orionburn

No regrets, but there are certainly times when it can be annoying with changes. I have a beer every once in a great while but it's kind of all or nothing. Gone are the days of being able to even eat 6 wings and a drink a small glass of beer with the guys at B-dubs. Now it's half a glass and maybe 2 wings and that's it. I mean it's not the end of the world, and the pros have definitely outweighed the cons.
My only other real cons are the annoying loose skin. I'm older now, was overweight for a long time, and pretty much knew I was boned when it came to that. Oh well...there are worse tragedies in life but it's annoying.

Some docs don't have good "bedside manners." I finally started to lie to my doc because he annoyed the crap out of me. I told him multiple times that I could not get meet my Protein goals with only 3 meals. I had to do 4-6 plus a Protein Shake. And every time he's just lecture me on eating more than 3 meals a day, don't snack, it's going to lead to old habits, etc. So one day I finally gave up and whenever he asked "Are you only eating 3 meals a day?" Yessir. "And no snacking?" Nope. Never. Otherwise he's been good, but yeah...he always made me feel like I was cheating even though I wasn't. We're all going to lose differently. Don't worry if he's happy. If you're happy with your progress then be happy.

lol...okay. I thought you were trying to survive a single day of it. I was always jealous of those that had a doc that didn't require the full two weeks. It's a rough patch to go through for sure.

Are you saying you're just having to do a single day of a liquid diet before your surgery? Cause if so then my tip is to say suck it up buttercup. Most of us had to do two weeks of this crap.

$7?? Holy crap at the price difference between areas in the country. It's usually like $4 something around here. Sometimes we get lucky and they have it on sale and it's something like 2 for $7. Every once in a great while Aldi's will get a shipment and it's in the $3 range. Either way the price point means it's something we don't get too often.

Have you ever checked out the ice cream recipes on the Eggface blog? I tried one a while back and it was decent enough. Granted I use a pretty meh tasting Protein Powder but serves its purpose for regular shakes. I used it to actually make ice cream and it was okay. With a better Protein it would likely taste way better.
I usually do a mix of milk and ice in the blender to give it a milkshake consistency. Normally I'll only ever do that in the evenings if I need to hit protein for the day and acts as a sort of treat. I may try using some of the Halo thrown in to improve upon that.

No, last day of 2 weeks, surgery in am pure clear liquid til morning. Buttercup;P

Are you saying you're just having to do a single day of a liquid diet before your surgery? Cause if so then my tip is to say suck it up buttercup. Most of us had to do two weeks of this crap.

While it's easy to get caught up in the fear of surgery it's better to focus on the life style changes that are required. After all is said and done WLS is a tool. It is not a means to an end. Having a smaller stomach does not cure head hunger. It doesn't magically fix food addictions. It's honestly pretty easy to cheat with your sleeve and end up gaining weight back if you want. Getting ready to go through with WLS is much more mental than a lot of people realize (myself included).

This place is filled with lots of success stories. There are also those that come back after regaining weight a few years after surgery. Those are the things that I constantly remind myself of. That I can have continued success but it will always take work to stay on track and not fall back into old habits.

It's normal to be nervous and second guess yourself, but as I and many others will say it was one of the best decisions we've ever made.

While it's easy to get caught up in the fear of surgery it's better to focus on the life style changes that are required. After all is said and done WLS is a tool. It is not a means to an end. Having a smaller stomach does not cure head hunger. It doesn't magically fix food addictions. It's honestly pretty easy to cheat with your sleeve and end up gaining weight back if you want. Getting ready to go through with WLS is much more mental than a lot of people realize (myself included).

This place is filled with lots of success stories. There are also those that come back after regaining weight a few years after surgery. Those are the things that I constantly remind myself of. That I can have continued success but it will always take work to stay on track and not fall back into old habits.

It's normal to be nervous and second guess yourself, but as I and many others will say it was one of the best decisions we've ever made.

Maybe you didn't intend for it to come off this way, but if that truly is how you feel then that's something to be concerned with. In all honesty you'll end up feeling the same way if you go and have a bypass done. You have to come to terms with what real hunger is versus head hunger.

For years my routine was to get home, sit for a few minutes to rest from the work day, and get something to eat. Even now it doesn't matter if I eat right before I leave work and feel full. By the time I get home I feel hungry. Why? Because it's habit and my brain saying you need to eat. It's no different than old nicotine cravings I would get when I was a smoker. Habit was to always have a smoke right after a meal. Didn't matter if I smoked right before dinner. I obviously had my nicotine fix. But because the habit was to always have one as soon as a meal was finished I thought I was having nicotine cravings.

