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It's tough to be positive during those first couple weeks while recovering from major surgery. Especially when experiencing complications. Be kind to yourself. Let yourself heal and look forward to (as your name states) new beginnings. If you work the program given you, results will come and you'll exchange your regret for gratitude. Wishing you the very best and good luck going forward!!

If you take away the time you had a feeding tube, you’re probably more at about the four month mark compared to the rest of us. I think I was eating about 600 calories then so a little more. I was a low calorie small eater too. Didn’t stop e losing all my weight & more. So don’t give up. (So sorry you had these struggles.) and I would expect that is also why your doctor is okay with your lower food intake at this time & your eating routine. While yes it is important for you to be slowly increasing your caloric intake & increasing your portion size as you progress, I would expect t your path will be even slower. Out of curiosity what are you eating? Maybe there are some foods that are less dense & with higher calories you could be consuming. Do you regularly see a dietician to guide you on food choices with your specific needs? May be you could reduce some of your activity to take some stress off your body. Exercise only contributes to about 10% of your weight loss. I didn’t exercise as such. Just upped my daily every day activities. Parked further away from where I was going. Walked up escalators. Took stairs. Did single trips up & down my stairs instead of carrying multiple bags or whatever at once. Get some resistance bands. You don’t have to do a lot to see a change in muscle toning & building which ultimately will help you burn more fat. I’ve been doing about 4 x 5 minutes or so sessions across my day for about a year. Doesn’t burn a lot of calories. I say I wouldn’t burn 40 calories a day but my arms look great & I get complements & I had to buy new pants as my thigh muscles had grown. All the best. And yes, the stall will break when your body is ready.

I am losing massive amounts of hair really picked up two weeks ago. Had some blood work done and was low on a few vitamins and minerals hoping getting those up helps considering cutting it all off to help hide the thinness

I am five weeks post op and finally starting to feel hungry enough to want a small snack in between lunch and dinner. I was wondering if you enforce the no-drinking 30 mins before/after rule with small snacks. I've been holding firm to the rule and totally understand the rationale behind it, but it definitely is making it hard for me to reach my water goals. I have no problem drinking, but having to give up 1.5 hours of drinking time per meal really adds up! It seems like giving up another ~1.5 hours for a snack just isn't worth it. How do you handle drinking around snacks? TIA!

May I ask if the reason for revision was for gerd or acid reflux? Just curious because after my sleeve o developed gerd, and I also need to loss some weight. One week post the RNY which is when I introduced soft food, I can feel the reflux at night when I lay down. It’s like something in the back of my throat and my chest feel tight. I don’t know if the reflux is a imidiate fix or not. I have to ask my doctor when I see him again. And how long was the bypass was never discussed. I didn’t know there is actually the length that I can discuss… I feel like there is a lot I could have ask and didn’t. At my one week post op visit, I had many questions, and maybe I was showing some anxiety, and of course the doctor and nutritionist sensed it. They just told me to keep clam? Let my body heal and don’t think about the weight loss right now.

I have 3 kids 12, 6 and 2. I did not tell them. The day that I went my mom stayed over and hubs and I told the kids that I had to go to the doctors because my stomach needed to get checked and fixed. Now all they see is that my eating habits have changed, and I workout every day. So they just think that I made a lifestyle change and got thinner that way. My oldest is my step son and his mom is very very body conscious and body shames? She struggles with her weight and has made comments how my daughter has slimmed down, or how the 12 has finally lost his baby weight and will barely eat. I nip that in the butt quick! I have to tell her that we cannot speak negatively in front of our kids, its going to cause a complex like we have. I grew up with my mom always talking about weight and she still does. I try my best to not surround our conversations on negative body image. I do home work outs 2-3x a week and sometimes with my daughter who is 6 asks to work out with me to get skinny, I tell her its not to get skinny its to get strong and stay healthy. So I try to just surround our convos around that. Its tough with kids!

