JeanZ_RN

My experience, just for me, is that I can lose weight either of 2 ways - very low carb (Atkins diet) or low calorie.

On the initial phase of the Atkins diet one can have unlimited amounts of Protein and fat, but no carbs. Once weight loss is going well you add a few carbs back in, then a few more, until you stop losing weight - then you back off the carbs a bit until you're losing at a rate that suits you. This is an over-simplification of it, but you get the idea. Some of the initial weight loss is Water weight, but that's true of many diet plans. This is the only diet I know of where calories don't matter. Research has shown that this diet does NOT result in higher cholesterol or triglycerides for most people.

With low calorie you can have a more balanced diet, but you cannot have unlimited amounts of any solid food, except maybe lettuce / celery. Foods that are high in fat are also high in calories, which is going to limit the amount of fat you can include.

I just read a very interesting post elsewhere on this site:

VERY interesting - thanks for posting!

Each day I eat 4 meals - 8am, noon, 4pm and 8pm.

• I always have a Quest bar (20 gm protein) for Breakfast.
• M-F I eat lunch out, and I usually don't decide which restaurant until I get in the car. No matter where I go, I order dense Protein - usually salmon, steak or chicken, once in a while tuna salad - and I order the dinner portion so I'll have plenty to take home. I order whatever side item they have that I like - carrots or coleslaw are faves.
• I almost always have a Quest bar for my 4 PM "feeding;" once in a while I eat leftovers from lunch.< /li>
• My 8 PM meal is sometimes a Quest bar, sometimes leftovers from lunches.

I too was told no carbonated beverages ever, but after several months of obeying I did try my fave -- diet Barq's root beer. I just took it very slowly. I've only had it twice since surgery, and although I did enjoy it and had no problems, I'm going to make it a very rare treat.

I resumed eating them immediately when I was allowed to advance from soft food to eat anything, and they went down just fine. I would be up a creek without my Quest bars!

What I've read on this forum is what DreamsComeTrue said, and my experience is the same -- I started noticing significant hair loss at about 3.5 months post op. Biotin won't stop the loss, but it is reputed to increase new growth. I take one Biotin extended-release tablet each morning (I think it's 10,000 mg). I'm not positive it's helping, but it's inexpensive so I'm going to keep taking it.

You look WONderful! Congratulations on coming so far! NO, you do NOT look fat in the least! And the idea that you might have excess skin that would account for the remaining 9 lbs is absolutely inspired; could it be correct?

There are ways to exercise that won't adversely affect your knee. (This from one who HATES exercise, but that's a different issue.) Think Water aerobics and/or swimming laps, or using an eliptical machine that allows the knees to stay straight (I have one - it has clothes piled on it. ) And here's a link to a web site where you can find an exercise program that you can do sitting down: www.bobbywhisnand.com.

Perhaps some therapy is in order? There are therapists who specialize in treating WLS patients... Best wishes!

Two possibilities occur to me - Could it be Constipation? If your abdomen is full ...

Or it could be a stricture in your esophagus. If the feeling persists, talk to your surgeon.

Congratulations! That is QUITE an accomplishment!

I would also be interested in learning more about a 400 calorie, 90 gr Protein menu. Thanks!

Just found this thread. Answer: YES, you should definitely date another sleever! ME!! LOL!! I live in North Dallas, and I've been single for several years. I keep thinking I should get on some dating sites, but the only one I'm on so far is LoveAfterWLS.com -- and there weren't many people on there when I last checked.

Some years ago I had a first date with a guy who told me over dinner that he'd had a kidney transplant, and he went into detail about his medical issues. I'm a registered nurse, so hearing it didn't upset me, but I did decide not to pursue / accept a second date. I could understand why he would put that out there -- probably he'd had some bad experiences -- but I would have advised him to wait just a bit longer to bring it up.

WLS does not have the long-term implications that transplant patients have to deal with, but still, I think I will feel more comfortable waiting until the 2nd or 3rd date to talk about it -- and then only if it comes up. The guy I mentioned above just sort of blurted it out.

Interesting article from FoxNews: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/04/09/new-genetic-switch-technique-may-lead-to-accelerate-metabolism/

After reading it I was curious about ASOs -- antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) technology -- so I searched for that term and found a Wikipedia entry: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antisense_therapy. Reading it I learned that ASOs are not a specific class of medications.

