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I thought I read a post some time ago about someone having sneezing attacks after eating just a little too much but could not find it through a search. Anyway, at the time I thought they were nuts. Fast forward to being nearly 6 months post op (back in February) and I am able to eat anything I want. I noticed, and it is recognized by my wife and coworkers as well, that when I slightly over eat solid/heavy foods like chicken, I will get a sneezing attack. I know, you think I am crazy but I can tell before I sneeze that I have eaten a little too much because it is a pressure point that I can feel. It is almost like a switch that tells me "Hey idiot, stop eating".... I know the attack is coming and it results in about 10-20 sneezes unless I can move around enough to allow the food to settle differently. It is the craziest thing and I was so skeptical of the other poster who said that it happened to them, at least until it happened to me. It is now a tell tale sign that I ate just a little too much and it pushes on a pressure point that triggers it. I am almost 1 year out and I now have a built in "full meter" with my sneezing attacks. Anyone else experience this?

Jodi, I was 317-320 and have lost 130 lbs. With the instability due to the ACL tear and the resulting arthritis, my knee was dabilitating. Now, with the weight gone I do everything I want, including some running, walking 18 holes of golf, etc....

So this time last year, actually will be a year on the 23rd, my blood pressure was running around 135 to 140/90 and my resting heart rate was roughly in the high 70s. On Tuesday I donated blood when the Red Cross was having a blood drive at my place of work. As part of it they have to take your vitals and my BP was 112/68 and my resting heart rate was 58. Besides losing the weight being much easier on my body (joints dont hurt), the vital statistics speak volumes to the overall effects of the healthier lifestyle that accompanies the surgery!

As a guy and having the "advantage" of some hair, I dont even know if I could find mine now. They have faded away to where I really would need to look for them. Now, I have not really paid attention but as I get more and more tan as the summer goes on, they may show up (since scars tan differently than normal skin) but to this point, when I look in the mirrow, I dont notice them.

If you have access to a stationary bike, a digital one with different types of terrain, they work wonders for getting pretty good cardio and being very easy on the knees. I have a torn ACL and arthritis in my left knee and it is pretty pain free for me. And, the more I ride it, the less pain there is doing other activities. If you can do hill programs or something like that on it, as you get more and more stamina and strength built up, you can make it pretty difficult and build some good leg muscles! I dont generally run because of my knee and the bike works great! Now that I have lost the weight, I use a stabilizing knee brace and play softball and have run in a Warrior Dash w/o issues. I may be a litte sore the next day but it is not a limiting pain anymore. You will be shocked at how much losing the weight will make life easier on your bad and good knee! Good luck!

I was told by my nutritionist that you should avoid caffein after surgery because it is a diuretic and you will pee out too much of what little H2O you do take in, which is bad right after surgery because of your limited intake. Now that I am a year out, I have no ssiues with Water intake and can afford to lose a little of it. I am not a coffee drinker though and only get caffein from the Mio Energy that I add to the water I do drink (which is not added to every bottle, maybe 1-2 a day). Oh, not to mention, the Mio Energy is a zero calorie additive so you get your caffein w/o the calories!!!! Big plus for me considering the alternative of Redbull!

I would say I am not textbook but there is a ray of hope that you could not need any help. WIth your kids being at least 5 years old and older, you may be fine after your hospital stay. I had surgery on Monday morning, left the hospital Tuesday afternoon, and was able to take care of my 1 year old little girl that same evening (she had just turned 1 and was just starting to walk). It was a little "uncomfortable" at times but not impossible. But again, I would venture to guess I am not what you would consider textbook as far as recovery. So, like mentioned before, it is very specific to the person as to how your surgery goes, your pain tolerance, how you are with meds, and with what your family expects you to be able to do that soon after surgery.

Are you doing exercises you normally didnt do before? Sounds like you very well could be aggrevating the sciatic nerve. About 6-7 years ago I slipped on some steps and caught myself awkwardly and then a day or two later my back really started hurting. It sent pains all the way down to my left foot, along the outside of my left calf, as well as in my butt. It was definitely sciatic nerve issues. It did cause foot drop for me as well which I still have a little left to this day despite my back being better. That is probably due to weakening musckes that I never build back up in the calf and foot though, not long term nerve damage. If you are "using your back more" now, you may have a disk pressing on the sciatic nerver or you may have a narrowing in the pelvic bone where the nerve passes through causing pressure. Try Tylenol and rest to see if you just dont have inflammation in the nerve causing pressure and resulting in the numbness and foot drop issues. I would not think it is from the weight loss directly but due to the more active lifestyle you are leading (you are uncovering other minor issues with a more active schedule).

Haha, glad to know I am not alone! And, if this is the worst effect I have then I am fine with it!

Haha, that is funny, I am the same way. I know when it will happen and sometimes I push it to that last bite that I am sure causes it. Like I said, it is like a switch and I can feel when that last bite flips it!

All the cool kids are doing it, you are not cool if you dont! Just kidding, its natural to second guess all big decisions. Stick to what your guy is telling you (literally and figuratively) and you will be fine with your decision! Start preparing yourself now, start eating several very small meals/healthy Snacks a day, maybe every 2 hours, and you will be ready when the time comes. Best to get started now rather than indulging leading up to the pre-op diet and then cutting off cold turkey!

