Champ715

I'm six weeks out and still only get maybe 500 calories a day. My diet is supposed to consist of only lean meats and non starchy veggies, none of which are high in calories. How do they expect us to get more calories when we already have such restriction to begin with and when the foods we are allowed to eat are low cal?

They didn't give me any sort of guideline for recommended calories. I'm eating what my plan allows and I'm taking my vitamins, Protein, etc. Some days I only get 400-500 calories but I just physically cannot hold anymore food. I have a nurse, a nutritionist, and a bariatric coordinator, all of whom told me to stop eating when I start to feel full. I have no idea how many calories per day is normal for someone 6 weeks out. I'm pretty much only allowed high protein meats and non starchy carbs, none of which are high in calories. The only way for me to get more calories would be to eat something starchy, sweet, etc. which seems to defeat the purpose. I still have restriction so I'm not able to eat more than 1.5 ounces at a time. I could probably hold 2 ounces if I really tried, but then I'd feel really full and uncomfortable.

I had pain getting up out of the recliner for probably a week post op. It only hurt when I was trying to use my abs to get up or get back down. It felt like someone was sawing into my abdomen with a fiery blade. Thank God it was only if I moved a certain way and only lasted a week. I found several things that helped. When I had to get up out of the recliner, I would have someone get behind it and tip it forward so I just had to stand up. Doing this enabled me to not have to engage my ab muscles to get myself up. I couldn't get in or out of my bed until the middle of week 2. I also pressed a pillow against my stomach anytime I had to get up or down. Also, I should tell you that I wasn't taking any pain medicine at home. They gave me liquid hydrocodone that was pretty foul so I avoided it. I may have not had any pain had I been taking the medicine.

Hi everyone. I'm 6 weeks post op and so far I've lost 25 pounds. I got down to 26 pounds but for the past three weeks I've been stuck in a rut where I gain two pounds, then lose two pounds, then gain one pound, then lose it, and so on. I'm following the program and I know stalls are normal but my head is starting to get the best of me. I have failed at every other diet so I'm having anxiety thinking that I'll fail at this too. Will I be that one person who only loses 25 pounds from this whole thing? I've increased my Water intake and my exercise in hopes of breaking this rut but so far nothing has worked. I know I just have to wait it out. I'm just worried that I won't be successful with this either.

She was telling me "Hmm I don't know. I'm not sure. Nobody has asked that before." Another nurse finally called me back and said it was fine. She said I wouldn't damage anything inside but might have some motion sickness.

I am 6 weeks post op as of yesterday. Overall, I feel pretty great. Is it too early to go to a theme park and ride rollercoasters? I haven't had any issues with motion sickness before but I'm not sure how I would handle it now that I've had this surgery. PS I'm asking here because the nurse at my surgeon's office wouldn't give me a straight answer. Just wondering if anyone can speak from experience.

I had surgery on a Wednesday and absolutely did not feel like returning to work on the following Monday. I was still experiencing pain and discomfort. I was also very tired and had zero energy. I managed to make it in for a half day on Tuesday but I felt exhausted after just 4 hours. I should also mention I have a desk job.

Why were you not aware of your insurance requirements prior to having surgery scheduled? I had to do a 6 month process and the very first thing I did was print off the requirements from my insurance company so I knew if I was qualified or not. I would never have invested a lot of money if I wasn't even qualified.

I hate to break it to you but the premier Protein shakes are made from a whey concentrate, not a whey isolate, so your body doesn't absorb the entire 30 grams. You're probably only absorbing about 15 grams. You need a whey isolate in order to absorb all of it.

I wasn't even prescribed a ppi. I wonder where your nutritionist got that information. Everything I've read says strictures are caused by factors relating to how the surgery was done or how the patient responds to healing/scarring. Never read anything about acid causing one.

I was given some surgical soap and told to wash the incisions/scars twice per day gently with soap and Water. I was told to clean them with hydrogen peroxide if they showed any signs of infection. I'm 5 weeks out and two of my scars are just a faint line now. The other two are still healing because I picked at them in my sleep. Oops.