I had sleeve surgery July 2023; 1. What was the best part of surgery for you? Everyday things, like my backside no longer taking up more than one seat on the bus, being able to comfortably close belt on plane seat, being able to walk with a bounce in my step, I now love clothes shopping etc. 2. What was the worst part of surgery for you? Severe complications from the day after the surgery which went on for months 3. Did you have any complications (minor or major) during or after your surgery? Yes, suffered from severe pancreatitis, had a leak in my stomach (twice), allergic reaction to medication given to me in hospital, blood infection. Ended up spending three months in hospital over a period of four months. Had to have another procedure last month also. 4. How has adjusting to your new life been for you? Life after so many months in hospital meant it took a few months to get energy back and was on a sick cert so not able to do anything but rest. Now almost 11 months later I feel great for the most part. Have found it difficult at times to cope with the food choices but now that I am on regular food I just have to try and stick to the smaller portions, eating slower and only an occasional alcoholic drink. I don't let anything stop me now, always carry a protein bar with me just in case I end up some place where the food isn't suitable. 5. How long did it take you to feel comfortable eating food? Months as I was on a feeding tube in the hospital and then the times they took me off it I had to go back to liquids and start the reintroduction phase all over again. Since February really that I am comfortable and now I am even trying foods I never ate before (I had homemade egg muffins today - used to hate eggs). 6. Is there anything you can’t eat anymore that you used to enjoy? I used to consider popcorn a food group in its own right and ate way way too much of it so now just have had it a couple of times. I love potatoes but try to stay away from them. But these are my choices, not a case that I can't tolerate them anymore 7. What was your recovery like? Any vomiting or dumping syndrome? Vomiting a lot when ill, couldn't even hold down water, but as part of eating only a few times and I know that it was because I ate too quickly. No dumping syndrome. 8. How long did it take you to feel semi-normal after surgery? 10 months 9. Did you experience higher energy level post surgery? Yes but only now 10. Did surgery affect your mental health? Yes, I fully believe I suffered PTSD as a result of the complications 11. Do you regret it? Would you recommend it? I regretted it for approx 9 months post op and was very annoyed with myself for deciding to have the op but that was only because of the complications and crap-fest I went through. Now I am through the worst of it I am starting to feel better about it all, I no longer blame myself (but haven't really forgiven the doctor yet) and I would recommend it if it is something you need in order to achieve a healthy long life.

I have not had gallbladder removal, however I did have a similar knife stabbing pain after my RNY surgery. It was at about 2.5 weeks post-op. I had to apply pressure as standing/showering etc was so uncomfortable. Definitely that hot sharp knife in my side feeling. It was due to the internal stitch to the muscle and the surgeon/med team told me it was a common pain and that wearing a binder is ok when needed, but not to have it on all day. Thankfully it did pass after about a week.

I was cleared to go back to CrossFit at my one month follow-up, which ended up being 5 weeks out. My team acted surprised that I had waited and told me that I could have started sooner, just not to do anything that hurt. Now, I couldn't actually lift anything heavier than a 15 lb training barbell and my goal remains, almost a year out, simply not to pass out. But I was allowed to do it very soon after.

Thats great information, I am sure someone will benefit from it! The itchiness and redness went away after I took off all the glue myself… doctor didn’t want to take it off because it was still sticking. I just couldn’t take it and took it off myself. I don’t recommend anyone doing this… after I took it off, it took about 1 week for the redness to go down. It is now drying and skin peeling like it got burnt.

I agreed with some, that the stomach was on fire kind of sensation. But eventually after surviving the tolerance level for 12hrs, the pain reduced and i was able to walk with the grace of God and a great support of my wife. 1 week past, I laughed today and literally the intolerable pain of the stomach pull was bloody torturing and went through extreme level of hurt. Please take note, do not try to sneeze, laugh, stand up fast, sit at low height, or even feel nausea… suffering level is tremendously high.

Sounds a pretty okay weight loss to me especially if you experienced a stall of 1-3 weeks. You’re averting about 3lbs a week - nothing wrong with that. There is no ‘this is how much weight you must lose by this point’ rule. We all lose at our own rate. Some faster some slower. You lose at the rate that is best for you. There are averages which can be used as a guide but never a rule. Doesn’t mean you won’t lose your weight. (Don’t be influenced by the weight loss seen on tv programs. They lose large amounts in the beginning because they started at twice your weight & have lots to lose Their rate loss slows as they progress.) Is your surgeon concerned? Is your dietician concerned about your loss so far? If they’re okay you have nothing to worry about. You’re certainly not failing. You’ve lost 19 feckin’ pounds. Celebrate every pound you lose. I didn’t have to count calories & didn’t have to track my food so never had to discuss it with my dietician. I checked out of my own interest so I I know I was low calorie eater. Around 300 calories in the first month & was barely eating 900 calories by 6 months when I reached my goal. At 17 months when my weight stabilised I was eating 1300. Now I eat about 1500+/-. I was & am healthy & my blood work was is always excellent. I never could have physically eaten more than I was at any stage. But that is my story. Yours may be different & that’s okay. I’m a little taller than you & not very active (not running miles or spending hours in the gym) I don’t need the calories a taller, more active person needs. Ensure your dietician isn’t trying to fit you into the one size fits all average calorie intake box. The average calorie intake for a woman is said to be 2000 calories - I’d be the size I was before surgery if I ate that much. To lose they say I should eat 1500 so I’d never lose weight either on those recommendations.

