James Marusek

Don't worry. Your rate that you lose weight will begin to slow down soon and tapper off. Just follow the program guidelines and remember to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements.

Congratulations on your weight loss. There are two phases to weight loss surgery. These are the "Weight Loss" phase and the "Maintenance" phase. As you progress towards the end of your weight loss journey you will naturally slide into the maintenance phase. The strategies for this phase is different than the weight loss phase. I had RNY gastric bypass surgery over 3 years ago and this is my impression of the maintenance phase. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery2.pdf

I enjoy shopping even clothes shopping and I am rather good at it. So generally I can buy clothes out of season for around 75% off retail or more. It is a little like bargain hunting or treasure hunting. As I lost weight I had to replace my entire wardrobe. It not only affected my waistline but also my shoulders. I started to get comment that I began to look like the Disney cartoon character Dopey in Snow White. This is because all sleeves on my jackets and coats became so long that my fingers were no longer visible. Some people even have to buy new shoes because the shoe size or width can become too large. In the end I landed up with a wardrobe that was the latest style and looked good on me. I gave away all my old clothes. I am 3 years post-op and there is no going back on these changes.

It is 195 miles from downtown Austin to downtown Dallas. All of the drive is on IH-35. The drive takes approximately three and a half hours on a good traffic day and can take five hours if there is very poor weather or construction/roadworks. Waco is the half way point. I traveled around 102 miles each way for my surgery. In my case the trips up to the hospital were broken down into 4 groups. First my insurance company required that I undergo a 6 month program for a medically monitored weight loss program that included diet and exercise. That meant one trip per month for 6 months. [in your case the insurance requirement may be different or you might do this locally.] Second there were several trips that included the initial consult, the psychological evaluation, almost a day of pre-op testing and almost a day of training. The third group was the trip for the surgery. The fourth group was the post-op reviews. All-in-all I was not bothered by these trips. I combined them with shopping trips or visits with my daughter who lives in the area. The only negative was the construction that was going on near the hospital during this time cause a lot of traffic and congestion and I hate congestion. Overall, my RNY surgery was very effective at correcting my health problems. So I would do it over again in a heartbeat.

The cost of my vitamins are comparable to the cost of the medication that I took prior to surgery and no longer take because many of my health problems (diabetes, high blood pressure) went into remission after my RNY gastric bypass surgery.

Good luck on your surgery and remember after the operation to walk, walk, walk.

Products that are sugar free using many forms of artificial sweeteners and also products using natural no calorie sweeteners such as stevia should be fine and should not cause dumping syndrome. I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery. I strictly avoid processed sugars. I have a sweet tooth and that is one of the major causes that contributed to my weight gain over my lifetime. I limit myself to artificial sweeteners (such as Splenda and sugar alcohols), to natural low calorie sweeteners (such as Stevia) and to the natural sugars found in fruits and milk. I had diabetes. That went into remission when I left the hospital two days after surgery and I have not taken any diabetic medicine ever since and my blood sugar levels are good. I test my blood sugar levels periodically. I read the labels of all food that I consume. I look at the grams of sugar per serving. If it is above 5 grams, I look at the ingredients. The ingredients are listed in order by highest percentage, and if the first 5 ingredients contain processed sugar (in any of its many forms), then I avoid this food, like a plague. The sugars I avoid are sucrose (table sugar), fructose (honey), dextrose, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), cane juice, evaporated cane juice, agave, molasses, corn sweeteners, brown sugar, barley malt, beet sugar, and pure maple sugar.

The three most important elements after RNY gastric bypass surgery are to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. food is secondary because your body is converting your stored fat into the energy that drives your body. Thus you lose weight. Weight loss is achieved after surgery through meal volume control. You begin at 2 ounces (1/4 cup) per meal and gradually over the next year and a half increase the volume to 1 cup per meal. With this minuscule amount of food, it is next to impossible to meet your protein daily requirements by food alone, so therefore you need to rely on supplements such as Protein shakes. After surgery, food will not be the center of your life anymore. You may even lose hunger, which is what happened to me after surgery. The effect is not permanent but lasted for over a year. It was not hard losing weight when hunger was not continually gnawing at your bones. So in preparing for RNY surgery realize that your taste buds may change and this may affect your ability to consume the important elements (fluids, protein, and vitamins). The most important advise I can give you is be willing to experiment after surgery to meet those daily goals and don't stress over the food.

After my RNY gastric bypass surgery, I completely lost my hunger. It was not difficult for me to lose weight when hunger was not constantly, continually gnawing at my bones. It was a completely different experience from dieting. Sometimes I had to remind myself to eat. It doesn't mean that you don't have to follow the program requirements for fluids, Protein, meal volume and Vitamins but it really is a different experience.

Hiccups may be a sign that your stomach is getting full and a little more food may cause you to dump. It is one of the pre-triggers for dumping syndrome.

I put one at the end of the following article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

Right after surgery your body is in a major heal mode. Many patients find it difficult to meet their daily Fluid and Protein requirements during the first couple weeks. Just keep trying and you should be able to get there. Fluids pass through your stomach. They have a separate pathway than food. So don't worry about drinking too much at one time. The important thing is to try and meet your minimum fluid requirements. As your fat cells break down, they release many chemicals and hormones into your body. These are flushed through your system into your kidneys and expelled in your urine. It take fluids to make this process work correctly. Avoid dehydration.

