Not Enough Stomach Removed

[logicwand 269]

Every BMI chart I look at shows 164 at 5’8” to be overweight. Healthy range is apparently between 130 and 160. If I were 5’8” I’d probably shoot for 155/160. I’m 5’7” and my doc says anywhere between 140 and 150 lbs would be ideal for me. But I know everyone is different.

[logicwand 269]

I guess I'll ask for more clarification from my surgeon but it does look like there's a lot of different thoughts on this stuff. But again, does this mean that I just need to power through and diet like I would have before the surgery? If that's the case what was the point of the surgery? The metabolic advantage?

Just out of curiosity, did they ever tell you what bougie size the doctor used for your sleeve? I know it hardly makes a difference in weight loss outcome but just wanted to ask.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

On 2/9/2018 at 5:04 PM, Shannon226 said:

It looks like I’ve missed out on a lot of good conversations on my original post. Thanks to everyone who gave advice. I had the procedure today but I won’t get feedback until Monday at the earliest. I doubt that the X-ray will show anything unusual. I’m working on trying to limit grazing and drinking Water when I feel hungry. I still haven’t lost any weight in about a month now. It’s really discouraging especially since this is supposed to be the honeymoon period. But I’ll keep trying.

Glad you got the testing done. I didn't read this whole thread but here are a few thoughts (I am over 6 years post revision band to sleeve).

Acid sometimes feels like hunger - are you SURE your excess acid is under control? I took a PPI first several months even though I wasnt aware of feeling excess acid, it is just so common my surgeon wanted to prevent it. All these years later, it reared it's ugly head and has caused significant problems for me, but that is a different story.

Also, grazing is both a habit, and a state of hunger. 6 years out, grazing can really really catch up with me - I tend to do it I when I am feeling stressed (daily at my job!). It's so easy for me to fall into just having a little of this, a Protein Drink or whatever... frankly, to comfort me. None of its junk, but it adds up to too much food. What works best for me is to eat by the "scale and clock". My program called for 5 mini meals; I decided that 4 mini meals worked better and I settled into that rythem. It meant that I didn't eat outside those "meal" times. At first I weighed/measured everything and then I switched to eating until "absence of hunger" and then STOPPED, until it was time for the next mini meal. Best advice I ever got "do not seek the feeling of being full, eat until absence of hunger"

Anyway, hope they rule out any mecanical problems with the sleeve - keep on going, this isn't easy but it is SO worth it!

[Toomanytacos 251]

On 2/10/2018 at 1:41 PM, Taylor5 said:

Just wanted to throw my two cents in. I had similar feelings of frustration & concern after surgery, and still do at times. My situation is not exactly the same as yours, but some aspects are similar. I never lost the hunger sensation, which was a huge surprise and letdown. I had been counting on that to get me through for at least the first few months, then understood for most it would gradually lessen and likely return to normal. For me it felt the same right out of the gate. I remember my husband eating a burger and fries a few days post-op and the smell was just amazing. -That's another thing that never changed for me was my sense of taste. Everything still tastes the same, making my cravings for unhealthy foods just as strong.

I didn't feel like I had much restriction at first. Actually, I remember saying several times that if I didn't have incisions on my tummy I'd swear nothing had even happened. And I was baffled by that. I was able to drink Water in large amounts right from the beginning (I never meant to gulp it, but would sometimes forget, as I was used to gulping it, but then when I did, no issues...so I'd think...isn't that supposed to be painful?)

But then I would realize that I did have restriction with certain things, which I understand is different from what you are experiencing. Almost all liquids that I can remember I could take in larger quantities, but heavier foods I can feel. For instance I eat chicken salad a lot for dinner. I started with 1/3 cup. One night I felt more hungry so served myself 1/2 cup. I took very small bites and ate slowly, but I finished the whole 1/2 cup. As soon as I did though, I could feel that gurgling sensation in my chest and slight nausea and just knew - nope, 1/2 cup is too much. @dreamingsmall, I wonder if maybe this is what she means by "overeating". When trying new foods and we are experimenting with what works for us, sometimes we take too much, and many of us can tell this because our sleeve will give us feedback by way of gurgling, reflux, an uncomfortably full feeling, nausea, vomiting, etc. and she is saying she never receives this type of feedback. I could be wrong, but that is my interpretation.

I am just over 6 wks post-op. I am down about 29 lbs right now. But 10 of it was lost on the pre-op diet. So 19 since 12/27. No, I have never dieted in my life and lost 19# in 6 wks and kept it off, so it is amazing and I should be over the moon. But I too thought 20# was the norm for Month 1 and that it slowly went down from there. I don't know if it was from reading forums or from surgery center/hospital statistics I collected or a combination, but that was my expectation. So, when it didn't happen I felt a huge sense of disappointment. Even though I lost a total of 15 inches that month & 7% bodyfat, I was so focused on those 20 lbs! And sure I complained and everyone pointed out that my starting weight was lower and lots of other statistics, which was helpful, but I still felt that sense of disappointment, so I can understand where you are coming from.

