dhrguru

I posted a question about hair loss a few days ago and only received one response. Hair loss is very common, I've only talked to one person it didn't happen to. I have the same concern, my hair is the only thing I liked about myself and then I developed scarring alopecia which is permanent hair loss so i am VERY concerned about it. I already have large bald spots on my head!

You need to make sure you are doing EVERYTHING as you should; getting in all of your Protein, taking your Vitamins, etc. Even if you do everything you should doesn't mean you won't lose it, everyone is different. Talking with others made me realize you wont die from having beautiful hair but you might with medical weight related conditions.

So..I completely and fully understand your concerns. Hopefully this won't happen with you!

I too have scalp scarring alopecia... I've lost 70% of my hair. Sometimes the hair loss threads aggravate me so I don't bother to respond.

I've embraced my hair loss though, totally comfortable in our out of a wig... I think my hair loss overshadows my weight loss though. You should see the looks I get... Oh and I "LOVE" the unsolicited, have you tried this product advice. Nope... Never would have crossed my mind to try something to avoid this! Quick let me get a pen and write that down!!

My confessions: when my button up shirts for work would no longer button (or on the off chance they did button I'd look like a can of those pillsbury biscuits exploding from the container) i got the bright idea to invest in tank tops and wear the button up shirts open, with the tanks showing. When my suit jackets would no longer button, I convinced myself the jacket was just for style, and didn't need to be buttoned. I also cut the lining out of the pants, cause it was tight and made me sweat excessively.

Oh, and I bought bra extenders rather than admit that I needed a bigger based size in my bras (I eventually relented with that though).

I did. For me it was the strips used to close the incisions. Got better once they fell off.

One of my incisions did get infected, so be careful with the scratching!

Howdy folks. I hope you are all doing well.

I will officially join your ranks in a few months when I have my bypass.

Until then I'm trying to get ready as much as I can.

I didn't want to intrude into anyone's thread so I figured I'd ask here and hope people joined in.

I've been warned not to stock up too much on powders, bars and such as things may taste different later. I'll just have a variety of stuff here but not big quantities of anything. Some Chike Protein, Oikos Triple Greek Yogurt and Quest bars for starters. We always have chicken breast and tuna on hand. Anything else that you recommend having around those first several weeks?

I'm concerned about comments concerning difficulty drinking the required amounts of Water. I've always just gulped down what I needed.....when convenient. I suppose now I need to get used to having a Water bottle close by all day long for sipping.

Kinda freaked about this because I enjoy drinking water and maintaining that good well-hydrated feeling.

I'm planning on taking two weeks off work for the surgery. Interested to hear what your experience was on time off and how you did going back.

I can minimize or maximize the amount of walking I do on the job.

I already keep packs of tuna, powder & shaker bottles, sugar-free drink mix and Quest bars in my desk.

I only have a couple meeting-lunches at work each month. I'll deal with those as they arise. No control over the menu. I can always just say I've already eaten and sit there sipping my water.

Clothes? Did you already have clothes ready for the shrinking new you?

I have some smaller sized stuff that will most likely see me through until surgery, but then it's going to be hard to gauge what to do.

What has your level of exercise been post-op compared to the months before?

What's been the biggest surprise to you after having the surgery?

What do you wish you'd done differently in the months leading up to it?

I've got a ton of random questions. Hope you don't mind chiming in.

Thank you !!!

I had that experience if not liking a Protein Powder after surgery that I like before. I couldn't even tolerate the smell of it. I like sugar free Jello during the clear liquid stage. And for Soup, I went to au bon pain and they sold be just broth... Much tastier than canned broth. I stored/froze them in small 4oz container and microwaved one when time to eat. The unflavored Protein Powder the hospital gave me was my best friend initially, made it easy to add to stuff. Some folks like crystal light, I never cared for it.

Drinking slow wasn't an issue for me because I feared throwing up. Using the little medicine cups to drink from also forced you to sip. I never got incredibly dehydratedto need iv Fluid, but my pee did look orange some days.

