Renkoss

Gastritis is simply an inflammation of your gastric system. Obviously something really irritated your system. I would stick to eating a bland diet for now. It may take a few weeks to a month to help improve your system. I would also look into a probiotic in the meantime. Hope all gets better soon for you.

I've been able to do Ahi Tuna steaks (medium rare), tuna fish, Walleye (fresh from Lake Erie!), shrimp. I am thinking most seafood is okay with me. Chicken I have to take very small bites and shred and chew chew chew, otherwise it has a tendency to get "stuck" for some reason. I've done loose ground meat with no problem. I haven't tried steak at all yet. I've done some pulled pork and that was okay as well. I'm not a huge chicken eater to begin with, so it doesn't surprise me that it has been the most difficult so far.

chicken is a funny one for me; sometimes I can eat 2 oz and other times 1/2 oz before being full. I'm beginning to move to regular foods now, and I'm still testing the waters. It amazes me how such a small amount of food can make me feel full. My daughter and I went to Red Lobster for dinner one night while out shopping. She ordered crab legs dinner and I asked her to add a skewer of shrimp to her meal, and I just ordered a cup of Soup. I ate just about half the soup, and 2 shrimp and I was done. I had the rest for lunch the next day. Just really amazes me. I'm certainly not complaining though!

You are a much better person than I would be given the circumstances. Why are you being so "nice" to this man? He obviously wants you to be miserable, and he obviously doesn't care. Why should you? Go get your stuff like everyone else has said, I would contact the landlord and update him on the situation as well. BE done with this already! You don't need all this stress. He is not in control; you are! Let him see that! If he still feels like he is controlling you, he gets all the satisfaction he needs. Obviously he couldn't control your decision to have WLS, don't let him have control over any part of your life from here on out!

Ditto on the sweating thing. One of my wishes for after surgery was that I wouldn't be so hot all the time. Was so tired of sweating all the time! Literally the first night home after surgery, I woke up in the middle of the night and was freezing! Freezing to the point of teeth chattering, shaking too. Had to grab another blanket! Since that night, I don't sweat nearly as much as I used to. Now the only time I really sweat is when I'm actually active and working hard. That's the way it should be!!!

Definitely not TMI! I totally understand where you are coming from. Even after being married for 26 years, I'm still very self conscious of my body and all its lumps and bumps. My husband accepts me for who I am, but I've always been rather shy where my body is concerned. My husband has lost over 80 lbs in the last 4-5 years, and his body has certainly changed as well, but we accept those changes lovingly with each other, and being comfortable in your own skin is so very important. Live on Dub!!!

Cervidae, you look absolutely marvelous!!! Keep going! You are gorgeous!

Okay. I'll post it here. sugar free BBQ Sauce: Ingredients: 2 strips of thick bacon, chopped fine (or see note) 1 small onion, minced 1 clove garlic, minced or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1 small can (6 oz) tomato paste 1 can (12 oz) diet (sugar-free) cola - Splenda sweetened preferred** 1/4 cup low carb ketchup (sugar-free or low sugar) (or see note) 3 Tblsp Mustard (I use either a spicy or dijon mustard) 1 Tblsp Worcestershire sauce 1 pinch ground clove Hot sauce to taste Preparation: Note 1: If you prefer to leave the bacon out, add 1-3 tspns of liquid smoke, to taste, near the end of the cooking. Alternatively, add some smoky flavor using 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, or chipotle powder to taste Note 2: If you can't find low carb catsup, leave it out, but add about a tablespoon of vinegar and some sweetener, to taste (Heinz makes a less sugar catsup. I buy it at my local grocery store). 1. Fry the bacon in a saucepan - a 2 qt pan works well. 2. Add the onion and cook over medium until soft - 3-5 minutes. Add garlic at this point if using fresh and stir it for half a minute or so. 3. Add the rest of the ingredients, plus about 1/2 cup of Water. Stir well. 4. Simmer for 20-30 minutes. It will cook down a bit and flavors will combine. 5. Adjust the seasonings so you have the balance you want - you can add vinegar, artificial sweetener (liquid preferred), or hot sauce. (If it's too hot, adding more sweetener will tone it down). The recipe makes approximately 10 servings of 1/4 cup each. Each serving has almost 3.5 grams of carbohydrate plus 1 gram of Fiber. This recipe copied from Laura Dobson from About.com Low Carb Diets. This bbq sauce freezes well. You can play with the ingredients to make it unique to your taste. The way I make it is more sweet and savory (although I do not add any additional artificial sweetener than what is in the diet cola). Enjoy!!!!!

