the life changes.

Lol. I have 10 more days ...but I will live. However my family may not! Haha

I had a lap band placed in 2011. On the 9th of this month, I had it removed, a hiatal hernia repaired, and a sleeve done. I have so many mixed feelings about this whole thing. 10 days post op and wishing I had just had the band removed. Anyone else super emotional and not sure they made the right choice?

I've been reading and following a lot of the posts. Trying to get as much information as I can. I had the endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty done 12/13/18. I've been following the recommended diet. I'm about 6 weeks out and have only lost 10 pounds...total. I exercise by walking for 30 mins five times a week & go to the gym for an hour, 3 times a week. I saw the dietitian just over a week ago. She thought maybe I wasn't getting enough calories. I've been getting most of my water in & all my protein. She wants me to eat around 800 calories a day. 9 days later & I've only lost 1 pound. I'm getting discouraged. Anyone else have this happen? Or have some helpful information? TIA

Had my sleeve done in 1/15/19. Since the surgery nearly everything tastes terrible. The only things I can stomach is chicken broth and popsicles. My protein shakes, sf Jell-O, sf pudding, yogurt, cream of wheat, etc makes me nauseous. Does this pass? I’m afraid I’ll never get my protein count up. I’m using chicken bone broth so I’m getting some protein but nothing near my daily goal.

My PCP scheduled me for a Bone Scan February 7th, perhaps,THIS is why; I am relatively certain he reads as much,as I Do, and folks I read lots! Self-taught at 2-and-half years, yeah you saw that correctly. I was the youngest person in my city and library to have a card, well before 4. Mama took me in there, queried the Head Librarian " How old do you have to be to receive a card?", answer was "late in Grade 1, because children don't read well until then". Mama said " But she reads already!" Librarian , her name was Miss Edwina Fitzgerald, went to reach an Early Reader to test me, Mama said :" No No, something without pictures" so a Grade 5 level was proffered, which I read 7 pages of letter-perfect, why not? One of the books I started with was the New Testament at home, matter of fact, the story in the family goes, I started learning to read because I got peeved, Mama wanted to do housework, like laundry instead of reading to ME. So-o-o! I really don't remember Not Reading that well. Any-whoo I am a RnY and 73 so Maybe It Is a GOOD THING.😝✌

I have Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. My first surgeon appointment was 11/14/19 and my surgery is scheduled for 1/23/19. Insurance requires 6 months medically supervised weight loss. I had been seeing my primary doctor about my weight for over a year and the insurance accepted 4 months from my primary Dr (internal medicine doctor) and 2 months with a nutritionist.

This is me! Surgery in Feb 2016; found out I was pregnant October 2016, had my son June 2017... gained 20 lbs during pregnancy. Still have not lost the weight and gain 10 more lbs totaling 30lbs. I’m at a loss I don’t know what to do.... 😩

Well I didn't get to see Dr Needleman Tuesday but I did see Valerie his Senior Nurse Practioner. She is happy I look healthier even if I only lost 2 pounds since December, said I will just have a slower trek because of the TPN but I will still, regain my momentum. Endoscopy is still on for the 25th, don't know it will solve any questions. Woke up this morning with the right subcostal pain, Dr Noria said that's my ulcers romping and stomping in there. I made chili night before last, it was pretty fine, but I heated some up for me in the microwave. And after 10 minutes it all came back,up. Valerie said I should be on Stage 4, and my mind says " You can handle it, just take it slow", it's writing checks my body refuses to cash. Precious says " Oh no you don't!" and I'm off to the races again. I asked if I will always be a Gastric Cripple, they all say" Of Course Not" but I just aren't so sure. This feels like it has gone on FOREVER÷ They say I might still be healing inside. My blood work is turning out very very good except my iron is low, that's something they can't enrich my TPN with so I will need to get some iron, I think I read the fumerate variety is best, don't know how much it would cost at Wally or a drug store, or maybe I need a prescription from the Doctor. Are your bowels doing any better for you? That seems to be your trial thing.

I didn't die, and was having small salads, including tomato and avo (don't get along with the cukes, though!) after about the first month. Yes, protein is priority but once you are reliably getting that in, it's great to widen the variety into other nutritious foods. My doc was putting me onto veg after 10 days as my protein intake was already more than adequate. YMMV.

