CherieRyde

O.O Where ARE you?

My last two posts were intended for a person who has either been removed or who has removed her posts. She was trying to sell us a weight loss something and assumed that those of us on this forum haven't already tried everything we can. In essence, I was defending us.

Your apology is appreciated, but your intentions are misplaced. ALL of us on this forum have tried everything possible before taking the leap of faith into surgery. I've personally spent MORE on weigh loss plans, diets, and programs (Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers included) than I spent on my surgery. You need to realize that those of us in this forum are not doing this for the fun of it, because this is "easy", or because no one has spoken to us about other avenues. We've all BEEN THROUGH HELL with our weight loss journey, and are finally starting to experience something resembling success. If you really want to HELP people like us, learn a little about what it's like to BE us. Learn what we actually go through before getting here. Learn about how active we already ARE before we follow MEDICAL ADVICE and have these surgeries. Maybe even get a job in a Bariatric Surgeon's office! You are not a doctor. You are a girl who likes to exercise and doesn't have the same issues we do. If you were ever fat, you were lucky enough to find something that worked for YOU. Do I accept your apology? NO. Because I'm SICK AND TIRED of other people acting like they know more about this journey than I and the other people on this forum do. WE LIVE THIS. You, clearly, don't. To be honest, if I knew how to block you, I'd do so right now. Instead, I ask that you NOT respond to me. Ever.

Daniella, I do not appreciate your SPAM in my inbox. I have reported you to Bariatric Pal with your initial post as it appeared in my email. If we hadn't tried alternatives before surgery, we wouldn't be here. Your input is NOT appreciated.

You put WAY too much pressure on yourself. Do you want to know how much weight *I* lost pre-op? 5lbs. The rest of what I've lost to date has been POST-op weight loss. Remember, your body is different than anyone else's. It's unique. ALL of out bodies are unique. None of our bodies react the same way to the same things. Chill out, and stop stressing. It seems to me like you are ready to fail before you've even gotten started. Don't so that to yourself. You can do this.

Walking does WONDERS for the bloating and pain. Everyone (not the folks on here) around me kept telling me to take it easy and not push myself, but walking is the best thing you can do. Also, everyone is different, so everyone's recovery is different. Listen to your body and do what feels right for you.

I've learned that I can't handle breads, cake, cupcakes, pancakes, cornbread, tortillas, most sweets, sausage, red meat (even ground), pork, rice, most pastas, and pills of any kind anymore. chocolate? Sure, But only a bout 3 of the miniature Hershey's bars. Strawberries curb my desire for chocolate though. You are entering a whole new life. Either embrace it and stick to the diet your Nutritionist lays out for you, or be a dummy like me and eat things that cause you pain. Thursday I had scrambled eggs, sausage, and pancakes for dinner. I woke up at 1am with pain that made me wish I would just die right there on the bathroom floor. I didn't eat the right things, and now I have gastritis. "Problems that can occur after Lap-Band placement include nausea, vomiting, acid reflux, heartburn, stomach ulcer, gastritis, gas bloat, trouble swallowing, dehydration, diarrhea, constipation and weight regain." - This is from non compliance aka: eating the wrong things. You are in charge of your body, and slip ups will happen. But don't pre-plan an opportunity for that. Be smart and plan to have things available for you that WON'T cause you issues.

The trigger is fatty foods. Apparently the scrambled eggs, sausage, and pancakes for dinner was a no-no. They put me on an antacid, but that caused more pain when I swallowed it. I'm hoping to find a substitute today that will dissolve in my mouth. As far as treatment, there's no real treatment for it. Just monitoring my food even more diligently. Thanks for all of the well wishes, guys.

It's Gastritis, or swelling of the stomach lining. There's not an exact idea of the cause, and no real treatment. So, I don't have any idea of what to avoid to prevent this happening ever again. Let me tell you ... it's Hell on Earth. It hurts worse than gallbladder pain. Now that I'm home, I'm nauseous, headachy, and fighting to keep food (aka chicken broth) down.