Many people have very rough 1st weeks. You are not alone. My experience wasn't horrible, so I really cannot relate to what you experienced. The nurses at the hospital were so attentive; sometimes too attentive! I just wanted to sleep and either the nurse or the assistant, or the phlebotomist, or a doctor, or housekeeping kept coming in my room all times during day and night. I couldn't wait to go home so I could get some sleep! I fortunately did not have horrible pain so I was only on pain meds for about 4 days. After that I just felt sore. My only advice is to force yourself to get up and walk at least 5 minutes every 2 hours, and to be sure you are sipping your fluids throughout the day and night. You will get to the pureed food stage soon enough, and you will find yourself really loving that food! We have all been where you are at, and yes it can be daunting. By the way, grilled PB sounds great. I'm also a huge PB lover. However, after surgery so far it just doesn't taste the same to me anymore. Perhaps this will change in due time, but right now it's a no go. I'm a little sad about that. Also the Protein shakes that tasted decent to me prior to surgery now don't. I don't understand why you have to use Bariatric Advantage? Try a different brand like Premier Protein Shakes. They taste pretty good and they have 30 grams of Protein per drink. Get 2 or 3 in a day you are set for your protein. Take care and hope things continue getting better for you. I'm 6 weeks out as of this Monday and feeling pretty good. I'm on soft foods and will probably be here a little while before moving to regular foods. I've had a few things that are regular foods, but trust me, I'm not pushing it because dumping syndrome is horrible!

It is approved for liquids phase of pre-op and post-op diet.

I think the problem here is you are inbetween sizes, and you can't win. The 22/24 size is too big, but the next size down, the 20, is still too snug. I get it. Right now my 18/20 size are getting big and baggy, but I'm still too full for 14/16. Ugh. I have a few different lower sizes I saved when I felt that I might get the WLS. Glad I did so I don't have to run out and find pants to wear. Have you considered some capri's (now that the weather is getting warmer) that are stretch waist? Those last a big longer than actual button and zip pants. Good Luck!

To those who say WLS is the "easy way out" needs to live an obese person's life with all the medical complications that go along with it for a few days. The would think differently. Also, it is by far not "easy" to go through 6-9 months pre-op preparation, the liquid diets, the surgery itself, and then the whole lifestyle/behavior changes that you face post-op. Do I feel better? You betcha. Would I do this again? Absolutely! My medical conditions that I were horrible prior to surgery are all correcting as I lose weight. Again, these people think it's easy to eat a couple tablespoons of food and stop? They need to try it. There is no "easy" about this.

Life of Blair, I have low carb recipes for pretty much any type of food; main dishes, side dishes, condiments (I have a killer sugar free low carb bbq sauce), Desserts, Breakfast foods. A group/forum I belonged to for diabetics who followed low carb eating had tons of recipes, and one member in particular was a wonderful chef who created these fabulous recipes for things like Cookies, cakes, pies, all low carb and sugar free!

I had my one month follow up with NUT today and asked about low carb Cookies. I have recipes that use almond flour or coconut flour. She said you wouldn't be able to eat many, but yes they would be fine. YEA! And yes Girl Scout cookies are small. I used to be able to eat a whole box at one sitting. I know that is gluttony, but well, I didn't get fat because I didn't eat right? Of course that was years ago prior to being diabetic and eating low carb.

Believe it or not, Tricare is really not much different than most healthcare plans. My husband is not military, but he works for the Federal Government. Our insurance is a federal based plan, and the requirements for WLS is still the same; a BMI over 40 and at least 2 commorbidities. My commorbidities are/were Type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, high cholesterol, metabolic syndrome, and a BMI of 49 I think? If you have no commorbidities, even if your BMI is over 40, you most likely will not qualify. Keep in mind as well that WLS is only a tool; you have to be committed to this lifestyle for the rest of your life. It isn't just a fad or something that will change 5 months down the road. You are altering your internal body forever. It is a huge change and not to be taken lightly. I fought for years against my doctors recommending that I have it done. My health issues got to the point that I had no other choice. I'm glad that I did it now, and wish I had listened years ago, but again, if I didn't think I could stick with it, I still wouldn't have done it. It took a while for myself to say YES, I need this now.

