FrankyG

Yes, had it done. Had no idea if it made any difference as I had no symptoms. For the first week, had so much swelling it was hard to get fluids down, but not sure if that was due to the hernia repair, or just "lucky" (doctor said every time he has a major sweller from cutting/surgery, it happens to be the really fair skinned people for some reason). I have a very high threshold for pain, but I really had absolutely zero pain, because my doc also said he makes a point of getting as much of the gas out of the abdomen as possible due to the pain that it causes (they inflate the abdomen with gas in order to move around in there with the laproscopic tools and it can get trapped and HURT for days as you absorb/dissipate it). The only discomfort I had was the large incision where they pull out the stomach part they cut out; it was sore like I'd done lots of sit-ups for about two weeks. I only took pain meds the day of surgery. Once home, nothing because it didn't bother me. But you have no way of knowing if you'll have no, mild, or bad pain for the first couple of days - it's all the skill of the surgeon and pure luck really. But it is temporary and they do make sure to give you decent pain meds and you can always call your doctor's office (and should) if the pain is really bad.

Target always has sales. And they have a huge clearance section online too. You're not missing anything by waiting until you can actually fit into some of the stuff you buy.

I hope you're using sugar-free chocolate milk and puddings. Getting hooked on sugar that early is not going to help with the long-term eating habits. But yes, sounds like you are trying to eat too much and too solid stuff. It doesn't matter if the diet they gave you said to start solids or mushy foods now; your sleeve is telling you it's not ready. So ease it back to more liquid stuff (yogurt and use milks to thin it down?) You might look into getting the high Protein milks like Fairlife or Mootopia (in Texas HEB stores). They are reduced sugar, high protein filtered milk (available in whole and 2%) and you can mix protein powders into them to give them even more of a punch. They won't taste super sweet - just like regular milk and would be a good way to get nutrients in easily.

I eat Aldi's Fit and Active 100% whole grain bread a few times a week. Cheap as can be (I think $1.59/loaf?) Nutritional info for TWO slices: 70 calories Total carbs: 16 grams Dietary fiber: 5 grams Net carbs = 11 grams (5.5 per slice!!) Protein: 5 grams And added bonus is it a soft sandwich type of bread with no fiddly bits that fall off.

One of the things that keeps me in control now (I'm over a year out from surgery) is reading labels and logging my food daily. I still have moments of weakness at the grocery store, and when I do, I'll flip over to the nutrition label, and look at the amount of fat, carbs, sodium and sugar in the object I'm craving. It shocks the ever-loving crap out of me, and I put the #@!$ thing back on the shelf. I am horrified most of the time about the lack of actual nutrition in the things I used to eat regularly. And even more horrified at the amount of awful things (especially the carbs!) they contain. It is absolutely no wonder I got fat eating that stuff. I just ignored the info printed right on the labels. I know logically I could buy some bad stuff and eat it occasionally, but tend to feel like it's not worth the cost - calorie/carbs/whatever - when there are better alternatives out there with less "damage" to my diet. I have things like dark chocolate that I can eat and be satisfied with one small piece instead of eating 2-3 bars. Or sugar free pudding. Or some grapes with cheese. There are always workarounds that are way better than the total crap foods out there. Definitely start tracking your food now. I use a program online (and in app form) call Fat Secret. There are many others like Fitness Pal and such, but find something you like and can stick with and just start logging every bite, every sip. Once you see the amount of calories, fat, sodium, carbs you're eating daily... it will shock you. And you'll start wanting to do better now. After surgery, it is essential to track everything that goes in so you know you are getting just enough calories (not too much, not too little) and can make sure your fat and carbs aren't excessive (most WLS people follow a moderate or low carb diet after - at or under 100 grams of carbs/day).

That is horrible! I hope you press charges on her. People that would steal from their own family (especially when they're incapacitated and in the hospital for surgery) are just awful and you don't need someone that hateful and selfish in your life. Cut her off, and file a police report as soon as you can.

You're going to have mood swings, feel depressed or elated (frequently within minutes of each feeling), and have crazy periods for a while (or get them normalized if you always had crazy periods), and also could have very increased fertility for a while (so make sure you're using birth control and being very careful). Fat stores hormones. Due to the fast elimination of fat, all those hormones are getting flushed back into your system and basically flooding your body with a constant super dose of crazy-making funtimes ahead.

