Bufflehead

I'm on day 6 and haven't weighed myself but can tell I've lost weight (wrist watch is looser etc.). The dietician told us at pre-op class that most people can expect to lose anywhere from 5 - 15 lbs per week on the preop diet. We do about 800-900 calories per day, high protein and low (ish) carb.

I just wanted to check back in and say thank you all for the great information. I have started making protein shakes with a 2 - 1 ratio of unsweetened vanilla almond milk and water, and so far I love it. I am meeting my protein goals, although right now I am pre-op and I know I may need to get more protein into what I drink after surgery. Thanks again!

I got the EatSmart Precision Pro, you can find it on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ I love it -- works perfectly, it has a tare function, weighs in both metric and pouonds/ounces. If you buy it from Amazon, there are five colors to choose from and it is eligible for Amazon Prime. I think it is pretty well priced at $25.

I'm on day five of my two week diet. We have to buy most of our foods (very high protein, low carb) from our surgeon, which I think is a racket, but he's the best in town so I'm not complaining. The food is pretty much terrible except for the protein bars and protein chips. Anyway, it adds up to about 800-900 calories per day. I actually started my diet a couple of days early to try to lose as much weight as possible. Anyway, the first three days were absolutely horrible, not helped by the fact that we have to also stop caffeine, and I'm a total addict. I didn't really want to cheat, but I thought about food constantly, counting down to when I could eat my next meal, etc. I just generally felt physically miserable: starving, terrible headache, grouchy. I found that doing stuff that requires movement helps me a lot -- so I clean the house instead of watching tv, walk the dog instead of playing a game on my computer, etc. I felt much better starting yesterday. Physically I feel great if a little hungry now and then. I can tell I'm losing weight (although I refuse to weigh myself until it's been a week) and that helps me keep going with this.

I also liked the coconut and blue raspberry from Isopure Zero Carb. Mango Peach was my other favorite.

I think it varies a little everywhere, but at my surgeon's office they did not want to see my food diary. I met with the nurse first to take history, blood pressure, pulse, etc. Then the surgeon came in and did a basic physical (listening to stomach, poking and prodding) and talked in detail about surgery options. After that I met with the dietician, who did an H. Pylori test and tested my metabolic rate. After doing the metabolic rate test, she and I discussed a diet plan and how I should eat while getting ready for surgery. Then I met with their insurance specialist, who went over all the requirements for my insurance company and explained what I should do to meet each step. If they haven't told you about the H. Pylori tests and metabolic rate tests, I doubt you will do them -- at least for the H. Pylori there is a fasting requirement you would need to know about in advance. Oh and they also drew blood to check for vitamin and mineral deficiencies as well as blood sugar etc.

My surgeon said most people take about two weeks, unless they have a very physically demanding job. I'm currently planning one full week off, then a week of half days, but I have enough flexibility at my work that I can take more or less time according to what I feel I need. My job is mostly sitting at a desk.

I am also a June 19 person! It's coming fast!

I know a lot of people like GNC Total Lean, Myoplex Lite, and Atkins Advantage. The only one of those I have tried is the Atkins Advantage and I liked it a lot.

Wow, great job! And you have a beautiful family

This was addressed in my preop class last week. My doctor's office recommends milk of magnesia - follow the directions on the bottle but use the low end of the dose range on the bottle, not the high end. Post vgs we should have a bm at least once every three days. If we don't, and a day's worth of MoM dosing doesn't work, we are supposed to call the surgeon's office for advice. They don't want us waiting until we get impacted stools! That is my dr's advice. I know other doctors have different guidelines though. I know I have seen a lot of people posting here about both Miralax and Colace, and having success with those products.

My surgery is in just under three weeks, so today was devoted to SPENDING MONEY on all the stuff I will need/want. And here is where I am going to tell you all about it in excruciating detail. http://www.onestopplus.com/ - front-closing leisure bra, empire waist dress, shorty pajamas http://www.amazon.com - 2 x 100 1 oz. medicine cups (to measure/control fluid intake), mini-muffin pan and liners (for the "bites" recipes from Eggface), mini ice cube trays (for making smoothies and shakes), gas-x strips, anti-skid fuzzy socks, Celebrate multi-complete bariatric vitamins with iron, extra large heating pad, blender bottle, Syntrax Nectar medical unflavored protein powder, digital thermometer, small blender. http://www.bjsbariatrics.com/ - Syntrax Nectar sample pack http://www.unjury.com/store/protein/ - Unjury starter kit with 2 packets of five flavors of protein powder, shaker bottle, and food thermometer. http://chikenutrition.com - Chike variety pack w/ 6 flavors Chike protein http://www.mybariatricpantry.com/ - 2 bottles Isopure Plus, Syntrax Matrix sample pack with all 8 flavors (including the famed mint cookie flavor!), Metabolic Nutrition Protizyme sample pack with 5 flavors including my favorite Peanut Butter Cookie, fruit drinks variety pack, pudding/shake variety pack, cappuccino protein drink, and Bariatric Advantage chewable probiotics http://www.vitalady.com - Dymatize Nutrition Elite Whey sample packs in butter cream toffee, mocha, chocolate mint, and gourmet vanilla; BSN Lean Dessert protein powder samples in banana cream pudding, vanilla whipped cream, and fresh cinnamon roll. I also bought a new comforter from Kohl's because mine has gotten kind of ratty and dirty and I figure I can get myself something new, beautiful, and, well, comforting that I'm going to be using during my recovery. This process is expensive even before figuring in direct medical costs! I'm really excited, even if I'm not excited about looking at my bank account balance right now.

