orionburn

Best wishes to a speedy recovery! First few days can be a challenge but you got this! Good luck to you!

I've never liked the "3 bites" term that gets used a lot. Mainly because it gives the impression that you are literally taking 3 big bites of a meal and that's it. My doctor's staff hammered it into us to take your time eating. Measure things out and make a meal last 20-30 minutes. Yes it can be maddening making 1/2 a cup of tuna salad last 30 minutes, but your stomach will thank you. There are days when I struggle with the same thing and just want to eat it all in 5 minutes and be done, but every time I rush eating I end up regretting it. There are days where I can get 6 oz of food down easy and feels like I could eat more, then the next day I eat 4 oz of something and feel stuffed to the gills. I wish I could put my finger on the reasons why but I can't. Whenever I introduce something new I take a cautious approach and do a smaller portion, and I definitely make sure I take my time with it. It could very well be that you're just taking too big of a bite and putting too much into your stomach too quickly.

I've tried 2-3 times to drink regular coffee and each time left me feeling sick to my stomach. I was a massive caffeine junkie prior to surgery, but going those few weeks without anything has left me sensitive to it at this point. Decaf doesn't seem to bother me. Now I can get away with mixing a scoop or two of regular coffee in with the decaf to give a little kick but not enough to make me feel ill. Never got the jitters from having regular coffee. Just made me feel like crap for an hour or so.

Agree completely. Antidepressants aren't like popping a couple of ibuprofen because you have a headache. Depending on the medication it can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks to really kick in. Like WLS meds are a tool. IMO without a proper combination of counseling/therapy and meds I think you're wasting your time. An old boss of mine used to take an extra antidepressant on days when she was "really stressed." I couldn't roll my eyes hard enough at stupidity like that. Coming off antis can be a serious pain in the ass. I was on meds for a couple of years (probably 15 years ago now) and they helped me get through some difficult years, but ultimately it was just a tool that helped me get through it. The meds themselves were not a cure all to make things better. If you suffer from actual depression it's something to consider, but if it's only to help get through an anxious period I'd stay far away from them. Just my two bits.

Most foods on an app like Myfitnesspal will give you options on serving size - ounces, grams, cups, etc. I've entered a lot of staple recipes into my food journal. For instance tuna salad. I list out all my ingredients and I can dictate what a serving size is. That way if I put something in and say it serves 8 people then it's saying each portion size is 1/2 a cup (or whatever). It takes some time but it's worth it.

Remember a big reason most doc's want you to take a fair amount of time off is not only for proper recovery after surgery but also to adjust to eating/drinking post-op. You have to make sure you are getting your fluids & protein in. Fatigue will be your worst enemy. You can't do much, if any, "catch-up" in the early days. Meaning you can't skip drinking water for an hour and then think you can make up for it in the next hour. Pain shouldn't be the main concern - it's getting in your fluids.

Congrats!

It will get better. The first 2-3 weeks were not that joyful for me either. Looking back I can tell you that the majority of my battles were mental rather than physical. Yes, eating was not fun (I hated everything) and I was down from being cooped up in the house. Once I was back to work I started feeling much better. My first week was absolute hell and I really wondered if I had made the right decision. I did my best to change my attitude, get up and do more rather than sitting around sulking, and try to get out of the house even if it was only for a short period of time. I suffered from depression for years and sometimes just talking with someone will help. Doesn't mean you have to take meds but perhaps talking things out will at least help matters.

Definitely make an appointment with somebody to talk to about your anxiety. This surgery is by no means a walk in the park and the first few weeks are tough. All I can offer as advice is to try and focus on the good side of things. On Wednesday I'll be 6 weeks post-op and I feel better now than I have in years. That just makes me look forward to the continued weight loss and how I'll be feeling even better in the coming months. You can either choose to listen and follow people that are trying to pull you up, or listen to those that want others to wallow in their own personal misery. Luckily the majority of people on this site are very supportive and don't focus on pulling people down. I hope you can keep a positive attitude and find some peace in your decision. It will get better. You just have to hang in there.

Sounds like a cheap answer but really walking as much as possible in the early days is one of the best things you can do. At home you may want to think ahead and take into consideration the furniture you have. If you have a lower sitting chair you may want to put a pillow or folded blanket down to help elevate you a bit. I would go through phases when I would have some abdominal pain. I'd hold a pillow against my stomach as I stood up to help keep things in place a bit more. It's also tough to say what's best as everybody is different. What one person struggles with another doesn't. As long as it isn't giving you problems take the pain meds that get prescribed to you. They give them to you for a reason! The first few days I was home I took them every 4 hours as prescribed. I wasn't going to wait until I was hurting to take a pill. Within a few days I didn't need them at all. Good luck with your surgery!

