Cervidae

I would highly recommend LifeWater! It tastes amazing, almost like juice, and there are many yummy flavors. My favorites are the fuji apple pear and the yumberry pomegranate. I would also suggest trying Water at different temperatures. Have you tried it reeeeally cold, like keeping water in the fridge and adding ice to that for some seriously cold water? Or maybe trying it warm/hot with lemon in it? How about drinking teas, or making miso or bone broth? These all count towards your water goal. Then of course there is always a chance that your tastes will change drastically after surgery. Who knows, maybe after surgery you'll love water! Regardless, I hope some of the suggestions here help. Good luck to you.

Caffeine can also increase your risk of ulcers, on top of being a diuretic. My doctor has the absolutely not stance on it, but I've seen some doctors allow it, probably because it's better than drinking pop or juice and a lot of people are dependent on caffeine to function. I would ask my doctor/nut.

The truth is that different surgeons have different experience levels, different opinions about what is best, different ideas about how best to approach surgery, etc. So many things are a factor in what the doctor's instructions will be, too; your starting weight, how much you've lost since you first started, how controlled your diet has been for that past several months, the type of surgery, your pre-existing health issues, whether or not you have blood sugar or blood pressure problems, whether you have fatty liver issues, the list goes on and on. I, for example, was nearly 400 pounds on the day of surgery and over 400 when I first started the program, but I had been logging my food for 7 months and had no fatty liver and no other health issues, so I was not required to have a preop diet other than to continue what I was doing and switch to Clear liquids two days before. A friend in the same program was only 250 when she started and she had a 3-week strict pre-op diet. The point is that in the end, what matters is following your surgeon's orders as closely as possible, because nothing he or she does is going to be for any reason other than to see you healthy and safe. Good luck! It does get easier! I didn't have a preop diet but I decided to do one on my own just to give myself the best head start I could, and it wasn't fun but it definitely did get easier. It's just practice for the coming weeks, months, and years.

@@karendoyle the good news is, I hear there are major updates coming to the app soon, so it's probably going to be far better and easier than the last time I tried to use it.

Welcome! I always prefer to use the site on my computer rather than the phone app, as the phone app has always been weirdly organized and buggy for me. You might find that a bit easier, if that's an option. Good to have you here.

@@MonicaEMT the first 6-7 months I was tired pretty much all the time because it took me a while to be able to get in the calories my body needed to function. Still, I had no complications or anything. Now I feel freaking amazing and I've lost almost 170 since surgery. I went a size 32 pants to a size 16 pants, and a size 3x-4x shirt to a large or xl shirt. Generally, this whole experience has been scary, difficult, tiring, confusing, and completely wonderful. It's been a whirlwind of change in such a short time, but all for the better.

I had a lifting restriction of ten pounds for the first... I want to say 6 weeks or so. It may have been 8 weeks. If you're still hurting by tomorrow, or it gets worse before then, I would contact a doctor. Hope you feel better!

Also, almost ANYTHING can be absorbed by the skin. That's why it's dangerous to touch cleaning products and so on, and why nicotine Patches and the like work so well. It's really all about the area on the body and the concentration of whatever is being absorbed. I have trouble with conflicting information in cases like this because I want to follow my nut's/doctor's advice and orders in every way I can but sometime's they are just wrong. Humans come in such a huge variety with different strengths and difficulties. Some people simply never absorb certain Vitamins, whether through pill form or in food, and some people go in for blood work and find that their Iron is sky high and they need to quit the supplement. It's hard to know exactly what is correct when we're such moving targets. Hope this all gets resolved soon.

