Daydra

No pickle juice drinking - but so weird, I was eating a crunchy cold dill pickle while opening this thread!

We were sending you weird pickle mojo!

Sign me up for pickle juice drinkers anonymous! I got started on dill Pickle Juice when I was a kid and somehow figured out that pickle juice stopped hiccups. (Now I just keep one of those fake lemons in my desk drawer and take a hit when it looks like I've got hiccups that are going to go the distance.) I actually also like green olive juice (and black olive juice...). I think I'm just gross... :-)

PJDA All the way!!!

I'm 8 weeks out, and I haven't really had any cravings for anything that were too far out of the norm for me, but I've had some issues with dehydration and nausea and seem to be developing an aversion to eating/drinking. Thank you MIJourney for saying that you were eventually able to drink normally! I have to keep reminding myself that it will get easier, but every day that I only hit about 20oz of Fluid, it seems more and more daunting. Somehow today, though, I managed to get 8 oz down on my 20 minute drive home. Maybe the new nausea meds are going to be my ticket back to hydration while my sleeve adjusts! One can but hope!

I am totally surprised at what I'm craving or not craving. I expected to crave chips and junk food, you know, all the crap I craved before surgery. I am not craving those things at all. This of course doesn't mean that I might not pick a chip out of a bowl and crunch it at a bbq or decide to eat a cookie at a party, but I don't spend any time thinking about these foods. What I'm really craving is Water (oh, I so wish I could just chug a 1/2 liter bottle of cold Water fresh out of the fridge) and fresh fruit. I have been thinking about just digging into a nice bowl of cut up melons, or a whole pear, nectarine, plum, you name it. At least having a chance to have more than a single bite of some fresh fruit. I ran across an online magazine photo of some perfectly ripe, uniformly cubed, watermelon mixed with some perfect blueberries and I swear, I must have gotten lost in that photo for about 5 minutes. The thought of having a bite or two just isn't doing it for me... I really just want to dig into a bowl. Blurggg. I just keep reminding myself that a year from now, this is no longer going to be an issue. Thank goodness!!!

How about you all? What cravings or lack of cravings surprised you?

I tried to go to Denny's for Breakfast with some friends a couple weeks ago. They have a $2, $4, $6 menu, and I was really hoping that for Breakfast they'd have something like 1 egg and 2 pieces of bacon or similar. Of course not. They had biscuits and gravy... I ended up doing a "build your own slam" because the price difference from ordering a la carte was really minor, so I decided to take home leftovers. I think I ate 1/2 an egg and a single bite of ham and loaded everything else into the box, which I of course put in the fridge, but never touched it again. It was very much a your trash or mine kind of thing. I would have so been better off just ordering a la carte.

I discussed splitting meals with the hubs. He simply was not enthused. We'll see how it goes, though. Our schedules have been kind of horrifying lately, so we haven't even had the opportunity to have dinner together at all since I had surgery. I may be able to talk him into splitting something when it comes down to it. I do bring my leftovers home and he usually eats them, though. I also tend to gravitate toward restaurants that have good appetizer selections and small plates now. Thankfully, the small plate philosophy seems to be starting to catch on around here.

Sleeved in the 19th.

I had thrush after surgery-it went away a week after surgery. I then noticed itching under my breasts and thought yeast infection. Tried OTC meds and still there. Then got vaginal yeast infection. Went to my surgeon and he gave me a script (Fluconazole 150Mg) which is generic diflucan for 3 days and said it would clear up both. Took last pill 2 days ago and it is worse!! I can't seem to get rid of it????

It's probably something other than yeast, then. You should definitely go back to the doc... Sucks, I'm sorry :-(

I am so sorry you feel this way. I can assure you, that the vast majority of the people in the gym are not paying attention to you, but some will see you and think "Good for her!" and some will see you and think something mean. However, those that have mean spirited thoughts toward others are most definitely not quality human beings and deserve no consideration from you. They are, however, a very small portion of the people in the gym, and most really won't even notice you because they are so self involved. Also, in my experience, adults aren't likely to purposely make hurtful comments out loud for you to hear like teenagers do, so even if someone is enough of an a-hole to think mean things, they are unlikely to voice them, so it's less likely that you will be made aware of it.

