The New Kel

Also agreed - I would never leave a 50 cent tip. Even at buffets or order at the counter places, etc I always leave $1 per person and $1 for the table. Minimum. And that's at places you aren't even expected to tip. My first experience going out to eat post surgery was a week ago, to my favorite little restaurant here in town. I ordered the boiled chicken potstickers and my husband ordered a regular meal and some beer. The waitress was so incredible sweet. She came back to check on us and saw I had only eaten one and a half of the 6 potstickers. And noticed that I had pretty much dissected the things trying to get to the meat inside. the waitress asked me if the potstickers were OK. I said yea they were great (even though my sleeve was not tolerating the seasoning..not her fault). She looked a bit concerned but wasn't nosey or over questioning. When the bill came she smiled and gave us a coupon for 20 percent off, saying that next time she hopes I find something that pleases me more. It was actually a really nice gesture.

This brings back my only truly awkward/shocked/speechless moment. I had just been cleared for soft foods and I went to the market's salad bar to get my teeny tiny lunch. At that time, I was especially fond of their chicken salad and their seafood salad. I got MAYBE two tablespoons of each in the salad bar container (knowing I would take half home) and went to the register. The cashier, a big girl herself, looked at me (remember, I was just about 6 weeks post op and still quite the fatty) and said, "Girl! You know you eat more than that! Who you trying to fool??" in the loudest voice. And yes, everyone in line turned to look at me and my pathetic salad. I was hormonal, stressed at the idea that any food I ate still came back up because of my stricture, and absolutely floored that anyone would say something like that. I barely held my **** together, told her I had stomach cancer and moved on through. She's not looked at me in the eye since. OMG!!!

You look stunning! Congratulations!

Love the idea of using it foe salad dressing. I love "creamy" dressings but I won't them anymore due to calories/fat. I'm going to try the greek yogurt with lemon and maybe some herbs as soon as I can eat salads. thanks for the idea!

Awesome. thank you for the suggestions. I've been only semi-capable of tolerating regular Protein Shakes so I am trying out the plant based one. I'll look into your suggestions and try. thanks!

I posted earlier that I was never really into candy. I just thought of one exception: high quality chocolates in a box. Has anyone ever had See's Candy??? Pre-surgery I could have eaten a whole box. And the smell.....heaven!! But that cheap @ss stuff you give away at halloween? No thanks!

This weekend my husband's aunt and uncle are coming. I am not telling them about my surgery. They really love to eat out. I plan on telling them I am on a diet plan and following doctors orders. I think that will suffice. I will probably order Soup and maybe an appetizer.

Some soft foods I have had: Rotisserie chicken Sashimi Greek no fat yogurt Lean deli slices Low fat cheese Slow cook crock pot Turkey chili (yummmmm) Cottage cheese Artichoke cooked soft. These and Premier Protein shakes are pretty much all I eat now while on soft foods. This week I am going to try and implement some soft fruit and more veggies.

Hang in there, @@afriendnwv ! Right after surgery it's a weird balance to try and get fluids and Protein in. Sometimes you feel hungry, sometimes you're nauseas. Sometimes you're fatigued. Then once you are on a roll getting all those Protein shakes in, you start to hate them, lol! Then, you are allowed purees. Around weeks 3 and 4, you start figuring out how to get the protein in without feeling ill. And it becomes habit and so much easier. Good luck to you!

Welcome @@Meg.Griffin83 ! Congratulations on getting your surgery date! It is a great feeling, isn't it? After all your hard work, going through tests and hoops. Mid December seems like a fine time...a good time to take a few weeks to recoup! Looking forward to hearing all of your stories and updates! Kel

My hunger lasted about 3 weeks. Since then I only feel hunger when I haven't had anything to eat for maybe 3 or 4 hours, and then an ounce of Protein satisfies me. You stop thinking about food obsessively after a few weeks. One really great thing about WLS is that you start thinking about food as a way to fuel yourself rather than to satisfy addictions and cravings. Hang in there, the kind of hunger you're experiencing goes away.