I planned for two weeks off of work, needed 3.

The clothes thing was most surprising to me. First, I realized how tight what I was wearing must have been, so they just started fitting better. I had clothes ranging from 26-20, so no *need* to shop yet, except for under garments. But of course I have shopped:-), but not a lot. I buy something, tag it with the date and weight I was when I bought out and try it on again in 3 weeks, if it's lose it goes back.

Biggest surprise... How much my mindset changed. Last night I went out with the family. They ordered a large pizza with topping and onion rings. I watched them eat, not the least but phased by the fact that I couldn't have any. No longing for it, just feeding that this is how my life is now. Then I wanted ice cream-- but after reading label in the market for 20 minutes... I decided it wasn't worth it and bought sugar free Jello.

I would not change anything I did leading up to surgery.

Exercise... Pre op it was almost nothing... My goal was to make 6,000 steps a day--with no real plan-- that's it. Post-op I'm not doing anything crazy... Couch to 5k, and twice a week circuit training. My steps still don't always make it to 6k, but I'm happy with what I'm doing right now and it seems livable for me.

My doc asked for the PFT because I'd listed that i got winded easily climbing stairs (who wouldn't at 335#'s!!). So it was precautionary for me-- and ruled out me having asthma.

I never had to do an endoscopy.

What helped me with my decision to have the surgery was involving my kids (ages 11 & 12) and making them aware of what would change for me, confirm *nothing* would change for them etc. They are the BEST supporters and made the decision so much easier. (My hubby is great too, but the kids inquire more, just naturally curious.) You'd have to gauge how open you could be with your kids, but it was a great motivator for me.

You already know the the end effect of what will happen if you decide not to (or IS happening), you feel badly about yourself, what you eat, how people view you, how YOU view you. So it more of the same. Are you willing to accept that? I too was concerned coming out of surgery 'sicker' than I was going in-- for that I had to trust truths I know about my body... I heal well/fast, manage pain well, I never have complications, and have have a "stomach of steel" that rarely give me troubles. You know you best!

Finally-- I vote bypass, but then I'm biased :-)

I tried to like yogurt, I really did. But the only brand/flavor I grew to love (Oikos Greek, apple Pie flavor) had too many grams of sugar in it (17 or so). Gave up on yogurt altogether-- way to many wasted containers in hopes I'd like one.

Its no secret how happy i am 6 months post op, just by the way i feel and move, and just live...Yes i still have a stretch ahead of me till all the weight is off, and then plastic surgery..But i wanna share something that happened at work today.

I work in a corporate environment and there are many people from all walks of life on the floor i work on, One in particular is a very attractive blonde lady who is a yoga instructor in her free time...Needless to say, we as men (Yes ladies, we are primitive animals) here at the office tend to sneak a peak every time she walks around. So i was walking out of the building and she was in front of me, and all of the sudden stops dead in her tracks, turns around and says to me "I just want you to know, you look amazing...All the girls in the office have been talking and we are really curious"...So being the more confident man i am now, i told her if she wants to join me for lunch (Which was where i was heading) I will tell her all about it..Which she did and i told her my whole story.

So to anyone pre or post op who are in two minds, or are struggling...Its small things like these...Be strong, be focused and be positive

Great story!! I'll say I would have been leery of opening up after she said the'girls and I were curious'.

Guess I'm a prude cause I have no clue what the 'dirty' version of the name means or implies...

Interesting!! My initial weight loss has been like yours...1-3 pounds a week. I'm happy since it's consistent losses, but I'm wondering if it'll jump at some point. Guess time will tell

I've trying to transition to Vitamins that I can swallow. (I'm Almost 3 months post op). It's not going well, even if I cut them in half, the pills are just too thick. Yesterday I choked on a "miniature" Calcium pill then threw it up. (It was embarrassing since I work around medics and EMT's, they wanted to check me out, which I really didn't need.)

