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You poor thing doing this without much guidance from your team. First of all, DO NOT let anyone give you advise who is not a medical professional or someone who had your surgery. Who knows what they are comparing it to. For one thing most people thing all the surgeries are a Bypass and they are all the same, and second who knows how far out this person was. On top of that, liquids pretty much go right through once the swelling goes down. One month post sleeve i Was practical bacK to drinking my normal one gallon of fluids which is twice what they recommend as a goal!! This time it’s really not a good comparison since they didn’t operate on my stomach but I am up to 3/4 cup of food per meal. My book says 1/2-3/4 cup. All I know is that I feel fantastic. I am losing at a steady pace and exercising too which I never did before. I know it’s hard not to compare but honestly we should take everyone’s advice with a grain of salt because your doctor is the only one who knows all about you and your circumstances as well as your surgery. Make sure that your nutritionist has worked with bariatric patients before or you will most likely be wasting your time though. Did you call and ask your team if they can get you in sooner?? Corrected to add actually I just realized you did not have a sleeve or bypass either. Honestly you need to get advise from someone who had your surgery. We can cheer you on and relate to many parts of all of this but I know I for one am not very familiar with your surgery at all.

I'm a bit envious of your ability to purge your pantry! I share a home with my fella and my Mom, who I'm taking care of, so I just have to soldier through and think of what negative consequences would come from me eating the wrong thing. It has been interesting this week seeing them 'figure out meals' without my participation. I still cooked twice for them, the first time I made a big platter of stuffed peppers which wasn't TOO difficult to smell on day one but man, as the week went on smelling it be reheated was rough. The second time I cooked them salmon, broccoli, and rice. I DID break down and eat like two tiny bites of the salmon. I think my body will be forgiving of that tiny lapse - it was after all lean protein. I almost wish I'd done two weeks of this diet to make extra sure I was ready enough for the surgeon but I AM following the diet as I was told to. Granted, the last several months I didn't *exactly* eat the greatest but I did stay on track with my allotted calories for the day, which they had set at 1600. I admit that I did eat more fried food than I was 'supposed to'. It's been hard, honestly, losing my ability to turn to food for comfort, not turning to cigarettes for anxiety / comfort, bouncing around emotionally while I adjusted to taking the Chantix, and also - hadn't mentioned this previously, but I WAS drinking far more alcohol than I should have been up until about 4 months ago. That's another reason I took the extra month's delay when I shifted surgery types gracefully. You seem to REALLY have your stuff in order! Oh - the nail polish - Honestly, the nurse in my closing seminar seemed to be very 'no-polish' strict but when I went to my pre-surgery check-in at the hospital I asked about it and they glanced at my short nails and said they were fine. I was nervous about that, because I keep mine maintained due to my anxiety issues - I used to have trouble not scratching at wounds, biting my nails, etc - but they said as long as my nails were short enough to get the finger monitor on and I didn't have any gems or super dark colors it would be fine. I just went and got my nails done on Thursday and chose super light, neutral colors so you really have to look closely to notice that they have a little shimmer to them and had them done very short. I appreciate that they worry about risk of infection; I've always been super neurotic about looking under my nails for dirt, scrubbing them, etc so I think they will be fine. If I say that often enough everything WILL be fine, right? Lol -- I can't wait to get past Monday!

Hi everyone. Soooo, here I am 6 months post VSG. Started at a BMI 33, reached goal at 3.5 months so kept changing goals and here I am at the 6th month mark having lost much more than anticipated and ready for maintenance (at a BMI 20 as of today, 126.7 lbs/57.6 KGs). I don’t want to bore you with too many details, other than that I bounce between a fear of becoming sickly thin (currently feeling that) and an all encompassing fear of gaining weight and going back to what I have become, it is kind of mind boggling. I read many many stories of how WLS patients gained all the weight back and then some, about them seeking revision surgeries or GLP treatments and it really freaks me out and my mind starts telling me to keep losing weight just so I don’t end up back where I started. I want to change that and start focusing on success stories. I have come across people with successful outcomes many years out but there isn’t many of them to be honest, and what I have noticed with successful WLS patients is this: - They made 360 degree changes in their lifestyles (cut all the junk, took up exercise and became very “clean” if you will). OR: - Still have fun but track their calories and weight DAILY. Very few have just lost interest in food and don’t do any of the above and remained successful. Given my history being at a low BMI and athletic my entire adulthood and only becoming overweight the past few years I can be very disciplined and committed. However I am human and I love going out to eat and trying new foods and restaurants, so for you the successful lot please enlighten me on the following: 1. What are your golden rules to successful maintenance? 2. How did you manage the mental shift (navigating fear and uncertainty) while transitioning to maintenance? I can’t seem to quiet my thoughts and anxiety around WHAT IFs? 3. How much indulgence do you actually allow yourself? I really need to strike that balance right now. Every single tip would be helpful. And to celebrate my 6 month anniversary, here’s a little before and after for y’all:

For surgery on the NHS, it has to be shown that the patient is fully aware that the surgery is only a tool and that the patient has realistic expectations of life post-surgery. We have to show and understand that we are prepared to put in all the necessary work (daily vitamins and regular blood tests, to adhere to the rules of eating both immediately after surgery while we heal and then the lifelong commitment required to maintain their losses) I’m glad that my NHS Trust has hoops to jump through if I’m honest, as it inspires confidence for me. Would I love surgery now? Of course! I’m I mentally prepared for it? No, I don’t think I am. The past couple of weeks have shown me that I do respond to emotional situations by trying to soothe myself with food. Will I be able to do that post-op? Very, very doubtful as I would be worried about undoing both the surgery and the psychological readiness I know I need to undergo said surgery. I do read some posts on various forums that do give cause for concern as a pre-op patient, just as Tek identified above. I’m in no position to advise but it is comforting that the more experienced posters do their utmost to give advice and guide the user in contacting their surgeon, doctor etc or to re-read the advice they should have been given 🙂

I can eat pho - although I'm nine years out. You should be able to at some point, but not for a while (I was about six months out when all food restrictions were lifted). A lot of people have issues with noodles, though - they can sit in your stomach like a brick. I do eat them, but not like I used to. A half cup or so is usually OK, though.

Saturday 6th april and i am finally home !! So excited to be in my own bed tonight i could not get comfy in hospital … i barely made it through 1.5 hours without waking up each night. I can’t wait to finally get some rest. I picked up all my meds and a nurse will be coming twice daily to change bandages and administer injections but i feel pretty good. Trying to get into the swing of drinking and eating but it feels like i can’t do both right now. I’ve had 500ml of water by 3pm but one managed to eat like 70g of food all day. Hoping it gets easier each day because today got me worried about the lack of calories i’m getting in … going to work on making lower volume higher cal and higher protein purées so it’s less quantity but better quality food So glad to be home ! Everything feels so much more manageable being in a comfortable environment 😊

Well that was a fun-filled week! I’m finally on the other side of Covid and feeling tons better. After far too much faffing, I got the antiviral meds on Tuesday evening and, all credit to them, they really do work. Thankfully the only side effect I had was a godawful taste in my mouth which everyone gets apparently. I need to test myself today, just to make sure I’m clear but I have to build up to ramming cotton buds up my nose! Hubby is now in the throws of Covid but without the antivirals as he’s not judged as ‘vulnerable’ so he’s white-knuckling it with just paracetamol for the symptoms. He was a total star last week though and really did look after me as I was floored with it. He’s doing OK-ish with it, still working from home but definitely not at full capacity. So, having a bit reset this week food-wise. I’m 5lbs up from my lowest weight which isn't the end of the world. I just need to tighten up my eating habits and think about what I’m eating. Our postponed anniversary dinner is on Saturday so fingers crossed my gains come off pretty quickly and things settle down in the next couple of weeks. I’ve heard nothing from the hospital regarding the MDT, which is OK. I’m back for bloods on Friday for checking my liver function. Hopefully it will have sorted itself out! I think my second blip was the beginning of Covid. I’ve not taken any of my RA meds in order to give my liver a rest and will hopefully get back to normal with them next week. Nothing else going on here. Just planning on pottering around this week and getting odd bits done. Have a happy, healthy week everyone! Onwards and Downwards 🙂

