Stephanie Stroup McIntosh

Your surgery shouldn't be cancelled by insurance unless you lose your insurance. Your doctor shouldn't cancel unless he/she has some type of emergency or there is a major medical crisis at your hospital. As long as you stay healthy, you should be fine. If you have a fever, cold, or flu they could postpone it.

Get the diet version. They gave me cranberry juice in the hospital.

I have my own scale and weigh on it regularly. Even if its not exactly the same as the doctor's you will know how much you have lost since you last stepped on your scale. Also, your weight can vary due to Constipation, hydration, and time of day. Don't let it stress you out.

I have my own scale and weigh on it regularly. Even if its not exactly the same as the doctor's you will know how much you have lost since you last stepped on your scale. Also, your weight can vary due to Constipation, hydration, and time of day. Don't let it stress you out.

I would encourage you to talk to her. Become her friend. Once you get to know her a bit, then maybe you can share your story. It is great to get encouragement from others and helps to keep people motivated. I found that it also helps to keep me motivated because I want to show them how well I have done and that they can do it too.

You know, I'm thinking she may have already been there in the past, who knows, maybe she does this more often than we know! I'm glad she's doing it, and if I were there, I would befriend her, and, over time, tell her MY story....can lead to something wonderful!!!!!

During the first week, it took me most of the day to drink 1 shake. I was lucky if I could get in 2. By day 10, I could do 2 on a regular basis. I never got to more than that. Week 3 I started with purees and would get 2 shakes and maybe half a yogurt over the course of the day.

I think my husband is jealous.

I think my husband is jealous.

You should be fine, but stop cheating now. It will only make the process harder. You need to avoid fat and sugar in order to shrink your liver. It is important to shrink your liver before surgery. It has to be moved out of the way and it becomes very fragile when enlarged.

I think my husband is jealous.

Doc said to keep them on for at least a week and if they came off before that to cover with a bandaid.

So I am just over 5 weeks post-op. I am now permitted to eat most foods. I can have moist meats, cooked vegetables (w/o skin) and even Pasta. I have been able to tolerate everything that I have tried. Starting weight 295. Surgery Weight 263. Today's weight 235. I have lost 60 pounds in 7 months and 28 since surgery. I would like to be losing a little faster, but the time will come.
This week, I have been asked to go out to lunch twice, dinner once, and to the bar on another night. I will go to all 4 and just have to monitor what I eat/drink. i even went to 2 baseball games this week. Its funny how socializing often takes place around food. I am not finding it difficult at this point to order off a menu, unless I go somewhere that is mostly bread and pizza. Most places have Soup and grilled chicken. I have even gotten used to not drinking with my meals.
I feel great. My jeans that were no where close to fitting prior to surgery are now getting to be too big. I need to put a new notch on my belt to keep my pants up. My bra feels so much better. The seat belt fits and I have several inches of space between my stomach and the steering wheel. I even went to my first massage, and didn't feel self conscience at all. I sound better when I sing. Everyone I see tells me how thin I am getting. It definitely does something to my self-esteem. I never had a problem being overweight. I was fine with it and was a pretty happy person. I am happier since surgery.
I didn't take my measurements before surgery, but I sure wish that I had. I started taking them last week and will record them weekly from now on.
If you are having second thoughts or struggling, I just encourage you to stay positive and look towards all the greatness that will come from this surgery. It is work, but you can do it.

So I am just over 5 weeks post-op. I am now permitted to eat most foods. I can have moist meats, cooked vegetables (w/o skin) and even Pasta. I have been able to tolerate everything that I have tried. Starting weight 295. Surgery Weight 263. Today's weight 235. I have lost 60 pounds in 7 months and 28 since surgery. I would like to be losing a little faster, but the time will come.
This week, I have been asked to go out to lunch twice, dinner once, and to the bar on another night. I will go to all 4 and just have to monitor what I eat/drink. i even went to 2 baseball games this week. Its funny how socializing often takes place around food. I am not finding it difficult at this point to order off a menu, unless I go somewhere that is mostly bread and pizza. Most places have Soup and grilled chicken. I have even gotten used to not drinking with my meals.
I feel great. My jeans that were no where close to fitting prior to surgery are now getting to be too big. I need to put a new notch on my belt to keep my pants up. My bra feels so much better. The seat belt fits and I have several inches of space between my stomach and the steering wheel. I even went to my first massage, and didn't feel self conscience at all. I sound better when I sing. Everyone I see tells me how thin I am getting. It definitely does something to my self-esteem. I never had a problem being overweight. I was fine with it and was a pretty happy person. I am happier since surgery.
I didn't take my measurements before surgery, but I sure wish that I had. I started taking them last week and will record them weekly from now on.
If you are having second thoughts or struggling, I just encourage you to stay positive and look towards all the greatness that will come from this surgery. It is work, but you can do it.

You will be pretty out of it an won't need much. I brought my own personal products. The stuff they give you in the hospital is fine, but its nice to have your own stuff. Chapstick and lotion were also helpful. It gets very dry. I even brought a back scratcher, which was my best friend while I was in the hospital. I was itchy all over. Definitely bring the cell phone and charger.
Your wife will want to bring things to keep her occupied. You will sleep most of the time, so she will need to occupy herself. She may also want to bring some slippers and comfortable clothes. She won't look out of place on the floor and will be much more comfortable.

This is normal. They should have given you some meds for nausea. A heating pad may also help. Definitely make sure you are still getting up and walking. If you are having trouble keeping fluids, you may need to contact your surgeon. You don't want to have to be readmitted for dehydration.