After I got out of hospital from my surgery, just before Christmas last year, had 10 days in a hotel, because my surgery was in a different city. They had cable (I don’t). I discovered “The Food Network”. I watched endless cake decorating, dives and diners, Halloween baking, my kitchen rules - all on an endless fascinating loop for 10 days. As I sipped my protein soup and my mushed fish, and drank interminable glasses of water. Food Porn. Grieving for loss of a life-long companion and comforter. Retreat to a familiar mindset. BUt, it passes!! NOW - my internet browser first picks are health and exercise, my Facebook ads are heart rate gizmos, and my Twitter feed gives me local charity marathons!

Yep! I get a runny nose as I eat and if I've filled my pouch/sleeve, I do what I call "machine-gun sneezing" where I just sneeze over and over again. We're talking like 10 or 15 times in a row! I generally try to avoid that, so I stop before I get to that point. It's one thing to sneeze like typhoid Mary in private, but you get some strange looks in the office or in a restaurant.

I also take Feosol Complete, and it was recommended to me by my Hematologist. I ended up with a serious iron deficiency several years ago, despite taking iron (my ferratin was a 6 - anything under 10 is considered "critical") and had to have an infusion the day after I met the Hematologist. She recommended the Feosol Complete because a poly/heme iron absorbs further down the digestive tract and iron salts (the usual iron supplements everyone takes) are absorbed in the duodenum, which RNY and DS patients no longer have access to. I had one other infusion as my body tried to regulate itself, but haven't had a low ferratin level in over 5 years since taking Feosol Complete. And it DOES have to be the "Complete" version. The regular Feosol is not a poly/heme. Hope that helps! ~SW: 278 CW: 165~ RNY 1/5/2005 "What got you here won't get you there."

Hello, I am new to the forum, and was wondering if anyone has had similar experiences. I had my sleeve surgery one week ago, Friday, January 11th 2019. After 2 days in the hospital with TERRIBLE gas pain, I was back at work with very little pain by Monday. By Tuesday, I had no problem drinking 64oz of water by 3PM. By Wednesday, my fondest wish in the universe, even more than world peace, was for an iceberg lettuce wedge salad with crumbled blue cheese, blue cheese dressing, split baby tomatoes, and crumbled bacon. This morning at work, before finding this forum, I did my usual pattern for this week. I googled "pictures of wedge salads" and fantasized. I now have a new obsession: a single meatball with marinara sauce and a little parmigiana cheese. While I am getting by on my liquid diet of water, protein shakes and cream soups at night, I fear for my sanity. On my post-op visit to my surgeon this Tuesday, I am going to tell my surgeon that I fear in 2 months I will be the skinniest guy in the nuthouse. Can anyone relate?

I havd my surgery done at 12:45p, Thursday (today). After about 10 hours I felt like my self again. Thinking clear and walking on my own. I’m so lucky to have an amazing husband and found an amazing surgeon and hospital. My sleeve took 20 minutes before of how well I followed my two week diet, even though I cheated a few times very little. I’m very sore but nothing I can’t handle! I can’t believe I made it!!!

Your loss rate will generally decline over time as you lose weight - you simply need fewer calories to move you 200ish lb body around all day than it took when you were 300ish lb. There are also some water weight effects that happen early on, in the first couple of weeks that skew the impressions as well. If you are losing 10+ lb per month at this point, 35-40lb from your goal, you are doing great. Within a couple of months, you will likely be worrying about overshooting the mark and losing too much - cross that bridge when you get there!

My Surgery date is Feb 11th, 2019. I have been waiting a long time I am very excited. I start my pre-op liquid diet Jan 28th, 2019.

Hello, 10 days post op here. Is any one else feeling achy around the stomach area. I wasn’t feeling like this until today.