The larger incision is also where they pull out the stomach part they cut out. They have to go through the muscle layers and there are layers of stitches (muscle layer, skin layer) and it definitely will look larger/different and hurt more.

Go try Kroger's Carbmaster line. It has artificial sweeteners, but otherwise it's a great way to get in Protein and low carb (around 4 grams of carbs and 9 grams protein). And they have a ton of flavors. Or try flavored greek yogurt but you'll need to be much more aware of the carbs due to fruit/sugar add-ins. Eating plain greek yogurt without sweetener is awful unless you use it as a sour cream substitute (which I do). I also use it to mix in with scramble eggs (add a table spoon to two eggs, beat with a fork to scramble then cook as normal. You'll get yummy creamy scrambled eggs and extra protein)

If you're getting in good, dense Protein sources (chicken, fish, turkey, etc) as your main meal portion and eating veggies and small amounts of complex carbs each meal, then it's probably not real hunger. It's going to be head hunger. Which is something you'll have to try to get under control if you hadn't been working on it with a therapist or support group before now (relearning how to eat and also figuring out your emotional/psychological attachments to food and breaking those habits). If you're eating simple carbs often now (breads, pastas, rice, potatoes, sugary things) that may be the issue. Simple carbs increase hunger cravings and make you crave more carbs as well. It can be a pretty depressing cycle. But you can detox from carbs by doing a 5 day pouch reset (basically go back to doing liquids/protein drinks for a few days, then soft foods, then the basic protein/veggie progression WLS patients stick to in the early days after surgery).

Are you tracking every bite of food and drink? Are you drinking all the required Water and getting in enough Protein? Are your carbs too high? Are your calories too high? Go back to basics if you are slowed or stalled - track your food, get your minimum water in, protein first, veggies next and complex carbs if there is any room and make sure you're getting just enough calories to have about a 500 calorie/day deficit (not too little as that can cause starvation mode; not too much obviously either).

The sleeve doesn't stretch. They remove the elastic part of the stomach, so it won't ever go back to the size you had pre-surgery. But after about 1 year, your stomach has completely healed up and relaxed, so you will be able to eat a bit more food than you could in the first 6 months. That is definitely to be expected. The main thing you're supposed to be doing with the sleeve is using the honeymoon period (12-18 months after surgery) to relearn how to eat and get used to the smaller portions. If you change up your eating habits for a long enough time by eating healthy, small portions of Protein first, then veggies, then small amount of complex carbs and only eat junk/fast/sugar/simple carb stuff occasionally - then you have given yourself the time and ability to sustain the weight loss for the rest of your life. My doc said that anyone having the sleeve surgery will lose weight even eating absolute crap for the first year or so. After that time period, they'll slowly start gaining it all back and then blame the sleeve for "stretching out" or not working for them. Many doctors use a combo of scare tactics or false information to try to get through to some of their patients they think are not capable of understanding how to change their eating habits. Like outright lying about things like "eat too much and you'll stretch your sleeve" or "drink carbonated beverages and you could cause a leak and die" type of things.

I had a minor hiatal hernia and that meant that my insurance paid about $3K off the total price (I was self pay for the sleeve). I was told I might experience more GERD like symptoms in the beginning. I had never had issues with reflux/GERD before, but I did get them after for the first couple of months and was on a PPI during that time (came off it ASAP as it's not good for long term use). I have no experience with narrowing of the esophagus, but definitely discuss all of this with your surgeon to get better answers.

ETA: Okay I call BS on this poster. Their posts are all "I can eat a whole bagel!" and "I'm drinking beer!" So they either got their sleeve from someone that didn't bother to tell them ANYTHING regarding nutrition, or they are willfully ignoring what they're supposed to be doing, or they're trolling. This is a joke, right? Troll post? LOL and all that? That's really an awful food to eat regularly and frankly not very smart to attempt to eat the whole thing. And even more questionable to make it your one meal a day. Or to even think eating once a day is a good idea. Wow, just all sorts of wrong there. If you're being serious, then you're crazypants even attempting this and eating something that carby regularly is very wrong, and yeah, hardly any Protein, so you're going to lose muscle (and likely hair), feel like crap and start looking sickly after a while of that sort of "diet" habit. You're supposed to be eating protein first, then vegetables, then complex carbs (like brown rice or beans). A bagel with cream cheese is junk food. Why on earth would you think this is a good idea?

