Rootman

LOL Nate! SURPRISE!

Yes it CAN be normal, basically nothing in then nothing out, the liquid diet consists of stuff that is readily adsorbed and leaves very few solids to pass on through. Take a stool softener or laxative if directed by your doctor to get a good cleanout pre-op. The bowell sometimes stops working very effectivly post-op partly due to the trauma and anesthesia and can leave you packed up if there is solids sitting there to begin with. Getting rid of the solids pre-op can alleviate the issue before hand. And it is pretty dang uncomfortable to have to sit post-op on the toilet and push hard to pass movements.

Not that I'm aware of the chia seeds turn into a slimey gel like stuff that is pretty tasteless, it might be hard to eat straight but they add a neat tapiocca type texture to the things they are added to.

Just the seeds, they soon gel when you put them in something. I have 2 teaspoons in a SF pudding for lunch and 2 tespoons in a yogurt for supper. I really like the tapiocca type texture they add. The have no real taste at all that I can discern.

Well a full gamut of responses! It's kind of a mixed bag for us and I doubt we'll be back. The restaurant is a run of the mill family restaurant in a strip mall, bad parking and the "decor" is kind of hokey home made looking artificial stone and cheap wood. It's OK but not the greatest. The variety of food is what we have always liked, they have stuff that other places just don't have, it's a Naplese Intalian restaurant. The restaurant is, to put it bluntly mediocre to say the best abouit it. A few people we've recommended it to said they would not return becasue it just wasn't "that good" and prices in this rural area a tad on the high side. We've previously had good food and good service, maybe we're just lucky. The service was slightly less than aweful, the waitress gruff and impatient and she only took the order and gave us the bill, someone else brought the food and refilled my drink. As I stated it was served sans an extra plate and in addition NO salad at all, we skipped it even though it was included with the entree price. The booth we sat at smelled of sour milk - some previous patron must of spilled some, not bad enough to complain about but we noticed it when we sat down and soon didn't notice it. We're both blue haired and were eating at 5pm, only 3 or 4 booths out of 20+ were filled. I think the management should consider that if they're going to stick people with a $3.50 split fee and provide crappy service that the chances of a tip and return patronage are slim to none. I posted this just to see if perhaps it ws ME that was a little off, looks like I wasn't.

So we visited our favorite Italian restaurant, the portions are huge and we either split an entree or each eat 1/3 to 1/2 an entree and take the rest home. This time we decided to split one as we were going somewhere else afterwards and didn't want to leave the left overs in the car for a few hours. When the bill arrived there was a $3.50 "split fee" on the bill. They didn't even split the meal, the brought it on a single plate and didn't even bring an extra plate for me, I ended up eating off a bread plate. We ordered a $13 entree, one beverage (the wife drinks water) and a dessert, the bill came to $23, which I think is about right for a mediocre family restaurant. I decided not to leave a tip as the $3.50 "split fee" would have to do. Is this the new norm in the USA? Has anyone else experienced this? I doubt we will ever return, we've been going to this place since it opened and feel they are just getting unreasonable. So if I dine alone am I going to be charged a "singles fee"? Did it really make that much of a difference that another person was sitting there and we shared an entree? Am I being unreasonable?

I have used Mirilax for years, it's been an ongoing issue for me for decades. I've recently started to eat chia seeds, 2 treaspoons in a SF pudding for lunch and 2 in a yogurt for supper and I've been mmore regular than EVER.

Kewl! Hopefully you didn't get amd at him, all guys do it!

I wold advise waiting like PdxMan suggests, we've seen quite a few posts of women wondering where their boobs went after surgery. You may regret reduction surgery after a year of being sleeved, also seems that they could take care of any sagging at the same time if you do indeed have the surgery.

Remionds me of my brother who was a checkout clerk years ago, seems he once saw someone come through his checkout line with a roling pin, crisco, astro-glide and condoms - he nearly split a gut trying to keep from laughing.

HA! Great news, a long, long time ago I got stuck in one of those desks that had the seat attched to them - how humiliating.

