Shrinkingmom

I still love to cook and have people over! I sit down and eat with them, just not as much as before. This also stops all the tasting while you cook because if you do you are full and cant eat. You adapt

Listen to your Nut. This is not a stall... it is a natural thing that happens because all of a sudden our bodies think they are starving so they go in to panic mode and hold on to everything. y dont increase your calories at this point because that will set you up for this to happen again when you go back down. A true stall happens after a few months. so try remember to be patient and stick with your program. This usually only lasts about two weeks and remember you have rest of your life. Make sure you measure so you have something besides the scale to look at.

I think the question is which are you more afraid of... losing your old friend (enemy since its killing you) food or having the quality of life, diseases, and early death you just wrote about? I am certainly not being flip about this, I am very serious! Sometimes the known, even when bad , is less scary than the unknown. I th ink most of us have fear but looking back I am so thankful I made this decision! It has definately changed my life and it was so worth it! You are the only one who can make this decision and whatever you choose I wish you the best!! Keep us posted!!

Perfect explanation!

GOOD FOR YOU! Not once did you say cant or dont understand or wish! You are owning it and that's the key. We cant expect to never fall down but the true test is how we pick ourselves back up and continue the journey... is it with whining and excuses or with ownership and action? This is a marathon not a sprint!

Under my surgeons schedule you would be just transitioning to soft foods. I also went to the beach after my surgery at about the same distance out. One blessing is that seafood is mostly soft! I ate a lot of fish and crablegs! is also a chance to relearn how to vacation... there was a gym in our condo so I continued to work out every day and walked a couple miles on the beach every day. There is a free app you can get for your phone that is a GPS pedometer that tracks how far you walk. I ended up losing 4 pounds on vacation and I feel like I have changed all future vacation expectations! Have fun and good luck!

Wow! Great job! Congratulations on your success and I totally understand about living your life now vs before!!

I agree! I wish I had done it a long time ago as well! I was letting fear and everyone elses opinion decide for me! I am extremely happy and living my life now instead of watching it! I would do it again tomorrow!!

I loved salad and could eat it three meals a day but since surgery I never choose salad though i am eight months out. It is a filler that takes up space I need for protein so it doesnt benefit me. That being said, you can eat it after your soft stage when you start on regular food. I am guessing you wont be as happy about it as it feeks like you would be now.

Love this topic! has needed saying for a long time! Sometimes i just shake my head while reading and you can tell those people have put their life at risk and spent a lot of money to just be back where they started one day! It is really sad!

I am an RN and one of our surgeons (actually is my Bariatric Surgeon) has just applied and started performing a new procedure called a LINX procedure. It is a bracelet of magnets that they insert around the sphincter of the esophagus that opens to let food go down but will not let anything come back up. You can google it and look into it. It has been very successful so far and it sure would beat having to go to gastric bypass, which in my opinion is an extremely dangerous surgery. The LINX procedure is done laprascopically. I'm sorry you are having so much trouble.

You will make it, just know that some things we don't want to do........ but that is what got us here in the first place. We have to change those old habits and replace them with new ones. Remember that you don't have to eat "breakfast food" for breakfast. I ate refried black beans and baby bel cheese melted on it for breakfast for a really long time because I couldn't stand eggs and oatmeal don't have enough protein. Just keep experimenting and find things that you do like. Weigh and measure everything you eat so you can get a good idea of the nutritional value. Even if you don't eat a full serving, you can half it. I promise I am not preaching and believe me, I don't do everything perfectly but you sound pretty down and that can get you in trouble. Feel free to message me any time and let me know how you are doing! Just keep going and continuing to make good changes! I'm rooting and praying for you!!! Thanks for the compliment and you will get there!

If your surgeon allows it, try doctoring them up with Torani sugar free flavored syrups, plain koolaid powder, sugar free jello powder, cocoa powder, peanut butter powder, and decaf instant coffee crystals. I thought I was going to be sick the first day and thought I couldn't go through with it until I discovered some delicious flavors. One of my favorites was to put lime jello powder and coconut flavoring in the vanilla. My surgeon also let us put frozen fruit in 2 of them a day and the frozen pineapple in that one was great. I put the decaf instant coffee in the chocolate one and it was my absolute favorite for mornings. Just experiment and find some things you can live with. All that being said, I had to do shakes for 2 weeks before surgery and since I have had the surgery, I can't tolerate even smelling the bariatric advantage shakes, which is what I used. You will get through it because it is only 1 week and you can do ANYTHING for one week just to get through to the other side! So worth it!! Hang in there!!

