PorkChopExpress

It's so nice to finally get to sink your teeth into something though, isn't it?! I'm on week four, heading into week 5...and I'm on shredded cooked meats now. Next week will be whole pieces, grilled or whatever (although technically, I've already had that and it was just fine). Then one more week and I'm cleared to try "anything" and see how it goes. That will be nice. I feel like I have to be so specific right now, when I get groceries. I guess in some ways I will still have to be, staying away from fried things and a bunch of bread and Pasta type carbs, but I could go get some Kung Pao chicken at least! It is really weird, the portion sizes. A coworker chuckled the other day when he walked in on me in the kitchen eating my little 1/2 cup container of meat and potato. Kind of comical to see this big dude eating like that.

The time that it takes to go through the prerequisites is valuable. You will get an education about every aspect of the surgery and life after surgery, and it gives you a chance to really start tackling what you're taking on mentally, as well. The process is worth the time and energy you invest in it.

It's going to be physically impossible for you to consume too many calories, unless you literally eat every time your stomach empties, and drink Coke between meals. I am eating four meals a day now, with two 30g Protein scoops in crystal light, and I don't break 500 calories. Then with my 30 minutes of elliptical, I'm burning about 200 calories. So when my TDEE is around 3,300 calories and my total input is 500 calories, I'm not too worried. Trust me, get an app like MyFitnessPal and start programming in everything you consume, in the exact quantities. You will see that it would be phenomenally difficult for you to eat too many calories. You'd have to actually work at it. Just follow your surgeon and dietitian's recommendations and you're going to be fine. Just never touch any drinks with sugar in them, or carbonation! I think Hormel chili is great, very easy to begin with (and also good to mix with a flavorless Protein powder like Genepro). I also liked Trader Joe's turkey meatballs, with a bit of mashed potato. Very easy starter foods. And scrambled eggs! Don't forget those. Just chew everything until you could suck it through a straw, before you swallow it. Let it sit for a while before you take another bite, because it'll feel funny at first. Get used to the feeling, and pay attention to how your stomach fills up. Eventually you'll know exactly how much food it takes to fill your stomach and you can pre-package it, which is what I do. Works perfectly.

It could be that you've just gotten some inflammation happening in there, in which case it's a good idea to take a couple of days and go back to the liquid diet, maybe even clear liquid diet, to give it a chance to recover. Then see how it goes after that, gradually. And just make sure that everything you swallow is of a consistency that you could suck through a straw.

After the sleeve, you have the tool you needed to succeed - a smaller stomach. It seems like you'd have to actively work on it, to gain weight...what's your diet look like? Are you drinking soda? How many meals a day and how many calories? The surgery by itself is not what gets you to goal, it's also the mental part...the discipline of forming new habits and behaviors. Having another surgery probably isn't the answer, because you've already had one and regained weight, which tells me the issue is likely behavioral and nothing to do with the surgery or size of your stomach. That's just my feeling, based on what little info I have here.

I'm looking forward to getting my libido back, because the heavier I got, the more it vanished. It's been a real problem. I had been taking testosterone treatments to help with it, but I'm not right now as I lose this weight. I have read a lot of guys saying it comes roaring back when they reach a certain level of weight loss, so I'm looking forward to that day. But yeah, as you lose weight your blood flow improves, so it stands to reason.

When I say gradual, I mean you don't wake up after surgery and the weight is gone. It takes months for it to come off. You do have some time to adjust to the changes, even if it's relatively fast. I'm one month post-op and even though I'm losing a lot, I don't exactly feel like a new man and so I am able to get used to the changes because they're not immediate. It still takes time.

I've had three abdominal surgeries including the VSG so I'm an old hand at it. The best part about surgery is, you don't even know it happened. You wake up and it's been done Every time, I remember getting myself positioned on the operating table and they get my arms stretched out and BOOM...next thing I know, the nurses in the recovery room are saying my name and trying to wake me out of my drug-induced stupor. When the fog eventually clears, you start the process of recovering...and it doesn't take that long, if there are no complications. I was under the knife in the morning, and I was walking the halls of my recovery wing that evening, trying to work the gas out. The surgical gas is the worst part, and it usually takes me 3-4 days to get it all out. Actually...drinking was the hardest part for the first day or two. I didn't want to put anything in. But it gets easier...you just have to do your best. But to keep calm, just remind yourself that what you're doing is among the most common surgeries being performed today, and serious complications are extremely rare. By the seventh day after the surgery, I was ready to get back to work, no problem. Try not to worry about it. The surgery and recovery are actually not as hard as the mental war you will fight with your old self...because you'll heal up fast, but that battle will keep raging in some form, as you re-learn how to eat and how to think about food. Getting the surgery done is stepping across the threshold. When you wake up, you will have achieved a major victory for yourself and the journey begins in earnest...and you'll be right there with the rest of us, marching forward to our new, healthier future. Congratulations on taking this step, and just focus on making the most of it. Follow the doctor's instructions and you will do great

I was told to expect this after surgery, but that it would resolve over time and that the hair would actually come back even better and healthier. You have just undergone a total overhaul in your diet, so it's to be expected that a few adjustments and changes are going to happen. But as I understand it, this passes and it's not anything to worry too much about. If you're actually getting 60g of Protein, you're in the window for a female - you should be between 50-70g/day. Guys are supposed to be 70-90g/day. Make sure you're getting your Water too, that's important. But I would say just give it time, because my surgeon and dietitian warned all patients of this possibility, prior to surgery. But you could always go in and see about a blood test, to see if you're having any deficiencies that the Vitamins aren't addressing.

