juli916

Good luck to you! The first week can be rough- be sure to reach out to others who have gone through the experience. It helps to remind you that you are doing "normal" when you are feeling anything but! You will do great

i had crazy head hunger issues! I was angry and agitated also, which caught me by surprise. I am now 3 months post-op and feel completely different. I can eat pretty much whatever I want but in small amounts. Know that the head hunger and cravings will pass and is a small sacrifice for the greater reward. Good luck!

Hey pdx- I got a job offer this week. I interviewed when I was pre-op. Turns out they did want to hire my old fat self. :tongue2:

I was choosy about who to tell also, but I really don't understand the need to lie or make up a story. This is hard work too, certainly not easy. And if it works, then it was the right choice, so be proud. I am starting a new job next week I have a little anxiety about not only being the "new girl" but also the weird one who can't eat anything.

I went to a New Year's Eve party and had the tiniest sip of white wine. It burned my stomach and scared the bejeezus out of me, so I immediately switched to water. I will be a good girl and wait until 6 months out. But this summer, I am having some vodka!

I was about 3 weeks post-op when I took my boys to a Boy Scout potluck. A room full of teenage boys shoveling food in their faces, plate after plate. Ugh. I had to take a walk.

Congrats Christin! I had a suprise hernia repair too. My surgeon said it is very common in obese people. She said there is a natural opening, but the extra fat causes too much pressure on the organs and the opening tears. I have pictures of mine. My first day in the hospital was rough too. Not so much pain, but pressure in the chest and gas. The first week is no fun really, but it gets easier.

Hang in there! The sacrifice is worth the result- that's what I keep telling myself :wink1: My birthday was a month before surgery and my husband bought me a donut maker as a gift. I love him, but wow, I wanted to kill him.

Good luck to all of you! I was sleeved 11/28/11. I have to admit, the recovery room was hell for me and I think I have a pretty high tolerance for pain. Of course, everyone's experience is different. I remember coming to and having a piercing awful pain in my chest. When they asked how I felt, the only words I could put together were "like a shish kabob" They probably thought I was crazy, but if they had said I had a spear through my chest, I would have believed them. Then I started throwing up and there was blood in it. Not very comforting. I am very sensitive to catheters and I felt like my bladder was bursting full for 3 hours. When I was finally getting wheeled to my room, I asked to please get the catheter out. They said after I walked. I said then I am walking right now! I did 2 laps around the ward and the pain in my chest lessened. Then once the catheter was out, I could relax and sleep. Once I was home, I didn't need the pain meds. I was achy and tired, but fine within a week. Not trying to scare you, and I'm sure your experience will be much easier, but for me, I would rather be prepared for the worst.

I hit a stall last week (4 to 5 weeks post-op) and this week I am losing again. I am not doing anything different- in fact, I may actually be eating a bit more. My surgeon said this is completely natural and expected and is the body healing itself. Over a week without the scale changing is very frustrating though, especially at this stage.

My guilty pleasure lately has been going to Costco and trying the samples to see what tastes good to me now. The Aidells's meatballs were heavenly. I also liked crab meat, cream cheese, ham, and smoked salmon. I have been craving sauces so I made my own cocktail sauce(heavy on the horseradish) and had a shrimp cocktail with lots of lemon. It was great!

Sterf- go for it! If you have read the stories of other WLS patients on this forum, you will be so glad you have Kaiser. I went through Kaiser Richmond, not SF, so the process is a little different, but from people I have talked to, it's pretty close. You can see the series of dates in my signature- my process could have gone faster, but I had to wait for thyroid numbers to be in range. You will not be weighed until orientation, so any weight loss prior to that will not count toward your goal. The process is fast and easy and nothing to be embarrassed about. Your pcp will have very little involvement. You can email them to make the referral to overview class, then once you attend the class, you email them again to decide whether or not you want to pursue surgery. Once you get your orientation class date, the bariatrics dept takes over from there. All you have to do is show up to appointments and follow the meal plan. The process is easy and goes very quickly. I only have a $15 co-pay, but I think I only had to pay once during the whole process. (check your plan). $15 + meds at hospital discharge for a life changing surgery. Feel free to contact me for more info. Good luck!

This sounds normal to me too. The first few days are tough. Warm liquids especially tea helped me. And be very conscious of HOW you drink. I noticed I was slurping tea and soup and taking in too much air. And try standing or sitting very upright when drinking. It will get easier.

My pain in the hospital was brutal- much worse than I expected and I think I have a pretty high tolerance. My surgeon found a hernia that had to be repaired, so that may have added to the discomfort. I am also very sensitive to catheters, so I felt like I really had to pee for the entire 3 hours in recovery. I walked the moment they took me to my room and immediately felt better. Then they took out the catheter and that felt better too. Once I got home the next day, I was achy and sore, but not enough to need to take the pain meds.

Our program is 3 days clear liquids, 2 weeks full liquid, 2 weeks pureed protein, then soft foods. I would think at 1 week out you could handle cream soups. Strain them thoroughly and give it a shot. Everyone's programs are different, but our bodies are too. You need to get through this journey physically and emotionally too. If some soup will make you feel better, I say go for it! If you have calcium chews, they really help those first few weeks. Chewing something, anything, helps you feel "normal"