Speedy recovery! I am so excited for us. You are lucky girl. I wish if my doctor would let me eat soft foods he said not until week 4 😩 I am 9 days post op & I want scrambled eggs and tuna 😢 eat for me sis, eat for me lol

Hello! I just got my surgery last week on the 13th. At my last appointment at the weightloss centre I was 252 pounds. That was about 2 and a half weeks before surgery. But, at my pre op appointment, a week and a half before surgery, I was down to 247. On the 18th, 5 days after my surgery they weighed me at 240 I believe. This morning, my scale said 229. My doctors office is going by my last weight with them, but I'm going with my last preop weight. Either way it's almost 20 pounds in one week and two days! It's crazy! I don't see the 20 pounds gone yet, but that's okay! I am missing crunchy foods though! But the sugar free pudding, chili and mashed potatoes have been rather good to eat over that clear liquid diet!

Stick to your diet plan, make sure you change up any workouts you're doing to "confuse" your body and work parts you normally might not, only weigh yourself once a week at most, and really take stock of how you feel and your Non Scale Victories. Get lots of fluids in. I'm very close to my goal, as well, and I'm in the same boat as you. It's annoying, but if we stay consistent, we'll push past it and get there. What surgery did you have? What was your starting weight?

I'm on my second week post op, in my puree stage right now. It's just that I,m buying groceries and I'M trying to keep an eye on the calories, proteins, sugar and fat but i'm not about the limits. I'm kind of confused at this point. Also, i'm not really counting my macros, i just want to be able to have an idea about what I eat while learning to eat healthy and in a balanced way again.

I totally sympathise. But honestly this sounds completely within normal limits. There's no way you're going to have this surgery, stick to your programme, and not lose a heap of weight. It's just that the loss isn't linear. There are times when you lose half a pound a day (early!) and times when you lose a quarter of a pound a week. And all manner of gains and plateaus and whatever in the middle of that. And you'll be eating much the same and exercising much the same so there's no rhyme or reason to it! I hope you don't get hung up on this - you've already proven that you are losing inches. I truly hope you get to where you want to be asap.

Everything @NickelChip just said. This, this, this!!! Also, just be careful with the fruit cups and bananas. Other than that, looks good. I personally would incorporate a little more meat in there. I eat red meat once or twice a week. There's also keto bread, keto slim bagels, and keto blueberry muffin mix at WalMart (I use all of them and love them). Blueberries and strawberries are also fantastic, as are apples in moderation. Avocado is another go-to (personally, I love avocado toast in the morning). Smoothies made with almond milk, collagen powder, greens, and fruits of my choosing go a lot farther for me than a protein shake. Mostly because you want to get your protein from foods you're eating instead of drinks and snacks. I love Propel water, and I also love Gatorade Zero. I eat almonds (plain, smokehouse, hickory smoked, mesquite, all the things). Put a handful of almonds, some meat sticks or cubes, and cheese cubes in a container or baggie and you have a delicious, compliant, protein packed snack. I usually do that and also take mixed fruit (I'll slice a small apple and add a few strawberries and a handful or so of blueberries and that's my 2nd snack of the day) with me to work and it gets me through (I'm a clinical medical assistant so I'm on my feet a lot).

Feb 21 for me! There are two other Feb 2024 buddy posts on here somewhere, but I think they've gotten buried. Not too many people replying to them yet, which is interesting. It's only 2 weeks until February starts, so I wonder where everyone is!