This is a tool. It's not a cure. The mental side to having WLS is just as important as the physical changes from surgery. It's like the old saying/joke of trying not to think about something. If you tell yourself don't think about sex what do you do? Immediately start thinking about sex. If you find yourself constantly dwelling on thoughts of food then there are some addiction issues you need to come to terms with. I fight head hunger all the time as well. It's annoying, so I get it. The more I think about "okay I have to go 3 more hours until lunch so I can eat again" all I end up doing is thinking about the clock and how much longer I have until I can eat.

I don't have an easy answer for you. Food me after surgery I tried to look at food as being something I just need to survive and not letting it control my life. I'm perfectly fine having chicken salad and regular salads for 80% of my meals in a week. We food addicts are like alcoholics. It's a battle we're always going to have. Just because you stop going to a bar doesn't mean it's suddenly easier to deal with alcohol dependency. It’s no different than food. Addiction is a b***h no matter what the addiction is.

Most main supermarkets will have it. They only come in pint sized containers. Unless you can find it on sale it's a bit pricey, but it's worth it. Most pints are 320 calories and less for the entire thing. Upside is it actually has Protein in it as well and the carbs aren't horrible.

https://www.halotop.com/flavors/

Kudos that people that can truly look at it at as fuel and be okay with it. Like you said in the real world not a lot of us can do that. I can do it while I'm at work. I can eat chicken salad for morning and lunch and not get tired of it. I'm looking at it as fuel at that point. That goes right out the window the second I get home, though.

We are wired differently. My wife could be a casual smoker and only have one a day, then go 2 days without one, then have 3-4 if we were out, then none the next day and be fine with that. Me on the other hand....nope. I loved smoking (when I did years ago) and there wasn't much control. There was absolutely no way in hell I could do what she did.
That goes for a lot of things in life. I can drink a beer every week or once every two months if I wanted. For somebody that has trouble with alcohol they couldn't do what I do. Yet I can but couldn't do that with smoking. Somebody may go to a casino twice a year for fun. Other's know if they went just once their gambling addiction would come roaring back.
food can have the same power/hold on us as any other addiction. For anyone that scoffs at others for not simply being able to "turn it off" then you don't get what addiction is all about. I do believe that we can all overcome our own addictions but it's easier said than done for many of us.

One word of advice - don't chase the perfect "last meal" prior to surgery. Even if you think you've come up with the perfect meal you'll end up wishing/wanting something else the next day. Truth is in time you will get cravings for old comfort foods. Some I have from time to time and have no issue with. Others I haven't even bothered with. Moderation is the key for anything in life. Naturally you'll want to stick to plan as much as possible through the honeymoon phase.
On the other side you'll be so excited at seeing results that it will help you stick to plan. It's when things taper off and you hit some stalls that it will be more difficult. Those are the times that test you. Don't go at it with the sadness of "I've never going to eat these things again" and feel like it's the end of the world. For me dollar menu burgers from McDonald's was at least a weekly thing for me before surgery. Haven't had one now in over a year and don't really care about it. Sure I get a craving for one every now and then, but I still get those cravings to have a smoke and it's been like 6 years since I quit smoking.
Long story short don't worry about it so much. This is the time to take a good hard look at your relationship with food, and yes, it can be eye opening at how much control it has in our lives.

Maybe you didn't intend for it to come off this way, but if that truly is how you feel then that's something to be concerned with. In all honesty you'll end up feeling the same way if you go and have a bypass done. You have to come to terms with what real hunger is versus head hunger.

For years my routine was to get home, sit for a few minutes to rest from the work day, and get something to eat. Even now it doesn't matter if I eat right before I leave work and feel full. By the time I get home I feel hungry. Why? Because it's habit and my brain saying you need to eat. It's no different than old nicotine cravings I would get when I was a smoker. Habit was to always have a smoke right after a meal. Didn't matter if I smoked right before dinner. I obviously had my nicotine fix. But because the habit was to always have one as soon as a meal was finished I thought I was having nicotine cravings.

This is a tool. It's not a cure. The mental side to having WLS is just as important as the physical changes from surgery. It's like the old saying/joke of trying not to think about something. If you tell yourself don't think about sex what do you do? Immediately start thinking about sex. If you find yourself constantly dwelling on thoughts of food then there are some addiction issues you need to come to terms with. I fight head hunger all the time as well. It's annoying, so I get it. The more I think about "okay I have to go 3 more hours until lunch so I can eat again" all I end up doing is thinking about the clock and how much longer I have until I can eat.

I don't have an easy answer for you. Food me after surgery I tried to look at food as being something I just need to survive and not letting it control my life. I'm perfectly fine having chicken salad and regular salads for 80% of my meals in a week. We food addicts are like alcoholics. It's a battle we're always going to have. Just because you stop going to a bar doesn't mean it's suddenly easier to deal with alcohol dependency. It’s no different than food. Addiction is a b***h no matter what the addiction is.