Great info Katie - I take them becasue they make my bowell movements very regular. Best thing I've taken in almost 40 years of constipation issues.

Yes, as LilMissDiva stated, ketosis, and it gets worse post-op. Also try a tongue scraper, then mouth wash and finally brush your teeth, the roof of your mouth and your tongue. It lets up after a few months and your system starts to stabilize. BTW: It's due to caloric shortfall - the diet - and not the surgery per se.

I will be 2 years December 6th. I too have NO regrets. I am thinner and more fit then ever before in my life. I do have some issues which may or may not pertain to the WLS - they all might be age and stress related, perhaps just made WORSE by the caloric shortfalls. My sleep went from bad to worse. Since puberty I've been an insomniac, meds don't help much, my mind just races and I cannot get comfortable some nights I have experienced clinical depression since early adulthood, it seems to be worse. I was on meds but could not stand what they did to m mind. I've lost quite a bit if hair but was on the way there pre-op, so it may just be age or at most just made worse by the WLS. It hurts to sit! No meat on my hip bones. I sold my motorcycle because anything over an hour in the saddle was torture. Riding a bicycle is hard too but at least I am moving around and can stand up often.

Thanks Sassypants, that is the most excellent explanation I've seen. Good resource.

Yes, as OTR points out they are precisly the same stuff as the Chia pets use. I don't know about the pill form but seems that they SHOULD work the same, although you would probably have to at least take 3 or 4 to equal 2 teaspoons worth. How soon post-op to start? Not sure, my guess would be a few weeks, they are pretty benign but they are extremely filling so go easy and wait till you can eat soft foods. They seem to produce a softer more natural stool then any other laxative / stool softener I've used. They just make things a whole lot easier without much gas and bloating.

Yes, we all seem to be magnets for addictions. Seems we often substitute one for another. As Lissa said, let's try and make the NEXT one a healthy one. I've gotten back into swimming and this summer bicycling. If it gets bad enough and you lose control please seek some help out, there are many programs out there to help those suffering with addictions.

I've fought it all my adult life, just got worse post-op. Mirilax works for me too, although I started using Chia seeds, 2 teaspoons at lunch in a SF pudding and 2 teaspoons at supper with a yogurt. It's been wonderful.

Yes, more specifically in my hip bones more than the tail bone. Due to the loss of "meat" covering my pelvis. Yeoch! I ended up selling my motorcycle largely due to the problem..

Congrats - expect more of the same as you progress!

Yep, ketosis, no CURE only treating the worst of the issues. Get a tongue scraper and mouth wash for the taste. It lets up in a few weeks or months. Incidentally this is NOT peculiar to the sleeve and happens when cutting back calories drastically by any diet.

They are referring to the whole seed, black and brown in color and pretty heavy for their size. Any health food store and maybe even a well stocked grocery store will have them.

Yes, I to got the dreaded "ultra hiccups", they would be so loud and intense that I would actually tense up by back and arms and cause myself a lot of pain. They do settle down a little although I've had one or two bouts in the last 6 months or so. Gr8rlove4me, sorry but this is NOT the "gas settling" in your arm. All the gas that was pumped into your abdomen during surgery was removed or adsorbed din a matter of a few hours, now the IRRITATION from the gas and being stretched all out by being pumped up - YES - that can have lingering effects for days or even weeks afterwards. Warm compresses and activity help alleviate it but TIME is what really does the trick.

Yep, been there too. I was always the fat guy that would eat anything. Reminds me of the old Life Cereal commercial, "here give it to Steve, he'll eat anything". It takes a while but you begin to see the new you and accept it as the REAL you. One thing I've noticed is how critical I feel towards others who are fat when I used to deeply resent anyone who felt that way towards me. All part an parcel with the WLS I guess.

In many cases it can as well as drop blood pressure but, as stated aboce, your results may vary. I had a resting heart rate in the 90's pre-op, now it can be as low as the 50's. I have lost so musch weight and become so much more fit. I wish you luck friend.