JennsJourney

I'm finally seeing a difference in my body! I'm 3 months post-op as of today and I'm down 74 lbs. I'm staring to feel "normal" again and I'm loving it. I took a picture this weekend and was finally able to see some of my progress. We have to Celebrate all along the way!

I just have to share because I'm finally seeing a difference in my body! I'm 3 months post-op and I have lost 74 lbs. I took a picture this weekend and finally could see a big difference. YAY for little victories and a place to share it where others understand completely!

Have you tried all of the usual tricks for getting in your Water? Mio or Crystal Lite? Experimenting with temperature? Drinking tea or coffee instead of plain Water?

5-6 bites is VERY undescriptive, since everyone takes different size bites. Can you translate that to grams or ounces for us since you say you are logging all your food? What does your typical day of food look like?

I have tried all the water tricks. The thing that best works for me is PowerAid Zero and I have just discovered unsweet ice tea is working well. But plain water still makes me a little nauseous. I'm just so tired of poweraid and drinking all the time, though!

And you are right...we all eat different size bites. I'm able to get in about 2 - 2.5 oz of meat and about 1 oz of vegetables at a time. I can get up to 6 oz of food if it is something like Soup though. I take small bites, chew super well and put my fork down and wait between bites.

In a few days I'll be 2 months post-op and I'm having a terrible time getting in all my liquids and Protein.

I can only eat about 5-6 bites at any meal and I only eat things low in fat and high in Protein. I make sure I wait at least 30 min after I eat to start drinking again. I also start drinking first thing in the morning and continue sipping (I take my YETI cup with me EVERYWHERE) all day.

But I just feel sooooo full (which I am grateful I can feel my restriction) but I'm only getting around 700 calories a day, about 40 oz of liquid a day and about 40-50 (if I'm lucky) of protein a day. But some days, my tummy is just rumbling and I can't take in much at all. I diligently record everything I eat and drink and I am walking about 3 miles a day. But today I started a workout class and I almost fainted because I just don't think I had enough nutrients in my system.

I know I'm chronically dehydrated but my doctor just says to "keep trying". And I TRULY am but if any of you have some tricks up your sleeve, I would love to try them! TIA

NSVs have been my motivating force the last few weeks! Here are some of mine:

1. I was able to comfortably cross my legs at church yesterday!!!!! YAY!

2. I was able to wear my wedding rings for the first time in 2 yrs.

3. I actually went to a work out class today at a local gym and didn't die! lol

4. I actually look forward to doing things more physical or being outside whereas before my surgery I would stay on my couch.

Celebrating these victories is so important! Congrats to all you!

I know this question probably sounds like I'm back in grade school but now that I'm meal prepping, I need a good lunch box to take to work with me. I know some have compartments, some have Portion Control, some are more insulated. There are just so many to choose from, that I'm a little lost.

I would so appreciate if you all would share the ones you love and even post a picture if you have one! (Also, if you have a link to where to buy it, that would be even better.)

Thanks for helping me with this journey!

Someone gave me a package of the WonderSlim sour cream and onion snack O's. I'm really picky so I did not think I would like them but wow was I wrong! They have 12 g of Protein and the carbs are quiet low as well. They really help when I'm having a chip craving.

They are great to throw in your bag and eat when you need a Protein boost.

Hope you enjoy them too! (And there are other flavors and snack ideas on their website)

http://www.wonderslim.com/wonderslim-protein-diet-snacks-snackos-sourcream.html

Yes! It happened at about the 3rd week for me, too. It is probably nothing, but you really need to call your doctor to see if there is a possibility that you have developed a stricture or ulcer.

I had to have an Upper GI (most places seem to do an upper endoscopy, which I would have preferred) and that showed that things were in fact "hanging up" just before entering my pouch, but that there was not a stricture or anything serious. For some reason, things were just taking a long time to move from the bottom of my esophagus into my pouch. But boy, that "hanging up" time was miserable! Pacing the house in agony, retching violently, trying not to panic.