That being said... What gym options do you have in your area? Do you have a YMCA? They tend to be more inclusive than many private gyms. (Every gym has it's own personality, but private gyms seem to have a little more freedom to be "exclusive" or "snobbish" if they choose to) I see people of literally all sizes and fitness levels at ours and the staff is really supportive. Another option might be a Curves. Curves is basically a circuit of pneumatic machines that you rotate through every (30 seconds? 60 seconds?). While Curves has a limited purpose and is not my ideal of a "gym" and I most certainly wouldn't advise you to do more than a month or two there, it is women only, and primarily older women that will be super excited to see someone younger joining their ranks and will be very friendly and supportive. (Run-on sentence anyone? My English teacher would be so ashamed! :-) In a month or so, you'll lose a few pounds and develop a little more self confidence to get you in the door of a more traditional gym. Try out all the gyms in your area with 1 day passes until you find the one you feel most comfortable in. Some will have free trials of varying lengths, some might charge you 5 or 10 bucks for a day to try it out. You could always just get a tour for free, also.

This is a really difficult emotional issue to address, and a therapist is probably your best avenue to really get to the root of the old abuse and negative self talk, but you can mitigate the circumstances so that you can at least get in the door. At some point, no matter how you feel about it, you just have to figure out what you need to do, what accommodations you need to be able to get what you need (get through the front door). Overweight seems to be the last discrimination that is still fairly socially acceptable, and it is a really cruel thing and affects us in ways that haunt us for the rest of our lives. Congratulations to you in working so hard to overcome this abuse and discrimination. You will be successful.

Good luck! It will be scary, but I am certain that your fears will not be realized once you do get to the point where you can get through that front door!

Hello sleevers

I know we was told no straw, but this has been my prayer answered. I can get down fluids and keep them down without having to feel like a huge gorilla is on my chest

I agree. I know that we're told that the risk with straws is too big of drinks or too much air to swallow, but this really hasn't been my experience. I think we have to decide which "rules" are appropriate for us (individually) to follow, and cautiously asses which ones we can safely adjust or ignore.

Daydra, thank you a million times over for your thorough response. It's more comforting than you could know - I was a wreck about this last night! I will take your suggestions, stay in close touch with my doctor and above all else stay on top of Fluid intake.

I also like your suggestion about staying away from low-cal foods on days when I'm struggling to get much in, and about the drinking rule.

I'm able to get 60+ ounces of fluids every day, right now at least. If that starts to slip, I will contact my doctor right away.

Thank you again for sharing your experience and what worked for you. And especially for your kind reassurance!

You are more than welcome! I'm just really glad that any experience or advice I can provide can be helpful to others (even if it takes me a novel to get it all out...) I decided immediately in this process that I would be extremely open about my surgery and my experience with anyone that I deem appropriate (friends, coworkers, anyone that asks about it, people here, obviously). Really anyone that would benefit from the knowledge of my experiences, or just knowing why I might be a little "off". I feel like it's already paid off, and not only the support that I've been able to offer here, but one of our clerical staff at the office brought down one of our accounting clerks to talk to me about it because she is also thinking about having the surgery and I was so glad to be able to discuss it with her - tell her about my experiences so far, my thoughts on the different options, direct her to information, and really just provide someone to talk to so she doesn't have to feel like she's going through it alone.

Anyway, I wish you the best and I know you'll get it worked out. And just as a reassurance, you are doing far better on fluids than I am. I would be thrilled to consistently get 60oz in, so keep up the good work!

VSGKirk and Gmanbat are right... but I'm still pissed off for you. I agree that you should give an appeal a shot, but they are totally right. It's just 6 more months to get prepared. (I'm just glad no one told me that when I decided to pay out of pocket instead of jumping through my insurance hoops because I was unwilling to deal with their bs... I might have blown a gasket :-)

Haven't noticed the yellowing, but other than that, I'm totally with you. I've been referring to it as cesspool mouth. Just gross! I totally hate it! And no gum, even!

Wow... this is the first time I've heard of someone that is functional "failing" the psych eval. That sounds like complete bs to me. Is your depression diagnosis major depressive disorder or something more like dysthymia (chronic depression)? Not that it really matters, but if you're functional, capable, are a good candidate, have a good support system, and understand what you are getting into, there really isn't any reason not to approve you.

