meggiep

Welcome to our three week stall! There is a time honored tradition before this of a stall right now so we are in good company! I am right there with you girl- either up a pound the down a pound and a half then up a pound again- basically stalled this past three days and I refuse to worry- I am getting 80 grams of protein a day, 64 plus ounces of water, and 500-700 calories. I'll up my water and exercise and just keep on keeping on. I am disappointed of course, but I lost 18 pounds on my 2 week pre-op and 12 pounds since and I am sure my body has to figure out what is going on and i will start losing again. So will you!

I I use mine already for my protein drinks and today having started purees look forward to using it. It is small, which is great, and really inexpensive at Costco. I think it is a great investment.

That is so low in calories- with your anemia and now light headedness you really should up it. Your body may go into starvation mode and start holding on to everything- beware of that. Are you doing better on your Protein? Really try to do that- I think your first weight loss is from just not eating- you want to keep it going- though you are really lucky to have only 40 odd pounds to lose! I am thrilled with the egg going down so easily- though at half an egg I can hardly look to food for my protein unfortunately! I am going to work on it though since I can't wait to leave these protein drinks behind. Hiccup- I will have to look out for that! Tonight I am going to blend up some cream of chicken Soup WITHOUT straining it - yay!- and add Protein powder to it - other than that I am playing it very conservative today....maybe! ;-P

You are probably right - Kelly started mushies at 2 weeks also an d only this wee has it started being easier for her- she had major pain. Good luck!

I am concerned about that pain- I think you should call your doctor. If it were in your chest that is the top of your new thumby. But upper back pain is a warning sign after this surgery. Be safe! And I wonder how many people besides me and anyone else who knows about Europe knew what courgettes are....;-P

Oh I know- I really am using one- the ultra one I got recently when the Target one went wonky. That is the one I actually use to record my weight. But if you know anything about life here at Cat Heaven plus a Dog you will discover that we all are having fun with the three scales and it just is what it is ;-P They are scattered in different place and we all use all of them, laughing every time. I am unlikely to get rid of them....just because. But it's not bad...I don't really use two of them. And yes- I ate an egg this morning and started a whole thread for it!

Kelly and Michelle- I know I said I would be up early but my husband and son went to the Civil War cemetery around the corner for the annual anvil dropping (boys do love a big bang) and without them here I slept and slept and slept. At three weeks that is something I still do pretty easily. I just ate manna from heaven , aka a soft scrambled egg. Or rather half of one. I decided to stop there, not because I actually felt anything that told me to- and I would really love to get tuned in to that, but to be safe. Carter the border terrier shared ;-P IT WAS FABULOUS!!!!! You would think I hadn't had solid food for five weeks! Oh wait- I hadn't... This egg was sublime, bodacious, perfect in it's tasty savory egginess. And it went down fine and I have no pain or discomfort!!!! HOORAY! Meanwhile I am statistically part of the three week stall- I have gone between 250 and 249.6 for four days now. Sigh. I just hope it does not last weeks. My pool opens tomorrow so I will be back in the Water along with my long walk every day so that should help. And I will keep on keeping on with the fluids and Protein. I figure with the small amounts of mushies I will still need the dread Protein drinks for a while. Double sigh. I would love some feedback about how you all know you should stop- what sigh do you get? I really want to avoid the pain, foamies, etc....

Meggie asks self- does after midnight count ;-P No- I will wait- for one thing I have been in a stall for thre days so eating more at midnight is NOT indicated ! You can bet I will be up early though....

Ah, I see. That seems inadvisable for this surgery. And does not explain what seemed like a situation making the inability to administer medication be about the deficiencies of the patient. Not to mention the not believing in fibro and telling Renee to "Stop it". Would that it would be possible.... to just stop it. I do think it is important for patients to know the limitations or policies of a specific hospital or doctor before having a surgery that is possibly very painful. Especially knowing Renee was promised that her pain would NOT be a problem.

If I were you I would just pick myself up , dust myself off, and continue to follow directions. Wow- clear liquids? No Protein shakes even? That seems very extreme- even I have been on thin liquids- Protein drinks, clear liquids, and thinned Soups and yogurt. You must be starving- no protein , no carbs? I don' think I have seen a requirement that extreme- when do you get to move forward and to what? I had two weeks of liquid pre surgery, and am finishing three weeks thin liquids post. It seems bizarre not to require you to do something to get protein! No wonder you snapped ;-P I do notice that you wrestle with yourself a bit- you might want to consider seeing a nutritionist or counselor to talk about the things that lead you down the garden path so to speak! Did you feel restriction at any point? I am amazed that your very first food ever since surgery went down so easily....but maybe the dumplings were tiny!