Are you sure a shake is considered a meal? My dietician says we are allowed 3 meals a day, no snacks, but protein shakes count as fluids, not meals or snacks. But I know each dr office has their own way of doing things.

I went to diet/preop class yesterday and the dietitian told us we have to stick with liquid or powdered vitamins for at least two weeks after surgery. I am pretty bad at being compliant generally but I am trying to go along with everything I possibly can, and I figure I can handle that.

I've had my DNR/health care power of attorney for a while, but I double checked to make sure it still says what I want it to say. I've never had a will and probably don't have enough assets to make it truly worthwhile, but I'm going to do a quick one just in case. I've also cornered various family and friends and made them swear they will take in one of my pets (3 cats, 1 dog) in case I die or am permanently incapacitated. I don't have any family in town so I am going to make sure one of my sisters and my parents know how to get in contact with my housekeeper -- she has a key to my house and can take care of anything that needs taking care of at my house. I'm also doing a financial information list (bank, insurance, and retirement account numbers, passwords, etc.) to my brother in law and parents so that they can deal with stuff in the extremely unlikely event that I die/am permanently incapacitated. The risk is really small, but I also feel in a superstitious way that I am kind of warding off anything bad actually happening by making all these plans. Kind of like it never rains when you actually bring your umbrella. The pets are my only true worry (no I don't have children). Anything else is just stuff, and the family who would inherit from me don't actually need my money, but the thought of my pets spending their last days at the county pound and then dying there, or getting adopted by someone who abuses them, anything like that, really does cause me severe anxiety.

I know the approval process varies for everyone, but my plan is administered by Cigna and I got approved in under 48 hours. Not everyone has a horror story! My surgery date is June 19.

Anyone who is negative, I would just tell them, "I know you are concerned and I really appreciate that. But this is a decision I made very carefully and I'm feeling positive about it. If you can't join me in being positive, can you please just not say anything at all?" and if they can't respect that, just cut them off if they try to bring up something negative. "Thanks but I'm aware of your concern . . . let's talk about [a good movie/the weather/anything else] instead." And then if they still can't keep their negativity to themselves, that's when you stop seeing them or talking to them until well after surgery. That's my plan anyway

Thanks for asking this question. I'm following the replies as well, as I'm planning a solo trip to the hospital. I live 2,000 miles away from all of my family, and don't have tons of close friends here. And even them, I'm pretty sure I don't want them to see me in serious pain, struggling with a Foley catheter, or other personal and kind of embarrassing stuff. I checked with my hospital and they keep all of my stuff in my own room throughout. Anything valuable can be locked in their hospital safe.

This is what my sister says and she worked at a sleep lab (affiliated with one of the best medical schools in the country) while she was in medical school. She advises her patients to stay away from them . . .

June 19!

I'm not going to try to talk anyone out of eating fiber (I love it and eat a lot of it) but you might not actually need that much. How much fiber you need is calculated per 1000 calories of food you eat each day. The recommendation really isn't that everyone needs to get 25 grams of fiber each day, but that everyone should get at least 14 grams of fiber per 1000 calories that you eat. So if you are eating 1200 calories per day, you would want to aim for approx. 17 grams of fiber. If you are eating 800 calories, aim for 11 grams of fiber. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fiber-table/

Has anyone tried this/have opinions on it? It seems very popular in some circles but I can't find mention of it here (I searched the forum and found no references). The nutritional profile looks good, although it is not 100% whey which seems to be what people regard as the "gold standard"? http://www.howtobeast.com/review-trutein-chocolate-peanut-butter-protein/ http://bodybuilding.ultimatefatburner.com/trutein.html

I have Cigna and got approved in under 48 hours. I think a lot has to do with the insurance coordinator at your surgeon's office. In my city, the biggest (by far, we are basically a one-horse town) employer offers BCBS and Cigna plans, and so our insurance coordinator deals with those companies extensively and can basically rattle off their requirements in her sleep and knows exactly what needs to be done. I knew she was good but I didn't expect approval in less than two days!

I got approved in 48 hours after submitting to Cigna. However, it took WAY longer than it should have to submit in the first place, because they kept sending me conflicting information about what I needed to submit! My plan is different from the standard Cigna plan and no one could seem to figure out what the requirements actually were. It took 4 months longer than it should have due to their incompetence. But I am still grateful to be approved so quickly, and as it turns out, I'll have the best possible timing for my surgery, so I'm not going to complain (too much).

If you have a big bust, you might check out http://enell.com/ -- be sure to read the "Get Fit" link about sizing and putting the bra on correctly. This is the only sports bra that makes me feel comfortable doing aerobics, etc.