catwoman7

I haven't taken aspirin or ibuprofen since I had surgery 7.5 years ago, but the PA at my clinic said taking a dose or two once in a great while for something that Tylenol wasn't doing anything for should be fine. They just don't want us taking NSAIDs as our regular pain reliever, since they can cause ulcers.

25 lbs in six weeks is actually really good. I didn't lose that much until the end of month 2, and mine was a virgin surgery. as far as losing more, some people do lose quite a bit of weight with a revision, but it's more difficult and a lot slower than it was the first time around. Someone (maybe on here? I can't remember) once explained that it's likely due to fact that you went from a large stomach to a small stomach during surgery #1 - and now you're just going from small to small, so the loss will be a lot slower going. It kind of made sense.

they're both good surgeries and you'll find people on here who have been very successful with both (and also some not-so-successful with both - but that is usually due to bad habits sneaking back in - so you have to really watch that!) as others have said, both have their pros and cons. There are some health conditions that would make one or the other more appropriate for you, but barring that, it really comes down to personal preference. I went with the bypass because, like jeanniebug, I had GERD before I had surgery. There's a decent risk of that getting worse with the sleeve (although it's certainly not inevitable). Some people are willing to take that risk; I was not - so I went with bypass. I've been very happy with my bypass and would choose it again if I had to make the decision today.

I've heard of this before - and I've heard some of the meds they have now are more effective than they used to be. Not sure what I'd do - but if you and your surgeon think they'd help, it could be worth a try. But then, that's totally up to you.

oh wow - no wonder you were feeling like crap! That is A LOT of stuff! I'm so sorry to hear this - I hope all of that is fixable or at least treatable!

Honestly, the thing that keeps me here is that I never, ever want to be morbidly obese again. NEVER! Everything is so much better now! I don't know that I'd say it's necessarily difficult, but I know I will have to monitor my weight and my eating for the rest of my life so the pounds don't creep up.

I had a desk job (I'm retired now). I took three weeks off but could have gone back after two. With working from home, you may not even need that much time - although like St77 said, it tends to be an individual thing.

there aren't many surgeons who are placing lapbands these days because there were so many complications with them. A lot of people have had them removed and have had the sleeve or bypass done instead. I suppose there are some still out there who might place a lapband, but it might be hard to find one who does. The lapband has largely been replaced by the sleeve as the non-RNY option. You might want to chat with a bariatric surgeon - let him/her know your concerns and see what they recommend. If the person you talk to doesn't work with lapbands anymore and that's what you really want, they may know of someone who still works with those. Or they may reassure you about your revision options. At any rate, it'd be good to talk to a specialist about all of this.

I was going to say the same thing - it sounds like the infamous "three week stall" (most of us have our first major stall within the first month or so after surgery - it's usually the third week (hence the name), but not always. Sometimes it's the second or fourth week (and occasionally even a little later). The best thing to do is make sure you're following your plan to a "T", and stay off the scale for a few days if you have to. Stalls usually last 1-3 weeks, although occasionally they'll last a little longer. But it WILL break as long as you stick to your plan. as far as exercising, you might want to check with your clinic for their recommendations. I was allowed to walk (and ENCOURAGED to walk) right away. I was cleared to do most other exercise ( other than weights) at about a month out. I was able to do weights at eight weeks out, I think.

I'm too far out from surgery to remember, but as far as soup goes, liquids go right through you - so I wouldn't be super concerned about being able to handle 1.5 C of soup.

I've heard that as a rule of thumb, but it's not true for everyone. I'd lost 40 lbs at 12 weeks, and 129 lbs at the year mark (so in other words, an addition 89 lbs). and no, I wasn't done losing at the year mark, but my weight loss was pretty slow after that mark. I didn't quit losing until I was 20 months out.

I'm not on those (or any, really) medications, but lots of us had bypass after menopause, me included. I have no problem taking pills - although like Alex said, there's a chance you may have to adjust your dosages after surgery. Have a conversation with your surgeon and rheumatologist about this (as Alex recommended). I've had no trouble maintaining my vitamin levels. You do have to really keep on top of your supplements, though, because the consequences of "slacking off" on taking them are greater with the bypass than they are with the sleeve.

since you're a size 18 (although I don't know how tall you are), you may or may not lose that much boobage. Most of us who've lost a ton of weight (100+ lbs) end up deflated there. Some people have breast augmentations. I hated being "well-endowed", so I had a breast lift and reduction. I wanted to be a "B" cup - or "C" at the most. Now I've got it!

most of us who aren't the size of the people on "My 600 lb Life" seem to lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month. Of course, you'll always find exceptions to that, but that seems to be about average - so you're on the higher end of that. I started out more than 100 lbs heavier than you, and I *only* lost 16 lbs the first month. So you are doing very well!