@@HappilyEverAfter44 so sorry to hear about all of these complications! What horrible luck! I sincerely hope these issues are resolved soon, and you are able to move forward without the pain and frustration you've had to deal with thus far. I'm honestly completely amazed and impressed with your positive attitude after all of this! As for the Patches, they are recommended at my bariatric center of excellence. I've been using them for... maybe 6 months? And my blood work has been perfect. That being said, I do drink 1 or 2 shakes a day and the shakes contain a ton of Vitamins and nutrients, so it's possible that the amount I'm absorbing from the patches is small but enough to supplement the shakes. I'll be having blood work done again in a few weeks, and I'd be more than happy to check back in and let you know how it looks. When my center recommended them, they made sure to tell me to use them in an area with not a lot of subcutaneous fat, like an ankle, collar bone, shoulder, etc. I've never had any problems with them. Regardless, if they weren't working for you, I hope you find a suitable Multivitamin soon that does work. All that matters is your health and safety. Best of luck to you! You'll be in my thoughts. If there's anything I can do to help, or if you're just looking for someone to talk to, feel free to shoot me a message any time. Hope you feel better!

Man, I can relate so much to this. Two years ago, I was exactly where you are. I was even 22 at the time. I truly never believed that things could change, and I felt like I would NEVER be anywhere near where I want to be. I was over 400 pounds (probably closer to 500...) and everything just felt.. hopeless. The whole "how did this happen" thing was the first big thing I had to get over to move forward after my PCOS specialist suggested wls. In the end, it doesn't matter HOW it happened. We're just conditioned to hate ourselves for being fat. Especially us younger people who got very heavy. It's hard to watch everyone else starting their lives, looking and feeling beautiful and healthy, in the prime of their physical lives, while we huff and puff trying to walk across a room of up a flight of stairs. We see them, and see us, and of course we're going to feel bad. In my case, I even had to leave school because of my physical limitations and the huge anxiety and depression that came from those limitations. Now at almost a year post op, I look sort of "normal." My health is pretty perfect. I'm going back to school next month, I fit into average (though still a little plus size) clothing, and generally everything is vastly improved. My life is coming together, and I'm STILL struggling to forgive myself for mistakes that are long since over. The whole point in the end is how you fix it, and how things improve. Some people struggle with drug addictions or alcohol addiction, some people struggle with depression and anxiety so bad that it leaves their lives in shambles. We have our own struggles and our own addictions to contend with. No one becomes truly obese just because they like food or are lazy or something, contrary to popular belief. There is always some other physical, emotional, or physiological reason. Often all three. So recognize your struggles, create your goal, and just start heading that way. Forgive yourself for things that are over and can't change. Move forward into the life you want and become the person you dreamed you could be but never thought you could become. We're so young, and we're fixing this NOW. You have your entire life ahead of you, and if you work hard and learn to love yourself regardless of any mistakes you have made or will make, that life can be more amazing than you ever even dreamed. Not only that, but being healthy and happy is the best possible thing you can do for your babies. You deserve this, and so do they. Be easy on yourself. Move forward, always. One day at a time. <3

Hello! I had a bypass and I'm in NY, so I'm no help to you regarding your first few questions. But I did just want to say that someone is ALWAYS going to be saying that surgery is the easy way out, or the quick fix, etc. There are even people here on this forum who have surgery and still think that way... until a year or two goes by and they realize that it certainly is not in any way easy. The weight will drop quickly, and it will drop easily for the first year or so, give or take a few months. But anyone who isn't willing or able to make the huge lifestyle changes required for success is going to have the same thing happening: regain. Most people here have been trying so hard for most of their lives to lose weight without success, or with fleeting success. The surgery is just a tool to kickstart the loss and give you the chance to drastically change your habits as well as to help "reset" your metabolism. So it's not only not easy, but it's not actually a fix! It is, however, the best chance we've got at losing the weight for good and becoming healthy. In the end, regardless of the rampant misconceptions and judgments of ignorant people who don't understand the medical reasons behind surgery, that's what matters. You deserve health and happiness. Also, the whole "easy way out" thing has always really bugged me. Even if it were the easy way out (it isn't), why in the world wouldn't people with a legitimate disease take the easiest course of treatment for their disease?! That's like saying to a cancer patient, "well, they could try to excise your cancer, but you want to take the easy way out and do chemo instead, and I have a right to judge you about it." Ridiculous. You know what you need to be successful, and I want you to remember that going forward. Making this kind of life-altering decision is not without its risks when it comes to telling family and friends. Some people lose friends and even spouses during this journey. It's sad and frustrating that people are so ignorant, but this time has to be about you and your health. You've got this! Good luck to you. Feel free to friend me or message me any time if I can help at all.

