Dairymary

How much Water? How much Protein? How many carbs? How far out are you?

It's hard to predict what you will feel like. I had no pain, never had to take any pain medication and had no problem sleeping on my side from day one. I was pretty bloated from surgical swelling, though, so it was about two weeks before I felt comfortable laying flat on my stomach.

Everyone's situation is different so you should Call and ask your surgeon. I'm so sorry about your brother.

Well, when it comes to addiction, the only sound advice I can give is to get help from a mental health professional. The only thing surgery did was make your stomach smaller. It did not magically fix any of the things behind why we got fat in the first place. I always give credit to my surgeon for helping me lose 160+ pounds but it's the 5 years of group support meetings, 3+ years of personal therapy and 1/2 dozen self help books on cognitive therapy and addiction recovery that have helped me keep it off. There's NO WAY I would have been this successful without the mental support. It's never too soon to start learning new emotional coping mechanisms addressing the behavior modifications that are required to be a successful WLS patient.

Yep I did. Other than I did, and still do feel restriction when I eat dense Proteins like beef and chicken. Congratulations! It was great to gave such an easy recovery. But now is a good time to start measuring and tracking everything you eat and drink if you aren't already. Your restriction is only going to lessen over time and it will get easier and easier to out eat your sleave. Making sure you keep up with your Protein and Water goals (mine are 80+g and 100+ ounces) and staying away from sliders and triggers are something you will have to do for life. And unfortunately it's something YOU have to do....your sleeve won't do it for you.

I was on liquids only for the first 3 weeks and even then could only tolerate 1-2 teaspoons of something like Greek yogurt or refried beans. I can't imaging trying to injest anything but liquid at 5 days. If it's uncomfortable for you, then don't do it. Just concentrate all your efforts on fluids and protein for now. If you are having trouble staying hydrated then talk to your surgeon.

Like you, I spent the first several months with no interest in food whatsoever. I tracked and measured everything and treated my protein/fluid/carb/calorie requirements like a prescription. Even though I wasn't hungry, I forced myself to eat/drink to stay nourished. I was thinking how easy this was going to be and how on earth could anyone regain after WLS when you're never hungry?! But I had my full appetite back before the first year was up. Of course I couldn't eat huge portions like I used to, but I wanted to. I was glad I was measuring and tracking, because instead of struggling to meet goals, the habit was now helping me to not exceed them. What you are experiencing now is much different from what you will feel like in six months and very very different from what you will feel 2-3+ years out. I only wish it was as easy as those first couple months. Best of luck as you move forward and take advantage of this honeymoon period to establish new habits that will carry you through a lifetime of success.

Dr. Ariel Ortiz is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a Bariatric Surgeon of Excellence. His facility, Obesity Control Center, is an International Center of Excellence. My daughter is a gastroenterologist and Dr. Ortiz was personally recommended by her colleagues to do my VSG over 6 years ago when it was still considered experimental in the US. He is more expensive than a lot of Mexico surgeons, but he only does a few surgeries a day, rather than the assembly line/cost cutting operations some other places run. And as a retired RN I know good medicine vs cut rate. Even 6 years later, they still email me to keep tabs on my progress. There are a lot of factors to considered. I lucked out and had an easy choice because of my personal contact in the medical field. Good luck with your decision.

Of course there's such a thing as too skinny. But are most WLS patients likely to have that problem? Not likely. Unless they trade one eating disorder for another. Not losing what they want or regain are much more the norm. The problem with the "too skinny" thing is perception. People are just used to seeing us as fat. Now, with a normal BMI or even just overweight instead of obese, we look "too thin". The loose skin and new face/neck wrinkles give a gaunt and sickly appearance as opposed to our previous "healthy" looking chubby cheeks. We may not even be as thin as the person making the comment or as thin as the friend standing next to us, but we just don't look the way everyone is used to seeing us. Someone who only knows the postop you is not likely to think you are too skinny.