The whole idea sounds very promising!

I hadn't heard about this!! I'm ready to try it! What Probiotics, exactly, and what dosage? Thanks!

Calcium: I started out on the chewable tablets from CelebrateVitamins.com, but I didn't like the taste. Then I switched to their soft chews, the chocolate and the carmel flavors, 250 mg each, and those flavors were ok-to-good.

Then I read on this site about chewy bites from BariatricAdvantage.com, which come in PB/choc and caramel flavors, 500 mg each, so I tried those. They were ok, but I found I actually like the Celebrate carmel flavor best, so I switched back to those and have stayed with them.

My surgeon said to take 1500 mg daily, so that's what I do. But you might want to ask others on this site what dosage surgeons recommend for men - it might be different.

I was never told not to chew gum, and the statements about possibly needing surgery to remove gum don't make sense to me (RN since 1973).

My impression is that our remaining stomach is about the size of a banana, and if that is true one chewed piece of gum should not obstruct it. Besides, ANYthing that lands in the stomach is immediately attacked by gastric acid, which is VERY potent.

If privately doesn't work, you and/or your hubby could confront these remarks with something like "Well that's a hurtful thing to say!" or "Ouch! That was mean!" or "If you are going to be rude I will leave the room."

I agree with PdxMan - you won't need it, because it is intended for those with a normal size stomach. I can't eat nearly as much as shown in the picture.

Sounds like you may have a stricture in your esophagus - particularly because of the way you describe your reaction to water/food: "I eat stuff and then it just hurts bad then I just open my mouth and it comes out. I don't even have spasms or straining or noise like when I used to vomit before surgery . And I feel totally fine afterwards. Drinking hurts still too and I can do maybe 20oz a day because I sip then burp for 10 min."

Please call and talk to your surgeon or at least the office staff about that specific possibility. If that is the case the doc can dilate it and that might just fix you right up.

Best wishes!

I think it's safe to say we all have cravings from time to time. Just keep reminding yourself - giving in to those cravings is how we got in this position in the first place. It's ok to have the impulse, just not ok to surrender to it as a regular thing.

Something I heard or read someplace early on was that if we can make good choices 90% of the time, we'll be ok.

My viewpoint is different from most of the others on this thread.

I'm a nurse, working in an administrative job in a small hospital. Another nurse was hired for a similar position in our hospital, and in the course of conversation he soon volunteered the information that he had the sleeve surgery. I had not heard of it, so I asked some questions, did my research and decided to start the journey. When I scheduled the time off for the surgery it just seemed natural to tell my peers on the management team the purpose of that leave. They have ALL been supportive, which has helped me tremendously. My only family - 2 sisters and 1 brother - all live hours away, and while we do keep in touch by phone and email, it's great to have supportive people whom I see every work day. Now I get to hear several times a week congratulations on how great I look and other positive stuff. I'll TAKE it!

I have no idea what if anything they say behind my back, but I'm not going to worry about it. I'm not getting any vibes to indicate they are anything other than supportive, so I have no reason to think there's any nastiness going on.

Excellent info, thanks.

For the itching, you could try applying an ice pack to the area. If you're out and about or don't have the option of ice, try slapping the area lightly (or moderately) instead of scratching. Those things have worked for me in the past.

It took me three times, but I finally did quit. I used several strategies; here are the ones I remember from back then:

• The timing coincided with my buying a new car, so I decided I would not smoke in that car, ever. You could do the same type of thing by having your present car detailed and airing it out well. Along the same lines, you could set aside locations where you will no longer smoke - like inside your home.
• When trying to quit I decided that when I had the urge to smoke I would wait 10 minutes, and then if I still wanted a cig I would have it. If I didn't think of it again for 20 minutes, that didn't count - I made myself start over, waiting another 10 minutes.
• When I actually did quit I kept the last half pack of cigs and after a while they got stale. Then, when I gave in and had a smoke, it was a stale cig and tasted terrible. Negative reinforcement!

Best wishes on your journey!

I am thinking about getting a FitBit but I know very little about them. Does one have to have a smart phone to use a FitBit? (I prefer my old-style just-a-cell-phone.)