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hockeyfan7

Gastric Sleeve Patients
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Everything posted by hockeyfan7

  1. I had a band removed and sleeve done in the same surgery on June 1st. I had morphine twice the first day in the hospital. The second day I had a dose of liquid Vicodan but that was for a major headache I had. I said I had a really bad headache and that's what they gave me. I had nothing after that. No pain at all from the incisions - just soreness. I did have a major gas bubble in my left shoulder in the hospital but it finally went away.
  2. I didn't have any pain with the surgery. I had a major headache from caffeine withdrawal and my left shoulder was super painful from the gas. And they took away my arthritis medication and my knees still hurt badly. But the actual surgery spots not at all. I had morphine twice and the liquid Vicodan once in the 3 days I was in the hospital. I didn't take anything once I got home. I now have this big bottle of liquid Vicodan I didn't use at all.
  3. I wrote a letter outlining my weight loss attempts and my PCP signed it. I used WW too. She hadn't supervised it, but she knew I was doing it so she signed the letter.
  4. Please understand that every surgeon is different and every surgeon's plan is different. I did not have a liquid pre-op diet. I had a low carb, 1000 calories a day diet of just lean Proteins and non-starchy veggies for 3 weeks. My surgeon has been doing bariatric surgery for years, has a ton of them under his belt, and is part of a Bariatric Center of Excellence. I had a revision from band to sleeve which he says is different from straight sleeve too in what you will feel with restriction and what you will be able to eat to start with. I would advise your husband to follow what his surgeon says.
  5. Babbs, yes it is on my plan already. The surgical practice I went to which is part of the COE in the town where I live and the NUT start people on solids between day 10 and day 14. There really isn't a soft foods stage unless you are having trouble with liquids. Starting day 10 the plan paperwork they gave me is lean Proteins to get in 80 to 100 grams a day and non-starchy veggies. I can use light or fat free salad dressing, mayo, etc. Every surgeon is different and every plan is different. I had a 3 day hospital day and I've seen posts from people who went home in 24 hours. I had a drain during the hospital stay and I've seen posts where some people don't. I also have a slightly larger than normal sleeve my surgeon said because I was a band to sleeve revision in one surgery. He didn't take off quite as much as he normally would so I wouldn't have a risk of leaks.
  6. I wasn't allowed to leave the hospital unless I could keep down Protein shakes. Day of surgery I got nothing at all. Day 2 I got ice chips and Water after my leak test. Day 3 I got Protein shakes and once I could prove I could drink them I got to go home.
  7. hockeyfan7

    Gummy vitamins!?

    I take gummy B12. I'm 4 weeks out. Sometimes I take a gummy multi-Vitamin but usually I use Flinstones Complete chewables.
  8. hockeyfan7

    Calories intake

    I'm 4 weeks out and at 1,000 calories a day too. Saw my surgeon 2 days ago and he said that was perfectly fine as long as the calories are coming from lean Protein and non-starchy veggies. He said it's not so much the calories but making sure you are hitting the protein goals. Different lean Proteins have different calorie counts.
  9. hockeyfan7

    Help carb over load.

    I like the deli meat and cheese rollups but I add some light chive and onion cream cheese. I find that helps me feel full. Just that little bit of fat helps the Protein in making me not hungry.
  10. In 3 years with the band I lost a total of 80 pounds. And then it stopped and I started having major problems eating and vomiting all the time. In not quite 4 weeks with the sleeve I've lost 21 pounds. I'm rarely hungry to where my stomach is growling and I want to eat. I keep around 1,000 calories a day with the lean Proteins and non-starchy veggies and if I really want to eat something, my NUT says to just get some more veggies. I know I didn't get fat eating salad.
  11. hockeyfan7

    Lap band conversion to ?

