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It is so freakin' awesome to not "feel fat"!!! I was put on my first diet at age 7. How'd that work out? Last June, my BMI was 42.8, which is solidly in the "Very Severely Obese" range, and I had diabetes, apnea, asthma, high cholesterol, and borderline blood pressure. Less than 10 months later, my BMI is 23.6, which is solidly in the "Normal" range and all of my "fat guy" diseases are gone! I was wearing XXL-XXXL shirts then, and hated having to buy clothes. Now I buy Mediums off the rack (or online) and don't bother trying them on because I know they'll fit. I'm telling you, it's like night and day! So for those of us that have "felt fat" all of our lives, here are the best tips I can give you: 1) Follow all the rules of your program as closely as you can! The less you deviate, the quicker you'll lose weight. Yes, I know it's not a race. But I would suggest that those who stick to the rules and lose their excess weight more quickly are far more likely to get to their goal and stay there. Yes, I know we have to learn how to eat "normally", but again, I would suggest that learning to eat normally can happen at any time. So why not do it once you've lost the weight and have already developed eating and exercise habits that work? That way if you put some pounds back on while experimenting with new foods, you don't have to lose the new weight, plus all the old weight that hadn't come off yet. 2) Plan, plan, plan! Never allow yourself to be caught unprepared without something appropriate to eat and drink. If you don't know what's going to be available at your next eating situation, bring something with you. Don't allow yourself to get hungry at a social event. Drink a Protein shake in the car on the way. Try to learn to like beef and turkey Jerky. It's high protein, low fat, okay calories, you can buy a bag almost anywhere, and a 3-ounce bag is a meal. I can't count how many times my program has been saved by a bag of jerky from a convenience store! So keep a bag of jerky in the car for food emergencies. And bring your own pitcher of Crystal Light, or a squirt-bottle of Mio to the party. 3) Try not to fall off the horse, but if you do, get right back on track at your very next meal. Not tomorrow, and not next Monday morning. That's the pattern that got us here, right? We need to break those patterns, because they won't work this time either! 4) When you look in the mirror and see a slimmer person, believe it! If you're doing the right things and making the right choices, the "new you" is who you are now. Don't waste time and emotional energy looking back over your shoulder waiting for your former, heavier self to drag you back. Keep looking forward and enjoy your successes by setting and achieving lots of little milestones. Along the way... be sure to bask in the compliments, have fun trying on and wearing smaller clothes, take pride in your accomplishments, appreciate your new health and energy, and try to enjoy this amazing journey! Most of all, just keep making the next good choice! Good luck!!!

Hi! I need to take 1500 mg of calcium citrate containing vitamin D with 400 I.U. Any recommendations? The only one I can find needs to be taken 4 times daily which I would prefer not to do. I found one taken 3 times daily, but now can’t find it. Thank you!

So Dr. O's diet restrictions lighten up at 3 weeks BUT I am too scared to eat. I know it sounds crazy but I take the smallest bites of mashed potato - which is the thickest thing I have had so far. I was living on broth, SF pop and thin cream soups. I moved onto mashed potatoes but that's it. My last visit with the NP I was told to start eating. Imagine that?!?! Me? Not eating and having to be told to eat?!?! There is some comfort in full liquids - they feel good going down. And warm soups feel very good!!! So yeah, there is a bit of fear about trying new foods and testing out my new tiny tummy. Any advice for this big chicken sleever?!?!

My tummy loves to talk. When I have my first sip in the morning. You will have to be patient. Every tummy is different. At three I couldn't eat eggs or yogurt and such. At 7 weeks, I still can not eat an egg. Concentrate on you fluids and you will see it get better. Later loser!

Most times when GERd gets bad with sleeve they convert to RNY. Maybe more due to undiagnosed GERd prior to surgery? I don’t like the long term effects of ppI or side effects. I am extremely sensitive to medication, even herbal supplements. I have such a long allergy list it’s a pain when I need a procedure. My dr prescribed omeprozole, I honestly didn’t take it. Even after they said I had ulcers at the stoma. But the next time they didn’t see ulcers. As to accuracy of any test, it’s a crapshoot. PPI long term can cause serious side effects include kidney disease, fractures, infections and vitamin deficiencies I had to get a new prescription anyway because I needed to start a new, more effective muscle relaxer (diazepam) and proton pump inhibitors block the absorption of the muscle relaxer. They gave me a prescription for Pepcid (famotidine) it’s an antacid and antihistamine. They all say don’t take longer than two weeks unless the dr prescribes it. What gets me is listed side effects. Does it cause constipation or diarrhea ... pick one, sometimes people need to know that before taking a medication and how can it be both? I definitely don’t need more headaches or other side effects to add to my existing illness. But I will give it a try. Pepcid (famotidine) is an H2-blocker used to treat and prevent recurrence of stomach and duodenal ulcers. Pepcid is also useful in managing heartburn, gastroesophageal reflux disease and Zollinger-Ellison syndrome. Pepcid is available as a generic drug. Side effects of Pepcid are not common, but may include: constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, dizziness, weakness, mood changes, headache, insomnia, muscle pain or cramps, joint pain, dry mouth, nausea, or vomiting.

