Lissa

Don't debate! Call your doctor!!! Sorry for the exclamation points, but you should NOT be in this much pain from your drain or from drinking at this point!!!!!!!! Please, please, please, CALL YOUR DOCTOR NOW!

Oh, and I take Tums for calcium because of other meds that I am taking. Apparently the chewable calcium I bought at GNC is not a good combo with my coumadin and asthma meds.

UGH on liquid Vitamins. I tossed my botte of them! I take a Centrum adult chewable every day, plus a sublingual B12, chewable Tums for calcium and Biotin (small pill). The best places I've found for vitamins are Walgreens and CVS (US drugstores). They often have B1G1 sales on their vitamins, which is nice. Walmart also sells many of the vitamins inexpensively or B1G1. I know nothing about the bariatric versions of vitamins since my nut said that the ones I'm currently taking are fine. I am considering adding magnesium, but haven't fully researched it yet.

It's him. Some guys will try even if you aren't putting that vibe out there. I have a dear (married) friend who is like that. All the gals I know just laugh his attempts off, but he still tries. His saving grace is that he's charming about it, and he's as much of a flirt with his wife around as he is without his wife around. My only suggestion is to accept the flattery and avoid the bedroom, unless you really are interested in having that kind of relationship with him. And, yes, there are some nice men out there, they just aren't usually as outgoing as the Casanova types.

I agree that missing a required element can really affect your energy level. It might be time to review with your nut or your pcp about Vitamins. I felt foggy before I started on my B12 daily, which I was interpreting as exhaustion. I also got kind of lazy about my vitamins last week and didn't take all of them. I hadn't refilled my pill organizer so I was only taking the prescribed meds. I immediately noticed that I had less energy and was extremely cold. I refilled my pill organizer including my vitamins and I'm already feeling the difference! Good luck!!

Even when I was in Ketosis on Atkins last year, I never had blackish stuff on my tongue. I do remember feeling like my breath was awful and trying to avoid sitting close to anyone. I think I brushed my teeth a jillion times during that. I didn't and don't worry about my carb levels now, but there are many folks on here who do watch carbs. Hopefully, some of them will chime in with info.

Anything you can eat at any time of the day is okay for breakfast. I'm not big on breakfast until around 11 am, so I get the choice of breakfast or lunch anyway. If you like them, Protein bars are an easy and different substitute for the breakfast meal. I sometimes eat a mini babybel cheese or a rolled up slice of meat/cheese at "breakfast time" because I have to have something in my tummy before I take my meds. Egg Face has tons of ideas on her blog for yummy things to do with eggs and with Protein shakes. You might visit her and just go through the recipe section for ideas. Good luck! It does seem easy to get in a rut with food, especially when you're still on mushies.

For me, my sleeve likes chicken and doesn't like spicy food. Rex also doesn't like milk products right now, except cheese. Milk makes my have diarrhea, spicy food makes me feel like I'm going to be sick. I've learned very quickly to avoid both, even though I loved them both before surgery. I miss cottage cheese, especially. I used to love to eat it with a lot of pepper mixed into it. Now, it hits BOTH bad buttons! So, likes means that you can eat it without problems. Doesn't like means that you have problems if you eat that food. Some people immediately slime and bring the offending food back up. I haven't had the slimes yet, although I have been over full a few times.

What you say doesn't have to be profound, just honest and from the heart. You WILL get there. It WILL happen. We're keeping a spot warm on the loser's bench for you! Good luck!!

Wow!! That's an awesome loss in such a short time! Keep rocking your sleeve!!

Good luck, Mike!! I really think the differences in our capacity are probably related to your having a somewhat bigger sleeve than I do. According to my surgeon, my stomach was huge before and he made it fairly small because he knew that I had 170 pounds to lose. I hope your dietician can give you some ideas that will help. As for a stall, I think you'll see that moving quickly. I just hate the thought that you are hungry all the time. That is sad, IMO, especially this soon after surgery. Others have lost their weight while feeling hungry, but that's supposed to be on of the bennies of WLS. At least we're not hungry so we can lose. Good luck!!

Fantastic! I'm amazed at how much younger Santa's elf looks this year, too!