So back on chewabless I go, unless someone has an idea about how else I could take them. Ugh, I've invested a good amount in pills I can't do anything with now!

Just wondering how everyone calculates their goal weight ?

I just pulled picked a number I felt comfortable with, 175. Doc and nut agreed it was reasonable and attainable if I stuck with the program.

I am curious how much everyone can eat at one given time. 2oz? 4oz? 8oz? more?

The most I've ever eaten is 4oz at one time at 2 months post-op, and I'm wondering if that is full capacity or no? I generally don't push myself to eat more because I've never been sick after surgery and don't wanna be.

Also please state how far out you are.

I'm almost 3 months out. I can eat about 4/4.5 ounces of dense Protein comfortably. I don't weigh my food after cooking, I only go by the packaged weights on products. I've never felt bad after eating anything, or felt like I overate.

I can feel restriction better with things like oatmeal. If I make a 1/2 cup serving of oats (yields ~1 cup cooked oatmeal) i can't eat 3/4 of it.

So I am currently trying to educate myself as much as possible on gastric bypass before my consultation so I feel more comfortable, this is my second time trying to make this decision to get It done and make it happen but for some reason I'm really scared, I am afraid of change but I'm so tired of "living" like this, because to he quiet honest I am not even living my life, I am only 22 years old and I feel so trapped in my own body, I see myself in small clothes and running around without feeling like I'm out of breath in 5 seconds, I want to see my daughter grow up & I want to enjoy life again ... but why am I feeling so scared to do it? Is it normal to feel like you want to do it and want to go for it but at the same time feel so scared of it ... ????

Yup is normal!! It's a major decision! Like you it took me a second go round to finally decide to have surgery, and I waited five years in between!!

I hope there comes a point where you've got all the info you need, have met your team and own that I can do this attitude! Until then, we're here for ya 100%!

Losing, nearly 3 months post op

Breakfast one egg omelette with peppers, cheese and salami. ~14g Protein

Lunch: chicken Caesar wrap, without the wrap, 1/2 Protein Bar ~29g Protein

Dinner: steak!

I'm not at my goal yet, but some of the things I will NOT miss are:

1. Painful dark marks on my shoulders from wearing bras that really couldn't hold up my boobs. I went from a cup size K down to a E / F.

2. Painful sore spots on my abdomen from wearing jeans that were too tight in the waistband, but were the only ones I could find in a Tall size (so they wouldn't be "high waters" AND too tight.

3. Struggling to find shoes because a size 12W is not a guaranteed prescription for comfortable OR cute shoes. I now wear a size 11M and happy about it!

4. Wearing "bulletproof" girdles and briefers because I wanted desperately to hold in the big stomach...now I can go with nothing except undies, or on the rare occasion that I wear a shaper, it's MUCH more lightweight and doesn't make me sweat buckets!

Can't wait until I get to my goal and hold it for a year or more, so i can do another post like this one and come up with more things I WON'T miss!

How much did you lose to see the shoe size change? I'm in the same boat, wear a 12w.... So many more options exists at Size 11!!

@@dhrguru

are you letting them air dry?>

because it sounds as though the smell is from the fabric taking too long to dry.

My lululemon pants do that if they are hung in the humid bathroom to dry

I do let them air dry, but not in the bathroom, they are in my bedroom. They air dry enough to toss them in the laundry basket. If not air drying, what is the other option? I would rather try my luck with new pants before I'd be willing to hand wash or wash one piece at a time.

Help me with this. My work out pants are funky. Even after running them thru the wash twice, I still smell some musk to them. And when I wear them again that odor comes out stronger, especially with the sweat from my routine.

The pants are polyester/spandex, with"coolmax" gusset lining. My sports bra/tops wash and smell fime afterwords...it's just these pants.

They were getting to big, so it's time to shop for new stuff... But is there a material I should try and avoid or seek out??