Congrats on the surgery! Expect the first month to be a roller coaster of emotions, hunger, anger, and a day or two of regret. That's a rite of passage for us, where I think everyone second guesses their decision. By week 5, I finally started getting a better handle on things and I'm still very happy with my decision. 10 weeks out and I'm in better shape than I've been in decades! As others have said, you feel hungry because you are hungry. Your body is used to the previous amount of eating, and panics when it realizes you're not eating what you used to. Since you were a candidate for surgery, then your body has enough fat cell reserves to live off of that for a few weeks, which is why they have you focus only on water the first two weeks, while working in more protein to prevent you from burning muscle. However, our bodies don't understand that logic and kicks into survival mode. It only understands "food" or "no food". The first six months is critical to the process because that's when we have the best opportunity to retrain our mind and bodies to adapt. In a sense it is traumatic to our bodies, and it will fight until it understands that this new normal is safe, because that's its job, to keep you alive! Once you're back to solid foods, that's when recognizing head hunger becomes more important. Around that time (somewhere around weeks 4-6), you'll have worked up to eating enough calories to be sustaining metabolism, while still running enough of a deficit to burn fat. At that point, your body will try to tell you "hey, we're close to the old normal again, go ahead and eat more!". As my therapist reminds me, remember to listen specifically to your stomach, and not your mouth. Practice eating enough to where your stomach feels full, and not pressured from too much, but at the same time, study your habits to see if you're eating to stay busy, to deflect stress (I'm guilty of this), or just because your body thinks you should keep your stomach topped off. During that period, if you feel like your stomach is craving more, double check what nutrients you are getting. If you're deficient in vitamins or minerals, you will develop insatiable cravings, but your body can't tell you exactly what its missing. It just yells "I'm Hungry!". Check with your doctor on which supplements to add or remove, and also branch out with different styles of food as long as they fit your calories/macros. I felt like I was starving for most of last week, then I got some Korean food (sort of a bibimbap inspired kale and cabbage salad with beef) on Friday, and the cravings stopped. I'm still trying to figure out what itch that scratched, but obviously I was missing something in that! Also, be very careful with sugar, starches, breads, rice, etc. That can send you into a craving spiral that lasts 2-3 days. Some sugar alcohols like Sorbitol and Xylitol also trigger that for me, while Monk Fruit, Stevia, and Splenda don't. Everyone is different, but pay attention to those ingredients, because that can make the hunger feel worse!

I am lucky that the government health care system here covered my operation and all I had to pay was a small subsidy, think 15 Euro, for each night I was in a shared room (even though most of the time no-one shared with me) I was in hospital which in turn then was covered by the health insurance of my employer. Then for the weeks I was in a private room I had to pay that but it was 100% recoverable under the health insurance. Of course, the subsidy should only have been about 30 Euro but as I was in hospital for much longer than the planned two nights it cost the bit more but not much in comparison to what others have to pay and as I say it all was recoverable. It feels like it is all free but in reality my taxes go towards it all

Is anyone tracking calories and carbs 1 week post op? If so, what is your calorie intake? I am under 300 but wanted to know if anyone else is tracking.

I was always on and off a diet pre surgery, so I used a tracker on and off then as well. I never fail to fill mine in now. I have OCD so it settles my mind. Everyone finds a different way of their own. My week is usually - I have hungry days at 1600 cals and really low cal days at 650. in between I eat 1200 to 1500. I am trying to maintain. i can see all this on my tracker.

Just read that cipro can cause nausea & vomiting so you may be vomiting from the med or from your healing tummy being vey sensitive at the moment. Is there an alternative antibiotic you could take? Also you can take it with food so maybe take it with your last sip of shake or soup or whatever to see if that helps. Certainly worth a conversation with your doctor. And yes it does get better. It takes a good 8 weeks to fully heal from what is a pretty major surgery. Plus you’re trying to wrap your head around all the changes & requirements of your plan. Allow yourself some grace during this time. But get used to the gurgling. Some of us continue to experience it in the long term. I say I have my own personal abdominal poltergeist rattling the chains, moaning & groaning. It’s just our digestive system working.

@Missy4391 congratulations on the beginning of your journey I remember thinking that the waiting was one of the worst things, but trust me, it comes around quickly! As others have said, taking before pictures & measurements is a good idea! And I would also advice getting your head into the right space where you don't rely on the scales. I think it is all too easy to get addicted to weighing yourself, especially in the first 4/5 weeks after surgery when your body just needs that space to heal without the added strain of any stress you may feel if your weight fluctuates. This forum was amazing for me to prepare for the surgery and also what to expect after, so I really do recommend reading as much as possible One thing I wish I had done is trial some vitamins to see if I liked the taste pre-surgery. I know people say that your tastebuds can change, which is true, but some of the vitamins are just unbearable 🤢I bought Bariease powder supplement and my god it was the worst thing. I now just take dissolvable orange A-Z vitamins and let the fizz die down and it is so much better! @MrsFitz I think I may have already said this, but I am also in the UK so if you want to chat or have any UK specific questions please do let me know!