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I had the sleeve in February 2023. Had extreme vomiting and reflux. We converted to the bypass February 2025. Now my entire house is down with a tummy bug. My kids got it and now I have it. I feel like it affects me worse than before. My tummy is cramping. I’m in so much pain, fever off and on, and achy. Does anyone have tips to help alleviate symptoms after surgery when it comes to stomach bugs? I’ve also been going through issues of throwing up constantly before the stomach bug hit. And we are working that out. It finally stopped and now I’m sick. My surgeon says my digestive system is “dysfunctional” because all scans were normal. The heartburn stopped but nausea and dizziness kept on for three weeks. I’ve also had other abdominal surgeries in those two years so they think my body is overwhelmed. I had an umbilical hernia repair and while doing that they found my abs had separated during pregnancy and stitched them back together. Then six months later my gallbladder was removed. Any help?

okay, breath. There isn’t a number or hard rules about what we’re all supposed to have lost by a certain time - 2 months or any other time frame. There are averages around rate of loss, how much you’ll lose, how long it will take, etc. But, as is expected with all averages, there will be those who do more than the average and those who do less. And there’s nothing wrong with that. All the averages should do is give you are idea of what MIGHT happen not what WILL happen. Too many factors influence your rate of loss and how much you will lose: gender, age, pre existing medical conditions, mobility, starting weight, and so on. Some surgeons may have some expectations but unless you aren’t losing anything in the first months (except during a stall) you have nothing to worry about & can breath easily. Actually all of us have to go through trying to work all this out further ourselves. Simply because we are different and what might work for someone may not work for you. Always start with the plan given to you by your surgeon and dietician and then after the first couple of months, start developing your own plan and way of eating to continue your lose and then maintain. Do some research (be critical in your analysis of your research, avoid fads and influencer talk), talk to your dietician, your doctor, ask for advice here and try things out and see how you go. You’ll make mistakes along the way and that’s okay. Losing about 2lbs a week is nothing to be concerned about. 2lbs a week is generally thought to be a good rate of loss for anyone (surgery, medication or doing it alone). I always say celebrate every pound you lose. Congratulations on your weight loss so far.

I just checked and at 2 months, I was down 20.6 lbs from the day of surgery. There's really not a hard and fast rule for how much you'll lose. Everyone is different and it depends on your starting point and how much you lost pre-op, too. I had some months when I lost a lot and other months where I hardly lost anything, but overall it moved steadily downward. My weight loss has stalled for the past month or so, now that I am more than a year out. The only guidelines I was given was 60g minimum of protein per day and 64oz water. I am now almost 14 months post-op and I've gone from 225 lbs on surgery day (251 was my highest, which was 6 months pre-op) to anywhere from 162-165lbs. My exercise consists of walking and that's it. I'd like to lose another 10 lbs but I'm also pretty fine with where I am as long as I don't gain (which is why I do hope to lose a bit more). I've gone from a size 22 to a size 12. I think I could still lose a bit more if I focused on cutting out some bad habits that have crept in with sweets/simple carbs, and if I increased my daily exercise to something a little more challenging than a walk. I don't count calories and I don't really track macros at this point, either. I just try to eat reasonable meals that focus on protein and veggies, and not snack too much or eat junk food too often. A typical day is either spinach frittata, Kodiak protein oatmeal, or a Greek yogurt for breakfast, plus a serving of mixed fruit (strawberries, cantaloupe, blueberries, grapes. Lunch is a good size spinach salad with 3oz chicken and some black beans. Dinner might be a bowl of homemade chicken, bean, and veggie soup, chili, or maybe some grilled meat and veggies. Sometimes I eat chickpea pasta with marinara and meatballs but other types of pasta and breads don't settle well. For snacks, I like string cheese and an apple, or some mixed nuts or roasted edamame. I have to be careful of overindulging in things like popcorn, candy, and cookies because they are too easy to eat without getting full (and sadly I don't get dumping from them). Red meat fills me up very quickly. The hardest thing for me now is dealing with the head hunger that makes me want to reach for food if I am bored or stressed. Getting the stuff out of the house completely is the only strategy that really works for me with that. My only real advice is don't drive yourself crazy. Just do your best each day and pay attention to your body. That's more important than counting calories. You're not on a diet! You need to figure out what you can sustain for the rest of your life, while paying attention now to the basics (protein and water, plus vitamins) to keep up your health.