Your diet actually doesn't sound bad to me. Are you tracking your food anywhere? I use My Fitness Pal to help me make sure I'm getting my Protein in daily...and I ignore all of its other advice! I'm truly thinking that the Zantac isn't a strong enough acid reducer for you. The only other solution I can find might be the amount of carbs you are able to get in daily. I suggest that you either ease up on the carbs, or replace the bready carbs with veggie carbs like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and, since you're so newly post-op, cooked or steamed veggies. I'd avoid raw veggies for another week or 3. I'd gag if I ate 2 eggs and a piece of toast for breakfast. One egg with about 3/4 of a slice of toast crams my sleeve totally full. Then you have crackers at lunch AND have a potato and veg at dinner? WOW! You must have a sleeve of steel. Your doc may have left you a little bigger because you're a guy, or you had a longer stomach than most to start, which means you'll be able to eat more volume than some others. But, if I'm figuring correctly, you're only 5 weeks out from surgery? I hadn't healed enough to eat a whole egg by then, much less add in a piece of toast. Your volume of food between 8 and 4 seems high to me as well. Remember, though, that I am a person who has never really been able to eat much before 11 am. My typical food day at 3.5 months post op is: 8 am - Mini Babybel light (6g protein) eaten only because I can't take my meds on a totally empty stomach 8:30 am - meds, half a bottle of Water 9 to 11:30- finish that bottle of water, have a cup or two of decaf coffee 11:30 ish - Breakfast or lunch, usually 1 egg, most of a piece of toast or leftover something from dinner the night before: 1 rib and leftover veg; or 3 oz rotisserie chicken with either 2 oz of veggie or a V8 juice. Sometimes I sub the meal with a Protein Bar. 12 to 3- more water, usually flavored with Mio drops. If I want a snack, I'll have another babybel or a couple of bites of the rotisserie chicken 5-7 pm- dinner. I can eat 2 ribs and some veggie or about 3 oz of fish/chicken/pork. Usually I can't get much in here for veggies, maybe 3 or 4 bites of a cooked veggie or 2 bites of a raw one like broccoli or cauliflower. 9-10pm-snack, usually a SF pudding or, like tonight, I'll have a piece of sandwich meat rolled with a slice of real cheese like swiss or muenster. Even with all that, I'm usually between 800 and 1000 calories. I'm not sure what else to suggest, but I hope this helps somewhat.

I have to say WOW!! You look younger, and happier!! Oh, and, yeah, nice countertops!

Something about chewing up a food and spitting it out just strikes me as wrong! LOL Someone here posted a thread about developing an eating disorder after surgery and mentioned the chew/spit cycle as well. I'm really worried about crossover addictions and my mental attachment to food, so chew/spit doesn't sound like something I'd want to get into doing. Also, I had this surgery so I could live a more normal life. Normal people eat what they want, but they have the ability to stop when they are satisfied. That is what/how I want to relate to food. For me, I think it would be unwise to get into the habit of chewing and spitting out my food. I am working to retrain my appetite to want what my body needs.

Ophelia, A pouch test basically has you take yourself back through the stages of your post-op diet. If you google it, you will find the instructions. From what I read, you do a day (maybe two) of Clear liquids, then a day of full liquids, then mushies, then solid foods (perhaps one day of soft solids then one day of denser solids). I believe that both Tiffykins and Lil Miss Diva have posted that they sometimes do a modified version of this to help jump start weight loss after/during a stall. You may be able to find the instructions here on VST.

Cajun Cutie, From what I've read, the hernia repair is pretty painful in and of itself. Your doc gave you enough liquid meds for 10 days because that's how long he expects most people to need them, and you may need it for that whole time. Keep sipping and walking as much as you can. That will help handle the pain from the sleeve, but the hernia pain is out of my league. I was very thankful that I did not have one that needed repair. My surgeon told me that a hernia repair would increase the pain level a lot! Oh, and there is no blue ribbon awarded for not taking your pain meds. If you need them, take them. There is enough to deal with right after being sleeved without adding pain to the equation! Good luck with your journey!!

DMike, what are you eating? You should be up to either mushies or solids by now, depending on your surgeon's plan. If you are actively staying under 800 calories a day, I can see why you're hungry. However, 23 pounds since Halloween is amazing, that's only 5 weeks, so you're averaging about 4 pounds a week. As for the hunger, you really should talk to your doc about a PPI like Prilosec. Perhaps your stomach is producing more acid than normal at this stage. Also, you could try doing a pouch test and see if that resets the hungry vibe. I haven't done one myself, but several people here swear by them. food...ah, the conundrum, how to get in enough Protein and still eat other foods. You should be on a multi-Vitamin daily to help with nutrient deficiencies. Nutrient deficiencies can make your body feel hungry because it's wanting something you aren't giving it. I had a major salt craving last week and OD'd myself on 10 olives and 3 small pickles. Then my tummy complained for the rest of the night about all that vinegar! LOL What kind of protein are you eating? I am particularly happy with rotisserie chicken right now, especially the lemon pepper flavor. It's soft, so easy to chew, and it's dense, so it keeps my tummy full for a long time. I recently tried steak for the first time since surgery and that kept me full for quite a while as well. Are you getting any carbs at all? I know that lots of folks try to avoid eating a lot of carbs, but your body probably needs some carbs to burn daily. See if adding in some carbs help with the empty feeling. A piece of toast may be enough (or too much since you're so early post-op). I ate a lot of instant mashed taters with my early mushy foods. I don't eat them as much now, but they helped keep me feeling full back then. Of course "a lot" is a relative term. I'd have under an ounce of mashed at any one time, along with my 2 or 3 ounces of protein. Another thing I do is to keep mini babybel cheeses on hand. I'll eat one of those if I'm hungry and it usually keeps me full until my next meal time. Most mornings, one of those is my "breakfast". I just can't face real food until after 11 am, it seems. I wish you luck in this. It does take a little while to figure out what your sleeve will handle, but it is so worth it when you do. Good luck in your journey!!

