wannalise

Your body absorbs the nutrients in skim milk better then the other varieties, dunno why but it may be a part of your consideration. But...you also have to find ways to get things you enjoy in your day or you will feel deprived and have a more difficult time succeeding.

My surgeon talked about stopping eating a couple hours before bed. I have to make sure that even water has had a few minutes to get down before bed.

I get the hiccuping as well, but two of the other full signals my surgeon talked about were runny nose and sneezing. It sounded crazy to me, but I sneeze like a fool when its time to stop.

You are doing so well! Thank you for sharing your awesome couple story. Keep up the excellent work. Anna

The day before surgery my cholestoral (sp) was 249, this week it was 181. NORMAL RANGE YA'LL. The looking good is an awesome perk, but nothing beats reclaiming my health. So excited!!!

Oh my! I could have written that post, yes it is normal to have a weird reaction to just water. I have had some people say that its because of the change in amount of acid in our stomachs, I dunno. I do really well if it is ICE COLD for the most part the nausea part of it has gone away, it used to feel really heavy and get me almost every time. The carbonation thing as it was explained to me is because the carbon dioxide when it reaches a temperature change (98.6) it can cause your stomach to inflate. Some disagree with this stating that the portion of our tummies we have left are very difficult to stretch. I am choosing not to go back to diet coke because I have had lots of what I thought were health problems go away. Fewer headaches, no more IBS, and with diet coke I always want something sweet to go along with it. Good luck!!!

The best protein is from food sources, I am almost four months out and I still supplement my food sources with a protein shake in the mornings. I have a minimum target of 60g of protein daily, but I really like to be around 90. Your NUT will be able to clear up what they think is best for you. I found mushy stage to be the most difficult. You can do cottage cheese (which is an excellent source), greek yogurt (depending on the brand 23g of protein per cup) though you may want to add some sugar free toriani syrup to it. Lots of people also enjoy cream soups at this stage in the game. Your options are more limited here, but stick to it and give yourself time to heal. Good luck!

Good for you. Having your sleeve and overcoming a very traumatic experience will definitely be worth it! Keep us posted.

I couldn't do it the first little while because I would drink too quickly and slime and it was nasty! Now its no problem.

I start out every day w/ a Protein shake still I put double scoop in it (48g protein) 1 c. 1% cottage cheese-This takes me two seperate sittings and I have to eat very slow but it leaves me full. 2-3oz. Cubed Steak 1c strawberries and 2 wedges light laughing cow cheese My restriction varies from day to day. There are some days that food is not at all appealing and I will do a lot of mushie foods those days. I have also really tried to seek out foods that are very filling to me, and I am careful about carbs unless they come from sources like fruits or veggies. I am still mindful of them, but way more willing to get carbs from natural sources rather then simple carbs (white breads, rice, Pasta.) If you are eating those quantities in 10 minutes or less I would guess that you also need to slow way down. Most surgeons advise spacing your meal over 30 minutes. You may not be getting the signal from your body that you are full. Good luck!

Sonic should pay for advertising on this site!! Isn't that feeling of finally being able to drink the best? The first few weeks I was post op and couldn't drink normally were upsetting to me. It is so nice to get to quench your thirst.