I took 3 weeks off work after my arm lift/mommy makeover surgery. I felt like I would have good to go back after 2. Barring any complications, you should be totally fine at 8 weeks. Your scars will still be prominent, but easily covered by clothes.

Ah - such an interesting topic! Also a stomach sleeper through my whole life (including pregnancies with wedge pillows). I had to change to sleeping on my side for many weeks after my sleeve because of horrible draggy pain, with pillows wedged into various places, especially initially. I wish I had had a body pillow. About 3 months post op I was able to sleep my stomach but by then actively preferring my side, and now I sleep only on my side. One of the many random changes I've experienced post op. Welcome to your new life 😍

I take a medication that I've been taking for years and it's small enough that I was allowed to swallow that one whole at first. The medication the gave me for post-op care and nutrition were given to me in liquid form or I was to use the pill grinder that they sent me home with. The multivitamin they gave me was evil though. The only times I've thrown up post-op was those damn vitamins. They were huge liquid capsules that I was told I need to break open and swallow the fluid inside *shudders from the memories* until I was able to eat solid foods. After the first two times I threw up taking them, I called my surgical team and they told me it was ok to wait until I could swallow them. I tried again at 4 weeks and swallowed it whole and it was fine unless I swallow it on an empty stomach, which is tricky because all the pills at first felt like a meal in and of themselves. Once you have your surgery, your surgical team will be able to be more specific about what they recommend FOR YOU as everyone's mileage may vary. I was given three different recommendations in case, one wasn't available when I went to refill or what have you.

Hi all, I have been given an appointment for arm lift surgery the end of October, if all goes well, based on your experiences is this sufficient time (8 weeks) to be mainly recovered by Christmas with full motion etc.? I am due to fly home for Christmas and would want to be able to pull/push/lift suitcases without any issue, shower easily plus then enjoy my Christmas time and not have family and friends worried about me. Given the major problems I had with my sleeve surgery in 2023 I am a bit apprehensive as to how my body will react and recover. Plus I don't know how I am going to tell my family as I know they will have a total freak out considering I spent so long in hospital and had so many problems with leaks, pancreatitis, sepsis etc with the sleeve and how I live on my own with no real support network.

The shortage is here in Australia. Much lIke the one you had with HRT in the States in 2023. For us it is only the combined transdermal patch which is the one I use. Our therapeutical goods association is saying we could be looking at another 12 months. It’s already been almost a year. I got two lots in February last year but then there was none available. My pharmacy received a small order in October but hasn’t had any at all since. It’s staring to happen with the creons I take too. P Oh I know. Clothing is starting to get firm and couldn’t do up a pair of jeans last week. Waah! Never a good sign.

@Lily2024 Good luck on surgery!! I was not able to work out for 7 weeks it was so tough, but getting back into the swing of things!

Good morning all... I have been getting bored with my protein shakes so for the last 2 weeks I have been going to this nutrition store to get a protein shake and tea every morning. The protein shakes and tea are made with Herbalife products. The shakes are 24 grams of protein, and the teas have a bunch of vitamins. What are your thoughts on using these as part of your plan...

So my EGD found inflammation. I start a zole drug tomorrow for 8 weeks to see if that help, but since I’m not an optimist. I’m trying to figure out what my choices are if I have a stomach acid problem. I have been not interested in RYGB. But if I have an acid problem I thinks my surgeon won’t do SG. So I’m not sure if any thing is left if this doesn’t resolve.

