kcityteacher

[link=http://www.TickerFactory.com/weight-loss/wdAIc2M/] [image noborder]http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/t/wdAIc2M/weight.png[/image] [/link] Hi my name is Kelly and I was sleeved on July 20th, just about 2 and half weeks ago...WOOHOO!! I've lost 19 pounds since the actual surgery date. I had lost 15 before that during six months of dietary. This was a feat in itself as it's very difficult for me to lose weight. I ate about 1100 calories and day and exercised frequently. I began with a BMI of 40 (242 lbs.)...haven't measured it again since. Current weight is 214 I have to say, through all the blogs I've read and research I had done before the surgery, nothing prepared me for the excruciating gas pains throughout my shoulders, back and chest. I woke up crying and clutching my left shoulder thinking they had operated on the wrong area!! I was up and walking (sprinting as the nurses put it) not long after I got back to my room because I was told that was the only thing that would help the pain. It actually took about a week plus to completely go away. Other than the dry mouth that was the worst part, my five small incisions were nothing compared to the gas pains. (bonus, my Doc repaired a hiatal hernia when he was in there...thanks Dr. Ku!) The next phase was liquids, I was actually pretty hungry and experienced severe headaches until I could have blended and strained Soups. The toughest part of this week was trying to keep my family eating normally but feeling so jealous at the smells coming from their plates. Some tears were shed at these times because dinner time is a special part of our family's day. With my wonderful husband's support, we got through it! Thanks babe! I was afraid the pureed stage would be as hard the blended (I was really hating my blender at this point) but it was actually the start of feeling normal again. I did throw my food in and hit puree a few times but I came to realize that chopping it and chewing well was the exactly the same thing. My first meal was plain tuna from a can with a little bit of light mayo and it may as well have been surf and turf it tasted so good. So for the next two weeks I'm eating just about everything except for chunks of steak and hard fruits like apples and skins of other fruits. I'm so happy to be eating veggies and fruits again, I missed them terribly for the past two weeks. (chewing very well and taking small bites, not drinking during or after for an hour) The bucket list of foods I was eating before suregery should have been salads and fruits...I knew I would miss them but not as much as I actually did. Well that's my story, probably very similar to most. I will admit, I'm already nervous as the loss slows down that this is just ONE MORE THING that isn't going to work for me. I really hope I'm wrong, as I'm following everything to the letter. That being said, I need a little help and advice from you veterans out there. I'm having a hard time drinking 64 oz of Water (I know other liquids count but in my own head it SHOULD be water) also, the strawberry powder is making me want to toss my Cookies I'm so sick of it. I've tried putting the flavorless powder in my foods but it just clumps up and makes me gag. I really need help getting my Protein in....any good recipe ideas to help with this?? Thanks so much for reading, Kelly

Oh Polly!! I feel so bad! The gas pain WILL go away, mine has gotten very mild thank goodness, it was horrific but hang in there! Are you on pureed foods still per your doctor or because your stomach can't handle it? I've been very lucky and eating almost everything (soft and well chewed) except for harder fruits and lettuces. (I DO feel awful every time after I eat though, sick and break out into a cold sweat!) my first real meal during puree was tuna with a little FF mayo and it was sooooooo good. Maybe if you just chopped your meats very fine and chewed them well you could feel a little more normal. I found that puree on my blender did the exact same thing that my knife could do. Also, I changed up my Protein drink cause I was sooooo sick of strawberry. unjury makes an awesome chocolate. I blend my cup of skim with a scoop of chocolate, 2 scoops unflavored powder, one banana, one tablespoon Peanut Butter and some ice and that is AWESOME!! It tastes like a treat, has 58 grams of protein and I'm not hungry til about 2:00. You can also add a tablespoon of instant coffee to the chocolate and it tastes like a coffee drink. Greek yogurt helps me get the rest of my protein. I'm sorry I don't have more to tell you, please keep me updated...how much have you lost?? Kelly

HI! Thanks for sharing your story! I cannot imagine two more weeks of just clear liquids! I wonder what the different schools of thought are from Doctor to doctor. Imagine how much you'll lose the first month! Every new morsel that you eat will taste like the best thing in the universe...I was trying on my size sixteens tonight and weeeeeee! they fit, so I've lost a size in less than a month. With my metabolism that would have taken me six months, so I'm quite happy even though I feel like it's moving more slowly for me. I also feel pretty nauseous every time I eat, I see the doc and nutritionist Monday so I'll have to ask. Take good care of yourself, maybe try unjury brand protein porducts, they have a chicken Soup flavor. Keep up the good work and congrats!