joatsaint

My food is pretty boring, I don't change much. The 1st week was pretty much only sugar free popsicles - my stomach wouldn't tolerate anything else. 2nd week I was drinking broth and eating cream of mushroom Soup (less than 1/2 can a day). The next few months was pretty much cream of mushroom soup daily, some boiled eggs, re fried Beans mixed with ground turkey/chicken breast/pork loin. I did try different things during those months - like fruits/vegetables to see how my stomach tolerated them. I'm a big fan of yellow squash and green beans and white eggplant now. Now at month 10, my diet revolves around black beans/garbanzo beans/lentils mixed with ground turkey/pork loin. I let myself eat whatever I want for 1 meal a week and once or twice a week someone brings in something like cake/cookies at work and I'll eat 1/2 a cookie or 1/2 a 6oz Styrofoam coffee cup filled with cake. I really like it when we have party trays with grapes and pineapple chunks! Fortunately, VSG cured my food cravings and I don't really need much variety. I keep my old boring beans and turkey meat around the house and can eat it for every meal. I switch between beans/garbanzo beans/lentils and ground turkey/pork loin. Every once in a while though, I do get a craving flung on me - about the 2nd month I was walking past my mom's kitchen table and it had a banana in the fruit bowl. And suddenly I HAD TO HAVE THAT BANANA! :-p

At 4 weeks, I was eating boiled eggs, shredded cheese, refried beans, ground turkey meat.

I gotta tell ya that post-op, I didn't even think about having sex for at least the 1st hour! :-P But seriously, I was in so much pain for the 1st 8 or 9 days that all I ever thought about was, "When will this stop hurting?!!!!!!!" But others had a much easier post-op recovery than I did, but it still surprised me how often this question is asked in both the men's and women's private forums. And as always, go with your doctor's instructions 1st - if he told you. If he didn't or you can't wait, just be careful and don't doing anything too acrobatic that might stretch your staples or stitches. Keep Pimpin' that Sleeve!

1 Houston, TX 2 VSG 3 not far enough along to have plastics done 4 N/A 5 I paid out of pocket $5k for everything - all tests, doctor's visits and surgery. But remember, with the reduced food intake, I expect to spend less each year on groceries and that will pay for the surgery in 3 to 4 years. And mother of all questions, are you happy with the results? YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES, YES

I understand your feelings. Unfortunately too many people want to shoot us down if we don't do things "the right way", meaning, the way THEY think is should be done. So first they condemn you for gaining weight. Then you have WLS to loose the weight. Then they condemn you for not doing it "the right" way. But these same people will have patches sewed to their tongues, take diet pills, go on crazy diets, listen to hypnosis tapes, and drink special fat burning tea - all to lose weight. And that's okay according to their rules. Ahhhhh.... so many people.... so few places to hide the bodies. :-P Keep Pimpin' that Sleeve!

By the type of questions they asked me, I gathered that they were only looking to find out if I had reasonable expectations from WLS and how I viewed the world around me. The questionnaire had lots of "rate this from strongly agree to strongly disagree" type questions as to how I saw myself and the world around me. I tried to answer everything in the middle range between strongly disagree and strongly agree so that I wouldn't look too extreme in any one viewpoint. My doctor told me that the psychiatrist I was going to had done these evals for him for a long time and was known for expediting the paperwork - so I knew my doc was not sending me to a psychiatrist that was known for denying WLS candidates. After all, my doc stood to lose 15 - 20K if the psychiatrist disqualified me.

The most controversial question I see on the weight loss surgery forums is, "Should I tell anyone that I'm having weight loss surgery?" And the answer is really up to you. It really depends on if you have a good group of friends and family that support your decisions or are you going to be the target of office gossip? Just remember, you can always tell someone about your WLS, you can't untell them.

I have a veeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrry sedentary desk job. But, I had a difficult recovery, but still was able to go back to work on day 10 post-op. The days I took off were 5 business days and 2 weekends. I felt I was able to go back to work once I felt comfortable driving my car again, about day 8.

If you are like me and suffer from Head Hunger caused by the Ghrelin hormone - post-op that near constant nagging sensation to eat will be gone. My entire outlook on food has changed since surgery and I don't feel the cravings to eat a particular food as I did pre-surgery. It's like a switch was flipped off in my brain. So even if I was losing weight slower than 10lbs a month, the hold Ghrelin had on my brain is gone and I know that every pound down is not going to come back.

I add it to my refried beans and as a thickener for other dishes like my beans and turkey hamburger meat mixture.

