TennJenn

Yuck! I do not eat fish, period. I know it's a great source of Protein, but it makes me want to gag just thinking about it! However, I am glad you found a good protein for you while on mushies. That's a good thing! As far as the refried Beans, I thinned it out with taco sauce and a bit of sour cream...then chewed the dickens out of it! :ohmy: It's actually probably going to be my biggest mushie source of protein because I can't see blenderizing any meat and eating it! I'm not a big meat eater anyway, so that totally grosses me out. I thought eggs would be a good protein, but it didn't work out as planned.

I had surgery the same day as you! I am just now starting mushies. I could not eat that much if I wanted to! I would literally throw it all back up & be miserable. What was your post-op diet instructions? Does it say you can have regular food at 3 weeks out? Are you making sure you are choosing Proteins first? Are you analyzing whether your hunger is true hunger and not just "head hunger"? I still struggle with the head hunger. But I'm rarely ever physically hungry. I would suggest you give your surgeon a call. And please keep us updated. We are here to support you & help you.

That's exactly how it felt for me...like it got stuck. Horrible feeling!:ohmy: I didn't eat anything else the rest of the night after that and I did a Protein shake this am. Right now I am eating some Nutrisystem homestyle mashed potatoes I had left after my last diet attempt. They are good & have added protein. They seem to be going down fine (as does refried Beans, if I eat slowly).

As everyone else has said, walking is really the best way to get the gas moving. For me, I had surgery on a Tuesday & didn't start getting relief from the gas until Thursday. But once it started moving & working it's way out, I felt SOOO much better! Glad to hear you are doing well! :ohmy:

Since starting mushies, I've had the rapid heartbeats if I ate one bite too much. My heart rate wasn't terribly high (around 90) but my heart rate has consistently been 60-70 post-op. I had one episode where I thought something was wrong, too. I think I let the anxiety make things much worse because once I stopped thinking about it, my HR returned to normal & I felt much better. Please keep us posted. I pray you are feeling better.

Do you take NSaids? I'm pretty sure that is a contraindication to gastric bypass. There are probably some more contraindications you could cite to try to get approved for the sleeve. Sorry I'm not of more help. Good luck!

I'm sick of liquids, too. I've got 6 more days until mushies. Protein shakes & liquified soups are what I'm living off of now. Occassional a few spoonfuls of SF/FF pudding. On another note, I've been taking my chewable Vitamin every morning. I wasn't told not to...should I not be taking it? I take it right before I take the Nexium mup. Neither has bothered me yet, no feeling of throwing up. And another note(okay, a question acutally:biggrin2:)Dr. Aceves' paperwork recommended taking an Iron supplement. I haven't been taking that b/c I couldn't find a chewable one. What do you guys take & when did you start it? I'm scared to death to try to swallow something whole before it's okay.

I have BCBS of TN & I know they do not exclude the VSG as many other insurance companies do. I didn't qualify, but... Have you called your insurance company? Each policy is different so even if one person with BCBS of TX got it covered, it doesn't mean that your particular policy covers it.

Hang in there. I still have 6 days left on my post-op full liquids. I was lucky not to have to do a pre-op diet, so I can't offer advice. Just hang in there. It will be worth it!

I agree with the others, just tell her & of course give her all the papers and x-rays you have from the surgery. I talked with my PCP about WLS before having it...once over a year ago & once about 3 months before my surgery. She wasn't really against it, but she wasn't thrilled either. At the latter visit, I simply told her that I had done my research & chosen the VSG and that I'd be going to Mexico to have the surgery. She questioned me a little about the surgeon (his stats, why I didn't chose a US surgeon & how I found out about Dr. A). I plainly asked if she would be willing to help with any follow up care I might need (labs, etc). She said she would be glad to...just let her know what needed to be checked & what was the best way to code it so my insurance company would cover it. 6 days post op, I went in for a visit to get a new bp med script. & I took all my "goodies" from Dr. A with me. I showed them all to her & we discussed it a bit. She checked my incisions & looked at the x-rays (she was fascinated by the leak test x-rays!). She said the surgery report looked great & I looked great, so all is well. I made my appointment for labs at 3 months post-op. All I have to do is fax her a list of the labs I need drawn prior to my appointment & no problem. Go in to your appt. confident. Remember that YOU are the one that ultimately makes your healthcare decisions. If you feel that she will not be helpful or makes you feel uncomfortable in anyway b/c of the surgery, I am sure you can find a well qualified PCP who will offer you the best care. It's your choice of PCP...you are the boss! Good luck. Be sure to let us know how it goes.