As far as meds go... I've been diagnosed with dysthymia for years (my my MD). I've been on and off meds because I never really felt like they were that helpful and I never really felt like I had a horrible life situation. I always wondered if I actually did have depression or if it was just life stresses (primarily weight) that essentially gave me the symptoms of depression. I feel like I have a good life, I'm intelligent, I have friends and family that love me, a great career, a nice house, a good marriage, so I never really understood why I felt so crappy because I never felt like my life was crap. I started seeing a therapist recently because of some stress with my aging parents and after talking about this for a little bit, she said it sounded more like anxiety than depression. So all along, we may have been trying to treat depression when it might be anxiety instead. Anyway, just to make a long story longer, I'd been on Prozac, didn't feel it was effective, didn't like the sexual side effects of Celexa, Zoloft didn't seem very effective, Wellbutrin added to Zoloft still didn't seem very effective. My doc said that since I'd "failed" 2 of the cheaper antidepressants, that would qualify me for some other, more expensive options. I've been on Pristiq for several months now, and I feel pretty decent on it. It apparently works both on serotonin and dopamine. Anyway, that is just to let you know there are options other than the standard players...

I would recommend, though, that you look into whether getting a second opinion is possible. Your insurance may not cover it, but if a second opinion will be acceptable for approval it might be worth the out of pocket cost. Unless you are having major upheaval in your condition or are having major life changes and stressors, I really don't see any reason to make you wait an additional 6 months. But, I'm certainly no professional. If you get a second opinion and they say the same thing, at least you might be more confident that the initial assessment is valid...

Good luck. I'm really sorry you got delayed.

I'm at nearly 5 weeks (tomorrow) and have this onset of nausea that is making me not at all interested in eating and worried that this is some sort of twist.

How did they realize you had a twist?

Which anti-nausea medicine did you take that helped? I have some zofran and reglan, and the prilosec/prevacid I take in the mornings.

I'm feeling so discouraged by this nausea. I was feeling so good and being so careful to follow the rules and do everything I can for a smooth recovery. I am incredibly anxious that this is going to turn out to be a big problem.

So here's the good news... far more likely than not, it will be a minor problem. I didn't recognize that I really had a problem until I started feeling really dehydrated. At that point, I called my clinic and they talked me into coming in to do a swallow test (just like the morning after surgery). The doc can get a pretty good picture of what is happening as you swallow, so can usually determine a stricture or kink. It might be able to be solved by an endoscopy exactly like we do before surgery, so it's really a minor procedure (just passing the scope through can often resolve the kink, creating immediate relief for the patient). If more is needed, like a balloon dilation, we have to wait until about week 12 to make sure that the staple line is strong enough to handle the pressure. There are other options if that doesn't work.

The only anti nausea med I have is Zofran. I am starting to realize that I don't really need it much unless I am becoming more dehydrated. I find that if it doesn't seem to be that effective on any particular day, and I look back at my Fluid intake for the day or two previous, usually my fluids are low. Also, my urine output on the days it doesn't seem effective is lower than on the days it does. If I'm feeling less dehydrated, it doesn't seem like I even have any significant nausea and might only take it in the morning to get past taking my daily meds and brushing my teeth (which would frequently send me into a major gag and possible vomit reaction even before surgery...) I'm taking otc prilosec right now because when I finished my prescription at 30 days, my body wasn't really ready to come off and I woke up the next morning at 3am with a mouth full of acid (a less than pleasant experience...)

I totally understand feeling discouraged, but this issue is usually temporary and fixable. I have to admit to feeling a bit miserable myself, waiting for the nausea, dehydration, Constipation (that's a really fun one... I even got to experience fecal impaction. So don't recommend that one...), abdominal discomfort, fatigue, lightheadedness, weakness.... The list feels like it goes on forever right now. However, like I said... temporary and fixable. By week 12, pretty much all the swelling will have gone down and we'll have a little more capacity to get food/fluids in, and likely less nausea due to that alone.

My recommendation to you would be to call your surgeon and talk about your specific symptoms. You want to make sure that there isn't something you need to investigate further. Don't be like me and wait, thinking it's "normal" or "not that bad" or "will get better". It's far better to call and ask than it is to sit home and be miserable and possibly get worse. I probably only called my surgeon when I did because I work in public health, and was able to pop over to the clinic side and ask the nurses what they thought. If I didn't have that easy resource, I might have tried to tough it out longer, and would have been worse off.

