Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

Jill

Gastric Sleeve Patients
  • Content Count

    58
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by Jill


  1. I feel hunger too and it is frequent and very annoying. I am 2.5 months out. I am also able to eat almost two cups of food like turkery chili or turkery meatloaf with sides and about 4 ounces of a chicken breast with vegetables and some rice. I thought I would only be able to eat half that amount.

    It's quite frustrating and my weigh loss has been stalled for quite a while.

    I suppose that I need to just go on an old fashioned diet and only eat a small amount and let my will power stop me rather than relying on my supposed smaller stomach.


  2. I am 4 weeks out and I feel hunger on a daily basis. I am also able to eat much more than I thought I would and have to consciously stop myself. I can easily eat a cup of food and I've never felt any pain nor had difficulty eating. Last night I had about three ounces of grilled chicken, a few bites of brocolli and about 10 tortellini. While I realize that is not a huge meal, I thought I would only be able to eat a couple of tablespoons this early on in the journey.

    I am also able to take regular sized sips of Water with no trouble or pain. It feels like I never had surgery. I am happy about the no pain of course, but I do wish I would get full quickly and I just don't.

    Jill


  3. Hello again, Well I am 4 days out of surgery on 7/26 and the gas seems to be getting better. I slept in the bed half the night last night so thats good. I am still having trouble swallowing anything! I had half a Protein Shake today and boy am I paying for it. Everything burns burns burns going down. When it gets to the bottom it burns more! Is anyone else experiencing this? Also I am having like reflux burns too! Please tell me that this is going to pass. Ican't believe that I read some people will be going back to work in 1 week. I still haven't let my kids come home yet they are visiting their grandparents indefinitely. Help any suggestions anyone??

    Hi Traci~

    Sorry you are having trouble swallowing. What does your doctor say is the cause? I've had zero trouble drinking or eating anything and I was sleeved on July 12 and didn't think that there should be any buring or anything.

    Jill


  4. I really enjoyed reading your post Calibre! It's nice to know I'm not the only one with these "fifty-something" issues! This is the very first forum type thing I have ever participated in, so I'm trying to get the hang of all the aspects of this site.

    Also, thanks for the tip about the "ticker!" I'm working on it now. My attemps to be mostly private initially somewhat backfired. My husband mentioned it to one of his sisters & now they are calling to check on me (which is sweet & yet ...) -- one put a note on my Facebook page saying "glad to hear your surgery went well." I gently removed it and then sent her a personal message thanking her for her thoughts. My husbands family are all thin -- so lucky!

    How do you "gently" remove something?


  5. Had my surgery on the 7th. Have been off the pain pills since the 10th of July. the one thing that I am having a huge problem with is once i get all my 64 oz in I always end up with the hiccups really bad which results in me puking. Is anyone else having this problem? Cant get my Protein in hardly at all.

    Why can't you take your protein WITH your water/fluids?


  6. There are sooooooooooo many options for the full liquid stage.

    I've been adding about a cup of cottage cheese and a little basil to a can of condensed Tomato Soup with 1.5 cans of milk. I have a Vitamix, so I can turn anything into liquid. I get about three meals from this.

    Another thing I've been doing to make flavorful cream Soup is to take a can of Healthy Request soup (Mexican chicken is my fav so far) and put it into the Vitamix, which turns it into a cream soup. I did this with clam chowder last night. I have several other varieties to try, all chicken, since beef is not yet allowed. Very soothing and satisfying to the stomach and head.

    If you have a Vitamix or a really powerful blender, you can turn any regular food into a cream soup.

    As far as a Protein drink. I have the normal 30 gram premade Protein drinks of course. I also bought a bag of 100% whey in vanilla. I put a scoop of the Protein in the Vitamix, 2 TBLS Peanut Butter, one banana and Water and ice and blend to a thin liquid consistency. Tasty and masks the taste of the Protein powder mostly. This is higher in calories than a regular Protein Drink, but it gives me the potassium my cells need and extra protein from the Peanut Butter, not to mention, a more satisfying drink.


  7. I've been adding about a cup of cottage cheese and a little basil to a can of condensed Tomato Soup with 1.5 cans of milk. I have a Vitamix, so I can turn anything into liquid. I get about three meals from this.

