mrsteacher

Weird. I wasn't feeling light headed at all without the protein. I am getting it in at least 3x a day now (morning, lunch, dinner). Looking forward to the mushy stage at day 20.

Someone told me that the protein they use in those isn't as easily processed as the Whey protein. Not sure if that is true or not. Just passing it on.

Clear liquids. I think it designed to give the stomach time to heal.

My head hunger is really boredom hunger. I have to find something else to do FAST before falling prey. I took up knitting this year to help!

I think when you start loosing you will feel like walking more. I am only 10 days out and today was the first day that I walked any "real" distance. Any kind of exercise helps. You can park further away at the grocery store, walk around the block with your kids, etc. I am not a huge exercise fan either. You might try getting the Leslie Sansone Walk away the Pounds DVD's (cheap at Walmart). The one mile work out is only 15 minutes.

I got sleeved by Dr. Kelly on the 28th and he doesn't recommend adding Protein in until day 10. I'm on day 10 right now and added a Protein Drink to my routine along with all the Clear liquids. However, I've noticed different advice from different doctors on this forum so I guess whatever your doctor recommends.

I was sleeved by Dr. Kelly and I brought Protein packets that I purchased from unjury. Ironically it turned out that I didn't need them. When you are getting sleeved by Dr. Kelly you can't have protein until your tenth day PostOp. Find out from your doctor if you will need them. Today is my 10th day so I am starting with the protein.

I just finished drinking 4 oz of skim milk. How long does that take to move out of my stomach until I can get the next 2-4 oz in?

According to my instructions I am only suppose drink in 1/2 cup increments. My question is how long do you wait before drinking your next 1/2 cup?

Thank you. Very helpful. I wasn't sure if I had to wait 20 or 30 minutes until my stomach emptyed before going for the next 4 oz. Was concerned about streching out my stomach.

My bowel movements have been inconsistant and watery and I am on day 9. I've been taken fiber gummies. Once I start protein shakes I'll add some benefiber in there to help regulate things a bit.

Good question. I am at two weeks'ish as well and would like to wear something compression like to work on Monday under a cute top and I am slightly paranoid about it.

My sleeve accepted milk too! Whew. I was a little worred about become lactose intolerant and getting in those protein shakes in on day 10.

I can't believe that it has been 7 days since I have been sleeved! Time is moving FAST. Like one of my sleeve sisters I am going to weigh in on the day that I got sleeved (Wednesday) to avoid the "weighing in everyday" syndrome. The day I left for surgery I was an even 236 lbs. This morning I am at 230.6. So that puts my first week loss at 5.6 lbs. Woo Hoo! Granted I am not surprised because I have only had clear liquids from the point I had surgery but I will take it So total loss since preop diet is: 15.6

I am jealous! I don't start the soft stuff until April 20th. I would go for a small refried beans as well. Sorry you don't like Greek yogurt. I love the stuff and keep looking at it in my fridge.

Way to go Leah! Excited to add milk in this week

I am home at last. I crawled into bed at approximately 1 a.m. I don't feel any pain or discomfort and I worked hard to get in liquids the whole day flying. I should have kept the compression socks they put on me for surgery and worn them as it was definitly uncomfortable sitting for so long. I got an aisle seat and got up at least once during each flight but I kept thinking of those darn blood clots! I'm alive so I think I am good to go My liquids yesterday included an 8 oz bottle of water, a 15 oz bottle of apple juice, a 16 oz bottle of apple juice, 2 oz of water on one plane and about 4 oz on the other plane. I wasn't hungry at all. I had to go back to work today but I kept to a desk most of time and got up here and there. Had normal energy levels. Didn't feel like I was dragging (in fact if it weren't for the bandages still on my stomach and my inability to consume large sips of liquids I wouldn't even feel like I had a procedure). I keep waiting for an energy crash of some kind with the level of calories I am consuming but apparently my stored fat is keeping everything in check for now. I am making my husband do my "heavy lifting" which included getting my luggage out of the car and bringing the full dirty laundry basket into the laundry room. So far today I have had 8 oz of water, 16 oz of light cranberry juice, 8 oz beef broth, and 2 popsicles. I'm going for some light apple juice next and more beef broth for dinner.

Joni - Dr. Kelly's patients are asked not to add protein into their diet until Day 10 (which will be this weekend for me). There is a caveat to that...you can add protein to your clear liquids if you start feeling lethargic (which I am not). The next thing I can add to my diet at day 8 is skim milk to see how I tolerate that before moving into liquid proteins on day 10. I don't start soft food until Day 22 (which is April 20th for me).

We left Mexico this morning about 6:30 a.m. It took us 2 hours to cross the border. Ana said that on Sunday's it can take upward of 4 hours. The only thing I regret is not taking my water bottle out of my backpack in the back and drink it while we were waiting in line. I'm sure I could have go an extra 8 oz in that way. I've had one 8 oz bottle of water and a popsicle so far. I'm in the middle of getting down an apple juice I bought at the airport (a little too sweet for me but I will plug away at it....that will give me an 15 additional ounces of liquid). I want to try the fresh squeezed OJ (if no pulp) to see if the acidic nature of it "bothers" my tummy. I was super cheesed that I had to throw out my perfect 8 oz water bottle going through security. It felt less overwhelming then the regular 16 oz bottles.

