lslblues

Not me. I've had a yellow pasty poo since surgery.

Ther are a couple studies out there with a decent population size that seem to show a slightly larger boogie (40-60) has lower leak rate and actually more weight loss than more restrictive. Google boogie leak rate and they will pop right up. I got a 40.

When you say two ounces at a time, are you drinking two ounces at once? You should be taking small 1/8 oz sips. I had quite a bit of pain and could feel every little sip, but just kept drinking tiny sips. I started out taking about 10 minutes to drink 1 oz on day 1. By the end of day 2, I could drink 1 oz in about 2 minutes. If you feel pain/pressure, it sounds like you are trying to drink too much too fast. My doctor also said don't worry about Protein the first couple days - get the fluids in. My guide actually has a table saying Day 1 after surgery - 40 oz Fluid, 10 grams protein. Day 2 50 oz fluid, 20 grams protein. Building up to 80 grams after a week. The Protein shakes did not sit well with me at all right after surgery. Apple juice, room temp Water, and strained egg drop Soup sat best for me. Days 2-5 were pretty tough for me. I'm now at day 8 and feeling great - it will get better.

I couldn't stand the dairy protein shakes but am doing much better with almond milk, protein in jello, and protein in broth. Otherwise there are some yogurts that have decent protein.

This has been shared before, but just wanted to share my experience. I am a planner and like to have things organized. I had the lists of things I'd need post-op and wanted to be organized so I didn't have to run around trying to get things. I had the Protein shakes I love all lined up. The protein supplement I liked and the broth I liked. Vitamins, etc. One thing I learned very quickly is both your tastes and what your stomach can handle can be very different after surgery. I LOVED Premiere Protein Shakes before surgery and naively thought it would be easy to get my protein in - just 3 wonderful shakes a day. After surgery, I gag just thinking about drinking one. After forcing down RTD protein shakes for the first 2 days, I knew I had to find something different. Unflavored protein in Jello - hit. Unflavored protein in Gatorade - hit. Making my own shakes with soy milk - hit. Drinking room temp Water (which I used to hate) instead of cold - hit. I had read enough about "your tastes may change and your stomach may not be able to handle the same things" to not have bought 60 days worth of stuff. But it was kind of a shock when my pre-op plans weren't working. All that to say - be flexible post-op. Yes plan ahead, but if something isn't working, try something else. I'd definitely recommend having some unflavored Protein powder that you can add to a variety of things handy.

I have an IT job. I worked at home days 5 and 6, back in the office day 7. No issues whatsoever. I even started back on my exercise bike day 7. The only thing that makes it difficult is having fluids/protein organized to be able to get in. But its 8:24 AM and I've already had 30 grams of Protein and 35 oz Fluid, so I'm off to a good start. As far as fatigue, its strange that with 500 calories, recent surgery, and way less coffee, I actually feel more alert and energetic during the day. As has been said many times though, everyone's experience is different.

Just had my surgery January 29. I was doubting until they wheeled me away. I literally was thinking as I lay in the bed that I should call it off and go have Breakfast at bob Evans. What helped me through the doubts was I'd look at myself in the mirror and ask myself if I wanted to be fat for the rest of my life and deal with consequences or do the surgery and enjoy the positives. There is no reason in 6-9 months I won't be able to enjoy anything I ate before. Just smaller portions. I can't wait to eat one bite of chocolate cake and be satisfied. Have one slice of pizza instead of the whole thing. For me it was all portion size and the sleeve will be a great tool. Dud you talk through your concerns as part of your psych evaluation? Good luck with your decision.

