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catwoman7

Gastric Bypass Patients
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Everything posted by catwoman7

  1. catwoman7

    Struggling to stop losing

    you can always increase calories to gain weight (or to stop a loss), but keep In mind that a vast majority of us experience a 10-20 lb bounce back regain around year 3. You might want to factor that in. I purposely went below my goal just in case I had a rebound (and I did...actually closer to 30 lbs for me...).
  2. I agree with the others who said it's most likely because you just had major surgery. Your body needs time to rest and heal. It'll get better and better. I was probably close to two months out before I felt like my old self, but it does get better every day. After the first three weeks or so, I wasn't exhausted all the time.
  3. catwoman7

    Post-Op Congestions

    I agree with ShoppGirl. That sounds unrelated to your surgery.
  4. I wouldn't jump ahead. They have these food progressions for a reason. You'll be able to have other things soon enough - and at some point, all food restrictions will be lifted. I know it's hard, but just hang in there..
  5. catwoman7

    So...it's happening!

    I must be in the minority - I didn't mind the puree stage at all - especially after a few weeks (before and after surgery) of just drinking fluids! It was great to eat real food - even if it was pureed. I remember eating a lot of Greek yogurt, hummus, refried beans - I also pureed spanakopita (which I made without the phyllo) a couple of times, as I recall (I must have added something to get it going in the blender - some milk, maybe? Can't remember). I had surgery at age 55 (that was nine years ago) but fortunately, unlike summerseeker, I didn't deal with any hormone issues. I did have off and on "buyer's remorse" the first two or three weeks, though ("what in the hell did I just do?" "Why could have I tried dieting one last time?"). All that will pass and you'll be so glad you did it. p.s. I used my blender a lot during the puree stage. I already had a standard-sized one, but I ordered one that had both a standard-sized pitcher and a small pitcher, since I figured I'd use the small one a lot more (and I did). I think it's a lot easier nowadays to find small blenders. But like someone else said, you can always order one afterward, too.
  6. catwoman7

    Strongly struggling

    just to add one more thing to the mix - eggs can be an issue for a lot of people early out (although it's almost always temporary). A lot of us just can't tolerate them for the first few weeks or months (they went down fine for me - but I know that's not the case with a lot of people) personally, I'd just follow your clinic's guidelines. You're still healing, and also, this is your big opportunity to lose a crap ton of weight really quickly. I know it's hard - I often had to put myself to bed early because the cravings were overwhelming (this was mostly after my sense of hunger came back, though), but I soldiered through it. Most of all, I wanted to my normal-sized more than anything else in the world, so I just dealt with it. But yea - I know it's hard..
  7. catwoman7

    Doubts about plastic surgery

    I've had a lower body lift, breast lift, arm lift, torsoplasty, face lift, and neck lift. It's expensive and some of the recovery was painful (esp the lower body lift), but I'm still glad I did it. It's been several years, but I don't remember the arm lift as being particularly painful (well, at least not compared to the lower body lift!), but I do remember it being pretty inconvenient not being able to reach for things for while I was healing. Also, scarring tends to be worse on arm lifts than on other procedures, I think because the skin is thinner there than in some other areas and there's a lot of tension there because we use our arms so much, and they move in so many directions. I do have visible scars there, whereas I can't even see my scars anymore on my breast lift (you can on my Lower body lift, but it's below my underwear line). However, I'd have to hold my arms up in the air for anyone else to see them, like if I was doing that "YMCA" dance, and how often do I do that? Not often. So it's not a huge issue. anyway, yes, I do understand your feelings. For me it was more the money issue that bothered me. Plastic surgery is really expensive. But I now have a normal-looking body, which I didn't before, so there's that..
  8. catwoman7