The obvious answer is go back to basics.....original protein/fluid/carb goals. Go back to measuring and tracking if you've stopped. Basically whatever you did to lose those 164 pounds the first time is what you have to do again. I was run over by a tractor and shattered my pelvis and femur when I was just shy of 3 years postop. Was in the hospital for a month and gained 10 pounds on the carb heavy food they served. Went home in a wheelchair and transitioned to a walker over several months. I was extremely depressed over being so helpless. I had stopped seeing my therapist about 6 months earlier but went back to regular visits to help me with my depression so those 10 pounds didn't turn into 100. So if you aren't seeing a therapist, I suggest finding one. In the meantime work on finding your motivation. Dig up old photos of the "before" you. Sit down and make a list of your NSVs. What can you do now that you couldn't do 164 pounds ago? How do you feel? If you don't want to go back to the old you, pull up your skinny girl panties and do what you know you need to, and can do again.

Please don't pay attention to the stats surrounding WLS. they only reflect what happened to OTHER people, not what will happen to YOU. Do not limit your expectations and goals because of someone else's lack of commitment or non-compliance. YOU control your level of success. And, BTW, according to that calculator I should have lost 106 pounds and weigh 189 pounds. Instead, I lost over 160 pounds in about 18 months and currently weigh 135 pounds almost six and a half years after VSG.

For 3 days postop, you sound pretty "normal" to me. But if you can't meet fluid goals (at least 64oz), you should contact your surgeon to make sure you don't get dehydrated. But to answer your question, it was At least 3 months before I felt "OK". Didn't feel what has become my new normal until well over a year out.

Had mine in TJ over 6 years ago. Great experience, quality medical care (I'm a retired RN so I know the difference), easy recovery, no complications. However, there are good and bad surgeons/facilities on both sides of the border, so without knowing your surgeon, there's no way to compare my experience to what yours will be. Congrats and good luck!

A couple thoughts about your post..... 1) if you have fundus deformity then your surgeon did not do your surgery correctly. A properly performed VSG Removes all of the fundus, which, as explained above us the stretchy part of your stomach. 2) sounds lime you were grossly misinformed about WLs and what is actually required for long term success. Any surgery (including bypass) is only one small part of what is required for long term weight loss. It was drilled into me over and over that it's the lifestyle changes we make that play a much more vital role. You can out eat any physical changes created by any surgery. Success is much more psychological than surgical. I'm truly sorry you weren't told the truth when making your decision to have surgery. 3). If you are having severe GERD, then yes, bypass is probably the answer for you. But again, your long term results as far as weightloss goes will be the same as your VSG without the often overlooked psychological tools. I suggest finding a good therapist if you find yourself going back to your old eating habits.....or developing new, just as destructive habits customized to eat around your bypass restriction. I saw this all the time in group.

Find a good therapist. It doesn't even have to be a barbaric specialist. Your issues aren't with food, its your emotions and your abilities to deal with life that are the issues. You need to discover why you have this addiction, address the underlying causes and develop new behaviors that support a healthy body. Like mentioned above, permanent weightloss is about lifestyle changes. The surgery is just one tool that doesn't work by itself......you can't build a house with just a hammer. I'm over six years out and maintaining at my lowest weight. Some Credit goes to my surgeon who spent an hour creating my sleeve, but far more credit goes to my therapist and the three years she spent helping me develop the psychological tools I needed.

64oz is the bare minimum fluids any adult should be getting, whether they've had WLS or not. But studies show that drinking at least 1/2 your body weight in ounces is ideal for weight loss. You don't have a ticker that states your current weight, but if it's over 200 pounds you should be getting over 100 ounces. I'm down to 135 pounds, but I still strive to get 100 ounces every day. It's part of the formula I attribute my 6 years of success to. I know it's a real struggle in the beginning, but just do the best you can and make it a priority. And yes, making sure you are staying ahead of any deficiencies (including anemia from low iron) is crucial postop. Serious and sometimes irreversible damage can result from nutritional deficiencies. Iron, B12, D3, Calcium and folate tend to be the main culprits and can turn up even 10-20 years postop, which is why lifetime annual bloodwork (more often if you do have issues) is so important.

