Globetrotter

And this is just one of several reasons why I'm still primarily on the protein shakes, food is such a hassle.

I am starting my 5th week post-op. Last night I peeled an orange and "ate" it. That is to say, I chewed and sucked all the juice out of each section before spitting out the fiberous pulp. It just felt wonderful to put something fresh in my mouth but I was worried about whether my stomach can handle the pulp. So what is the verdict on seedless fruits and veggies? I know we are supposed to reserve room for protein but if I hit my protein quota for the day, can I have a bite of apple - no skin - chewed to mush? Melon? A seeded peeled slice of cucumber, also chewed to puree? Pickles? steamed stir-fry vegetables with a trickle of soy sauce? I'm just getting tapped out on tuna salad and boiled eggs but still unsure of what the stomach can handle. Thanks!

I'm not weighing, I don't own any scales - for my food or myself. It helps me stay away from pain after eating though if I measure out my ounces, so I take my food item and scoop it into the plastic shot glass thingey and put it in my tiny bowl. Two shot glasses - two ounces- and I don't get the pain. I'm only a month out so have yet to refine my "eyeballing" abilities.

Ah-ha!! I did some research and it turns out I was right; the liquid ounce is slightly more than the dry or averdupois ounce. So I will be "loose packing" my ounce cups from now on.

I don't know what that was but maybe after practically zero carbs since surgery maybe it was the fat person carb equivalent of a drinker having alcohol after having been clean for awhile - it really hit my system. It was regular PB so maybe it was a combo of pure protein, intense carb, and sugar. Whatever it was, it was wierd.

AJW - 5'7", size 2 pants? You ARE a skinny bitch, and you should be proud of it! I can't wait till I'm a skinny bitch too. Maybe we should have a logo, like a really looooong weiner dog wearing a pink bow. :001_smile:

I have these little plastic cups that came with some of my medicines, I think I got some of them in the hospital - don't remember. Anyway, the little measure lines on the side say half ounce, ounce, and dram. So these are meant for liquids. I'm using them with my tuna salad, scrambled egg, chili, etc. Am I accidentally cheating? An ounce of real food has to be more than an ounce of liquid, right? I don't pack it tight when I'm measuring say, tuna salad, because I'm concerned that I'm accidentally eating more than I should. Right now, measuring it like this, 2 "ounces" of tuna is fine and 3 "ounces" has me stuffed. Help!

I'm starting to feel like a vampire, albeit a fat out of shape one - no human bodily functions and restricted to a liquid diet without any interest in human food. =( I never thought I would miss a good poo, but I do, I miss poo. ing.

Brown Cow Non-Fat Greek Yogurt had 23 grams of protein per serving and negligible sugars carbs etc. 2 weeks out from surgery it took me 2 hours to eat a serving but it was great stuff, I drizzled honey on top (nut. said it was ok) and tapped some cinnamon and it was sooo gooood! =) Really wish I had access to it now.

Haha!! I already get the short jokes all day long from the giant soldiers and former soldiers I work with, I'm sure those will only get "worse", lol! Another plus to us shorties is that capri pants are the perfect length and don't have to be hemmed!!:001_wub:

Whoever invented this is BRILLIANT!! So delicious, so tasty, yum yum yum!!! I put the sauce on right away and baked it with the sauce which I think made it even richer. I wonder what other veggies would work with this, zuchinni (sp)? squash? I'm sure mozzarella would be great in this, maybe even feta. I used a smoked bacon flavored tomato sauce so I got a hint of porky goodness during my mushy stage. Deeeelish!

This is the wierdest feeling - I haven't had any carbs since surgery except for what might be in the broths, soups, etc. But no "stand-alone" carbs. Today I had a tablespoon of peanut butter, about half an hour ago, and the only way to describe how I feel right now is - drunk. I can barely keep my eyes open, feel a little loopy, and maybe like I might throw up. I won't throw up but I sorta feel spinny. WTF? Is it a shock to my system because it's so rich, so carby? No digestive pains, no esophagus pains just, drunk!

I've actually never been a soda drinker, think it makes my mouth taste nasty and my teeth scummy so my question is about other carbonations. I love mineral water which is often carbonated and since alcohol is out during the first few healing months it would be nice if I could have a club soda with lime or something when out with friends. So is the big worry over carbonation because of soda-carbonation and its empty calories, or is it over the tiny bubbles? I'm a month out and yes I will ask my surgeon but, soda water - thoughts, comments?

Greeneyes this is exactly my problem too!! In fact today I haven't eaten anything except 1 tablespoon of Peanut Butter, I just couldn't bring myself to eat anything else. I have really good rtd Protein shakes and just the thought of having one today literally makes me nauseated. So I've got 4 grams of protein today and 100 calories, wahoo. If I try to eat chicken, even super slowly, it hurts aLOT. Tuna with way too much mayo goes down okay, but you're only supposed to have it once a week if that because of mercury. Frustrating. Having zero appetite is not as great as some might think.