I had my drain line for 8 days and it never hurt unless I accidently caught the stitch that held it in place on something. I was told specifically NOT to milk the line as well. I emptied the bulb morning and night by just turning it upside down over the sink, squeezing the contents out, then rolled the bulb up (to keep air out) and closed the stopper. I agree that a call to your doctor is in order. There could be something seriously wrong since you are having pain. I couldn't feel the tubing inside me, either. When my doc took the drain out, he had me take a deep breath and then he pulled it quickly. The sensation was kind of like the tummy drop you get on a roller coaster, but it wasn't painful at all. I did have a bandage over the opening for several days after the drain came out, but that's it. It is my slowest healing incision, but the opening is completely healed over with pink skin where the drain was at. Please call your doctor right away! This could be serious.

I've been considering yoga and pilates myself. I'm still a little too big to do much serious running, and I'm not sure if my knees will tolerate that once I lose weight anyway. So, I'm looking to build up my core muscles especially. I'll probably get a couple of beginner's videos and see if either (or both) work for me. Hopefully someone with more knowledge will answer us both.

You know, most of us didn't have surgery to attract more attention from the opposite sex, but that attention certainly feeds the ego, doesn't it? I would call your experience a success story! And, seeing your picture, I see why he is tripping all over himself trying to get a peek at you! You're beautiful!!

Thanks, guzel! I'm finally starting to like pictures of me. My face is definitely showing my progress faster than any part of my body! I'm still happy dancing for favored one!!!

I don't remember craving anything when I was first post-op, which may mean that my brain has wiped those memories. I do remember dreading how much Water I had to try to drink because I couldn't find anything I liked to flavor the water with, and plain water doesn't have much taste. Now I use Mio drops in my water because I can put a tiny bit in there rather than having it super sweet. I watched a ton of food Network in the early days, but now I just check out the couple of shows I like and stay away from it otherwise. Most of the food didn't really appeal to me, and I love to watch Guy Fieri, because he and I do NOT have the same tastes in food! I can watch him and not be tempted, which is good. If you aren't already on an acid reducer, make sure you add one to your routine. I didn't think I needed one, but once my doc replaced my Calcium with Tums, I discovered that I wasn't hungry either. The head hunger takes a little longer, and completely goes away (for me) once you are on mushies and then solid foods again. I think it went away for me because I refuse to tell myself that I can't have what I want, but I concentrate on getting my Protein in first. Good luck on your journeys!! This is the hardest part, but it's also where the fastest weight loss happens for most of us.

Refried Beans are great, and you can sneak little bits of extra Protein in there with some ground beef or some cheese. Even pureed this still tastes yummy. Egg Face's Ricotta Bake does not require blending because it's already really soft, and it is DELICIOUS! My son and I still eat that sometimes. He puts his over Pasta, but it tastes just like lasagna and has no pasta in it. Wendy's chili is good pureed. If it's too spicy for you, you can always add a little tomato sauce to it. You won't be able to eat/drink a whole small one, anyway. Bean with bacon Soup was pretty good to me, and didn't really require a puree. I just mushed it up with my spoon, and I only ate a couple of ounces out of the whole can. You can thin it more with broth or Water and it hides the taste of unflavored Protein powder pretty well if you want a big protein wallop. I also pureed up some dinty moore beef stew..and, I'll be honest, I ate a couple of chunks of that meat without pureeing it, but I chewed REALLY well. One small can lasted me several days. I used broth to puree up a little of the meat we had for dinner a couple of nights, although that tasted a little like baby food to me. I've heard of people pureeing all kinds of things that I never would have thought about, from slices of pizza to turkey and dressing. I bought a magic bullet specifically to use for post op blending and it worked out really well. We still use it sometiimes to make Protein shakes, so it was definitely money well spent, IMO. Good luck!!

I finally had someone question me on "can you eat that?" yesterday. I ate half of a small brownie that someone made at work, maybe one bite, and one of the salespeople asked me if I was "allowed" to eat that! LOL I explained to her that I am "allowed" to eat anything I want to eat, just not in large quantities. Privately I was thinking that I have barely hit 700 calories in weeks, so that one bite of brownie wasn't going to "blow" my calorie allowance, and I was right. As for other women competing, I SO get that. One of my good friends is under five feet tall and normally weighs about 110-115. She's now on a "diet" and has lost 7 pounds or so. She tells me that her 7 pounds is "like" me losing 50 pounds, it's so hard! While I admire that she's trying to keep her weight where she wants it, it seems silly to me that she went on this diet at the same time I had surgery. She's also enrolled in a kick boxing class and has taken up jogging with her two daughters. I keep reminding myself that being healthier won't hurt her, but I hate the underlying competition I hear when she talks about this new lifestyle she's started. Oh well, I suppose I should just be happy that I've inspired her to get her health back on track.