Shells_Almost_There

I had the same thing near my large incision about 4 weeks after surgery. It scared me a bit since it wasn't there one day and the next I had a "mass." The call to the surgeon's office made me feel a lot better - it was a surgery ridge of scar tissue, nothing to freak out about (I was trying to not freak out when I called them ). Now, a month later, it's gone. Whew!

Oh, it's a thing! Tight incisions, overall soreness, and gravity will remind you to stay on your back. At one point you'll be able to ease over to your side - a body pillow can help.

3 weeks for me, and I was so happy when I could finally turn in my sleep like I used to. Ahhhhh!

Alex - I like that you are pro active. I hope the site improves.

I agree - this new website configuration is not enjoyable. I usually manage to get over my irritation at big website overhauls in about a week, but the new format here is not good. Having to click all over the different topic headings to find where the people I follow most are participating is really not fun. And everything is so mixed together, it's confusing. I just hope they get it together soon and fix this stuff up a bit more - it's ruined the site for me at this point. Oh and the constant flashing outside ads? Completely annoying. Also, I would have gladly paid a monthly fee to keep VST how it was (without the extra new ads, etc), instead of this mess. I know not everyone would pay but I really liked the old site and really wish it was still the same. Not sure how much longer I'm going to stick around now.

Ritz crackers and Kettle chips! They are soooo easy to eat and so very bad. They are no longer allowed in my house.

I second the extension cord for your phone, and for home have broth and protein shakes ready to go so that you don't have a lot of hassle. Good luck!

You will undoubtedly have many similar experiences like this one as you experiment with foods or give into cravings. I have learned that I absolutely can NOT have Ritz crackers - I will eat the entire tube thingie and never fill up! This is why dense Protein is the bomb - and the way to weight loss - it fills you up and only takes a couple of ounces. I've had the same experience with kettle chips - love the salt and the crunch, but I never get full and then I crave more. These items go in the "never again" category for at least a year (if not forever) while I maximize my weight loss after surgery. Stay diligent!

My surgeon doesn't use catheters for VSG surgery, which I was so happy about. I have never had one and so I was relieved when they confirmed that they don't use them. I have heard what others are mentioning, that they put it in after you're knocked out and many times remove it before you wake up.

Awesome and inspiring! Great job, and keep up the excellent work!

All docs are different, it seems - did you not receive an after-care plan with dietary guidelines? I got one from my surgeon's office and another from the hospital's bariatric program. They meshed pretty well, although some details were slightly off. If in doubt, I stayed with the surgeon's plan. Overall, my surgeon's program seems quite liberal and easy compared to many that I've read about here -- it was 2 weeks liquids only (full liquids both weeks), then 2 weeks purees. Next, 2 weeks of soft/mushies, and finally start trying out more solid food (a lot of which might not agree with you - tuna still makes me feel sick). The 2 week thing for each stage seemed just about perfect - the minute I thought I was going to lose my mind from having only chicken/beef broth and Protein shakes, I moved to the next stage Then about the time I had a craving to "chew" something, I got to switch it up again. Some days were better than others, though, that's for sure. I hope someone will post one of the online post-op plans for you (sorry I don't remember the names/web sites but I've seen them posted numerous times for people who didn't receive a post-op diet plan from their surgeons), but I would highly recommend contacting your surgeon's office if at all possible to find out their specific guidelines. Good luck!

For my sleeve surgery, I slept for quite a while after surgery and didn't get out of the hospital bed for hours. Essentially, the nurses asked me to let them know when I was ready and they'd escort me around the nurses station on my walk. I ended up getting out of bed maybe 2 hours after I finally was alert and it went really well. I did laps off and on all night in the hospital (I'd slept really well under anesthesia and wasn't tired at all!), and they finally stopped bothering to escort me once it was clear that I was not going to fall. It was a very positive experience. Good luck! ETA: Also, I had no gas pains at all, so I was really just walking because it was required as a discharge criteria and because my tailbone really started to hurt in the hospital bed after a while. I couldn't find a comfy position on my back after 3 hours so walking help to relieve that a bit.