Breakfast: 1 egg omelette. Filled with orange and green peppers, bacon (2 slices) and shredded cheese.

Lunch: chicken breast (the Purdue perfect portion) sliced cucumbers dipped in Catalina dressing.

Snack: Peanut Butter on 1 slice whole of whole wheat bread.

Dinner: (attempted) 1 chicken drumstick and carrots, but my snack was to close to dinner, so I could finish it.

Protein total:73g

Carb total: 47g

Calories 833

In my case, I monitored my blood pressure daily. When my BP dropped, I cut my BP medicine dose in half. Then when it dropped some more, I went off the BP medicine completely. This all occurred within the first couple weeks after surgery.

I generally took my blood pressure readings first thing when I got up in the morning so I would have some consistency with the readings. Without daily readings it would be hard to make that decision. I suspect your BP readings might have been slightly elevated in the doctor's office.

Thanks, that makes sense. I do have a BP monitor...i guess I'll buy some batteries for it today and start tracking. I have cut my dose though. (The higher dose was prescribed as a mix up initially, so I just went back to the lower dose).

I'm sure my bp was elevated at those first post op appointments, my body was probably angry over the surgery etc. Thanks

So I was on blood pressure meds for years prior to my bypass on 4/28, even took it day of surgery as per doc's instructions. I don't take it immediately after surgery and my blood pressure was running a little high at my first two post op visits. So I went back on the bp meds and have been on them since. And of course, my pressure is normal with them.

I'm down 50#s now; so if you're taking bp meds, how would you ever know if your bp has normalized due to your weight loss?

I miss soda so much, does anyone else have any alternatives other than Water and crystal light, because I want something with a fizz to it? What about sparkling Water? Help because water is starting to suck right now.

I'm curious too about sparkling stuff... There are these 0 calorie ICE drinks some people swear by, but I haven't tried it because sparkling seems to close to carbonation.... Almost like a gateway drug.

I drink diet snapple occasionally, or mix Apple juice and water.

Has anyone experienced depression or feelings of loss after surgery for the foods that you can not or should not eat anymore? If so, can you elaborate a little about it? Duration...... Intensity.....

Thanks!

So yesterday we did a family day at the beach/boardwalk. What I struggled with is not being part off the whole'boardwalk experience', eating ice cream, taffy, pizza, hot dogs etc. Its odd because i hate taffy, and was never a big ice cream fan. But being in that environment I just felt like I couldn't be part of the crowd. I felt like I was a 'burden' to my family because I was the outlier who they needed to make sure the menu offered something for me.

It was a lot at play mentally for me. I'm not depressed about it, I only felt that way in that moment. And for how long it lasted, again, for as long as I was on the boardwalk. Once we were gone, it's not an issue.

I'll say the other thing that I was keenly aware of was how many obese people I saw. It made me thankful for where I am now and at peace with the work that it's taking.

I was a dreadfully addicted sweet eater. I was the one who would call a pop tart and soda lunch. And I need something sweet to end every meal... Donut in the am, Cookies at lunch and who knows what at night/for snack. I could finish a box of hostess or entanmanns cake within a day.

I'm 9 weeks post op and my sweet cravings aren't nearly as bad as they were. (I think pre op diet riding me od carbs helped). Not only do I have the fear of dumping to literally help me keep my hand out the cookie jar, the surgery seems to have changed my desire for sweets. And knowing what I need nutritionally makes me put those foods first, and there's not much room for more.

So far I don't dump, but I also havent tested it to the extent of my pre surgery sugar addiction days. (I don't plan to either)

Praying all goes well!

I've been paying close attention for signs of dumping, but haven't gone out of my way to 'test' it either. Closest I've felt was a a slightly increased heart rate and and noisy, stomach (not cramping-- just making noise).

I haven't had anything significant really that *I* think would bring on dumping...but maybe its just early. I've heard people say they dump from sugar in ketchup/bbq sauce etc-- but I can consume those with no issue.