White Sale

Today is the day!!! Congrats! Make sure to walk, walk, walk ASAP after you wake up. Moderate pain now saves a lot of pain later.

Hmmm, my instructions say no lifting or rigorous ab workouts until 3 months post-op in order to avoid hernia. Definitely listen to Aggiemae - your surgeon is your best advisor and you paid him a lot of money for it.

I've looked into having insurance pay for the plastics, but everything I've researched has said it is very, very difficult to do. They won't pay unless it's genuinely affecting your physical health. Bummer.

Bummer that you had to stay in the hospital for more than one night. I know I couldn't get any rest while I was there - they don't let you. I do miss that Dilaudid, though...... At least you're home now and can start your new life. Best wishes!

I was (still am - PO day 5) mostly Water and maybe about 1 oz of sugar-free Jell-O per day. I tried chicken broth but it was very unappealing. I sucked the salt off of a few pretzels - my body was craving electrolytes. I cried on day 3 from hunger. Day 4 was Christmas, the family made cinnamon rolls for breakfast and I cried. SO FREAKING HUNGRY. I was mad and weak from having no calories in 10+ days, ya know? I am still angry because why the EFF am I hungry????? That was the allure of this procedure: to not be so GD hungry! Christmas dinner was easier than breakfast, but still difficult. Soft Solids are kinda funny. On my liquids, I had no issues. Regularly downed 20z of liquids (as water or Protein shakes) within 40 mins. food was a completely different matter.I was so eager that I munched on the chicken a bit too fast. It wasn't a nice experience. By the third meal, I could properly assess 'fullness'. Sent from my SM-N900P using the BariatricPal App Hey Middus, good to know. I'll definitely be taking baby steps as I "level up", but your post reminded me not to get too cocky just because I'm doing OK with fluids. Vee16. UGH! I keep waiting for that magic moment when the hunger goes away. Dang why could we be like so many other who don't have hunger PO??

I'm now 5 days PO, but I cried on Christmas morning. Unfortunately, I am still extremely hungry. Head hunger, real hunger, whatever. Hunger is hunger and it's a special kind of torture to be doing this over the holidays. LOL - what the heck was I thinking?!?! Of course, I've stuck to my doctor's prescribed meal plan to the tee: sugar-free Clear Liquids through day 7. I've never looked forward to a Protein shake as much as I am right now...

I was (still am - PO day 5) mostly Water and maybe about 1 oz of sugar-free Jell-O per day. I tried chicken broth but it was very unappealing. I sucked the salt off of a few pretzels - my body was craving electrolytes. I cried on day 3 from hunger. Day 4 was Christmas, the family made cinnamon rolls for Breakfast and I cried. SO FREAKING HUNGRY. I was mad and weak from having no calories in 10+ days, ya know? I am still angry because why the EFF am I hungry????? That was the allure of this procedure: to not be so GD hungry! Christmas dinner was easier than breakfast, but still difficult. For me, the feeling of "full" is totally different than before the WLS. It's more of a slight pain or that feeling you get just before you're about to burp. I'd recommend trying to discover what your new feeling of fullness is. I've not vomited at all, so I think I've done well with not over-consuming. Tonight, I had just the liquid from vegetable Soup. I'd have a spoonful, put it down, and wait at least one minute to try for another. I'd say I had maybe 10 spoonfuls before feeling full. As for measuring water, I bought a bottle with the oz/mL on the side - just fill in the AM and try to hork down as much as I can without causing myself discomfort. At the end of the day, I know what I've been able to drink. We can do it, hayleyf3706! I am so sorry that you're hungry. I am extremely hungry, too. It must mean that we're special, right?? LOL

Hey all, I'm two days post-op (sleeved on Wed 12/21). Miserable as heck! I started walking as soon as physically possible after my surgery. I've been walking like mad, but the gas pain is nearly unbearable. It's really been a struggle and a source of worry for me that my Water intake has been so low. It just hurts so bad if I have more than 3 sips. The worst part is that my pain meds are not good at all. They relieve my pain for only about 90 minutes and new doses are only every 4-6 hours. I feel as though I am suffering without needing to. Anyway, I just wanted to vent. These past 3 days have been so awful I've really doubted my decision. I'm doing my best to keep my chin up and look forward to a healthier life. Merry Christmas, every one.

Thanks for your words of encouragement. I'm going to try the feet above my heart trick for the gas pain!

Perhaps. Because I was self-pay and my "clean" medical history, my surgeon only had me do the bare minimum for pre-op testing : chest x-ray, 2 blood labs, and an EKG. He had a whole checklist of about 15 or so pre-op tests and only checked the three. I also negotiated with the hospital for lower costs. I am staying overnight, so they get the lion's share, about 2/3, of the total cost. tl;dr: healthcare providers may have incentive to do extra "work" on insured patients because they'll get paid well for it. Either way, it is neither a good nor efficient nor fair healthcare system.

It's posts like these that make me so glad that I decided, and am able, to pay out of pocket. IMO, it seems to be worth the extra money for the time and frustration saved. If you have the ability, I say forget insurance (I realize this isn't an option for many folks).