You will be pretty out of it an won't need much. I brought my own personal products. The stuff they give you in the hospital is fine, but its nice to have your own stuff. Chapstick and lotion were also helpful. It gets very dry. I even brought a back scratcher, which was my best friend while I was in the hospital. I was itchy all over. Definitely bring the cell phone and charger.
Your wife will want to bring things to keep her occupied. You will sleep most of the time, so she will need to occupy herself. She may also want to bring some slippers and comfortable clothes. She won't look out of place on the floor and will be much more comfortable.

You will be pretty out of it an won't need much. I brought my own personal products. The stuff they give you in the hospital is fine, but its nice to have your own stuff. Chapstick and lotion were also helpful. It gets very dry. I even brought a back scratcher, which was my best friend while I was in the hospital. I was itchy all over. Definitely bring the cell phone and charger.
Your wife will want to bring things to keep her occupied. You will sleep most of the time, so she will need to occupy herself. She may also want to bring some slippers and comfortable clothes. She won't look out of place on the floor and will be much more comfortable.

You say you are getting 60-100g Protein. That is a large range. What is your specific goal? Mine is 100 g based on my starting BMI.
My understanding of my NUTs instructions and everything I have learned up to now is to only focus on reaching my Protein and Water goals. Especially so early out calories are a distraction. Those are the inputs I can and should control.

You will go into "starvation mode" if you keep up that level of exercise without increasing your calorie intake. You do NOT want to be burning more calories through exercising than you consume in a day. That is a form of anorexia called "Anorexia Athletica". You do need a daily deficit to lose weight, but most of that deficit should be coming from your basal metabolic rate, NOT additional exercise. Try to make sure you are at LEAST eating as many calories as you are burning through exercise.

It is up to the individual doctor and won't hurt you if you would like to do a diet based on high protein/low carb shakes. Many doctors vary their diet based on the BMI of the patient.
The goal is to shrink the liver. Stay away from fat and sugar and your should be fine.

We all have our own reasons for having weight loss surgery. For some of us, it's so that we can stop the progress of diabetes, heart disease and other obesity related illnesses. For others, it's because we are starting to feel pain in our knees, our backs, our feet. And of course, many of us want to look great in skinny jeans, in a bathing suit, a summer dress. (There is NO SHAME in the vanity aspect of WLS, who doesn't love an admiring glance, a great compliment, a quick head turn?)
Personally, I had WLS for all of the reasons above. Not only did I want to extend my life span, but I wanted to improve the quality of my life for myself and my family and I wanted to look and feel great for these prime years of my life. I really had no way of picking out a weight goal as I had been obese for decades and after two children and a few dozen years, I had no idea what 160, 150, 140 would look like any more. I chose to make my goal very Fluid, one of those "I'll know it when I get there" ideas, more focused on pants size than an actual weight.

The day of surgery, I did pick the number 159, which is still "overweight" according to the BMI scale, but that was a number that seemed so lofty and it was a number my doctor was thrilled with. When I hit that goal 9 or so months later, I decided that I'd really like to see 149 (WHAT!?!? UNDER 150!?!?!?!), a number that still alludes me to this day.
I often get messages from people asking me if I am unhappy that I've not reached that number and the answer is HELL NO. What I really imagined for myself was to be in pant sizes that were in the single digits, to be able to do a 5k with my kids, to eliminate all traces of pre-diabetes, to be able to shop in any store I chose. I've done all that and I've maintained it now for over a year. No only that, but I've maintained it without a whole lot of concerted effort -- something that amazes me every day.
I KNOW I could hit 149 -- my stretch goal -- if I worked at it. In fact, I think I could hit 139 and one day I might feel the need to, but I doubt it. I did not have WLS to live the rest of my life fully focused on every morsel that enters my mouth, counting, weighing, measuring obsessively. I still track, I still plan, I still log and measure much of the time, but I choose not to center every meal around my food log like I used to.
Why am I even bringing this up? Because I see some people here and elsewhere who I am scared for. I see a few members who are dipping dangerously close to the underweight end of the BMI scale. I see some people on other boards who are beating themselves up because their size 2s are tight. These people are oozing panic and anxiety over every gram of carb eaten and over every ounce of movement on the scale. Clearly they have traded one eating disorder for another and I fear for them. I also see people on the other end of the spectrum who think that because they've had this surgery, they are free to eat whatever they desire because their restriction will keep them in check and they are shocked when 6 months later they are up 30, 40, 50 pounds.

If you are just starting this journey or are midway through your weight loss, I'd love for you to write down your goals -- what's really important to you about this whole process. Revisit those thoughts as you get close to goal and write down what you feel really good about and where you feel you might be struggling. Use those thoughts to guide you when you feel your thoughts are going haywire and you might need a reality check. And seriously, do NOT listen to your friends, neighbors, family when they tell you that you are too fat, too thin (at 200 pounds, you are NOT too thin), need to lose more, gain some back, etc. Go to your doctor for that.

Keep your perspective in check. This whole process is a real mind fruck ( ) if you allow it to be.

I was thinking chicken broth and Unflavored. I am allergic to strawberries and chocolate.

Make sure you are eating slowly. You over eat most often when you eat quickly.

I made sure my laundry was done, my sheets were clean, and my house was generally clean. I also made sure that I had Protein Drinks, sugar free jello/popsicles, tea, broth, and some juice.< /p>