The Boomer Chat Room

[SassySenior 111]

Hello Ladies,

I have the best excuse for why I haven't posted lately. My computer had a temper tantrum and messed up my computer. On Internet Explorer, for example, it shifted around all of my favorite icons and substituted in its place, things I favored 6 or more months ago.

So my icon for this group disappeared. And my memory is as long as a 9 mo old pregnant woman's ability to hold her pee. Practically non-existent. When I didn't see the icon, I didn't remember to post.

My gosh, Linda, you poor puppy. I feel so bad for you having to go through gout. So far <pounding on wood> I haven't had to deal with that. But I did have Shingles, which is so painful I was crying, which I never do. Later, my doc said I should have gone to the hospital and be on an IV drip. There is an expression, "pain is mandatory, but suffering is optional." In other words, if we work at it ... and in this case find the right doctor ... our pain may disappear quickly.

I think it's a good lesson for anybody. If you hurt, go to your PCP, not the ER. Keep in mind that the ER is staffed by interns, residents, and yes, even medical students.

I finally met with my Nut on Jan. 2 and weighed 342, which was a loss of 29 pounds over about 6 weeks. I'm not getting exercise, but have a PT coming in 2/week. My time runs out this week, so I hope I will force myself to walk without her.

My tummy is becoming more tolerant and I find I can eat some real food now. I'm about ready to order my favorite guesidillas. What to eat is still a struggle for me because of the difficulty of using my kitchen. I had my meals pretty much figured out before. I ate pizza and chicken salad from Whole Foods and frozen foods from Lean Cuisine and Marie Calendar. I'm pretty close to being able to do that again. Keep in mind, I don't cook. Perhaps if my kitchen were normal size and I could get around, I might. But it isn't.

Dear Cheryl - So good to hear from you again. Those idiots who give you a hard time are just insanely jealous. That's it in a nutshell.

And a big, warm hello to our newest Boomer, Bupie! Can't wait to hear more from you and why you have that special nickname. Write to us ... we're a pretty nice, loving, friendly, positive group. Good luck to you.

Happy 2014 to All!!

[LindafromFlorida 1,542]

Hi Sassy (and everyone else). I count my blessings I have not had shingles, and got the shot when I saw what it did to a friend. I saw my Mother cry one time I believe, and it was from gout in her little toe. :-(

Today I quit all the meds and I know I will try to get out of this house for the first time in 2 weeks.

Sassy, proud of your weight loss. You have to be one happy woman! No matter how much overweight we have been, it has had a profound affect on us, and our lives. One day Sassy I hope you can slide in that little kitchen and make your little meals and learn a new way of living. That being said, even though I can still get in my little kitchen, I choose to have our meals simple. Boiled egg, Protein Shakes, cheese stick, bouillion, Soup (still), and the simpler the better. There are days we will be faced with meals outside the home, but right now I don't have a desire to experiment because I know I will eat more if I cook. So we are still grabbing a SF popsicle and a few dry roasted edamame to nibble on. I made my first tuna/light mayo/chopped egg this week. Sassy, they have those small tuna packets (premade) with crackers. The amount you can eat sure makes for less waste so you can eat the smaller pricier things.

That being said it would be nice if someone could come in once a week and boil you some eggs, make tuna, etc. for you to grab. Sure would not take long to do this. Do you have family that is helping you?

I see a lot of posts where people are eating everything, trying everything. I am scared that the more I venture off the straight and narrow, I won't lose weight. As it is, I am creeping along on the weight loss because I can't exercise or walk very well right now. I plan to get the cobwebs off the recumbent bike (great buy at $100 when I had my knee replacement) now that my toe is not killing me and move a little more.

Well, happy Saturday everyone. Hope no one is experiencing awful weather today!!! Linda

[CA712 111]

Good to hear that everyone is doing better these days. I have decided to go back on full liquids tomorrow to help with weight loss. Since the holidays it has been going slowly and that is my fault. It sure does feel good to be down over 100 pounds and I need to get rid of the last 65 pounds ASAP. Now is the time of year to just get back on track. I am going to support group at the end of this month. This is a new support group for me and I sure hope it is a good one. I will let you know.

Ismereno and Linda you are my hero's.

Cheryl

[CA712 111]

Sassy it is so good to hear from you too. It has been awhile and I am happy to see you are doing well. I still am having problems with my hubby who just wants to eat out ALL THE TIME. I will never figure this out in my life time why he is hell bent on this when he knows I cannot. I guess I am just having a bad day but it has been this way since Dec 1st. I really need to get to a support group this month.

Just to let everyone know, I was on Mobic before my surgery for arthritis, I took one pill a day. After surgery I told my pill each day but this time I have been having to crush it and mix with apple sauce. I know have been told that I should have been off of this the day after my surgery and should not be taking it at all because it will cause a hole in my pouch. I asked it I can take it in liquid form and was told "NO WAY" Not sure what to do for my pain, I hope I did not create a new problem for myself.