Yes!! I did. My surgery was on Feb 14, and I had lost 16 pounds in the pre-op stage. After surgery, I did weigh myself and I had gained 8 lbs! I am positive it was all fluid. It took me a week to lose the water weight, so then I was at the same weight as my pre-op weight and very discouraged. I'm 16 days post op and have only lost 8lbs (plus the 8 of fluid). I reached out to my dietician and she said those with a lower starting weight (I was 240) will lose it slower. It's perfectly normal. Since starting the pureed phase, I increased my calories to 600/day and I get about 90 grams of protein. It's more steady at about 1lb every 2 days. I hope that helps you, and thanks for sharing this. I thought I was the only one.

I had my 3-month post-op appointment with my dietician today. She wanted to see 80g or more of protein with 40% of daily calories from protein, and at least 64oz water. Those are the only set numbers I was given, although we added up all the macros for a typical day from my journal and it came to around 900 calories, 91g protein, 78g carb, and 29g fat. The fat and carb percentage were roughly 30% each of my daily calories. She said that was very reasonable for this stage and that calories would slowly increase over time. I was also told I could pretty much eat any type of food now, but she cautioned me about sirloin steak and very fibrous foods like asparagus (the woody stalks, not the soft tips) and pineapple as probably being a bit too tough. But she encouraged me to add in raw veggies and to move away from protein powder as much as possible. Another reason you'll see programs not focusing on calorie counting is because people can make poor choices that way (or am I the only one who used to eat celery for lunch so I could have a big piece of cake and technically not exceed my calorie goals?). If you're choosing a small plate (I use a dessert/bread size plate) and fill one half with lean protein (3-4oz), and the other half with veggies, go easy on the fatty and sugary sauces, and stop eating at the first sign of fullness (for me, that would be hiccups), you will hit the recommendations without really having to stress over counting anything.

The minimum liquid intake was 48oz, and now, a week later, they tell me to try to go for 64oz. lol But they say half the liquid can be from protein shake, the rest clear liquid. I tried yogurt and it’s ok, it’s hard to eat. It supposed to be 1-2 oz of “food.” I get full with 2 spoons of yogurt. I tried cheese today and that’s a no go. I feel like I’m going to choke. Cream of wheat has been good because it’s liquidy, but then it’s high in carbs, so idk if it’s worth eating lol I too could not sleep at the hospital. Every angle hurt, and the machines kept beeping, and the nurses kept coming in to check my sugar, blood pressure etc.

Thank you @FifiLux, @ShoppGirland @Bypass2Freedom 🥰 I managed to shove a cotton bud up my nose (hate the sneezing and ‘scratchy’ feeling at the back of my throat 🤢) and I’m now clear of Covid - hurray! Hubby is still in its thrall though: headache, sick, generally feeling out of sorts. Amazing how it hits people differently 🤷‍♀️ 3lbs of my gain off this morning - thank you water weight! Just over 2lbs more to go and I will be back on track. This morning I went through my underwear and nightwear drawers and binned lots. All the too big and/or tatty items have gone. I do have some really nice things that I’ve not worn due to sizing so hopefully I will be wearing that at some point in the near future. I am enjoying getting on top of things once again as I think I really lost my way for quite a while. All down to a lack of interest in pretty much everything I think. No gym this week but hope to get back to it next week when hubby feels better. I have missed it and my knees are definitely stiffer for not going. I’m on with the circulation booster in the meantime, just to get the blood flowing in my lower legs. Can definitely feel a bit of the autumn chill now ☹️ I received an email from M&S saying it’s Christmas food stuff is now available to order and it feels quite strange not to be bothering with any of it because I don’t know where I will be on my WLS journey. All that stress, gone!! 🥳 Has anyone done the LRD over Christmas, just out of interest? As it stands, I’m not bothered if I have to do it then, be nice to have a festive season where I actually lose weight 😉

