I still have soooo many questions

[lcoll 12]

I had my surgery January 21. I have lost nearly 70 pounds and feeling very good about that (except the money I have to spend on new clothes all the time lol)

I have had some issues and was hoping someone could offer advice or even just tell me how they managed these type of things

1 - My hair is falling out! I have always had very full thick hair! These days it’s everywhere! All over my house all over me... in my brushes in the drain. Im not balding but it’s a concern. I know the Protein is a big need but I feel like i try my best to get the most! Help

2. I often times get a horrible pain when i eat. I cannot figure out what is causing it. Doesn’t seem to be any one food and in fact sometimes a food I tolerate well will suddenly turn on me. I don’t throw up often but there have been times when only a bit or two causes this pain and I have been made sick from it

3- Vitamins. I hate them. At first I wasn’t taking them religiously. My blood test changed that. I was low in B, A and D Yikes! Now I take them every day but I can’t get a straight answer from the nutritionist as to what (besides the ones I was low in) I need to take. ALSO the multi chewable I have is HORRIBLE. Anyone have any insight?

4. Sometimes - actually often - I struggle to make myself eat. I don’t feel hungry very often and have to make myself eat. Then the issue is WHAT? Nothing seems to be right. I know I should be happy about this but really its a problem because I don’t know that I am getting enough in every day.

Thanks for reading!!

[Teachamy 1,042]

I can help with numbers 3 & 4. First, Vitamins. Have you tried "Complete" Gummy multiples for adults? I love them. They have all the minerals as well, hence the "complete" title. I also like gummy Fiber supplements and Viactiv with Calcium and Vitamin D. Yum. Because I like them and they taste like candy, I eat them. Supposedly, they will help with nutrition and hair loss--although that change is largely hormonal I believe. I also take a B complex under my tongue. It tastes like cherry and dissolves.

4. Use My Fitness Pal to track your calories, carbs and Protein. It will help you determine if you need an extra Protein shake or something to keep you going. Even if you can't eat, it is important to get it all in.

I'd call your doc. about the pain. Not sure what is causing that, but better to have them check it out.

You are doing fabulous in terms of your weight loss. (You've already lost what I hope/plan to lose!) Best of luck.

Edited May 22, 2014 by Teachamy

[InfiniteButterfly 438]

I would talk to your doctor about the hair falling out. I don't have any experience with that, so can't offer advice.

As for the Vitamins, maybe try a different brand or flavor? I have Centrum chewables currently (ugh, they are terrible tasting!), but there are a lot of different brands and flavors out there. My NUT told me only a Multi-Vitamin, b-12 and Calcium as far as Vitamins necessary, but didn't break it down further than that.

Are you tracking your food? That will help you know if you're getting enough of what you need. I'm using MyFItnessPal (I was using Sparkpeople, but it doesn't seem as bariatric-friendly, considering none of the Protein mixes seem to be listed there). I'm only on the liquids portion of post-surgery, and I have little to no desire for the shakes (water suits me just fine most of the time) and I only take in enough of the rest to meet my Protein goal for the day. Tracking your food may also help with #2...seeing if there's any commonality in what's a pain trigger.

[awold0 246]

I had my surgery January 21. I have lost nearly 70 pounds and feeling very good about that (except the money I have to spend on new clothes all the time lol)

I have had some issues and was hoping someone could offer advice or even just tell me how they managed these type of things

1 - My hair is falling out! I have always had very full thick hair! These days it’s everywhere! All over my house all over me... in my brushes in the drain. Im not balding but it’s a concern. I know the Protein is a big need but I feel like i try my best to get the most! Help

2. I often times get a horrible pain when i eat. I cannot figure out what is causing it. Doesn’t seem to be any one food and in fact sometimes a food I tolerate well will suddenly turn on me. I don’t throw up often but there have been times when only a bit or two causes this pain and I have been made sick from it

3- Vitamins. I hate them. At first I wasn’t taking them religiously. My blood test changed that. I was low in B, A and D Yikes! Now I take them every day but I can’t get a straight answer from the nutritionist as to what (besides the ones I was low in) I need to take. ALSO the multi chewable I have is HORRIBLE. Anyone have any insight?

4. Sometimes - actually often - I struggle to make myself eat. I don’t feel hungry very often and have to make myself eat. hairThen the issue is WHAT? Nothing seems to be right. I know I should be happy about this but really its a problem because I don’t know that I am getting enough in every day.

Thanks for reading!!

1. Hair loss. This is very commen. There is a million posts on this. Mine started at 5 months and lasted till 9 months. It has stopped and now I am having regrowth. It will grow back. Take care of your hair by not brushing when wet. Get a soft brush. I limited my washing to 2 times a week during this period. I have long hair so I pulled it back a lot. Their is many people that took Biotin. I did not.

2.This should be looked at by your doctor. You don't want to have a stricture etc.

3. I actually have the same problem. My doc said the flinestones complete chewables are fine. I do have to still force myself daily. There is just something about them being yucky but we have to do it.

4. When I was at 4 months i ate about 600 calories a day. This is the normal to not be hungry. I now eat 1000 a day and was sleeved in July 2013.

[lcoll 12]

Thank you so much for the answers! I have been taking the bariatric Vitamins and they are horrible! I didnt know I could take flintstones or another type! Im switching today! The others are not so bad but that multi... gross!

I use Myfitness pal already. It always tells me I am not getting enough lol. I seriously try to eat more... God that is such odd to hear myself say!.

I didnt know it would tell me about Protein however. I guess i dont have mine set up right. Ill look into adding that to my details. Does anyone know how I do this off the top of their heads? Otherwise Ill just dig in a figure it out.

Im so glad to hear about the hair loss. I know its vain and should be the least of my worries but it really bothers me! Ill keep hanging in there and ill try to go easy on my head for now! looking forward to the day it stops!

The pain used to happen ALL THE TIME. I did tell my dr but he said it was common as I heal. I just thought it was odd that it comes back sometimes. Ill mention it to him at my next visit

Thank you al

l again for writing . The support here is awesome. My family tries but they really dont get how hard this can be - emotionally hard too!! (understandably)

[LindafromFlorida 1,542]

I think we all have hair all over the place, and after the last two months of my very fine hair filling my brush, today was different. Hopeful..... Make super sure you are chewing well because larger bites of food can cause pain big time. I love my liquid Multivitamin from a compound pharmacy. I take so many pills but the big multivitamin .....NO! Good luck!

[pinky4652 38]

for myfitnesspal app go to the left top button and the drop box should say nutrition once u click that it will tell u ur intake and for the day of cal's sugar Protein ext. it helps alot

[LookatmeNow34 25]

Celebrate are a good brand for Vitamins and not bad tasting

[MelBooks 76]

I have been using the Trader Joe's High Potency chewable, and it is not bad at all. The Celebrate Vitamins made me crazy nauseous!

[onajournee 20]

I am 2 wks post op and take the Celebrate capsules 3x a day and i have since post op day 3, along with capsule Biotin, soft gel vit d, and sublingual B12. My Dr said i can take any supplement in pill form, but i see alot of people talking about chewables. Just curious if your Dr's are recommending that for absorbtion reasons or if people just prefer them.

[InfiniteButterfly 438]

@@onajournee My doctor and NUT both recommended chewables, for Vitamins and Calcium. No gummies though. And sublingual b-12. It wasn't just the absorption factor, but also because it can be difficult to swallow large pills too soon pre-op (I've seen several people on here mention getting pills stuck)