Heather Meyer

Just wondering if at 2 weeks out can i swallow the whole tablet or if i have to crush it?

Just wondering why people need to take B-12 and calcium chews post vsg? What does it do?

Hi All, Well, I hate to write this post. I feel ashamed..sad..angry..frustrated..hopeless..lost...confused...unsure. I am not sure what else to say about how I feel. I have gained roughly 30 pounds. I started my journey at 315 and got down to 220 and then hit a wall. It's like a " i feel comfortable being this small, so why go further when i am feeling great about myself" and then i hit the other wall "oh crap ive got celiac and im addicted to gluten and i cant stop eating gluten and now i have to learn how to be gluten free the rest of my life to prevent feeling sick all the time" wall. Iv'e hit several walls, but these are two main one's. I also believed a lie. I believed others when they told me that i "couldnt stretch my sleeve if i over ate". Let me say this: I binge..I over eat ...usually under severe stress, to reduce frustration or stress. I have eaten several times where I have gone beyond feeling full to feeling sick like I am going to puke and there has been only one time where I burped and got the slimies..but besides that.. I have not puked from over eating..EVER.. never before sleeve or after sleeve. I feel like my stomach is broken..or maybe my brain. Point is: I don't ever get sick enough to stop doing the behaviour that caused me to feel sickly overfull in the first place. Okay I think I am rambling. Point is: I know I can eat way more than before. Will going back to liquids only for say 2 weeks, cause my stomach to shrink in size? and give me some added restriction? Or am i just doomed to keep gaining weight without ever being full? I need to lose the 30 I have gained. I am trying to get into Paramedic Academy and I am no where close to goal. Please Help, Signed, Hopeless in Victoria

Hey Vets, So i used to weigh 315 pounds and I am now 5 months post op and lost 84 pounds. My problem: I have been off plan, off track, off everything. I have been very emotional and going through a lot and because of that, it has de-railed me. I am a recovering compulsive binge eater and I do attend OA but I haven't made it to meetings and I have been busy and I have gone off the deep end. As i was losing weight, I began swimming every day, first to control pain and then to train to become a lifeguard. Once i became a lifeguard, I stopped going swimming , because I hit my goal of getting my lifeguarding certification and so i stopped exercising. I used to eat really healthy, things like spinach on 1/2 whole wheat tortilla with crumbled goat cheese, Protein shakes, 3 oz of chicken breast. I could eat pretty much anything without feeling sick. That's where it all went wrong. I realized I could eat things and it would not make me feel sick or give me a stomach ache. I have never once puked from eating too much or eating the wrong foods. I started eating everything. First it was popcorn, then Cookies, then pretzels, then cupcakes and and and...on and on it went. Nothing makes me feel sick...not greasy, not fatty..not sugary..nothing..I was relying on my stomach to make me feel really ill like it made others feel..and it didnt..Then..instead of it becomming about eating everything..it became about eating more...Now i can eat...like..10 cookies in a sitting...I can eat 1/2 bag of pretzels... I can eat 1 cupcake... I know this is way less then what i used to be able to eat..and yes.. eating chicken breast and fish and steak.. i can still only eat 3 oz..but the sliders..and Soup...i can eat lots..so ive been bingeing..to deal with the sadness I feel inside. Its been pissing my husband off. Instead of exercising, im sleeping.. Instead of not eating..im bingeing on 2 slices of pizza and snacking non stop and eating junk all the time...He sees me going back to how i used to be..no longer active..just eating and eating and eating... I need help.. a lot of help. I don't know what to do? where to start back? I don't know how to get my restriction back? What do i eat? How do i go back to the beginning? How do i start losing weight? How do i stop bingeing? and eating junk? Today so far... I have drank 1 Protein shake and drank 1 cup of sugar free tea. What else should i do? Do i go back to shakes for just a week? nothing else? do i eat protein like eggs? Help please.

Ooookay...so this is my rant for the day! I am getting so freaking frustrated with family members and friends hearing that im going to TJ Mexico and them responding with "oh my god!" " seriously! Your crazy!" And.. "why would you put yourself at risk like that"? My favorite: "your going to a border town for surgery?" "People will steal your organs and sell them on the black market!!" Seriously people!! Really??? Give me a flippin break! And while your at it..how about you educate yourself a little and read up about the hospital and Drs and procedures. Any surgery is risky..There is no difference in risk between habing surgery in Canada or the States and having surgery in Mx. Doesnt matter where you fly post op! Its all the same. You are flying and at risk for DVT. Lets also keep in mind that just like TJ Mexico...anyone can open fire at a hospital or experience a sudden natural disaster. Being in the US or Canada does not make you any more safe or free from natural disasters, criminals or shootings. Point is: educate yoursel!!

Guess I am a first for October. My surgery for VSG is scheduled for October 8th, 2013 ...I had to make my date in October, which seems like forever and a day off..so its going to be a loooooong wait.. I feel so impatient, I just want to do it now!!!