So far my readings are good! I do have some occasional borderline readings (130-140/80-90) but after resting for about 10 minutes it is "normal". :biggrin: I really didn't expect to come off of my meds b/c hypertension runs in my family (even in the non-overweight family members). So, I am still bracing myself for having to go back on meds, but it would be a much lower dose than what I was taking. I was maxed out on the Procardia & my BP still wasn't what my PCP refered to as "well-controlled". My next option was going to be adding another med to the Procardia...so I'll accept having to be on one med, low dosage if that does indeed happen. Good luck with yours!

Well, I'm a stay at home mom but I thought I'd chime in here anyway. :wink1: For me, 2 weeks would be plenty. I definitely would advise waiting until you are on full liquids. I was very weak on clears only but once I started full liquids, my energy level was great. If you would like an additional 2 weeks off, go for it! But as far as healing, etc. I think 2 weeks is enough to be feeling somewhat back to normal. Good luck! You are gonna love Dr. Aceves & his staff (but I'm sure you've already heard that many times! :biggrin:)

I guess I still have the taste for sweetness. :001_smile: I am beginning to tire of the chocolate shakes, though. I noticed netrition.com carries an Atkins Caramel shake...may have to give that a try.

Vegas covered most everything else... My flight out was 12:30 and we had plenty of time. We got back to the airport a little after 11:00am (and we had to drop off another lady at a hotel first). I don't think you'll have a problem there. I did freak out a bit by the line at security at the airport, but it moved very fast. My DH had plenty of time to eat before boarding the plane & we still had time to just sit there.

I just had my VSG there on July 7th, so it's fresh in my mind! Yes, they have airconditioning. My DH was cool enough, but after the surgery I had hot flashes. The nurses immediately brought me a fan & it was a life saver! The cafeteria food looked & smelled amazing! My DH said is was indeed VERY good food. And it was not expensive at all...I think he paid about $6.00 US for each meal (including his drink) & he got a lot of food for that. My offical last meal was from the Lucerna room service...a bowl of potato and bacon soup! It was yummy! DH had a club sandwich with fries & I kid you not, that thing was HUGE. It was reasonably priced as well. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. :001_smile:

I'm 9 days post op now & sipping has become much easier. I can now sip larger amounts more often without the pain that I had for the first few days. I am still careful not to take in too much with one sip & if I do I still feel "tightness", but I can take larger sips. I am considering this a good thing as it helps me to get in more liquids throughout the day. Just wondering what everyone else's experience has been...I guess I just want to make sure I'm relatively normal! :thumbup1:

My husband tries to be mindful of eating around me as well. But it's like I told him, he has to eat! Just like my kids have to eat...and I have to prepare their meals. It's tough, but it was a decision I made. And in a few weeks, I'll be on whole foods...I'm hoping it will be easier then.

Just wanted to let you all know that Want2BMyselfAgain is now TennJenn. :laugh0:

I called my insurance company myself & discussed WLS with them. I know ins companies can be hard to deal with, but that's your best bet to get started. I found out that my BCBS of TN policy does cover the sleeve, but I wouldn't qualify as my BMI was 34.5...I didn't want to wait any longer, so I self paid. If you have a surgeon that you are seeing, his/her office should help you deal with the insurance company. They should try everything in their might to get you approved for the sleeve. If they are not trying to help you, I suggest you see about finding another surgeon whose office staff is willing to help you. Good luck!

Just wishing you luck! Have a safe & "boring" trip! :laugh0:

It is scary. I felt like a freak dreaming so vividly about food! I can start mushies next Tuesday, so I have 8 days left.

I am enjoying the Atkins Dark Chocolate protein shakes. I also like the Muscle Milk Light shakes. The best thing about full liquids for me, though, is the soups.

I did the same thing! I dreamed that I ate one chip and then freaked out because I'm on liquids only. :laugh0:

rosey- I was the same way...so weak I could barely move while on clears, especially near the end of the 10 days. I drank a Protein shake a day earlier than I was supposed to. I just drank it slow & only had one (basically it took me half a day to finish it). But it made so much difference in my energy level. Without it, I don't think I could have been able to attend to my children that day. Now I'm on full liquids and my strength is much better! I imagine things will just get better and better from here...I just wish I could get to whole foods already! I'm ready for some crunch! My teeth haven't had to work in a while...they're bored.:laugh0:

Dr. Aceves' post-op diet is 10 days clears, 10 days full liquids, 10 days mushies. I just started full liquids...can't wait for mushies! :001_smile: BTW, what is your plan for your first mushie meal?