Over a week until sleeve surgery some questions

[Dylpowers 1]

Hello I am new to this forum

i have my gastric sleeve surgery on March 6th and honestly I am freaking out a little

I am 5 11 and at my highest was 385 since deciding to do surgery I have lost over 35 pounds and hope to take more weight off prior to surgery with the pre op liquid. Long term goal is 220

i went to pre op education course yesterday so I am clear on everything to do for the next week and the weeks following

My questions revolve around several items

is two weeks post surgery realistic to go back to work . I work in finance so desk job

i understand the need to strictly follow the post surgery liquid diets etc but when you get to 6 months are you pretty much able to eat most foods ( recognizing that focusing on Protein and fewer carbs will be key for the weight loss )

How common is vomiting post surgery 6 months and I assume it is just over eating is the main cause and how sensitive is your stomach ( ie I have 6 ozs of meat instead of 4 am I throwing up) the thought of vomiting a lot obviously is not pleasant .

I know Alcohol is discouraged but safe to assume that for special occasions one or two drinks will be fine ( once again 6 plus months out post survey )

i am excited to do this a get to a healthier life just probably now just processing how much change there will be to my life

thanks so much for any feedback

[blizair09 3,250]

@Dylpowers

1. Two weeks is realistic. I took six weeks off after my VSG, but I have short-term disability that paid at 100% and six weeks was the amount of time they would let me take without further medical documentation. I'd recommend that you take as much time as your personal, professional, and financial situations will allow. Physically, you'll be better at two weeks, but your Protein and Water consumption is a full time job early on. Also, fatigue will be a big issue. (It was for me for a solid eight weeks.)

2. Once you get through the food stages (on my plan, about 2 months), you can more or less eat what you want within reason. You'll have to experiment with foods to see what you can and can't tolerate. One word of advice -- don't focus on what you can eat; focus on what you should eat. Changing your relationship with food is the key to long-term success, not the surgery itself. Most people that never get to goal and/or immediately start re-gaining is because they never changed their relationship with food.

3. I have never vomited once. That being said, I have (even in the early days) only eaten specified amounts. I never aspire to be "full." Most vomiting (unless you have some special medical issue) comes from eating too much or eating too fast.

4. I abstained from alcohol for 9 months (the entirety of my six month pre-op diet program and the first three months post-op). I have never had an issue with it. (Keep in mind, though, that I am very, very particular about what I eat, so I account for the calories when I do imbibe.)

Good luck! I hope this helps.

[lindsayAK 100]

Two weeks should be ok but I would suggest 3 if possible. I was exhausted for 3 weeks.

I was allowed to try any food I would like, focusing on nutrition and Protein of course, at 5 weeks post op. I am taking it slow and adding new healthy foods when I can.

I have yet to vomit in this entire process. I have had very uncomfortable stomach pains from eating too fast, too much or too dense of food. Not fun!

My surgeon recommended waiting 6 weeks post op before having any alcohol. This seems to be much less than others have stated. Lots of people on this forum will attack you for having any alcohol before one year post op. I am planning to wait as long as possible but also see no reason not to enjoy a little wine with friends here and there.

Any other question feel free to ask!

Highest weight (HW) 290 (2 years ago)
Pre pre op diet 261.5
Surgery weight (SW) 253.7 1/17
Current weight (CW) 237.2

[Jennifer0730 10]

I had my surgery on 2/13, so I'm 10 days out today. I went back to work (desk job) for half a day on 2/16 with no problems, full time this past Monday. I'm tired by the end of the day, but not exhausted. I make sure I'm in bed by 9 just to give my body time to rest. I may not go to sleep right away, but I'm settled in with a book or my ipad and just resting.

I've had to set alarms to remind me to drink water/protein, but just because I get pretty busy during the day and I'm not hungry at all. I was lucky to have no nausea whatsoever. I had acupuncture pins placed in my ears the day before surgery to avoid the nausea and it worked like a charm.

Everyone is different, so listen to your doc and your body and don't try to overdo work or activities.

Best of luck to you!!!!