This happened about 5 hrs ago .. Holy HELL that hurt!! I was asleep, minding my own business, when I woke up with what felt like heartburn and the NEED to pee. So I did, and things hot worse. I couldn't tell if I needed a BM, to throw up, or lay down and DIE. It just kept getting worse and worse. Full body shaking, cold sweats, jumbled thoughts, weakness, and the inability to go anything to make it better. I finally made it back to the bed and woke my husband up, got enough words out to get him to call the Dr, and collapsed on the floor next to the puppy in a shaking, sweating, freezing puddle. Now it feels like I have heartburn that won't go away. WTF?? Oh yeah. I have the Lapband if that helps anyone else understand this. Have you guys experienced this? What IS it? If the heartburn doesn't go away or gets worse, I'll head to the ER. This was VERY different than anything I've ever felt. I've never hurt like this before even with broken bones, gall bladder issues, child birth, and miscarriages. It was a 15 on the pain 10 scale. We didn't take my temp. Hubby was panicked, and I couldn't put two thoughts together until I made this post 4 hrs ago. I was so cold afterward that he put a heating pad under me, and I fell asleep. We are going to the Dr this morning. I still have pain, but nowhere near what it was last night. What I have now would be a 2-3 on the pain 10 scale. So, once the kiddo is on the school bus, we will head out. Also, I walked the puppy because I thought all was well ... and about half way through the pain was up to a 4 and it was getting hard to breathe ... So, I'm headed to the shower so that we can go to the Dr ASAP.

I had egg drop soup as soon as I could have thicker liquids.

It took me about a week to start feeling better. You are at the very very beginning of things, and are still healing. Give yourself time.

Holy COW!! The changes in my body are so very noticeable and I'm beside myself with excitement! Yes, I've lost 26 pounds, and that's so incredibly awesome, but the OTHER successes are even more important to me. * I've dropped from a size 24 to a size 20. (Sadly, this means I have to go shopping. I hate shopping.) * I've dropped from a 42H bra size to a 40F ... and am currently wearing a 40DD sports bra that I've not been able to wear in THREE YEARS! * I have more ENERGY to do things that I need and want to do. * NO MORE UPPER BACK FAT!! This morning when I put my bra on, it felt like the strap was caught on my fat. It's happened so very often that I've gotten used to checking the mirror to see where things are hung up and maneuver it around the fat rolls. But this morning when I looked .. the strap was simply TWISTED, and there was NO FAT for the strap to be caught on!! WHAT?? * My hubby is very .... appreciative of my shrinking form. I'll just leave that as it is. What awesome successes have you guys achieved?

Feel better soon! It sounds to me like you are going through the same virus that one of my friends finally fought off rather than having a reaction to the band.

I love adding chia and flax to my oatmeal, yogurt, and shakes. YUMMY

I did it too. From what I've learned, this is completely normal. Just make sure you stick to your pre-op diet.

We get to have popcorn again? O.O How soon?? I miss popcorn.

I'm sorry to hear that the surgeon you saw is so negative about the band. Yes, I'm still new to this whole thing. HOWEVER .... I'm happier than I've been in a LONG time. I feel great, I'm exercising every day, and my clothes are hanging on me to the point that we are taking most of them to Goodwill this week. The band may be a waste of that surgeon's time, but it's not a waste of mine. I LOVE the way I feel, and I'm proud of the weight loss I'm seeing. I agree. You need a second opinion.

I've been looking for bariatric cookbooks that are cheap but good. I found this one today ... "Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery: Over 140 Delicious Low-Fat High-Protein Recipes to Enjoy in the Weeks, Months and Years After Surgery" Have any of you tried it before?

Rice is no longer on my "allowed to eat" list. :-/

YES! I LOVE my Fitbit! I recommend it to EVERYONE!

Questions .... lots of questions.

I like myfitness pal and fitbit.

For me ... any kind of bread is difficult. Also, boiled eggs, pork chops, hamburgers, and grilled chicken are hard for me to eat. I've not tried "normal" vegetables yet since I'm *technically* still on pureed foods. So I'm getting my veg from baby food. I can handle baked chicken (as long as it's cooked with orange and apple slices, and covered with foil), any and all fish, steaks cooked medium, turkey burgers, scrambled eggs, hot dogs, sausages, bacon cooked medium well (not crispy. Crispy bacon now hurts), quinoa, couscous (only 1/4 cup per meal), baby food veggies, and spaghetti. Amazingly enough, I don't miss chocolate for a majority of the month. I only miss it when I'm PMSing.

Socially ... I didn't worry much about that at all. To be honest, it's easier to eat at home rather than going out during the pre-op diet. My husband and son have been SUPREMELY supportive, and they've adapted their diets to mirror mine as much as they are able (or as much as I'l allow since they need to not starve). Going out with my friends is even easier now. One of my friends had the gastric sleeve surgery, and my other friends are supper supportive. I don't worry at all about the people whom I'm not closely acquainted. They have absolutely no impact on my life. ^.^