I will also add that you should definitely check out the Premier Protein ready-to-drink shakes - available at costco and Sam's Club. I despised ALL whey protein other than 2 flavors and even those were tough to choke down. Whey makes me a bit nauseated for some reason. Many people on this site recommend the chocolate flavor Premier shake - it's the only one I can stand that has the higher grams of protein that we need in a smaller container. It really gives you the most bang for your buck and the taste is really good.

I also had no gas pains after surgery, which I was super thankful for! Walking is the cure, though, to get that CO2 out of the system as quickly as possible.

I had (and still have) this issue - I broke the addiction pre-op by cutting out all treats and switching to dark chocolate. I tried all sorts until I found a low-sugar type that was still slightly edible. It is kind of nasty but still felt like I had a treat so I wasn't too deprived. It took forever to break both my sugar addiction and my diet soda habit, but it is doable! Good luck!

Upon advice of others here at the site, I wore loose sweatpants, with a black tank top and larger black top over that. I wore slip on shoes (you will not want to bend down after surgery). When I arrived at the hospital, I had a bra on, but I don't recommend a bra post op- too restrictive and it would have touched 3 incisions in my case. That's why I wore the tank top underneath, to hold the "girls" a little. I had undies as well, and when I left I tucked them kind of under my tummy so they wouldn't touch my incision near my belly button that was very angry post op. Good luck!

I hope that a number of people respond to give you advice, but my #1 take-away from VSG is that Protein Rules All, from Day 1 post-op. All stages = Protein first, then veggies, then fruit/carbs. You need to hit your protein goal every day, and meet your Water requirements as much as possible (this gets much easier as the weeks pass). Serving sizes are on the back of the boxes/jars, for reference. Calorie counting is secondary to protein intake. I'm not sure why Protein shakes aren't on your list above, but at the stage you are at, 2 shakes per day will help with both the protein and water since they are liquid. Then, add some of the other things in your list and track everything so that you know you are hitting protein and water each and every day. At Weeks 2 through 4, I was on liquids then soft foods and was still drinking 2 to 3 protein shakes per day because I couldn't eat much, and never managed to hit my water goal. Getting too full on low-protein items means you might not hit your daily protein goal. You need to strategically plan your intake at these early stages so that you get in that minimum number of grams per day. Good luck!

x

I also chose to not tell many people, so none of my local friends know except 1, and only my mom knows as far as family. At work, 3 people know, but in very strict confidence. Other people have started noticing the weight slowly coming off and if they ask, I say that I've been on a high-Protein low-carb diet since June and that it's finally paying off. Everyone is satisfied with that answer - including me, since I don't want to out-n-out lie to them but in the end it's not their business. And hey, it's true- I have been basically doing Atkins since June! So far, it's going very well - I'm finishing my 8th week post op this weekend and no one's the wiser unless I've made the choice to tell them. Good luck to you!

Good luck - you're starting the next awesome phase of your life!

You will probably hear from someone who either ended up having an open surgery or who knows someone who had open due to adhesions on the stomach. I haven't heard of any yet for the sleeve, although a couple years ago I went to a RnY information session and they seemed to convert to open procedure much more often. In fact, I was told to lose 75 pounds if I wanted a laparoscopic RnY - to which I laughed because if I could have lost 75 pounds that easily, I wouldn't be needing surgery! I was sleeved in September and it was the best decision ever. I have 4 small incisions and 1 slightly larger one where the stomach came out. Is there a specific reason (previous stomach surgery, etc) that you or your doc are thinking your surgery will be converted to open? Medical technology is amazing these days! Good luck

Massive congratulations! This is very inspirational - thanks

I cheer whenever I poo now - it's a life event these days. I get stupidly excited because it's so infrequent now!!!

For certain the weight doesn't just magically fall off - it's still a lot of work. I have learned that I am a slow loser and that's fine for me - you may find the same is true for you. My advice is to try not to measure yourself against the weight loss of others but instead against your weight loss efforts in the past. And losing inches is so great - my clothes are just hanging off me these days and I've barely lost any weight on the scale since that darned Week 3! Follow your surgeon's plan and work that sleeve and the results will happen.

You look awesome - Congrats! I have my final "fat" costume party tomorrow night. Really not looking forward to it, in my plus size outfit...but NEXT year? Looking forward to a much better costume selection and feeling of confidence.