Chimera

yay! Sending healing vibes your way Patrick, may your gas pain go away quickly and hope you are home with your family soon!

I am 47 and I was well prepared after a year of prep for this - May 21st was my surgery day and it was like I was hit by a Mack truck lol. Lots of complications and it is taking ages for energy to return - then two weeks ago I injure my knee so severely I cannot bear weight on it and am back at the hospital for more medical shenanigans. I am close to 6 weeks out and sloooowly mending. My husband who is younger than I had his sleeve done two weeks prior to mine and is now like superman lol - everyone is different I guess. I can absolutely relate to slow recovery and adjustment. My energy is returning and still trying to reconcile to food + mouth + stomach size issues that come once you are on solids (learning to teach my mouth that no, you cannot eat that much food lol) and getting used to feeling every ache and pain now that we cant use NSAIDS.

A very popular shake is the Premier Protein shake you can get at Costco. For the chocolate flavor it is 160 cals, 30 g protein, 5 g. carb, and 3 fat I believe, the vanilla has 3 g. carbs. They are RTD in paper boxes and one of the more palatable protein shakes of the baskillion brands I have tried, they also give the biggest protein bang for the buck and believe me, you need it post op. If I have a hard time with them I mix it with a lactose free milk (I am not a person who likes sweets at all, so getting protein shakes in is a chore for me) The goals my team has for their sleeve patients is 600-800 cals per day, 80-100 g of protein, and 48-64 oz or water per day. They dont mention carbs and fat too much, because the rule is always protein first, and if you follow that rule, there is no room for much in the way of carbs., I don't worry about fat. I am lucky if I can hit 60 g of protein post op - it really can be tough to do early on - I am 6 weeks out from surgery on Monday. Best of luck on the pre-op liquid phase, it can be rough - do not be surprised if your tastebuds change dramatically after surgery, mine did and all of my tasting research was not as helpful as I had hoped because basically everything tasted bad lol. Unjury protein chicken soup became my best friend post surgery

My husband and I are very happy with the gang at Swedish - they are a great group of folks. If you ever go to the saturday support group meetings (2nd saturday of the month) maybe I will see you there

What a wonderful story Hello fellow Washington sleevers! I have a pal who is going to the puget sound center next week to get started and I had my VSG on May 21st with Ross McMahon and am doing well - my husband had one as well 2 weeks before me and he is doing just phenomenally. thanks for sharing your great story of improved health and vitality!

I am so sorry about this news for you and your family - be strong and know that if you were not doing this - they would not have found it. Keeping you in my prayers.

Mine said at least 6. The scabs over the incisions have to have fallen off naturally and the scars completely healed. I am dying to get in my tub all the way lol.

You could call my surgeon's office - they are awesome! I know the folks who do the bloodwork and labs is Labcorp. I hope they can help http://www.swedish.org/Services/Weight-Loss-Services#axzz1ym0klnMb

Thank you so much guys I was really nervous about pain, especially since we cannot take any NSAIDS. The orthopedists have been prescribing more oxycodone and I was wondering what I should consider for pain meds when this flares up. Funny thing is how much more painful this is than the surgery and aftermath was - no contest.

Feeling pretty good after surgery, had been enjoying a tiny bit more energy and taking walks and suddenly last Monday my left knee stiffened up pretty significantly. By Tuesday morning I was completely immobile - to the extent that we were back in the ER (sigh). After x-rays, which can't really see much, they said it looks like my kneecap is very thin, lots of bone chips and spurs in there, and just about bone on bone. They also suggested I may have both a meniscus tear and an ACL tear - After another appointment with an orthopedic surgeon on Thursday, he diagnosed severe degenerative osteoarthritis (sigh) - I have an appointment on Wednesday morning for an MRI take a look at the soft tissues and ligaments. There was no event/accident that triggered the injury. I hope that things may be resolved with physical therapy rather than surgery - I have had ligament reconstruction done on the opposite ankle and the recovery time for me was significant and that was 25 years ago at a 100 lbs. less than I am now. I am thinking that a lifetime of being heavy, bearing the weight of injuries on the right side, and a job that had me on my feet 11 hours a day for 22 years has finally taken its toll. The WL has slowed down a little bit because I can hardly move right now - but I am not worried a bout that at all. I am wondering if anyone here has also experienced musculo-skeletal issues post vsg and how you handled them.

Yay

Whoa - I am lucky if I can get through 1/3 of one egg without feeling I have had a full Thanksgiving dinner. I would call your Dr.

A lot of times we would use our "special shampoo" prior to chemical treatments on clients - this was dishwashing liquid and baking soda Sometimes the buildup is so much so that you need to chelate quite a bit over time - a few times a week for a month - followed by a good conditioner. You also see the same type of buildups with chlorine and the minerals from well Water - when wet your hair feels almost gritty, and it is very easy to tangle. Ultraswim products are also good chelators. This also helps get rid of the post-surgical chemical smell if anyone still has that.

At first it is pretty tough to swallow much of anything but like Legal Loser above me - it has taken just about 4 weeks to get up to 64 oz. Just do your best and try hard to get in as much as possible at first. Your tastes may change drastically with surgery so it is good to have a variety of things on hand to consume after surgery - protein drinks I loved prior to surgery made me wretch post, so the protein chicken soup is what saved me the first couple of weeks. I used to like everything room temperature - now drinks have to be ice cold. I think because it helps with the aspartame after taste for me.

It can also be your body ridding itself of surgery stuff - i.e. anesthesia. I was a haircolorist for 20+ years and it can really be a p.i.t.a. after surgery. I usually recommend mixing a coupe of table spoons of baking soda into your shampoo to make a paste and let it sit you your hair for a bit once a week. This is called a chelating treatment and helps scavenge the icky substances that our bodies are ridding themselves of.

