catwoman7

liquids go right through you. You'll feel the restriction once you start on solid foods.

I had RNY at age 55. Lost 100% of my excess weight (over 200 lbs). It was slower than average, yes, but I was very committed to my program and far exceeded my goal.

since the average weight loss is 60-70% of your excess weight, you've done very well!!

diet plans are the same for both surgeries, so there won't be more restrictions for bypass than there are for sleeve (and once you're out a ways, there are no restrictions. That's not to say you won't have intolerances to certain foods (you might - or you might not - and that would be the case with either surgery), but beyond the first few weeks or months, there aren't any restrictions since you have a sensitive stomach, I don't think either surgery is going to be better or worse. Don't forget that they remove 80% of your stomach with sleeve, so as far as your stomach goes, either surgery is going to be traumatic since they cut into it (or in the case of bypass, staple it off) diarrhea isn't common with bypass. The opposite, constipation, is very common with both surgeries. I wouldn't worry about urgent diarrhea. You hear about that more with the DS, which you are not considering. It's not that it never happens with bypass or sleeve, but it's not very common.

rate of weight loss varies so much between people depending on so many factors that it's pointless to compare yourself to others. I was a slow loser, and I started at almost 400 lbs. People who start at a low BMI (for a WLS patient) are pretty much ALWAYS slow losers. What was your starting BMI? if you're following your program and keeping active, that's pretty much all you can do. You can't control your gender, age, metabolic rate, genetics, starting BMI, etc - and those will all influence your rate of weight loss. If you stick to the plan, you WILL lose the weight, whether fast or slow.

I also slept most of the time I was in the hospital. My husband was there, but he was on his laptop most of the time since I was sleeping. It'll be great having your mom at home the first few days after the surgery - I think that's when you'll most appreciate her presence. You'll be much more alert - and she can help you with whatever needs to be done.

could be dehydration or caffeine/carb withdrawal. I had the same. You just have to white knuckle it and keep in mind that it's temporary. I remember being almost relieved the morning of surgery because the stupid liquid diet was finally over!! (or at least the pre-op one - post-op liquid diets are much easier!)

the one- to two-week liquid (mostly or totally liquid) is required by the surgeon. Although not all surgeons require them. the three- to six-month professionally supervised diet is required by many (but not all) insurance companies. With mine, the only requirement they had was that i meet with a doctor or dietitian once a month to discuss my diet. The dietitian I was working with put me on a 2200-calorie healthy diet, and we gradually changed things up so that eventually I was eating the way I would be eating post-surgery (well, at least after the fluid & puree stages). We gradually increased my protein and lowered my carbs, I gradually weaned myself off caffeine, added more fruits and vegetables, etc. I lost about 40 lbs on it.

ice cream turns to liquid pretty quickly in your stomach, so it goes right through you. So I'm not surprised you can eat a cup of it. I agree with the others - why are you eating ice cream now in the first place? If you're serious about losing weight, going about it that way isn't going to work. Get a plan from your surgeon or dietititan if you don't already have one and follow it. That's the only way this is going to work. People who start pushing the envelope right away after surgery usually end up failing.

actually, animal products, esp meat, have a lot more protein than vegetables. Or are you vegan? 65 mg of elemental iron is about what bypassers are supposed to get - not sure about sleevers. But be aware that different types of iron contain different amounts of elemental iron. Elemental iron is the part you actually absorb. Carbonyl iron is 100% elemental iron, meaning you absorb all of it. Some of the more common versions, like Ferrous Sulfate, have a much lower percentage of elemental iron. So it's hard to answer your question about the amount you're taking since it depends on if you mean elemental or not. Only 20% of ferrous sulfate is elemental, but 100% of carbonyl is (and there are other versions that have different percentages of elemental iron) - so the required mg is going to depend on which version you're taking. I'd ask your surgeon or dietitian how much you need.

