Berry78

It would be helpful to post what you are eating with quantities, types and duration of exercise, etc.

Congrats on your procedure! That roommate sounds like a nightmare. But I guess if that's the worst of it, you are doing well! Lol.

I had several inserts that were recommended by my PCP, chiropractor, and a podiatrist. All three sets were miserable! Tried Dr. Scholl's (foot scanning machine thingy) from Walmart, and have been happy since. Lol. Sometimes less is more. Keep in mind, my feet aren't yours, so my solution may not work for you. I have noticed my need for special footwear has decreased, but I'm not holding my breath that it will go away all together.

I use Pepsid complete. It's an H2 blocker instead of ppi. Maybe try something like that for a bit and see if you notice a difference. Sometimes we need acid control for 6 months or longer.

Looks like you found one. I originally read an article in National Geographic (pretty sure), but can't find it just now...

Of course contacting Doc is always a good idea when there is a question. I'm not hearing stricture, but that's just me. Increasing the acid could help the body in its digestion. Could make things worse. Don't know for sure, that's why I said experiment. Facebro... glad to hear ground beef works. It does better for me as well.

If I were to be relying on staples, long term, to hold my stomach tigether, I wouldnt have had the surgery. Open wounds in the body heal over with scar tissue (which is as strong or stronger than the original). The staples are just there to do the job temporarily. They stay forever, but after the first 6 months (or however long), their presence is incidental. My surgeon also used stitches to reinforce the staple line, but those stitches are disolving over time. In stomach plication or endoscopic sleeve, no scar tissue can form because there is no open wound. The sutures have to do the job forever.

Just to clarify, food restriction can mean two different things. 1. The actual quantity of food you are able to eat. This restriction gradually eases over a couple years, but you will never be able to eat as much as you did preop. (It is usually stated that you'll be able to eat a cup of food long term.. but depending on what it is, I can do that already! 12 weeks post op) 2. The dietary restriction during the first 8 weeks post op that says you can't just eat anything. Once you are 9 weeks post op, according to most surgeons, you are released to eat whatever you want. Not everything will necessarily agree with you, but you are allowed to try. I was talking about restriction #2. It is awful nice when you are released to try anything, because going to restaurants and joining the family or friends at mealtime is so important for our psychological well-being. Do we have to be "on a diet" forever? Yes, most of us do. But the occasional bite of something off-diet is also part of living a full life.

Acidic foods also cause me trouble. I suspect it's to do with our messed-up acid post op. Are you still on an acid reducer? The dairy issues may be a lactose intolerance. Have you tried Lactaid or Fairlife milk? Steak and chicken are notorious, but mostly because they are so dense and heavy. Do you also have trouble with something like meatballs or chicken pot pie? And if you ARE still on an acid reducer, maybe that's why the dense protein is being a PITA. It takes acid to break that stuff down. Experiment, experiment, experiment. Add diced tomatoes and salt to your raw hamburger before forming the patty, and only eat 1-2oz at a sitting.. maybe you can retrain your tummy. Don't try plain steak or a chicken breast until you are eating ground meat without a problem.

It is a shame she put so much weight on so quickly I did the same thing (unintentionally) when I stopped working to stay home with the kids. 100lbs in a year... and I didn't even really realize it! It's possible she didn't do it on purpose.. or maybe she did. But either way, even 210lbs is still obese, assuming she is of an average height. My daughter is about 195lbs, 5'5. She doesn't qualify for the surgery, but her metabolism is absolutely busted. I see my exact behaviors and patterns repeating themselves, and if she gets to the point that she wants the surgery, I will pay to send her to Mexico if she doesn't qualify here. Right now, it's about me, and my success.. and I'm learning the skills to be successful long term, and trying to teach the kids that there is another way of being. Too early to tell how successful I'll be.

Other than a ride home from the hospital, you probably won't need assistance. Just stock up on a variety of approved liquids for the first few days home, and you'll be set. Clean your house and do the shopping right before the procedure.

It isn't a bad idea if beef and chicken don't agree with you. I hate labels though, because there may be a perfectly digestible dish that has bacon bits in it, and suddenly you can't have it because it contains pork. Of course, for people with religious preferences, etc.. those food restrictions are important identity-makers. But it sounds like steering clear of non-digestible foods will be born from physical comfort, rather than spiritual comfort. Thus.. no real reason for the label Sorry to hear about you hating to eat.. does it hurt? I enjoy eating as much as I ever did, maybe more so (things taste better).

Glad things have normalized for you! Surgery is very traumatic, both physically and psychologically, and everyone goes through some strangeness, me thinks How much weight have you lost so far?

It was my understanding that they would need $500 to do the repair. It's kinda tricky since you don't want to bring a lot of cash, but you don't know whether you'll need the repair or not. You could bring a cashier's check, then if you don't get the procedure, you bring the cashier's check back home with you and redeposit it. Talk with your coordinator about it, and I'm sure there is a good solution...

How many calories a day do you think you were eating before talking to the surgeon? That should help steer you towards a good calorie count. It sounds like you are doing right, increasing your calories to stop from losing too quickly. Good luck!

Yes, absolutely normal! You aren't doing anything wrong. These "stalls" are part of the journey, and they will happen here and there. Sometimes the scale will also go up by a few pounds. It's just the weight shifting around, and doesn't mean anything. It's all part of the process. No worries, and congrats on the surgery!