Highest Wt: 315 PREOP st wt: 312 D. Of surgery: 299 Todays wt: 273.8 Surgery 9/11/13

So im having a little panic attack right now..worrying that i am eating too much food..can anyone help me understand if this is too much food? Typical day Breaky- 1/2 cup instant cream of wheat w/ 2tsp of vanilla yogurt(not greek) and 1tsp of seedless raspberry jelly Lunch- 1/2 cup of pureed fat free refriex Beans w/ 1tbsp full fat sour cream and 2tsp of pureed salsa Dinner- same as lunch OR 1/2 cup of organic pre made tomato Soup Snack: 1/2 cup fat free chocolate pudding Am i eating too much???? Im scared that eating 1/2 cup servings of beans is too much..I dont feel overfull..just full but last week i could only eat 1/4 cup of refried pureed beans.. I am concerned that even though im measuring everything i eat..im eating too much..Whats normal for a serving in purees for beans??

I dont know what the deal is but ever since i returned home from vsg surgery in Tijuana, all the Drs ive dealt with so far here in Canada, dont have a flipping idea what VSG is. They keep lumping me together with Bypass. I saw my PCP for post op bloodwork and he asked how i was doing and i told him eating was a challenge and getting calories in for the day and he said " thats to be expected with bypass, we knew this would be a challenge for you" and i corrected him for the millionth time and said "sleeve gastrectomy" and he said.."well..bariatric surgery..whatever". Because i had an incision infection I needed to go see a medical clinic GP and the DR was like " sorry..what did you have? "What is that??". When i said i had a infection in my incision, he got me to lift my shirt so he could see and said "oh..it was done laprascopically!" "I thought they sliced your stomach right across" Seriously!!! What is the deal!!! How come I know more about the sleeve than any of the DRS that ive seen since i got back?? I mean i have seen 5 different Drs and they had no clue. I had to explain the procedure and how it works. And another thing...i am sooo sick of people lumping me in with bypass patients. People keep asking me how my intestines are healing and im like "theyre great! They wernt even touched!" One friend of mine looked at me and said " how much have you lost?" And i said im 2 pounds away from being 40 pounds lost in a month and one week out..and she said "i thought weight loss would be faster"...... and im thinking.. "for real?? " um...i think 40 pounds in 1 month and 1 week is pretty fast... Again...being lumped into the bypass world..people thinking im going to lose an instant amount of weight... -end of rant

Well i can tell you that i had dr. Ortiz and he was awesome. The kind of first rate care i got was incredible.He spent more time answering my questions and talking with me about concerns than any dr or surgeon ive seen in canada. By the way..just because he is not a "certified" bariatric surgeon..doesnt mean he wasnt taught by the best. Dr. Lopez taught Dr. Ortiz and a few other Drs. If he didnt know what he was doing then he wouldnt be allowed to perform surgeries. And trust me...he has done several. So dont get all freaked out

Dont worry..try your best..im almost a month out and cant seem to get more than 30

Hey all! So i got lucky...i had my period four days prior to surgery..i like my periods in that they are short and dont last more than three to four days and only two of the four is heavy. I am like clockwork. Every 31 days it comes....well not now???? This is the first month post surgery and it should have come on the 2nd or 3rd day of September but it hasnt yet??? I cant possibly be pregnent.. so what happend to it???

I dont know what the deal is but ever since i returned home from vsg surgery in Tijuana, all the Drs ive dealt with so far here in Canada, dont have a flipping idea what VSG is. They keep lumping me together with Bypass. I saw my PCP for post op bloodwork and he asked how i was doing and i told him eating was a challenge and getting calories in for the day and he said " thats to be expected with bypass, we knew this would be a challenge for you" and i corrected him for the millionth time and said "sleeve gastrectomy" and he said.."well..bariatric surgery..whatever". Because i had an incision infection I needed to go see a medical clinic GP and the DR was like " sorry..what did you have? "What is that??". When i said i had a infection in my incision, he got me to lift my shirt so he could see and said "oh..it was done laprascopically!" "I thought they sliced your stomach right across" Seriously!!! What is the deal!!! How come I know more about the sleeve than any of the DRS that ive seen since i got back?? I mean i have seen 5 different Drs and they had no clue. I had to explain the procedure and how it works. And another thing...i am sooo sick of people lumping me in with bypass patients. People keep asking me how my intestines are healing and im like "theyre great! They wernt even touched!" One friend of mine looked at me and said " how much have you lost?" And i said im 2 pounds away from being 40 pounds lost in a month and one week out..and she said "i thought weight loss would be faster"...... and im thinking.. "for real?? " um...i think 40 pounds in 1 month and 1 week is pretty fast... Again...being lumped into the bypass world..people thinking im going to lose an instant amount of weight... -end of rant

Hey all! So i got lucky...i had my period four days prior to surgery..i like my periods in that they are short and dont last more than three to four days and only two of the four is heavy. I am like clockwork. Every 31 days it comes....well not now???? This is the first month post surgery and it should have come on the 2nd or 3rd day of September but it hasnt yet??? I cant possibly be pregnent.. so what happend to it???

