kranky813

I know a lot of great advice has been given but I will give my 2 cents anyway. I am 5'7 - 5'8 (depends on the day) and my weight at surgery time was 236. So I was 3 to 4 inches taller and only 30 some pounds heavier than your aunt. I had surgery. It was an elective for me for the fact that I didn't have any co-morbidities (it was weird that I sort of prayed for them so my insurance would cover the surgery - but that's another story all together) My BMI was 35 to 36 at the time of surgery. Besides the age factor I feel like I am comparable to your Aunt in the other categories. I did this for me because I have yo-yoed all my life. I can lose the weight but not keep it off. They perform this type of surgeon on patients who have stomach cancer and are not overweight or obese. It is a relatively safe surgery and I wouldn't worry too much about her well being. This is not going to "harm" her in any way. Another piece of advice I will give you is that you are weighed before surgery. This gives everyone in the room the exact knowledge of what type and dosage of meds to give you so they don't over sedate you. I would rest easy, she is going to be fine.

Every doctor follows a different plan. I had one of the REALLY REALLY slow progressing ones: 2 weeks Clears 2 weeks Full Liquids 2 Weeks pureeds 2 weeks soft All Clear to eat what I want after those 8 weeks. I will say that when I did advance to full diet there isn't much that bothers me at all. I can eat chicken, steak, pork chops, Pasta, bread, raw veggies, etc... I stay very close to the healthy stuff an high Protein but I did try some pasta and bread. It went down and sat fine but knowing myself I need to stay away from it since it's a gateway food for me. Keep with what your surgeon says. They are the experts in your care not anyone on here.

Oh the dreaded stalls. I was stalled at 200 for 2 weeks. I seriously wanted to cry and thought that I would never be under 200 ever again. Then after 2 weeks I woke up on day and I was at 199. I was so grateful I almost cried. To make it even better the next day I weighed 195!! I have sat here for a few days now but I'm not complaining one bit. The stalls happen but they make up for them when the scale starts to move again. It's just your body trying to catch up. Weigh yourself once a week. Then, you wont freak out every day

I would call my surgeon to have it checked out but you can also try to alternate heat and ice and see if that helps,

@@ssourgirl How is your daughter doing? I've been thinking about her and hoping that things are getting better for you all.

My doctor said you gain from the bottom up and lose from the top down. It sort of fits how I am losing. My face, arms, back, and boobs are getting smaller. I don't see a difference in my tummy but my hubby said that it is smaller along with my butt. I know that doesn't help much but like the other posters have said you really can't help where you lose it.

@@Elode he texted her back saying, Yep, I know. LOL Love him

Also - Forgot to add - I went through the process for a year. I know another year seems like a long time to wait but honestly it is going to pass by no matter what. Why not have it pass by with a surgery date in mind instead of not having one. You can do this, we are here for your support.

I don't know about your program but my BMI was when I first started the program it wasn't what I was at when it came to surgery time. I would double check with the program to see if it still counts as the 41 BMI or the BMI when you submit everything to your insurance.

Breakfast is the WORST for me. Running around trying to get the kids ready to go is too time consuming. I grab a Lite Greek Yogurt with fruit for breakfast. 12g of Protein, 90 Calories, 9 Carbs. A little high on the carbs but I eat a lot of protein the rest of the day so I don't get a lot more carbs unless they are from veggies.

@@proudgrammy don't tell me that, I feel like I am already losing my mind! I don't know what I will do if my memory gets any worse!

Help Needed! I was following a thread a while ago about a mom who was posting about her daughter who had VSG. The daughter had a TON of complications and had been in and out of the hospital. Severe nausea and weakness were some of the big complaints. Just wanted to know of an update to see how the daughter was doing. Anyone remember the poster or thread name? Thanks!

@@mommy319 you will get there! I promise that you will!!

I am really starting to love these NSV's! They are the best ever! NSV 1: Went shopping yesterday because my work pants are too big (size 16) and ended up buying a size smaller (size 14)! The lady that works at the store said I could probably go down another size as well because if I continue to lose weight they will fit soon (size 12). I decided to stay with the 14 because the 12s were a little too snug for "work attire" - woop woop!! NSV 2: This is the best one yet! I had a funeral to attend to yesterday. A friends father passed away. Anyway afterwards I stopped at my husbands work (he works in a metal shop). He ended up not being there because he was out in the field working that day. Anyway his HR/Benefits person was the one to help me at the front desk. I just told her I was his wife and just dropped in to say hi, so it was no big deal. About 20 minutes after I left he called me and said that the HR/Benefits lady texted him and said, "You're wife is really HOT!!" I didn't believe him so I made him show me the text when he got home that night, it's true she really text him that. A little weird but it made my day! Some random lady I don't know telling my hubby how hot I am, hahaha.

