Djmohr

I am with @@gowalking on this. It is a constant battle with your brain. I lost 152lbs reaching my goal in March. I have been fighting every single day since with my brain. As my hunger came back, and my body allows me to eat more I am constantly fighting to keep my weight off. I gain 2 or 3lbs freak out and then reset. The good news is, my tool is there to help me reset and I must never forget that. Maintenance is definately the hardest part of this journey and the best thing you can do is learn excellent behaviors now and take full advantage of your honeymoon period because you only get one.

@@PatriotFan I would definately work with your surgeon on this. I am sure they have come across it alot over the years. I know there are few medications that really do have absorption issues but the time released ones can be a challenge.

I thank my NUT every time I see her for insisting on a balanced diet that includes Protein, whole grains, vegetables and fruit. I would be lost without my fruit and veggies and often wonder why some programs simply avoid fruit altogether. Just my opinion but that does not seem healthy to me. I say this has I am eating a nectarine.....YUM!

I have had 4 major surgeries since my gastric bypass. None of them to the stomach area but I did learn there is NO problem with intubating us. The biggest thing to be careful about is if you have to have an EDG (camera down your throat into your stomach). The doctor needs to know you have had a Bariatric surgery and most if not all take a very thorough history. I had one of those recently too and because he was well informed, he knew how to handle my case. In the case of an emergency situation, you should have something that communicates this. I don't use a bracelet but most IPhones now have the medial alert and most emergency teams can access. Whether or not they do is the bigger question. I hope so because that is where I have my whole history and medications lists. They don't need a special code to get to it either.

This is an excellent article. I happen to be a person who moved states following bariartric surgery and because I am post op, my new PCP handles everything. She is great and I really like her for general things but I feel like I am teaching her. I come prepared with the list of labs they did at my one year post op in Minnesota and tell her exactly what needs to be pulled. The scary part is, most PCPs simply are not trained on what to look for and as a patient I don't know what I don't know. I happen to be one of those people who does a ton of reasearch and I pay close attention to my body mostly because I have always had a lot of medical issues. I wish general physicians were better trained if they have a post Bariatric patient. I am constantly teaching or questioning other non Bariatric specialists as well. I for one, would love that link.

When it first came back I tried to go in there several times but was alone by myself. LOL!

Oh, by the way. Said mother n law was obese herself!

I think fat shaming is ridiculous regardless of who is doing it. My mother n law (when she was alive) was the queen of fat shaming. She would figure out ways to make you feel like a big fat slob. For example, she would buy my husband a birthday gift that was 2 or 3 sizes too small. She would then ask, will it fit? Hubby would respond and say, no I am not a medium I am a 2xl. She would say well them lose weight. (True story). I collect wee forest folk mice. One year for Christmas she bought me a chubby little mouse standing in his bathrobe on a scale. She proceeded to tell me it reminded her of me. Really? B#%+€! then there is a right way, For me it was my nephrologist who suggested I consider WLS. He did this very respectfully but at the same time very sternly helping me understand that if I kept on my current trend I would be looking at dialysis and ultimately a kidney transplant. There is a right way and a wrong way to deliver that message. Thankfully he delivered it the right way and I listened immediately. I remember being very angry at my PCP for not having that same conversation with me before I got to that point. I had no idea that my kidney function had been so bad for so long, when my nephrologist pulled up my chart and showed me the downward trend was chronic and had been going on for years, I really got pissed that my PCP never said a word until I was at stage 3. Not 1 word. I spoke with her about it and told her that my nephrologist was my hero for helping me see the light. My PCP then told me she really should have been the one to direct me there and felt bad but she did not know how to deliver the message appropriately. That was when I changed PCPs.

Ok, so I pulled the nutritional data because let's face it I am Italian and I miss my Pasta. Yes I have had pasta however my pouch does not like it. I have tried high Protein pasta and get the same result. These Shirataki noodles have no nutritional value at all. The thing that is bad for someone so newly post op is that they will expand in your tiny pouch taking up precious room for good protein and good carbs like vegetables. According to the data because they are made from Water they will swell. I personally would not waste the space in my pouch. Down the road you can try some whole grain or high protein pasta. At least you would get some nutritional value out of them. I hope this makes sense.

Before surgery cucumbers, green peppers and bbq sauce used to keep me up all night!

This is great reminder Alex, thank you! I have also been practicing one more. While holiday shopping for your family and friends. Buy something nice for yourself! Show off that new body, there is nothing better than feeling confident and looking fantastic! Shhhhh.....I did this a lot over the last couple weeks. I was tired of wearing clothes that are too big for me. There will be a few gifts under the tree with my name on it from Santa!

Ok, I am definitely going to try your suggestion for roasted candied nuts. I love nuts. For a while there I was eating them fairly frequently in small portions. Lately I have kept my snacking to a minimum but those sound really good. I have always loved roasted cinnamon almonds. You know, the ones you smell at the fair! I may make some homemade ones.

As Alex said, don't be afraid of the hair loss. It is so very worth it in the end. I was one of the unfortunate people that had massive hair loss for a very long period of time. I also am going through menopause so I am sure this added to it. Mine started what I will now call mild hair loss while on the liver cleanse diet. (At the time I thought it was a lot and was hoping it would mean it would end sooner) Well, it was just the beginning. It started very heavily right around 10 weeks post op and it progressively got heavier. It was still coming out at 12 months post op for me and I had lost about 2/3 of my hair volume. Of course while this was happening I was taking loads of Biotin, getting my Protein every day consistently, getting at least 64 oz. of Water on top of all the other fluids you get in your foods. It started growing back in very fast almost right away all the while it was still coming out. I saw several doctors and everyone assured me that when my weight loss slowed down, my hair loss would slow down. Right about the 12 1/2 month mark the loss slowed and has now almost stopped. At the end of this month I will be 14 months post op. I have loads of new hair growing in and of course short hairs popping up everywhere. Hubby and I were looking at my pics I have been taking along the way and you can see that my hair is returning to its full volume. I chose to cut my hair short while this was happening just because hair was everywhere. I had a new short sassy haircut and a very healthy svelte body. Who can companies about that. If I haven't said it, it is worth every hair that falls out of your head.

Boy this is a great post, and reminder of the most important lessons I have learned along the way!