Forsythia

It doesn't taste like anything. It will make things thicker though. So for example, if you add it to a glass of milk or a bowl of chicken broth, its going to be thicker once you stir it in. But taste wise, they aren't bad because they literally taste like nothing.

I get Jarrow formulas unflavored protein power from amazon.com

My nutritionist had no issues with caffeine intake pre-op or post-op. I'm a rare bird though in that caffeine has no effect on me at all. I can literally quit anytime with no withdrawal symptoms. Drinking it does not give me the clarity or stimulating boost most people get. I can literally drink it before bed and fall asleep just fine. I drink it because I enjoy the ritual of it more than anything. I make an iced coffee at home with sugar free vanilla syrup, and a dash of half and half, which is only 40 calories. I also put a scoop of unflavored Protein in it to get in some extra protein in.

I was on the fence the whole time. I was all like.. "well Andrea, you don't have to go through with it. You can quit any time." But I kept going to meetings and doing the requirements. LOL. It took until I got the approval letter from BCBS for me to realize I was going to go through with it for reals.

sugar free Powerade, gatorade, crystal light, sugar free kool aid. For me, plain Water was hard to swallow cold (and was terrible lukewarm) but crystal light made it better.

What kind of shakes are you drinking? Something like a slim fast has a high sugar content. While tastier than other brands, they can also spike your blood sugar. My surgeon was not concerned about a one off spike as much as he was the overall HgA1C. In fact they would not do surgery if your HgA1C was over 8 at my hospital (but some places do not care about that either). Also, maybe you just had your last shake too late in the evening? Sugar levels cycle up and down as we sleep so maybe if you drank a shake at 10 pm or something right before bed the lateness of it might have triggered your sugar cycle to be at a high point when you tested in the morning. I have no idea what my sugar level was the morning before my surgery. I forgot to test. But as I said before, some surgeons are concerned about the overall HgA1C, not daily fluctuations. Ask your doctor's office if they are concerned about it.

People get on the scale before they go poop?! Anyhow, congrats!

I love to cook and bake, but I'm too busy to do so on weekdays. I go to the gym after work so my husband is on his own and he is cool with that. Still, I tend to eat the same things every day. Greek yogurt for Breakfast, a shake, grilled chicken for dinner, or a steak. And my lunches at work are a carousel of lean cuisines, weight watchers smart ones or atkins meals. Not a whole lot of variety. What I miss is baking. I was so good at Desserts. But they were all sugary, calorie laden desserts that were carbtastic, which is what got me in the condition I was in. So once a week I like to find a healthy recipe from cooking light or some other magazine and try it out. That way the hubs and I can have a nice meal that isn't going to be a calorie bomb. And in the process we both broaden our horizons.

Hello, Jason from VA... What's done is done. You can't really undo it, so you might as well work with it. . If you are having regrets that are bringing you way down, you might want to talk to a therapist to work through them. But if you are just reeling from surgery and need reassurance, all of us have lots of advice to give. Also, it helps to give us an idea of what you are asking about in the title of your post. You have started at least two threads with "Jason from VA" as the topic in two different forums. Maybe a topic like "Need advice, feeling depressed" or "Post op exercise question" as topics so we know what to expect going in..

They say it starts in month three if it's gonna happen. .I am 3.5 months out. I've not noticed any unusual hair loss. I stopped relaxing my hair a few years ago, but my texture is not coarse/kinky, rather its fine and curly (or frizzy as my dad likes to call it). I do lose a lot of hair, but that is because I wear it curly and when I wash it after the gym or my swims its all matted and gnarled up and I have to really run my fingers through it to wash/condition. Today I flat ironed it and it looks the same as it always does. But I'm monitoring it closely!

None. Swearsies! But I tend to eat a lot of dairy so most days I am over calcium goal. I was told to take a B-12, Pre-natal and Vitamin D because I'm deficient in Vitamin D.

I bet that felt good. That assclown was probably smugly stroking his ego and the fact that you came back and gave it too him probably ruined his buzz.

66lbs. Congrats to all of you.

I'm diabetic so I had bloodwork done in June. Surgery was in May. I'll have it done again in September. My NP does a standard panel and checks my HgA1C and my Vitamin D levels since i always seem to be deficient. Hopefully next time I get drawn my Vitamin D levels will be higher.

Good for you! Also, I think we could be body shape buddies!

I'm not vegan. I'm never going to be vegan (I could never give up cheese), but I will say a lot of people have issues with digesting veggies for a few months post op. Especially the leafy green varietals. You definitely need to reassess post sleeve to find out what if anything your sleeve has issues with before taking the full plunge.

Don't react if you hear something through the grapevine about yourself. Haters want a reaction. Don't call them or confront them or anything. Because yeah, haters gonna hate. Your best reaction to those broads is to live your best life and keep being awesome.

My understanding with BCBS IL is that you need to have had continuous coverage by them for one year, not that you have been going to the same doctor/clinic for a year. PPO doesn't care who you see as long as it is in network. H.M.O coverage might be pickier. I do know that none of the hospitals I was interested in affiliating with took the H.M.O. when I had it (I immediately switched to the PPO during the next open enrollment). Edited because the nanny software thinks H.M.O. is dirty or something w/o periods or spaces.

I had a woman at my office say to me "What are you doing, you are losing so much weight!" I told her that I go to the gym 5x per week for at least an hour if not more, and that I log everything I eat in my fitness pal - this is the absolute truth. I do work my ass off at the gym and I do log all my food. She has no idea I had surgery, and I plan to keep it that way. A couple of people here do know, but I trust them not to blab all my business.

I have no restriction on rice/pasta/bread etc. Occasionally I have said items with no digestive issues. Lots of people do have a terrible time with them, and a lot of people avoid them because they are so carby.

I'm always sleepy after lunch. But I was always sleepy after lunch before surgery. I think my body is just a jerk like that. LOL!

I have yet to notice smaller feet. I'm still a 9. Smaller fingers sure, but not smaller feet. My size 7 wedding band and engagement ring don't stay on my left hand anymore. I have to wear them on my right hand (which is also smaller but not as small since one's dominant hand is usually larger anyhow).

I have zero issues with sugar. I could eat three or four (or more if there were room) Cookies and not have one bit of an issue. As part of my pre-op work I spent time breaking myself of my sugar addiction, so I don't need it like before. I used to jokingly say that if I died in a vat of sugar I'd be okay with it. And honestly before the break up, I probably would have been a little bit okay with death by vat o sugar. But is all about the mental game and finding other outlets for my stress. At home I just don't have any of the treats around anymore. Work is more of a minefield, but I try my best to contain my stress and let it out when I go to the gym.

I live in Chicago and there are a crap ton of hospitals and a crap ton of surgeons. I personally like my hospital and used one of their two surgeons. This hospital's program is also a bariatric center of excellence, so that was encouraging. Basically I found out when they had seminars and went to one. But really, if you have no allegiance to any specific hospital, you have no reason to not shop around. You don't just take your car to the first body shop on the street - you look up reviews, you talk to friends. And this is a person who is going to put you under and cut up your insides. You need to feel comfortable with this person. So if you don't get the same vibes as your husband does, keep looking until you are comfortable. His hospital or clinic should have numbers they should be able to provide on him. What is his complication rate? How long has he been in practice? And if they are not able to provide that sort of info, move on.

I took a week, I could have gone back in five days, but did not. Mostly because my job is my least favorite place in the world. I just wanted the extra time away from it. LOL.