My Bariatric Life

@@skinnygirlinme everyone is different but my experience was I'd have needed 4-weeks off from work for the tummy tuck owing to the muscle plication. But I wasn't working so it was not a consideration. The first three days are the worst but you may find that you need pain killers for 2-weeks. After that you may tire easy. Good luck! ! !

Most everyone reading this will agree that we've eaten too much processed food and it has been a contributing factor in our obesity. The evidence is in our expanding waistlines and the growing ranks of those of us getting weight loss surgery. Many post ops, myself included, over time follow a Paleo Diet (paleolithic diet). "Eating like a cave woman" may be a bit of a marketing ploy, or catch all to make the diet fun and memorable. But the fact is that eschewing grains, dairy, legumes, sugar and processed foods and eating Protein, non-starchy vegetables and healthy fats, makes *me* maintain my weight loss and feel better. I should mention that I also do not eat red meat. I also should mention that I have celiac disease and lactose intolerance. Many nutritionists aren’t buying this way of eating. They say we’re biologically different from our Paleolithic predecessors and that diets that ban whole categories of relatively unprocessed foods are too restrictive and flawed from a nutritional standpoint. I concede that we are biologically different from our cave-dwelling ancestors. But I whole-heartily disagree with the standard American diet -- SAD for short, and aptly acronymed in my opinion -- which is the diet espoused by most nutritionists. I absolutely see an immediate weight gain when I go back to eating grains. What do you think? Have you tried the Paleo Diet?

@@Bluesea71 that is an excellent question that you raise: I do wonder what the condition of her excess skin is? It very good to hear that Kaiser actually does cover the procedure if it is deemed medically necessary. i had the impression that they did not cover it, period. I am self employed and pay for my own insurance, too, so I know it costs a fortune... ouch!

@@Debbie3sons that is a very good plan. best to be prepared! plastic surgery is expensive and it surely would help if insurance covered some of it.

The only item I would take issue with is someone who is conducting him/herself in a way that is not polite and supportive. I have always seen and experienced polite and supportive conversations on these forums, even when we've had opposing viewpoints. But there are two other bariatric communities where I was attacked and I wanted to share my experiences with everyone in light of the OP's post. The first time I was attacked my response was to attack back. My natural instinct is to be very aggressive when provoked. Well, that was a battle that just led to more and more attacking between me and the community. Nothing was accomplished. There was no victory or defeat. I finally ended the argument by having the entire conversation removed. The second time this happened was on a different community. But this time I did not attack back. I asked questions to understand the posters' points of views and/or explained where I was coming from. It led to both "sides" understanding each other and in that understanding was compassion. Everyone learned something and everybody won that day. A couple of people were even courageous enough to apologize and I was very grateful for that. I learned, too, that the way I had presented my story had resulted in the reaction that I got from some of the folks in the community. The entire exchange was an opportunity for all involved to grow and there also was healing in that, to be acknowledged and understood feels very good. Food for thought...

@@BLERDgirl what would you consider "high" in regard to carbs from fruit and veggies? why are these superior carbs to carbs from whole grains? thanks for clarifying!

@@Miss Mac do you have metabolic syndrome? the bariatric nutritionist told me that i had to balance all of my Protein to carbs 2:1 at every meal otherwise I would not lose weight. she also said i had to eat low carb. i would tell you the grams but i forget as it would change as time went on. I think I started at 80g protein and 40g carbs. Note that I am not a doctor nor do I play one on TV :-)

I wonder what the ripple effect of this would be, if more insurance companies routinely covered skin removal after massive weight loss following obesity? Sure, there would be more people seeking and getting plastic surgery. But would there be any negative repercussions?

I am 12-yrs out from gastric bypass surgery. I take a ton of vitamins/nutrients and eat healthy. I use premium hair care products. I exercise and drink plenty of water and mineral water. I used to have very thick hair but ever since my surgery it has been thin. I don't think there is anything more that I can try. So just to let folks know, thin hair may be permanent. Of course I don't have to tell you that the trade off is worth it.

I think you will need an incision to remove the skin, not just lipo to remove the fat. I do know that Dr. Capella in NJ does some thigh lifts where the incision is down to the ankle but I have not seen any of his before/after pix of this or know how often he does this type. His thighs lifts are really good, though. I love mine. I also know the patient of Dr. Fisher that AZDee refers to. You can read her review on RealSelf. She wrote extensively about her operations: http://www.realself.com/review/san-antonio-tx-body-lift-dr-fisher-post-massive-wl-specialist-excellent Good luck! You have to be very careful with lipedema: http://www.healthcentral.com/obesity/c/85857/171731/living-lymphedema-lipedema/?ic=hero

@@Steve Puckett I believe any medical school that has a plastic surgery program will have low cost surgeries such as this, where a medical student WHO IS A LICENSED SURGEON will perform surgery under the supervision of an attending.

@@Nevermind I did not have just an LBL done but I believe he charges $10-12k for it nowadays, all inclusive. Kimberly the surgical coordinator will probably tell you right over the phone without you coming in for a consult. Good luck losing the last 20#!

