1Day1Life4Now

But RJ you have been a good friend to so many people here. Your support and insight has meant so much to so many trying to get ready for this surgery and then through the process itself. I think you are awesome.

Let it roll off your back. All of us here have had experiences like that at one time or another. I promise you will be able to laugh at this down the road. I remember one time sitting in my parent's porch swing and pulling the swing with me in it from its hinges to the ground. I was so embarrassed I wanted to cry. My husband and dad kept trying to make me feel better by saying there was something wrong with the chains while my step mother just kept going on and on about how much I weighed and shouldn't be sitting in the porch swing. I've never sat in another of their swings since. I think your Guardian Angel was sending you a message saying that yes, this surgery is going to help you, don't be nervous. I believe in signs and that was a positive one. Sending you positive vibes and lots of hugs. You can do this and you will be so happy with yourself.

Hi Earnest. I'll be praying for a safe surgery tomorrow. Like any surgery, when you wake up you pretty much feel like you've been run over by a big Mack Truck. It's difficult to swallow fluids and your stomach is pretty sore. The hospital will bring in a tray of food, none of it will look appetizing and it none of it will smell good but they will expect you to consume part of it. Most people go home the second or third day and the broth you fix at home will taste better. Each and every day makes a noticeable difference as far as what you can consume and how you feel. Take the first week slow and let your insides heal. Week two you will have energy and excitement for the journey. Good luck and have a safe recovery. You're gonna love this after the first month. lol

I can't tolerate plain water. I have to have flavored water or it won't go down.

Yes it is but everyone's normal varies. There is no definitive time frame to be able to do anything, there are just approximations. Everyone's journey is just a bit different and some people can start eating regular foods at 4 weeks while others can't eat till week 6 or 7. My team tells us to try one new food at a time, if you can't tolerate it...wait a week. My first week it took me forever to drink 4 ounces of water. Now I can drink quite a bit in a short period of time. Not like before of course but each week I see such a difference in my food and water intake. As long as you progress, that's all that matters. You don't have to compare yourself to others, your journey is good. Take care of yourself and hope your recovery is good.

I'm 58 and I don't feel I'm losing as fast as some on the posters that are in their 20s and 30s. I try not to compare myself with others as everyone's journey is unique but I have noticed that the younger folks do lose more rapidly and they seem to have more energy. I'll be 4 weeks post surgery on Monday and I still can only walk a mile and a half. Next week I will try to do 2 miles per day. I hope that will help with the weight loss.

I did those clear broths for 5 or 6 days and they were disgusting. I finally just got chicken noodle soup and just strained the noodles and chicken out of it. It tasted sooo good and met the qualifications of clear broth. On week two I started eating Cream of wheat and put some cinnamon and Spenda in it. It really cured those hunger pains and felt like I was eating food. I made runny scrambled eggs, grits with butter, and oatmeal. It was a nice break from the soup. I'm from the south and our food has always had seasoning and flavor...I just can't do food with no flavor. I bought a food processor and just started processing any food my husband was eating and it all went down just fine. Sometimes you just have to experiment and find what you can tolerate. I am still loving my tunafish and chicken salad. They go down easy and have taste and are filling. No more soups for me.

I am in Mississippi and I was sleeved On Feb. 10th. The first week was pretty rough, second week was no fun but weeks 3 and 4 have been tolerable. I'm still having to drink protein drinks in order to get my protein in but otherwise it's not too bad. I still struggle getting all the water in but I am doing better than I did pre surgery. I'm feeling great and am so happy I had this surgery. Looking forward to losing lots of weight and would love some southern sleeve buddies.

Hi Mandie, Before surgery when we ate meals we normally ate till we were "full". That's what got us into this life style of being overweight. A lot of what this surgery is about is getting past that concept of "full". The sleeve allows you to eat just so much, maybe 3 to 4 ounces at a time. Our minds and our tastebuds may still be hungry but our tummy will say "no more". We no longer eat till we are full, we eat till we are "satisfied". We learn to eat enough to give us the nourishment we need and no more. Once you move to the next phase of pureed foods you will be more satisfied and then even more so when you can move on to more solid food. The first two or three weeks of liquids is to give your new tummy a rest and to let it heal so getting full is not on your "to do list", in fact, eating till you are full could make you very sick. Take it slow and use this time to learn to eat slowly and in small deliberate bites. This journey is a learning process and takes a while to get it right. Good luck to you.

Susie, what an awesome transformation and an encouraging and inspiring story. Thank you so much for your post. I am 4 weeks post surgery and worried about the slowness of the weight loss but you have renewed my enthusiasm for the journey. You are beautiful and I wish you continued success. Janet

It would be best if you delayed the surgery. You do not want to go into surgery with any type of respiratory problem as it could cause some difficulties for you. I went into surgery without any type of known problems but I must have had a hint of a cold because I had problems. When I woke from surgery I had a lot of congestion in my lungs and was constantly having to cough. Not good on your stomach right after surgery. My pulmanologist was called in and she had me on breathing treatments every 4 hours and some other meds plus I ended up staying in the hospital and extra day which was an added expense. Do what is best for your health. Delaying the surgery a week or two to ensure a safer and easier recovery would be the wise thing to do but please call your surgeon and discuss this with them so they can give you their medical opinion before you are on the table. Recovery is difficult enough when you're feeling 100%, why bring complications into it? Good luck and let us hear from you what is going on.

