3 Week freakout (post-op)

[Donna4545 13]

My 3rd week post op has been really weird. It's my transition to soft solid foods, which I like, but now there's Constipation even though I've been taking Benefiber.

The scale has stopped. I'm eating 600-800 calories a day of all the right stuff. High Protein, low carb/fat, no cheating. 64 oz of Water.

I'm not cleared for any exercise but walking normally (not strenuously).

I've had days of really deep depression, and then the next day I'm fine.

I know I'm healing and everything, but lordy!

I can easily eat 1 cup of soft solids (ground meat, cooked veggies). Is that too much? Drinking fluids is also no problem. I still feel hunger, but it's not as bad. I have a little head hunger, but it's really easy to ignore, or subvert with 20 oz of Crystal Lite.

Am I the only person who isn't going to lose weight? I don't mean to be whiny, but when will the scale start moving? When will I poo? Is this normal? Should I call my doctor/nutritionist? I've already tried upping my Protein (today to 100).

[therealme 0]

i know how you feel donna!! i'm also eating 600-800 of the right calories and the scale has stopped for me too! although i have to admit some days i only get in 1500ml Water. i'm also taking benefiber but (due to severe constipation) i also started taking lactulose (stool softner). it's frustrating!!!

[Swiftflow 6]

I would recommend Miralax (or the generic equal) I had more Constipation early on as most of my food was Protein and not the typical fatty/carb diet I had pre-op. At three months out now, I don't have the same issues, but I am taking in more normal meals now as well. Every now and then I will still take Miralax if I feel like stools are too solid or if it has been too long since the last one.

All of this to say what you are seeing is normal. I just came off of a stall that lasted over 2 weeks--stalls are normal too as our body adjusts during the drastic eating changes. Just stick to the program your doc gave you and you will be ok. Try the miralax to help clear you out now and then as needed.

[Merryx 7]

Oh, I know how you feel because I am going through the same thing!!! I am 3 1/2 weeks post op and my weight loss has stopped! I have lost 24 lbs, but most of that was in the first week! I'm guessing that it's because our bodies have to get used to the weight loss and the shock that it has gone through, but it is scary!!!! I have to say that it is nice to know that someone else is going through the same thing! I was starting to think that maybe the 20 lbs was it. that I was going to be the person that didn't lose anything too!!!

Merry

[LMCCORMACK65 0]

Oh, I could just cry for joy!! ME TOO!! I had my surg 7/23 and I quickly lost 20#, then nothing. I thought... OMG! Am I "eating" too much? Did I do something wrong? Do I need to start doing something else? I mean, its only been a couple of weeks... but it really freaks you out huh?

I cant wait to start excersing beyond walking because I know this will help and I know that in weight loss there are always plateau's, but I didnt expect one this soon.

[Sunshine 1]

Donna......you've replied to a thread of mine that sort of asks about this. I am sooooooooo relating to what you are going through (and everyone else that has replied).

Yes, I am FREAKING OUT that ....somehow.....'I' will be the ONLY one that this darn surgery does NOT work for. I'm scared to death.

Surgery was on July 19th and I've lost ONLY a total of 15 pounds and that was within the first two weeks. After that.....NADA, nuthin', zero, zip.

I don't see how I canNOT be losing. I only eat a smidge of what I used to eat. I don't eat badly,....I try to do all the right stuff (admittedly though, I'm not perfect), and I wonder WHAT has happened and WHY.

EIGHT days and no weight loss. WHAT THE CRAP IS GOING ON??

So, please, PLEASE tell me that I WILL lose weight. That 15 pounds isn't 'the end'.

And to everyone who has written: Thank you for responding/writing to Donna. I thought I was the only one. Seriously.....thank you.

[BJean 16]

If you're stalled, you are probably retaining Water AND "poo." Once you increase your Water intake (not other fluids) you'll poo and you'll notice a weight loss. The main reason you lose so much at the time of surgery is that you really do get dehydrated, usually in spite of the IV fluids you get. At least I do.

I hit the Constipation wall too and called my doc and he said to get Dulcolax. But he also said that I definitely was not getting enough water. If we take in enough water, we won't get constipated. Unless perhaps you're still taking pain meds. But water is absorbed almost immediately in your gut and once your body gets hydrated, it will eliminate all the excess. A good test is that if your pee has a yellow color, you're not getting enough water. If you're properly dydrated, your pee is clear.

After 3 months post op, it was easy to figure out the little stalls that happened nearly every week. If I hadn't pooed for 3 or more days, no weight loss. If I pooed regularly, I'd lose at least half a pound or a few ounces every day. Makes sense, doesn't it?

Don't freak out but if you are deviating from your doctor's program in any way, you can't expect to get the results that those people get who aren't deviating at all. That means the kinds of foods you eat as well as the liquids you drink.

Frankly, at a couple or 3 weeks out, there was no way I could ingest a cup of anything at one time. But I'm a very small person. That being said, I have to confess that I have never been able to get 64 oz of water down in a day. I just can't. But if I don't get enough water, constipation is a fact of life for me.

Try it and let us know if it has helped. You sure don't want to become dependent on laxatives to get the job done. It's much healthier if you do it the natural way. I bought the dulcolax, but only used it once. When he told me about the water factor, I was good to go.

[BJean 16]

Btw, Sunshine, our bodies have become very efficient at saving calories. I am not sure if it is from all the dieting we've done as obese people or if we're just built that way. But sometimes it helps to trick your metabolism by eating a little more (not at one sitting) one day than what you are normally eating. It often works if you've cut your calories drastically and you're not cheating at all - and you know for certain that your calorie intake is a whole lot less than you were ingesting before surgery. Just try eating more calories one day and I'd be willing to bet you'll see a weight loss on your scale the very next day.

And if you're still having a problem and you know that you are following your doctor's plan, have someone hide your scales. Don't weigh for a month. That's hard to do, but I promise that you'll lose in a month - and it won't be just a pound or 2 - and you'll be happy with the speed you're losing overall.

Also, you might be surprised to learn that all these weight loss tickers can show lbs lost that were actually taken off right before the surgery and some people don't have any more weight lost since surgery than you do in the same amount of time.

Don't lose heart. I've been experiencing some scary thoughts myself and have had several people reassure me too so try not to be hard on yourself, try to enjoy the ride.

Oh yeah, and another thing is that if anybody is having any hunger (head or otherwise) are you drinking caffeine? Cut out the caffeine - it's an appetite stimulant and even worse, my dietician (and others on this site) says it can interfere with absorbtion of nutrients.

[BJean 16]

Egad, sorry for the long lecture. Hope I didn't gross anybody out!

[sleevesearch 14]

Though I haven't yet experienced this, I did read somewhere on this board that your body is going thru alot of changes and getting used to 600-800 cals per day and temporarily goes into starvation mode, and will hold on to every calorie for dear life. Once your body adjusts it will let the weight go..

Let us know when you start losing again, it would be nice to know about how long this goes on for.

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[Sunshine 1]

I'm not the original poster...but THANK YOU for all that information. I'm just scared........I PRAY this surgery works.

...and no, you're post was NOT a lecture. I loved it.

[KathyM 14]

I am at the 3 week stall too. Lost 23 lbs, and there I am stuck. I think I just need to put the scale away for a bit, but once you get that taste of loosing, it is soooo hard when it stops. I keep telling myself that there is no way this won't work, I am eating only a fraction of what I used to eat and I am making good choices about what I am eating.

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Ohmygod everyone, thank you THANK you for this thread! I feel like I stumbled upon my tribe of people who are all around 3 weeks to 5 weeks out from surgery and we are all in the same place! If you read a thread I just posted in My Story called "the ordeal" you will know the full extent of what I've just gone through. I seem to be stalling and I'm not getting in enough calories from soft food alone, I'm not getting in enough hydration IMO, my anxiety is high and my spirits low. All in all, not much fun! I don't know when I will have the energy to exercise, right now just going to the bathroom exhausts me and speaking of which, yes, major Constipation. I'm afraid of taking MoM or something, afraid it will be too caustic for my new stomach. I felt like such an ace when the doctor told me I had lost 20 lbs in 12 days, now I feel loooow.

[Swiftflow 6]

Globetrotter,

Try the Miralax mixed in with some crystal lite, it is not bad tasting like the milk of Magnesia, and it truly does work. It is something many of the docs recommend--but you can also check with your doc to be sure.

I had success with it my first few weeks.

[Donna4545 13]

Stall over!!!! I added a 3 miles daily walk (burns 300 calories), upped the fluids by 20 oz, upped the Protein to 70 grams, and voila! I was finally able to use the bathroom without a laxative and that broke the stall (2 days ago). I've lost 3 lbs since the stall broke. Have hope!