Mrs.Newme

I have a recipe, it was prior to my sleeve, but it does taste pretty good. Hopefully you like it. But based on the ingredients and the amoutn, you will probably have a bunch of leftovers. 1 can of albacore tuna 1 small onion 1 can of cream of mushroom Soup 1/2 soup can of low-fat milk Salt & Pepper Olive oil Butter season 1 small can of peas toasted bread with healthy spread dice up onion and brown in olive oil, salt & pepper to taste. Add butter season if you like flavor. drain peas, drain tuna. add cream of mushroom soup, 1/2 can of milk to pan with onion mix add tuna, add peas Heat until near boiling, stirring occasionally When heated, put on top of toast. The toast soaks it up and gets really mushy, but this is very flavorful. Save leftovers for later or feed rest to family/friends drain can of

I was told no straws and was very bothered by this. For 2 or 3 years now I have been drinking about 64 ounces of water a day. I drank it through my own bottle so I would not waste plastic in the landfill. I know I am not getting enough water in, and that bothers me. I tried a straw for a couple of days and did okay, but now for the last two days, when I used a straw I want to vomit.

I read somewhere on either this forum or another forum to not fret if the pounds are not coming off right away. The pounds may not shed right away, but the inches probably are. One thing I did not do prior to my surgery was measure my inches on my legs, hip, bust etc. There have been a couple of days where I looked at the scale and said...Oh My...I didn't lose a pound...I gained one. I even wondered if it was a stall. I don't think it was. The reason I say this is.... While my pounds may not pour off, my thighs are not as tight with obesiosity (not even sure if that is a word). My pants are loose. My face is a bit thinner. I know for certain there are going to be moments where a pound or two does not come off right away, but I am not going to stress about that. I would rather stress about something like ...am I getting enough protien in so I don't have hair loss. Will I have enough energy to get through the day. I can't speak to other surgeries because my health conditions were such that I could not have them. I too tried the weight loss drugs, the diet changes, everything, and trust me, not eating some of my favorite foods in the world sucks. To Sunshine62103, I don't know that total hunger will ever go away. I do know if I overeat I feel terrible in my esophagus, which is what this surgery does. It does not allow for excess. Walking. That helps me. Walking and keeping busy. I think I took only a week off of work. I know that is nuts, but I would rather be at work occupied than at home thinking about food or things that are not good for me. Once I get the clearance, I will be working out like crazy. Until then, I am walking, walking, and more walking.

Likewise....if you bothered to even read most of what I wrote. Don't take out of context my original post please. Sunshine62103 asked for people to reply. I replied and was attacked for what I found to help me.

Hello fellow sleevers, I am interested in knowing what was your schedule diet progression after your sleeve, and what if any complications/problems you had with yours. Thank you. I posted mine below for comparison: Sleeve Day-Ice chips only Post-op Day 1-3: Clear liquids only Post-op Day 4- 6:Protein drinks with low fat milk or Water only Post-op Day 7-13: Full liquids with Protein Drinks Post-op Day 14-20: pureed with protien drinks Post-op Day 21-34: Soft with protein drinks (only one item per day may be added) Post-op Day 35 and on: Regular with only one item a day added in.

This thread is hilariously awesome!

I have one thing that I use real sugar in, and that is my coffee. I will not use fake sugar in my coffee. I have one cup of coffee a day and Water the rest of the day. What i have found though, if I have something sweet with alot of sugar, I do tend to have dumping syndrome which is not pleasant. I think it just goes through me faster or something.

Wow....it seems as though there is a lot of variety on how to progress, but the consistency is proteins and slowly adding. Thank you everyone for sharing.

Thank you for sharing that. I have been curious if part of the reason for the excessive acid is from the procedure itself. I know they use a bougie for making the staple line stiff, and I can't help but think that irritation plus the small size of the stomach with normal acid production is part of it. I have been on prilosec for 3 months. I had been diagnosed with small erosions/ulcers from my scope, but never had stomach upset or reflux. This whole gastric reflux is something new. The only head hunger I have head has been from thinking of a slice of pizza or a coney dog. I'm sick of mashed potatoes and pureed foods. I miss chewing. Thanks again.

I wish I could give feedback to you on this. I had my own requirements by my insurance company. I met all of them, but one of their particulars was you had to be over a 40 BMI which I was. Plus a psych eval and the PCP approval. Good luck. It is nice that you have been able to see the effects of this personally at home with your spouse, and you have someone there who understands what you will be going through. My husband lost weight, but only because I am not cooking right now.

I'm glad you are well. That has got to be scary. Hang in there.

Susan, It is good to hear from people who have had years out. With your excess acid production, have you found specific Proteins to keep it at bay? And did you have heartburn prior to your surgery? Do you still struggle with hunger?

Okay...this is going to be TMI, and I am sorry for that. I was one of those individuals who had problems initially with explosive diarrhea. It was so bad I thought I was going to dehydrate. Then I went onto full liquids, and had the absolute opposite problem. I spoke with my surgeons office and they told me I could take peri-colace. The only problem I have with this is that it can be habit forming and will cause problems with bowel patterns. I have learned that mira-lax is very gentle and it does work and is non-habit forming. It seems like bowel issues are definitely part of the changes that come along, but also don't forget if you were getting narcotic pain relievers and are still taking them, they too will cause constipation. Water is one of the most natural things for constipation though.

Wow! You look great. I had a similar problem, serious arthritis led to weight gain and I was also muscular, but shorter. I have wondered the same thing...thanks for posting this because I am curious as to the elasticity factor too.

If the reaction you are talking about is feeling like the food is lodged in your esophagus, I totally relate. I found that today. I had mushy veggies in minestrone soup and thought it was going to lodge there forever. So what I did was put my jacket and shoes on and walked outside for about half an hour. That helped me digest it better. Terrible feeling though.

Let me ask this, do those who start on soft foods at day 15, do you stall with your weight loss?

It will happen. i know it will. My surgery was necessary because of my arthritis. The 20 pounds I have already lost have made a huge difference, I am not in constant pain like I was before. I was very scared too, but am very glad I went through it. This is a great site for support. Good luck!

owwwwww

This is a strong debate on another thread. I've had similar experiences when hungry or when lying flat. Prior to my sleeve, I rarely had heartburn. When I did it was due to a direct cause, such as pregnancy with my last child or some type of food that didn't sit right with me. I've found acids do come up rather quickly and have done some investigating into reasons for acid reflux when I didn't experience this before. There are times where it is stronger for me: 1) when I am hungry 2) when I wake in the morning and am lying completely flat 3) when I take in too much and the sleeve tells me nope...it isn't going to fit. I can't speak to your antidepressants, but have you contacted your surgeon to see if its okay to take them in the am? Or maybe take them with something like your Protein drink? I kind of look at my sleeve like a narrow soda bottle, if you overfill it will back up explosively. If there is not enough items to balance teh acids, the same thing occurs. I have to take OTC prilosec, but doesn't stop the gastric secretions completely. But the Protein Drink soothes. I have also found a sf mint helps also with soothing the burn. Good luck.

Oregon, I am curious, did your surgeon want you to have a week of pureed as well? In one of the nutrition classes I had to attend, one of many, the nutritionist and surgeon advocated for an extra week of restrictions in the form of pureeds. They had indicated they had added this and it seemed to help their patients better. I am curious is this is the norm. I am looking forward to chewing food again.

Oh my...that sounds kind of scary. If I was experiencing something like that, I would call my surgeon, but I would also clean with soap and Water only. From what I understand peroxide is damaging to skin, so soap and water is currently the recommended thing for cleaning a wound, but I would think the surgeon would know best. When I was sent home, I was told to watch for fever, streaks, redness or swelling or any odor or drainage. I was very fortunate to not need a drain, and my surgeon did not use staples to close me. He used stitches that dissolve and closed the edges of my skin with medical grade skin glue. I have only had one issue with an incision, and that is the top one and unfortunately it is irritated by my bra. I can't go without one and a sports one would chafe it more. So what I have done is immediately after my shower, I let the wound dry, and from my pcp's instrucitons apply a thin layer of anti-biiotic ointment. I hope you feel better and heal fast. Good luck.

Reallyrosy.... All negativity aside, I want for YOU to know personally that my post was never aimed at you. I didn't read anything of what you posted, I had only replied to the Sunshine62103 in sympathy because hunger is not an easy topic apparently for most of us. I don't know why you took my comments about my interpretation of heartburn and hunger personally because until you replied I did not even know of your existence. That being said, apparently you have been struggling. I feel bad that you have not had good support from your surgeon. Shame on him or her for not supplying a nutrionist to you. The surgeon, while he or she is obviously the person that sleeved you, is not the person who is going to be in your body or knowing what nutrients you need. I can say this, if I knew you personally in life, I know exactly what I would say to you. I would tell you to tell your surgeon to go to hades and seek a good nutritionist to help you through this journey. I am very happy with my program as my surgeon demands a good nutrionist team to work with him, and they have outlined every single step of the way along with giving me a book they have prepared on what to expect and what to eat. I do wish you luck, but please in the future, if you take any posting I place as something personal, it would be better taken if you asked if that was the intent, you might be surprised to learn that it wasn't.

BionicBroad, I was also informed that I needed to get so much Protein in every day, not only for my body's health, but also to prevent the dreaded hair loss. If I lose my hair, oh well, I will shave it, it will grow back. If it doesn't grow back, well it seems to me that my head will be an interesting canvas for some artwork.

Interesting how the attack initially was aimed directly at me. My original statement was to Sunshine62103, not to any other poster on this forum. And even more interesting because I was conveying my own insight, and NOT directing it to any other poster on this thread. So I guess it is safe to assume if I post how I (let me underscore that here)...how I interpreted MY sensation of hunger to also be related to acid production, and then get blasted by some person for posting MYinterpretation of what I feel with intention of trying to be supportive to another (Sunshine 62103, who posted the thread, not to any other) by suggesting that MAYBE, that could be a part of the problem, I am attacking someone? That is a bit backwards don't you think? And this poster is still going on and on and on how he or she is not being supported? I never even posted to him or her. NOR have I ever directed any comment back to him or her until I was attacked for MY interpretation. I too know the difference between my hunger, but acid production does still occur regardless of the amount of the stomach removed. It occurs because the cells that line the stomach are designed to do such. Despite removing the majority of it, the production of acid will occur. That is what the function of the stomach is...it is a hollow organ where acid production...specifically the conversion of pepsinogen to pepsin to breakdown Proteins. Once the food or Protein is broken down, it goes to the smaller intestine for absorption of Water and further digestion. This is why when you are hungry, you will have an increase in stomach acids. The stomach is only doing what it was naturally designed to do. By removing it, you are not stopping its function, you are only allowing a smaller portion of food to pass. That is the purpose of the sleeve. It is a restrictive form of a weight loss surgery. The only time I have ever had heartburn in the past was from pregnancy or from a food that agitated my stomach. The heartburn sensation I have ongoing right now occurs only when I am hungry. This has been alleviated for me when I drink a Protein shake. And going back to my original post, when I am thinking of a particular food that I miss, I will do something to keep myself occupied so I do not dwell on it, and as I stated, I found it worked for me. How that was an attack on someone is beyond me.

Congratulations on your decision. Every day is another great reason to celebrate. I think I was in shock at first and was still trying to wrap my head around this major decision. I bit something about 3 or 4 days ago and realized it was a very dumb mistake. It felt like it took 2 hours to digest. I am 2.5 weeks out. I rarely have pain, maybe a muscle ache here and there. The ironic thing I found is sugary stuff has absolutely no appeal for me. I am very happy about that. Congratulations and good luck.