Donnie

I was sleeved Oct 26th and have been eating mushies and very soft solids for the past week. My surgeon refused to put me on prilosec, or any other acid reducer for that matter saying there is no credible evidence that it helps after surgery, and I found that the hunger pangs I was experiencing were the worst I've ever felt. Additionally, the Protein drinks that I drank before surgery made my dry heave simply at the smell. My post-op appointment was scheduled for 21 days after surgery so I couldn't easily discuss these issues with my surgeon. I did what I had to do to survive. I bought Prilosec OTC and began taking that. It has helped with some of the extreme hunger pangs. I started with blended Soups and progressed within a couple days to regular Soup, eggs, cottage cheese, mashed potatoes, yogurt, cheese, rice, Pasta and even beef and chicken that I chew thoroughly before swallowing. I'm eating between 400-600 calories per day and am not losing anything. Today is my 2 week anniversary and I have only lost about 7 pounds since surgery. Basically, I haven't lost anything since I've been home from the hospital on day 3. Chfroman, I feel your pain. I'm not sure this is going so well for me either. My water/fluid intake is ok, but could be better. I'm averaging around 32-40 oz. per day. Please, please, if you have any advice for me, let me know!!!!

Start taking and recording your measurements weekly. I know you will notice a difference even if the scale seems to be stuck, and it will make you feel better. Your body is in shock and is adjusting. You need to relax and give it more time. Glad the prilosec is working for you. You sound like you are doing great with your intake and fluids.

Hang in there! It will happen.

Have any of you noticed changes in your breast tissue after the surgery (other than loss of size, obviously)? My breasts became super-nodular, almost like a bag of grain or something. I went to get this lump checked out today and the doc actually decided to order an ultrasound, and she also said she felt that my breasts were very nodular. I was thinking maybe it's something to do with hormonal changes due to rapid fat loss, since fat makes a form of estrogen?

Wow - I'm experiencing this same thing. My breast tissue is sagging so much after losing 60 lbs and now I think I am feeling a lump up in the chest wall up where my left breast used to be. One side has this and the other doesn't. I'm over due for a mammogram and the usual stuff too. My counselor is a breast cancer survivor & is on my back to make an appointment to get this checked out. She will holler at me tomorrow when I see her if I haven't, so I'd better make the call.

I see my surgeon next week and he does other surgeries too including breast lumpectomies so I was thinking of seeing what he thinks. Hope both of our lumps turn out to be nothing.

What is this new Metimucil product? Think i need to check it out!!!

thanks,

patti

Hi Patti,

It's called Metamucil Clear & Natural Clear Mixing powder. I've been using it (with my surgeon's approval) since a week before my surgery. I had planned to choke down the "drink it fast before it clumps up and gets gross" kind of Metamucil, but was really happy to find this new version. I got mine at Target but I've seen it at the chain pharmacies too.

It is flavor, taste & grit free & has been a BIG help for me. I usually put it in my morning Protein drink, but you could add it to any liquid hot or cold. It doesn't thicken it a bit or even make plain Water look cloudy! I can't tell it's in there or taste it at all. You can even take it 3 times daily if you need to. 2 teaspoons in the am seems to work for me.

I had my surgery on October 4th. So far I have lost 20 lbs post op. I also lost 40 lbs in the 4 months prior to my surgery for a total of 60 lbs lost. As of last week I am no longer "morbidly obese" (YAY!) and am finally below 200 lbs! I have not been this weight in about 15 years!!

I'm not having any issues eating food (600 - 800 cals daily) and am able to eat dense Protein without much difficulty. My biggest issue is getting in enough fluids. No problems with reflux or Constipation. (Hooray for previcid and that new Metamucil product!)

I weigh daily and am getting frustrated because the scale seems to be moving so slowly these last few weeks. I was afraid I was in a stall. I am losing a couple of pounds each week though, so I guess I'm really not. Probably would be losing faster if I hadn't lost so much weight before surgery, but I can't complain. I've never lost more than 50 lbs before and only kept that off for a short while so this is pretty exciting for me!

I see my surgeon next week for my second follow up visit and I hope he doesn't think I should have lost more by now.

I was really worried about this issue prior to surgery. I planned to take Metamucil to avoid Constipation issues. I started taking it the week before my surgery to get my system used to it. (Surgeon had said this was OK.)

I found there is a new Metamucil product that is flavor free, taste free and grit free. It is called Clear & Natural and mixes in beautifully with any liquid. A couple of teaspoonfulls is all you need to meet your daily Fiber needs, and it works like a charm. Doesn't thicken up your drink like the old stuff which is really nice. You don't even know it is in there.

I highly recommend it to help any WLS patient with the Fiber issue.

Did you receive heparin (blood thinner) shots in this area while in the hospital? I was getting two each day in the lower abdomen area you describe. For some reason, a good week after being discharged, this area became very itchy with what seemed like hives for several days. Upon closer examination, I could still see the tiny holes where I got each injection. They had spaced them out across my abdomen and the itchy spots were around the injection sites. I figured it was a related issue and if it had gotten worse I'd have followed up on it. Fortunately, it went away after a few days on it's own.

Well, cheer up! You aren't the only one on the planet who is experiencing this. There are at least two of us! I had my surgery the beginning of October and I too dropped 13 lbs the first week. I lost another 2 and then nothing! I've been fluctuating back and forth with the same lousy pound ever since. It is driving me crazy!

I lost about 40 lbs pre op so I didn't expect to lose as quickly as some do after surgery, but I didn't expect a stall this early on either! I don't want to go back to the doctor and not have lost more weight!

I know I need to get more fluids in and am working on that. I have not had any problems with any foods I have tried and am able to eat 600-700 calories daily. I write down everything I eat and my carbs/fats/protein are all good. Still, I am not losing weight.

I am losing inches. I have lost an inch all over and 2.5 inches in each thigh and in my hips, so something positive is going on. I can tell a difference in my clothing and am happy about that so I am trying not to get too frustrated. The scale will move eventually. (I hope!)

The plateau I am stuck at is a weight I maintained for a lengthy period of time years ago. Personally, I think the body remembers and is comfortable when it gets to a familiar place and wants to stay there. Hopefully it will move on soon. I should probably stay off the scale too, but I want to KNOW!

So chin up there - if misery loves company then we are definitely members of the same club!