This article describes my experience with RNY gastric bypass surgery. The beginning after surgery is generally rough. I reached my happy state about 6 months after surgery when most of the problems seemed to melt away. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

Dizziness or light-headedness when standing up occurs as a result of abnormal blood pressure regulation. Normally, when people stand, gravity causes blood to pool in the veins of the legs and trunk. This pooling lowers the blood pressure and the amount of blood the heart pumps to the brain. Low blood flow to the brain causes the dizziness and other symptoms. Dizziness caused by standing up is known as orthostatic hypotension or postural hypotension. It is usually caused by an underlying problem -- such as dehydration. So make sure you are drinking enough fluids. Since you had surgery 8 days ago another cause may be the prescription medicines that you are taking. I was on 2 types of high blood pressure medicines prior to surgery. I monitored my blood pressure daily and after a couple weeks I took myself off all my meds because my blood pressure returned to normal without the meds. Otherwise the meds could cause my blood pressure to drive towards very low blood pressure readings. Measure your blood pressure and consult with your doctor.

There are many forms of weight loss surgery and as a result the diet plans will vary quite a bit on this board. Also the surgeons recommendations will vary quite a bit also. But the most important elements for those that have RNY gastric bypass surgery are to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. Food is secondary because your body is converting your stored fat into the energy that drives your body. Thus you lose weight. So meeting those three elements should be the primary focus. Weight loss is achieved after surgery through volume control. You begin at 2 ounces (1/4 cup) per meal and gradually over the next year and a half increase the volume to 1 cup per meal. With this minuscule amount of food, it is next to impossible to meet your protein daily requirements by food alone, so therefore you need to rely on supplements such as Protein shakes.

Good luck on your upcoming surgery. It is a very different experience than dieting.

I am 3 years post-op RNY surgery. My weight fell into the normal BMI category. This is my approach in the Maintenance phase. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery2.pdf

I told many people about my decision to have weight loss surgery (WLS). In general their response fell into two categories: supportive, or curious. The only negative reaction that I received was from my mother. She is elderly and depends on me for some support. So I can understand her reaction was one that was adverse to anything that might potentially interrupt that support. Many people who decide to have WLS do so after trying for years to lose weight through exercise and diet and failed time and time again. It is called yo-yo dieting. They lose weight and then after awhile gain it all back and then some. WLS provides fairly positive results for many people. I attended several Bariatric Surgery Support Group Meetings. I find it interesting that many of the people choosing to have this surgery are nurses. They see first hand the effect of obesity, and its correlation to decaying health. They also see the positive outcomes of those that had surgery and they are increasingly standing in line to have WLS.

There are many different types of formulations on protein shakes. I would recommend that you keep experimenting until you find one that you can tolerate. You don't have to like it, just tolerate it. I used Muscle Milk Light (vanilla Creme) powder blended with Water and a half a banana. That worked for me. But on the opposite end of the spectrum, you might try premixed Isopure. I consider Isopure as a Protein Drink. The only thing to be concerned with this product is that the body can absorb only so much protein at one time, so some of the protein from Isopure will not be absorbed unless you space out drinking it. I tried Isopure once and hated the taste but my wife tried it and thought it tasted good. I think many people who find that normal protein shakes taste bad find an acceptable alternative in Isopure.

Right after surgery, your body is in a major heal mode and it is common not to be able to meet your Fluid requirements. But just keep working towards that goal and after a few weeks you should be able to meet it. The fluid requirement I was given was 64-80 ounces of fluids daily. The fluid requirement is met by a combination. It is not only the Water that you drink each day. But also the water you drink when you take your Vitamins and medicine. It is the milk you drink. It is the fluids content of the Protein shakes. It is the water component of the Soups you take. It is met by flavored water such as Crystal Light. It is met by sugar free popsicles. It is met by tea and decaf coffee. It is a combination of all the fluids that you consume during the day.

Congratulations.

Many people report that prior to reaching the solid stage, they feel a need to chew. Chewing is a normal part of the digestive process. Since you mentioned a burning sensation in your stomach, it might be possible that you developed an ulcer. Here is a link about that condition. http://bariatric.stopobesityforlife.com/obesity-surgery/correcting-obesity/bariatric-surgery-risks/ulcers-or-strictures/

Transitioning to solid food like steak and chicken can be rough. I found that softer foods such as chili and Soups worked very well for me. I have attached a few recipes at the end of the following article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

Good to hear that you found the cause of your problems.

In general, I used measuring cups after surgery. Odd sizes cups such as 7/8 were hard to come by, so at times I used a fraction less than the required size such as a fraction less than 1 cup instead. Weight loss is achieved after RNY surgery through meal volume control. You begin at 2 ounces (1/4 cup) per meal and gradually over the next year and a half increase the volume to 1 cup per meal. So it is important that if you want to achieve the maximum weight loss that you comply with the program requirements. Meal size is a function of solids. Thus if you consume a soup, the Water portion of the soup does not count against your meal volume. I found that chili and Soups went down easier than solid foods such as steak and chicken so I relied primarily on these for meals. It also allowed me to combine foods, so I could very accurately measure my total food volume. I would make up a pot of chili, put it in the fridge and eat many meals throughout the week. I included some of my recipes at the end of the following article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf