quietcougar

At three weeks out, you should probably focus on very soft foods; if you're going to have oatmeal, yes, I'd make it watery. I'd also omit the cracker from the soup, as the refined flour can be difficult for your stomach to process. Yougurt, cottage cheese, soft salads and finely ground meats should be ok, but keep your portion sizes to about 3-6 tablespoons of solid foods or 4-6 ounces of liquid (like fat free milk) at each meal. I would also focus on Proteins at this point, as it's the most important element for helping the healing process. Adequate Protein intake will help keep you from losing the lean muscle mass you have, while stimulating the burning of fat (like the Atkins diet). You could also eat things like scrambled eggs, tofu, or refried Beans for extra protein. Hope that helps, but the best advice would be to contact your surgeon and get advice from them - they know you the best!

If you didn't follow your doctor's orders, he may or may not cancel the surgery. I congratulate you on getting it, but this is the time you really need to settle in and decide why you're doing this. Is it for you, or is it for everyone else? If you can honestly say it's for you, why sabotage yourself by not following directions? You'll need to after surgery, and those directions aren't something you can ignore. I'm not going to beat you up over your discretion, but think about why you're doing this. Your life after surgery will never be the same. Ever. Trust me on this. If I were you, I'd admit to my doctor I'd cheated and see what he says. Yes, it may delay your surgery, but better that then end up in the recovery room only to be told nothing happened. Best of luck!

The problem with canned crab is the excess Water. It'd be hard to get that out, and since the recipie doesn't use fillers, you're counting on the lack of moisture to help hold things together. You may be able to get by with canned if you treat it like tofu, and put a weight on it to squeeze out the extra water for about 20-30 mins. It'll taste fine either way. Good luck!

Each cake has approximately 70 calories, 8 grams of Protein, and 2 grams of carbs.

Sure, here it is: Pacific Dungeness Crab Cakes (suitable for those in the soft texture stage, but can be pureed if desired) 1/2 lb. Dungeness crab meat, cooked (or any crab meat may be used, except canned) 1 tbls. minced celery 2 tsps. minced red bell pepper 2 tsps. finely chopped fresh cilantro 2 tbls. non-fat mayonnaise 1/8 tsp. sea salt or Kosher salt 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional) 2 tsps. olive oil 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil 2 tbls. salad greens 2 lemon wedges 2 tbls. low-fat tartar sauce Method: Put crabmeat in a strainer or collander and squeeze out the excess moisture. Transfer to a mixing bowl, and add the celery, pepper, and cilantro. In a small bowl, combine the mayo, salt, and cayenne pepper (if you're using it) and stir until well mixed. Add the mixture to the crabmeat and mix together until well incorporated. Form the mixture in about 6 equal sized patties, appx. 2 ounces each. Press firmly enough to hold the mixture together, and put on a piece of wax paper on top of a plate. Cover the top of the patties with another sheet of wax paper and place in refridgerator for 15 minutes. In a medium, non-stick skillet pan, heat the olive and sesame oils over medium high heat and swirl to mix the oils. Gently place the crab cakes in the pan using a thin metal spatula and cook undisturbed (no matter what, no peeking!) for 6 minutes on each side, or until well browned. You should move them only to prevent burning. When they're done, remve the pan from the heat. Place a tablespoon of the greens (spinach would work well) in the center of a small plate. Place 1 or 2 crab cakes on the greens. Put a lemon wedge next to the greens, and a teaspoon of tartar sauce either on or next to each cake.

How long have you noticed this? Did it come on suddenly or slowly? In any case, it sounds like you should call your surgeon's office and speak with one of the nurses. They can ask you the appropriate questions to tell if it's something to worry about or not. If you're eating and drinking and not in pain, it's probably something minor, but better safe than sorry.

Neat - I live about a mile from campus and several people I know have graduated from there. If you like seafood, I have a recipe for Dungeness crab cakes (no flour or fillers, just pure crab and some other goodies) that you may be interested in. They're really good!

Fellow Wisconsin person here! You don't mention how far out from surgery you are, but if you're in soft foods, I'd guess you're at least 3-4 weeks out. My worry is that if you aren't far enough out, one of those seeds could get stuck in your staple line, your tissue heals over it, and you get an abscess. Not good. However, the further out you are, the less likely this is to happen. Since there were probably very few seeds that you actually ate, my guess is that you'll be fine. You may want to call your doctor just to let them know and see if they think it's ok, but I think you're good to go.

There is a limited amount of ghrelin production that returns after a year or so, and there's ghrelin stored in your fat that is released as you burn it off; however, it's nothing like it was pre-surgery. If you stick to what your doctor and nutritionist say, you should have no trouble meeting and maintaining your goal weight with the sleeve. Proteins first, then veggies/fruits, and last carbs (at least for me, your mileage may vary).