And many an alcoholic and drug addict have probably said the same things. Why should I go to AA? I'll just stop going to the bars. Or I'll avoid person X & Y who want to get high all the time. WLS is not a magical pill that fixes thing. It is a tool to help long term. It's easy to say that I'm going to stick with my diet this time. This time it's going to be different. All those other hundreds of times I tried and failed were practice, but this time will be different! Not saying this to be a smart ass. It's just easy to say this time will be different. I'm sure the idea of surgery has scared some people away, they did stick to a diet, and were successful. It's no different than those that were so sure this would finally be the fix they needed but then end up gaining all their way back. I look at WLS like I would going to an AA meeting. Ultimately it is up to me to make the right decisions in leading a healthy life, but the WLS is a tool to help me be successful. It's not an easy decision, and yes, I went through all the second guessing as well. I had complications with my surgery. Did it suck? Yep. But I don't regret my decision. I worry about things like the loose skin too, but in the end I was more concerned about having a heart attack within the next 5 years because of the extra weight I've been carrying in additional to the other health problems I was facing. I'll take some loose skin over being dead before I'm 50.

Some people on this sight aren't happy with their decisions, so rather than try to embrace the benefits of the surgery they choose to focus on all the negative things. Then they pretend to be some keyboard savior by trying to scare others away from having surgery. It's ultimately up to you and what you feel best for yourself. I've heard some people use the argument that you'll never be able to take ibuprofen again. Oh noes! Because my having to rely on taking 600-800g 3x a day because of the constant pain I was in surely was a much better option. There are pros & cons but you do what is best for you. Don't let some debbie downer try and scare you.

I agree. The risks are there no matter what. My sleeve was done here in the states but my spleen decided to be a jerk on day #3 and spring a leak. Unfortunately these things can and do happen and it seriously sucks. I truly feel for you. It's terrible when you feel like your care providers don't much feel like providing care. Glad to hear you are doing better. Best wishes to you and hope your future looks a bit brighter.

Every damned doctor is different, but I was given the okay to eat chicken, ground beef, fish, etc at 4 weeks post-op. I still can't have "heavy" meats like steak as those are too hard to digest at this point. The key thing is tiny bites and chew the hell out of it. Meats do sit heavier than other foods so I take my time with it. It's kind of annoying but I do better when I make myself take 20-30 minutes to eat one of those mini meatloafs. If you feel that things like chicken are too hard to get down you can puree it. My nut also recommended getting chicken from a can as that tends to me more moist compared to baking/boiling your own chicken. I have found that I'm trying lots of different things to keep it from getting boring. Really try to set aside a little bit of time to make some meals. The upside for us is that now when I make a batch of chicken salad it lasts me for 2-3 days where before it lasted maybe 1...lol. Things like the meatloaf don't take that long to prep and you'll have a couple days worth of food if you don't mind leftovers. If you haven't seen it before take a look at this site for some meal ideas: theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com

Oi...drives me nuts when I hear stories like that. I have my approved food lists at home that my doc gave me. It was a listing of what's okay and not okay at the various phases. I'll try to remember to take a photo of them tonight when I get home from work. It's a good starting point on what you should be doing. I also would recommend doing what Lighthouse said and use a food tracker like Myfitnesspal. Once you get your usual foods in there it's easy to use and a good way to track your progress. Get that Protein & Water up and you should be fine.

Agreed. I came back to work after about 2 1/2 weeks off. I have a desk job so it wasn't terrible, but I was exhausted that first week and that's from sitting in front of a computer all day long. Like Sugar said, though, it really is up to the individual. If you're used to be up on your feet a lot you may bounce back quicker compared to somebody like me that is used to sitting. I told my boss flat out I'm taking 2 weeks minimum, but know that it could be 3-4 weeks if I can't manage it, and he was understanding.

I go through some phases where nothing really sounds good. I'll do an extra Protein Drink just so I can eat a half cup of mashed potatoes one night if that's all that sounds good. I've been doing a lot of chicken, egg, and seafood (fake crab meat) salads. My wife made some mini meatloafs in a cupcake pan. They were all about 1/2 cup of food each and topped with a little bit of cheese. Freaking loved those things and one pound of beef gets you quite a few of them. I plan on making the ricotta bake again this weekend as that was awesome. For me it's helped to have some days where I get most of my protein from shakes and eat some foods that aren't heavy in protein but just sound good. I've been diligent to avoid anything bad like pastas, breads, and so forth. There are just days where a mashed potato sounds way better than a portion of chicken.

