OCTOBER 2014

[freelyme 149]

Bronxi!!! So glad you're back. I hope that you get well and Stay out of that hospital! Get lots of rest and nutrition so you can stay away from there!

[wildGoose 207]

I am so grateful for the re-emergence of Bronx. Please all of us remember that if there is is black stuff coming out of our butts, it is about blood. My mom used to say, "if they don't listen to you, have a fit." Boy was she right. The October group is my fave part of BariatricPal, and I thank Beni for starting it.

I have been doing well, but very tired. My PA says that is because my body becomes very tired from losing weight very fast. I was losing about 4 lbs a week, which is too fast. In addition I was not getting enough Protein. Now, I am taking more calories/protein in the form of a Premier Protein vanilla drink. It is so funny that I have to break it in to two meals now because of my "new stomach" being so small. When I was on my liquid diet, I would drink them down in less than a minute.

From the first time I saw a surgeon about weight loss surgery, it took me seven years to make it to the OR. If you are lurking around here trying to make a decision, please hang in there. From the day I went on the liquid diet, I have lost about 50 lbs. I have many more to go, probably 75, but I already feel like a new person. My biggest question, is why did I wait so long? I guess you can't really change your life like this until you are really ready,

I am not baking this holiday season. I am grateful that nobody has asked me to bake. I will find another thing to do for the holidays.

Thanks to everyone who posts here. And happy holidays to all of us.

[wildGoose 207]

Oh. One more thing. I used to be totally addicted to Diet Coke. When I went on the liquid diet, I totally stopped with the diet coke. Today I was out doing Christmas errands, and I was very thirsty. So instead of getting a bottle of Water, I got a fountain Diet Coke. I had two sips. It was totally disgusting. My taste buds have really been changing.

[Beni 1,484]

Hurray, @Bronxymerci is back.

Oh my gosh, I was so worried. I was trying not to let on but I had dreams of you sprawled on the bathroom floor in a pool of blood. I can joke now and say I probably have watched too many crime shows for my own good. I have had experience with anemia after childbirth. I can tell you it does take a while to bounce back. But you are young and you will recover. Iron shots are a great idea, you will need them to make more red blood cells. Watch out for any new symptoms and keep posting. We are not medical doctors but there's a lot of common wisdom on this thread. Keep eating those 3 meals a day, even if if it is a shake or something with Protein supplement. You have to eat to live even if you don't feel like it. You will get weak if you don't. I noticed I didn't get to have lunch until 2:00 PM yesterday and I was not hungry at all but started to feel a little dizzy. I think my blood sugar level had dropped too low. We'll watch out for you! Welcome back to the world. So happy about your new job.

@ wildGoose is completely right, watch out for black poop.

This too is my favorite part of Bariatric Pal. You all are amazing and as I have said countless times, I couldn't have done this without you. And, I might add, research actually shows that WLS patients in a support group do better then those on their own. So there, we are amazing and smart to support each other. We are in it together. Like little blades of grass on an emerald field, we hold each other up towards the sun!

[Beni 1,484]

On the feeling not so energetic and down. I just wanted to point out I had that last winter and thought I was depressed and it turns out my Vitamin D levels were very low as well as my Iron. It's winter, we don't get much sunlight and our bodies have been through a lot. I know our Vitamin supplements have some, besides we will get blood tests at 3 months. I am very curious as to what those will show. We should share the gist of it and compare with how we feel overall. I bet we will be able to figure out a lot of things then. Keep remembering to take those supplements. This is the only way we will be able to figure out if we need to make changes at the 3 month mark. My doctor told me a lot of patients forget to take their supplements and get in trouble. Low red blood cell count and low Iron take a while to recoup from, believe me. Let's not get there in the first place, right?

[welnic@sbcglobal.net 10]

I had my sleeve surgery Oct 6, 2014. Down 62 pounds and feeling fantastic!! Walking 2-3 miles a day. I'm off all heart medication and after a visit with the cardiologist on the 24th I'll no longer be a heart patient!! Best thing I ever did for myself!!

[smiley922 447]

@@Bronxmerci, whoooh, can you hear my sigh of relief, so glad you are still with us. Keep doing what you are supposed to and you will feel back to normal or even better than normal due to weight loss. ????????????

