SnohoGal98296

Wow, our stats are almost identical. Surgery date June 11th, high weight 302, current weight 251. Pretty cool!

I live in the Woodinville area too. I have been to one post op support group at NWWLS, they are a good group of folks. I am up for a local mixed group meeting, but due an odd working schedule, frequent travel / odd hours, I am afraid I wouldn't be able to attend meetings that are too far south...

I flew from Seattle, WA to Winston/Salem, North Carolina on day 28. I had lost about 30lbs at that time. Not only was it easier getting through the airport, but the seat and seat belt fit better. I didn't have to ask for a seat belt extender! The meal tray didn't rest on my belly and I didn't encroach on my row mates seat! I was a little nervous about how I was going to eat and get my Protein in as I was travelling for business with a team of people. But my teammates were great, always asking me if the restaurant was ok, I brought a selection of single serve Protein shakes mixes, the flavors that mix with Water and a couple of shaker cups and a few bars too. It was my first week on solid foods and I did great! No embarrassing moments, and I lost a few lbs for the week when a trip like that used to put a few on. I actually bought one of those snack boxes on the airplane - it had crackers, hummus, olive spread, nuts and a few other pretty healthy items. I ate what I could on the ride out, saved some for during the week, still had some for the ride home and today 1.5 months later there is still the little bag of Cookies - it is only 100 calories and made with healthy ingredients but I jsut can't eat a cookie... Before I would have eaten the entire box and wanted another one for the ride home... Your sleeve really is a tool that can be relied on, once you get used to it and your new normal. Go have fun!

Switching to more dense foods makes a big difference. I have to say this did not happen to me, I could barely sip my beverages those early days, today I am about 9 weeks out and it still takes me about 2 hours to drink my Protein shakes. I can drink Water and iced tea at a quicker rate but nothing like before surgery. If I try to drink my water with big sips it hurts just under my sternum, it is my stomach saying "Too Fast!!", solid food is another story, chicken breast is really dense and I can only eat about 2 to 3 tablespoons, ground beef in tomato sauce or tuna in mayo is much easier, I can eat around 1/3 to 1/2 cup. I can eat 6 ounces of Greek yogurt, it is filling, but I can eat it in about 15 mins. Hang in there, if you are really worried talk to your Doctor. I have a picture of my new stomach because my Dr did an x-ray leak test on Day 2, maybe your Dr can show you your sleeve too. ..

I had surgery on a Wednesday, went back to work on the 2nd Monday, so 10 days total. I work in an office setting so I was able to chill most of the day and take things easy. The first week was tough, but I really think if I had spent more time at home I would have gone crazy. I traveled for work on Day 28, kind of crazy, it was the same day I was to graduate to solid food. I took lots of Protein single serves the kind that could be mixed with water. It went great!

I am just getting started, I am down 50 lbs from my heaviest weight and I can say that my shoes are definitely fitting better these days. Previously my shoes would be tight across the top of my foot, and cute little flats gave me muffin top of the foot. They are much cuter now :-D

When I made the decision to have the surgery I thought I would be so embarrassed when people started noticing, I think that in the past I never wanted to admit that I was dieting because I knew I would eventually fall off of the wagon and then everyone would think I was a failure, again. My work is a fairly a small homey place, so of course everyone knew I was taking some time off for a medical procedure. So my big secret lasted about two days, one gal admitted she assumed I was have an hysterectomy - she was so relieved when I told her it was WLS, LOL. Anyway, as I was losing in my face and upper body pretty quickly lots of folks have noticed and I have just decided that if they ask I will tell them the truth and accept their well wishes with gratitude. I haven't had any negative reactions - I had made a list in my head of the persons who I thought would be negative and I was wrong on all occasions. I accept the well wishes and the congratulations with a smile and it truly makes me feel good. I really think that this time - with this tool - I can't fail. So I am so much more confident of the end result, the diets and gimmicks of the past seem like a young girls folly. This must be the reason that I have been able to let down my guard and accept the compliments of friends and coworkers with no difficulty. (Family has been supportive all along and it never occurred to me that I wouldn't have their support).

Love the Quest bars - I can only eat a half bar at a time just yet. the range of flavors and the density of the bar just works for me. I have bought the Protein chips and I liked them! the dusty flavor coating can be annoying like cheetos dust. But they hit the spot when I was craving a crunchy chip experience. I wouldn't eat them regularly though, they are a pretty high calorie snack. I have the Quest Peanut Butter cups in my pantry - but now I am wondering if I will try them - but I have found that people either love or hate Quest products and so far I have liked everything I bought...

I am 2 months and a few days and I have lost 47lbs

@@LKG, my recommended Protein is 60-80, does Kaiser only recommend 20-30? I am 7 weeks out....

At my 6 week appt I got into trouble for not regularly hitting 800 calories - they said that 800 is the lowest you want to be at once you are on solids. She mentioned that your brain and body need that much to function normally. It really explained why I was so tired and sort of forgetful - I have been on My Fitness Pal since the beginning and when I worked to get to 800 cals daily not only did I break a stall I had been on, I also started feeling more normal. But - I have seen where other NUTs recommend 600-800, and some much higher, so be sure to ask your Doc about that:-D

I may have it easy because my Mom partially funded my surgery so she definitely wants me to succeed. That being said, our family ritual is that we go to dinner every Wednesday night with my Mom and her boyfriend. But again, I may have it easier, they asked me if I would choose the restaurant, my favorite place has been a Mexican Restaurant that during my early days had a clear broth based Soup that I took all of the veggies and shrimp and put in a to go container for my Mom, and today has a grilled fish fillet with grilled veggies that I am able to eat a few tablespoons of and then take the rest to work for lunch for a few days. Even so, it was tough, seeing everyone else eating yummy Mexican food but it was also a lesson for me in the dedication that I to use this tool to the best of it's ability - honeymoon period and beyond. @@mi75 you did very well and should be proud of yourself - you used your sleeve's strength to make the healthy choice by having the portobello pizza! I am so stealing that idea! I have also heard of using eggplant slices and zucchinnis as "boats" or slices when they get huge... And maybe next time you can pick the restaurant :-D

Something I just tried - and I am well into solid foods, is the mashed cauliflower substitute for mashed potates, I served it with Swiss Steak and it was a huge hit with the entire family. Simmered the cauliflower in chicken broth until tender(soft) and whirred it in the food processor with a little butter and milk, added salt and pepper to taste. It is all gone! Family loved it and I have two kids who love Mashed Potatoes, neither of them have an ounce of fat on them by the way - I am the only one in the whole family on a diet LOL

Did you have a pre-op diet? If so, how much did you lose before the surgery? I ask because those without pre-op diets seem to drop a lot immediately after surgery.

It is only too late after the surgery, call your Doctor and talk to him about it.

So I am confused, why is the high fiber a bad thing? I need that to stay regular(LOL) can only eat the quest bars at about 1/3 of a bar at a time, but they are delicious and they were life savers on a recent business trip and boat outing. ..

It is just like clothes, different seat manufacturers have different models with varying seat pan widths, and the airline can pick the seat belt separately, so each class on a single airplane can have different seats, even the rows can be different, usually front rows are different.

Yes definitely - thanks everyone for your replies! It is funny how different airlines, different seats even, have different lengths - I work in the Commercial Aircraft Interiors industry and know that all seats start equally - but dependant upon the seat and the individual LOPA (Layout of Passenger Arrangement) for each aircraft the seat belts can vary. For instance, at my heaviest on a Japanese Airline on a 787 my seat belt fastened, but on an US Major Airline on a 777 it didn't. The bitter fat person in my head (the one who keeps screaming Why aren't you eating more of that? It is delicious! Eat More!) thinks is just might be a conspiracy... :-DDDD

