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KateBruin

Gastric Sleeve Patients
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Everything posted by KateBruin

  1. KateBruin

    Medical ID Bracelets

    I have a Lauren’s hope as well. Looks like an Hermès bracelet! Inside says RNY, no NSAID, no bling NG tube and bipolar. Don’t always wear it though
  2. I only tell the people who matter or those who have guessed. Only person to judge me is my naturally tiny sister who is a B with an itch. It’s not the easy way out. It’s actually very difficult and takes dedication. Anyone who judges can kick rocks. My a1c was 5.6 (just pre diabetic) and now it’s 5. My cholesterol and triglycerides are perfect, BP perfect and so is just about every other test. My mom actually judged me too but I told her to shut up or I’m done with her. Sorry I want to be healthy 🤷🏻‍♀️
  3. KateBruin

    Drinking Post Op

    I can get drunk and sober several times in one night. Sometimes I’m drunk off 1 drink but I sober up in a crazy fast rate. Keep most of my drinks low in alcohol sugars and diet or calorie free mixers. Addiction transfer is real. My sister is in AA and my uncle was a hardcore drunk so I’m mindful. Luckily, zero issues with my drinking habits. I was actually sober from 2007 (17) until 2012. I didn’t really NEED it but I was going through a weird time as I became bipolar. Once I got that sorted and took an addition class at UCLA I realized I’m a normie!
  4. KateBruin

    Are you Sleeve to RNY?

    Went from sleeve to bypass early April. Lost the 50 lbs I gained on steroids and my GERD is cured (that’s why I got it plus gastroparesis). I’m at my original goal weight so time for a new one! 💪🏼
  5. KateBruin

    Vets - How often do you weigh yourself?

    Best time for your “true” weight is first thing in the am, pee, get butt ass naked and weigh. I see the doctor scale and say LIAR!
  6. KateBruin

    Vets - How often do you weigh yourself?

    Only at the doctor or once a week at home. Day to day weight gains and loss mean nothing. It wasn’t good for my brain to weigh every single day. Fortunately, I’m at the point where my BMI is healthy and I need to lose about 15 more lbs but now I’m only focused on appearance. If I look better after gaining muscle pounds, I’m good with it!
  7. Seroquel. It made me gain weight by itself 100lbs plus made me ravenous. I also have hashimotos so my metabolism is awful. Yes, I should have chosen better foods when the seroquel cravings hit but a carrot just never satisfied it. I stopped it and with workouts dropped 50 lbs before I even saw my surgeon
  8. KateBruin

    CHEWABLE MULTIVITAMINS???

    These are the ones I started on. Eventually they just became disgusting. My tastes keep changing. But these are the best since it’s every vitamin and just 4 a day. The berry taste the best IMO but for now I just can’t deal with them
  9. KateBruin

    CHEWABLE MULTIVITAMINS???

    I have a couple bottles of the complete bariatric vitamin where you just chew 2x2 a day. They just became so gross I’ve switched to patches until my blood work says they aren’t working. My D is low but that’s normal for me so I do a weekly pill and folate low because I started methotrexate so I take folic acid pills. The patches are just so much easier. Praying they continue to work. 🤞🏼
  10. KateBruin

    Alcohol

    I have 1-2 drinks maybe 3-5 days a week. Some days I have 1 daily. Occasionally I have more like when I went to Vegas. I just make sure I’m not driving because how it hits me is unpredictable and I make sure I use low calorie mixers and include it in my daily macros. I found FitVine and it’s damn good wine for lower carbs and keeps the alcohol content like normal wines. After my sleeve my first drink was about 3 months out (had 1 for thanksgiving). After sleeve revision I waited a couple months. I’ve had a complication that’s either ulcers or something else (getting my cat scanned Thursday). So for now I’ve put away all coffee, alcohol and most caffeine but I’m a slave to Diet Coke so I have one every other day. I’m secretly hoping it’s some easy to fix complication vs ulcers because I desperately need to start using my topical NSAID for a double shoulder repair. No pain meds and I’m suffering!
  11. I needed revision. NEEDED. I make the distinction for anyone who is in my shoes and contemplating revision. I did regain 50 lbs but it was purely because of high dose steroids for 5 months. The journey is different when it’s weight regain revision vs medical revision.
  12. KateBruin

    Gastric bypass or sleeve

    Be careful. There can be some pretty devastating side effects of long term PPI like significant bone loss. I was on them for over 18 months till I switched to bypass. I’m on them for 3 months because I got ulcers 🙄 but I’m hoping they’ll heal. No coffee is killing me!
  13. KateBruin

    Gastric bypass or sleeve

    I apologize if someone has already responded. Sleeve creates a high pressure system within your stomach, worsening GERD or creating it (me!). Bypass makes your stomach so small it produces little acid. I will say that I’ve had a complication of mini ulcers in my duodenum because it’s never been exposed to acid or there’s something else wrong. Getting a barium CT next week. ZERO regrets going from sleeve to bypass. I’ll take the pain and, quite frankly, pooping myself once over the 24/7, wake up choking on vomit that I had with the sleeve.
  14. KateBruin

