orionburn

Awww...sorry for your loss. We lost our first greyhound Cody about 2 1/2 years ago to cancer. He was my heart dog and hated to lose him at only 6 years old. We still have his sister Izzy (the one in the leaves), and Atom (the dummy with his tongue hanging out) shares the same dad as them. Atom is so much like Cody that it's scary. Isn't the same but it helps having him around to remind me of my boy.

Ha! Having as many fosters as we've had believe me we've seen our fair share of not so bright dogs...lol. Our girl Fannie (who's begging at the door in the above photo) is too damned smart for her own good. She could get trained to be a CIA assassin as long as she got food out of it.

Wow...you're the first person I've come across that had the same thing happen. Doc wasn't positive but felt that's likely what happened. He said the spleen is goofy organ and the slightest brush against it can cause a bleed days later like in my case. I came out of a nap, thought I was having some REALLY bad gas pain, and went downhill pretty quick. They took me to see if I had a leak and did a scan, sent me back to my room, and then moved me down to ICU shortly after. All I could do was rest and wait but was pretty miserable for the next 24 hours. Ended up being in the hospital for 6 days but once I got home I started to get on the mend. From that point on it was residual soreness from the surgery but the pain was manageable.

And then we have this "graceful" dummy

Everything you're feeling is normal. It can be crazy difficult to try and sort through all the feelings and signals that your body is giving you. The nerves to your stomach are in complete disarray right now. It will take some time for your new tiny stomach to get in synch with your brain. We all experience it differently but typically when you’re in the liquids only stage (which does include Jello) you may never actually experience a full sensation. Liquids pass through much faster than solid foods, and things like Jello break down and turn back to a liquid state quickly so unless you eat too much too fast you’ll likely never get a full feeling. Measuring out your portions and taking time between bites is key at this stage. When I was able to start having yogurts I used a baby spoon. I’d take a bite (if you can call it that) and then set it aside for a few minutes. Then I’d try again and repeat. It can be maddening when it takes half an hour to eat a couple ounces of yogurt but being patient is worth it. Allowing yourself a few minutes between bites will give your body some time to send signals saying “hey…back off now.” Just be sure you’re accurately measuring your protein & water intake. As long as you’re hitting your daily goals and getting your vitamins in you’ll be good on the nutrient side of things.

For some, yes, it's normal. I had a terrible time getting anything down for the first few days. The swelling can be pretty bad making it difficult for things to get into your new tummy and through it. Even with small sips it felt like it was sitting on top of my stomach giving me a horrible heartburn feelings. Having ice chips helped me more than trying to drink my water. Popsicles will be another good way to get some fluids in without having to try and swallow much. I know it's pretty rough right now but it will get better, so don't give up. Hope things get easier for you soon.

Too cute! Never felt that a Husky would be the right breed for us but they've always been one of my favorites. They are truly stunning.

Won't lie...I woke up from surgery and was like WTF did I just do? The pain was pretty bad and to make it worse I wasn't handling the pain meds well. That was making me sick which likely made things all the worse. Like many it was pain more from the gas than anything else. The incision points hurt but weren't what I would call super painful. When I developed a spleen bleed on the third day that was pain like I haven't experienced before. The body really gets pissed off when there's blood where it's not supposed to be...lol. I'm a slow healer so I dealt with pain for the first 2 week. The bad gas pain was only for the first few days. Then it was more of the dull aches/pains associated with surgery afterwards. I envy those that went through their surgery and felt like they could go back to normal the next day. Despite it all the short term is rough and can be tough to get through, but it's well worth it.

That's spot on...and hence why it's difficult to read somebody's mind from a post. My example is that I can eat a meal right before I leave work. I get home 45 minutes later and feel like I'm starving and I need to eat. That's because of old bad habits of always eating when I got home from work whether I was actually hungry or not. That's head hunger. Any other time I wouldn't feel a (true) hunger sensation for hours. No different than when I used to smoke. HAD to have that smoke right after dinner no matter what. Even if I had smoked right before dinner I needed that fix afterwards because it was a habit. It wasn't actually nicotine withdrawl.

While the milk is good the cereal is pretty much empty calories (and a lot of carbs too). Might want to keep it in the cupboard and let that be a treat down the road as you can tolerate more food. I freaking LOVE cereal too but it's something I only have once in a great while now. There are times where I can eat it no problem, and other times it doesn't agree as well. One of those weird things to try and figure out. You could give lactose free milk a try or even almond milk. That might help out. I'll be a year out next week. Yes, things will get better. It's a long road and will take some time adjusting to the changes. It's still weird going out to eat and never being able to finish let alone get through half of it. Upside is you always have leftovers for another meal! Some foods I avoided all together for the first few months. Some I've tried and didn't care for when I tried to introduce them again. Lot of things I realized that I didn't need in my life any longer so haven't even bothered with them.

It's hard navigating posts and trying to get into someone's mind. You're right in that we can't know for sure what is real hunger vs head hunger. I was lucky in that I had no desire to eat for the first month after surgery. It would suck to have a legitimate starving sensation so soon after surgery. I think the intent is well meaning because head hunger is a very real thing. But like you said there is a difference of being hungry on a 500 calorie/day diet vs eating a meal and not feeling satisfied and wanting something else. It's important that we learn the difference between the two because I do feel that's a big component of being successful.

Ok, just wanted to confirm. Took me a good while to get used to eggs again. Seems if I would cook them a hair too long it would make them too tough and gave me fits trying to eat. They would sit like a ton of bricks despite only eating a single egg. Not sure what cereal you're eating, but to be honest I'm surprised to see it in a diet plan that early on (unless it's something like Cream of Wheat). It can be difficult figuring out which foods are best for you in the early months. Always go slow when introducing something new on the post-op side. Don't get too discouraged, though. There were quite a few things I couldn't do early on that I can handle fine now.