yes. Very common. In fact, it's pretty common after most major surgeries. The trauma to your body really takes a lot out of you. I think I tired easily for the first couple of months - although it was definitely worse the first couple of weeks. It gradually got better and better

if you're into architecture, Chicago is world famous for early 20th century architecture. The Chicago Architectural Foundation has TONS of walking, bus, and boat tours. We've been on several - they've all been excellent. Art Institute is great if you're into art; Field Museum is great if you're into natural history. We also do a lot of just walking around when we're in Chicago (I live two hours from there, so we do weekends there several times a year). the Drake is pretty far north in the Loop - north of Loyola. The area around the Loyola campus is nice. But go beyond that and walk down Michigan Ave - so much there. we've been to so many restaurants, but I can't think of any one particular one to recommend - you'll stumble upon tons just walking around. We usually try to hit ethnic places, usually. Scoot over to some of the other streets that parallel Michigan Ave - there are lots of restaurants over there as well. You could always pick some cuisine and do a search on that. We've been to Colombian places, Argentine places, Turkish places, Middle Eastern places, Cajun places, pizza places, delis, so many.....they really have everything there. P.S. there's a Nutella Cafe on Michigan Ave. Might want to avoid that one! (it's great but...Nutella - you'll gain 10 lbs just walking in the door!)

that sounds pretty normal. I went more by calories -- I was eating 1000-1200 a day when I got to be about a year out. Since I hit maintenance (at 20 months out), I've been in the 1500-1700 range. a small plateful of food when you're over a year out is pretty normal. That's about what I eat now. No one would be able to tell I've had weight loss surgery at this point. I eat about as much as my never-been-obese women friends do who are watching their weight. if you aren't gaining weight, then I wouldn't worry about it.

yes. Carb and/or caffeine withdrawal.

not a cookbook, but check out "The World According to Eggface" blog. She's a long-time bariatric patient who loves cooking. She also has lots of recipes on there for all stages.

yes - ob/gyns are usually considered primary care providers (ob/gyns, internal medicine, and family practice physicians are all considered primary care)

you're fine - and I ditto what Tracyringo said - your surgeon is an ass. I lost 16 lbs the first month and 12 lbs the second month, so we're kind of in the same ballpark - and I started out at well over 300 lbs. I'm also older - I had surgery at age 55. Age can definitely make a difference. It sounds like you're doing all you can do. Just keep up with it. I was a slow loser from the get-go, and I lost over 200 lbs. Took awhile, but I was very committed to my program and I did it. And if you continue to follow your program regardless of what that insensitive jerk says, you'll be successful, too.

having "buyer's remorse" sometime during the first month post-op is pretty common on top of that, you said you'd had binge eating disorder, so you're also dealing with an addiction withdrawal, too. and on top of THAT, the rapid weight loss can screw up your hormone balance in the early weeks (it'll eventually stabilize again), so that could be going on as well.. so - in short - a lot to deal with. Do you have a therapist - or if not, are you willing to get one? A lot of us have used them for a variety of reasons and have found them helpful.

RNY here. No regrets whatsoever. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Should have done it years ago.

I was pretty much 100% the first year. Now - not so much. Yes I occasionally have a cookie. But I was super committed that first year.

when I realized I probably wouldn't live to see my 60th birthday if I didn't get all that weight off pronto. I'd tried and tried and tried for decades (I had surgery at age 55). I always, always, always regained it. I was just spinning my wheels. So even though I kept telling myself I could do it on my own, realistically, I couldn't. I'd tried. Hundreds of times. I knew surgery was my only choice. And I'm SO GLAD I did it!!

I was eating around 800 calories a day at that point. 500 is very low for that far out - most people only eat that the first month post-op. And no, you will not gain weight on that. You'd likely still lose even at 1000 cal a day. Yes, your weight loss may slow down a little, but you're still going to lose - and at this point, I'd be more worried about your health than I would losing slightly faster/slower.

happens to the vast majority of us. If you do a search on "the three week stall" on this site, you'll find something like 17,000 posts on it And no, I am NOT kidding. just stick to your program and stay off your scale for a few days. It'll eventually break and you'll be on your way again...

yes - it's fine. I was pretty sensitive to spicy food the first few weeks (fortunately, that didn't last long as I love spicy food!), but as long as you can tolerate whatever seasonings you use, they're fine

I'd go to the ER as well. It's hard to tell what that is - bleeding ulcer, maybe? I don't know - but I'd certainly get in somewhere to have it checked out.