Don’t be scared ladies. I have my surgery on January 7 and I was so nervous before I almost made myself sick. I am now only 10 days postop and I can honestly tell you that it wasn’t nearly as big of a deal as I was making out to be in my head. I’m doing awesome, I have no problem drinking fluids, and honestly just feel really great. The first two days I was in a little bit of pain but only took Tylenol and that took care of it. I’ve already 31lbs since January 3 (the start of my preop diet). So I guess what I’m saying is don’t be nervous, it really ain’t no thing 🙂

Hey Lolo, I am jettisoning shakes (to a point)! While they are really important for getting your protein in right after surgery (when it hurts to eat anything), they are still processed foods. Most of them are made up of some combination of soy or whey protein, which is ok--but this processed protein triggers a significant insulin response. I am able to meet my protein goals with whole foods as part of my regular intake, so the shakes are no longer necessary for me. That said, I still have my shakes handy. If I am having a day where I might be missing the mark on protein--or right after a workout (if I don't have time to eat), I may have half a premier shake. However, to the extent I can avoid them, I will. I was doing this on instinct, but my surgeon actually recommended that I cut them out at my one month follow up yesterday--so, great minds must think alike. I told him what and how I have been eating and he's totally on board. Apparently, he's been eating Keto for a few years. P.S.--when I say I am jettisoning shakes, I mean the premier shakes and muscle milk stuff etc. If you're doing healthy shakes with kale, etc. in a blender, those are great. I am not having those personally at this point, but not for any particular reason. Maybe I'll go that route in the future. It's hard to do a true Keto diet after WLS. If you're doing Keto correctly, you're eating close to 1,500-2,000 calories a day with 60% or more of those calories coming from good fats (hopefully). With that many calories, you can still meat your protein goals. Also, people who are successful on Keto also mix in intermittent fasting, where they will skip breakfast and go 18-20 hours without eating and have maybe 4-6 hour window of opportunity to eat. That won't work for someone with a sleeve (at least within the first few years following surgery). We can't consume that many healthy calories, so we need to make sure we are hitting our protein goals first. We can then consume the rest of our calories in the form of healthy fats. On most day since surgery, my macro will look something like 45-55% protein, 45-55% fat and 10% or less carbs. One month post-op, I am eating between 750-1000 calories per day of protein and good fat foods. Good fats will get your calorie count up, but neither sleeve nor keto require real calorie counting. I just keep track of calories to make sure I am not going off the rails and to set a limit (I don't want too much of a good thing, if ya know what I mean). I have been doing a little intermittent fasting--but not as long as most Keto adherents. I am usually asleep by 9:30 and I am up somewhere between 4:30 and 5am to hit the gym. I don't eat before my work out (you burn 20% more fat doing cardio in a fasted state in the morning). I may skip breakfast altogether and wait until lunch to eat (or I might have a small high protein snack after my workout, if I am really hungry--which I am usually not). I consume most of my calories between 12pm and 7:30pm. I also make sure to him my water goals--which is important no matter what diet/lifestyle you follow. This is as close to Keto as I can safely get at this stage in my recovery. It's working for me. I feel great and blood sugar is great for the first time in years. I am still only 3 weeks into "Keto" or should I say "Bariatric Keto", but it's awesome so far. Since I have been in ketosis (which happens to a lot of WLS patients anyway shortly after surgery), I am losing weight at a very rapid pace (for me). I have loads of energy now. I do feel hunger, but I am satisfied quickly. I enjoy the foods I am eating a LOT. Moreover, the diet I have been following is doctor approved for me. I had my one month follow up yesterday with my surgeon and I went over my diet and workout regimen with him. He cleared me for all activity and had no issues with my diet choices at all. Cutting out processed foods and carbs and eating a high protein,, high fat (good fat) diet melds is like rocket fuel for your VSG in his opinion (with the modifications I described). I am not sure what you mean? In terms of age, I am 44. I am doing full 60 minute spin classes 5 days a week (with 2 in a row on Wednesdays (5am and 6am classes). I am probably overdoing it, but I feel really good after my classes. I have also just been cleared by doctor for all activity--no restrictions. So, I am going to start weight training again, starting tomorrow morning.

Guys... Gals... after the LONGEST mother cracking stall ever... I hit my goal of 175. Exceeded it actually :) I weighed in this morning at 172.2!!!! Hellllll yeah! 2019 is going to be a good year I just know it! I’ll do a more in depth post later with my intake and what not but this is good for now 😊 Happy New Year folks!