    6-10 Week Out Restriction Feeling

    your doctor was talking about a stricture. About 5% of bypass patients get those (sleeve people can also get them, but it's a lot less common with them). It's been nine years for me, but I don't remember if I felt super full or not. I just remember feeling really nauseated or like I had GERD after eating, and after a while, I couldn't keep any food down - it'd all come back up. I had one at four weeks out and another around eight weeks out (they almost always occur between 1-3 months post op - very rare after that). It's an easy fix if that's what it is. They can stretch it out with this balloon-like thing when they do the upper endoscopy. It's quick and painless - and you'll feel A LOT better afterward.
  9. catwoman7

    Sadi is so lonely

    the malabsorption from it also helps - you won't absorb all the calories you eat (or the nutrients, either, so keeping on top of your supplements will be more important than ever..). I know some people with the DS get really gassy (and sometimes get loose stools) if they eat too many carbs - not sure if that's an issue with the SADI or not.
  10. catwoman7

    Sadi is so lonely

    like the DS, it's not a common surgery - but in addition, it's also fairly new - which is probably why you haven't seen much about it. It supposedly as fewer complications than the DS (although it's sort of a new-fangled version of it)
  11. catwoman7

    Sleeve Veteran researching revision to SADI

    there have been people on here who had the SADI (some might still be on here). It's sort of an altered, new-fangled version of the DS. There would be more potential complications with that than with the RNY or VSG, because it's a more complicated surgery, but on the other hand, I think that like the others, major complications aren't that common. And like with all the WLS surgeries, you'll hear about horror stories because people are much more likely to post when they have problems than if everything is hunky-dory. It's because they're usually looking for support or advice. one thing to think about is that regular (PCP) physicians are all pretty familiar with the RNY and sleeve since they're so common, but you might come across some who aren't familiar with the SADI - so if you have issues in the future, you MAY have to see a specialist, but then that might not be a big deal for you. On the plus side, people tend to lose more weight (and maintain their loss more easily) with that one than the sleeve and RNY, so there's that.
  12. I think that's actually pretty rare. I think I've only heard about feeding tubes maybe two or three times in the nine years I've been on this site (and I don't remember if they were for revisions or "virgin" surgeries)
  13. catwoman7

    Weight loss stall

    there are 17,501 posts here on Bariatric Pal about the infamous "three-week stall" (it often strikes the third week after surgery, but not always - it can be the second week - or fourth - or fifth - but in any event, it hits most of us very soon after surgery. And no, I am NOT kidding about there being 17,501 posts on it. Here they are: https://www.bariatricpal.com/search/?q=three-week stall best thing to do is just make sure you're following your program - and then stay off the scale for a few days. As long as you're following your program, the stall WILL break. It usually takes 1-3 weeks. And just so you know, this is likely the first of many stalls..
  14. catwoman7

    Down Time

    I took three weeks off but could have gone back after two. I know a few people who were back at work after a week, though. If you have a desk job, unless you're having a hard time recovering, you'll probably be able to go back earlier than someone who has a really active job, so yes, the type of job is a factor..
  15. catwoman7

    The insanity of American health insurance

    yea - I once accidentally got an invoice for $120K for all my plastic surgery. I called them. I told them I already paid for the surgery, I had to pre-pay since it was self-payed, and that it was $28K. They apologized for the error and explained the $120K was the insurance cost, if insurance would have covered it (and I'm sure the insurance company would have negotiated a discount so the total went down to close to what I paid for it). I don't get it, either.. (P.S. if you were self-pay, it probably would have been more like the $13K or whatever you mentioned. I think the hospitals and the insurance companies always do this crazy dance with the highly-inflated numbers and discounts, although I have no clue why they do this)
  16. catwoman7

    HELP!!!

    1) you're experiencing the extremely common "three-week stall". Happens to most of us within the first month or so of surgery, usually (but not always) the 3rd week, hence, the name. It typically lasts 1-3 weeks before breaking 2) the gain is almost certainly water or very full intestines. Give it a couple of days and it should be gone.
  17. catwoman7

    Are these okay?

    You're seven months out, correct? One of those could have been a meal on MY program at that point - although I can't speak for yours.
  18. catwoman7

    50 and over crowd?