They did check my passport at the border. I should have said the water was needed for medicinal purposes! My TSA screeners were not super friendly so I complied!

In my last post I wrote that I had to go back to the dentist for another round of the teeth whitening. Again, I found it harder then the WLS in terms of nerves (nothing like being trapped in a dentist chair with mouth guards in not speaking the language in essential a "foreign country."). He was definitely recommending a good teeth cleaning because I had some tarter buildup (which was probably true since I generally avoid the dentist office but do brush and floss on a regular basis). He offered to do it but I just wanted out of the chair! I would most definitely not recommend doing the teeth whitening (the dentist himself was very nice but I did wonder about the general cleanliness of the office and procedure...I won't go into details but some of the stuff made me go ewwwww and wish for tons of hand sanitizer!) . I did it because I thought it would be cheaper then the Zoom treatment (which is was) but I didn't get the piece of mind that I think having it done in the States would have provided. Afterward Ana took me shopping. She offered yesterday and I should have said, "No thank you." I don't like shopping in the States and I don't need any more clutter in the house so it wasn't like I was dying for anything in the souvenir end of things. Geni, the other sleever in the hotel, was smart and opted out. She has children at home and is taking back Mexican convenience store candy/chips for her kids. We did that with our son when we traveled because he thought the different flavored candy and chips were cool (and makes for a nice cheap souvenir for the children...he took items to school in his lunch and his friends thought it was "cool"). Ana took me to Revolution Road, which is a main shopping street for tourists coming into Tijuana. This meant lots of sombrero, poncho, and knick kacky things and worse the haggling that comes with it (haggling is up there with dentists for me I liked the jewelry but the rings I were eyeing up were priced at $123 and he came down as much as $75 but I could get them for $40 in the States (sure not genuine silver or handcrafted but I am not that picky about my jewelry as a whole). I couldn't eat or drink (and there were lots of those places as well) so the appeal of walking around was lost on me and I asked Ana to take me back (I think she was doing it as a courtesy for me which is awfully sweet but was unnecessary). I never like going shopping on vacation. It isn't something I am ever dying to do. I prefer to do spa like things on my vacation as a whole (plus eating and drinking). I know this isn't a vacation "per se" but it is a bit for me (and I saved up some spending money for the trip). Dr. Kelly did come to see the two of us today to answer any questions and generally check on our well being before we leave tomorrow. I wish I'd know he was coming up to the room or I would have picked up a little. I wanted to know about the bandages on the incisions. Mine are still covered up and she said just to wait until the bandages come off on their own. I wanted to know exactly how important the stomach pills he gave us to which the answer was, VERY IMPORTANT. (Yikes! I have not been taking them just because it seems overwhelming to take the two at night but I will start tonight!). He didn't seem concerned about my lack of getting fluids in. He said the stomach will expand making it easier to get the fluids in (Geni managed to drink an entire bottle of Gatorade last night and I was seriously impressed!...not at one time just to clarify). I asked him if I could skip the Gatorade (too sweet for me) and he said that was fine. Geni said she thought that they put a breathing tube in while we were under in the operation (she said she felt it being removed). I didn't feel it so I asked and Geni was correct...they did put a breathing tube in which explains my somewhat sore throat. I asked what was the best way to remove the surgical adhesive residue that is currently very unattractive on my stomach (think peeling off a label on something you have bought and the residue that is left behind...which is pretty much how it feels and looks). He said it will come off in time during bathing. Health wise I have plenty of energy (no more, no less then before). I am working on getting more water in today. Getting my period sucked a bit and I am a bit sluggish as a result (happily going down for a nap in a few minutes) but no pain to speak up (still some gurgling and I have to count to at least 20 before taking back to back sips of the water). The food smells delicious downstairs but I am happy to write that I am not hungry.

I'll try the PowerAid. I'm at the airport now - it took us 2 hours to get over the boarder! Ana said on Sunday that it can take upward of 4 hours. Someone on the other board posted that nail polish remover worked to get the surgical goo off. I'll try that tomorrow. My bowel movements are liquid as well (nice to know it isn't just me!). My ability to drink more liquids have gone up each day. I'm drinking an airport apple juice at the moment and am almost half done. I count to 20 after every sip so that sort of helps keep me in check. I'm finding that super sweet as well (almost at an annoying level). I'm not sure if I gained some sugar sensitivity with the surgery. I only drink the low sugar kind at home so maybe my body is simply not use to it. I haven't had broth yet that might be something I try tomorrow (when sadly I go back to work Good idea on marking the calendar. I'll do that when I get home as well. Glad to hear you are doing well. Keep me posted on your progress. I'm not sure what day I am going to weigh in but I'm with you....once a week is fine (which is what I always did anyways).