Obesity is an eating disorder. You wouldn't tell someone with anorexia "just go eat a sandwich and stop exercising so much" or someone with bulimia "just stop binging and throwing up. Just don't do it". So telling someone who is obese to just diet and work out and you'll be fine is absolutely WRONG. Yes, it's an addiction to food, but it's usually a trauma response because of something(s) we went through or are going through in our lives. Like every other eating disorder, it gets out of our control, we become addicted, and as much as we know it's unhealthy and bad for us and we need to stop, we can't. That's why we need the surgery AND support groups AND therapy. The surgery alone isn't enough. This is a lifelong, multi-step process. But it's completely possible to turn your life around and become who you have always been meant to be. Ignore those that won't support you. They aren't you, they aren't going through everything you are, and they haven't lived your life or experienced your emotions and thoughts. This is your chance to save yourself. So many of us, myself included, have been faced with our mortality and poor choices and had to make the hard choice and do the work. But I don't regret any of it and would do it all again. If you're ready to take your life back, then do it. If you don't find support in your real life, I can promise you you'll find it here. This place is amazing, and we're happy to answer any questions you might have

Make sure you don't beat yourself up about it though. ❤️ Slips happen, and you know what to do going forward. You're heading in the right direction. Unless you literally hurt yourself eating it, it's not that big a deal. That said, maybe take some time to check out other healthier delivery options for the future, for anytime you feel stuck. It's easy to make choices that we otherwise wouldn't when we're hungry, tired and sick and feel that pressure of "I need to get this ordered now", but if you had a few other options saved and ready to go, you might make choices that you'd regret less / be less disappointed in afterwards. For me, I have a couple of local mexican restaurants that have some 'build your own salad / rice bowl' options with steamed brown rice, beans, charred corn, and several different 'clean' proteins that aren't covered in sugary sauces. There's a number of greek restaurants that have done me dirty with the amount of oil they use in everything, but there's one that has options with little to no oil. When you're feeling better, maybe see if you can find a comfort food that would freeze and heat up well -- or even a couple of store-bough frozen dinners if you can find some that suit you nutritionally. I don't know what the selection is like in the UK, but in Canada I've seen some decent low carb/sugar options from Healthy Choice, Green Giant and even Lean Cuisine.

A much better week than last week with a 7.5lb loss to show for it 😊 16.5lbs lost so far on this ‘try to eat healthier’ plan I have begun. It would be lovely to think that I could carry on like this, just losing weight quite happily and give the WLS a swerve but past history tells me that I will eventually pile weight back on (and more) so why set myself up for failure? I also know that I have a stall coming up, sometime between week 3 and week 7 if past experience is anything to go by. I just tell myself that it’s my body having a sulk because I’ve taken its goodies away, so it’s try to get me to give in by being stubborn. Huh…I have a 4 year old granddaughter who is the epitome of stubborn at times and if I can deal with her then this should hopefully be OK 😉 I had hubby take photos after my 1 stone loss, just so I can compare against the 1st photos. Oddly enough, I could see a teeny bit of difference, so that was a real positive sign. I’m looking forward to ‘shopping in my wardrobe’ once again - trying on all those clothes that are too small for me at present, and just generally getting some wear out of them. I just need to remind myself to try things on regularly, especially as I seem to have several sizes to go at! I read through all the information on my hospitals Bariatric area of their website yesterday, things like dietary advice, example menus, info regarding vitamins etc. From what I have read, it will be a couple of days of liquids, then 6 weeks of purée post-op before moving on to mashed foods for 4 weeks and then hopefully reintroducing normal foods. I now understand why bread, over-cooked rice and pasta are to be avoided but still not sure about caffeine? I am a tea junky so I will have to find a decent decaf to try. Any recommendations UK people? Anyway, the next couple of months are busy, taken up with both physio appointments and, much more excitingly, the bariatric-related appointments. This week is Oximetry so hopefully that goes well. I hope everyone has a fantastic week. Onwards and downwards!

This is something that never stops. You have to watch what you eat, how much you eat, how often you eat. You have to move your body more. Prioritize protein first, then veggies, then carbs, then healthy fats. Fluid intake never stops. You have to get 64oz at least. Avoid the slider foods, avoid grazing. Cut the salt. And switch to sugar free and no sugar added sweets if you really can't stay away from them (I have never been a big sweets person. I'm not even a huge fan of chocolate). This is something I would thing your surgeon and nutritionist would have gone over with you before you had the surgery. This isn't a magic cure all. It's a tool to use to get your weight and health where it needs to be.