the last 20 lbs are a BEAR to get off. Soon after year 1, I was losing around 2 lb a month, even though I was working pretty hard at it. I don't know if any diet programs are going to any more successful at taking the last 20 lbs off quickly, because the fact is, you are likely eating A LOT fewer calories now than you were when you started. I've gained 10 lbs this year, and am working like a demon to get it off. But I'm losing a measly 1/2 lb or so a week (so same as when I was trying to get the last 20 lbs off after my bypass surgery). Reason being - back when I weighed over 300 lbs, it took 3000 (or maybe even more) calories to maintain that weight. Right now, at 160-ish lbs, it takes about 1600 calories to maintain my weight. To lose a lb a week, you have to cut 500 calories a day (or burn up 500 calories a day - which is A LOT of exercise!). To lose 2 lbs a week means cutting 1000 calories a day. That would put me at 1100 kcal/day if I wanted to lose 1/2 lb a week, and 600 kcal/day if I wanted to lose 2 lbs a week. Ah...not happening ( and also not healthy - the only people who should be eating 600 kcal/day should be under medical monitoring, like we were in the early weeks and months after WLS). On the flip side, when I was eating 3000 kcal a day at my highest weight, I could have easily found 1000 or even 1500 calories a day to cut and still been eating at a healthy level (I'm not saying it's easy - dieting never is - but at 3000 calories, it's very feasible to cut 1000 or 1500 calories - not so when you're only averaging (and maintaining on) 1600 cal/day). So by cutting 1000-1500 calories/day, that averages out to about 2-3 lbs a week. But again, cutting that many calories NOW would be impossible for me. long way of saying - it's hard to get those last few pounds off because there are only so many calories you can cut and still remain healthy. I've said this before, but back when I weighed over 300 lbs, I'd mentally roll my eyes at these barely overweight women at Weight Watchers meetings who'd moan and complain about how hard it was to lose 10 lbs. "Ha!", I would think, "try losing 200 lbs!". Now I totally get it... I'm not saying don't try. Your efforts WILL work. But your weekly losses will be in ounces now, not pounds.

as Arabesque said, rate of weight loss is dependent on numerous factors, only a couple of which you much (if any) control over, which are: 1) how closely you stick to your program and 2) your activity level. If you do well with those, the weight will come off, whether fast or slow. If your overall trend is down, then you're golden. I just checked and I'd lost about 32 lbs by then, but my starting weight was lower than yours, plus I don't know your gender, age, activity level, how much muscle you have (the more muscular, the more calories you burn, even at rest), etc. So again as Arabesque said, you can't really compare yourself to others....there's just too many factors at play. Again, if your overall weight trend is down, then you're fine. I think 45 lbs down sounds great, actually.

strictures are pretty rare with sleeve (about 5% of bypass patients get them - not sure of the percentage of sleevers, but suffice it say, although not unheard of, it's very uncommon). I didn't have sleeve (I had bypass), but the PA at my clinic said we could probably handle any pill that was the size of a pencil eraser, or smaller. He was right. I was able to swallow all pills except for two as soon as I got home from the hospital. One of them was split-able. The other one the PA said I could wait on for a couple of weeks, so I did - at the end of that period, I was able to swallow it.

I don't think it matters that much whether you lose the weight slowly or quickly. That skin was stretched out to cover whatever your heaviest weight was, and once it's stretched out, it's not likely to bounce back. If you're young and not very overweight (maybe 20 or 30 lbs), it could snap back, but at the weight most of us start at, you'll probably have at least *some* loose skin. I'd follow my program and not try to eat more just for fear of loose skin. You want to lose all the weight you can, while still remaining healthy. This is your one opportunity in your lifetime when you have a chance to lose a massive amount of weight with a lot less effort than it took before surgery (granted, it does take effort, but the surgery really helps it along!) I lost over 200 lbs, and I had a TON of loose skin (have since had it removed). Honestly, no one knew it was there except for me and my husband . For most of us, it's pretty easy to hide in clothes. I think I'm speaking on behalf of most/all of the "vets" here who've had to deal with loose skin - we'd take the loose skin any day of the week over being morbidly obese again. ANY DAY!

^^^ I agree with everything NovaLuna wrote

yes - it's a lifelong challenge. I have to work at it all the time to keep the weight from coming back!

I can't remember when I first had it (I'm several years out), but since you were able to handle rare seared tuna the other day, you can probably handle sashimi, too

I just use the free version of MyFitnessPal.

it's mostly likely from the IV fluids they gave you in the hospital. It's basically salt water, which a lot of people retain. I've heard of people leaving the hospital weighing up to 10 lbs more than when they went in! It does take a few days to work it's way out of your system, so hang on. You should start dropping weight very soon. as for protein shakes, I never had trouble with drinking things from day 1. I was worried about it because we were told we'd only be able to drink a little at a time, but the PA at my clinic told me not to worry about it - that my stomach would tell me if I was drinking too fast or too much.

I think that's pretty common. I always freak out before a major surgery - I think of all the things that could possibly happen. But they've always gone well!

you'll be on a liquid diet for a couple of weeks, so you won't burst your pouch. And at some point you'll be able to drink water normally again - so no worries! Glad to hear everything went well!