Congrats! August 11 will be almost a year post-op for me. Exciting times ahead! Good luck to you!

From what I've observed over the last year here, this is common and normal. I never dropped that much that quickly but I see it happen all the time. It definitely won't continue to be that rapid, but right now you're losing fat and Water weight and that adds up very quickly. Good luck to you! Take good care of yourself.

I do more cooking and less, in a way. I used to cook fast/easy/horrible meals for myself (like ramen noodles) frequently. Now I cook one big meal that lasts me several days, and then my shakes and Snacks like cottage cheese and so on are pretty easy to prepare and involved no cooking. In some ways, I spend a lot less time in the kitchen now. I sort of prefer it that way. Turns out I am actually a great cook though! Who knew?

For me, finding my amazing surgeon and bariatric center was sheer dumb luck! I moved here with my boyfriend 2.5 years ago, saw my PCOS specialist for a little over a year (during which time we tried a lot and I still struggled to lose even a little weight despite being on their rigorous program). It was she who suggested looking into wls, and it took me another few months to quit being stubborn and afraid to take the leap I knew deep down could save my life and change everything. Then one night something just sort of clicked, and I did a quick google search for surgeons in my area who do it, and to my amazement, there's a center of excellence literally right around the corner. If there weren't trees in the way, I could see it from my living room window. There are three surgeons in the bariatric program at Highland, the hospital, so I read their little blurbs, and the female of the group just looked and seemed to me to be someone I would trust. I follow my instincts very often, and they never let me down. I went to her seminar last January, and the rest is history. My surgeon, my nutritionist, my support group, and every member of their staff from the nurses and PAs down to the custodian I always say hi to have all been nothing but supportive and kind, and completely amazing at their jobs. I attribute much of my success to their amazing guidance.

I had a few favorites: - turkey or chicken chili from Trader Joe's pureed. - refried Beans pureed with cottage cheese and a tiny bit of hotsauce or taco sauce - for my sweet go-to, pumpkin pureed with cottage cheese or greek yogurt and apple pie/pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon. That one felt like I was eating something naughty but was actually super good for me! - canned white meat chicken pureed with a bit of mozz cheese and broth or creamed Soup and spices like cumin, garlic, and curry.

I wait half an hour after eating to drink, and half an hour after drinking to eat. 1-2 ounces of something like chicken I would measure in weight. I also measure cheese in weight. Half a cup of, say, cottage cheese or refried Beans I would measure in size.

my program called for no more then half a cup for each meal, and at three months, I frequently couldn't get that much in at once. Sometimes I could easily get in half a cup and wanted more, but I would just wait 30 minutes and drink Water or milk or a shake, and that would satisfy the feeling. I was usually only able to eat 1-2 ounces of heavier food like chicken at once.

I had the same problem, and I think I moved back to my bed VERY carefully at about 10 days post op. Hope you feel better soon! It gets easier every day, hang in there.

Yes! That reminds me of how annoyed I was last night watching old episodes of Skin Tight. "I lost 140 pounds the NATURAL way" said one of the people on the show, and the two younger plastic surgeons were like "OMG GOOD JOB that's so much more rewarding and that's the best way to do it!" And were fawning all over her. I wish I could roll my eyes so much more, but if I did it any harder they would pop out of the sockets and fly off into space.

I really like how this was an August 2015 thread and it's now an August 2016 thread.

Yeah that might be something else. Though I went through a phase like that too around 3-5 months. My doctors chalked it up to all the hormone imbalances that happen with rapid weight loss. Makes sense, but didn't make me feel better or help me sleep at all. It did pass!

Woo! Good luck to you. Also, nice name.

Yep! Though I now think that it's because my body simply doesn't need as much sleep. I'm still tired sometimes but really it's when I don't get all my calories in. But before, I used to need like 9-10 hours minimum to feel rested, now I wake up y myself after 6-8 hours.