NancyJerry

What staples are being removed?

I'm almost 3 weeks out and I've read about others that say they have a problem with the cold water, but I never did. I would imagine most of that would go away when the swelling goes down. Good luck!

So very inspirational. I long to be someone that GOES to parties - can't hardly imagine being the life of a party!! Awesome job!

As always, I'm so impressed with people that can post on their surgery day. I was so nauseous I couldn't think or look at anything until the afternoon after my surgery. I'm glad everything is going wel for you! Keep walking!!!

Oh! So sorry! I was crazy nauseous the first night and the following morning before that all got better. Hopefully you're past that now!

I've had good luck with my Weight Watchers scale. It was only about 30 bucks and it calculates BMI and H2O, too.

As a teacher, I understand about the 15 minute lunch. I've taken to make sure my lunch is small enough to eat in that amount of time <slowly>. Then I carry around a Protein drink that I can sip on as I move about the room and teach. My surgeon explained that if we gulp air and build up gas in our new stomachs we will stretch them. And that is also why we aren't to drink out of straws anymore. Good luck to you!

As the swelling goes down it won't feel like drinking is such a forced issue. Congrats! How long was your stay in the hospital?

How exciting - way to go!!!

Very nice! Way to go!!

Wow! Nice job - very inspirational!!

One of my issues is that I almost never stop <yuck>. It was no problem for me.

....And, if you were getting super sick, you may just have been dehydrated. Once you started keeping food down, that 1lb might have been water! Hang in there.

Like Wheetsin, My plan has me on mushy foods for a long time. (Clear liquids for 2 week, then mushy foods for 6 additional weeks). Mid May will be my first attempt at fresh foods (unless I blend them).

Hi Mari, I know what you mean about LOVING sugar and carbs. I regularly referred (past tense) to myself as a Carb-Aholic! Breads -OHHHHH I love them, any time of the day. I once told my friend, "I love bread with coffee, bread with tea, bread with BREAD - LOL. I know how it feels. But the body needs fuel, and I found that I was fueling my body with carbs, unfortunately I wasn't burning the excess carbs so they turned into fat. Now, what I've learned is that if you rob your body of carbs, you body says well...I need SOMETHING to burn so it has two choices: Fat or Muscle. This is important, if you give your body plenty of Protein (like 100grams) then your body is forced to burn fat. This is putting your body into a state of KETOSIS. It's not healthy to totally cut carbs out of your life forever, but it's a great way to get started. I want so much for you to feel better this summer for your daughter, this may help without being TOO restrictive. When I followed this diet, I did not, at the beginning, limit my meats. So, I was actually eating more, being full and satisfied and I still lost some weight. Look up Ketosis sometime. I think there are some good threads on this Forum about it too. Of course, ultimately, you'll get your surgery and move right back into a healthy balanced diet made up of all foods (Protein first, carbs last) and you'll find more success than you can imagine. So far I've lost about 25 pounds. I'm now on to mushy food and my surgeon has me on this stage for a total of 6 weeks. So about Mid-May I will be back into the world of eating normally again. My recovery has been great. I only had 1 rough day and 1 rough night at the hospital, but I was walking 2 miles and riding my bike by day 8 post-op. I'm really loving life and have absolutely NO regrets. Good luck to you!

At my post-op appointment with my surgeon, he said my only exercise limitations were what my body decided was a limitation. (Other than lifting - about 20 pounds for the next 2 weeks or so). He said to go slow and try something. So I went for about a 5 mile bike ride on day 8 after my surgery. He said I could start jogging (very slowly) for short stints until there was NO pain involved. Good luck!

I like the EAS (Advantage - carb control). I prefer the chocolate (which I buy by the case at Sams Club), but it also comes in 3 other flavors. Many people here like the strawberry (my husband likes those too, while I do not). I also get products sold by home health care in my town, called Health Wise. And they are packets like amaretto hot chocolate (15 grams of protein) and they are quite good. Maybe you could look those up on-line. Good luck. Something will work for you!

Mari - congratulations on preparing for this journey! It is exciting. I can relate to not be nervous AT ALL before my surgery. I felt as excited as if I were preparing for a cruise. I wish I had found this forum before my surgery. This is so much love, support and fabulous information here. Soak it up and start as soon as you can. My pre-op diet was only 1 change (no sugar or carbs). Try it for a while. It may help you feel better through the summer and it won't be such as shock to your system when you need to give those up for a little while. WELCOME!!

It worked. Thank you!

Can one of you tell me how I get multiple tickers going? I put one up for the challenge then when I hit save, they both became the same. I did it like 4 times with the same results.

I hope it's not too late. I just found this posting and I love this idea. I'm only 2 weeks post surgery so either I'll lose more easily or fall into a stall at this point. I'm going for 2 pounds per week so hoping for a 14 pound loss by Memorial Day. Thanks Tammy for getting this going! SW - 214, CW - 195, Memorial Day GW -181 Yay!!

Yea! You're an inspiration. Can't wait for my 1 month mark!

I prefer EAS - Chocolate, this is pre-mixed. Must drink while they are quite cold. If they still seem to potent, you can add a cup of FF milk and it really just tastes like a glass of chocolate milk plus goes from 17 grams of protein to 25! Keep trying. You'll find something.

You have gorgeous cheekbones and a great smile - that says it all. I can see a difference in your pictures - very inspirational. Keep up the good work!

Sounds like gas pains are different for everyone. But for me they were pretty much on their way out by day 2. I made a point to be up walking around the hospital for about 15 minutes every two hours - without fail, all day and all night. I swear that was the answer! You also have a significant amount of swelling from the surgery that will affect your swallowing. Try hard not to take in any air when you drink (SIP). Everyday it will get better. Good luck on your journey!