Im trying to add some variety. I don't like the Protein shakes either. But Premier Protein Shakes are about the closest I've come to tolerable shakes. Today I had: 8am: coffee, small 9am: Oikos Zero yogurt, 5 oz, eaten over an hour 11:30 half of a Quest bar 12:30 Half of a Premier Protein shake. (If you drink them really cold, they are ok-ish). 2:00 Tuna salad, 2 oz 3:00 cardio workout 4:00 1/4 cup cottage cheese 5:00 1 oz of rotisserie chicken (I keep fresh rotisserie chicken in the fridge when I want a quick fix) 7pm 2 oz of ground turkey with tomato sauce 10pm 2 or 3 oz of oikos yogurt (eating as I type this :-) 60 oz of Water drank throughout the day According to my fitness pal I consumed 75grams of protein and 28g carbs for the day.

Pinterest recipes that are bariatric/low carb friendly. I can search that site for hours!

I made chicken tender strips with panko coating and oven bakes them. (I also made sugar free dips to go with them). The kids loved them more than I did. They were OK, but I didn't care for the coating of crumbs. Ended up scraping off the crumbs. I was 3 weeks out when I tried them!

Before I even went to the classes and consults, I spoke to my husband about it. He was very supportive. After I went through the months of process of classes, tests and insurance approval, I told my parents and my daughter. I know they would all be supportive. I asked my parents not to tell extended family. I have some very judgmental aunts and cousins. All my cousins are very thin and fit. I can't wait to see them next year at the reunion, I am already imagining their reactions! I told my boss as well, but none of my coworkers. My boss is very professional and I am assured she will not mention it to anyone. I told her so that she would be aware of my post op recovery needs.

@@TexasguyEP, Hello fellow Texan! I'm from El Paso too, and I had my surgery with Dr Lara, Jose Acosta's partner! When you do go through surgery, let me say, you will be in great hands. I find the whole team to be exceptional! I think you are doing a great job, and you have gone above what was asked of you. Don't be too hard on yourself, just stick to at least one shake replacement a day, and aim for that 5 lb loss by your next appointment. Welcome to the boards! I look forward to hearing more about your journey, fellow South westerner!

Thanks for your nice comments! Despite the scale's recent stubbornness, it is nice to have other little rewards. My shirts are fitting MUCH looser, too. (My pant size hasn't changed too much...this girl's got HIPS ). @@LisaMergs, I agree with your post so much. The fat around my face was always what I hated the most. I felt like my identity was lost. I hated mirrors. So nice that the first thing to go is my face fat! I smile more now, already!

So I'm 'embracing the stall', but in the meantime I took this pic of me and my cat today. The image on the left side is me two weeks before surgery. Happy to see my real face coming back! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

It's ketosis. I chew cinnamon gum!

OMG. I love the photo!! Looks like me, LOL!

@@BigViffer, How do you make a Protein cake and how much protein is in a serving? How many carbs/calories? I'm trying to find a way to get in about 20 more protein grams a day. Thanks!!

I have heard that peppermint tea is great for upset tummies. I think I will try to start having it in the morning and late evenings when I tend to get a bit nauseas.

Going through my fitness pal app, here is what I've been eating. Some foods go down way better than others. Breakfast (workdays): Premier Protein shake Late morning snack: Oikos Zero Yogurt, or a cheese stick, or low fat cottage cheese Lunch: 1 or 2 oz canned tuna or rotisserie chicken with a dab of mayo mixed in, and a small pickle. Late afternoon snack (if I worked out): 1 tbsp all natural Peanut Butter along with a tsp of no sugar added apricot preserves. Or, 1/4 cup low fat cottage cheese. Dinner: Sashimi (about 3 oz), or baked salmon, or mahi mahi, or chicken, or crock pot turkey chili, and often I have artichoke with it. (a few leaves). That's about it so far. I'm looking to add more variety as time goes on.

Nope. I have no desire. I'm going to be glad to hand out the bag of candy tonight, get it out of the house! I'm not huge on sweets anyway.

I was sleeved 4 weeks ago. I have been having a hard time eating. Same pain as you describe. After 2 small bites, well chewed soft foods, I start getting pain. Only one exception and that is when I eat plain sashimi. That goes down perfectly and no pain. I have recently been reverting back to a lot of liquids (soups, yogurt, and protien shakes) simply due to this pain after eating .