I did not know that about the Protein. Good to know! Glad someone asked that question!

I don't think that is a problem, but then again I'm not a NUT or a doctor. Maybe google it?

I'm so shocked that your food list for soft foods includes Melba Toast and crackers! I don't even think my list contains any type of breads, crackers, rice, Pasta. I did see that it says to avoid rice and bread, but isn't Melba Toast kind of like bread? I always thought it was. It even allows pasta in there. Wow. You have to follow what you feel is the right call. That's all I do. I follows what the guidelines tell me.

The first night home for me after surgery was different as well. I did the same thing in bed with pillows and blankets. I remember waking up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and I was absolutely freezing; shivering, teeth chattering, the whole shabang! I had to go get another blanket to put on me and then I was fine. That NEVER has happened to me before then! I've always been too hot and sweating. Since then I'm much cooler than I used to be, and I actually get cold now! That was one of the things I was hoping for after surgery! I am a stomach sleeper, so the first week in my own bed was a little difficult, but I managed with body pillows and blankets. It gets better as you heal.

I was told by NUT pre-op that I should do no more than 2 premier shakes at 30 grams each and then another shake with 20 grams or less (so between 60-80 grams Protein). I've maintained at least 60 grams since surgery. I remember the NUT telling me too much Protein could blow my kidney's out and we didn't want that to happen. So again, to each his own.

Do you really think you'd be able to eat more than just one cookie now? Perhaps that is all your stomach could handle now. I totally get that you don't want to even go there because it was a trigger food for you. I was only 2-1/2 weeks out from my surgery when my sister had a 30th birthday party for my nephew. I brought my lunch bag with me so I could bring a greek yogurt, some applesauce, and a couple other options that I was okay to eat. There was some fabulous food there, but I had to sit and look at all of it while the rest of the party goers were eating. I did okay. Was I envious? Absolutely! But, I got through it because I knew what would happen if I ate even a small nibble. Do I think I'll never ever be able to "taste" some of the stuff that was there again? No. And that is what I tell myself. You cannot have that now, but perhaps somewhere down the line a little taste will be okay. I may not even like it anymore. My tastes have changed so much since surgery.

Deleted this post because it was a repeated post. Sorry.

I did drink quite a bit of Gatorade in the hospital. I can say I was extremely thirsty, but not hungry. Being a diabetic, I was given G2 Gatorade (less calories and sugar). Had my choice of either orange or grape. Well after getting out of the hospital, I bought some G2 in Grape, and the orange could not find in G2 (even online. If I did find it, it was outrageously expensive). I drink the grape here and there, but suddenly I don't care for it anymore. It was the greatest thing since sliced bread in the hospital, and immediately after. Now that I'm 5 weeks out, not so much.

I find it interesting that most of you actually had a "tray" of food when in the hospital after WLS. I was not given a "tray" ever; I was in the hospital for 2-1/2 days and was just brought Gatorade, Water, and asked if I wanted a popsicle. No broth, no Jello, no Protein shakes were given. The diet while in the hospital was Clear liquids only. Just thought it was interesting, and to prove that depending on who and where you have surgery, the rules can be a bit different.

Ele Marie, I don't think any of those here believe you are not telling the truth on your diet plan given by your surgical team. You are correct in each doctor does have somewhat different rules, but I think the one that threw me was that it was okay if it takes you 3-4 days to drink one Protein shake. Again, typically protein is the main ingredient in what you should be concentrating at this point. And fluids of course. I know some people have a difficult time after surgery getting in the protein and fluids because they just are not hungry, and let's face it, if you force yourself to drink shakes or fluids it just makes you feel sick, and defeats the purpose of the surgery. If you are progressing, and you feel good, then things are okay. I would still check in with my team prior to your appointment June 1st.