I used a food processor to blend my food during the purée stage. I also have a nutribullet but use it more for smoothies and things of that consistency.

I don't know why everyone brings gas-x strips because they do not work. Those are for digestive gas. Gas from surgery is not digestive gas. Anyway, I did not have any gas pain whatsoever. I guess it's different whatsoever. Walking will help with whatever kind of pain or discomfort you're feeling, gas pains or not. Good luck!

I'm 6 weeks post op and still get tired easily. The first few weeks were just like BLERDgirl said. I had to nap every day as well. You're doing better than me with the protein. Keep up that intake and you'll heal faster and have more energy. You're doing fine!

I've had the same feelings. I just moved to solid foods and I had ONE tiny chicken nugget yesterday and it made me pretty nauseous for several hours. It makes me scared to try new foods because I don't know if it will make me feel bad until I try. I just keep some zofran with me and practice my breathing exercise if I get really nauseated. It passes eventually.

I am nervous to try new things because it seems I have a very picky sleeve and nausea comes easy for me. Eating is pretty much an experiment these days. I don't know until I've tried how bad it might make me feel. Hopefully it won't be so touch-and-go in the months to come.

I had one chicken nugget for lunch almost 2 hours ago. ONE chicken nugget and my sleeve is still very upset with me. I know it's different for everyone but I'm just curious what other kinds of foods didn't sit well with you even when you're cleared for solid foods? I've had no trouble at all with most other meat so I'm guessing it was the breading on the nugget. Or maybe the fact that it came from Burger King (don't hate, I had a mini crisis at home this morning and had no time to prepare a lunch for the day).

I had surgery on a Wednesday and was planning to go back to work on Monday (I have a desk job) but I was so tired and couldn't make it in. I had zero energy and felt pretty "blah" overall. I did half days at work the first week post op. I'll be 5 weeks post op tomorrow and I've still had a few days where I had to leave work early or come in late. This is just my experience. You may bounce back much faster than I did. Best wishes and good luck to you!

Are you drinking decaf or regular coffee? My plan requires me to eliminate caffeine all together because it is a diuretic and is detrimental to hydration status.

Why was your surgery scheduled before insurance was approved? My doctor's office wouldn't even put me down for a tentative date until my insurance approval came back. Regardless, this seems like a requirement you should have known about at the beginning.

I have BCBS of Alabama and was approved just by meeting the criteria they list here: https://www.bcbsal.org/providers/policies/final/053.pdf

I am laughing so hard at all these names! I haven't come up with a name for mine yet but I'll think of something today!

I found sugar free popsicles at Target. I think they did contain asapartame though so it may be something to watch for if you have trouble with aspartame. I know it can cause headaches for some people.

Just note that Premier Protein shakes and the GNC Lean Shakes contain whey protein concentrate, rather than whey protein isolate. My NUT and surgeon both told me that the body doesn't absorb all the protein when it's from concentrate. Of the 30 grams in the premier Protein shake, supposedly you only absorb about 15 of those grams because it's not an isolate. Also, the GNC Lean Shake has 30 grams of carbs which is pretty outrageous.

I drank at least three diet cokes per day prior to my surgery. I was really worried about not being able to have them anymore because I got severe headaches every time I had tried to quit them in the past. I'm a month post op and really have not missed them at all. There have been maybe three times where I thought "a Diet Coke would be good right now" but it was a passing thought and not strong enough to act on. I even still have diet cokes in my fridge and haven't been tempted to touch them. I have really been surprised by how well my new tummy is working for me. I accidentally skipped Breakfast this morning and forgot to make anything to bring for lunch. I ended up getting a baked sweet potato from a local restaurant just for the sake of having something to eat. I cut it in half and thought for sure I would devour the one half because I felt like i was starving. I'm only about 6 bites in and I already feel full. I'm saying all this to say, have a little faith in yourself and what your new stomach will be able to help you accomplish. I know it is scary to think of a new life without your favorite things but I promise it won't be as hard as you think. Take it from someone who had a real addiction to food. I haven't had any of those bad foods in over a month and I do not miss them. I enjoy being able to eat some lean meat and feel full after a few bites.