It seems pretty clear that strong narcotics are not available for the patients. I would like to be wrong about that- but saying they do not use them for fear of addiction in the patients is absurd. Lynn and Renee were also told that "opioids are not used in Mexico." Just in this thread two patients have reported being told they 1- have too high a tolerance for medication or 2- they have too low a pain threshold- as the reason their pain can not be controlled. There have been quite a few other posts that have had me wondering what the pain management consists of. I think it is a pertinent and realistic question to ask. This surgery can OFTEN be very very painful. I would be concerned about an inability to access medication that can handle it. I need to remind you I have a great respect for Mexican healthcare. One of my sisters has all her dental care in Mexico and another sister's life was saved in a Mexican hospital in Baja when she fell and broke both wrists and both knees and had internal bleeding. Nevertheless these accounts and a couple told to me privately have me wondering about this aspect of the care- in my opinion an important aspect.

Walk walk walk. That is what most people say. My really bad gas pain lasted only a day and a half and then I developed the charming proclivity for burping with EVERY sip I take- not to mentione tons out the other way too so my gas dissipated. Now I still have all of it- with every sip. Hoefully if you walk a lot and sip a lit you will get rid of it too. Great to have you on the Loser's Bench!

Don't worry and don't beat yourself up! I cheated twice on my pre-op diet- once because I had to work a wedding- ten hours mon my feet shooting photos and moving around a lot and once the following week with the top of a piece of pizza (long story). My preop was Protein shakes and liquids. I lost 18 pounds pre-op and my doctor said my liver looked fabulous. I am interested in the fact your pre-op is low fat instead of low carb- and no meat? Why not- don't you want high protein? Is this your doctors diet? Seems a bit unusual!

My plan is a scrambled egg with a little melted cheese. I just hope I am one of the people who does well with that! Meanwhile I am finding that even a Protein shake I like is hard to get through and I had to choke it down this afternoon Gag. This is also a day to be emotional and kinda down- my boys- husband and son- are shooting a wedding in Monterey so it is just me, and no food. MInd you I am not hungry either but its the idea of food and how usually I would have something tsaty when I feel like this. SO instead....watching all my tivo'd Mob Wives

See- that is a similar thing- making the issue YOUR problem due to a "low tolerance". That is BS. This is major surgery- there are incisions into your abdomen through muscle- there may be intense pain and it needs management. Addiction? Baah- more BS. Pain management after surgery is not something to withhold due to fear of addiction. That is absurd. I am starting to wonder if there is actually access to the medication needed for surgery of this type. Expecting you to just bear it is barbaric. The chemical changes your body undergoes while in pain are harmful and can affect your recovery. This situation is serious IMO and needs addressing.

Yippee!!!!! I think maybe you just needed a little mor healing- which gives me hope for Monday. TOMORROW! I can do it, I can do it, I can hold off on eating the ricotta bake I am making today until tomorrow ! One more day... Kelly that is great news- I bet many things that hurt last week will go down better now. Who knew we would have to learn to eat again

I am also glad you posted it Renee- I was shocked to hear that Dr. Aceves told you the fibro was "all in your head" - essentially you were forced in to withdrawal by inadequate pain management AND you were told your diagnosed conditions do not exist when I worked for a team of research scientists at Stanford University working tirelessly to help find treatment for those conditions. One of the things that upset me the most about this experience for you is that you were promised your pain would be managed and your fibro taken in to account. Is this just the way to get you down there? I am so deeply upset that my friend suffered in this way and I wonder how man people will be affected in this way. I know it took a lot of courage to come forward too- you have no idea how many people will benefit.

Fatsecret.com is my fave.

My doctor says anything pea size or smaller is ok whole otherwise cut in half. I've been swallowing pills sice day 1.

Oh I did not mean you at all Lynn! I wated to be clear that MY feelings were not based on that AMerican superiority I sometimes see. However, I think the system there failed her. If her full history was known why on earth would she be sent into withdrawal? That seems absolutely wrong. Edited to add it essentially seemed as if her possible dependence on pain medication was the problem rather than the fact her care did not take that into account. She suffered because of that and I am really upset about that.