Heya! My surgery is next week, but my birthday is about 3 and a bit weeks after that, so I have been asking myself the same question! My plan is to make everything as non-centered around food as possible. I am hoping to go to an animal experience so I can pet some capybaras, and then just see my family and watch some movies or something! Don't get me wrong, it feels weird that this will be the first birthday in like 28 years where I haven't had cake, but at least I should be feeling happier for the first time in many years! Where I have lost something, I will also gain! Happy belated birthday ❤️

1. What was the best part of surgery for you? The best part for me has been being able to do things I enjoy again. There were several things that I either couldn’t do or didn’t want to do because of my weight and now after losing so much weight I have been able to start doing most of those things again. For example, I love going to sporting events, but I had stopped going because I didn’t fit comfortably in many chairs at stadiums. 2. What was the worst part of surgery for you? I was one of the lucky ones that didn’t have any complications with the surgery (I had the bypass). Really my only complaint about the entire process was the gas pain following surgery. I was told by my doctor I may have some pain in my chest after the surgery, but it was way worse than I was expecting. But it only lasted for a few hours and after that everything went smoothly. 3. Did you have any complications (minor or major) after your surgery? Not really. My surgeon did notice an umbilical hernia while doing my surgery but decided it would be better to get that fixed after I lost some weight, so I had another surgery for that 9 months later. 4. How has adjusting to your new life been for you? Easier than I expected actually. I think it helps that I live alone right now so I have quite a bit of control over my environment. Like if I had a roommate who ordered pizza a lot, I think I would have a lot harder time eating healthier, but since I live alone I am able to control what food I am around for the most part. Probably the hardest part for me has been making sure I get enough fluids. I have always drank a lot with my meals and now I can’t do that anymore, so I’ve had to learn to drink throughout the day. I am finally doing better with that but I felt like I was constantly dehydrated for several months after the surgery. 5. How long did it take you to feel comfortable eating food? Not very long. The toughest part was remembering not to eat too fast or take too big of bites. During the first couple of weeks especially it does not take long until you will feel full and even just one too many bites can make you very uncomfortable for a while. 6. Is there anything you can’t eat anymore that you used to enjoy? The short answer is no. I have not found any food that I can’t tolerate, but there are foods I choose not to eat anymore. The only issue I had was with rice, and I think that was just because I ate a little too much. 7. What was your recovery like? Any vomiting or dumping syndrome? My recovery was not bad at all. Like I mentioned earlier, the gas pain was the worst part, but after that really the only pain I had was in my abdomen when I got out of bed or the recliner. I vomited a few times when I was learning to eat again but all of those were from just eating a little too much I think. Recently I’ve discovered I get low blood sugar really easily (and I’m not diabetic). I actually just talked with my nutritionist about this earlier today. I don’t have sugary foods too often, but I’ve found that if I have too much sugar all at once, I will get low blood sugar a few hours later. This never happened to me before my surgery. 8. How long did it take you to feel semi-normal after surgery? Just a few days. My surgery was on a Monday and I remember thinking I probably could have gone back to work that Thursday if I had needed to (my job is not physical at all though- I work at a desk most of the day). The toughest part was energy level. I returned to work one week after surgery but I was only able to work half days for a couple of days. 9. Did you experience higher energy level post surgery? Yes, I have way more energy than I used to. I used to have to force myself to work out a few days a week, now I don’t like going even one day without some form of exercise. 10. Did surgery affect your mental health? Yes, I think it has. It has helped my mental health in some ways, like being able to do more of the things I enjoy has helped with my depression, but I have also found I am struggling with stress and anxiety more than I used to. I think at least part of the reason for that is that I used to cope with stress and anxiety by eating and I can’t do that anymore, at least not the way I used to. Also I should add that there was a part of me that thought that all of my problems (including my mental health issues) would magically go away once I lost weight. My mental health has definitely improved since I lost weight, but it is still something I am struggling with. I started seeing a therapist a few months ago and I believe that is helping me out a lot. 11. Do you regret it? Do you recommend it? I have not regretted it for a second. I was relatively young when I had the surgery (I was 32) and a part of me felt like I didn’t need the surgery, like I thought I was still young enough I could lose weight without surgery, but looking back on it I am glad I didn’t wait. I had a number of minor health problems that were all slowly getting worse, and I realize now that it was good that I didn’t wait for them to get worse. I will add that I feel I am one of the lucky ones that has had basically no complications from the surgery and no food intolerances or dumping. I know not everyone has had as easy of an experience following the surgery as I have.