At this point, what I am doing right now to combat my particular issues is:

taking zofran in the morning and then deciding whether I need additional doses later in the day based on how I feel. (seems to affected by recent Fluid intake)

Sipping all day long the best that I can (still, my best day on fluid intake is in the 40 or so oz range)

Eating higher calorie foods (dairy seems to be the thing I tolerate the best, so I frequently will have a couple oz of full fat cheese in the evening before I go to bed to bump up my calories) Fage 2% is my favorite plain yogurt (23g Protein in 8oz, though I can never eat 8oz, I'll add a few blueberries and a squeeze of sugar free pancake syrup.)

Ignoring the 30 minutes per meal rule (I let it take me however long it takes me to finish a reasonable portion of whatever I'm eating. Unfortunately, this literally means I am eating all day... sometimes 20 minutes between bites)

Ignoring the no drinking while eating rule. There are 2 reasons this is a rule: 1- so it doesn't wash food out of your sleeve and make you hungry too early (really not an issue if you cannot get enough calories to keep from nearly fainting...) and 2 - so you don't try to "wash down" something that seems to be "stuck". That'll just make you vomit. I would think that we would be able to identify that situation, in which case, we just need to stop and let it work through or regurgitate, or whatever needs to happen.

I've stopped looking for low fat anything, really. I simply need the calories at this point.

Take a colace each evening (just started this yesterday after my most recent horrifying, at least to me, episode with fecal impaction) Hoping that this can keep things evened out.

All of my strategies were discussed with my surgeon and she feels that they are appropriate actions to take. The hope is that each week, it will get just a little better, a little easier to get fluid, a little easier to get calories, a little less nausea. As that happens, all of my adjustments will be revised closer to what the standard rules entail.

Here's my last recommendation... If you start really struggling with fatigue, resist the urge to sleep late on the weekends, waiting to eat until whenever you get up. Keep something by your bed, get up and get something to eat then go back to bed, anything. Weekends are the worst for me. I very very nearly passed out in the shower because I did this. When we're already on a very low calorie diet because of the surgery, and then we struggle to get in enough calories, which reduces that low amount even further, and then sleep until noon or something, it is simply a recipe for disaster. It will also mean that you struggle that day to get in enough calories, so you'll feel awful the next day as well. Trust me on this one... Totally miserable experience.

Good luck! I'm confident that it will be minor and you will be fine, but it's going to take some patience and endurance to get through it. Just remember that it's not permanent!

I am 3 weeks post-op. I am dreading the day that I start to lose my hair. It is part of my identity. It is one of the few things people would make positive comments about. My hair is down to my buttocks. It is blonde, fine and medium thinness/thickness. It has taken me nearly 20 years to get this beautiful mane. ARGH!

There will be a whole host of new things for people to make positive comments about! And the Hair loss is temporary. (although I bet that part is more reassuring to someone that didn't spend 20 years growing out their hair...)

Only lost one pound since 2 weeks ago. They are ordering a metabolism test. Great!

Glad they are being proactive and looking to see if there is an underlying problem that needs to be addressed! Good luck!

Hey

I have almost the same thing, surgery 8/19/2013. I have been unable to keep anything down. It comes out either end. Had two hospital visits due to dehydration the feeling is my body telling me to slow down and re group. I am not keeping fluids down had a second swallow test to check for anything that was wrong. My doctor told me my stomach is still not at its normal size. I am slowly resting and trying to get fluids in my blood work is all over the place.

I'm sorry you are having such a hard time! Good luck! It's a struggle to find any kind of balance when it feels like things aren't going as they should. Definitely keep on top of it, and always call the doc if anything gets worse, or doesn't feel right. It never hurts to at least ask the question. If you've discontinued your anti-nausea med, you might consider taking that again for awhile. I found that it really did help for me. The feeling that I was getting in my stomach before we stretched out the kink was making me avoid drinking and eating. And of course, all that did was make the whole problem worse...