Sorry, I see it a bit differently. Wile this account in a sense makes Renee the problem I believe there was a problem way before her surgery in the doctor's practice. I understand that you are adamant that Dr. Aceves and his staff give the highest standard of health care and I believe you! I totally am supportive of those who go to Mexico for surgery and as my sister lives near San Dego and routinely goes to Tijuana for healthcare and dentistry I harbor no American superiority ideas that there is anything deficient there. However I feel that in this situation it failed to support Renee in her needs and I wonder if the way it is routinely done is not the culprit. Renee's medications should have been part of a routine pre-surgery discovery. Listing the medication you are on is standard here and most certainly her use of lortab should have been documented and totally dealt with in terms of her post surgery pain management. People with fibromyalgia often take opioids for pain, that is well known. That she might need more pain management than someone who does not should not have been a shocking surprise requiring a sudden summons of a doctor. I had the same medication I take for my fibro as well as my debilitating nerve back pain and knee pain in my IV in the same amount as I take daily and had only to push a button to have more flow in- why on earth was withdrawal even an issue? Renee should have had all her medications known before she arrived and dealt with in Mexico. Withdrawal should NOT have happened for her. ALL my medications (thyroid, lexapro) were crushed and given to me on schedule. My pain for the surgery was managed skillfully and fluidly and I had no gap without. The effexor and lyrica can have a days gap, the lortab most certainly should not. I always have wondered about the pre-op differences between the U.S. and Mexico as so many of us here go through so many preop hurdles and have so many different aspects of our health examined. Yet I also know that much of what is done occurs because of the ever present fear of lawsuits so I could ascribe many of the differences to the fact that whole sue happy thing does not exist in Mexico. However I think not taking her full medical history as far as her medications, and the gap in her healthcare that happened accordingly in this instance shows what is for me a serious lacking in one aspect of the Mexican surgery experience. I would hope in the future perhaps this is something Dr. Aceves might think about changing.

I feel for you! Though I get what I call a sort of longing with savory luscious smells I really have not been hungry since surgery. I think that will start to happen for you too. It is important not to take it personally- I really cannot blame my husband and son for filling the house with cooking smells- they have not had surgery and though they really try to be thoughtful and eat in other rooms I would rather hang out with my husband , at leat for his main meals. Your sister and her daughter are really not trying to hurt you- they are just doing what they do! You don;t do that now because YOU are going to lose a ton of weight! Just keep your eye on the prize- and once the hunger hormone clears out of your system I think you will find it easier. Seriosuly - when you ate like they do you got to the point where you chose this life altering surgery and just remember you will soon be able to have anything you want, just tiny portions of it. Here's a sympathy hug!!!! As a funny side note- I got in the car the other day to go to my post-op appt. and discovered my husband had FILLED the car with snacks- movie theater popcorn, jelly Beans, licorice, chocolate, crackers- he wanted to do it when he was out doing errands, etc. to spare me so there it was- a rolling snack mobile!

600 calories is not a lot.I don't know what food stage you are on since everyone's plan is so different- but I think you would be fine having a high protein low carb snack as long as you don't go to bed right after. I think it is good to have your intake go up and down to keep your body from going into conserve mode.

I have been doing 3 scoops of a 15/per scoop Protein powder , the morning, then about 32 more at lunch (I am still on liquids) and then need only get 10 or so to be nicely over goal. The GNC Wheybolic Extreme 60 sounds enticing with 6 in 3 scoops but I think I remember reading that there is only so much protein you absorb in one consumption. Does anyone know? This is particularly pertinent for me as I am starting mushies Monday and would love to have one shake and try to get my protein from the mushies after that,

Girl if I had known you were only doing RTD! I have not found one yet that did not disgust me. With the powders you can change it up- add decaf, or your own preference of milks- vanilla, sugar free syrups- and eventually- banana! I am so glad you found one you like- I was worried because getting lots of protein is definitely one of the lynchpins of the weightloss. Hooray! I am going to try to be good tomorrow and stay on my liquids until Monday. I guess it is another test of my will! I got the tastiest cream of chicken Soup at Harry's- I got two quarts and will have the starined stuff tonight and tomorrow and then blend the whole soup Monday. It is so delish! Onward!