I was just like that..before surgery..i lived in flip flops 365 days a year. I never wore a coat or a sweatshirt in winter. I would literally sweat buckets doing nothing..i would sit on the couch at home and just sweat. I would sweat if i walked, went shopping, walked slowly around a block. I would sweat while sitting in church. I would sweat in the friggen pool while swimming. I would sweat while getting changed out of my bathing suit. And now..... I dont ever sweat anymore. I take hot hot showers and my face doesnt drip with sweat. I walk, i shop, i go for coffee, i go to church, i do everything..without sweating!! In fact i get cold now. I wear coats, jackets, fleece sweatshirts and hoodies. My hands freeze often and i now need to wear socks and shoes. I can swim and not come out of the pool with a face full of sweat..there is no dripping sweat on my face and down my back from a short walk with a friend. Point is: ya just dont sweat doing nothing.. In order to sweat, i need to exercise like run/walk. You will find that this surgery will change your sweaty sticky life forever!! Look forward to the freedom!!

I was just like that..before surgery..i lived in flip flops 365 days a year. I never wore a coat or a sweatshirt in winter. I would literally sweat buckets doing nothing..i would sit on the couch at home and just sweat. I would sweat if i walked, went shopping, walked slowly around a block. I would sweat while sitting in church. I would sweat in the friggen pool while swimming. I would sweat while getting changed out of my bathing suit. And now..... I dont ever sweat anymore. I take hot hot showers and my face doesnt drip with sweat. I walk, i shop, i go for coffee, i go to church, i do everything..without sweating!! In fact i get cold now. I wear coats, jackets, fleece sweatshirts and hoodies. My hands freeze often and i now need to wear socks and shoes. I can swim and not come out of the pool with a face full of sweat..there is no dripping sweat on my face and down my back from a short walk with a friend. Point is: ya just dont sweat doing nothing.. In order to sweat, i need to exercise like run/walk. You will find that this surgery will change your sweaty sticky life forever!! Look forward to the freedom!!

Frig sakes!!! Mashed potatoes are from the devil...loaded with sour cream and butter and beaten to a nice fluffy consistency and then topped with swiss chalet gravy you make at home yourself...Gawd!!! Yah im on purees/soft foods...but man oh man..mashed potatoes and gravy..1/2 cup plus 4tbsp of gravy...goes down WAYYYY too easily!!!! Never seem to get full on it!! I think im going to ban mashed potatoes..Now i wonder if fries would end up causing the same issue!!! Ssssssslider....

When can you start eating peanut butter??? Like smooth peanut butter?

I will be cooking my hubby a little turkey breast with some sweet potato mash and homemade stuffing and of course pumpkin pie.. Unlike some people..i find cooking for my hubby to now be a replacement for eating constantly..weird hey? I am constantly making him new recipes.. I will probably have the sweet potato mash for dinner..and thats all

K..so originally when i thought post op i thought "sugar free everything" . However when i talked to my surgeon he said not to. He said it wasnt healthy and it made no sense..especially when on a clear fluid diet.. so im trying to figure it out..why are so many people on sugar free post op diets??

Hey all September buddies...i am arriving at Tj Mariott on the 10th of september and having surgery with Dr. ORTIZ at mi doctor....anyone else?

Pretty sure my body has stalled. Including my pre op diet.. i have lost 31 pounds in a month but now i think ive stalled. The scale is not going up or down..its just sitting there at the same spot. I am currently on purees and my menu looks like this: B- 1/4 cup cream of wheat with a splash of 1 percent milk and a tsp of seedless raspberry jelly L- a 1/4 cup of pureed refried Beans with a tbsp of sour cream and a tbsp of pureed mild salsa D- 1/4 cup of ricotta bake S- 1/4 cup of 0 percent vanilla greek yogurt S- 1 popsicle Beverages- diluted apple juice- 1/2 Water 1/2 no sugar added apple juice Exercise- 1 hour of walking at a mild to moderate pace..enough to break a sweat So..thoughts on how to get out of the stall?

Okay..my confession for the week. I made my husband chicken bacon tortellini with a tomato ricotta sauce topped with cheese and i took a few bites of it and chewed it up and spat it out..I wanted to taste it.. I love to cook but it sucks that i cant taste everything i cook anymore... I feel so guilty for wasting food by chewing and spitting..never again. At 1 week post op i started indulging in Sorbet. I would eat 1/2 cup a couple times a day because it seemed to hard to get anything else down.

Thank you all for replying.. i was starting to worry that there was somthing wrong with my stomach

I dont feel like i can drink my protein shakes..whenever i drink them..they upset my stomach..they make me nausiated..same with greek yogurt..but im not sure why??