I've read all kinds of great information on this board and just want to share my experience, although it sure is a lot like all the other experiences. My doctor was Dr Heider in Lake Norman Regional Medical Center. He took his time to answer all my questions and explained everything. The staff was also very nice going over diets, process, etc. Check out their website and see the fairly low self-pay option in the US. The hospital, while smaller, is very new and I felt like I received excellent care from the moment we arrive. Did the pre-op testing, upper GI, EKG, blood draw, etc. on Wednesday afternoon. The barium goo was pretty nasty and I think I would have thrown up if they made me take one more swallow. Process was about 2 hours to complete all the testing. Surgery was schedule Thursday 9:30. I arrived at 6:30, they got me prepped, and I laid there for about an hour. Dr Heider was able to move my surgery up a little bit. I hate needles and was dreading the IV. They collapsed the vein on the first try. CRAP. Second try was good. I talked to Heider, the anesthesiologist, etc. When it was time to go, he gave me I think a versed, and I don't remember a thing until recovery room. I was only in the recovery room for 30 minutes or so when they moved me to my room. The rest of Thursday, into the night, I was in considerable pain. I didn't have the gas pain, mine seemed to just be stomach pain. I've heard it described as someone kicked you really hard in the stomach, and that's pretty accurate. It would hover around a 4 or 5, and then shoot up to a 7 or 8. They gave me morphine every couple hours and that really helped keep the pain level down. Thursday night was a terrible night's sleep. I was also nothing by mouth and only survived by brushing my teeth every couple hours and gargling. Friday morning, I was feeling better and the pain was more like a 3 shooting up a 5. I didn't take any pain medication after 12:30 AM on Friday and felt pretty decent. I did have some nausea kick in during Friday, especailly when they gave me that drink for the leak test. I passed the leak test and started sipping Water a couple hours later. I'm easily hitting the ounce of Fluid per 15 minutes and the pain levels are down. Zero pain from incision sights and man are tiny. Overall, its been an interesting experience so far. I hate pain, needles, and hospitals and had doubt, was thinking about cancelling, etc. I was literally thinking "I should just cancel and head to Bob Evans for biscuits and gravy". Wednesday night, I looked in the mirror and asked myself if this is how I wanted to look for the rest of my life. Hell no. I clung to that all the way through the AM wait, the pain after the surgery, etc. There is certainly a price to pay to go through with it - $$$, risk of complication, pain, etc., but I hope that will be a long distant memory in 6 months.

I'm on day 12 of Optifast. It gets better. The chicken Soup is actually pretty good if put some celery in it and spice it up with salt/pepper and lots of hot sauce. The first 5'sh days were bad. Then it started getting much better. No more headaches. Not nearly as much hunger. By day 7-8 I actually felt very good and energy levels were back up.

I am on day 12 of my Optifast. After about day 5 or 6, it got much easier. When I have my Soup, I'm very full. Yesterday I actually had to remind myself to drink my last shake of the day. Wasn't hungry at all. I have also felt very good on the liquid diet after about day 6 - lots of energy, etc. But yes, the first 5-6 days SUCKED!

They have been doing partial gastrectomy procedures for over 100 years. As the person above said, as long as you pay attention to nutrition, there is no data that suggests you will have anything other than a long normal life. The surgery is only relatively new for weight loss.

My doctor has you do 2 weeks of Optifast. I'm on day 9 right now. The first 3 days were terrible, but better since they then. They say you're expected to lose 5% of your body weight during those 2 weeks, hinting that if you came back in at close to the same pre-diet weight, they would cancel the surgery. I'm down 12 pounds in 9 days and not feeling bad at all on 800 calories/day.

JJ - I am just starting this journey and have my date set for Jan 29. One reason I am doing it now, at 44, while I'm in good health, while I am and can still be active, is because I don't want to be like that person you saw in the waiting room. My outlook for weight loss, recovery, chance of complication, etc. as well as my time to enjoy the benefits of the weight loss, will be far superior to that persons. I have tried various diets for the last 20 years and lost and gained it back. I'd love to think I can do a diet again, avoid the surgery, and get a different outcome, but for me, I don't think that is realistic. I see this is the best decision/tool to help change the course of that part of my life and am willing to accept the risk that comes with that decision. But I do hope I don't have to wait 4 hours for the surgery to start...

Is energy level coming back yet?