[Creekimp13 5,840]

Awesome questions and the above posters have done a perfect job answering them...so I can't add much.

I'm another person who has never vomited. No nausea, either....ever. Pretty grateful for this:)

[DropWt4Life 957]

Two weeks should be fine. I also have a desk job, and realistically could have returned to work after a week. I was tired for a few days after surgery, but that went away at around day four.

At six months out, I can eat anything that I want. I try to eat clean for the most part, but do have "bad for you" foods on occasion.

I had a few alcoholic drinks at 4 1/2 months out (New Years Eve). I was fine, and didn't overdo it. I haven't had drinks since, because I just haven't felt like it.

I did make myself throw up once a few months ago. I normally weigh and measure my food, and on that particular occasion, I was out to eat with friends. I either overate, or ate too fast (or a combination of the two). Long story short, I ended up vomiting. I was really pissed at myself, because I tried hard to keep this from happening. Since then, I have practiced asking for a to-go box when my food arrives. I then pack away everything except for what looks like a handful. I eat that, and take the rest home.

It is all trial and error, and you learn from your mistakes.

[Dylpowers 1]

Thanks so much for your response

one other question when you overage was it literally more than just a handful or did you clearly overeat . I guess I am trying to figure out is there some margin of error as I do see myself slipping up every now and then

thanks

[Dylpowers 1]

Still learning how this site works so not sure how to reply to individual posts ( probably missing something simple )

thanks to everyone for the responses

as surgery has drawn closer I am starting to get nervous about the fact that I probably will slip up at some point or several points and the thought of getting sick often seems to suck. That being said I guesss that is the whole point is that you can not eat too much without getting sick and you learn to live with it and not overeat

I know I am being a wimp but starting to question the surgery . It just seems so finite .. I know I need to lose the weight just wondering if this is the best choice for me.

anyway thanks for the thoughts

[Creekimp13 5,840]

If you're having doubts....you might want to wait. Alex wrote a great article about deciding when you're ready:

https://www.bariatricpal.com/magazine/646-five-signs-that-you’re-not-ready-for-weight-loss-surgery/

Then again...people do get nervous at the last minute...even when they're very committed. It's common. Try to trust your saner self who has been jumping through hoops for months trying to get this done.

Eating will change...a lot...after surgery. The feeling, the urgency, your preferences....will likely change quite a bit.

Yep, you'll have screw ups. But they probably won't be as big as the screw ups you've had in the past, and you'll learn from them...cause eating will change for you. You won't feel comforted from it as much anymore. And it really sucks to feel overfull and nauseated from too much sugar....so you do change your habits.

You can overeat with sleeve. You can gain everything back if you don't stay focused.

That said....MOST people will lose 70% or so of their excess weight and typically only gain back about 10% of their excess weight. That's the average experience.

You can do a lot better than that...or you can do worse. You get out of it what you put into it. And a little bit is luck....just how your body responds and how your hormones change.

Best wishes moving ahead:)

[kakatlady612 1,053]

Well, welcome Dylpowers. Always nice to meet a new friend. What type of surgery are you planning, how far into the process are you and where are you located? And what fears can we allay? I'm still pre-surg myself but not by choice. THAT is a whole nother story. At any rate I've been on Bariatric Pal coming up on 3 months so sorta know my way around. Studied up on the types of surgeries, don't know quite as much about mini bypass or ESG as the others but both of them are represented here. I live in Central Ohio, a candidate for RnY just don't have a firm date, maybe March, maybe April if it's later than that, heads may roll.I'm a trifle impatient, remember Mother
Nature? I'm 72, knew her well and we might have graduated from High School together. World be warned--i am a force to be contended with!
Any hoo if we can make your WLS journey easier, you have only to ask.

Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

[Dylpowers 1]

Creekkimp thanks so much for the message and article link I definitely need to ponder more and talk to my wife

it may make sense to move out the surgery given where my head is at

will let you know

thanks

[Dylpowers 1]

Kalkat

Thanks for the welcome

i am scheduled for sleeve surgery on march 6th