    I had surgery at age 55. No issues. I was a slow loser, but I don't know if that was related to my age or not. Some younger people lose slowly, too. That said, I lost 100% of my excess weight, over 200 lbs. So no, it was no problem at all.
  19. it was probably 3 or 4 months for me, but I started out at over 300 lbs. It was probably more like five months before a LOT of people started noticing. But then at that weight, I just looked huge no matter what - people wouldn't necessarily notice a 40 or 50 lb difference (plus I also wore baggy clothes at that weight, so that probably factored in, too)
  20. I recall having some unusual pain, too - but not severe. As BabySpoons said, I think it had to do with everything re-aligning after a substantial weight loss. Fortunately, though, it was temporary.
  21. catwoman7

    Stalled for 2 weeks ( slow loser)

    stalling is a very normal part of weight loss. Most people lose weight in a "stair step" pattern. The best thing to do is make doubly sure you're following your plan to a "T" and stay off the scale for a few days. Maybe just weigh yourself once a week until it breaks. And as long as you're following your plan, it WILL break. Your body just has to stop and recalibrate once in awhile.
  22. catwoman7

    Low calorie diet vs VSG

    I don't know about not losing weight AT ALL with a low calorie diet, but for most of us, the pattern before weight loss surgery was that we'd lose weight but then gain it all back within a few months. It's because you're fighting biology. Your hunger hormones, your gut biome - everything is fighting against you to get back to your previous weight. Weight loss surgery resets a lot of that. That's not to say you won't gain it all back. Some people let bad habits slip back in and take over. But as long as you watch that, the loss is "maintainable".
  23. catwoman7

    Liquids

    I met both of mine pretty much right away, but I know a lot of people struggle with this the first three or four weeks. Getting your liquid goals are the more important of the two since being dehydrated can land you back in the hospital. One thing I've done for a long time is to drink 16 oz of water every morning as soon as I get out of bed - before I eat breakfast, drink coffee, or whatever. Even doing 8 oz right off the bat might help..
  24. catwoman7

    Deciding between bypass & sleeve

    they're both good surgeries. There are some health conditions that would make one surgery more appropriate than the other for you, though. Your surgeon will - or should - let you know their thoughts - but if they say you're a good candidate for either, then it really comes down to personal preference. I had the bypass and love it - and I would make the same decision today. I went with bypass because I had GERD prior to surgery. My surgeon said that although he'd do either surgery, he'd recommend that I least consider the bypass because of my past GERD. The risk of my GERD getting worse with the sleeve was about 30%, and it wasn't worth the risk to me. Another reason was that when I had surgery nine years ago, the sleeve hadn't been done as a standalone surgery for very long - it was just then overtaking the lap band as the non-RNY option. I didn't really want to go with something that didn't yet have a proven track record or much research behind it. However, at this point, the sleeve has been around long enough that I'd no longer have that particular concern, but I'd still go with bypass in my case because of my prior GERD.
  25. 10 lbs a month is pretty normal, and so is 40 lbs in three months. Unless you're the size of someone on "My 600 lb Life", you need to adjust your expectations or you're going to be disappointed. I was about where you are at that point, and I went on to lose over 200 lbs. that said, you're eating way more than I was at that juncture...and I wasn't eating things like pizza and chips that early out, either. Maybe all of your activity is burning this off, but I'd be really careful and try to stick to the eating plan your clinic gave you. This is your big chance to lose a crap ton of weight - so take advantage of it!! Once your sense of hunger comes roaring back, it's going to get A LOT harder. P.S. the women at your Tuesday Talks are only partly right. People will typically lose 10 lbs a month for a few months, but it really slows down the closer you get to normal weight. I lost about 10 lbs a month for the first six or seven months, then it dropped down to somewhere around five lbs, give or take, and then after I passed the year mark, there were some months I only lost about 2 lbs, despite sticking to my eating plan 100%. It's because at some point what you take in and what it takes to run your body reaches equilibrium.

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