[LindafromFlorida 1,542]

Cheryl I am with you on going back to liquids at times. I think that gives out stomachs time to rest, and it sure takes pressure off us. That husband problem......Hmmmm the only solution I could see would be you get to pick the place and find a place with a menu you can tolerate. Over the holidays we went out two times and had a cup of Soup. Does not bother me to watch others eat thank goodness! Maybe he figures this is your diet, not his. Whatever the reason, I think personally I could order a side of baked Beans, cup of vegetables, etc., relax, and play with it lol. It might be doing you good to get out among others (spoken from someone who rarely goes out the door). I am way too content, my husband also, to sit home. That is why I am counting down for some Florida sunshine to return.

Also Cheryl, the pain pill problem worries me. I was told the Indomethacin for gout would eat my stomach. Scary as hell. But I had no choice but to take it 5 days. Your arthritis is ongoing. Sometimes I think we have to be the ones to research and figure this out. Have you considered a new thread, Help, Arthritis Pain, Need Meds! And see what comes up that others are doing in this situation. I think this would be a common problem.

All my life I have lived on Excedrin for stress headaches, extreme meds for hay fever that would put me to bed for a week in misery, and other drugs I didn't think twice about taking. Now I know I won't reach for a bottle of medicine without researching it. Guess that is where this chat program is going to beneficial to our reaching out to other people for their help and advice.

No matter where we look, someone is having a worse problem than we are. Stay healthy everyone, and be thankful.

[SassySenior 111]

Definitely my turn to post. I think it's important for each one of us to post with some regularity. It's what keeps the group going, especially as we get further and further away from surgery. I read a lot of posts before my surgery on Nov. 1, 2013. I knew in advance what awaited. I loved reading about others' progress and issues. And like many people do, I thought ... well, that won't happen to me.

The Sleeve is a humbler. Take yesterday, for example. I ordered 2 meals from my favorite restaurant, both reasonably priced and good home cooking. But when I saw the meals, my first thought was, "darn, I'm going to eat it all right away and not be able to make 2 meals out of it."

You know, we talk about head hunger ... but this is different. It's head games ... and we are the unwilling and unwitting participant. On the first meal, I went ahead and left half the meal in the Styrofoam container. It was tilapia, mashed potatoes and carrots. Initially, I thought I'd practically swallow the tilapia and down the taters and carrots. What a shock? When I started feeling full before I was anywhere near finished. Huh? I thought for sure I'd eat the whole thing and still want more.

My head was playing a game with me, and I didn't know it. I couldn't ... and didn't even want to finish the mashed potatoes, and that full feeling told me if I had another bite I might regret it big time.

Same thing tonight, except this time I ate half the leftover quesadillas. In the past, they never tasted good the second day, but I chose to ignore that. I wound up putting the mushy tortillas aside and feeding my dog much of the chicken. Then I scooped up a couple of Protein Shakes out of the fridge and planned to guzzle them down while watching TV. I wasn't really hungry, though, and I fell asleep before I had a chance to drink the Protein Shake. I'm awake now, so I hope to get at least 30 grams in now.

You all probably could have told me what would happen and predicted it with 99% accuracy. But, like you, I had to experience it for myself so as not to repeat the same mistake in the future. I'm coming up on 3 months on Feb. 1. Still a beginner!

[SassySenior 111]

ARE YOU HAVING TROUBLE FINDING THIS THREAD?

I hate the redesign of this site. I can't find anything. I had a heck of a time finding this thread. Finally, I had to go to "My Profile" and look at my groups. Then when I got to the Boomer's Home page, I had to scroll down towards the bottom of the page to see what the latest posts were listed on the left-side column.

Have you had this happen? I figure that must be why no one's written lately. And Cheryl, how are you doing with your liquid diet? Is it working?

Linda from Florida, Lynda, Arts and everyone else - what gives? Don't you like being a Boomer anymore. Sure, it is a fairly inactive thread ... kinda like the way we are. Ha ha

But I promise to visit here at least once a week and read your posts. Will you do the same for me?

[SassySenior 111]

Just had a weird experience. I drink Premier Protein chocolate shake. I had just picked some up at Kroger, and shook it a little, like I always do. Took a sip and ugh, it was lumpy. Initially I thought maybe I needed to shake it harder. But then I remembered that I've never had a lumpy one no matter how light I shake it. So I got one out of another 4-pack I bought, and same thing happened.

It was clear to me that something was horribly wrong with this batch. I'm thinking about contacting Premier and tell them they should pull this batch.

Have you had any similar experiences?

p.s. Luckily I have some vanilla Protein Powder that I can make in the meantime.

[SassySenior 111]

I'm 3 months out and feel like the biggest jerk on the planet for what I just did.

I was hungry so I decided I would heat up a pot pie from the freezer. I figured I'd eat what I could and toss the rest. Ok ... so I'm happily eating away and then I decide I need to take a drink. (Earlier, my stomach was a little upset, so I had gotten a diet coke thinking a sip might help.)