    I had my band removed and the sleeve done all in one surgery too. It took about 2-2/12 hours. I'm in this for life so I'm not expecting the weight to all fall off the first 2-3 months.
  12. I am three weeks out from surgery. And yes I can eat regular food without any problems and eat 1000 calories a day easily. A meal is 5 oz of Protein and a salad no problem. I do have a nutritionist but she's on vacation. I'm thinking I got a bigger stomach after the surgery. I have had zero problems with eating anything and I can chug a glass of Water easily too with no problems. I see my surgeon next week. I'm not eating crap food - I'm eating lean protein and veggies but I can still eat more than I should be able to at this point.I think MANY conversion folks feel that way. I know I did. This "I can only sip 2oz of water and I feel like I am drowning " never happened to me. There are as many after surgery diets as there are doctors. Everyone thinks their doc is the most right. But if none of them agree then my thought is there is no scientific answer and they are all GUESSING. SO, just be aware of that when people start judging you and what your doc has you doing. MOST people on here mean well, and they may come off as being harsh but they are providing helpful information along the way and they do care. Others are just food shaming and do nothing other than that...not actually offering any usefulness in their post. Ignore those ones and try not to let it get to you. Most docs do not have people on solids at 3 weeks but I have read the post diets from 3 different hospitals who do. So I am not totally suprised. That being said. It still hurts for me to eat meat. But that is me. If you are 3 weeks out and able to eat 1000 calories of solid food then you might benefit from a 5 day pouch test. You can look it up online but pretty much go back to liquids for a couple days, then mushies, softs, then regular food again. Some people say that helps them get some better restriction. Eating solids...and too much solid too soon and put stress on your staple line. I have also read that it can cause you to stretch out a but more...making it hard to fill up. I don't know how much of that is "bro science " and how much of that is proven science but it can't hurt to do a reset and see how you feel. Also, when you are eating normal food. Make sure you are not drinking with or too soon after. Conversion surgery people already seem to have their food make its way into the lower gi a little faster so don't speed that process up. Eat slow, BUT don't eat so slow that it takes you more than 20 min. I wad doing this very thing!!! I wad taking about 45 min to eat...and could eat a lot. But I sped up just a little bit and started stopping after 20 min and I am filling up on less calories. 1000 calories can add up fast. And really...in the long run....it is what we should eventually be eating. The idea that we live on 500 calories a day for ever is absurd. The point of this honeymoon phase is to help you lose weight WHILE retraining your system to eat healthy. NO ONE GETS FAT ON 1000 CALORIES A DAY OF VEGETABLES AND chicken....unless you are 2. So.... Hang in there. ..listen to your body....and just keep making good choices. Much love!!! Thanks! I saw my surgeon 2 days ago for my post-op follow up and he said he took off about 70% instead of the usual 80% because of the band. He didn't want leaks. He also said that 1,000 calories a day is fine and not to worry about what the NUT says. He said they are more used to dealing with straight sleevers and not revisions. He said revisions can sometimes eat more and I'm doing fine. He told me to just stick to Proteins and hit the goal and then fill in with the non-starchy veggies and not to worry about it. My surgeon's normal plan is for people to start solids between day 10 and day 14 depending on how they feel. Lean proteins and non-starchy veggies. He keeps reminding me every time I see him not to eat mashed potatoes. I hate, loathe and despise mashed potatoes. I told him I'd rather eat canned cat food - at least it has protein.
  13. Are you doing strength training? That will build muscle which is denser than fat. And does the number on the scale really matter if you are in a small in clothing? Are you happy with the way you look?
  14. Everyone is different for sure. I'm 4 weeks out and easily getting 1,000 calories a day in Protein and veggies. My dietician says it's too high and my surgeon says it's just fine and not to listen to the dietician because I'm a band to sleeve revision. He said that's going to be different from a straight sleeve.
  15. hockeyfan7

    Medicine

    My surgeon told me yesterday no NSAIDs. He said maybe in a year or two but not right now. It can damage the stomach. He took away my Voltaren for my arthritis and it's killing me. The arthritis pain is way worse than the surgery pain. Knee shots on Monday!
  16. My surgeon allows solid foods at day 10 if you are tolerating liquids well. Lean Proteins of any kind plus green Beans, summer squash and zucchini. I'm on week 4 and saw him yesterday. He told me any lean Protein and any non-starchy veggies were fine now. He also said not to worry about the calories - just stick to the food plan, avoid carbs except from non-starchy veggies. He told me that the dieticians are more used to working with direct sleeve patients and it's a little different for people like me that revised from band to sleeve. I eat around 1,000 calories a day and he said that's fine.
  17. hockeyfan7