I was sleeved July 17, 2012 and I have a really weird question. Has anyone else had a problem with nose running most of the time? I got contacts not long after my sleeve and thought maybe that was the issue but then heard someone on here mention that their nose ran a lot. Just curious because at times it can be very annoying. I am a nurse and can not think of a reason this would happen but who knows? Thanks for helping my curiosity!!

Thanks for all the information! I am just glad to know I am not alone and now I won't have to wonder about it!

Well, now that you say that... it is not constant and is mostly around eating but does happen at other odd times such as when I get up in the morning. That is very interesting that others have this as well. I know it is crazy but as a nurse, you know I was wondering if I had a serious issue! Lol! You know nurses can never just have a cold, it has to be pneumonia, and every pain is something serious like cancer! LOL! We know enough to drive ourselves crazy but not enough to fix it! Thanks for the input so far and I also know it is not an allergy just by the way it acts.

It is not a good idea to "snack all day". That is considered grazing and is one of the ways around this surgery to cause weight gain. At the stage you are now at, I was eating (and still am) 3 meals a day and 1 snack. Around 1000 calories a day. You need to write down every single thing you are putting in your mouth and figure out how many calories you are getting a day and if you are getting in the correct amount of protein. Exercise is also very important and can knock your metabolism into high gear. You might want to think about talking with your nutritionist to get her advice as well. Good luck and let us know how you are doing. Lina12 - I know it is frustrating but I would give the same advice to you as to Canadianchick. Sometimes just because we have the surgery we think it should fall off, (I'm including myself in that ) but it still takes work and good habits, tracking, and exercising. Praying for you!

I too am a nurse and totally agree with cbd! Go elsewhere!!! It is not her job to demean you or dismiss your health this way! Even if she doesn't agree with it, it is already done so why would you talk so negative to a patient instead of encourageing? That being said, I have met quite a few people who say how awesome I look and how they don't recognize me, and then when they ask how I did it, (which always comes) and I tell them, I get the "Oh" and a change of subject. WE HAVE LET OUR EMOTIONS AND OTHER PEOPLE'S INPUT GET US TO THIS POINT... forget this woman as ignorant, know that you are in control of your life and wether you use the tool you are given or you don't, and move on. JUST LOOK AT THESE PEOPLE AND SAY NEXT!!!! Please don't let someone else control your destiny because I promise you, if you put back on all that weight because of what someone says, it doesn't affect them, only you!!!! YOU ARE IN CONTROL! YOU CAN DO THIS AND YOU NEED TO PUT HER OUT OF YOUR MIND LIKE TAKING OUT THE TRASH!!! Sorry to rant, but some people are very insensitive, especially if they have never had a wt. problem!! Good luck with your search for a new Physician!!

You are 20 hours away from a totally new and awesome life!!! The way you feel in a few weeks after, is so worth this anxiety right now. Just look forward to the results and not the surgery as much as you can. Plan for your new life journey and think on that. I will be praying for you!! Let us know how it goes!

My Dr. requires 5-6 protein shakes a day for 2 weeks prior to surgery. You do not get hungry because you don't have time to with all that drinking and protein on board! He does allow 4 sensible meals during that 2 weeks and even though it was not easy, (I never want to see another bariatric advantage protein shake) I felt better for doing it because I wanted no complications and I figured the way to get the least chance of that was to follow the surgeons directions to a T. There are so many different opinions on here from different surgeons!

I did not have that with this surgery but I have with others and it eventually straightens itself out. It takes quite a long time though. I had sinus surgery 10 years ago and where they made the incision over my eye was across a nerve. The feeling came back in about a year but it has been almost 20 years and anytime my sinuses get irritated, there is an invisible line up my forehead that itches and it goes into my hair. It will drive you crazy. The nerves that are cut may act a lot of different ways but it is nothing to be concerned about.

As my surgeon explained to me... most of americans are deficient in some vitamins and minerals and for obese people it is worse. You are eating so much less than before that this helps maintain your proper levels of nutrients. Whereas you could eat your vegetables and things regularly, now it is only a couple or 3 bites at a time since you are concentrating on protein. I am sure most of the surgeons are like mine and do labwork on a routine basis to make sure you are where you need to be.

CONGRATULATIONS! I am getting close and can't wait for that feeling. I truly do not remember EVER being under 200 pounds. Now, I am sure I was but it was so long ago that I do not remember seeing it on the scales. The lowest I remember weighing is 205 and that was at age 18. Keep up the good work and enjoy this feeling!!!

Congratulations on beginning your new life!!!! Take hold of it and use it to it's full advantage! Prayers!!