In less than 48 hours, I'll have gone under the trocar, as it were. So excited and nervous and looking forward to never having Jell-O again as long as I live.

My surgery is on Wednesday, but from what I understand, hunger after the surgery is totally different from hunger before. The surgeon I'm going to only required a one week pre-op liquid diet for me. That may because: 1) I'm young-ish (31) 2) I'm paying out of pocket (so no insurance Big Brother to control the schedule) 3) My weight (~255lbs) 3) It's just this particular surgeon's preference However, my liquid diet must be sugar-free. Holy guacamole, it's rough as heck! Guacamole sounds friggin' delicious right now. I'm on the clear liquid diet.... If I had known how difficult it would be for me to lose weight, I would have done it 7 years ago. I'm jelly that your youth means potential for your skin to spring back after you lose. Dang, I really don't want to spend money I don't have and end up with the scars of Frankenstein's monster. ANYWHO, hunger sucks. It really, really, really, really sucks. BUT it's two weeks. Drink absurd amounts of Water. If you're fortunate enough to live alone, do what I did and give away every morsel of food that is a no-no. Two weeks of torture compared to a lifetime? I'll take the former. I've read many posts here, and most people say the pre-op diet was, by far, the most difficult part of the process.

If you're tired of the strawberry/vanilla/chocolate-y stuff, then I suggest trying a brand called Bariwise. I've never seen it in stores, but it's available online. They make fruit-flavored Protein shakes. I find them much more tolerable than drinking dessert-flavored-chalk-liquid all the time. Wild berry is the best flavor, IMO. There's one from another company, Syntrax, called nectar Medical Unflavored. I like this to add to anything at all - zero flavor to it, so putting it to strained Soups or tea or anything I don't want to add flavor to is very convenient. I'm not sure if it's OK for the clear liquid portion of the diet. I've not used it for those days. Keep in mind: (nearly) all protein powders should be added to drinks below 130°F or they will denature and be nowhere near as nutritious.

I didn't see this in the thread, so if it's been mentioned, please forgive. If you're as tired of chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry Protein as I was, there's a brand call Bariwise that makes all varieties of fruit-flavored Protein drinks. All very low carb. IMO, wild berry is the best (like a fruit punch) and anything with orange is yuck-o. example: 70 Calories/ 2g Carbs/ 0g Sugar/ 15g protein per packet (for wild berry flavor)

carolynh, You could talk yourself out of it, sure. In the meantime, read posts here and watch some vlogs online about people who have gone through the journey. It may help ease your nerves. Personally, I'd rather have an organ cut out (literally) than waste one more year being fat. Or one more year fighting like Hell to lose weight and never getting there. Life has been passing me by and I won't let anything stop me from joining it. We're having surgery on the same day. Cheers!

Were you a sugar and carb junkie? For me, I know going from carb/sugar overdose to near zero grams daily gives me wicked headaches for 3-5 days. It will pass. The next time you have something sugary it will shock you how intensely sweet it is. Yuck! I chose to use the liquid Tylenol (a small dose) because it's not an NSAID and liquid meds seems to be the go-to for post-op pain relief.

My VSG will be on December 21st. I've never had surgery before. I'm sooooo nervous! Trying think of it like an extremely expensive Christmas gift to myself. A gift that will allow me to live longer, with more joy and less limitations.

Hey Kila Rass, I'm a self-pay patient, too. Yesterday was my last day to enjoy solid food for a while. It was explained to me that this high-Protein, pre-op diet is to shrink my liver, not to lose weight. My surgery is December 21st....... I didn't have a food funeral. I definitely thought about it, but I didn't want to indulge in the same terrible eating practices that forced me to the point of surgery. I am in mourning for my "drug of choice," however. To lift my spirits, I look at the outfits I will be wearing in 2017. The only thing I had "special" on my last day of solid foods was a chicken biscuit Breakfast from Chik-Fil-A. Holy guacamole - I'm gonna miss those. Sugar withdrawal is REAL. Caffeine withdrawal is REAL. If you're an addict like me, drink lots of Water and have approved OTC pain meds for headaches. I'm wicked tired and the headache is dull and constant. Best to you!

I am also a self-pay patient. I live Florida. I went doctor shopping in October. Because of my age (31), medical history, and the fact that I am self-pay, I didn't need the entire litany of tests required by insurance. My surgeon's requirements for me: blood test EKG chest x-ray no official psych eval, per se, but I was definitely interviewed and questioned by the doctor as to why I wanted the surgery one week of pre-op liquid diet (4 days full, 3 days clear) standard post-op diet Basically the only things I had to wait on were my test results and an open slot for surgery. The surgeon wanted to know that I was physically and mentally healthy for this operation. He could tell that I was completely sincere and had done a vast amount of research on VSG. I think the insurance people have to go through much, much more hassle to get it covered. The blood test took about a week to get results on, EKG was immediate, and chest x-ray took 3 days. I could have had the surgery within three weeks of my first consultation. I chose to wait because I'll be off for the month of December. I'll be having it a couple of days before Christmas. Good luck to you, OP!