Had an appt with my Dietician and I am so irritated, like so bothered! I told her that I weight train 6x a week on top of cardio 6x a week. Went over how much I ate and what type of foods and she told me I am eating too much protein, and I need to stop drinking my proffee in the morning only have decaf coffee. She said I need to eat under 100g of protein even though I am weight training. I could not respond, I am not trying to be thin my goal is to get fit and shapely which is why I weight train. My multivitamins I have to adjust which I knew I needed to. I feel so discouraged by what she said, she told me that the 1000 cal is "ok". I asked what that meant, she said I am on the higher scale of what I should eat at 5months post op, I told her but I workout for an hour plus a day? If I ate less I would pass out from exhaustion. My post surgeon team completely left me to figure this all out on my own. I was supposed to have a 6 week and 3 month group appt which she asked why I didn't attend....I told her because your team never called me to set them up and I didn't know that was even a thing. So I have been on my own since week 2. I thought I was kicking ass and taking names, now I am so bummed. Just venting

I had a nice trip to Nantucket for the Daffodil festival this weekend. Lots of meals out. I had chicken teriyaki, poached eggs and kielbasa, smoked bluefish pate, mozzarella and beet salad, and scallops with bacon among other things. Got in lots of walking. Weight was unchanged this morning, but I'm curious if that is a mix of not enough water and too much salt from so many restaurant meals. So we'll see what a couple days of regular routine does for me. I'm grateful I have had no issues with foods for almost 2 weeks now. Hoping that means my stomach is finally healing properly.

While loss of hunger is a benefit of the surgery, there are some who continue to feel hunger. Distinguishing whether you are experiencing real hunger or head hunger is most important to distinguish which you are experiencing. Craving a specific food, flavour or texture (like your desire to chew) is head hunger. If you used food to comfort or sooth yourself in the past during times of stress, anxiety, emotional upsets, hormonal variations, etc. you are likely experiencing head hunger simply because of the (conscious or sub conscious) physical & mental stress of the surgery. Having hunger pangs/pains is head hunger most of the time. You’re still producing the same amount of stomach acid as you did before surgery in your much smaller tummy which will cause the hunger pangs/pains. It’s why we’re usually prescribed a PPI to reduce the amount of acid for a period of time after surgery until it settles. A rumbling tummy also is not a sign of hunger in most cases - just your digestive system working. Many nerves are cut during surgery so signals and messages from your tummy to signal things like real hunger either aren’t getting through or are being distorted. Most of us discover our signals for real hunger are very different from the signals we used to recognise as hunger. I feel restless, like something is wrong & logically there is a real & legitimate reason for being hungry. All this takes time to recognise & understand & is part of the head work we all talk about you needing to do a long the way. Doesn’t help with your hunger though of course while you’re sorting through all this. In the meantime, look for a distraction. Try reading, contacting friends or family, crafting, go for a short walk, play a game, check social media, meditate, etc. Sipping a warm drink can be helpful too. All the best & congrats on your surgery.

I strongly advise you to stick with the plan your surgeon gave you regarding food. Your stomach and small intestines have been cut and sewn back together, there are a lot of sutures in there that heal best without particles of food irritating them. And believe me, you do NOT want to compromise the healing of those sutures. I know it is hard to do nothing but drink. I was on fluids only for the first two weeks, no pudding, no eggs, nothing but fluids and my stomach couldn't handle protein shakes so I lived on broth, flavored water, and eventually I could do lactose free milk. But I got through it and so will you!! As hard as the changes are to our bodies, it is the head game that will do you in. You are strong. You can do hard things!! You only get the chance to heal once, so heal as well as you possibly can! I ate sugar free popsicles and crunched on ice when I had the urge to chew. This time without food is a very short time in the scheme of things even though it feels like an eternity. Find things to do to distract you from your hunger. Head hunger is miserable but you have to see this through because if you don't get control of the head hunger now it will drive you to eat around your surgery once you add food back in. The surgeon had me taking pills by mouth the day after surgery. It was a struggle but I understood it wasn't harming my stomach to take them, just go slow, one at a time, and give space between each one. But only take what they told you to take. You don't want to add anything extra that could irritate those healing sutures. ❤️