I'm flying to Greece when I'm 4 1/2 months post op. I'll be climbing mountains and walking a lot but I'm confident I'll be fine. A cruise should offer unlimited food selections that are diet friendly so you should be good to go. If you are exercising all along you should be strong enough to do anything you wish to do. Good luck.

Prior to surgery I purchased a Weight Watchers scale and it wasn't a cheap one. I wanted a good scale to help me through this weight loss process. But now, I don't trust the scale. I don't think it is accurate and I don't know how to deal with this. Each time I step on the scale it gives me a different weight. I can step on the scale and get one weight and 5 minutes later I weigh and there is a 3 pound difference. I pick up the scale and move it to a different place and step on the scale and the weight is down 4 pounds. What the heck is going on??? Is there a way to calibrate these scales so that they are more accurate? I don't want to be scale dependent but heck, I'd like to get an accurate reading so I know how I'm doing on the diet. Does anybody have a secret fix???

Hi PokeyJo, yeah I'm starting to reconsider my original goal too. I've been looking at others weight loss and they are my height and stopping at much higher weights. Im wondering if that might be better for me. I suppose as I get to each stage I will make a decision then.

Most people have a pretty rough time the first week, I know I did. When we are pre-op and we're reading the posts, we tend to focus on those that say they had no pain and no hunger etc because we are so hopeful and so eager to be that person who has NO ISSUES after surgery. In the perfect world...that would be us. Here in the real world...surgery is serious and it hurts to be cut on so the thought of having painless easy surgery is a bit unrealistic. Just do the best you can the first couple of weeks, exercise as much as you are able and drink and eat as much as you can tolerate and everything will fall into place. That difficult part is so temporary but the weight loss is forever life changing. Good luck and hope you feel better soon.

Hi Willow. Oh I remember those first days...they were indeed pretty rough. My surgery was also on a Monday but Friday and Saturday proved to be the turning point and by Sunday I was feeling pretty dapper. The secret is to keep moving...walk walk and walk some more. It really does make you stronger and makes you feel better. It gets the gas moving so it can be released and for some reason it makes you heal faster. That first week I was saying to myself, what the hell have I done to myself but by the next week I was at peace with it all. Hope you are feeling better. Janet

Hi Msj9, I just saw your post today. Anytime you are in Jackson let me know. I would love to meet up with you. Did you have your surgery in Jackson? I am 4 weeks out and still learning my way through this process but doing very well. Who was your doctor? Hope to hear from you. Janet

Hi Bethjcamp, congratulations and welcome to the site. The advice I would give to you is to start that pre surgery diet as soon as possible and start exercising NOW. It will make the recovery process easier and will jump start your weight loss which makes everything much easier. The second advice I would give you is to follow your doctor's advice to the letter and you will be successful. I wish I had done this surgery when I was younger. You will be so pleased. Good luck to you. Janet

Lynn, I had tears rolling down my face when I read your post. I did the exact same thing when my best friend passed away from breast cancer. It changed my life forever. Our husbands were best friends, our kids were best friends, we went to church together, we celebrated holidays together....then she died and everything changed. I was in denial when she got sick and was in shock when she died... it took so long to find a sense of normalcy again but it did come eventually with time. Yeah, you are going to miss her a lot and that empty hole in your heart is going to seem so vast but through the grief process you will learn to fill that hole with new relationships and new experiences. That doesn't mean you will ever forget her...you will keep her with you forever but you will become more open to other friendships. It is so wonderful to have a friend in life that you have been able to love so deeply...many people never get that opportunity. It will get better with time but in the meantime...it is perfectly okay to cry. Keep talking to her because I bet she still hears you. Sending you healing hugs {{{{{ Lynn}}}}} Take care, Janet

Eating once a day is terrible for weight loss as it will wreak havoc with your metabolism. The point of this diet is to eat three meals a day and keep your metabolism up so that calories will be burned throughout the day. You should eat within 90 minutes of getting out of bed regardless if you are hungry or not. You have to kick start that metabolism. If you measure your food to 3 or 4 oz. you will easily quit eating before you are full. Don't sabotage your diet with one meal a day, it will result in slow weight loss and you will become disillusioned with the process. You need to take vitamin throughout the day and you don't want to take those on an empty stomach. You may need a consult with your nutritionist.

that should say I have no "regrets". LOL I have had great results. Darn auto spell check.

Hello to all of you, There are always posts on here about complications, problems and regrets but they are few compared to the posts of success,excitement and happiness over the results of WLS. Right now you are more sensitive to those negative posts and that is okay. You have to be realistic and know that anybody could have complications, its just a possibility that comes with surgery. Statistically, chances are in your favor that everything will be okay but every once in awhile something happens. Be honest and open with your surgeons about any issues you have that might complicate the surgery so preparations can be taken before hand. If you have done your homework and you have prepared correctly you will have no problems with your surgery. Keep focused on the possibilities of better health, significant weight loss, more energy and a more active life style. Are the risks worth that? Only you can answer that question for yourself. Whatever you choose, I wish you luck. As for me, I will be 4 weeks out on Monday the 10th and I could not be happier. This is much easier than I thought it would be and I have no results. Best of luck and happiness to all of you.

Sounds like you have a keeper. Tell him how you feel, he needs to hear it and will love you more for telling him. The diet will be much easier with the hubby on board. Best of luck to the both of you.

Add carbs.

I loved plain water prior to surgery but after surgery...hated the taste so I have to add flavor to my water. I do the crystal lite and Kool Aid now has the SF drops and you add to the water. I only buy spring water not the purified water. Anyway the kool aid makes the water much smoother going down. I couldn't make it without it. Good luck.