Well, the change doesn't happen overnight. It's faster than if you tried to do it on your own, but it's still gradual. You have time to adjust a bit, as the weight comes off. I have never known a day, since elementary school, where my weight wasn't an issue and I didn't have to endure comments about it. I am looking forward to a day when that is never an issue for me again...I never have to hear another snide remark, passive-aggressive comment, hairy look or rude response, due to my weight or size.

Great! Yeah, that stuff is very versatile, even if it's a touch pricey. I guess you get what you pay for!

It's a big change for your husband to absorb, as well. The thing is, weight loss surgery has been the end of a lot of relationships, so the fact that your husband is still with you is testament to how much he loves and cares for you. Aesthetics fade over the years, you know? Our looks fade, our skin wrinkles and starts to sag, but love is a decision you make to care more for someone else than yourself...and I'm sure your husband is thrilled that you took control over your health, even if he may miss a curve here or there. He will get used to the new normal, over time. You've been together a really long time, he was used to a different body. Try not to worry too much, the guy obviously loves his wife My wife is shooting for next summer for surgery, and is already talking about what she wants to do to tighten up the skin and take care of "the girls" when she reaches her goals. As a guy, of course I'm going to be on board with any of that...we like boobs! It's a man thing. But after three kids, the boobs aren't what they once were anyway, you know? Age and gravity catch up, regardless of weight loss. But I think it'd be a boost to her self-esteem to get back a bit of her younger look, and I have no problems with that at all, obviously. Don't take his comments as a slight, or as criticism. And consider the self-esteem factor of how you would feel, getting something done. That's the more important factor - how it would make you feel. I am going to work hard to get the kind of physique I always wished I could have, and I'm sure skin will be an issue for me...so when I reach that point, I will make the decision of whether or not to take care of it. But while my wife may be happy if I do, ultimately it'll be for me. Just like her plans with regard to lifts and such will be for her.

It basically just makes it look kind of milky and white, and you do get a LITTLE taste of the protein in the drink, but it's not bad. Totally fine to me and a welcome change from chocolate shakes, which I was sick to death of.

I think mentally I still have tendrils of the "more is better" mindset that I'm trying to squash, from my old mindset. So sometimes I might say having bigger portions, but I know that feeling won't last. I think I might tend to say not having to track what I'm eating, or not having to care what's in what I'm eating...just eat whatever I want. I think there's a freedom in that, which I may miss a little at times. Particularly in social situations where I do really have to pay attention to it. I imagine I'll kind of miss certain foods, which won't make any sense anymore. Stuff with a lot of bread, because I've always loved bread, Pasta and whatnot. But I can do without and I don't really crave it. The list of things I won't miss about being obese would stretch on for pages, and the list of things I'll miss is exceptionally short.

Right on...it's pretty amazing how fast it comes off with this surgery, feels good

No, it's really pretty smooth. You don't want to shake it, because it froths up like crazy...but when you stir it in, it dissolves really nicely. It's a very fine powder, almost like the consistency of powdered sugar.

Good luck! You'll do fine, just try to get up and walking as soon as you're able, to work that gas out. That's the worst part of the whole thing. Sleep when you need it, get drugs when you need them, walk, and do your best with the drinking when they start you on it. It's hard at first, but don't stress...it'll all come, in time. The walking is the biggie though, do your best.

Almost there! Won't be long and you will be waking up in the recovery room, and the surgery will be over. That's when the adventure truly begins...you will have crossed the threshold into your new future and joined us on this great transformation journey. You'll feel crappy for a few days, but it will start turning around by the end of the week. I just started on week four and I'm feeling totally normal, except that I actually feel better physically now and I can hardly eat anything

Well, as long as you follow their indications and do what you're supposed to, I'm sure it'll be no problem. It took me a year from when I started the classes, till I was able to schedule my surgery. In that time, I went through every emotion and thought you probably can have, and then I ran into the after-surgery flood of thoughts and feelings. But it was all the preparation I did that helped me through it. I feel prepared now, and I feel like I can succeed...and that's empowering.

It's part of your education process as the patient. She's basically letting you know that this only succeeds if you have your mind committed, and you're able to discipline yourself to follow a program, and modify your behavior. It's important to understand the level of change this surgery demands, because it's profound. So she's trying to prepare you for that...and of course, if you can't follow basic instructions, how are you going to succeed post-op? None of these surgeons' offices want to have failures on their stats. They want success stories. You are already limiting yourself by letting your "old mind" take control, even in your post. "We all know how that (dieting) will go..." or "I didn't get this way because I'm good at dieting!" That has to change, and yes...it takes time to get there. If you are thinking that *snip snip* and you're done, magic weight loss...you couldn't be more wrong. It takes a lot of discipline. The surgery helps by removing the insane hunger pangs and growling and mind-warp that causes for the first six months or so, it puts a limit on how much you can eat in one sitting...but you have to manage your intake to make sure you are meeting Protein goals, you have to track that and your Water intake, and long-term you need to have the skills and tools necessary to track your calorie intake, track how much you're burning, figure out how to maintain your weight, all of that. This surgery is only one component of a much larger process...and you need to be ready for it. If you're not, there's no point in getting an operation that will ultimately fail because you didn't get the mind part right. The mind part is 80% of it, because that's what will take you through the rest of your life. You gotta be ready and committed to change.

I have been liking the Genepro flavorless, it works well mixing it with stuff like chili or in my crystal light, it gives it just a slight taste and white color, but not bad at all. Much better than shakes, I can't stomach any more of those. I've tried the Isopure bottles and the flavors are pretty gross, to me...almost a medicinal taste.

My entire life, since elementary school. In adulthood, it stopped being so blatant as name-calling and started getting more subtle and passive-aggressive...but it's always been there. There is a lot of intolerance and anger toward obese people, for some reason. We have a problem, but nobody would treat someone with any other physical challenge the way people treat obese folks.