Another update: Followup appointment today. Swallow test fine, no remaining kink, unsure of torsion at this point. My sleeve appears to have a bend in it, but it doesn't appear to be restricting flow. Still probably have some swelling. Capacity is only about 1 oz. Nausea seems to be mostly resolved. It's still a full time job to get in a meager amount of calories and fluids. I am constantly eating and drinking and still not making my nutrition goals. I have a lot of fatigue. I'm finding that some of my worst eating habits pre-surgery are not what or how much I was eating, but the times I was prone not to eat, like Breakfast, particularly if I'm so fatigued that I sleep way in on the weekends. I got up way late on Saturday and then nearly passed out in the shower. Not a good time. Fortunately something I can fix simply by not being an idiot... That also meant that I had a severely reduced caloric total on Saturday, that set Sunday up as difficult as well. Also having some upper abdominal aching... discomfort/almost pain when taking a deep breath, yawning, sneezing, really any abdominal contraction/stretch. Doc thinks it might be scar tissue causing the sensation, but I'm starting to think it's the pain from being in bed too much due to fatigue. Feeling a bit like I'm in a less than desirable cycle... Lack of calories causing fatigue, fatigue making it feel impossible to get any activity in (even shopping completely wears me out right now, causes me to sleep/nap too much, making less time to consume the calories I need.

Anyway, doc says I may have up to 6 more weeks of swelling, and then I should see a vast improvement. At this point, she doesn't see anything to be worried about, so I have my next followup in a month, but have a standby appointment in 10 days just in case anything gets worse.

Thanks all!

My husband and I have both been stuck for 11 day or so. The timing is right, we're at 5 weeks now so I guess that's what we can expect. Trying to be patient

I did about the same thing about the same time. I bounced around about the same weight for about 10 days or so, and then started to drop so fast, I started to worry. Now, the last couple of days, I've held pretty steady. And some of that "stall" time was during my super low calorie consumption when I thought I was dehydrated. Could have played some role, but I'm not sure of the exact effect.

No, they can't call the roxicet in, it's a Class 2 narcotic and you absolutely have to have a written prescription...they can even write refills for that one, lol! Thanks for the feedback!

Yeah, that thoroughly annoyed me... I get that the rules are intended to help prevent abuse, but for those of us that aren't a problem, all it does is make things dang inconvenient! :-)

I am 5 days post op and am having very liquid stools every few hours. Anyone else have this issue post op?

This very well could be normal, as many posters have said, but my post op guidance was to call the clinic if I had multiple daily loose stools because it could be a reaction to the antibiotic that I was given during surgery.

Doesn't hurt to call and ask...

I've experienced some Constipation as well. I mentioned it during my 1mo post op and my nurse said not to worry too much unless I feel bloated, that since I have greatly reduced the amount I'm eating, it is normal not to need to go as much. However, I've had a couple episodes where it was extremely difficult to go, and one episode where I thought I was headed toward a digital removal, but a dulcolax suppository was eventually effective. I don't really like to take Miralax, even though that seems to come highly recommended, because it seems like it gets soft enough that it's difficult to expel. Usually the first thing I reach for if it's been about 3 days or more and I can feel that I could go if only things would MOVE!, is Phillips caplets. I tried Ex-lax, but just ended up with an uncomfortable cramping sensation for about 4 days... not doing that again.

My clinic called all my meds (except my narcotic) in to my pharmacy so I could have them at home already when I got home. I had an anti-nausea, anti-spasmodic, omeprazole (generic Prilosec to reduce acid), and they sent me home with a written prescription for Roxicet (liquid Percocet). They could have called that in if I had gone with the liquid Vicodin, but narcotics don't work that great on me and I usually need something stronger than they initially think. The anti-nausea and anti-spasmodic were both sublingual, the roxicet was liquid, and the omeprazole was the only capsule. I didn't have a problem taking any of them, except it took a chunk of time out of my day to get all of them plus all of my regular daily meds down.

Hello my name is Sharon I've been a Military wife for almost 18 years,my husband is an active duty Marine stationed at MCAS New River in Jacksonville NC. After struggling with my weight for the last 10-15 yrs becoming a diabetic,getting high blood pressure,looking 9 months pregnant all the time and carrying all my weight in my belly and hips,having a BMI of over 37,dieting,taking medication,exercising,cutting calories,watching carbs,etc and even gaining weight my PCM finally put in a referral for me to see a general Surgeon who specializes in bariatric surgery and the lap sleeve. I'm really nervous but excited to see what my options are,etc.

Welcome and best of luck to you!