Not only that, but we were self-pay for the surgery, and we traveled to have it done. I sometimes fear that if I only lose a certain amount that my husband may think, "She only lost 40 lbs? Couldn't she have done that on her own? Did we really have to take out a loan for X amount of dollars and fly x amount of miles and have over half her stomach removed so she could lose 40 lbs?!" Not that he has ever said one negative thing about any of it yet, just that I know the loan/surgery/travel was all a big deal for our family and I carry that with me that it really needs to be worth it. Also, even though I tried to inform him as much as possible ahead of time, he still says things sometimes like, "Oh well why don't you just drink milkshakes? They should be easy on your stomach, right?" -Um, because milkshakes have lots of calories and don't fill the sleeve so I'd be hungry again soon and I would gain weight!! -Oh. or "Oh, well I guess you can take as much Prednisone as you need to for your back pain now without having to worry about it, right?" -Um, no, because Prednisone will Still make me retain Water, and will Still drive my appetite, causing me to overeat whatever foods I'm able to overeat at the time, (milkshakes maybe?) and cause me to Gain Weight! -Oh. I realized that even though he went to informational seminars with me and watched videos with me online, that he thought I could never again gain weight...no pressure there.

Anyway, sorry for that sidebar, lol, but I guess I just wanted to say that I can relate to your reality of how much you can drink and why that concerns you. I can understand why it would concern you to not feel any type of restriction from your sleeve on the amount of food to eat, because for me that is the real benefit I get from it is it only allowing me to eat so much at a time. I understand your dismay at not losing more in the first month or so, but as several people have pointed out, is not unusual - and if you check out the thread Late December Sleevers (which you may already be on) you will notice is pretty common for most of us done in this time frame. I think it's great you were able to be open with your surgical team about this, and awesome that they didn't blow off your concerns. Maybe there is some sort of issue that is causing you not to feel any difference - I mean, hopefully not, I don't want you to need another surgery, but at the same time I know it sucks to feel different but not have a solid reason why. But at least they took you seriously and were willing to take a closer look and see what's going on.

In the meantime I think it's a smart idea on your part to limit grazing and increase water. Yes, unfortunately willpower is still involved - I think what helps increase that though is during pre-op liquid diet you are excited that surgery is coming up so willpower is stronger, and immediately post-op I feel there is fear of damaging your sleeve/hurting yourself physically so you know you are limited in what you consume, plus the scale is going down and that is so motivating. Once you know you are allowed and encouraged to introduce more foods, and especially if the scale stops moving at the same time, I can see that being incredibly hard to call upon your willpower to carry you through - after all - if you had such strong willpower you never would have needed surgery, right?

But, since many people stall you have to think that's all this is (until you get your test results and/or your drs tell you otherwise) and try as many things as possible to keep going. Maybe distraction? I like to paint/draw and read and do decorating projects around the house. Sometimes when I am all caught up in a project is one of those rare instances where I would "Forget to eat" - you know, that skinny girl phenomenon that never made any sense, LOL? For some people it's knitting/crocheting, woodworking, gardening, house cleaning/organizing, writing, cooking (although that seems like a bad idea, haha). If you can find something to keep yourself busy and have healthy things on standby for when you finally "remember to eat" like your Protein shakes/bars, lean Proteins cooked and portioned, Soups, and of course, water by your side 24/7, that might help. And exercise and move around of course. I don't know, just trying to be helpful...I know it's not easy.

One last thing, my surgery center never mentioned calorie intake either, and that bothered me a lot at first trying to figure out where I should be. I found food plans on-line from other programs that were all over the place. Some said as low as 250-450 per day the first month (Insane), others 400-600, some 600-800 and so on. I keep a strict food log and even when my calories are way more than I meant for them to be (about 10 days ago I ate a whole cup of pistachios because I was waiting for them to make me feel "satisfied" or "full" so I could tell what my limit was with them, and realized they just don't create that same sensation of fullness as other foods do, even though they are super high in calories, fat, Fiber, and a good amount of Protein. They are really good for you, and I love them, but it's not a great idea to eat a cup full at a time. And I was really sad to log in 576 calories and 56 grams of fat in one journal entry - especially in what was meant to be more of a "snack" category, but I'm all about being honest with myself, so I did. Anyway, I found I lose more weight when I'm eating around 1000 cals per day than I did when I was eating 700-750 cals per day. So sometimes you do need to eat a little more, but it's important to keep track, I feel, because they can add up fast if you aren't careful. Certainly not preaching, just saying, from my experiment and all But good luck with all of this. I hope you get some answers from your results, and if not, that your doctors can at least give you suggestions on what to try instead....Either way, let us know!

I must know you. I love your personality. Love it.

Will you be my friend? Circle answer (yes/no) Lol

Seriously, you have a wonderful personality and I have

thoroughly enjoyed reading what you've written.. Thanks

[Taylor5 98]

15 hours ago, Toomanytacos said:

Will you be my friend? Circle answer (yes/no) Lol

Bahaha, that's hilarious! We so used to do that Well thank you very much! And of course we can be friends