Just want to say this, because I am shocked (and sad) that you're eating things like bread, cookies, pizza and other horrible things just 3.5 months out. You should not be eating any of that. You should be eating healthy proteins, veggies and complex carbs. You can eat anything sure, and eventually could reincorporate things like a slice of pizza or a cookie for special occasions... but right now? All you are doing is ruining the time right after the sleeve to throw out all of the bad-for-you food and eating habits and relearn how to eat healthy foods. All patients just about can lose weight for the first year or so even eating total crap like that. But the real reason to have the surgery is to give yourself time to start over - remove the aching hunger and the lack of portion control (the sleeve does this) and you can rebuild healthy eating habits from the ground up. If you don't do this, and continue to eat crap foods more often than not, then eventually your body adjusts to the small portions and the hunger comes back (especially since you've already introduced all those carby/sugary bad-for-you foods this early) and you will regain the weight. And you'll bemoan the fact that the sleeve failed you. But it didn't fail. YOU will, by not taking this time to stop eating crap foods and get a healthy eating pattern installed when you had the chance. Don't let that happen to you after all the hard work and major surgery!! As far as food getting stuck? You're either eating too fast, not chewing it up enough, or eating too much. Measure/weight your food, chew until it is mush, and take some time doing it. And I was off PPI within 3 ish months. I think most docs I've read want you off of them by 6 months at the longest. You should not be taking them long-term (especially with studies coming out showing an increase in Alzheimer's and kidney damage with long-term usage).

If you're hungry and gaining weight, then I'd say you're not eating enough Protein and might be too high on carbs because that's what happens if those two get out of balance. That and not drinking enough Water (thirst can sometimes mimic hunger). I'm just about a year and a quarter, and I'm still losing. It's slowed down to about 6-10 pounds a month now, but I'm also building muscle and see a difference every single month since I started. I'm tracking every bite of food or drink that goes in my mouth daily. I am making sure I am doing protein first, veggies second then if there is room, complex carbs. I'm exercising 5X a week, and I don't eat hardly anything that comes in a box (prepared/prepackaged foods) or from a fast food restaurant. I cook from scratch on most meals to make sure it's tasty and low carb/high protein. I get my water in pretty much every day too - minimum of 64 ounces daily. I have a high activity level right now, so I'm eating around 1400-1600 calories. But mostly, I've just stuck to the basics since I started this journey. So I'd recommend going back to the basics too - track your food, protein first and low carb otherwise, get your water and make sure you're eating just enough calories to have a ~500 calorie deficit, as more than that could make your body think it's starving and have the effect of slowing/stopping weight loss, but if you're eating too many calories, you obviously can gain that way easy. Got to find the sweet spot for your body to let go of the weight.

Really, there is absolutely no way to know for sure. It is dependent on your metabolism, how well you stick to your requirements, your Vitamins, your Water intake, your exercise and just plain chance. You'll also have a chance of thinning hair (due to the first month or two that you're not getting in enough protein). That complication kicks in about the time you're looking to get married, and will last for several months. Some folks don't experience much hair loss, but it can happen and it can get very bad (but it is temporary!!). Is the date already set? Cause if it was me, I'd either move it much further out (minimum of 6 months after sleeve since that's when you should be feeling much better and able to eat solids and should have a good idea of your weight loss progression to know what size approximately), or do it before getting sleeved if you don't mind being your current size for your wedding. It would suck to get married with a dress that didn't fit due to losing too much or not enough, and hair that is thin and limp.

Thanks so much for the information! I'm doing the Couch to 5K app right now (very poorly but trying, and it's making me laugh every time it says at least I'm doing better than those people still on the couch... it's like they know me!) I won't ever be a runner unless I duct tape my ginormous boobs down (they defy every sports bra/combo I've tried so far), but I think I might make it to a slow jogger.

Those things always tasted nasty and I saw no point in drinking them; they are pure chemical crap. You're supposed to be looking for more "whole" foods after surgery. I was told if it's something your great-grandparents wouldn't recognize or understand, then you shouldn't be eating/drinking it. I'd got with green tea or even coffee if you need something with a bit of caffeine in it. At least those are better for you than the absolute nasty crud in energy drinks. Or try a Protein bar since that would also have some carbs in it for quick energy too.

Funny but true!

