S(he) be(lie)ve(d)

Only (3) few days. Just don't get crazy with positions. Be gentle.

I didn't have any tape at all. But, I am a picker of sunburns and anything that peels. Lol! There was a lot of excess glue that was around my incisions. It was irritating my skin, so I admit, I picked the excess around the incisions. But, I left the incisions alone. Taking care of this type of incision closure was incredibly easy. I didn't have to worry about going in to have staples or stitches removed. It was perfect in every way!!!

My incisions were glued. There wasn't anything covering them. It was great! They all started to just fall off on their own around day 10. They were really low maintenance. Compared to other laparoscopic surgeries that I've had in the past, this was by far the best with regards to my incisions.

Kirkland Calcium Chews Sugar Free at Costco. They are pretty good! I love chocolate, so it is almost like a little sweet treat 3 times a day.

Gummies aren't digested very well with sleeves and they aren't considered a high potency Vitamin. I figure that since we have these spendy little tummies, we might as well put the best stuff possible into them. My nut said that it is kind of like putting bad gas/oil or not maintaining a Bentley.

My doctor said not to do baby food. It doesn't have enough of the nutrients we need as adults. Same as children's Vitamins and gummy vitamins. The good quality stuff for adult women is not available in that stuff. pureed isn't hard. Buy a Magic Bullet. They are so worth it! From pureed to smoothies. I've used mine for 4 years now. Still love it. If your veggies are too dry when you puree them put a little bit of veggie, chicken or beef stock in it. Same thing with your meats. If they are too dry add broth. They sell it at Safeway. It's in the broth section and called Organics. REAL food is more nutritious for you. We need to eat to live, not live to eat. I used to be pretty little. But, 3 kiddos later and major medical drama with 2 of them, I put myself last. Now, it is time to get me back!

It wasn't that bad at all. Having a C-section was a lot worse. It would have been even better if I didn't have a large hiatal hernia repaired. That was what hurt the worst. I took Dilaudid 2 mg every 2 hours for the 1st 2 days(I'm allergic to Vicodin and Percocet) and then just one every 4 hours for the 1st 6 days (each day I slowly tapered down) and Valium went from 3 times a day to just taking it at night now. The Valium helped everything to relax in my diaphragm region. It was a HUGE help! I plan on taking the Valium until it runs out (only 5 left). Besides that it has helped me to sleep easier. Now I am just taking Extra Stength Rapid Release Tylenol in the morning and at night. Just stay on top of your pain. Don't let it get ahead of you. Oh and gas pains from surgery.....walk, walk, walk. I walk about 3-4 times a day. It is about 1/4 mile every time. I never did have any gas pain from surgery, every. Walking is your best friend for eliminating that gas!

I totally agree 100%. I've never made it to even having room for starchy stuff. I've just prioritized to the meat and veggies. So far, so good! Steaming veggies in for a little extra longer than normal makes them really soft too. I like to take cauliflower, mash it up and put it in my favorite red pepper tomato Soup from costco. Then I add a scoop of unflavored Protein powder. It is good with broccoli too.

My Nut also says to do Protein 1st, veggies 2nd and then a starch, if you have room. You always want to eat the foods with the most nutritional impact first before you do a starch. Starches don't really provide that much in the way of nutrients. It does to an extent, but you can obtain starches in your veggies that do so much more for you. Too much starch and it turns to sugar in your system. You do need the good healthy starches that help to give you energy that your body needs. I never have been a big potato, bread, Pasta, bean, or rice person. So, really I don't miss them at all. There are other ways of getting what you need nutritionally.

Yep, the sugars will get you every time! Ugh! I love those drinks too though. I haven't had one for about 6 months now. Go with what works for you. Everyone seems so different with everything. My tastes haven't changed at all. I never have been picky and I'm still not. I've just been making a lot healthier choices. I'm doing good with the veggies. I just puree them. If they are dry, I add a little chicken, beef or veggie broth to them to not make them so dense. I've been doing the same with beef, chicken or any other meat that seems dry. It makes a HUGE difference in being able to get them down and keep them down. At first, if some foods were too dry, I would throw them up. Not fun. Then, I would just lose my appetite for that meal. I would have to settle everything down before I could try again. But, adding moisture to dry foods or really dense foods is a tremendous help.

My doctor told me to take a Gas-X pill. There is also a chewable and a dissolvable strip you can put on your tongue. It is best to take them before meals, but I've only had to take the pill in the morning, the chewable in the late afternoon and then just carry the dissolvable strips in my purse, just in case. I just burp. No toots. Just burps. I'll take it. My hubby says I burp a lot in my sleep too. So sexy, right?!?! Lol!

Do you have a hard time swallowing pills??? I sure as heck did with lots of pain and feelings of them getting stuck, until I remembered how my Grandma used to take her pills everyday. They always made her gag since they were too big, never seemed to go down all the way and she said they hurt going down. Put the pill on the back of your tongue and take with a little bite of yogurt. You can do the same with Cream of Wheat, oatmeal, Pudding or Applesauce. It works wonders!!! Promise! Try it for yourself!