    Another thing I've been doing to make flavorful cream Soup is to take a can of Healthy Request soup (Mexican chicken is my fav so far) and put it into the Vitamix, which turns it into a cream soup. I did this with clam chowder last night. It was average....wouldn't do it again. I have several other varieties to try, all chicken, since beef is not yet allowed.

    Very soothing and satisfying to the stomach and head.

    As far as a Protein drink. I have the normal 30 gram premade Protein drinks of course. I also bought a bag of 100% whey in vanilla. I put a scoop of the Protein in the Vitamix, 2 TBLS Peanut Butter, one banana and Water and ice and blend to a thin liquid consistency. Tasty and masks the taste of the Protein Powder mostly. This is higher in calories than a regular Protein Drink, but it gives me the potassium my cells need and extra protein from the Peanut Butter, not to mention, a more satisfying drink.

    Jill


  8. Jill it's been nearly 3 years ago since I was going through that, but at the time but it said the the requirements were 40+ BMI or 35+ BMI with two co-morbsand a 5 year history of obesity; I had to have one weight from a doctor's office for each of those years.. I had to get them from my PCP, OBGYN, various urgent care facilities, because I'm not good about going to any one doc every single year... and sometimes I had (stupidly skipped the weight in.).The co morbs weren't an issue for me because I met the higher BMI. But I do remember that the insurance person in my docs office knew which ones our policy considered co-morbs and which they did not.

    BTW, I did not have to provide months of medically supervised weight loss. I only had to list diets I'd tried, weight lost/regained and so forth as well as a medical history proving 5 years of obesity. Though my BMI wasn't even above 35 the entire time 5 years, I explained that I was constantly trying to lose weight. They approved it without ever denying it.

    Gotcha. Still horse of a different color. I wouldn't imagine they would approve you after the fact and in light of the above circumstances.

    Jill


  9. I have BC/BS Ohio. But I'm understanding that my employer is really self insured. BC/BS just administer it. With my band, I went through the pre surgical approval process. They said they didn?t have the paperwork numerous times but in the end, and so many copies of it that the woman who personally called to say it was approved couldn?t understand why my doc?s office had bombarded them with so many copies. LOL But all in all it was approved without any denial and really within maybe 6 weeks. We didn?t even attempt to have the sleeve approved, well frankly, I was planning/hoping to KEEP my band. The sleeve was discussed and agreed upon only if removing my band was necessary for the healing of the hernia. I was having so much discomfort I couldn?t wait the weeks it would take to get the denial, then how many more for appeals? I?m definitely going to look into appealing though and thanks for all the information.

    Ah, that is a horse of a different color!

    Jill


  10. food for thought for sure. I will try the appeal process, do you know if "after the fact" surgeries are even eligible for appeal with insurance companies? Mine does not approve WLS for BMIs below 35 and then with two co-morbs, and I have no co-morbs. GERD isn't considered a co morb on my policy, has to be high blood pressure, diabetes or sleep apnea. etc. none of which I've ever had. I've heard some insurances count things like GERD, incontinence, arthritis, Fibromyalgia, etc. Mine does not. My BMI had to be 40+.

    How do you know this specifically? Is the language in the policy "we will not approve for BMIs under 35, nor for GERD no matter what the reason." Or were you denied because you didn't meet certain criteria? You really need to read the denial letter and read between the lines. How many times have you appealed?

    Jill


  11. Ellisa, I agree with Mila. I have Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Illinois and I live in Florida. They kept requesting document after document and wanted medically supervised diets and other doctor visits, which I complied and then sent to them. At the end, I got the person on the phone who wrote the denial letters who told me that she was on my side and was the middle man. Of course I did not believe her, but it turned out to be true. She asked me about gastric bypass and I told her why I did not want that procedure and why the Sleeve was best for my situation. She listened and went to the medical director who denied me and said that I needed other information, which I actually had already submitted, so I refaxed that information directly to this woman who went back to the medical director and presented my information and my story and I was approved the next day.

    Jill


  12. appealed 11 denials, good for you!!!!

    Thanks, it was frustrating to say the least. They put me through all kinds of nonsense and kept requesting records and information over and over and medically supervised diets and such. At the end I got a person on the phone and she went to the superviser on my behalf and was finally able to get me approved. I had to have all my ducks in a row and submit everything that was required. It wasn't easy and took me eight months.