Your surgeon (or their team) should provide you with a list of the liquids you can consume during the pre surgery stage. If they haven’t yet, ask for a list so you can start to prepare. There are variations between surgeons as to what you can and can’t have at this stage. For example some are three meals of protein shakes a day & that’s all. Others are four shakes. Some are two shakes plus one meal of a lean protein & vegetables. Some are not shakes but milk. Mine was keto. So you can see we can’t really tell you what your surgeon may require for this diet or require specifically for you ( your current weight, pre existing health concerns, etc.) But as a help, start weaning yourself off caffeine, carbs and sugars now because when you start the pre surgical diet the withdrawals from those foods can be pretty tough (headaches, lethargy, irritability, poor concentration, etc.) It usually passes after five or so days but that first week wasn’t called hell week for nothing by my surgeon’s patients. All the best.

@@AmberFL I get between 1700 and 1900 calories per day right now, it's working well for me. I'm having a surgery tomorrow though and won't be able to work out for a least 3 -4 weeks and will likely try to cut my calories to 1400 per day to avoid weight gain in that time. We'll see how well that goes, lol.

Honestly these are questions best answered by your surgical team and dietitian. The presurgical diets vary widely from surgical team to surgical team, so they're in the best position to advise you on when to start it and what to eat. While as you said, it may not hurt to start early, it also may not really do much either. Keep in mind that the main goal of a liver reduction diet for most patients is to reduce stores of glycogen and water in your liver. 2 weeks is plenty of time to accomplish that. For larger patients, or patients with a fatty liver, they sometimes have to have an extended pre-surgical diet of 4 weeks plus to try to also reduce the excess fat that has been deposited there. This is really a patient by patient thing based on the surgeon's preferences. I for example, had a 21 day liquid only pre-surgical diet.

No one takes 2 months off maybe 2 weeks. It’s really just the lipo harvesting and fat grafting so no huge incisions to heal. But that being said, you really need to have a viable source of fat to harvest. And it needs to survive so you can’t be in a caloric deficit or actively losing weight. If you’re really lean I believe they still recommend implants instead although I think that’s falling out of fashion too. If you’re really really into fitness, I would suggest transitioning to fitbody/bikini modeling workouts. Those transformations are amazing.

So I’ve never been a big fan of the gym. I literally hate going. But, I love taking nice long walks so once the weather breaks I will be walking daily. I usually do a mile every day at lunch at work and then 3-4 miles after work 2-3 days a week!

I slept on my back in a recliner for the first week or two. If you don't have a recliner, i don't know that I'd go out and buy one just for this, but I found it really helpful during the early recovery period. I don't really know, but I'd think it would be a bit longer for sleeve patients to recover to the point that stomach sleeping was comfortable again? Your profile doesn't seem to have that info, so I'm not sure which surgery you're planning to have.

In my opinion [ and I am not you or your age ] your arms are great. The brachio surgery is brutal. We use our arms so much, its difficult to imagine how you can manage a week or more without use of them. The scar is big and the main thing that puts me off besides not being able to clean myself. Good luck in everything you decide x

I am in the same saggy boat. It is depressing isn't it to go through all this weight loss, still not be comfortable in our own bodies and just wearing smaller size clothes but still hiding the same areas? For me, I have bad lipoedema so from the knees down is horrible and nothing can be done really unless I want to go down the lipo route and then wear compression gear for life and even then no guarantees. Where I live in Europe, if you can prove justifiable reasons such as saggy skin interfering with your life and mental health following weight loss the national healthy insurance will pay 80% of the costs. I got approved last week for an arm lift so I am just waiting to hear back from the surgeon with a date. When I had my initial consultation with him he said he had a six month wait list so I have asked if possible to be fit in during October or else wait until January as I don't want any impact on my Christmas travel plans etc. I have not told my family yet as I live overseas and they got upset at just the thought of me doing something elective as I had such a bad post-op sleeve experience. My Mum actually broke down in tears when I told her I was going to schedule an initial consultation so not sure how or when I will say anything but will cross that bridge when I have an op date.

