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Happy Birthday, Meggie! Glad you ate some popcorn! I have never heard to wait so long for popcorn. Your tummy does not take 6 months to heal. And if you go by the notion of looking at your outside incisions, then it would be even earlier out than you are now! I know mine were completely closed after about a week and not sore anymore after a couple weeks.

Hope you enjoyed your day!

You look great! So slim and trim

I also have not had any nausea at all, which I am very thankful for. That is the worst feeling and I was really worried about it after reading posts on here about it. I had minimal pain when sitting up from lying down for a few days, but nothing bad. I feel lucky to have had such an easy recovery. I guess the main thing I remember from the first couple weeks was being tired. Probably from just sitting around doing nothing!!

I hope you have an easy recovery. Just take it easy on yourself!

"The fact that my weight has stabilized clearly demonstrates that I'm not eating the way I once did. Otherwise, I'd have continued to gain weight rapidly. I didn't."

My nutritioinist and I were talking about this the other day. You are not gaining weight because you are eating the amount that sustains your weight. She mentioned that that is what happens- you will gain gain gain until the amount you are eating is the amount that sustains that weight.

She actually mentioned it when I was asking her about the theory that when you are in starvation mode you should eat more for a day or two to shock your system. She said that the amount I am eating (600-800 calories) will cause me to lose weight and if I was to continue- Ii would lose until the weight that THAT amount sustains- though of course I would not do that as I would be too thin.

The reason I mention this, is that you are eating a great deal if you are maintaining 200 extra pounds, even taking in to account your medical issues. The tool you would have with the sleeve would change that a lot- and without hunger.

I love my sleeve- it is everything I hoped for and more. However, I will never go years without weighing again because ultimately it cost me more emotionally than dieting and weighing had.

Meggie, is that what people call their 'set point' ? I have heard of this and wonder if that was what your nutritionist was talking about. I remember when I was always yo-yoing I could always get to a weight and then no matter how much I ate or how little I ate, I would stay the same unless I did something drastic. Just curious.

Sorry to hear this is happening to you. Maybe you could go get some lab work and see what you might be deficient in.

I hope you get to the bottom of this!

I appreciate your insight... and you may be right. I'm not at all convinced this is an answer for me, or something I want to put myself through. The restrictions don't worry me much, since they'll become medically necessary if I have the surgery. But they are something to consider while asking questions. I'm not so much opposed to weighing or measuring food as I am to weighing or measuring ME, lol. I had to eat extremely carefully following my gallbladder removal last year, and there was a chance that I might have to keep that sort of diet permanently. Some people do... it was over six weeks before I even tried a small piece of chocolate. I had to slowly reintroduce foods. Possibly because my gallbladder attacks weren't triggered by fatty meals, I was lucky. I haven't had any issues with any foods (that I didn't already have issues with).

I do, however, worry that the low carb nature of the post-surgical diet is not a good fit for me. Not for the reasons I'm sure some might think, either. I have very bad IBS, and there are times when crackers or a piece of toast are all I can stomach. I can't eat most veggies raw and have to completely avoid citrus fruits. There are a lot of fruits I love and miss, but it's not worth how awful they make me feel. It's one reason the low fat, high Fiber diets were doomed for me. The things I *could* eat weren't the most healthy options (like Rice Krispies Treats!). So, that's something I'd be worried about. Right now, I balance what I eat very carefully in terms of how my stomach responds to foods, and carbs of some sort (multi-grain breads, crackers, etc) are usually involved. So I'm not sureI could live comfortably on a diet that didn't allow them.

<div><br></div><div> This tool, the sleeve, does not necessarily require a low carb diet at, all. I have not been doing low carb. I eat full sugar foods and drinks, I eat crackers (sometimes all I can tolerate, too) and I eat toast (soft bread does not do well for me), I eat tortilla chips and yes, I have even had a rice crispy treat or two. I am not trying to be non-compliant, I just can't tolerate artificial sweeteners and so I have drinks that are sweetened with sugar, like gatorade, lemonade and tea. I can only eat about a half a piece of toast with my bacon and eggs, but that fills me up and makes me feel satisfied. I eat crackers with my Soups and with cheese, etc. I have lost 55 pounds since the day of surgery (65 since my week long pre-op diet) eating this way. And I am ashamed to say I have not exercised once. So, you see, just because some have much success with low carb, that does not mean it is the only way to lose weight with the sleeve. I would never, EVER suggest to someone to eat like I do, but it's what works for ME. Believe me I tried and tried to drink those SF Protein shakes and crystal light, etc. Just could NOT do it. I can eat anything I want (just not a LOT of it..lol) and am still losing weight steadily. I may not be the fastest loser, but it is good enough for me. 55 pounds in 3.5 months is not too shabby. Anyway, just thought I would share my experience so far.

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I used Dr. Aceves also. I cannot say enough good things about him. My VSG surgery in Mexicali was the best surgical experience I have had to date. He is more than $5500 but you get a full hospital with ER and 3 nights there in the hospital and as Foxbins said, the Dr's come around to see you often. I got visited 3 times a day. Experience counts, too.

There are 1 or 2 on this board that don't like it when Dr. Aceves' patients sing his praises and have even accused us of being paid. I can assure you I have not been paid. When I have a good experience and someone ASKS for information, I am just happy to share. But whataya gonna do? There are negative nellys everywhere you go. Maybe they are just mad they spent more and did not get any better care, and with a probably less experienced surgeon. Who knows?

Just do your research on ALL of the Drs and make an informed decision. That is what I did. I read about every Dr I could and made my decision accordingly.

Good luck to you!