I'm a not-narrow-in-the-middle hourglass. I had my surgery 2 days before you and was also in a 24W pant and I still cannot wear my 22's comfortably. I'm happy for you! Hope to be there soon too.

I miss being hungry, not because of missing food but because it feels kinda like I'm missing a basic human response. I'm a month out and am never hungry and those times when I thought I might be hungry, it turned out to be acid. I would like to eat without pain though, that would be nice. Doesn't matter what it is or how tiny the bite, 30 seconds after I've swallowed, I hurt. I chew tuna till it's grainy nothing, soup takes an hour or more to eat. Today I just don't feel like eating at all, not even the protein shakes.

I want to ... 1. Dance. Tango, Paso Doble, swing, lindy hop, cha cha, merengue, waltz, ballet, belly, indian temple. I want to move with energy and not be slowed down by sweating chafing fat, a thumping heart, and exhaustion after a few minutes. 2. When I do dance, I want to really dance with a partner, feel their body against mine. 3. The sex!! 4. Walk into a room and feel totally confident and assured in myself.

I can't tell you how good it feels that there is a community of us with the same questions, worries, and goals! I am 5'3" and pre-op weight was 294. At my 2 week check up I had lost 20 lbs and my surgeon said my goal was to weight 150. Well I thought my goal was to weight 130 at most and he said, oh no - that's TOO SKINNY. Nobody has ever said that to me in my life regarding anything having to do with weight, lol lol!! So as far as he is concerned I have 125 pounds to lose, in my opinion I have 150 pounds to lose, either way it's a lot!! I don't think this will feel "real" to me until I have lost those first 50 pounds. To me that will be "proof" that this isn't another failed attempt and that I can get to the bottom 200's. Plus I think it will take about 50 pounds for me to truly need a new size of pants and a new size of bra. =) I haven't lost anything yet after those first 20 pounds so staying positive takes a bit of work right now but I am.

I forgot to mention that I am supposed to get 600 calories a day and usually barely top 400.

Wow, listen to that sentence. Deconstruct it. That is one self-abusive sentence! You're the one with the problem? Like you're a horrible person? Yeah we make choices in our lives but the majority of severely overweight people are battling genetics and a wide list of things almost completely out of their control. This surgery is how we take control and we are brave and strong for doing so. You can't get rid of the junk food because you have kids? I'm sorry and please everyone don't flame me for this, but I totally disagree. We inform our childrens decisions on food, we are supposed to show them the way. Leaving those snacks in the house for them is not doing them any favors. Yes they may complain or tantrum, but they are the children, we are the adults, we lead them. There are super delish yummy brightly colored snacks out there that are also healthy. This is an opportunity at health-overhaul for the entire family.

Knitting is seriously the way to go, during my 3 weeks of healing/vacation after the surgery I picked up knitting again and made a baby blanket for a friend that is expecting. It was wonderfully zen, the movement and click of the needles, seeing my work grow in front of me, getting into that zone of "just one more row" instead of "just one more cookie". =) Plus it gave a rhythm to my sips, every two rows I would take a mouthful and swallow it slowly over the course of the following row. Maybe I'll post pics of the baby blanket here before I give it to her, "blankey- brought to you by VSG". =)

Thank you everybody for your words of encouragement, I really needed them! Oddly enough, scale obsession doesn't play a part in any of this - I do not own a scale and will not weigh myself until my one month out date, Aug. 14th. I will use a scale at the medic's station. I will use this experience to gain patience and understanding, thank you guys for letting me know I am not alone, am not the lonely heavyweight of the forum, and that movement will happen!!!!

I know I know, I would totally have done this in my early 20's or even late teens as a preventative measure if I could have, I'm not putting down lightweights, It's that I was feeling lonely. Thank you though to everyone, I know now that I am not the only heavyweight left on the forum, though I am one of the short ones (5'3")!

Where I am I still need a scrip to get the Miralax so I guess I will be stuck using the MoM which just thinking about it makes me want to vomit. But I am only going once every 3 days and it is a struggle even then.

Hello, I don't even know if anybody even comes to this forum anymore. Seems like most of the forums further down the VST page get ignored. I had surgery July 14th and in the first 2 weeks, while still on liquids, I lost 20 pounds. In 2 days I will be 30 days out from surgery and I just weighed myself and I have not lost since those 20 pounds. Only 20 pounds in the first month? Coming from my high number - 294 pre-op - this is depressing. Every day of the first few months post-op are precious, I can't afford to lose ground. I come up short on liquids every day, usually about 10 ounces shy of goal. I am usually about 100 calories under daily goal of 600. I usually make protein goal of 70g's a day. I haven't started exercising yet as the fatigue was pretty severe. I'm afraid! Only twenty pounds! Even when I have lost 100 pounds I will still be a "fat chick" and will still be considered medically obese. People probably won't even notice that I've lost any weight until I've lost that much. The road just seems very long right now.