Exactly @Spinoza. It’s there all the time. Sometimes just a faint little voice whispering in the distance and sometimes shouting at you. Mine has been shouting a lot lately, Had to give myself a kick in the pants and getting it off my chest here has been a help. Always a such a supportive community here. Was actually thinking about asking my GP for a referral to a menopause specialist. She’s been great right from the start about prescribing HRT and putting me on alternatives when issues arose but I have been thinking I need some extra help. I reduced my estrogen a little last week (3 pumps down to 2.5) because of the bloating and sore breasts but now the daily headaches are back. Sigh! I see my bariatric follow up doctor later this month so I’ll what she says as yes, micro dosing had crossed my mind too. The man I was most surprised by with his bone loss was my cousin @SpartanMaker. He was a walker. Walked for miles, twice a day, up & down hills with his dog when he permanently retired. Still don’t understand that but he had a sedentary job which I think probably contributed and probably does for lots of men and women too these days. My dad was a farmer (horticulturalist) on his feet and lifting things every day. His bones were so hard that when he’d have his bone marrow tests for his multiple myeloma, the doctor would stand on the bed or kneel over my dad to put his weight behind the needle to get it into the bone Yikes!

I try to build in my habits with protein so I don’t have to think about it. I use the bariatric hot chocolate in my coffee every morning that’s 15 g of protein. I like 5% Faye yogurt. I do like protein shakes. Costco has chicken breast strips already prepared for you in 3 1/2 ounce servings for like 15 bucks, those are great go to snack where you don’t have to think much about it. It’s like 24 g of protein 140 cal. Premier protein makes a three pancake pack with 15 g of protein. That’s another easy breakfast grab with the hot chocolate in my coffee, which is delicious and pancakes. If I try to feed my kid that I’ll at least get one that’s 5 g of protein. Often times I end up eating all three. Also from Costco Amy Lou brand mix of chicken sausage for breakfast. I like to microwave that real quick six links I think 260 cal 24 g of protein. I will not get my protein if I have to rely on myself cooking it, I know that soI’m always on the lookout for a good clean quality of protein source with minimal calories and good taste.

So I have not gotten skin removal YET but I did get a breast augmentation 3 weeks before I hit a year P.O. I lost a lot of weight, work out really hard but my boobs were gonners, between losing and gaining for years, breast feeding two children for 13m each I had skin sacs. I can honestly say that my confidence has sky rocketed- I enjoy wearing cute clothes, I feel better but body dysmorphia is a summa bi&^%, I still see myself at 300lbs, think that I look "fat" and not attractive. I do think once you see your lean fit arms without the extra skin your going to be showing them off as you should! Cant wait to see your "after" pic!

Ooh, I'm here too, and it's been very interesting. I've started drinking a protein decaf coffee again to add a cup of fairlife skim milk to my day. I know that some of us need to be very careful about carbs, I need more carbs to support my exercise which is basic strength, walking, and the 2x weekly run. I add an extra apple, gluten free pretzels, and popcorn (which is totally ok for me in my known portions). I also add a few days of cashews, easy to eat and high nutrient density. I would say if you aren't going to track calories (and why would you if that isn't your favorite) then it would be helpful to add a specific snack/food etc and have that extra every day for a few weeks and see where that gets you. If you continue to drop weight, increase it, if not, you have likely found your maintenance diet. The thing that has been most eye opening for me is the fact that I can occasionally go over and not see any consequences for one day of overdoing it. In the past that would have been hell to take off again, now it just seems to regulate like a normal person. I had surgery 1/24 and have been at my same weight since 11/24. I'm not fighting to stay here, I'm struggling with some head hunger vs real hunger, that was to be expected, but otherwise it's been such a different reality from presurgery.

Twelve days to go for me now... How are you all doing with your diets? I had to do mine for four weeks total.

I know how you feel- I am doing a DietBet (it’s an app) I figure if I have money in the game ( you pay into a pool, all who meet their goal get a share of the pot ( which is the pool of money paid in minus commission from the app) I am doing a Lose 4% of your body weight in 4 weeks i figure it’s a good reset motivator if nothing else