Okay based on what you are doing vs what the NUT's plan calls for? Seems like YOU have a better idea about nutritional balance than they do. So my advice is to keep doing what you're doing and smile and nod at them

Obviously don't violate orders on what foods you can eat when because of the inherent dangers in introducing food too early, but in terms of meal and macronutrient compositions, sounds like you are well educated and monitoring as you should. Good for you!

Agreed! I think you are doing great! Your body will get with the program. Just be patient with it.

Ok, so this is a small rant with a plea for advice.

I was 451 Starting on 2/1 and 409 at surgery 7/31 and 391 at 4 week post op. i am not losing fast enough for the Dr but I don't know what to do. I did liquids for a week. Then soft foods like cream Soups, cottage cheese, ricotta bakes, mashed potatoes, etc. til 4 weeks post op, slowly adding in lunch meats, soft canned veg, and softer meats like tuna and chicken.

NUT and PA gave me flak for not following their plan. I didn't hurt myself or cause issues.

Ok, so the rant/dilemma: i am not losing very fast and I was eating 800-1000 calories a day at 4 weeks. Not really as most meals I didn't finish but that is what I tracked. My NUT said less carbs and my PA said lower my cals. So I spent the last week weaker and tired only eating the recommended 500-600 cals and less than 40 G pf carbs. I lost NOTHING. I am going to go in on my 6 week appt without losing a thing and it will be my fault when I followed their plan.

I think the low cals has me in starvation mode and with exercise and still bot losing I don't know what to do.

I'm really mad at your medical team on your behalf. You are 5'7" and weigh 391. Your resting metabolic rate is around 2475 cal/day (that's before added exercise). At your height and weight, even a brisk walk is probably burning you 12-15 cal/min. At 1000 cal/day, you should be losing about 1/2 pound a day if you are exercising. If you are getting enough Protein, you are not getting too much fat, and even so, at the level of calories we consume after surgery, we need to get fat in too. As far as carbs go, I'm in no way convinced that 75g/day is too much. Your medical team is effing with your head here. Based on where you are post surgery, I would expect that you are experiencing what many of us experience several weeks out... a period where your body is adjusting to what you are giving it. I don't believe there was any need whatsoever to reduce your calories.

As far as starving... yes, we absolutely can. I hope no one tries to convince themselves that they can cut calories as low as they want and suffer no ill effect. We do have a bit more buffer time, but it's not infinite, and it doesn't even last as long as we might expect. If we don't get an adequate amount of nutrition, we will experience muscle wasting and we will experience extreme fatigue, fainting, all kinds of nastiness... and the gift that keeps on giving is the up to 40% reduction in our metabolism that will have to be rebuilt over time with a lot of effort and hard work.

You are only getting maybe 20-25% of the nutrition your body is using daily. I dropped down to that level myself. (I'm only about a week further out than you and have a kink/torsion which is making it really hard to get a reasonable amount of food/fluid each day. I thought I had gotten really dehydrated due to lack of energy, dizziness, etc. but my bloodwork showed that I wasn't. When I discussed what I was able to eat with my surgeon, she said the problem was far more likely to be not getting enough food. I'm still struggling to get 600 cal/day and about 60g Protein. Carbs are around 50 right now and fat is around 20. I am still experiencing light-headedness and fatigue. In fact, I got up late today, so I didn't get to eating right away and I nearly passed out in the shower. That is no exaggeration. I seriously was trying to prop myself up on the walls until I could lower myself to the edge of the tub to sit down.

Anyway, don't be hard on yourself if you feel like your body isn't getting with the program. For many, it takes awhile to see consistent loss, and it doesn't mean that you are eating too much of anything. Your body just needs time to adjust. If your medical team can't accept that, I am really sorry, but you will have to let their criticism go in one ear and out the other and examine their advice carefully before following it.

Best of luck. Whatever you take from this post, know that you are not at fault here. I know that you will be successful! Good luck! (sorry... apparently I only know how to write War and Peace in these things...)

I had several pills that I needed to take everyday. My doc didn't require me to crush them or anything special. The nurse told me that it might be easier to take them with something warm instead of cold. For about the first week, I remember I would take one pill with a sip of whatever and then pace until I felt like I could take the next pill. For the first several days or week, it took me 45 minutes or more to get all my pills down, but at least I was getting fluids at the same time...

Good luck, it will get better pretty quickly!