I thought I would miss those things as well. Right after surgery, I really wanted a Whataburger, but it was a month before I was back on full foods. I tried a piece of pizza at the 6 week mark, ate 2 or 3 bites and didn't want anymore. It just didn't taste that good. I think the 6 week detox from bad foods, post-surgery, reset my taste buds. :-P

Can I eat (insert food here) after Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy WLS surgery? The answer is... most likely. It's really going to depend on the person and how you have healed. I have not found any food that I could not eat, once I was back on full foods post-op. Surprisingly, the processed foods/snack foods/fast food was the easiest to digest. It was the healthy foods - boneless skinless chicken breasts, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, pineapple, apples and grapes that gave me trouble up until about the 6 month mark. At 9 months post-op, I can eat anything I want with only the occasional stomach growl. The best NSV post-op is that I have not wanted all those processed/fast foods that I craved pre-surgery. I can honestly say that I don't even think about going out for pizza or hamburgers any more. So if you're worried about not being able to eat your favorite foods post-op, you may come to realize that post-op you don't WANT to eat them ever again. :-)

Milk of Magnesia worked for me... a little too well. I took more than the recommended dosage. :-) http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/blog/2115/entry-5950-constipation-and-milk-of-magnesia-or-how-fema-declared-my-bathroom-a-national-disaster/

From what I've read, it is a special pass that lets you use a special car lane at the border to reduce your waiting time to cross. The passes are offered by merchants and businesses like hospitals as an incentive to buy from them. I've seen a few websites that offer a complimentary pass for using their medical services. Here is an example. http://www.whitesmil...ck-border-pass/ But you would need to contact your hotel, physician or hospital to find out if they offer the pass or if you can buy one locally once your in Mexico.

I'm experiencing some of these things too. My knees bang together when I sleep on my side and I can now feel the car seat pressing on my tail bone. I wonder if I'm going to need butt cheek implants to reduce the pressure on my tail bone? :-P

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/blog/2115/entry-5594-quick-faqs-frequently-asked-questions/

Yep, I had them too. It wasn't too bad, but I could feel a pulling sensation each time I tried to sit up or get out of a chair. It does go away after a few days and it helps if you have one of the elastic binders to wind around your stomach.

I guess the speed at which one can eat more would depend on how well the recovery process went and what size bogey was used during surgery. I think it was about the 6 month mark where I started being able to eat more than 1/2 cup at one meal. But from what I've read, it's normal for the stomach to "relax" a little once the swelling and trauma from surgery is over. And I have some days where it just seems like my stomach is a bottomless pit. But unlike pre-surgery, I can eat just a little and walk away. Even though I may be able to eat a cup to 1 1/2 cups of food, I still limit myself to 1/2 or 3/4 of a cup and be satisfied. That wouldn't have happened in the past. I'd have to eat until I was stuffed before I could walk away. And I can remember when I first started being able to eat more, thinking, "OMG, I am eating soooo much." Completely forgetting the huge platefuls I used to able to eat multiple times a day. I don't believe you have stretched your stomach out, or that it is easy to stretch your stomach - since most of the stretchy part has been removed. Just be vigilant and realize that just because you can eat more, you don't have to. Keep Pimpin' that Sleeve!

Okay, this post is not to bash the newbies or newts (not a newbie/not a veteran), although I can see how it could look that way. My sense of humor is dry/sarcastic and it's hard to convey that in print. I thought I'd start compiling some of the most commonly asked questions I see posted on weekly basis, just to show that you are not alone with your thoughts and concerns. Will all my hair fall out after VSG? "Individuals don't begin to notice the increase in hair loss when showering or brushing the hair until about three months post-surgery. Although the resting hair is being pushed out of the scalp by new hair that is already growing, it can take anywhere from about six months to a year for the hair to return to its normal fullness. Individuals who have undergone gastric bypass or other operations of the digestive tract designed to reduce obesity are more prone to hair loss post-surgery. This is due to the reduced intake of food in the weeks and months immediately following these procedures. The body needs an adequate amount of proteins and vitamins to maintain hair production. Protein-enhanced shakes are often recommended for these patients as a substitute until solid food can be better tolerated. Hair loss related to surgery typically reverses itself without any medicinal intervention or the need for over-the-counter hair loss tonics or treatments. However, maintaining a diet rich in protein and iron is believed to help promote and speed up healthy hair growth. Suggested foods include salmon, beans, eggs, spinach, broccoli, nuts and whole-grain cereals. Avoid foods that can inhibit hair growth, such as those that contain high levels of caffeine and fat." Losing Hair After Surgery | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/...l#ixzz2Maz1GjQH Can I take my leftover stomach home in a jar? Man, what kind of sickie... um I mean, that's a very astute question. I didn't ask my doctor about it, but from what I've read, it's considered medical waste and a biohazard in the U.S. So you can't have it as a trophy or to tan and make a beanie out of it. If you're having surgery out of the country, then they may let you take it home, just be careful going through customs. If they ask about it, just tell them you found proof that the Chupacabra exists in Mexico. Can't I do this with out the surgery? You know, eat the crazy small amounts and still lose weight? Why isn't that ok? You can eat the small meals to lose weight, and it is okay. I just couldn't live that lifestyle for very long. It was a non-stop battle to keep myself from eating more. How did you choose your doctor, how much did it cost, and how did you pay for it? I don't want to recommend my doctor, since I wasn't happy with the aftercare, but I paid about $5k between the doctor and hospital. I put it on a credit card and will have it paid off before the end of the year. I found my doctor by calling my insurance company and getting a list of approved WLS doctors. I did a Google search for each doctor and read the reviews before choosing my surgeon. Do you regret having WLS surgery? I do not regret it for a minute. Even with all the discomfort of the 1st 10 days, I am very happy with the result. Food is no longer the focus of my life and I love sitting at a buffet restaurant knowing that I will only eat about 1/4 plate of food. What do I need to pack for the hospital? Here is a long list of suggestions on things you might want to consider taking with you. http://www.verticals...surgery-thread/ How soon after surgery can I start drinking alcohol? I'm sure every doctor has their own recommendations, but my doctor said wait 6 months post-surgery before drinking alcohol again. I'm not a big drinker to begin with, so I didn't miss alcohol. But I did drink about 2 oz. of Tequila at month 6 or 7 and was buzzing immediately, more so than I would have been pre-surgery. So, if you're going to start drinking again, just be aware that it may take less alcohol to impair your system. :-)