but dr. aceves does sound wonderful and i can't find ANYthing on the net that suggests anything to the contrary. i'm a cynic though, so if something sounds too good to be true, in my mind, it probably is. let's think about this.... he's done about 1000 VSG surgeries according to the coordinator i spoke to, only 1 death and that was from bowel complications for a bypass patient, no leaks from VSG, and a hospital that is apparently equipped with the most state of the art equipment and staffed with the best nurses you can find. and all this for.... just under $9000, which is supposedly ALL inclusive, from pre-op tests to surgery time, to hospital stay, to meds, to your own personal transportation to and from the airport. hmmmmm..... i know it sounds like i'm criticizing but i'm really not. i just think it's odd that you can't find ANY negative feedback about dr. aceves. it makes me wonder if he tells his patients to come back and flood the net with good reviews! haha! but all kidding aside... i will keep researching. by monday if i can't find anything negative or anything that tells me he's too good to be true... i think i'm going with doc aceves and almater hospital. and i do wish ALL of you the best of luck! maybe i'll see you there, who knows!!! I thought many of the same things as you, do loads of homework until you are absolutely comfortable with the decision you make, I had my surgery there and it seemed kooky to my family but I had done enough research to know that for me it was the right choice. I was incredibly well taken care of. Dr. Aceves found a hernia in me during surgery and fixed it w/no extra cost to me. I also had horrible nausea and he kept me an extra night again w/no extra cost. I have also been pleased post op. I have had questions or needed copies of some of my documentation, and was provided with support always within 24 hours. I think the thing to consider is that for a surgeon to be successful at further business outside of the country is to get excellent word of mouth, and they take great care of you. Ultimately do your homework and you will find the choice that is best for you. There are a lot of good options out there, I know that for me I would have very willingly paid a lot more for the experience Dr. Aceves gave me, and was grateful I didn't have to! Good luck, Anna

I didn't have pain. I did have quite a bit of nausea for a couple weeks. I think the biggest difficulty I had (and I've read several other threads who also struggled) was staying hydrated the first few weeks. I had to set timers to drink every 15 minutes and couldn't get much down at that point. Now I can drink pretty normally.

So...today I went to Old Navy and a size 18 pair of jeans were on sale, I figured I'd buy them for when I got to that size. I took em home to see how far away they were, OH YEAH!!!! They fit me!!!! Four months ago I was in a 26. Woohoo!!!!

It feels different then it ever did preop. You will get it!

It took me a long time, you will get to a place (as long as you eat slowly and pay attention) where you can recognize the bite that is one bite away from discomfort. Once you've hit the discomfort or it feels like its in your throat you've gone too far. You will get it. Pay attention to your body.

My internet was super slow and netflix has a country code and it wouldn't work for me in Mexico.

AMAZING!!!! That is so exciting you both look great.

Okay so I am frustrated! I have been super careful about following all the rules and my weight loss has been good, I feel great, I am proud of what I have accomplished so far. But...the past three days I have had "fat kid hunger." That desire to eat awful things, even when you aren't hungry. I still try to impliment enjoyable foods and I know that is a vital part of a healthy lifestyle, but I feel compulsive. On both ends. I spend tons of time planning what I am going to eat, how I'm gonna exercise. But then I also am on my favorite restaurant web sites and looking at foods I used to love (my fave Mexican salad that I used to eat a few times per week is almost 2000 calories on its own!) I need some help becoming focused, but not compulsive. I am trying to develop a HEALTHY relationship with food so this can work long term, but I am so overly obsessed with healthy eating that I am going to burn out. I think about it constantly. HELP????

My surgeon and post op doctor both recommend an iron supplement especially if you are of mensutrating (I can't spell) age. I actually think the chewable from BA is yummy (just the iron the other ones are gross.) Good luck!

Oh and you can't take your iron and calcium together. I take my multi and calcium at the same time then wait a minimum of two hours and take my iron. Iron makes it so your body is less able to absorb the calcium and if you are on a PPI you really need the calcium because over time it can deplete the mineral supply in your bones.

This may disappoint you, but I had that reaction w/every multi I tried. I realized that with the BA if I eat something first and then instead of chewing them I suck on them like a lozenge less of it hits my tummy all at once and I'm generally okay. Good luck!

Ali, That sounds really close to the norm. Your protein may be a titch low both my surgeon and NUT like between 60 and 70. But your weight loss is terrific so who can say!

Don't forget that unless there is 14 consecutive days before you are not considered to have a stall. I will sometimes lose very little one week and then there is always one day where it just happens quickly. Hang in there!!!!

I never had any type of reflux preop, and what I experience now is rarely classic reflux. I have false hunger, and occasional heart burn. On a few occasions I have tried to ween myself off of it and the symptoms were horrible and not worth it to me. I am dilligent in taking extra calcium as that is one of the side effects and I've done really well. Double check with your surgeon and maybe they will have the answer you seek.