I am ten months out and I drink on occasion 1-3 cups of coffee depending on the day or week. Some weeks or months I can go without. Unlike today, this is a three cup day. Stayed up way to late last night. What I do different than what I use too is use fat free creamer and a splenda packet. After drinking coffee I normally drink A LOT of Water like over 64 oz. I would just listen to what your gut says, coffee that early for me made me sick. It took me up till nine months to finally get back to drinking coffee again, but not on a regular basis.

I waited until 4 weeks to have a cup of coffee and boy did it taste good. I'm having 1 cup a day. I used to drink 3 a day.

The hospital served me regular coffee with my first "meal" (Water, Protein shake, coffee) right after my leak test the day after surgery. While I'm a coffee fantatic, it didn't sound good for about 4 weeks. My dr says 1-2 cups of coffee a day is fine. He doesn't want to take away all of my vices. Good luck! There could be worse things ur craving!

Nothing is wrong, everyone goes through a stall. Trust the process. Follow the plan and keep chugging through. You may have a few stalls over the 1st year in fact. Just have faith and hang on. When I had surgery 2 yrs ago I stalled and then lost weight so fast than I had to be told to take my skinner self to go buy some new jeans.... Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk

the first couple weeks, my surgeon said to focus on my protein and stay hydrated. because i wasnt (on anything but liquids ) he mentioned nothing of calories.... keep sipping and then sip some more......you can do it..(btw, all dr's are different so what works for me may not be what your dr wants)...congrats on the surgery).

I measured before surgery and a week after surgery. I gained almost 4 inches in my belly. It took three weeks to get to pre surgery size even though I was losing.

Hi my name is Yolanda I had the sleeve on 12/30/13. I feel so confused and alone. My doctor gave 3 stages I am on purée and soft foods. I spent all of my time thinking about what to eat. I started out at 202 the day of surgery I am now 186. I know I am not eating right. Today I had 1 slice of low fat turkey and low fat Swiss cheese and 5 wheat crackers. Water after 30 minutes . 3 hours later I had a small banana . One hour later 5 sick pretzels. Please help me figure this out. I know a lot people think I didn't need the sleeve and I was just weak and lazy. I did this for health reasons I am dietetic with high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I also have a a vey bad back and in pain everyday. I am hoping the weight loss will ease the pain. Thank you any help.

In the early days, I wrote out a daily schedule of when to drink, when to eat and what to eat. It took away having to think constantly about food and it meant I knew that I was eating the right thing in the right quantities. Don't worry, I promise it does get easier. You are only 3 weeks out and most of us felt the way you do. Take it a day at a time and think about how good life is going to be.... And no one here will think you have taken the easy way out - we know it's not! You had serious comorbidities - diabetes, high BP and high cholesterol - as well as being in pain. You have taken control of your health and well being, that was a brave thing to do and you deserve to do well. So hang in there, there are lots of people here who will share and support you. Keep posting :-)

Hey Everyone! Ive had a few things come up since my last appointment with the surgeon. This was all through my GP. Turns out my iron levels are now all of a sudden super high(ferritin was 417), and my liver enzymes also high but thats been an ongoing issue for me. I rarely eat meat and have never had high iron in the past so i have no idea whats happened there. What im now concerned about is my liver! My surgeon does a standard 2 week pre op before surgery to help shrink the liver but im so scared it wont work! My GP sent me for an ultrasound of my liver and it shows moderate fatty liver disease. Ive been reading ways to shrink my liver now before my next surgeons appointment but all the results i get are what im already doing. Ive always eaten fairly well and even lately ive cut back heaps on the junk and comfort eating knowing i have the surgery coming up yet this has still happened! So fearful that itll get to the big day, they will open me up and then not operate because its too large still😭 what happens if the pre op diet just doesnt work? Im almost tempted to just start my pre op diet now! I dont even have my surgery date yet!

So I am at the end of week 4 post op and I noticed a couple of days ago a sudden change in my ability to eat things. Food is going down easier as long as I take my time and chew it well and less things are coming back up. I have been able to broaden my range of food significantly in the last couple of days from basically not tolerating anything but soup consistency to being able to manage a tiny bit of chicken breast and salad. I think that maybe internal swelling has finally settled down, combined with being much more careful about how I chew, mouthful size and rests between bites. I hope this gives hope to those of you who are still only a few days out from surgery and struggling.

Alot of people on here are judemental on what to do or not to do. Id recommend going to costco or online and looking up hydration packs. Costco has one that is a small packed u put in water and for every 1 bottle it makes it like ur drinking 2. It has electro lights in it and i find and have found it works wonder on not being dehydrated. At 4 months post op i drank water with a packed 2 times a week my pee before was so dark i was worried id have to go into the docter and get iv fluid because i wasnt drinking enough this product saved the day for me and my pee was light and normal the next day. The military uses these packets to help dehydrated people get the fluid they need.. i still drink one or 2 a week to make sure im staying well hyfdrated!!!