Don't discount the hoops either. Being self pay, they'll definitely fast track you through the program if you want, and you could miss out on some things like the psych/counseling and learning about how to eat properly. I took about 3 months just on my own learning all I could about the after care and food and nutrition because I wanted this to be a long-term lifestyle change, not a quick fix. The sleeve is a tool not a cure. If you don't use the "honeymoon" period to change your eating habits completely, you could easily regain all the weight after a year or two. I was self pay and with a hernia repair it was around $13K total with all the hospital/anesthesiologist/radiologist extras (they say it's all included but then you'll get bills for the hospital copay, and the radiologist might not be included, and so on...).

I am so sorry about the cancer. BIG hugs. I get the being so depressed you're just eating whatever. This type of thing will test you and all of those new habits that are still being put into place, and it is so easy to fall back to using food as a comfort. But please please don't give up on yourself and your health. You'll need to be eating healthy and keep your strength up to deal with the cancer. Be kind to yourself but don't give up - keep fighting!

53 pounds in 5 months is a very decent loss, so don't panic too much about the time its taking... after all, I'm sure it took you years to put on the weight (just like most of us on here) so taking a year or so to get it off isn't terrible! Without knowing what exactly you're eating and whether you're hitting all of your daily requirements, we can't help you much tho. Are you eating healthy foods - Protein first, veggies next and complex carbs in moderation after that? Are you tracking your calories, carbs and fat - every bite of food that goes into your mouth - to really know how much you are eating? Are you getting your recommended levels of protein and Water daily? Are you doing moderate exercise? Can you clarify what you mean by eating all "the stuff I want" - meaning stuff that is bad for you (sugars, simple carbs, high fat, or heaven forbid junk food or fast food restaurants and crap in a box type prepackaged meals from the grocery)? (goodness I do hope not!!) You will lose some weight in the beginning even if you are eating absolute crap due to the restriction and the loss of appetite. But if you haven't thrown out all the crap food habits and taught yourself how to eat healthy, whole foods during the year or so you have before your body adjusts to the sleeve... then you will regain the weight. The sleeve is not a magical fix that means you don't have hard work ahead of you. It is a tool. It won't do all the work for you, you have to use it correctly and work HARD at it if you want to succeed. That being said, you are losing weight, and sometimes it just goes slowly. If you are tracking your food, eating healthy, and getting all of your daily requirements in, then you just get to be one of the "lucky" ones that will take longer to get the weight off - and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. But yeah, it sucks just the same to not be one of those types that gets to drop 100 pounds in 3 months and be at goal weight in a year. So do give us more details to work with and I'm sure there are many others here that can give you more ideas on things to look at and try.

I'm thinking I'll be cancelling the appointment come Monday. I do not think there's anything else I need from them at this point. I can always go back if I need a refresher and can't find answers out on the interwebz.

I've got a followup appointment in April with my bariatric doc. I was self-pay and had visits included in that cost out through 1 year, but April is going to be about $60 since I am well over a year out now. I get nothing from the visits at this point. I am OCD about what I eat (record every bite of food every single day), exercise (training for a 5K currently, yoga, bodyweight), still losing weight but not at my goal (it's gonna happen this year, but not soon). My doc wanted this coming appointment because he felt I was still not a successful WLS patient in his eyes, so the way he made it sound, this appointment is to hopefully get the success box checked off as far as weight lost (he wants to have all patients lose 70% of their excess weight to consider them a success, and I'm technically just 5 pounds away from that right now). But he's also not good about the fact that muscle weighs more than fat and discounts my measurements compared to actual poundage lost. Which is a bit discouraging considering I am really proud that I've lost so much fat and gotten some lovely sleek muscle stuff going on now. And it's been mentioned every single visit about how he considers the patients that come in regularly for the rest of their life (like 2-3 times a year) to be more successful than the ones that disappear after 1 year (but then, how would he know if he never sees the ones that disappear?) But in any case, he's been setting up the keep coming in for checkups thing since the beginning, which if my insurance covered it and/or I felt I was really getting value out of it, I could see, but I don't have a checkmark in either of those categories. I am still working towards my goal. I am consistently losing weight, albeit slowly, but I'm putting on quite a bit of lean muscle too. I am still tracking everything, not letting stuff slide or neglecting anything. I don't care a bit about the surgeon/NUT approvals or "atta-girls" considering I'd have to pay for the privilege. So do I really need to go? Is there any reason I'm not thinking at this point other than wasting my time and money to get approval or non-approval depending on what arbitrary level they think I've achieved?