southernsoul

My doc's nurse told me to wait for 6 weeks...but she told me that at my 2 week postop appt. I said, Ummmm...y'all might really want to tell folks that BEFORE they leave the hospital & not after they've been home for 2 weeks already. Just sayin'!

Also, on the Syntrax website you can order a sample pack of flavors. It's 12 packs for $12, plus about $2 shipping. I love the vanilla bean torte & chocolate truffle, but wanted to play around with the fruit flavors before buying a big tub. I had to end up emailing them to get the sample pack, as the phone number went to voice mail, but that might have just been a hitch on that day. Here's the website: http://www.si03.com/medical/med_index.htm

Check the serving size. I think my canisters list the serving size as 1/4 of a scoop with 6g protein...which means 24g for a whole scoop. I don't know why they do it that way...seems weird to me, since I always use a whole scoop & I assume most other folks do, too.

These look great!! I just bookmarked the page...thanks for sharing.

I also appreciate getting this sub-forum dusted off. Although I was raised in the Christian faith, as an adult I don't connect with any organized religion. I wish more of today's politicians believed as passionately in the separation of church and state as our founding fathers did. As stacechase said above, live & let live, just don't push your beliefs on others. For me, success in this journey is more about having faith in myself and my own ability to make the necessary changes than faith in some god or outside being.

I think that grumpy tends to go along with a clear liquid diet, no matter what. Most of the time it includes broth or bouillon, sugar free jello, decaf tea, Gatorade, and sometimes juices. Your doc should give you a list. You might want to try a few broths ahead of time to find one you like. Better Than Bullion makes pretty good concentrates that you mix with hot water. One of the flavors they have is lobster & I liked that as a change from chicken or beef. Good luck!

Good luck on your journey. You'll find a lot of good information here, often about things you haven't even thought of yet!

I've been thinking about this, too, as mine are starting to spin around. I've seen some little plastic things that might work for awhile. I did a quick search...like this, maybe? http://www.expressionscatalog.com/itemdy00.aspx?T1=JG4053&srccode=NXCEC6&utm_source=google&utm_medium=comparison&utm_campaign=datafeed&gclid=CI676vHr9rgCFenm7AodTBgAog

Thanks for posting the info about the bed of nails mat. My husband suffers from terrible back pain. I told him about your post & he was excited to try it...so it's on the way from Amazon right now!

As I understand it, the best type of protein for us is whey isolate protein. A lot of the cheaper protein powders are whey concentrate or whey blend, which is not as good quality and not absorbed as well by our bodies. I don't know about Body Fortress, but it will say what it is in the ingredient list. I was using Six Star from Wal-Mart, but it was a blend. Now I use Syntrax Nectar in the Vanilla Bean Torte, Chocolate Truffle, & I also have some unflavored to mix into foods to boost the protein. It has 100 cals per scoop, 0 carbs, 0 fat, and 24g of whey isolate protein.

I'm just 7 weeks out, but I've gotten used to making an espresso shake every morning. It gives me a good coffee flavor with a lot of protein to start the day. I don't see myself cutting that out, at least not for the foreseeable future.

Museum-Mama, you're right about the difference between closed & secret groups. I belong to 3 other secret groups on FB & nothing shows up anywhere from them, except in my view on my newsfeed. Not the name of the group, no posts, no pictures, etc. I look forward to being a part of this one, too.

Thanks, it was great & the hubs loved it, too.

I made this today & it was delish! Sweet Potato Protein Pie 2-3 cups of cooked mashed sweet potatoes, approx 1 lb uncooked 2 whole eggs 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk 1/4 cup no sugar added natural applesauce 2 scoops vanilla whey Protein Powder 2 Tbsp Torani SF caramel syrup 16 packets of Stevia in the Raw (I only had packets, it's maybe a Tbsp or so?) 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (optional, I just happened to have some) FF Reddi-Whip for topping Preheat oven to 350. Put all ingredients in a bowl & beat with a mixer until smooth. Spray 9" pie pan with non-stick spray & pour filling into pan. Bake for 1 hour, until toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 2-3 hours. 8 servings, nutrition info for 1 slice with 2 Tbsp FF Reddi-Whip: 97 cals, 9g protein, 12 carbs, 2g fat

I'm doing great! Down 45.5 lbs as of this morning (inc lbs lost on preop) & I managed to exercise for 60 total minutes today. Not 60 all together, but one day that will happen.

Well, in a way, it's true, right? Your dreams & the way you want to live your life are much more important than any excuses you may have used to put off surgery or change your mind or whatever. You ARE moving toward your dream & your vision of your future, right? I know many people struggle with negativity from the folks around them, but if your in-laws find out & are negative, then try & ignore them. Your life is your business & your responsibility. Good luck!

Congrats! I also have Aetna, but my BMI was over 50, so I wasn't too worried. Worked my checklist of items, got approved in May, had surgery in June. Good luck to you!

Bahahaha...I thought the same thing! I think some of the month groups have gotten organized into FB groups, but maybe us June folks are too lazy or something.

Tina, I just turned 49 & have been perimenopausal for about a year. My periods got out of control & unpredictable, so I had a Mirena IUD put in & that helped a LOT. I was sleeved on June 19 & I'm doing really well. I have no idea when full-blown menopause will start, but I hope I can lose all the weight I need to before then. If your peri is just beginning, do you think that your stall may just be hormonal & the weight will start up again at some point? The word "impossible" seems like a big leap to make, but then I'm not a doctor. Good luck!

My doc told me not to worry about timing my water while on full liquids. If I took in something slightly denser or thicker, I tried to wait a bit, but not necessarily 30 min.

Ask if you can add sugar free Torani syrup to the yogurt. One of my favorite treats when I got to the soft stage was part skim ricotta cheese with a little Torani caramel added.

There's a blog called Protein Pow by a British weightlifter, and she focuses on baked goods with various protein powders. I have saved several of her recipes, but haven't tried any yet. They look yummy, though.

I quit on March 1st in preparation for my surgery on June 19th. My surgeon required 90 days smoke free & I wanted to give myself plenty of time. I used a combination of Chantix & a refillable e-cig (which the surgeon gave the OK for). I never smoked in my house, so there were no triggers inside, but I couldn't go out on my deck for like a month. My neighbor actually emailed to see if I was OK, since she hadn't seen me outside for weeks. Driving was a big issue for me, especially since I was commuting 90 minutes one way to school 3 times a week. I made some CD's of all the best (?) sing-out-loud oldies songs, and I would pump it up & sing my heart out all the way to school. I'm sure I looked like a complete crazy woman, but whattaya gonna do? It worked & kept my mind on something other than smoking.

My 2 week preop diet was high protein & very low carb, less than 20g per day. I didn't have any calorie or fat restrictions, so I could eat chicken, steak, fish, eggs, cheese, and green veggies. After the first week of eating like this, I got on the scale & had lost 17 lbs, from 320 to 303. I almost fell off the damn scale!! I made my husband get on to make sure it wasn't broken. I didn't even know such a big loss in a week was possible. The second week I only lost about 1.5 lbs, mainly because it was my time of the month & I usually gain weight that week. Several people asked me if I was still going to have the surgery, which surprised me. Of course I was! I agree with you that making diet changes preop helps in our postop lives. Now that I'm back to eating regular foods, I'm pretty much eating just like I was on my preop diet (except for the volume, of course!).

I'm having the same struggle. I try really hard not to take a sip, but sometimes I just need a little moisture. I try & make it the smallest sip I can & I haven't had a problem so far. However, I definitely don't want it to become a habit!