    Jill


  13. My insurance considers it to be experimental. It will cover the band and GBS, but not sleeve. Since my BMI no longer meets their requirements it won't cover any WLS for me now. But it did approve the hiatal hernia repair and band removal.

    They verbally asked me about the gastric bypass and I told they why I did not want that procedure and why I wanted the Sleeve. I was adamant until they said yes.


  14. I took your advice and didn't let myself take one nap and I feel good. I was able to drink all though the day without getting sick. When I went to Mexico I couldnt keep anything down until the morning I left. I think my main issue was I forgot my gas-x strips and those have been my life saver. Instead of taking pain meds I would use a strip and take a walk. It was amazing how much of a difference if made. My sister says I looked dead the first few days. My eyes change to yellow when I sick so Im so I didn't look the best lol.. I'm still on Clear Liquids until Monday then I can start to have some full liquids. What can I drink that is clear and has protien?

    Yay, that is great new!!!! It really does help to start walking right away; makes all the difference in the world.

    I too am on only clear liquids until Saturday. I have Protein shots which are clear and which give 26 grams of Protein a shot. I've been drinking two a day. They are almost 3 ounces each. I take a sip just about every one to two minutes to make sure that I get in enough Fluid to keep from dehydrating. I am also sipping broth, gatorade and Water and I am eating Italian icees and popsicles, which I love because just a small amount goes through at a time so they are like a self monitoring intake bar. I seem to be able to drink more than 4 ounces per hour, which I like. I asked my doctor about that since the dietician and so many others told me ust 4 ounces at a time and he said that clear liquid goes right through, so it is okay if I drink more. I just make sure to take very small sips. The Gatorade seems to hydrate me the best and stop me from feeling so parched and thirsty, but the broth tastes so good and is satisfying.

    It's okay to take naps now, just make sure you are walking. Walking immediately after sugery is the most important and for that day and the next so that you don't get blood clots or DVT and it will also help move around the gas so that it can escape.

    Jill


  15. My surgery took three hours because of so much scar tissue and the surgery was tough for the surgeon.

    Stop falling back to sleep and get your ass up and walking. You are making it harder on yourself by sleeping so much. Force yourself to get up and get up every couple of hours and walk for ten minutes at least. I came home the next day and have already driven to the grocery store. Today I am going out to do errands. Recovery is in your hands.


  16. Still feeling good from my surgery which was July 12. I am drinking every two minutes to make sure I keep hydrated. Yesterday I drove to the store to buy popsicles and gatorade and those have helped with the liquid phase. Saturday I will start full liquids.

    The Protein shots and coconut Water are so disgusting and I really need to get some Protein into my diet, so I am looking forward to full liquids on Saturday.

    There's really not much pain with this surgery and so far has been quite easy. I wanted to go back to work today, but my husband won't let me.

    How are the rest of the newbies doing?

    Jill


  17. I am back home and feeling okay. My hiatal hernia was not repaired due to too much scar tissue from the multiple surgeries and my liver and organs were all stuck together.

    The pain level is minimal, just mostly discomfort. I am a stomach sleeper so I am not getting much sleep.

    Clear Liquids for several days and trying to get hydrated. I feel so thirsty. I do have hunger, but I would guess that is expected not having taken in any calories for the last two days.

    Jill


  18. Jill,

    Congrats Jill! Hope you saved all your clothes so you won't have to rebuy all those sizes. LOL

    Thanks so much, Ellisa. I have shirts and blouses in sizes leading downward to a good weight, so I won't have to buy tops, but not so much in the pants department. :)

    Less than 24 hours to go!

    Jill


  19. I am having surgery with Dr. Eddie Gomez in Miami. The insurance dude is horrible at returning calls, so I have to call and call until I can get a hold of him. Everyone else is responsive. Dr. Gomez has done 600 Sleeves with six leaks, which I think is a good record. The hospital he is now with has been very, very attentive, which is nice. It is Jackson South, which is in Kendall. Monday is my surgery date and I am definitely ready.

    I've known of Dr. Gomez' reputation for several years, but can understand the turn off because of the office staff not returning calls. It is being dealt with however, I believe.

    Jill

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

×