    OOTD

    This picture makes me feel like a tough, badass B! I’ve lost some muscle recovering from shoulder repair but damn does it feel good!! Just need to keep clothes on to cover the Sharpei skin!
  15. KateBruin

    Can't stop losing weight

    You’re so sweet! I went to my first HIIT workout post bypass revision and shoulder repair. I wore tiny little booty shorts and would catch myself in the mirror and think damn you look good!! I might have dysmorphia but at least I have moments where I really recognize the loss. When I could see clavicle, chin and definition in my neck I practically peed myself in excitement! The loose skin is starting to be real and it really sucks we can’t get rid of it without paying tens of thousands of dollars. I’d probably be around a size 4 if I didn’t have it!
  16. KateBruin

    Hair loss

    I started dipping my nails. Sometimes natural and sometimes tips. I do it at home and it lasts for weeks. Makes my nails strong and beautiful!! If you have time it’s really fun to learn and as long as everything behaves, soothing
  17. KateBruin

    Post RNY acid reflux

    I was instantly cured of my sleeve induced GERD. I hiccup and burp and well, fart a lot but no real reflux!! I was on a PPI for a month just to protect my healing stomach. I did end up getting these horrible 8-12 hour bouts of horrible pain and I’m investigating further at my 6 month checkup on the 22nd. I had gastroparesis but now I seem to have too fast digestion or I’ve developed Crohns. I take medicine to reduce intestinal cramping and stomach pain. Takes pain from an 8 to 4.
  18. So I don’t work because I’ve had illness after illness. First diagnosed with hashis, then popcorn lung, and ankylosing spondylitis. Then I had sleeve 2017 and bypass this past April. It took weeks for me to feel human. I spent 1 night in the hospital and left with drains. first patient to only stay a night! The drain was gross and I went to urgent care for them to change bandages until it was removed 4 days later. The drain is just gross. I probably would have requested a month off work if I had an office job. The biggest thing was I was exhausted. Slept like 20 hrs a day for weeks and got severely depressed.
  19. KateBruin

    Hair loss

    I’ve lost a significant amount of hair from sleeve, bypass and autoimmune disease. Nothing has helped so far. Biotin is great to try and keep existing hair healthy but I’ve never read anything that says it helps with hair loss. As your weight and diet stabilize it will come back. I’ve been told 9-12 months
  20. KateBruin

    Can't stop losing weight

    I still see myself as fat even though I see bones I didn’t see before. I always end up buying clothes too big because I’m shocked at how small I’ve actually become. I have sharpei belly and excess skin so I should be smaller but I’ll save for a tummy tuck! Everyone says how amazing I look but I still feel like the 267 lb fat girl.
  21. KateBruin

    Gastric bypass or sleeve

    I did vitamins for months but eventually they just made me want to puke. I currently am trying patches even though theyre not proven to work. Just got my 6 months blood work so we’ll see. I know deficiency can take years to show. I’ll go back to 2 x2 chewable if necessary.
  22. KateBruin

    Gastric bypass or sleeve

    I would do bypass simply because I got a sleeve, developed gastroparesis, issues with swallowing and horrible GERD. Suffered at least 18 months before I got bypass revision. It hasn’t been fantastic but no more GERD!! I got sleeve August 2017 and bypass April 4. Wasn’t for weight loss but the above issues. I’ve lost 110 lbs with sleeve, gained 50 on high dose steroids and bypass has helped me lose it and now I’m down 117 give or take from my highest!
  23. KateBruin

    Alcohol

    So I’m a few months out from surgery (sleeve to bypass) and I’ve tried hard liquor, wine and beer. Sometimes I can drink a lot and it barely affects me and other times I have one drink and I’m toast. Has 4 of the vodka bottles on a plane and got appropriately tipsy but sobered quickly. Then I had 2 glasses of wine while on vacation and suddenly I was waking up to brush my teeth and the bottle was empty. Apparently the two glasses made me black out or brown out and I finished the bottle?! But woke up only a couple hours later totally sober and not hungover. What this taught me was I cannot drive and consume more than one beverage. Either I have a DD/Lyft or I drink at home. Luckily, I don’t care to drink much anymore because of the empty calories.
  24. KateBruin

    Bile dumping

    So we’ve all been warned about dumping syndrome from too much sugar. What I wasn’t warned about was bile diarrhea if I don’t eat enough. Anyone suffering with me? I truly forget to eat because I don’t get hungry and then I get 2 weeks of nonstop green bile diarrhea because I don’t eat enough. I think it’s partially because I have no gallbladder but this is very new to me and awful!
  25. KateBruin

    Mental health

    Up until recently I was raging and anyone and anything over nothing. Truly a maniac. Part of my brain would say stop, you’re being crazy but I couldn’t help myself. Happened after my sleeve, after shoulder repair and now after bypass. I call it the post op blues.

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

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