Lissa

blonde, I'm working on motivation, too. Right now, I'm using the thought of being off one of my meds and getting rid of the Bi-pap as motivation to work hard for my Christmas goal. I want to reach 280 early enough for my doctor to schedule me for a sleep study this year, since that means I won't have to pay the $250 deductible for it. I got extra motivation today to keep doing my walking. I got into a pair of pants that have not fit me in over 8 years!

I'm at 2.5 months out and my hardest change has been not drinking with meals and giving up diet soda. Good luck!

At 3 days post-op, Water is your main goal. Try to get some liquid Protein in, but most folks are still working on learning how to drink again. My doc told me to concentrate on water and get protein in as I could. It WILL get easier fairly quickly, so you won't starve. As the other poster said, try to mix protein into anything you can stand, but broth is a decent source...and it's where I got most of my protein while on liquids. Good luck with your journey!!

Congrats!! Welcome to the loser's bench! I'm scooting over to make room for you, no, not that far...you don't need as much room now.

Thomas, Thank you for that list! I use the treadmill and exercise bike at my apartment complex, but wondered what else I could be doing. Those are some great ideas and I will be printing your post!

Deenah, Step away from the angry pills. What you are going through is normal. I think everyone has some issues they must work through, both before and after surgery. It makes it tougher because we all think the surgery is going to magically transform us (and it does!), but it's not instant. We have to go through a bit of pain and adjustment before things start looking better. Just concentrate on recovering from surgery right now. Drink you Water, walk as much as you can, and try to get some Protein into your sleeve. Try not to think about what you "gave up", but concerntrate on what you're gaining: health, better body image, help to lose the weight. Those things are incredible! Once you are past the initial pain and back on your feet, you will feel better. The anger will pass. If you really need help after you're through the first bit of recovery, maybe you should make an appt with a therapist. But, I'm betting you will be fine in just a few days. Right now you are sleep deprived, hurting and maybe a bit mad at yourself because you didn't do this "alone". You will be doing it alone. The sleeve is a tool and, while it's incredibly helpful, it's still only a tool for the weight loss. Imagine yourself in a few months, thinner than now, able to move better (that will be weeks, not months, btw), with fewer health problems. Imagine seeing the looks you get from others when they realize that the skinny chick walking by is YOU! It will be worth it. Good luck on your journey!!

I lost 13 pounds pre-op, then started dropping weight like it was a game. I really noticed about a week and a half out when my undies fell off of me. Take pre-op pics and measurements. You will see the difference VERY quickly once you have the surgery. My AHA moment came when I took a pic of my face and compared it to my pre-op face pic. What a difference!

I'm actually cooking for T-day this year, so I am making it easy on myself. I'll be cooking a turkey breast, making deviled eggs, and stuffing. If anyone wants something different, or more, they'll need to bring it. I can have the turkey and eggs, and a little stuffing if I have room. Since it will be me, my son and husband, and a few very close friends, I sat down and figured out what I really wanted to eat from the traditional dinner. I've always done the huge feast and had tons of leftovers, but I don't want to deal with them for weeks. I offered to cook more, but noone else wants a ton of leftovers either. If I have leftover turkey, that's easy to deal with. The eggs and stuffing will undoubtedly be gone that day. I'm not making mashed taters, pies, or cakes. I don't need the temptation from them. If someone else brings them, they can take the uneaten food home with them. I'm just NOT that into food this year. Can you tell?

Okay, so I finally broke down and did the online food logger. I've been using a book, but noticed that I often "forgot" to write down my Water or food. I'm Lissa912 on there, if anyone is interested. My question is this: I'm not trying to keep my calories to a specific limit right now. I'm still tracking water in and Protein (64 oz of water, 70 g of protein). I stuck 1,000 calories in there because that seemed like a nice round number...and the program is having a fit. Every time I log in, it tells me that I'm eating too few calories and I need to eat more to stay out of starvation mode. Having lost 55 pounds so far, I don't think my body is in starvation mode, but SHOULD I be adding more calories each day? If so, how on earth do I add them? I am literally making myself eat now to get my protein. I'm not avoiding anything specific, except bread, rice and Pasta, because they all make me feel way too full very fast. I can use that space for protein instead. Also, I'm looking for sleeve-friendly veggies that are NOT dark green, leafy veggies. I'm on Coumadin and the green stuff I love makes my Coumadin readings go through the roof. I've done steamed carrots until I'm about to start going "What's up doc?" I need some ideas here. And, I need to know if I should just up the number on MFP and then eat what I need, ignoring it's comments?

Egg Face's Ricotta Bake IS to die for! (Grammar police, ignore the preceding sentence, thanks!) That Ricotta bake is still on my menu. It's quick and easy to make and it tastes great. I'm avoiding most refined carbs, so it's a great substitute when I think I'd really like spaghetti or lasagna for dinner. And, it's HIGH Protein as well. Yummy. As for the tilapia, if anyone has a Save A Lot nearby, I found individually bagged 8 oz servings of Tilapia for 99 cents there. Well, that's about 2 meals for me, whicdh means I'm paying 50 cents for a meal! YAY

Yay! It sounds like you are doing great! Welcome to the loser's bench!!

I have a congenital birth defect, so I'm used to educating doctors about medical issues. My picture is in their textbooks from the research that has been done on my defect. You may not have better luck with another doctor as far as them knowing about VSG, but, you may want a doctor who listens to you better than this one does. Have you asked your surgeon for a referral to a new PCP? S/he may know someone who works better with sleeve patients than your current doc.