[Sherrib4health 100]

Hey ladies, I'm sorry I had you guys worried. I promise I won't die on you guys. I just signed myself out of the hospital they wanted me to live there and it was just too many days for me. I had an upper gi hemmorhage, got a ton of blood transfusion, now I have to get special Iron injections weekly. On the bright side I finally got a job as a teachers assistant so even though I was bummed out, I got the job I wanted. I feel better knock on wood, still tired and out of breath but I know its because of the blood loss. My son doesn't even like me anymore due to these complications. I definitely feel depressed and I'm hoping I can get help for it. My family has been practically raising my son since surgery and I feel very grateful for that. I am not allowed to work out because I don't have much oxygen in my blood. Shoot I don't have enough energy at all, I had to leave school and basically that's it. I love you all and thank you for your prayers, at one point I was really thinking that this was it and thought I was going to die, I couldn't even roll over without being out of breath and having chest pain. The doctors really advised me that I needed to stay but I made an executive decision to bounce. Now I just have to pray for the best and be prepared for the worst. You ladies look great by the way and sorry I didn't update sooner, I left without a phone charger and noone thought to bring me one. Thank you for your support.

@@Bronxmerci wow. You are certainly being put through the proverbial ringer! I am so impressed with your whole attitude though. Bravo for you! Congrats on the job! I know you didn't want to stay in the hospital but please, please be careful. We all want you to get better and better. If you have to go back to the hospital, please go. Your son will love you again once he understands a little better and the healthy you starts to kick in. He'll love it too when you can do all kinds of fun things with him. Hang in there and do what's best for you. We're all praying for you too!

[joankrie 126]

Hello Wildgoose and group, i can relate to why you waited for the surgery. I waited years, because I thought having a gastric bypass was too aggressive. I thought I could do the good ol' fashion way, diet and exercise.. making lifestyle changes. Needless to say, it didn't work for me. So, I had my surgery in Oct 2014, and have no regrets!! I'm grateful for a successful surgery. My hugest weight was 321, and now I am 255. Im not tech savvy, so I dont know how to download some pics to share with the group. Yikes! I drank some wine last night. A half of a glass was a bit much for my pouch.

My struggle with this process is not drinking while eating. Does anyone else have this challenge??

[joankrie 126]

Wildgoose, me too..so.addicted to Diet Coke! Ive lost my cravings for the stuff as well! Such a good feeling!! I only drink Water and fat free milk! I'm grateful for these changes in my food plan.

[brown eyed gal 59]

CALORIES? I use bariatric pal to track my Protein. I'm a slow loser, I've only lost 16 since surgery. Anyway bariatricpal told me that I need 1000 calories instead of 800 because it's slowing my metabolism. My team has told me to just pay attention to my Protein and Water the first three months but...I don't want to eat to much and I don't want to eat to little!

I TOO AM GLAD TO SEE YOU BACK ON HERE BRONX!

[brown eyed gal 59]

CALORIES? I use bariatric pal to track my Protein. I'm a slow loser, I've only lost 16 since surgery. Anyway myfitnesspal told me that I need 1000 calories instead of 800 because it's slowing my metabolism. My team has told me to just pay attention to my Protein and Water the first three months but...I don't want to eat to much and I don't want to eat to little!

I TOO AM GLAD TO SEE YOU BACK ON HERE BRONX!

[brown eyed gal 59]

CALORIES? I use bariatric pal to track my Protein. I'm a slow loser, I've only lost 16 since surgery. Anyway myfitnesspal told me that I need 1000 calories instead of 800 because it's slowing my metabolism. My team has told me to just pay attention to my Protein and Water the first three months but...I don't want to eat to much and I don't want to eat to little!

I TOO AM GLAD TO SEE YOU BACK ON HERE BRONX!

Sorry for the double posts! My computer is acting up, plus I can't figure out how to edit and delete! I track everything on myfitnesspal, not bariatric pal!

[misstvb 248]

@Bronx. I'm so glad to see you back and admire your resolve. We each have our own journey yet together were one and I really missed and was worried about you. Take care of yourself, listen to your body and I'll continue to send prayers.

[misstvb 248]

I hit forty pounds today. Every time I get on the scale I'm fret and worry so I try for just once a week. This doesn't feel real yet, I'm waiting.