Sorry, but hair loss is a known, temporary, side effect of the surgery. Mostly there isn't anything that can be done about it, though someone will probably get on and mention some potion that their hairdresser recommends. Might work, I dunno. But in general, the hair loss happens from 3-8 months, then stops, and starts growing back in by 12 months post op. I started losing my hair during the preop diet, so I'm sitting here at 2.5 months post op with visibly thinned hair. Don't know what I'm looking at when my "real" hair loss starts!

Missing a single day of vitamins is no big deal, but missing a month will likely leave some gaps in your nutrition. In my opinion, everyone on Earth, for the most part, need vitamins. Our food supply is wholey deficient. In the US, our vegetables only have 1/2 to 2/3 of the vitamin content that they did just 50 years ago. Which means we need to eat 1/3 to twice as much. No wonder we're all becoming obese!

At only a month post-op, your food restrictions are still in full effect. In another month, you will be allowed to eat a whole lot of other things, and will fit in maybe twice as much. As long as you are getting your liquids, vitamins, and protein, you can live for a year or two just on your fat reserves. So please don't worry about malnutrition Try and do a fun thing each day to help make the time go faster. Make lists of activities that you want to do when you are thinner, as well as things you can do now. Goals, rewards.. all these things that keep you looking forward to where you are going, instead of bogging your mind down in the now, or even the past. {Hugs} everything will work out! You'll see!

(Ruminating to myself about all the naughty bedroom-things that I should probably have run by my proctologist before doing...)

The surgery will be the easy part. Make sure you will be safe/have a plan for if the person gets out of jail. I also went to Mexico by myself, and had no troubles. When I got home, I wasn't alone, but instead of them taking care of me, it created MORE work for me taking care of them. You'll be just fine! Do make sure you have a ride home from the hospital, and enough food on hand that you don't need to shop for a few days. Get your approved foods (drinks, really) list now, so you can prepare. Good luck!

Trust me, digging it out yourself, if you are gentle (and you will be, because anything else is PAINFUL), won't injure you or cause problems. Doctors don't have anything special either. Gloves and a lubricant are all that are needed. Maybe trim your fingernails I second the enema as well. Good luck!! Hope it all comes out ok!

Insurances usually pay for procedures if there are rashes and wounds resulting from the excess skin. As for the belly button, after it is clean and dry, try powders, and even absorbent dressings in it. I'd even attempt taping the skin on the upper flap "up" to try and let some air in. Antiperspirant deodorant might help cut down on some of the wetness (if it is coming from sweat) And of course, see your doctor, as they need to document the problem, and might have better solutions for you than I can come up with. I could even see getting some sort of abdominal shapewear that might lift things... Try and wait until you are at goal and weight-stable before getting the surgery. You will be happier with the result.

Dr. Illan has a nutritionist that saw me briefly in the hospital and gave me a bag of goodies (mostly clear liquids), and a printout of the post op meal plan. The plan was very easy to understand, and had a page for each week (up to 8 or 9 weeks post). There is a list of approved foods for the week, as well as a sample daily plan, including target food weights. I was concerned pre-op by the 1/4 cup, 1/2 cup, etc. This plan does it much better: 2oz cottage cheese, etc. I found it easy to follow, as much as I wanted to follow, or make it my own (sticking to the approved foods list, of course). I kept that paper in my purse for the first 2 months, reviewing it several times a week.

Sorry, I had to cut my above post short, as had to attend to kid duties. Umm.. yeah, sorry about the wasps' nest that your post has stirred. Please keep in mind, as several of the above posters have mentioned, there are a lot of people here with "parent issues", and your post pushed some buttons. I was heavy by time I hit first or second grade, but really started gaining in earnest in middle school (blasted puberty!!). My Mom and Dad didn't have much money, so they did the best they could. I was the only one that became chubby on the pasta and day-old doughnuts, so it was a problem with me, not the diet But, alas.. the past is what it is, and I'm finally on a path to better myself. I'm 38. I recognize that you are terrified of complications from the surgery. You'd hate to see a perfectly healthy young adult sign up for an optional procedure that could leave her worse than she started, right? We can't promise nothing bad will happen during/after the procedure. But, we can promise that the risks are low, and the rewards are great. Post-surgery regain is a real possibility, and it can start as early as 6-8 months post-op. She has a lot to learn about changing the content of her diet, FOREVER, not just the quantity.. because she'll gradually be able to eat more and more, to the point of eating like a typical person (1 plate, not 3.. but she can get in big trouble with 1 plate!). If you can, please look up Dr. Matthew Weiner on youtube. He is a bariatric surgeon in Michigan, and he has a TON of information about how/why the surgery works, and tips for changing diet and lifestyle afterwords. We are so used to having to steer our kids in the right direction (away from danger), that it can be difficult to let them go and do their own things. Shoot, my husband didn't want me doing the surgery! He was terrified for me. I was more terrified for my high blood pressure, pre-diabetes, joint pain, inability to fit in an airplane seat (no 2nd honeymoon in Hawaii!), breaking toilet seats all the time, having to hold my breath to tie my shoes, couldn't wash the bottoms of my feet, having very limited wardrobe selection, couldn't go out to walk the dog without feeling like I was going to have a heart attack, stairs = seeing stars.. etc. I did great on diets when I was 20. Lost 65lbs, could hike 25 miles a day carrying a pack, etc. But, we can't all stay 20 forever, and having pregnancies, sitting at desk jobs, taking care of elderly parents in the home.. these things all take their toll, and weight gain happens... especially because a broken metabolism does not get fixed by diet and exercise! (There is some hope for a ketogenic diet, I suppose, but that was one I never tried). Fix the metabolism through surgery. Learn a new way of cooking and eating. Fix any emotional problems.. and your daughter has a great chance of having a normal life.