Sadiebug

GasX and walking. My dietitian suggested that I make it a habit to take a 10-15 minute walk after every meal which helped me tremendously. It's a big experiment right at first to figure out what food works and what doesn't so just take it slow.

I had the same thing. Liquids, full liquids and puree were no problem at all - I had to restrict them myself by carefully measuring my portions. Once I got to soft foods/normal foods though I felt the restriction. You're doing good! Talk to your surgeon/dietitian for help and guidance if needed.

I can totally taste the fluids when they are pushed in my IV For the first 6 months there were some things that tasted funny to me but then it all went back to normal. I remember I would frequently ask my husband to taste things and tell me if they really tasted funny or if it was just me... It would get really bad when I was too low on carbs and would slip into ketosis (my program tries to avoid this).

Two options: ask your surgeon to write the letter or find a new PCP. My surgeon wrote my letter of necessity - but I know some insurance companies may require it to come from a PCP and not the surgeon. Honestly, I would find a new PCP if yours is not 100% supportive of the surgery. You will need a good relationship with your PCP for years post surgery to monitor bloodwork/vitamin levels and your overall health.

I wasn't required to have one (at least not documentation of one). I think they asked at one of my appointments if I was current w/ my pap and mammogram and I said "yes" but beyond that I didn't have to show anything else. I wouldn't think not having a pap would hold up the surgery unless you had specific issues that they were concerned about.

It really is program dependent so I would ask your surgeon/dietitian. I started all of them right away except for B12 - we were given that as the monthly injection in the hospital so we didn't start that until 1 month out. My program said to focus on the multi-vitamins first and then add in the rest as we could tolerate them. It probably took me 2 weeks to get into the full routine of vitamins with the calcium taking me the longest because I couldn't swallow the bigger pills and it took some time to find a chewable that I could tolerate.

I recommend protein powder and a shaker bottle. Several of the syntrax flavors mix well with plain water and I have purchased a 'sample' pack on Amazon that had a variety of flavors all in single serving packets. That way no matter what you can get protein and your liquids which are the most important things at 6 weeks out. Airports are pretty easy as mentioned above - meat/cheese out of a sandwich, hard boiled eggs, cheese sticks, and yogurt are readily available - just read the labels carefully on the yogurt. Ask you program about protein bars, mine doesn't allow them until 6 months out but yours might for this sort of situation. Absolutely try a few things out at home first if you can to make sure you can tolerate them and aren't uncomfortable on the trip. And once you get to your destination look for a convenience store nearby where you can pick up a few staples to keep in your room refrigerator - again, hard boiled eggs, yogurt, cheese sticks and lunchmeat. I frequently toss a cheese stick in my work bag in case I need it but I know some people get worked up about keeping them ice cold - so that's up your comfort level.

Try warm/hot drinks! I had the exact same bubbling/stuck feeling with cold drinks out of the gate. Once I switched to decaf hot tea/coffee it was a whole different ballgame. I know it kind of stinks to drink warm stuff now during the summer but even just starting out with a cup of hot tea in the morning can help the rest of the day go a lot more smoothly.

Follow your program guidelines 100% - just because you can do something outside the guidelines doesn't mean you should. It is so much easier to get into good habits from the start vs. trying to change them later when you see bad things creeping in. Lean on your support system as much as possible, especially dieticians to get new ideas for things to try that are within your guidelines. Don't get too focused on the numbers. Take lots of pictures and measurements and focus on the NSV's. And lastly don't sweat the small stuff. It's a huge emotional rollercoaster and getting worked up about how many pounds you did or didn't lose in the last day or two or if you have "stalled" because you didn't lose weight in the past 24 hours is just not worth it.

Thank you for saying this! I was one of those people who chose RnY because of the "negative consequences" of eating bad food (i.e. dumping). My program talked about this as a major part of their education classes and never once did they mention that many patients never experience dumping. My entire plan post op was that I would get sick from eating bad food and then would never eat it again. I quickly discovered that I could eat whatever the heck I wanted with no physical repercussions and had to adjust my thinking to stay on track. In the long run I'm actually happy I have flexibility with food but it sure requires a lot more willpower than I initially thought it would.

Best of luck to your hubby - hope everything went perfect! A few things I would add to the great advice others have given here. I personally got very upset when my family and friends hid their eating from me or changed their eating habits because of me. It made me feel extremely guilty and emotional. So on that front I would just ask him what he would prefer (and that may change day to day!). The other big advice I would give is to talk about things other than his surgery and weight loss and make time for activities that are unrelated to surgery/weight loss. After the first few weeks I came to dread having to talk to people about how I was feeling and how much I had lost and how much I was or wasn't eating/drinking. My husband was great about not bringing it up unless I did and he just treated me "normal" (again, unless I was saying I wanted something different).

My hospital gave me one. I liked it for the first week or so to give extra support when I was moving around but I mostly took it off to sleep. I had wide hips compared to my waist so it didn't fit me very well and would often roll up which drove me nuts. I probably would have worn it longer if I didn't have that problem.