I agree with those above. Protein drinks/broth/liquids for the pre-op liquid diet and for a week after surgery, then I moved on to adding in scrambled eggs, pureed soups, and other mushy foods. Then I was able to slowly add in softer foods until I hit my 5 week mark. After that I can have almost anything I want. I eat ribs, chicken, tuna, shrimp, Protein Bars and cheese. I can't drink milk right now, but cheese is going down okay again. My one piece of advice is don't overbuy on the Protein shakes or mixes because so many people find that they can't handle the flavor after surgery.

Welcome, Firefly. There is a ton of info on this site for you to explore. Any question you can think of has probably been asked and answered here. Looking forward to seeing you on the loser's bench!

Favored one, I can't imagine how much you're going to ROCk that sleeve. But, I want you to know that I love seeing your picture every time I come across your posts. You have the most beautiful smile on your face. I don't know what was up the day that photo was taken, but I hope it happens a lot for you!! You'll be on the loser's bench really soon, and I can't wait to scoot over to make room for you!

Good luck! I'm excited for you!!

Welcome to the loser's bench, both you and your sister!! Good luck on your journey!!

Um, Diva? I share your story regularly with folks. You started where I started, pretty much, and I hope to end up where you're at now. You give me hope, etc., etc.

I think everyone knows "someone" for whom WLS didn't work, or cause deep emotional pain, or the "someone" had horrible complications. My friend's sister in law had RNY and has had horrible complications, but, here's the thing, she's not compliant with her diet, Water intake, or exercise...and she certainly hasn't spent any time on a therapist's couch to find out what drove her to get so heavy in the first place! I'm not saying that therapy is a requirement for WLS, because many people do fine without a therapist. But, some of us have issues that go way beyond our weight. Every person, fat or thin, is subject to a cheating spouse, a bad relationship, or bad decisions. Those things don't happen because we had or didn't have WLS. They happen because we are people and we are humans living in a big, bad world. :::shrug::: There is a huge mental aspect to having WLS. That's why most doctors require a psyche evaluation before you have WLS. It's to possibly steer those who need extra help to someone who can help them. Even if we aren't told we need therapy, it's a great idea to try to work through our issues before the surgery. And there's a lot of mental work to do even after the surgery. Anyway, my original point was that there are always going to be horror stories. Each of us has to figure out how we are going to deal with them. My response is usually "Thanks for telling me. I feel I made a good choice for me." I do have sympathy for those who have major problems after WLS, but it saved MY life. I can't say that I'd be alive right now if I hadn't started dumping the weight. Many WLS patients have similar stories to tell about how losing the weight helped them improve their medical conditions. Good luck on your journey!!

New Life, Good luck in the morning! You will have a rough couple of days, but it's not that bad...and the benefits are amazing! I know it's a little early, but welcome to the loser's bench!

M2G, I hear you on the Biotin. I just decided to be as proactive as I could be to try and stave off hair loss...and to give me an edge if it does start. I hope it helps. My hair is pretty thick, so other people probably won't realize I'm losing it either. My big worry is having a huge bald spot like a gal that came to our support group meeting. She had her hair dyed very dark brown and her pink scalp showed way too well. I'm also lightening mine again, as much to cover the gray as anything else.

throwing up isn't normal, IMO. Are you trying to eat red meat? Some folks have a hard time with that for awhile. I haven't tried steak yet, just chicken, pork and seafood. Are you sure you're chewing enough? If it's not totally mushy, like applesauce, it could be that the meat isn't fitting into your sleeve. Are you sure you're ready for the meat you're eating? If something is too spicy, Rex (my sleeve) lets me know quick that he doesn't like it. For me, spicy can be defined as too much pepper on something. Also, I'm lactose intolerant these days. Are you putting cheese or sour cream on the meat or in your meal? If so, your body could be rejecting the dairy product and not the meat. Maybe give yourself a few days, then try meat again. My surgeon's guide says that anytime we throw up, it's time to regress a stage for a few days. If waiting a few days doesn't make it easier to keep meat down, then a call to the doctor might be in order. Since you can eat seafood, maybe you should stick to that for a bit until your sleeve gets a little more healed? Good luck on your journey!!

I haven't lost any hair yet. I started Biotin at 2 months out and I'm religious (now) about getting my protein in daily.

Gee, The 3 week stall is VERY real. I don't know the scientific explanation either, but I truly believe it's related to your body going into starvation mode. Once your body accepts that you won't be giving it the tons of food we were giving it before, then the stall will break. And, you'll stall every now and again because you're eating too much, or not eating enough, or not moving enough, or moving so much that your body is converting fat to muscle. However, overall, you (we) will lose weight. I'm stuck just under the 300 mark right now and have been here for a week or so. However, I'm exercising more than ever, just added treadmill tonight, yay me! I can feel my clothes getting loser and I'm betting things are shifting for you as well. I broke my 3 week stall by ADDING food to my diet, instead of subtracting. I added in a few carbs and added more Water. TMI, then I started going regularly. I happen to love the days I go, because I immediately see the results in the scale. Many years ago, a friend of mine told me that the weight we lose doesn't magically evaporate...it has to go somewhere. So, every bodily function uses up some of that: sweating, breathing, and potty times all rid the body of it's excesses. It was a DUH moment for me. Good luck on your journey!! You are going to get there...and I can't wait to see your pictures!!

I agree with the other posters. Moving helps to get your insides moving again...not to mention it takes your mind off the pain(s). It also helps your body move Water and food through. Have you gone #2 yet? If not, maybe the pain is related to that. If you have, then it's probably a combination of gas and incision pain. I had some sharp, deep pains that I thought were related to a stent I had installed before and removed after surgery. Also, I'm assuming you're a girl. TOM is much more painful now than it has been in years for me. Could that be the cause of the problem? The pain will pass quickly and you'll be amazed at how well you can move and how fast you lose weight. Good luck on your journey!