JamieLogical

What you want is Powerade Zero or G2. However, if you are only a couple of days out from surgery, the extra calories from full-sugar Gatorade will only help, not hurt. Just don't make a habit of it! And do dilute it with water, 50/50. My nutritionist told me I was allowed to have juice, gatorade, vitamin water, etc. in the first few days post-op as long as I mixed it with water.

I can only answer for myself here, but if losing weight was an Olympic sport, I would be a multi-gold medal winner. I am a PRO at losing weight. World class weight loser over here! However, when it comes to weight MAINTENANCE, I am literally THE WORST. If there's one thing I've failed at most in my life, it's weight maintenance. For me, WLS had nothing to do with losing weight. It maybe helped make the weight loss a little different (wouldn't even say "easier") this time around. But, the key is that I now have a tool to help me MAINTAIN my weight once I am at goal. I won't be able to go right back to eating and entire pizza and pint of ice cream the moment I am "done" losing weight. I am forced to maintain the new style of eating that I've developed as a result of WLS. My sleeve is for life! I can never be "done" with it!

It will get a *little* better 3-4 days in, but it will definitely suck pretty hard core the whole way through.

It actually gets a little bit better even during the pre-op. The headaches are due to your body entering ketosis. That's usually about a 3 day process. Once you are in ketosis, you won't experience the headaches again unless you eat too many carbs, fall back out of ketosis, and have to start all over again. However, with that being said, if your pre-op diet is as few calories as mine was, you will be very tired and hungry the whole time, because you are literally starving. Hang in there. I won't say it gets "better" post-op, at least not immediately, but it is certainly very different. The things you will be coping with post-op are very different from what you are experiencing now.

@@glowickit Welcome!

Oh thank goodness! One less thing to stress about!

Hmmm.... I don't know how a dissolvable stitch compares to the hundreds of permanent stitches I have in my ab muscles from my tummy tuck with muscle repair four years ago, but I don't think it took me more than a couple of months to get to where I could sneeze, cough, and laugh without pain. I wasn't allowed to do any ab exercises for MANY months post-op. But I would think that if you just have the one stitch and it will dissolve eventually, then you shouldn't have much more than a month of pain left.

Good luck! Hope all goes well. And remember that it all gets easier day-by-day so hang tough if you have any troubles post-op.

GERD can be a real issues for sleeve patients. I have to be on a PPI twice a day at 11 months out, but it's still well worth it to me. It is definitely a risk. You have to think long and hard about whether it's a risk you are willing to take. Any surgery is a risk!

I used to worry a LOT about fitting into chairs and seats. I would always buy tickets for the end of a row at a play or concert, because then I knew I would only have to crowd my husband on the one side and no one on the other side of me. When I had to take airplane flights alone, I would always get an aisle seat too and then just try to scrunch over as much as I could against the aisle arm rest so I wasn't "spilling over" into the seat next to me and crowding some poor stranger.

I managed to avoid purees altogether in my "pureed" stage, because I found the texture disgusting as well. I just stuck to my Protein shakes, strained Soups, yogurt, and soft cheeses until I was allowed to start my "soft foods" stage. It's great that you are getting in your protein and Water. That is what you should REALLY be focusing on. Also, here's a good website that has some ideas for the "pureed" stage that are almost like real food. I *loved* the baked ricotta recipe: http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2007/08/pureed-foods.html

Definitely sounds like stricture to me. You should call your Surgeon's office immediately, not wait 12 days for your next appointment. I had the painful esophageal contractions after every single sip in my first couple of weeks, but it was just due to the swelling and once that went down, I didn't have problems anymore. If you are still having that constriction at 6 weeks out, it is definitely a more serious issue and you should seek medical attention.

@@Indieflickers Sorry for not responding sooner. Definitely a challenge being relegated to just one room of my whole house after all these years of it being just me and my husband there. I was actually in the market for a new treadmill around the time they all moved in. So glad I didn't buy one then and very excited to buy one after they move out. They've already managed to break one of the hand-grip heart rate monitors off my old one. I don't mind, since I wear a chest strap heart rate monitor, but I definitely wound's want them damaging a new machine. And every time I get on my recumbent exercise bike, the handlebars are out of position from the little ones hanging on them like a jungle gym! It will be such a relief to have my house back and not live in constant fear of the children either breaking something or killing themselves! Nothing about my house was child-proof or intended for small children. I hope that strength training plan I provided is a good start for you. The nice thing about it is it's only 5-6 exercises at a time, so it really doesn't take that long and it's all stuff you can do with a pair of free weights. When I first started out, I was only doing two sets of 12 reps with very light weight. I actually have a set of adjustable weights, so I was able to gradually work my way up to 15 reps and heavier weights. The set I have is something like this. It's pricey, but the nice thing is it takes up WAY less space than having multiple pairs of weights: http://www.amazon.com/ProForm-SpaceSaver-Dumbbell-25-Double/dp/B00MS36EW0/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1439395346&sr=8-6&keywords=adjustable+weight+set