So I reach over, pick up my diet coke, take a good long drink ... never considering this was a bad ide...a for any reason. The result: First I started sliming, then it all came up.

What was I thinking? Clearly nothing! I can't believe in one fell swoop, I forgot everything I knew about drinking and eating, much less taking a big gulp of a diet soda. I am here to warn you, if you haven't done this yet, don't do it. To say I feel stupid is an understatement. I've had a hard time breaking the habit of drinking when I eat. I think I need a neon sign!

[SassySenior 111]

Turns out that last Slime was what I needed. I keep remembering that -- it's hard to forget -- and I have not had a drink while eating. So no slimes since then.

I did. however, still have some learning to do on when to stop and what choice to make. I didn't stop when I should have. So the dumping syndrome and slime threatened to visit. I said, "No way ... I am not going to let that happen."

I spent the next several hours feeling very uncomfortable, wondering how long it would take for this feeling to pass. About 4-5 hours later, I thought, "Hmm" guess I showed them!

The next day I could not make it to the bathroom before Gwenneth arrived most surprisingly. I'm trudging to the bathroom, thinking, "well, at least it's contained in what I'm wearing" vs. having my explosive diarrhea happen while I was still in bed. Yeah, right.

I get to the bathroom and start to remove my clothes. Sure enough, a huge deposit - akin to if Mount Rushmore erupted - drops out of my pants and onto the bathroom rug. Great.

I spent the next hour cleaning up this mess.

OK. So I'm humbled once again. My choice was "vomit now and be done with it" when the attack first happened. Or wait and get rid of it in a more ladylike manner. HA HA HA Good one. Oh, yeah, it sure was ladylike. ROFL

At 3 months, I'm still in kindergarten at the Sleeve School of Hard Knocks.

[lsereno 2,525]

Yeah, the learning curve can be a bit steep. I remember when my post op diet said two ounces of firm Protein. Made myself sick several times before it sunk in that two ounces was not ok for me! I very, very rarely eat to the point of discomfort now. But it can happen if I don't pay attention and I eat fast.

I've also learned to drink before meals so I don't feel thirsty while I'm still too full to have some Water. And I drink my coffee before Breakfast too.

Lynda

[SassySenior 111]

Yeah, it is a steep learning curve. The thing about the Sleeve is it is patient and persistent. If I don't learn the lesson the first, second or third time, the Sleeve simply resets and readies itself to repeat.

I like your idea of drinking coffee before Breakfast. I've been missing my coffee because I don't really feel like drinking after I've finished eating. And I, too, have discovered I do pretty well if I drink before eating. I don't guzzle a lot down, but I will take a good solid drink. Then wait 5-10 min. before eating.

I cannot eat very much at one time. At 3 mo., I get in 1/4 to 1/2 cup of food. 1/2 a sandwich, no crust.Sometimes I have yogurt after eating. But I've gotten sick more often than not, so I'm gonna do away with that idea.

The Sleeve works the way it is supposed to. It does not allow me to overeat (which was never a problem for me). It teaches me to start slow and focus on the important parts like Protein and liquids. I don't get a ton of liquid in, probably 40-50 oz. so sometimes I worry that I'll get dehydrated. But my nut says that's fine.

We are all different, Lynda, and it's not a one size fits all surgery. I never had an ironclad stomach, could never eat spicy foods. Nothing has changed, except my weight. I'm seeing my dr. Wednesday, so I'll find out what I weigh. I haven't lost a lot since surgery, which is rather discouraging. Granted I did lose 70 lbs. before surgery. But only 30 or so since 11/1/13.

I still haven't come up with a good diet plan. I didn't cook before surgery, and I'm not going to cook now. So I am still searching for the right food to consume. I'm even thinking of seeing if I can have food delivered to me from a store like Whole Foods. Of course, if I was rolling in dough, I could order from restaurants. I try not to do that because just once can ruin my month, money wise.

So, hey, who else in our group has an opinion or something to say. Thank God, you did Lynda. I was getting so discouraged that no one posted, I was thinking of closing the group for good. I don't really want to do that, because every now and then a newbie finds us and is thrilled that we exist.

I'm gonna keep on posting at least once a week, or more if others post and I want to reply to all.

Oh .... one last thing ... in another group a guy posted that he had just bought a Bento Box with an integrated cooling pack. That is exactly what I need so I am on my way to Walmart to purchase one. They are located all the other lunch boxes are).

Ciao!

Edited February 25, 2014 by SassySenior

[SassySenior 111]

Hey Guys,

Shiki and I are sitting here watching American Idol. Shiki controls the keyboard by lying on it. So what I can do is limited to what space is left open. I can never figure out why he likes to lay on the keyboard so much. Except, there's a warmth coming off it.

Anyway, between performances, I've been trying to update my online profile, What I can't figure out is how to copy my ticker from MyFitnessPal over to here.

Help?