Getting 60-80g protein, 100+ oz of fluids and taking a multi vitamin, B12, iron, calcium, and D3 supplements will likely eliminate most of your hunger. As you lose body fat, you are getting a huge hormone dump which is a big part of your emotional roller coaster, but they, too, will likely level out once you are getting proper nutrition. Treat your protein/fluid/vitamin goals like a life saving prescription medication..... because they are.

Pay very close attention to what and how you ate preop that led you to become obese. Not just the volume, but how often, what you ate and most importantly WHY you ate that way. Were you depressed? Happy? Bored? Stressed? Now do the same thing during the honeymoon period during which you are losing weight and most likely following all the "rules". Again, what, how much, when, and why you are eating. How are you coping with stress and emotions that don't involve food? 2-3 years from now (actually, for the rest of your life) you need to remain mindful of your eating habits. If you find yourself going back to many of your preop habits, you will likely find yourself regaining. After 6 years of group support meetings and now online forums, I See most regain stories coming from emotion based self sabotage.....stress, grief and boredom are big ones. Someone dies, you get divorced, you lose your job, your family is unsupportive, pressure from friends, your kids get sick, you are injured, etc. Now you turn to food for comfort because that's all you know how to do. Your sleeve is worthless when it comes to grazing, slider foods, snacking, etc. In the end it's the lifestyle changes and choices you make that dictate long term success, not your surgery or size of your sleeve. I always say, my surgeon helped me lose the weight, but my therapist helped me keep it off. Good luck.

I was on liquids only for 3 weeks, but certainly couldn't eat that much yogurt even at 6 months out. Were you given instructions on certain amounts to eat? Like no more than 4oz per meal, etc? The nerves to your stomach were cut, so you can't go by what you perceive as "full" or not at this stage. It will be at least 2-3 months before your sleeve is healed and maybe even longer before you regain normal sensation. Measuring what you eat and sticking to that amount is a very important part of the learning curve for postoperative lifestyle changes required for long term success. Eating until we are full is what got us obese in the first place. It's one of the many bad habits I worked hard to get rid of.

are you able to drink Water like used to before surgery. I don't have to sip but I can't chug a whole bottle of water. I basically just have something available to drink all the time and try to get at least 100oz every day. Do you still go through issues with certain foods agreeing with you or food sensitivities? Nothing I can't eat or drink Do you still ever drink Protein shakes? Yes. They are great to grab on the run when I don't have time to sit down and eat a real meal. Getting 80+ g of protein everyday has been key to my maintenance

P.S. I just reread my post and it makes it sound like losing all your weight and spending eternity in maintenance is a horrible thing. I'd like to clarify that although you must remain diligent and there are sometimes very hard struggles, it is totally worth it. What I meant to stress was that although the problems and struggles you encounter preop, 1 week postop, 1 month post, 6 months post, etc are real and seem unbearable at times, they are just temporary. The mental struggles of maintenance that really never go away are why I chose maintenance as the hardest part of WLS (for me). Yes, you must work hard every day....forever....if you want to be successful, but living life as a thin person lasts forever, too. And it's great!

Maintenance. Definitely. The thrill of losing weight and NSVs are gone and everything gets tedious and boring and old bad habits start knocking on the door. Life still happens and now you have to deal with it without your old pal, food. All that other stuff is temporary.....Maintenance is forever.

I was self pay in Mexico and had three leak tests done.

Basically whatever you had to do to lose the weight is what you have to do forever in order to maintain. And while that is easy to do for a year or so, life still has its unpleasantries. Surgery does nothing more than make your stomach smaller.....It doesn't "fix" anything else. For many patients, they eventually default back to their old habits of coping. Its the long term psychological changes that help you to continue to Stay on track and maintain the weight loss. Uncovering why you got fat in the first place and modifying those behaviors is what you ultimately need to do. For me, 3 years of therapy and 5+ years support group was key.