Yes, you will be able to eat enough meat, etc. to get your Protein in later. Lots of us had trouble in the beginning. It is very common. I know Tiff said she stayed on mushies for a long time to get all her Protein in because she couldn't tolerate the shakes (also very common). I know the shakes make me gag as well!! Anyway, the mushies include things like chicken, tuna or egg salad. You can get your protein in that way. Maybe even though you can't eat chicken much, you could still eat the chicken salad? ?

But I totally get what you are saying about not wanting to eat and never feeling hungry. Who woulda thought?

Second the unjury chicken Soup flavored Protein powder. Lots of folks here love it, but I couldn't tolerate it. That's about the only savory Protein I can think of. You could also get the Unjury unflavored kind and add it to something to drink. I also tried that and it is not 100% "unflavored" if you ask me, but can be tolerated if you mix it with something strong.

Good luck finding something. I know all the sweet stuff can get sickeningly sweet post-op.

Not stupid. A drain is a tube the surgeon leaves in your abdomen to drain excess fluids after surgery, but most importantly is used to check for leaks from your new tummy.

Not every Dr. uses them, but I'm glad mine did if only to reassure me that I didn't have a leak. The barium test came later and this drain test gave me peace of mind immediately. It is not really painful (at least wasn't to me) just annoying. And when it is removed, it just feels odd, not painful.

There are several types of drains. Your Dr. could tell you which he/she might use when and if they even use one.

The instructions are to do it at 7am the day before. I'm a bit worried that I will be a complete miserable mess all day that day. Did anyone have to do a colonoscopy before surgery as part of preop?

Ohh, that changes things! Wow, I just don't see how you will be able to work. I mean it will be possible, but you are right, you will be pretty miserable. But it can happen. Like you said, you won't have been eating much, so maybe you will be like me and not need to run to the bathroom but a few times and be done with it.

I thought you meant your DR had you doing this as a prep for surgery like some drs make you do all liquids a few days before, I didn't realize it was for a colonoscopy. I wonder why he wants to do that. I have never heard of that before VSG surgery.

Congrats to you Tiff on your precious baby girl, Tatum. Your happiness just shows in your posts. So glad to hear everything is going so well, and thanks for updating us. You know we love details!!!

I didn't have to do a prep before surgery but I did a few weeks after surgery which was HELL. When you can only sip, it's hard to drink all that nasty stuff. I didn't have to do the pills, though.

As for the cramping mentioned above, I didn't have it at all with the Suprep that I had to take. I'm not sure how fast the pills will work, but the liquid was immediate. At what time the day before do you have to start taking the pills? If it is at night, you will be good. I had to start drinking my stuff at 6 pm the night before.

Good luck to you! Sorry you have to do that, but you are right, you won't have much to lose if you know what I mean! My Dr. required 3 weeks of liquids after surgery so I didn't have to go much either!! Thank goodness

Yes, the Melting Pot will work with you if you just ask. At least my local one did. I guess each one may be different in their policies, but you could ask. They just reduced the price for me. They want you to come back

I love the whole experience, too, it's more than just the food isn't it? Good luck!!

That really is sweet! Good for you

That's just amazing. Truly. I hope the rest comes off just as quickly for you. Great job!!

Sorry to hear that! Sounds like it was pretty bad, but the good news is you will have a practically virgin stomach for Dr. Aceves to work on (or whomever you choose) when the time comes.

Hang in there!!

That's great! So happy for you!

If only that were true!

Bagel with Promise Spread

Calories - 400

Carbs - 78

Protein - 12

Fat - 7

Calcium - 2

Krispy Kreme Original Donut (from website)

Calories - 200

Carbs - 22

Protein - 2

Fat - 12

Calcium - 6

WOW! That blows. my. mind.

You would think that sweet yumminess that is the donut glaze would have more than 22 carbs.

It definitely is hard at first. I know I wasn't getting all my calories in until I started mushies. I couldn't tolerate the Protein Shakes either (still can't). Just hang in there, you will be able to get your Protein in soon. Just try to eat your protein first, no matter what form it is. Good luck!!

Could also be acid. Are you taking a PPI? Acid can give a false sense of hunger.

Dance, girl, dance!

Such a great success story!

These do sound yummy. Thanks for posting about them! I hope my Walmart carries them.

Legally speaking you can't drive yourself home, but there is no reason you must have someone physically there when you have the surgery. My husband was not allowed to come to the recovery room anyway - they had him wait in my hospital room for when they brought me up.

Just curious why it would be illegal? Because of the pain meds you would be on?

I wonder what they would do if you did not have someone? Not everyone has a person that could pick them up. Would they cancel the surgery?

Two nights ago I tried getting that 6th feed in by eating at 8:30 p.m. I need to figure out how to get a few more calories. I cannot eat that late at night and again I was up with horrible acid reflux. Aside from eating too late, I never have any reflux issues. Well, it was so bad that I was popping Tums all night long. The first I'd taken Tums since surgery and then I happen to read this today.

Thank you for the head's up. I wonder if it's the same risk if you are staying well hydrated?

Also, since surgery I am drinking about 1/3 of the Water I used to drink. I used to be a very heavy Water drinker. ONLY getting 64 ounces a day took a lot of getting used to for me. Well, almost immediately after surgery my blood pressure dropped like a rock. I had to quit both meds. So I'm wondering if I was creating my high blood pressure by drinking way too much water. I certainly have not lost enough weight to have impacted my blood pressure to that degree. So it just makes me wonder.....

I have seen lots of folks here say their BP went down right after surgery ( me included ), so I think that's just one of those things that happens. I don't think you can drink too much water, (within reason of course! ), certainly not enough to raise your BP.