Honestly, that's why it's not good to weigh yourself every day. Things like how much you ate and drank, how much salt you had, if you pooped or not can all affect your weight. As hard as it is, weighing yourself once (or if you must, twice) per week, in the morning after you go to the bathroom, before you eat or drink is the best way to see what you true weight is. Weight also fluctuates by a couple of pounds naturally, so if you weigh yourself daily, you'll get discouraged and frustrated and start to think, 5 weeks out, that you've plateaued. Be mindful of slider foods. That's stuff that you can eat more of because it goes down super easy and takes longer to make you feel full. Potatoes are known for this. As I said before, the first 6 months is when you lose the most the fastest. Eating things that slow down that process during that time is counter-productive. This is where you really want to stick to the diet as closely as possible to get the most out of the weight loss. Also move your body. Add in working out, walking, swimming, anything that increases movement over and above what you normally do. Not only does that help, but when you drop weight fast, you can lose muscle. So you want to start working on that.

To be honest, early on I had lots of problems with nausea and vomiting eating normal solid foods when it was allowed for me. I stayed on liquids and soft foods maybe longer than most. But it was easier for me. I figured my tummy just needed more time to heal and really had no reason to force it just because I could have it. So, I prioritized getting my protein and liquids in first in the form of shakes, milk, yogurt, soups etc. I've said it here before, that you are better off staying hydrated if eating solid foods is keeping you from that, timewise. (30-minute rule) I simply preferred that to feeling nauseous and figured I had the rest of my life to eat solid foods. Becoming dehydrated can cause stalls and constipation. I also have trouble drinking plain water but found if I add Crystal Light I tend to drink more in a day., I also take a stool softener twice a day since WLS, recommended by my surgeon. Of course, like everyone else here said, periodic stalls are normal. Long term you have to question what you are doing. Now at almost a year post op, I can pretty much eat and drink as needed. I just came off a stall and since I'm nearing goal weight, those last few pounds are coming off slower. I don't weigh myself as often so as not to get discouraged. But I'm pretty damn happy with where I am. Try to get those liquids in... it's important. GL

I’m 6 days post op i’m feeling fine when it comes to the pain, i was in the hospital for less than two days and have been resting at home. But the only thing i do is sleep, i don’t wanna eat anything cause my throat just does this gurgling sound, i feel weak, tired, and dizzy especially when i take my medicine i feel super full, this morning i almost vomited because of the medicine (cipro 500mg) i’ve lost 7 kilos by far Will i ever feel better? Will i ever eat again and actually enjoy the thought of eating food?

Doesn’t sound like you have gastritis based on you saying you don’t have any symptoms but belching. Seems strange your team would suggest that and not confirm you have the symptoms of gastritis. Most times our tummy growls & rumbles it’s a sign of our digestive system working not a sign of hunger despite. What we were always told. You may find those noise are very loud and you may be someone who continues to experience this noisy digestive system. I say I have my own poltergeist rattling chains & moaning. My younger nieces & nephews think it’s hilarious. Another thing many of us discover is that real hunger feels different. For example I get restless like something is wrong but I don’t know what. Wanting to eat and/or wanting a specific food, flavour or texture (like salty, sweet, crunchy, etc.) is head hunger. However, it takes 2-4 hours for your tummy to empty so feeling hungry about 2.5hrs after eating could make sense. Plus add in you say you’re very active, real hunger does seem a possibility. Are they aware of how active you are? Are they concerned you aren’t meeting your protein goal (I mean that & getting your fluids in are supposed to be our main focus)? I’d ask whether having a shake after you swim, which would help with your protein intake, would be okay. Also ask would having the additional shake sabotage your weight loss at least until you are able to eat more at each meal and are better able to reach your protein goals without it. Can’t hurt to ask.