Eventually it got better (I'm 3 months out now) but in the meantime, here's how I coped, in case it is of any help to you:

- Take pills only when standing up.

- Tilt chin up slightly when taking pills, so that esophagus is kind of in a "straight" line.

- Take only one pill at a time, with a small bite of soft but sticky food (toast or a saltine worked best), and wash down with a small sip of Water (doctor said it was okay to do food and Water together for this purpose).

As soon as I could, I switched to PatchMD Vitamin Patches. They have been a godsend in that I don't have to take any Vitamins at all now. However, I haven't had any bloodwork yet so I can't tell you if they actually work. They actually cost less than most bariatric Vitamins which surprised me.

Good luck to you!

I had never heard of PatchMD! Thanks for that tip. I'll look into it. I also relieved to know it wasn't just me who couldn't get down the vitamins.

I started taking my chewable multi-Vitamins a few days after surgery as I was instructed by my doctor. (Along with my Vitamin D, B and Calcium) They all went down fine even during the 2 weeks of nausea following surgery. My doctor had me on 3 weeks of full liquids and then I began adding in soft foods.

The food went down well but then a couple of hours later, I chewed up my Multi-Vitamin and within 1 minutes I had a violent reaction and all I had time to do was grab my trash can! I then switched to a different chewable Vitamin and again, as soon as it hit my stomach, I was slumped over my toilet.

After that I stopped taking my Multivitamin but still felt terribly nauseated and could not eat or drink almost anything for several days. My doctor told me to go off all my Vitamins except B12 and the nausea has gone away. But I know I need my vitamins but definitely don't want to go through the throwing up stage again!

Anyone else experience this??? TIA

(I'm 5 weeks post-op)

I'm 4 weeks post-op and feel the same way about water! I'm having a terrible time getting in my 64 oz but what I have found whether it is Poweraid Zero or flavored Water (I still can't do plain water) that if I add ice and have it REALLY cold...it goes down MUCH better.

So try ice, it may help.

This absolutely happened to me at this same time and I even wrote a post on here too. I'm now 4 weeks post op and just now starting to see the scale move again. In my 2-3 week period I would gain a lb, loose a lb and it was so frustrating. So, I understand. But give it a week or two and you will see it start dropping again!

I'm 42 lbs down (including my pre-op diet loss) so it does get better!

After my 3 weeks of liquids, I began soft foods. I was doing great. No nausea and I was getting in most of my Protein and fluids each day.

The foods went down well but then I took my Multi-Vitamin (which I had been taking for weeks with no issue) and it caused a violent vommiting reaction. It came out of no where and all I could do was grab my trash can. 2 days after that I tried another MV and the same thing happened. Since then (that all happened last week) I have been constantly nauseous and can only get down about 20 oz of liquid and about 10-20 grams of protein a day.

I know I'm dehydrated and only getting a couple hundred calories a day has left me so tired. I work full time so this can't continue. Any advice would be much appreciated!

UPDATE!

When I did start eating solid foods, I can ABSOLUTELY feel my restriction! I could get 6 oz of broth down but on solids, I'm only able to get down 1-2 oz right now. And my hunger has also gone away. I do feel some discomfort sometimes but nothing like I did when on all liquids. if any of you had my experience, please be encouraged because when you get to solids, it will completely change.

Thanks for everyone who gave me encouragement!

I'm 2 weeks post-op and the diet my doctor gave me said that I should only be ingesting 1-2 oz of liquid at a time for the first 3 weeks. I have read many forums where people state that they are never hungry and that makes me feel like a failure because I AM HUNGRY! I take 2 antacids a day so I know it is not that.

At this point, I can consume 5-6 oz of liquid (with no discomfort) over about a 20 min period. That is almost 3x what I'm supposed to get but I don't feel any kind of restriction. I'm so afraid this surgery is not going to work!

I think my weight loss has been acceptable. I'm down 18 lbs since surgery 33 lbs total. But I'm still terrified that when I start eating real food, I won't feel my restriction and I"m just going to start gaining.

Any help or insight would be appreciated!