1. True/False: My doctor says my taste buds may change after surgery and foods I love now I may not like. True. I have heard of it happening to many people on these forums. It didn't happen to me. 2. Will my appetite REALLY go away? Will the feeling of being hungry all the time disappear? Your head hunger won't go away. Not at first anyway. If you are an emotional eater, then emotions are still going to trigger the desire to eat. You will also still have food cravings. The good news is, your WLS is a great tool for resisting these temptations and sooner or later you will mostly adapt. I'm 11 months post-op and I do still occasionally want to emotionally eat and I do still see commercials for food and think "ooh! I want that!". But I can't binge anymore even if I wanted to and when I think about the reality of actually eating the food in those commercials, I quickly realize I don't actually want/need it. 3. I'm totally addicted to food. While I have been able to mostly control it over the past 3 months, there are times when I have NO WILLPOWER and stop at Culver's on the way home from work for a big, greasy double cheeseburger and a soda! Will I be able to break this after the surgery? See my answer to #2.

So glad things are going well for you so far! Sounds like you have your head in the right place too. As long as you follow the plan, put Protein first, get your Water in, and gradually ramp up your activity level, you will do great! I find that hanging out on these forums helps keep me focused and accountable. Every time I've stopped spending as much time here, I've noticed that I tend to start straying a little with my food and exercise. Or maybe it's that straying a little with food and exercise makes me ashamed and I take time off from the forums? Either way, getting and giving support and information on these forums really helps me stay on track with everything else!

Are we talking solid foods or liquids? I wasn't allowed solid foods at 20 days post-op. I had just started soft foods, like cottage cheese on day 18. At that time I was told no more than 2 oz. at a time, so I measured everything out before I ate it. Some people don't get proper "full" signals from their swollen/damaged stomachs in the early weeks, so it's important to measure your food and not rely on a "full" feeling this early on. As for liquids, the move through your stomach in a matter of seconds, so unless you are really CHUGGING or drinking right after eating, it's not possible for you to fill your sleeve with liquids.

I wouldn't say "overreacted". In the moment, your reaction was very understandable and human. I hope that a little time will just help you to get a littler perspective.

I'm always disappointed when I hear about surgeons setting time-based weight goals for their patients. They of all people should know that every BODY is different and everyone loses at different rates post-op. I feel so fortunate that my surgeon's office didn't set any sort of time-based goals for me. They set an ultimate goal weight of 165 for me, but put MUCH more emphasis on their body fat percentage goal for me. They wanted me to be under 25% body fat. I've already achieved that goal and now I have 3.8 pounds to the weight goal they set. But I never felt pressure to lose it FAST from them. Every follow-up I've had has just been encouraging and making sure that I'm getting my exercise and Protein in.

Yep! I agree with you there.

Only if you are adding Protein. I was instructed to NEVER EVER eat carb-only meals or Snacks. I could have some carbs with my protein, but never carbs by themselves. Remember, protein is priority number one for the rest of your life.

Not just the change in diet, but the rapid weight loss. There are a lot of hormones stored in fat and when it breaks down, those get released back into the body. It's one of the reasons pre-menopausal women experience a spike in fertility post-op.

Amazing! Congratulations on all your progress and success!

It sounds to me like she had good intentions with that email, though I do think the joke about your hair weighing 30 pounds was probably in poor taste. I agree with the others. She probably just never saw you as big. Especially if she's known you your whole life and your weight has fluctuated gradually over the years. Don't give up on here. She definitely didn't handle that the best way, but it sounds like she does want to support you and recognizes what a big step you've taken towards a healthier you.

Sounds like you are doing great. Focus on meeting those protein and water goals. And remember to walk, walk, walk!

Wait what? You are disappointed to have "only" lost 60 pounds in 4 months?!?!?! That's an average of 15 pounds a month! I didn't even lose 15 pounds my first month post-op. And after that I averaged about 6 pounds per month for the next several months. Now I'm happy with TWO pounds a month! Sounds to me like you set some very unrealistic expectations for yourself. Can I ask you a very serious question? Why do you feel you need to lose the weight so quickly? I lost weight MUCH more slowly than you have and now I'm only 3.6 pounds from goal. Even though I lost weight "slowly", I'm still reaching my goal. I'm still way happier and healthier than I've ever been. Why does it matter how long it takes you to get there, as long as you get there eventually? This isn't a diet. Once you are at goal, you won't be "done". Your WLS is forever. Ten years from now when you are enjoying your happy, healthy life, is it going to matter that it took you 18 months to reach your goal weight instead of 12? NOPE! PS: Just did the math. It took me 10 months to lose 60 pounds....