Warrior Dash in May and then the Miles for Madison 5k from sometime in April.... SOrry for the lack of "new" pics. Still roughly 130 lbs down as I approach my 1 year mark on July 23rd.

Patience, you pretty much answered your question within your question. You are 4 days post-op! It will get better, and will get better quickly! There are lots of muscles theat were displaced to get in you your stomach, and, they took an ORGAN out of you. Ok, not completely, but they removed a pretty big piece of your insides. It will not feel good the day after or even 4-5 days after, but it will get much better. Focus on getting your fluids no matter what and don't over exert yourself!

Take this as an opportunity to kick start the weight loss process and to get used to your new diet for the next several weeks. It will be an easier time after because your stomach will be so small but, for me, the 2 week pre op diet allowed me to drop 20 lbs extra!

I initially only told my immediate family and one person at work. But, as I lost weight, I was not shy about it becasue I didnt care if they judged me, wasn't done for them, it was for me and my family. When anyone asks, I simply tell them because, at this point, I weigh 190 lbs, down from the almost 320 I was, it is obvious something is going on. I actually had a few people apprehensively approach me because they thought I was losing weight because I was sick. I dont' have a problem telling them right from the start that I had surgery. A lot of times they are very interested in what the procedure was becasue most have never heard of it.

Yes, it is a small tube, probably less than 1/4" in diameter that allows Fluid to drain from in around the surgical site. Not only does it prevent excess fluid, it also can show a leak. My doctor advised me to drink odd colored fluids (no oranges or reds) for the first several days because if there was an internal leak, it would show in the "hand grenade". Ad for pain, I would say no, it is not painful unless it gets pulled on because, in my case, they used a single stitch in my side to attach the tube to the skin so it couldnt be pulled out. It is a little gross because you need to empty abd measure the fluid that is being drained into the pouch. It stinks a little, is a mixture of blood and clear/yellow fluid, and is just overall not pleasant to see or have hanging out of your body. Was it miserable, no, it was fine, but it is what it is..... When it was removed (1 week post op appointment) my Nurse Practitioner just told me to take a quick deep breath in on the count of three and when I did that, she yanked the tube out. Was it painful, not really, was it the weirdest sensation I have ever felt, no doubt! It is a very flexible tube coming out of your body the way you would suck in a wet noodle so try to think how that would feel...very strange. I didn't like it but I am glad I had it for the peace of mind that I could see if I had internal bleeding (more than I should) or a leak. And, to some extent I would think it helped relieve some pressure as well which may or may not have helped with my comfort.

I am not a heavy drinker, maybe one night every few months or an occasional beer (slowly consumed) but I have not had a problem with it. I usually try to stick to a whisky and diet (very little carbonation when mixed properly) so i have not had a problem. My doctor said wait until 18 months out but I think that was more for weight loss maximization. My doctor's office wants you to be at goal by 18 months and going out drinking could derail your progress and their statistics!

I would say I had a very easy recovery. Surgery mid day on Monday, left the hospital by 3:00 on Tuesday and never needed any pain meds after leaving the hospital. I should clarify, I didnt need them but took them until Wednesday becasue I was worried that he pain would creep up on me when the hospital meds wore off. By Wednesday I stopped taking the vicodin and never looked back. I was more worried about the dtrain than anything, that is what was sore and I was overly cautious with it. I never needed my nausea meds either and had no problems with getting the required liquids in either. I tell my wife all the time that it feels like it has been too easy from the beginning!

I had surgery on a Monday and felt fine to work again at my desk job by Wednesday or Thursday, but I was not allowed to drive until I had my 1 week post op appt to get the drain removed. 1 week was more than enough, especially since I did not need pain meds after leaving the hospital on Tuesday. But, every experience will be different!

I also had a very easy recovery. I had surgery on Monday, left the hospital by early afternoon on Tuesday and I felt I cold have returned to work by Wednesday (desk job). Like others said, I had very little gas pain as well and I was no more sore than a good ab workout would cause. I didnt need any of my vicodin post op, just what they gave me in the hospital. I will caveat that with my surgery being robotic and it is much easier on the body due to more precise and minimal movements.

startingtolivenow, this is the same approach I took as well. I started working on the eating thing from the time I went to the NUT and really took her advice to heart. I actually felt like I was eating more becasue I started taking in 5-7 meals a day but they were really small and healthy (like greek yogurt, grilled chicken, Protein shakes, etc....). I also drank a lot of water!!!! If I felt hungry between meals, I would drink Water. The MIO water flavoring is great to help with the sweet tooth too.... I waited between 4-5 months from that initial meeting with the NUT but lost 30 lbs prior to my 2 weeks of pre-op diet. Once I got to the pre-op diet, there was no real transition because I was used to eating lots of small meals. But, regardless, the Optifast diet they had me on allowed me to lose another 20 lbs in those two weeks. In all I lost 50 before surgery just by changing eating habits because I think it really kickstarted my metabolism. This in turn carried over to post-op weight loss and I dropped 120 lbs or so in 6 month. I attribute it mostly to starting my body early! I highly recommend starting now before you start the actual pre-op diet. Sounds like you are mentally on your way, good job!

So, I am just over 10 months post op and down 130 lbs or so, and today was the first time I have attempted a 5k race let alone a 5k obstacle course. A year ago this was not possible, today it was a blast! Not a good picture of me (the guy in the pic) since I am tucked behind the sign but that is not what this is about.....