ebwinslo

I am with you on this! From reading these forums I honestly thought that the surgery would 1) not hurt that badly 2) would decrease my cravings. NOPE. WRONG. First of all, I woke up from surgery and immediately started dry heaving because I was in so much pain. I had to beg my nurse to find my doctor and get me stronger meds STAT. Even after I got those, it was still 2 weeks of intense pain, a week of moderate pain, then a week of minimal pain. At 5 weeks out I can now say that I don't have any pain. But, having said that, I still feel very weak (probably because I don't eat that many calories). In terms of cravings it has been quite a journey. Immediately after surgery and for the first 4 weeks I was experiencing intense cravings. I was wanting things that I could not have- I managed to buckle down and power through. Now that I am no longer on all liquids or pureed, I have a chance to eat some of the normal food that I have been craving and I am trying to get most of my nutrients through food. Finally, with the transition to soft foods my cravings have disappeared. I am not sure why! I think it is because every meal is now a battle (I take a few bites and no longer want to eat) and occasionally (and sometimes inexplicably) feel bad afterwards. Eating is no longer fun for me and my body/mind is starting to notice. That was not an immediate change but has been a gradual pavlovian one. My point is that even though you had cravings right after the surgery it could change. Also, people who have not had surgery should set their expectations correctly. I do not regret anything- pain is temporary and food does not HAVE to be fun. But, I wish that my expectations had been set correctly.

I am 3 weeks post op and have been using the patches! I love how easy it is. I just have to supplement with Vitamin B1. Having said that, I have not had my blood tests yet. I will know pretty soon whether it has been working!

I was also in lots of pain until just a few weeks ago! (I am 3 weeks post op). Remember, EVERY single day gets better. Every single one.

It is a daily 12 hour release patch. I put it on in the morning and take it off before bed. I use just one a day but PatchMD offers a variety of Patches... so technically you could wear 1 Multivitamin patch and one B12 patch (or whatever other patches you want/need).

Interesting! My doc says nothing about only eating when you are hungry (at the beginning) because of the protein requirements... Which is why I created a schedule to remind myself... I am really only feeling head hunger at this point, not body hunger. A tip for the vitamins- I just switched to PatchMD and I love it. 1 patch a day on my shoulder and I supplement it with B1 vitamins (but that is all!!) My doc is happy with it, too. We will obviously make any adjustments needed once I have my first blood tests, though. Bugby- I seem to be a slow learner too. The old habits are dying hard! Especially the one to eat and drink quickly. It requires constant monitoring at this point to slow down.I also wish my head hunger and sugar cravings had gone away with surgery like it did for others on these boards but apparently those are 2 things I will have to conquer on my own. Oh well, it is definitely worth it.

I am located in Columbia, SC. I am having gastric bypass surgery on 12/22!