Every time your body needs to re-calibrate itself... you'll get some for of "stall". These are frustrating, yes, but this is when you need to make those decisions to change your habits. Eating something bad, isn't going to help that stall in the way you want it to... sure, the scale will move, but not in the direction it should be. Make sure you are getting MORE water than you are supposed to, and make sure you are only eating what you have been instructed was cleared for you. And Exercise! You'll feel SO much better with some regular exercise. I know it sounds like a fluff piece, but, I honestly don't even recognize myself anymore, I'm feeling better, not just physically, but mentally! I haven't been this positive and hopeful in a very VERY long time. As I state pretty much everywhere a "stall" conversation comes up. Weight alone isn't enough to properly measure your progress. You can be losing fat and not losing weight. I'm lucky enough to have a scale that does body fat as well, and there have been plenty of times in the last 2 months where my weight has increased and my body fat has decreased, and if all I had was the weight to go off of... I'd be going crazy wondering what I was doing wrong. Stick to your plans, Stick to your exercise, and just remember, you are not alone, we will deal with stalls at some point in our journey. You got this!

Today I had my 7th weeks follow up, all went great, I can now eat everything in portion size, this journey is no joke Someone told me that I took the easy way out but they don't know the struggle in this journey. Peace and blessings to you all Sent from my SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

I had hunger in Month 3 post-op but I think it was mostly head hunger from thinking about food. I get dizzy when I stand up too and my surgeon said to increase my salt intake.

Hi everyone! I was banded on March 9th, 2009 by Dr. Trace Curry in Cincinnati, Ohio. I have a Realize Band, that currently has 1.5ccs in it. (I went in for my first fill 1 week ago.) I am sooooooooooo excited! I already met my first goal: 1) Weigh less than my hubby! lol... I am actually 14 lbs lighter now! 2) My second goal is to make it to Onederland! I lost about 11 lbs during my pre-op week and have lost another 17 since the surgery. I can't believe how great I feel! I am sleeping better, my blood sugars are now in the normal range (without meds!), I am down one pants size... How is everyone else doing? Blessings, :)Ali

I am 54 days out from surgery. I have lost 28 lbs since surgery. I went in for a check up on the 5th of this month. I received a 1/2 cc fill for the first time at that appointment and now I am more hugry, sooner, than I ever was before. Was getting the fill a mistake or is this normal? My doctor wanted me to eat more solid foods, he said I was still eating a lot of what he considred soft foods (i.e yougurt). I normally have yogurt for breakfast just out of convenience and time. I have since changed to having two eggs in the morning around 7-8 am and I am starving by 11-12. I try to eat fish or something high in protein and a vegtable for lunch and I am starving again by 3 in the afternoon. I will eat dinner between 4-5 in the evening and have again, something high in protein like chicken or fish again and a vegtable and I am again very hungry before bed. I measure my food and weigh it carefully but it just doesn't seem to be enough to last me. What should I do? The doctor doesn't want me to supplement with protein shakes. Which I though was a great idea to boost my protein intake and keep me satisfied. With the 3 meals I eat a day I am not always getting a full supply of the protein that they want me to get to. I am so confused and hungry! I need help!

It looks like you r on track. I eat 4-5 small meals every 3-4 hours, which is: breakfast, snack, lunch, dinner, and maybe a small snack later. Try my fitness pal, an online tracker. I keep my intake around 1200Cal, but workout hard 5 days a week. Also, bulk up on water and hot liquids help with hunger, u love diet Coco. U may need a few fills to get to your sweet spot! Chin up, u can do it!!!

Yum I'm going to make this this week.

In response to the weekly challange, here is a new recipe we tried this weeked. 1/2 cup sliced scallions 1 TB grated ginger 2 TB cilantro 2 TSP hot pepper sauce juice of 1 lime 1 1/2 TSP jerk seasoning 1/2 cinnamon 1 TB extra-virgin olive oil 3 jalapeno peppers seeded and chopped 1 TSP black peper 1/2 TSP Kosher salt 1/2 TSP red pepper flakes 2 cloves garlic 2 TB brown sugar substitute 1 TB apple cider vinegar 1 TB orange juice 2 TSP worcestershire sauce 4 4-ounce chicken breast 4 4-ounce chicken thighs (no bones, no skin) Combine all the ingrediants (except the chicken) in a food processor and blend until almost smooth. Coat the chicken and place into slow cooker to marinate overnight for 12 hours. Cook on low for 5 or 6 hours. For more heat, leave in the seeds but i thought it was "warm" without them. Calories 146.52; Protein 19.67; Carbs 1.78; Total fats 6.14; Sat fats 1.37; Cholesterol 62.46; Sodium 322.21; Sugars 0.52; Fiber 0.3 Be sure not to overcook (I did) The chicken was a little dry but still very tasty! I used some fresh herbs and some dried. My family and I have been trying about 1 new recipe a week and so far I haven't made 1 they didn't like! BTW, this is a regular texture food.

I had a glass of wine 3 weeks after surgery but didn't try anything harder until I was almost 2 months out. Thing to remember alcohol can pack a lot of calories on. If it is is moderation it's ok to occasionally treat yourself but try not to go overboard. Start slowly and see where your tolerances are limited as well. Alcohol will affect you differently once you are banded although not as much as if you had the bypass or sleeve.