I started taking regular pills after 2 months or so. I hated chewables and was cheaper to go with traditional pills. Breaking up bigger pills is a good idea of course. As long as you have no issues swallowing them there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to.

Tips my NUT gave me: 1) The "chew for 20" rule. Means take a bite, chew it at least 20 times, and then swallow. 2) Use a baby spoon/fork. 3) Put the fork down between bites 4) Make the act of eating about eating. Don't sit in front of the computer or watch TV. It's easy to get lost and not pay attention to how much you're eating or how quickly. 5) Measure your portions and stick to the portion size. No going back for seconds. In time you probably will be able to increase your portion size, which is normal, but if you can manage 1/2 cup or 1 cup of food then measure it out and that's what you get. 6) If it isn't realistic to sit at a table by yourself then find something that you could do while eating. Maybe read a book. Take a bite, put the fork down, and make yourself read a full page (or two or three or four...you get the point) and then take another bite. 7) Pay attention to the time you start eating. In the early days I always looked at the clock when I sat down to eat. I was supposed to make a meal last 20-30 minutes. I'd take a bite, set the plate aside, wait X amount of time, and then take another bite. Lot of that depends on what you're eating, but tracking the time helps.

lol...I still feel like I have a long way to go, but thank you! It's been one hell of year and has been an experience. When are you scheduled to have your surgery? Must be fairly close to the date I had mine last year.

Wouldn't hurt to have a mix of flavors to have on the other side. Not everyone experiences it, but for some (myself included) you may go through a phase where things you used to love now taste terrible. I'm a big Crystal Light fan but most of my favorite drink mixes tasted awful after surgery. Things did go back to normal after a few weeks, but it was a strange phase. Even went through that with the popsicles. Most I liked, but there were one or two flavors I avoided.

First the usual "always check with your doctor", but yes, you can have those things. May not hurt to avoid it in the last 24 hours, but starting out you'll be fine.

It's hard going to places of old where I would eat so much in my past life, but now go home with a ton of leftovers. One thing that has been a pleasant surprise is that a lot of foods I thought I would have to fight an urge to have I don't actually want anymore. There's been times where I've taken a bite of something and just been like nope, not doing it. Congrats on your progress!

I admit I'm no expert on the differences between keto and a typical low-carb diet. I think some doctors imagine a low carb diet as one eating 12 pounds of bacon a day...lol. You can still do low carb and not go crazy on high fat foods. Keeping my carbs low has always been best for me although I'm not the biggest fan of it. I seem to notice a bigger increase in weight loss if I keep it to 50g or less a day. Usually it means lots of lean protein (chicken & tuna are my main go-tos) and I stick to lower carb veggies.

Eggs can be difficult to eat in the early stages. Your profile says pre-op but assuming you're post op now? If so how far out are you?

It takes some time to sort it out. Some times by the time you feel that full sensation it's too late. Here I am a year out and last night I must have taken too big of a bite at some point during dinner. A few minutes later I was in the bathroom trying not to get sick. The moment passed thankfully but it can be oh so miserable. It can be maddening when it takes half an hour to eat an egg but as you progress it won't be near as difficult.

It's a work environment so make sure you have a measured response. If she continues to make comments that make you feel uncomfortable then simply tell her that you appreciate the concern but you're handling things fine on your own. If she pushes further then flat out tell her that you would like her to stop commenting on the subject. If it goes any further then take it to HR. That way you've done your part and you can go to HR with a legitimate complaint. Also never hurts to have a witness around if she's making these comments in front of others. I would want to snap as well but when these things happen it's often you who end up being the one sitting across from HR. Speaking from years of experience being a supervisor. It's one thing to be vocal about having WLS and having to expect some people to voice their opinion, which IMO is fine even if they don't agree with it. It's the people that continue to go on and on and on and on about it that become the problem and don't know when to stop.

Despite WLS being a major surgery it's still just a tool for weight loss in the end. It's how you use it that matters. We could all invest in the best exercise equipment to have at home, but if we never go down to the basement to use it that isn't the equipment's fault. That's on us. Just like head hunger. My stomach is 80% the size of what it used to be but I can eat something at work, get home and hour later and feel like I'm starving because of old habits of eating as soon as I got home whether I was hungry or not. The surgery isn't to blame for that. It's much more of a mental game then a lot of us thought it would be. Now, if what you're experiencing is something akin to body dysmorphia that's a different story. For me I've lost about 120lbs since I started my WLS journey. That said I still feel like I have the same body shape as I did when I weighed 350lbs. Sure, there's a lot less of it, but if I'm having a day where I feel bloated then I feel the same towards my body now as I did then.

One of the better things to do is use this site. It's a double edged sword - can be confusing at times because so many doctors do things differently, but the members will give you a good feel for what to expect going through all the stages. You'll always find somebody that's right where you're at, those that just had their surgery, and those that have been on the other side for years. Personally I think step 1 of the process is to research and decide what type of WLS is best for you. There are probably half a million threads on here asking "What type of surgery did you choose and why?" It's a good way to see what reasoning people had for their choice and why. Edit: It's also important from the start to ask yourself what do you expect from having WLS? What is my relationship with food going to be in the final months before WLS? What about after? The mental side to WLS is a much bigger part of all of this than I ever expected.

If you feel it was a waste why so? What were your expectations of getting WLS?