I take Centrum complete Multi Vitamins and Bariatric Advantage Calcium melts. Make sure calcium is seperated at least 2 hours from your multi Vitamin, Iron interferes with its absorption. Unfortunately this means you have to take them on a schedule (I have to do 2 multi’s a day and 3 sets of 2 calcium pills).
I’m not sure if chewables have better absorption or not.

Do you know what orionburn, i really do feel I will be fine. I'm just so glad I have managed to stick to my food plan, that has been a real blessing!

You were one of the vets I kind of looked up to when I first joined the board prior to my own surgery. So sorry to hear that you're going through. I was well on my way to becoming an alcholic years ago thanks to a terrible job. Glad to hear that you're finding a support network and getting on the road to recovery. Best wishes to you, Kate! I'm sure that you'll get through all of this just fine.

You were one of the vets I kind of looked up to when I first joined the board prior to my own surgery. So sorry to hear that you're going through. I was well on my way to becoming an alcholic years ago thanks to a terrible job. Glad to hear that you're finding a support network and getting on the road to recovery. Best wishes to you, Kate! I'm sure that you'll get through all of this just fine.

A million times this. It's actually easy to regain if you really want to. Eating slider foods and grazing all day on the wrong things makes for an easy way to take too many calories in and start gaining again. WLS is a tool that needs to be combined with a lifestyle change. Over time your sleeve will stretch somewhat (it's supposed to) but as the others said it's pretty much impossible to stretch it back to its old size.

You were one of the vets I kind of looked up to when I first joined the board prior to my own surgery. So sorry to hear that you're going through. I was well on my way to becoming an alcholic years ago thanks to a terrible job. Glad to hear that you're finding a support network and getting on the road to recovery. Best wishes to you, Kate! I'm sure that you'll get through all of this just fine.

What Kim said. It does get easier. When I gave up smoking years ago the first 3 days were pretty miserable. You'll get over that hump and it won't be so bad. It was the same with the liquid diet.
Hey...at least you get a bar! I would have cut someone for a packet of saltines after the first week.

You got this!

I agree. There's a difference of finding some healthy options at Chipotle versus trying to justify going to McDonald's. I remember a guy on here one time saying how it was okay that he still eats McD's because he only had a small fry and cheeseburger and wasn't really that unhealthy because he looked at the nutritional value on their website. My snarky came out and quipped that McDonald's is sooooo well known for their high Protein french fries.

I've had the same thing happen. I had XL shirts that I wore when i was around 260 lbs. I had lived at the gym for about a year and a half and went from 395 to 260. I still considered myself to be fat but I was also lifting like mad and had a lot of muscle mass. Here I am 15 years later and still have some of those old shirts. While I do fit into them they wear the same as when I was 265, and I'm 30 lbs lighter right now (235 current). It's frustrating because I know what it means and that I don't have near the muscle mass I used to.

It isn't rainbows all the time after surgery. Stalls will happen and get you down. Things like the clothes will bother you from time to time. But I'll say this - when I see Facebook memories come up and see what I looked like 2 years ago...holy crap the differenc is insane. The mental side of WLS can be a real roller coaster. It's good to vent because we all get frustrated from time to time.

I've had the same thing happen. I had XL shirts that I wore when i was around 260 lbs. I had lived at the gym for about a year and a half and went from 395 to 260. I still considered myself to be fat but I was also lifting like mad and had a lot of muscle mass. Here I am 15 years later and still have some of those old shirts. While I do fit into them they wear the same as when I was 265, and I'm 30 lbs lighter right now (235 current). It's frustrating because I know what it means and that I don't have near the muscle mass I used to.

It isn't rainbows all the time after surgery. Stalls will happen and get you down. Things like the clothes will bother you from time to time. But I'll say this - when I see Facebook memories come up and see what I looked like 2 years ago...holy crap the differenc is insane. The mental side of WLS can be a real roller coaster. It's good to vent because we all get frustrated from time to time.

I've had the same thing happen. I had XL shirts that I wore when i was around 260 lbs. I had lived at the gym for about a year and a half and went from 395 to 260. I still considered myself to be fat but I was also lifting like mad and had a lot of muscle mass. Here I am 15 years later and still have some of those old shirts. While I do fit into them they wear the same as when I was 265, and I'm 30 lbs lighter right now (235 current). It's frustrating because I know what it means and that I don't have near the muscle mass I used to.

It isn't rainbows all the time after surgery. Stalls will happen and get you down. Things like the clothes will bother you from time to time. But I'll say this - when I see Facebook memories come up and see what I looked like 2 years ago...holy crap the differenc is insane. The mental side of WLS can be a real roller coaster. It's good to vent because we all get frustrated from time to time.