I've been working on getting the Protein, veggie & starch (fruit at lunch time) in, but it is hard. Since I began pureed about 4 days ago, I can only make it to the protein and the veggie or protein & fruit at lunch time. I never have been a big starch eater, so I figure at least I am getting the foods in that pack the most nutrients. I've tried to add a teeny tiny bit of another item & vomit happens. So, I'm just taking it one day at a time. Eventually, I should be able to get there. It just will take a while.

I totally understand where you are coming from. I just wanted to surround myself with my positive support people. Only 4 people knew that I was going to have surgery. There have been a few people that have asked if I was ok. Mainly from my kiddos' school, or running into them in town running to the store, etc. I just say that I had a Hiatal Hernia repair. I did. It was a large one. So, I'm not lying. I'm just not telling them all the details of my surgery. This was my decision and I didn't want to hear opinions of others, negative comments or be gossiped about. My sister in law is horrible. Her nickname in our family is "Mouth". If she knows the whole town and surrounding towns know too. Ugh! It is so high school and that was 20 years ago. Like I told my hubby, if I have to go to the bathroom, I don't need to tell everyone about my business that goes on behind a closed door. People don't need to know all the details of every aspect of your life. Privacy is a good thing. But, you do need to have the positive support system that you can trust to do just that. It is important for your overall well being.

Premier Protein Shakes are really good!!! Love the chocolate and vanilla! If you want to order the strawberry, go to Costco.com and order them online. I haven't had any issues getting in all my protein for the day at all.

Love the Premier Protein Shakes!!! Vanilla tastes like tapioca pudding to me, which I love! You could probably add some sugar free Torani orange syrup to make it taste like a creamsicle too. I also have the unjury Unflavored powder to add to other stuff, like pudding, soup, etc., when I need to add more to my day.

I am a week out from surgery. They said the right side would be the most bothersome. That is the side that they take the stomach out through. Just ice, ice, ice. It helps!

Good to know. I'm going to try not eating 2 hours before bed and continue to sleep in an upright position. At least this isn't the painful reflux, like I am accustomed to. Overall I'm doing really well. The recovery has been pretty smooth sailing so far. I'm excited for what lies ahead!

Hello! I was just sleeved on Sept 8th. So far it hasn't been bad at all. It just feels like I have done to many sit-ups. My right side is the most sore. But, they said that is where they pulled part of my stomach out. My only complaint, I wake up in the middle of the night coughing because it seems like Fluid is coming up and I might throw up, but I don't. I'm sleeping very well elevated. My Doctor also repaired a large hiatal hernia as well. Swallowing is becoming easier. I am having to burp myself by patting the center of my chest with my hand. Just like how you burp a baby, but on my chest. I'm slowly being able to burp on my own. My hubby says that I burp in my sleep constantly. Lol! Has anyone else experienced this coughing with a feeling of fluid coming up? It isn't heart burn. I definitely know what that feels like. This is not painful, just scares me a bit because I don't want to choke on it. Thanks you! Jodi

Thank you so very much!!! We are on our way in a bit. Can't believe it is here finally!!!!

September 8th is almost here!!! Eeeeeekkkkk!!! We are dropping the kids at Grandma & Grandpa's, the 2 dogs at a kennel and heading over the passes tomorrow. I'm not really even nervous yet. Just more excited, so far. There might be a tad touch of anxiety. I clean when I get anxious and well, my house is spotless. After deciding on the Sleeve 5 years ago, then waiting for insurance to add it, doing the 6 month diet, the 2 week pre-op low carb diet, the BIG day is finally just about here! I'm anxious to get the old me back, be happy & healthy and feel confident about myself again! Let's do this!!!

My sleeve is on Sept 8th too!!!! Not much longer!!!!

On my supervised diet, I lost 13 lbs. My BMI was 38.3 beginning. When my paperwork was submitted, my BMI was 36.6. I do have a few comorbidities as well. Currently, I am on the last few days of a 2 week low carb diet and my BMI is now 34.8. Insurance approved everything really quickly. Everything was very well documented to the liking of insurance from my primary care doctor and my nutritionist. Surgery for my sleeve is scheduled on this coming Monday the 8th!!! Can't wait!!! Insurance basically wants to make sure that you are prepared for what is ahead and that you are completely dedicated to making changes. You cannot gain a single pound during this time either. At least with my insurance, anyway. We have Highmark BCBS. Good luck to you! You can do it!!!

Three babies later and almost 100 lbs later..... 1. Health problems beginning to appear. 2. My kids miss out on activities with me because I am uncomfortable with myself or physically uncomfortable. 3. I hate that I avoid being in pictures. Photos are priceless, especially of yourself and your family. 4. I could not do all the activities that I used to love like run, hike, hunting, swimming. 5. I began avoiding people because I was embarrassed that I let myself go this far. 6. I never wanted to step foot in a swimsuit, even if it was Great Wolf Lodge or Silverwood. 7. I feel it holds me back with my photography business at times. I'm anxious to find me again, be healthy, happy, confident and successful!!!

Thank you for all your replies! I know that as my weight goes down the retention will decrease. I cannot wait for that time to come! I still have mild pitting edema with my Water pill and it is controlling my blood pressure. The doctor said to take all my other meds, but not the water pill. He felt it would leave me dehydrated post-op. But, 2 years ago I began not filtering out Fluid as efficiently as a side effect of taking a super strong antibiotic. I was told this will eventually go back to normal. Ugh!