Welcome! As you know there is a massive amount of information here and a wonderful group of supportive members to help you on your journey with vsg. Best board ever

Got this in my email this morning from Unjury - a good reminder to myself to keep on working on getting my protein and calorie numbers up after surgery. SYMPTOMS OF INSUFFICIENT PROTEIN Everything in your body is made with protein. There’s nothing in your body you can make with just carbohydrate and fat. Your hair, skin, muscles, brain, heart, organs, blood, bones...every cell is made with protein. What happens when you don’t get enough? A doctor we know works with patients who haven’t gotten enough protein in their diet for years. She said that after surgery on those patients and she is putting in the stitches, “It’s like trying to sew wet tissue paper”. What are the symptoms of insufficient protein ? 1. Fatigue and/or weakness. Not just the feeling that we didn’t get enough sleep last night, but deep fatigue...or weakness where it’s hard to get through the day. 2. Weight loss plateau. When we don’t get enough protein, medical research indicates that the body tries to store calories rather than burning them. 3. Hair loss. We believe it is often preventable with enough protein. 4. Surgical complications. Is there surgery in your future? For many, the answer is yes. The best single numerical predictor of how well a surgery will go is your protein status. And, your body will heal slowly, sometimes very slowly, if your protein status is low. These symptoms can also be caused by other things, so it is always good to ask your doctor. You can get back on track. Here’s what one UNJURY customer wrote: “My protein levels were really low my first trip back to the doctor... It was at 6 or 8 when I went in August...At that time, I hadn't started using UNJURY. I was told to increase my protein to try and bring it up.... At the end of October and my (protein level) was normal and up to 18.9 ! look what (UNJURY’s) done for me.”

I didn't end up using anything and I was there a week. Didn't read my Kindle - but I did use my phone when hubby brought it to me. Bought a nice new robe - used it at home not at the hospital. You could bring a toothbrush and paste - but they have that too lol.

I am one month out next week - my diet was advanced this past week. Lets see yesterday I had a Premier Protein shake for breakfast (breakfast lasts a couple of hours, it takes a long time to get through that shake now lol.) Later on I had 1/4 c homemade chicken salad (the 1/3 C is too much food for me right now) - I can eat about 1/8th C and have to take a break and can hopefully finish with in the next 30 minutes, because then I am on to really wanting to have a drink and it can be a challenge to wait 45-50 minutes. For a snack I had about an ounce each of deli turkey and sharp cheddar cheese - very satisfying. dinner was a one egg omelette with shredded sharp cheddar. And my last snack was about 1/4 C greek yogurt and 2 prunes (trying to keep things moving) This was along with all of my Vitamins and meds and about 55 oz of Water - still working hard to keep hydrated. As many have mentioned the amount of food that you can no longer consume is astonishing - I was laughing to my husband this morning that if I was to even attempt to try and gain back the weight that I have lost I would have no clue how to do it - other than maybe eat spoonfuls of caramel sauce every hour lol. It just isnt possible to get the volume in. I do find that I am enjoying my meals much more now that the weird post sugery "everything tastes like heck" phase is fading. So far the sleeve is a remarkable tool I think you will find what works for you once you are post op and try out some different things, everyone is different - it is a whole different world when you no longer need to feed the hunger/volume beast.

Just know that the process has already begun! You are on your way and just take things one day at a time. For some folks (like my husband for example) the process is very fast - I had a very long journey before my recent vsg - my family went to the seminar on April 13, 2011 - I finally had my surgery on may 21, 2012. Just the way work schedules work out and the 6 month MWL requirement (which they changed and eliminated the month after I finished my 6 months lol.) can sometimes push the surgery out. I am grateful for the time I had prior to surgery to learn and plan and try out lots of different Proteins and Vitamins. I lost 44 lbs pre-op, which is 44 more lbs. I dont have to lose after surgery Hang in there, everyday is a bit closer!

Here are my doc's recommendations on supplements: Multivitamin mineral supplement - bariatric specific or 200% dose of standard multivitamin. Should be 100% of at least 2/3 nutrients. Should contain at least 400 IU of Vitamin D, 400 mcg folic acid, 1.2 mg thiamine B-1, 15 mg zinc, and 18-27 mg. Iron. It should also contain copper and selenium. If you take 200%, it should not exceed 10,000IU Vitamin A, or 1,000 mg (1500IU) of vitamin E. Elemental Iron - ASMBS guidelines call for a minimum of 36 mg per day. For menstruating women or those at risk of anemia total intake should be 50-100 mg per day. B-50 complex daily - the B50's I take are Bariatric Advantage in capsule form and have 50 mg each of thiamine, riboflavin, and niacin and 400 mcg of folate, 250 mcg of B12, 500 mcg Biotin, and 50 mg of pantotheric acid. also contains choline 25 mg, inositol 25 mg. B-12 - 500 micrograms per day or 1,000 microgram injection monthly calcium citrate - 1,500 to 2,000 mg calcium citrate Vitamin D: Dose dependent on labs - since we are in Seattle I am still taking 10,000 IU's a day in liquid form.

the bariatric chicken soups and the proti-diet fruity drink mixes helped me.

So beautiful I have hope that this immediate post surgical phase will fade away soon enough and I will have more energy soon. You are an inspiration!

I had surgery on the 21st as well and am still creeping along - hoping energy comes back soon. I too think I am a pretty slow healer, I go in for my 3 week check up today so it will be nice to see how how I am doing and have my diet advanced and find out when I can take a swim in the tub I am down just shy of 20 lbs since surgery so far. Good luck guys - from what I hear this gets easier as time passes

From what I know of bariatric surgeries - the vsg and the Duodenal Switch are the procedures that remove the stomach. The vsg is technically the first part of the DS sugery, and is now a stand alone surgery.