BLERDgirl

I think we told you it would come. Glad to hear you're doing well!

You can have some of it soon. Once I was on soft foods at 6 weeks, I would add a bit of salsa and dices avocado to my eggs. I'm not ready for chips just yet but that's just a personal preference. I've been cleared to eat whatever I can tolerate.

I started changing my relationship with food before surgery. I contracted facial shingles in 2009. Shingles are painful, shingles on your face where the skin is thinner is even worse. Then you have to worry about then getting in your eye and making you blind. That was my wake up call. I was approaching 50 and even though I had always been fat, I had always been active. Shingles sat me down like no other. Worst pain in my life. I literally did nothing but lie as still as possible for days because the pain was that bad. I really sick from one of the pain meds and ended up in the ER with anaphylaxis. They wanted to keep me but I was uninsured and begged them to send me home. I spent 10 hours in the ER before they would clear me to go home. Once the shingles cleared up, I was left with nerve damage called trigeminal neuralgia. Basically the side of my face where I had the shingles is permanently numb from the nerve damage. The nostril on that side does not work so I am constantly congested. I realized then, if I didn't change things I would always get sick. My body just didn't have any resistance. I promised myself I would do what I could to get healthier. I joined a gym that had a pool and started taking Water aerobics 3 -5 days a week. I stopped drinking soda, I gave up my daily coffee habit. I drink it occasionally but not daily. I no longer "need" coffee to start my day. I started eating as clean as possible. No processed foods. I started eating Breakfast every day. I started juicing. I found I could eat breakfast and workout so I found a plant based Protein powder an started making smoothies. I started practicing portion control. I learned not to bring anything in the house I couldn't have without binging on. I started reading food labels when I went shopping. I wish that had been enough. However my health caused me to yo-yo with the same 35 -50 pounds several times. I would do well with my eating and exercise, then get sick and regain it again. The surgery has somehow helped with my other illnesses. I think the habits I developed in the few years prior WLS helped me follow the program post op. I was already practicing portion control and doing things like drink water when I thought I should eat and making sure I didn't nibble mindlessly. I started food journaling. My relationship with food changed in that I became a conscience eater. Keeping that diary makes me look at not just calories, but sodium, carbs and sugar as well and how it would effect my body. I even started doing things like taking a walk when I was stressed instead of eating my feelings.

I felt fine from day one and so far I haven't had any difficulty with foods. It took longer to drink at first, but was never not able to drink. The only thing that has changed is the desired to over eat. Enjoy feeling good.

Isopure and GENEPRO are powders. Un jury & prosource are liquids. Isopure can be purchased at GNC or Vitamin Shoppe, the others have to be ordered online. Other Protein alternatives are: powdered milk, plain greek yogurt, or kefir drinks.

I only bought a week's supply so I would have something at home but not so much that if my taste buds changed or I couldn't stomach them I would be out of money.

It's okay. Your body is still healing. If you need to chill for a day do so.

Call your doctor. It sounds like you may need a PPI like Prilosec (omeprazole). He can either prescrie it for you or you can buy it over the counter. I recently had my script increased. I now take one 40mg in the AM and I am good all day.

I like to keep things in the house because I live on a small street and my car gets plowed in when the snowplows come through in the winter. I also came across this youtube series today for chair workouts. I prefer doing short 15 mins or less workouts several times a day if I am home. These are perfect for me.

@@Kindle - I understand that. What I'm trying to say is in a post where people are asking for general info about things to have on hand post-op, a NSAID might not be something another WLS patient could advise another to have. If you've discussed it with your doctor and they okay it that's an entirely different story.

Did I miss something? This was a thread asking what to get in prep for post op. Someone suggested a NSAID, hence my reply. You info actually supports that so....? The only additional info you have included are the exceptions which would be under doctor supervisor and not a recommendation from folks here.

Just checking in. I'm down another 15lbs. Still feeling great and exercising. I'm hoping to increase my workouts at the gym from 3 days a week to 4.

No worries, I had to have a PICC line as well. After that everything went smoothly.

Are you taking multivitamins or supplements? Are you doing any walking or exercising? Believe it or not I have more energy when I work out.

@@DonnaC1 - I found a good chair workout youtube channel. It's by Sparkpeople. In fact I may use this for my at home workouts during the winter. It will be helpful for those days my street is snowed in.

Cinnamon can have the same effect as tomato based stuff and citrus. It can irritate new sleeves. I would think further down the line it would likely be fine but in the those early post op days, the acid would be painful

YAY!!!! That's wonderful! Love your attitude.

Kindle gave some good suggestions. As for where to buy unflavored Protein there are brands such as Prosource, GENEPRO and Isopure. Prosource and Genepro are available online only as afar as I know, but Isopure can be purchased at GNC or Vitamin Shoppe. All 3 can be mixed with cold or hot beverages. Do not get discouraged if you don't like the first Protein Drink you buy or even the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th. I went through several before I found protein I liked that didn't trigger my allergies. Water is important, but as long as you get in some type of fluids, you won't get dehydrated. However you have to get in something. Don't suffer with a beverage you can't stand.

Congrats! I had very little pain. No worse than how you feel after a zealous workout.

You'll be fine. Surgery is quick and then you'll be on the losers bench.????

If it's a fancy restaurant call ahead. I'm vegetarian and can eat out most places except steak house or seafood places because of my allergies. I've had some delicious chef specially made dishes this way. I always send compliments to the chef. I think they like hearing that you appreciate them going out of the way for you.

Emerson blender, nutrabullet or something similar. I think Oster has a smoothie maker for $20. They are invaluable got mixing Protein shakes.

Do you have a gym nearby? Walking in a pool might be easier on your hip. If not Google exercises you can do sitting.

Oh I see. I was beginning to think my tummy was bionic ???? I never did more than a tbsp. I can't do light mayo because it's too processed. I do a tsp of Just Mayo & a tsp of Greek yogurt. You can't taste the difference and I get a tiny bit of protein from the yogurt.

I weigh myself monthly. I didn't really take any pictures before surgery so I just pulled up a recent pre-surgery picture that was a good example of what I looked like. I took pictures after my 3 mth follow up because honestly I thought I looked pretty good. I then found a picture that I took on the day I left the hospital and when I put them side by side I was surprised at the difference. I needed that picture because even though the scale says I'm losing, I couldn't see the difference. It was nice to notice I had lost a chin!