Eating processed foods and chemicals makes me physically ill, too! I am at the salon right now listening to these gals talk about eating some really nasty things tomorrow for Easter. Cheeze Whiz, really???

@ clean eating is fabulous!!! maybe consider eating the dirty dozen organically (coffee, tomatoes, etc). Eliminating dairy and grains makes sense for me as I have celiac disease and I am lactose intolerant :-)

@@tamg26k yep, very hard to cut out ALL processed foods. I look forward to your review! Thanks!!

@@Carriejess sounds like you've got the right idea!!! people do misunderstand that Paleo suggests lots of veggies then Protein then fruits then nuts. Nuts are hugely high in calories and can easily become a binge food or a grazing nightmare and when mixed with some dried fruit and shredded coconut up goes the sugar content, which can spike insulin and trigger cravings and over eating.

@@tamg26k I haven't tried them or heard of them but they seem like the best low carb bar I've seen to date according to the nutrition facts. Most of the low carb bars still have too many carbs in my opinion. You do realize of course this is processed food :-) If you try them let me know how they taste. Out of desperation today (husband did not have dinner ready before I had to leave for meditation) I stopped at GNC before class and got a Quest bar. It tasted like putty or something like that :-(

@drmeow @Kindle thanks much!

@@Rocky1 PS what is your concern about absorption? Transdermal works well in many prescription products so I hope it will work well for the vitamins. That said I assume that not all patches, the actual material itself as the way it performs, are equivalent. But it is what really attracted me to the product.

@@Rocky1 THAT is a very good question! My guess, and this is just my opinion, is that they do it for patient trust and comfort level in taking the product. And doctors trust, too. I believe far fewer docs would recommend it or patients take it if they said that it doesn't meet ASBMS guidelines but that's ok, it doesn't have to :-)

@@Rocky1 regarding Calcium and Iron I was not happy to see them combined, as you noted. opurity (unjury) does, too. i did not find any info on the website for studies on the Vitamins. but they are worth further consideration. one of these days when i have more energy i will compare the nutrition facts and route of delivery for the multis across several bariatric brands and the ASMBS guidelines. good catch on the calcium citrate. i did not notice that. The vit D exceeds ASMBS guidelines. What is your issue with it? i have been taking D3 2000 iu twice daily but my labs came back that I was high. so I felt comfortable trying what is in the patch. we shall see! i take a ton of vitamins because i feel better when i do. it would be so nice to reduce the amount of pills i take and just use the patch. but if i begin to feel lethargic etc then it is proof to me that my body needs more.

@@Rocky1 what Vitamins are you taking that have been independently verified by scientific studies? as far as I know this doesn't happen, which is one of the big problems with nutritional supplements (they SHOULD be clinically proven!!!). beware of marketing disguised as science, which sometimes happens. I printed out the nutrition facts from the label for the Multivitamin, which exceeds ASBMS guidelines, and it looks good to me -- except Iron is only 45mg and I take 60mg daily. I want to compare the patch nutrients to some of the Multivitamins I have been taking.

@@Julie norton I SO LOVE THIS!!! AWESOME YOU!!!

@@Kindle your mom truly knew what she was doing! I am thrilled that my daughter raises her children this way... they don't grow their own food but she does all the other things your mom did. It is interesting how we rebel by doing the opposite of what our parents did. I had a friend who told me that his parents were pot smoking hippies and Drake rebelled by being a straight-laced teen (his words not mine).

@@drmeow I thought you were a vet -- thanks to both you and kindle for taking care of our four-legged friends. I agree with the use of antibiotics for humane reasons and pulling the animal out of production. I am curious, what then does the farmer do with it? I will share something curious, at least it is curious to me. I always ate red meat until the day I put my Boston Terrier down. He was my first dog to go and it was done humanely when his quality of life was such that it was what was best for him. My daughter and I were with him while our vet injected him and my daughter sang a lullaby to him as he went "to sleep." Oh crap this was so many years ago and I am now crying as I type this. The event has some trauma in it for me still. Anyway the day after that I never ate red meat again. In an instant red meat completely grossed me out. I guess it opened up my compassion to a new level. I went organic shortly after I watched a few documentaries and researched information online -- I believe the Omnivore's Dilemma was one of the films that I watched. However I recall being completely upset and in tears after watching the trailer for Earthlings and telling my husband we had to eat organic. It was both the physiological (my concern for my health) and psychological (my concern for animal welfare) that caused me to change. Ugh I cannot imagine watching Earthlings. My friend who is a vegetarian said she stopped the film a few times to either vomit or cry. It is on YouTube for anyone who can stomach it. You are right about the farm-raised fish! I only eat wild caught. But like you I avoid shrimp, which I used to love, because so many sources are contaminated that I do not trust it. I will check out the foodsaver. Which of the sealers is the one that you use http://www.foodsaver.com/vacuum-sealers/ ? Thanks also for the explanation about genetics/gene expression and diet.