LMAO Love this thread! I too am noticing that I don't have a lot of cushion to sit on anymore and I can't sit for too long or it hurts. My hubby looked at me last night and said I have a flat butt now.... um..... yeah, just what I wanted to hear.

@ isn't it such a great feeling! Now that the stall is over I am hopeful I will keep losing!!

Is it on the biggest incision? I had a lump under my largest incision and asked my doc about it. He said it's where they pulled my stomach out and it is going to be swollen and "lumpy" for a few weeks while it heals. If it's under a different one it could be just swollen tissue from where they put the scopes through. I wouldn't worry too much unless it bothers you. Also, and ulcer is inside of your stomach. You would know if you had one, it would hurt when ever you ate or drank something.

I am almost 8 weeks post op and have had 3 stalls so far. The longest one was just the past 2 weeks. They happen. Like the previous poster said - only weigh at MOST once a week. It will drive you crazy if you weigh yourself more than that. The stall will pass and when it does you will laugh at yourself for panicking and sigh a big sigh of relief. Trust me. I sighed today

Sigh of relief here, ONEderland found me last night. I had been struggling at 200 for about 2 weeks and last night it finally came. I was so excited and relieved I started singing We are the Champions but I changed the "We" to "I" LOL My husband and daughter thought I was going a little crazy. On another note, my co-worker looked at me today and told me that the pants I wore to work yesterday need to be retired. They looked like Zumbas because I have lost so much weight in my butt and thighs. It's great Tuesday folks!

In the beginning it is so difficult! I remember thinking I wasn't going to make it. Try some different temps of fluids. Some can handle warm/hot better and some can only handle ice cold or anywhere in between. One of the things that really helped me at first was Popsicles. It's not like taking a big drink but it's getting liquids in, try those. If you are still having issues - meaning you can't drink at all - you need to call your surgeon. Did they give you the little measuring cups to drink from? Set an alarm on your phone or download an app (I used AquaAlert) and have it go off every 7 minutes. Drink 1/2oz every 7 minutes until you get your liquids in. It's a pain in the butt and every time I would hear that alarm I would get a little irritated LOL but it worked.

At 6 weeks out my doc gave me the go ahead to eat what I wanted with the understanding that Steak, chicken and Bread might be an issue. (Hard to digest, etc...) I took things very carefully but found out I can eat whatever I want. I have had pork chops, shrimp, steak, chicken, rice, roast beef, turkey, eggs, cheese, really almost anything with no issue/complications. Obviously when he said eat what I wanted he meant "healthy" - just to clairify. I did have a french fry the other day because it looked so good. It didn't taste good at all. I mainly stick to the Protein because that is what I crave and it fills me up. pizza was good except I ate one tiny slice and only a tiny bit of crust. I scraped off the toppings. It's all trial an error for people. Just make sure to take it slow, measure EVERYTHING, and chew chew chew. You will find out what works and what doesn't.

Oh yeah, I took 5 weeks off because I was so weak and tired. Once you hit a month you will feel better, once you hit 6 weeks you will feel great! I am almost 8 weeks out and love life Give your body time to heal. It takes time. I wish I was one of the lucky ones who felt so good right after but I couldn't imagine going back to work after only a week.

The one thing that a lot of people don't know or think about is that you were getting 64oz and above prior to surgery because your food was filled with Water. Every time you ate a cracker or a piece of cake you were getting in your water. That is why you didn't have to pay close attention to it prior to surgery. Now that you are so limited to how much you can eat your water intake is very low. That is why you need to make sure you are getting in AT LEAST 64oz of water/fluid every day. Take it from someone who ended up in the hospital for dehydration... you do not want to get dehydrated. It is horrible!

The only things I could suggest would be to first talk to your doctor about your concerns. He/she may be able to offer some better advice. I had an IUD put into place about 6 years ago and haven't had a period since post op then it lasted about 2 weeks. It was very light and I didn't need to use anything Tampon/Pad for it. You could check into and IUD. Another suggestion would be to get a uterine ablation which is where they go in and burn off the uterine wall. This is also a form of sterilization so if you want to have children this would not be a good option. The last option if none of the above work would be to look into Depends Undergarments. My mother in law wears them and I did too after I had my daughter. They are made now to not be noticeable under pants and worked very well. And finally - I know it sucks now but think of it as a good sign. Your body is starting to respond to the Pre-op diet and get back to normal. It's not normal to not have a period without using some sort of birth control. This is a very good sign.

Well, hardest for me right now is drinking and exercising. I find it very hard to get in my 64oz of Fluid every single day. It has been a constant struggle for me. Easiest - Honestly right now it's eating the smaller portions. I thought I would have a difficult time with only eating 1/4 cup of food at each meal. It's actually pretty easy.