    So weak after surgery

    Yes, yes, yes. The first week after surgery was exhausting. I had to sit on the bed for 10 minutes after showering and had to sit on a chair to do my makeup and dry my hair. The second week was a little better but I was not able to work a full day and I work from home as a full time teleworker. I was able to work from about 10-4 and then I had to take a nap. Week 3 I was still pretty tired. This is week 4 and I'm STILL feeling it. My surgeon said the effects of the anesthesia can be felt as long as 3 months after surgery. He said just keep eating the Protein requirements and hydrating and it will get better. I had a catheter and I had the same thing with peeing. It took about 2 weeks to go away.
  18. hockeyfan7

    Follow up visits

    I had surgery 4 weeks ago and I have a regular appointment with my PCP in September. So I'm just going to wait until then. I saw the surgeon yesterday and I'm seeing him again in 6 weeks. Plus I saw the dietician and will see her again mid-July. That's good enough for me.
  19. hockeyfan7

    Chewing question

    I'm 4 weeks out and I have not had to be quite as careful with chewing like with the band. I was throwing up everything with the band even melted ice cream. I cut my food into toddler size pieces to make sure the bites are tiny. I haven't thrown up once since surgery and had no nausea in 4 weeks.
  20. hockeyfan7

    Lap band conversion to ?

    I chose to revise to the sleeve instead of the bypass because the malabsorption issue was one I didn't want to deal with. My surgeon told me yesterday he took off about 70% of my stomach instead of the normal 80% - he left more so that where my band was and where my esophagus met the stomach I wouldn't be prone to getting a leak. The weight loss may be slower but for me, slow and steady wins the race and I just didn't feel right about the bypass for me personally.
  21. I work from home as a full time teleworker and I still took 90% of a week off. I did check e-mail and respond to some text messages. But I was so exhausted all the time that I slept a lot. The second week I didn't work a full week. I was working about 10 am to 4 pm each day. Week 3 was much better and week 4 is feeling good now.
  22. hockeyfan7

    Did everyone have a drain?

    I had a drain after surgery - my surgeon says he does them. The nurse emptied it every 2 hours and measured how much was coming out. My surgeon also requires a 2 day hospital stay for the sleeve and the bypass. The nurse removed the drain when I went home. The incision where the drain was is the one that actually hurt - the others never really did. 4 weeks later it's still a tiny bit sore but it's pretty much healed up.
  23. I was banded in 2012 and lost about 80 lbs. But it got to the point where no matter how little or how much fill was in the band I would throw up everything I was supposed to eat. The only things that would stay down were Ritz crackers and ice cream. You don't lose weight on that. I had the band removed and the sleeve done 22 days ago. I'm sorry I didn't do the sleeve to start with. I would also get stabbing pains where the port was - the surgeon says that it was rubbing on a nerve most likely. And I hated getting that needle in my stomach.
  24. I think the first one I did was the Scarsdale Diet. I also did the Cabbage Soup diet. I did Weight Watchers for the first time way back in the days when you had to eat liver each week for the Iron and mayo was not allowed so they suggested you mix tuna and mustard. I hate both tuna and mustard. I took the diet pills you could buy in the drug store. I had good success on Atkins - I lost 145 lbs - but then it got to where I was only eating one meal a day and I stopped doing it. I did keep off 100 pounds of that though and it's been 15 years now. Jenny Craig Center asked me to leave when I kept arguing with them about having to buy their Vitamins. I wanted to know what was in them that made them better than what I could get at the drug store. I kept insisting there must be something in there they didn't want me to know about.
  25. hockeyfan7

    Lapband or Sleeve

    I had a hiatal hernia repair at the same time I had my band done. 3 years later I just revised to the sleeve and didn't have any problems with having had the previous hernia surgery. Good luck and I hope you get good news.

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