Did your doctor not give you much guidance in what you should be eating? If you aren't hitting protein & water goals your focus should change to that immediately. We were told to get 60g of protein in minimum a day. The target should be between 60-80g of protein, keep carbs low, and don't stress about calories at this point. In addition try your best to get 64oz of water in. At 3 weeks out most people are in the pureed stage. Things like cottage cheese (blend a small portion of fruit up to add to the flavor) and Greek yogurts are good to have in your diet. The Oikos triple zero yogurts are 15g of protein in a serving. Cottage cheese is typically at least 10g in 5oz. Compare that to the 1-2g of protein you're getting from an entire banana. If you're struggling with water try mixing things up. Do Powerade Zero, Propel waters, Crystal Light, etc. I would mix a small amount of diet cranberry juice (the 5 calorie kind) in with my Crystal Light drinks to give them a bit more flavor. I keep a 32oz Powerade bottle as my measuring cup so to speak. I fill that up with my Crystal Light and as long as I get two of those down a day I know I'm hitting my water goals (your protein drinks do count towards water intake as well). I honestly think if you change those things up you'll see things kick into gear more.

I've read of others struggling with certain fruits. Oranges may be bothering you because of the higher acid content. Not sure why strawberries bother people, but you aren't the first to have issues with it. Probably just better to avoid those for a while yet and try again further down the road. I struggled with nothing tasting right early on, but most things seemed to taste normal about 3 weeks after surgery. Seems like it just varies between people and the length of time before things get back to normal. By now you should be cleared to eat most foods. Is it just that nothing sounds good?

Apparently I suck at handling anesthesia...lol. I've been under before and had no issues, but this time around it kicked my ass ten times over. I think it was just a combination of everything. Looking back a lot was the gas pain, and I loathe pain meds so those making me nauseous was not helping things at all.

Always have to remember that weight loss is going to be different from one person to the next. There are so many factors that go into it that it's not easy to say why one loses X and another Y amount of weight. I've seen mixed reviews to how people feel about baby food. Some think it should be avoided and others think it's okay. Are you drinking protein shakes in addition to the baby food and bananas? It does make a difference in weight loss if you aren't hitting your protein & water goals. There's also quit a bit of carbs in a banana. You might be better finding something else that's lower in carbs and higher in protein. Just my two bits!

I woke in a lot of pain and feeling sick. Won't lie...I uttered the "what the hell have I done to myself" line. At the time I didn't realize it, but I was doubly screwed because I was sore from the surgery, but when I took the pain meds that was making me sick. It was an ugly cycle the first day. By the time I was out of recovery and into my room I was feeling better. The first 24 hours were the toughest part.

Since you're 9 days out I'm guessing you are on the full liquid phase? It's not uncommon for it to happen. I went through it as well. You can try adding in a fiber supplement like Benefiber to your protein shakes. It may not cure it completely but will help.

Try getting an Vitamin geared for bariatric patients. My doc's office promotes Celebrate Vitamins and they're pretty good. They have chewables in various flavors, and they also have capsules for down the road. I know a lot of people on here use the vitamin Patches but I haven't looked into those myself. Either way I would try to get something soon that will work for you since getting your daily vitamins in is crucial. I'll second the

Nothing wrong with sticking with the basics such as flat, incline/decine, and butterflies. I've always felt it is best to change up your routine every now and then. If you belong to a gym that has both machines and free weights alternate lifts now and then. I will always prefer free weights to machines, but machines can make it easier to do certain positions or give you more control over incline/decline presses. Cable machines are my favorite by far because it gives you so much flexibility in doing your movements. There are minute changes you can do in your lifts. For instance if you're doing a flat bench lift with a traditional bar change up the position of your hands. A wider grip will hit the outside of your chest more, and a closer grip will target the inside. Keep in mind those little changes can really impact the amount you can lift and/or reps you can do. If I were doing a set of 3 I would do one set with a standard grip, one narrow, and one wide. You can also try changing your set/rep count. If you're used to doing something like 3 x 12 on bench try increasing the weight a bit but only doing 3 x 8. Key thing is to always take it easy when changing weight amounts until you know what you're comfortable with.