I jump on the scale daily. But I only record it once a week. And if I find that I'm focusing on the numbers too much I will force myself to put the scale away for a couple of weeks.

I started with walking, elliptical and the bike. But at 2 months out I did an 8 week boot camp. I just listened to my body and was especially careful with any ab work right at first and didn't have any problems. It felt good to push myself.

I think this still varies widely depending on your program and surgeon. My program is a cautious yes starting around 6 months. They generally prefer you don't use straws especially at first because it's easier to accidentally get larger sips/gulps. But, if you use them and don't have any problems they don't care - especially if it means you are getting your liquids in.

I chose RnY because I had horrible GERD and my surgeon said the sleeve would not be a good option. I also wanted the more restrictive procedure and was hoping for the negativing feedback from dumping syndrome because I tended to binge eat and had a big sweet tooth. I personally felt like the sleeve was still a bit too 'new' and there wasn't enough long term research especially with regards to regain. But, I also didn't dig too deep on that front since my GERD situation made me cross the sleeve off very quickly.

I had bypass - but I could fairly easily eat sf jello and sf popscicles right after surgery. My dietician explained that it was essentially liquid and slipped right through my pouch much like the water or tea I was drinking. So they weren't concerned at all. congrats on your weight loss so far! Keep up the good work!

I'm so sorry! Hopefully you get a quick and easy approval By far the insurance and waiting prior to surgery was the most stressful and hardest part for me. Surgery was a breeze compared to that drama. If you do happen to get denied it should be pretty easy to have your doctor revise the paperwork and then resubmit. But fingers crossed you won't have to even think about that!!!

I'm a bypass patient - but yeah, I've had sugar and have no issues other than I crave it a LOT more once I've had some. If I have a large amount of refined white sugar then I will get sleepy and sometimes a very tiny bit nauseous but beyond that I have no symptoms. I generally try and stay away as much as possible just because it's a very slippery slope and can send me off track quickly. I don't keep sugary stuff in the house and if I'm out I always share stuff with my huband or friends so I can just have a bite or two and that's it.

I think I get what you're asking - and I personally think 'satisfaction' is different. I have a lot of meals where I stop eating so I don't get sick vs. stop eating because I'm satisfied. And I'll admit that I've had meals where I kept eating to be "satisfied" and ended up miserable and sick. Trust me, it doesn't take too many of those experiences to learn the that new feeling of satisfaction.

My go-to items at Costco are protein shakes, protein bars, ground turkey, frozen chicken burgers, frozen green beans, vitamin water zero, cheese sticks and fresh fruit/veggies. I also get my vitamin D, probiotic, gasX and Miralax there. Yep - we shop at Costco far too frequently!

I do use GasX more frequently than before surgery - but it's completely manageable and hasn't impacted my life at all. It really depends on what I eat too so I've learned what causes the most problems and if I chose to eat that sort of stuff I just make sure I'm among friends.

I wish I had taken more 'before' pictures and measurements. I do have one pretty good full body before pic that I use now for comparison. But there are many days when I wish I could remember how much space I actually took up. Like I was sitting in a chair at home this weekend and looked down at my legs and my brain told me they looked huge and fat. But I know they are significantly smaller than they were 130 lbs ago....I just have days where I can't make my brain accept that. I avoided pictures like the plague before surgery but I wish now I could look back and see a picture of me sitting in that chair to compare. I also wish I would have sat down with a small bowl and a small spoon and measure out 1 oz of food and then eat it over 20-30 minutes. I had a hard time right after surgery because I couldn't wrap my brain around the fact that 1-2 oz of food was my new serving size. I had purchased what I thought were "small" bowls but they were easily 6-8oz or bigger. My portions before surgery were so out of control and I had no clue.

Ginger or mint flavored hot tea (decaf!) was my best friend right after surgery. It helped settle my stomach so much. I couldn't drink plain water for nearly 7 months so I wouldn't worry about that. I drank crystal light (lemon and orange flavors only), hot tea, and decaf coffee to meet my fluid goals. My drinks had to be room temp or warm/hot - anything ice cold just made my pouch rebel. Experiment with different temperatures and textures and just see what works - maybe warm broth or soup depend on what your plan allows at this point. Something that is fine today may make you nauseous tomorrow and then be totally fine again in 3 weeks. It is a lot of trial and error at first. Best of luck to you!

I did have a lot of pain for the first week. And sleeping was very challenging for about 3 weeks because I typically sleep on stomach or sides. I had one incision that was quite painful for probably 7-8 days and I took my pain meds off and on for close to 2 weeks before finally stopping entirely. Absolutely call your doctor if you are worried about any pain but remember you just had major surgery so it is going to take time to heal. Some people have very little pain but some have quite a bit - it just varies. Walking, a heating pad and time helped me the most. And I for sure had the gurgling and churning and strange noises but that finally settled down about 2 weeks out when I got in a more regular routine of eating, drinking and pooping. Hang in there and you should see a big improvement in a few days!