I think it depends on the doctor's technique. I know I've seen some people say they didn't have a drain; I did, but I knew ahead of time I was going to. Best thing to do is ask your surgeon. Mine was in for a week. You can't shower with a drain in (which was annoying) but you can wash up with a cloth. I was glad to get that out!

Yes. Because your anatomy has been significantly altered - even in sleeve patients. The doctors at the hospital are going to be planning on you being "intact". It can change medication dosages as well as medications given (for example, no ibuprofin). This way they'll know what to expect and how to treat you.

Anything with lentils in it should be fine; also vindaloo or tikki masala. Rajma should be fine, that's got a lot of protein. The drier dahl would be better, since we can't do naan. I would think a papadam would also be ok, that's chickpea flour, but you'd have to check into it. At least it's a little crunch. I have always loved Indian food and eat a lot of it. I have had curries since surgery and they went down fine.

I got the WalMart special, but oddly enough, it's almost exactly what the doctor's office says - consistently within a pound. Go figure.

Ok, I may not be Asian, but I think I should have been. I really, really, really love Asian food. The other day I needed something to eat for supper, and this idea came to me. It may not be new, but it's tasty. Any ingredients that sound strange to you can be found in your local Asian grocer or most large mega marts. Here's what you need: 1 fillet of white fish (cod, whitefish, etc. - any white meat fish) - 4 oz. 1 sandwich bag with zipper top Marinade: 3 Tbls. Shoyu (soy sauce) 2 Tbls. mirin (sweet cooking wine) 1 Tsp. minced garlic 1 Tsp. minced fresh ginger 1 Tsp. onion powder 1 Tsp. Sriracha sauce (or other hot sauce, if preferred) Combine all ingredients right in the sandwich bag, including the fillet. Seal the bag and shake well to distribute the mixture. Marinate 15 minutes, then turn fish over and marinate for 15 more minutes. Reserving marinade, place fish in steamer and set timer to 15 minutes. While the fish cooks, place remaining marinade in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add sriracha sauce and stir well. Reduce sauce to thicken, about 5-10 minutes. When fish is finished, put on plate and pour reduced marinade over fish. (If you can have rice, it will go well with that but it's good on it's own too). Enjoy!

Wow - I wish I'd had a list like this before my surgery! Great ideas. Too late for me, but I hope they help others.

I've lost almost 50 pounds since my surgery, and I can't say that I've noticed any "special" attention. The way people look at me is different, though. When I go to the store, or the mall, I don't get the kinds of looks I used to get being a big guy. I'm still pretty good sized, but I look a lot thinner now than I did. To more directly answer your question, there are women who like larger guys and women who like skinner guys. As you lose weight, you may get more attention from the latter.

I haven't had any issues either, but I'm sure the experience is different for everyone. Things I used to like I don't, and some things I didn't like as well I enjoy more now. Strange, but that's the way the sleeve rolls.

It sounds like they're in high school. The key thing is, and you realize this from what you've said, is that you're doing this for you. This will last long after you've moved on from that job, either to another job or into retirement. Good for you for getting the surgery. If they won't be happy for you, I will.

Swimming is typically a good 4 weeks post op - your incisions need to heal completely. Biking, running, and other types of workouts put a strain on your abdomen. For this reason, you will typically be told to wait 6 weeks before *slowly* starting these activities. Not gospel, but it's pretty standard. Your mileage may vary.

So sorry to hear about this and hope that things work out for you.

I suspect that if you're only draining 8cc's a day that it will be coming out at your appointment. It feels a little weird coming out, though. It's good that all your tests came back fine. Trust me, it really does get better, and you'll feel a ton better.

Have you talked to your Doc about the pain? You're far enough post op now that it may not be gas pain but could be something else. The fact that it's near the drain...hmm. Do you have redness or any unusual drainage (foul smelling, dark, etc.)? My drain was removed 7 days post op and I never had any significant pain.

I have to agree with Jonathan on this one - sounds like there's other issues here. I won't rehash what everyone else already said, but I'll add in my congratulations to you on getting your surgery. I'll support you all the way!

Sadly, we don't have Kroger's around here, because that sounds like a pretty good deal. We have a local chain called Woodman's that has some decent deals on water - the kind I buy there is Niagara. Dasani isn't bad. Like a lot of us, I add in flavorings (usually) to my water. I like the diet Nestea as well. I haven't tried Mio yet but I love their commercials.

At my support group last month, the topic of water came up and some of the members reported being able to drink only certain kinds of bottled water - one said she could only tolerate Fiji. I don't have that issue - I can drink any kind of bottled water; however, I'm wondering what other people out there like. Do you buy the store brand? I picked up 24 bottles for $2.71 at CVS. Not bad, better than my tap at least.