I sold body raps a long time ago. The wraps did the job and the inches stayed off as far as I know. But the wraps I used only worked once, meaning that people lost inches the first time they were wrapped, but from then on, subsequent wraps had no noticeable effect.

I went back to work after 10 days. I went in for surgery on a Friday and was back at work on Monday - 10 days later. I have a desk job and it wasn't any real problem going back to work. I wore the elastic binder under my shirt everyday to support my new stomach. I've seen some people post that they were back a work after 3 days.

When you create a new ticker, your first option is to choose the type of ticker. There are 3 radio buttons to choose from, the 3rd one is labeled "Surgery countdown". That's the one you want.

I've got 5 scars. 4 of them were the size of a dime right after surgery, and now they've faded to the point where they look like big freckles. The big incision where they pulled the stomach out is about 2 inches across now, and very faded, but still noticeable. I was a trained massage therapist, massaging the scars will make them breakup and fade quicker. So when I think about it, I'll spend a minute or two running my thumbs across the scars.

I noticed the same thing. Within a week post-op, I started sleeping about 5 hours/night and would wake up feeling good. I've noticed that I need less sleep since I am eating so much less. I guess the body can do it's recovery process more efficiently if it's not processing food from a late night meal. At 9 months out, I sleep about 6 to 7 hours. And I often wake up a few minutes before my alarm clock on work days. I've gone from sleeping till 10am to waking up around 7.

I had planned on documenting my gastric sleeve surgery experience in the order it occurred, but I forgot about the psych evaluation. Once again luck was on my side as I knew what to expect before arriving. I had a chance to talk with a post-op gastric sleeve patient during my 1st appointment with my doctor. The test itself was about 451 questions. Really though, you could say it was about 150 questions asked 3 different ways. My best guess is it is done in that format to measure how consistent and true you are answering. I guess that they believe that if you are trying to manipulate the test for whatever reason, by asking the same question 3 different ways mixed in with 450 questions, you won't be able to remember how you answered previously and your true feelings will be revealed. I can't remember the exact answer selections, but I think there were 6 choices - ranging from Always True to Never True. So they might ask, "Have you consistently missed work because of drinking?" and you choose among the 6 answers as to how true the question applies to your situation. 50 or so questions later, it is asked again differently, "I never drink so much alcohol that I have called in sick at work." And they mix in questions about how alcohol has played a part in your family and social life. Your feelings about stealing, is it better to be a child or an adult, how you behave in social situations, how you bad/good feel most people behave, which is the better part of life - being a child or being an adult. I think you get the general idea. The psych interview was pretty brief - about 15 minutes. The questions mainly center around my eating habits and what I knew about diet and nutrition. That I realized that surgery was only a tool and not the solution. That I needed to exercise before and after surgery. And what I thought my ideal body weight should be. I told him that I didn't want to fixate on a specific number and just wanted to look "normal", whatever that weight turned out to be. I had been following a guy on youtube who started out at my weight 350 and was down to 235 and I thought I'd be very happy to look like him. I haven't been down below 270 since 1997! My doctor later told me that my ideal weight is 200 and seem to take it in stride that I'd have no problem getting to that weight. So we'll see. My plan is to set small goals and not get too hung up on reaching a specific weight. Expenses so far: My copay for the doctor has been about $2000 so far ($500 office visits, nutritionist counseling / $1500 surgery cost) My hospital costs so far, $3000 ($1000 blood, ultra sound, chest xrays and EDG / $2000 surgery cost) I had a bit of a panic yesterday. The hospital called to confirm my surgery date and collect payment. They told me the surgery cost was $19,000 and in my mind I'm thinking "NINETEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS!" I wasn't expecting to have to pay out of pocket that much! And then they said,"Your copay is $2000." Fortunately, I hadn't completely stroked out after hearing the first part and was able to get my heart out of my mouth after I realized I wasn't responsible for the full 19k. :-) I fumbled my Discover card out and gave them the digits. Still to be paid (and as far as I know, the last): Pre-op blood typing/urine testing (must be done within 72 hours of surgery) - I'm scheduled to be tested on 12/26 / surgery 12/27 / expected to return home 12/28.