So from the beginning of this path towards and following VSG, one of things on my list that made me make the decision to invest in WLS was when I travelled by air that the meal tray no longer lay flat because my belly would get in the way. Travel is a big part of my job, so this was a constant embarassment for me. There is nothing more embarassing than a flight attendant handing you a meal to a tray that won't lay flat, and at first they just think it isn't fully deployed, then they realize oh no, the tray is stuck on her and the look on their face changes. Total humiliation, right? Not to mention always having to ask for an extension for the seat belt, but at least the flight attendants don't seem phased by that request. Well I am happy to share that today I flew for the first time since my surgery (it was exactly four weeks since surgery and 5 weeks since pre-op diet start - I have lost 31lbs since June 1st) when I boarded that flight I dread two things, fastening the seat belt and using the meal tray; NSV #1 - the seat belt fastened without an extension! it was tight but I was able to fasten it! NSV #2 - the below attached picture is a shot of the fulley deployed meal tray and my belly - it is a little blurry but the white solid mass is the tray and the black and white flowered area is my t-shirt - there was 2-3 inches between my belly and the tray which lay perfectly flat!! You know I have been saying that this first month and 30 lbs was just a drop in the bucket, that I would not start to see benefits for another 30-40 lbs( I have 145 lbs excess weight) - but I was wrong - even 30lbs makes a difference!

Agree with the sugar free Popsicles, my plan was 10 days pre-op (Protein shakes plus on 300 Cal meal), 3 days Clear liquids, 1.5 weeks Full Liquids, 2 weeks Soft/Pureed foods, Day 28 Regular Foods. I would have gone crazy with one more day of clear liquids, I tried to have savory liquids for lunch and dinner, and the popsicles were life savers

Yay! Madame Revs is back! definitely missed your wit and charm! I am post op now - so excited to share in the experiences that so often make your posts so gosh darn funny!

I came to the realization this morning while driving to work that if I was on a typical diet that I would have 1,000 times by now. From the night on my pre-op diet when I came home to my husband who had made Spaghetti and Meatballs for the himself and the kids to the 4th of July BBQ this weekend where there was homemade macaroni salad and every grilled/bbq'd meat known to mankind and lots of icy boozy drinks available. I would have quit - I would reached for that plate and loded it up and eaten myself into a comfort food coma each and every time. My sleeve is doing it's job and I must give myself some kudos to sticking to the recommended foods list - but my sleeve is training me on portion sizes (post VSG sizes too - tabelspoons instead of cups) and keeping me honest. I am so glad that I made the decision to get my sleeve. The first few days were tough and I have had dreams about eating food (my subconscious just doesn't understand why I am not eating like I used too!), but as I sit here wearing a new pair of pants that I bought in October and got home only to figure that I had gone up another size and was too regretful to return them (they were the largest size Lee makes in that style 24W), I am pleased with both myself and the outcome of my sleeve. This is what I thought I was buying when I selfpaid for my sleeve and it is working as expected - sometimes slower then I want - but it is working and I will take slow and steady any day over "I will just start again on Monday!"

I do think she will notice - just this past weekend at a 4th of July BBQ, someone hollered out, "That better not be your plate!" as I exited the buffet line, I had my packet steamed fish (which I brought with me) and some well cooked broccoli. The guy who said it is a nice guy who doesn't know I had surgery, I just replied "this is my first round", and he didn't say anything the rest of the night. Don't know if he just stopped noticing or if someone told him about my situation. It was a friendly jest, nothing more, and that is how I took it. If you don't feel comfortable explaining your small portions to your friend, just say that you are not feeling it or it's too hot eat or something and put the rest of your meal in a doggy bag. I have found that as I tell more people I get more questions but no negative remarks. It is funny the skinny ones are more positive than the heavy ones though! I have only had one person say "I know 5 people who died from that!!" and that is my overly dramatic sister! She came around though whne she realized that I wan't going to change my mind.

Surgery on June 9th weighed 289, July 7th weight is 269, waiting for July 11th to see my total weight lost since surgery :-D

Try the unflavored Protein mixes,