FiloScand

Get back on the plan... could be B vits or iron... I would get a blood panel and see whats up asap.

In California, GNCs are located inside Rite Aid stores, that are all over the place. They have ready to drink and powder you can add to milk or Water. You can even get milk at RiteAid stores. Also you might look up Vitamin shoppe. They also have many choices and can be found in many malls.
Have fun at the Oscars!
Put your hotel address here and find out the closest location.
http://www.riteaid.com/stores/locator/

That is quite a bit more food than I can eat even at 20 months out unless I eat for over an hour then I can fit about that much in, and I would have to sip my drink in between with a few breaks in there.
The 5 day pouch test is only going to rid your system of carbs. There is no way to shrink your stomach. The hiatal hernia repair will not effect the final size of your sleeve. Surgical technique and your own anatomy play a huge role in how much you can eat(length of stomach specifically).
At 2 months out, I was lucky if I could get in 2-3oz of mushy meats, or about 6oz of yogurt (separately).
There's a few things you can do.
1) Do not stretch your meal out over more than 20 minutes
2) Eat Protein first, and do not eat more just because you can
3) If you are experiencing hunger, try filling your sleeve with Protein dense foods.
4) Log your food, and make sure you are staying within your calorie/carb/protein guidelines, if you are going over, or are under, reevaluate your food choices and make the necessary changes.
You've done really great with your weight loss so Celebrate that success. I kind of live by the mantra of "Just because I can, doesn't mean I should." I can eat a lot of junk food, but I have to make the "best" choice.

I'm no physician, but I think we need more because we are burning fat and the chemical reaction requires more Water than we used to drink. We also need more to flush out the waste products from the fat-burning (ketones) and to help the little residue from our low-cal diets in our diets from hardening in the bowel.
Edited to say that I asked my NUT today and her answer was the same as the above PLUS that our stomachs are so small now that if we become dehydrated we can't get in enough fluids quickly enough to replace what was lost. She said that presurgery stomachs could hold a quart of Fluid and now maybe 4 oz.. I said that fluids go right through my stomach but she insisted that we have to avoid dehydration because we can't replace fluids as we could pre-surgery.

I am curious how prevalent depression post-VSG is. I've struggled with depression before, but it's always been tied to sleep deprivation (my sleep apnea is barely treated, but when I got on CPAP, I was able to quit all psych meds).
I wonder how much of it is due to body image changes, and how much of it is due to the (very normal) physiological response to the trauma of surgery?

My highest BMI ever was an amazing 53. It's hard for me to even think it. Right now I'm just breaking into 34.9 which will get me to be only obese and not the dreaded MORBIDLY obese. I would like to get down to a "normal" BMI which is 24.9 - and from there I really don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it, I suppose.

I personally would take something closer to the Adult Gummy and try to find one that does have Iron. B12 is recommended if you are on a PPI/acid reducer. They have sublingual ones that taste like cherry, you stick it under your tongue, it dissolves and your done.

The big issue is that we are losing so fast, things are running through our bodies and liver, and we aren't taking in large amounts of Vitamin rich foods that taking a good quality Vitamin will help keep you from becoming deficient, or your body having to play catch up. There's more than Iron, Vitamin A, D, B and C that we need. Folic acid, copper, selenium, Riboflavin, Niacin, etc etc are all essential for all of us. Plus, throw in there that most sleeve patients take a PPI (Nexium, Prilosec, Etc.) that can inhibit absorption of some very vital minerals and Vitamins.

Not all Vitamins and minerals are fat soluble, and while it may take me months to even a year to become deficient in a particular vitamin/mineral, I don't want to make my body work any harder. Losing fast is great, but don't forget that it can be very tasking on our bodies, livers, hair and skin.

Just my 2cents.

Your fat cells are loaded with all the Vitamins your body needs except Calcium. Add some calcium sachets to your Water or drinks and skip the vitamins. By letting your body use the vitamins stored in your fat you loose more weight. I learned this from a nutritionist that guided my weight loss last year. I stopped all vitamins except calcium for 2 months and lost a lot of weight. I hope this helps. Gloria

I've always been a Vitamin taker. After surgery, my thought process didn't change, but I went a couple of months without taking Calcium because I just was living life, going, going and going, and hated being tied down by taking 6 fricken pills a day on top of my 2 multis.
I had a long "come to Jesus" talk with myself.
1) I put my body through hell with surgery and major weight loss to gain health, right? Why in the hell am I half-assing taking my Vitamins? ? ?
2) Did I really want to end up with deficiencies that take months to get back up to normal levels after working my ass to get healthy? ? ?
3) Is it really fair to my body to make it suffer long-term out of pure laziness, and lack of consistency with my calcium?
Those the top three questions I asked myself, and then I really got serious about my Vitamin regimen.
I only take 4 chewables each day. 2 multis and 2 calcium citrate, both from Celebrate Vitamins. I pop a sublingual B12 about 3-4 days per week because my last levels were double the high normal range so I was able to cut back on that one.
I'm an extremely logical person. For me, and me alone, I could not find a good enough reason to let the vitamins go if I had gone through surgery to attain better health. There are tons of published studies out showing that even a "normal" person's body can not get enough of the macro and micro nutrients from food. So, I figured if I'm barely getting in 1500-1800 calories a day, and the majority of my calories come from meat and dairy, how in the hell is my body truly getting enough of everything it needs? ? ?
Taking vitamins for me is just as important as brushing my teeth, or bathing every day. It's a habit, and while I don't personally like carrying spare vitamins with me every day of my life, I do it because I know in the long run, it's going to have more a of payoff.

Safeway supermarkets carry Protein drinks in the refrigerated section with the health juices like carrot, wheatgrass, etc. (not the section with orange and grapefruit). I found a soy and whey drink that didn't taste bad with 40 gm of Protein. If you can eat solids, there are lots of places to buy protein bars--Target, Raley's Supermarket, even some gas stations. Have a great time in LA!
Oh, and GNC stands for General Nutrition Center. They are stores that cater to bodybuilders and people who want to supplement their diets with various additives. They are often found in shopping malls but there are some standalone stores. They have lots of protein (dry, liquid, soy, egg, whey) to choose from.