I added the unflavored unjury powder to my Clear liquids preop (apple juice, cranberry juice). I couldn't taste it. It gave both a cloudy appearance but that didn't bother me. I like that it helped give me a Protein boost during the clear liquid portion of the preop diet. Here is what surprised me. I brought some packets with me to Mexico planning to add it to my clear liquids after surgery but Dr. Kelly said not to add protein in until Day 10. So essentially I packed them for nothing. I'll use them in my clear liquids at day 10 though. I mixed it in with yogurt (greek - flavored) and I couldn't taste it (prior to preop). The amount seemed overwhelming in relation to the yogurt and I made sure it was stirred WELL before eating (did not want nasty clumps of Protein Powder in my yogurt

I know my husband will "be in the mood" when I get back tomorrow but I'm putting a kibosh on that until I finish my very inconvenient period that just showed up.

Left with Ana to get my teeth whitened about noon. I was super freaked out only because I had a hair dye/cut appointment at 2 p.m. I tried to get an earlier appointment but the earliest I could get was 2 p.m. I was remaining cautiously optimistic until we sat at the dentist office for 30 minutes (I definitely could have used my Kindle at that point). So by the time I got in it was 1:00 p.m. The pressure of getting to the hair appointment minimized the "enjoyment" of getting my teeth whitened. I actually dislike going to the dentist and as I sat there with mouth guard on I spent more time thinking "What the heck am I doing then I did with getting 85% of my stomach cut out!" He spoke no English and I wished I had had the sense of mind to ask Ana to come back with me so that she could explain what he was doing at each stage (not knowing ratcheted up the general dislike of sitting in a dentist chair even more so!). It wasn't the Zoom system but it was something similar with the ultra violet light. The dentist wasn't super happy with the results and I was too stressed about missing my hair appointment to care (other then I had forked over $200). He said that sometimes teeth take a couple of treatments (which I think was his passive aggressive way of saying that I had super dirty teeth????). I am going back today which was nice of him. Basically I had written off the experience as "lesson learned" but I am hopeful after another treatment today it will be more noticeable. On the other hand I really enjoyed getting my hair dyed. I was 30 minutes late (which I HATE being late) and Rocio Ruiz (the stylist) was very nice about it. She had to finish up a client so I was left to my own devices which basically meant looking through hair cutting books and looking through non-English magazines (another moment I could have used my Kindle). I like getting my hair done so there wasn't anything too bad she could have done to my hair. I normally dye my hair from a box so getting it colored professionally was kind of fun. I didn't pick anything insane. She cut off a little more hair then I would have liked but I am pretty laid back when it comes to my hair and I know anything I don't like will grow back (a far cry from my angst ridden teenage years where a bad hair cut equaled a bad mood for several weeks.). I like being out of the hotel for a few hours and felt it was worth it. I spent $80/american on the dye, some protective serum I got talked into, a cut, and a can of hairspray. I gave her a $20 tip and called it even at $100. They take Visa in case anyone was wondering (I tipped cash). The location is within walking distance of the hotel and I walked back safely afterward (exercise!). VISA side note - I called my credit card company to let them know that I was going to be in Mexico for the week so my card would not be declined from the card company fearing theft. I would add that to any "to do" list when coming down to Mexico. The best thing about the salon was the bottled water. The hotel has bottled water but it is in these jumbo bottles that seem so overwhelming to attempt to drink. At the salon I got a cute 8 oz bottle that seemed much more manageable on my stomach. Since I had to wait for the hair dye to set I spent it making a drinking game out of the water. I would take a sip and count to 30 before taking another sip. I would try it with smaller numbers and bigger sips so I felt like I was using my time wisely testing out my stomach and by the time it was all said and done I had drank 8 oz of water (victory!). I got another bottle to go and I am currently working on that. I joined up with another sleever who got to the hotel that day and went and got another popsicle at the Extra store across the street. We did laps around the pool avoiding some wedding photography along the way while we ate the popsicles. So my diet yesterday was 2 popsicles and approximately 12 oz of water/Gatorade. I'm not hungry but I am definitely thoughtful about TRYING to get liquids in. On the subject of Gatorade. I have decided I don't like it. It is WAY too sweet for me. I had a small amount of the orange flavored the day before and I bought a new flavor that I was secretly hoping was tea flavored (which turned out to be apple flavored). In my defense I didn't like Gatorade before the surgery. I think I may need to cut it with some water to make it drinkable for me. I experienced a lot of stomach gurgling last night. To the point it was difficult to find a good position to sleep in. I started wondering if the gurgling was gas and I let a GasX strip dissolve in my mouth (the first GasX strip I had the entire trip so far and it settled my stomach). Sadly I woke up at 3 a.m. with a different kind of stomach pain. I started my period 4 days early! What a giant annoyance!!!! I was hoping the stress of surgery would actually push the start date out further then the 4 days I was anticipating. Sorry for the long post but I am up early and hoping that my ramblings might help others with their planning. Today is Sunday and so far I have packing on the schedule, a revisit to the dentist, and Ana mentioned something about going to an area that has some souvenir shopping. I actually don't need anything but it might be fun to look around. I leave tomorrow (Monday) with the other sleever here at the hotel (who is super nice!).