Creekimp13

I feel your holiday stress. I got barky at my poor hubby today for no good reason. Thank God he's a patient man...cause I was a bear. Calmed down and started enjoying myself. Have had a lovely evening with my hubster and kiddo. I think I'm worried about inlaws tomorrow...bleh! LOL

Love my Charge 2.

If pregnancy is in your future, I'd go with sleeve. You still have to be careful, but sleeve is a little more forgiving nutritionally.

Awesome video:) Enjoyed it, and I feel ya:) Hang in there and be patient, you're doing great.

Nice work! Happy Holidays:)

If the redness spreads, and the incisions start to feel hot...have them looked at. A little redness and itching is pretty normal. Mine are starting to look terrific (3 weeks out)...but for a while after I took the bandages off, they were pretty red and itchy.

I'm post surgery, and I'm hungry all the damned time. LOL. Tummy isn't growling, but I feel that kinda light headed pokey feeling when my blood sugar gets low, and I get kinda headachy. It's definitely hunger...cause I eat and it goes away. Just nice that 4 ounces does the trick now:)

Gallbladder for me was cake. Went in at 7am and was home on the couch eating a Subway sandwich at 1pm. Dead serious. It was an extremely easy recovery for me. Took a couple days off work, and didn't lift much for a couple weeks....but other than that, it was very very easy. Sleeve is trickier, because you're wiped out for lack of calories, but you still have a lot you need to do every hour to meet your goals. Sip, sip, sip, Blow in the tube to keep lungs clear. Walk, walk, walk. it's a lot to get done every hour. A lot of folks have problems swallowing, nausea, etc. For me, sleeve was a very easy recovery....but it does take some effort to stay on top of fluid and protein goals and transitioning to each dietary stage. And I certainly felt the lack of calories. Very tiring. But it moves fast and eventually you're eating again and feel great. Best wishes on both procedures. Easy peasey....you'll do great.

Interesting! Thanks.

You are spazzing out unnecessarily. Water weight can account for several pounds being out of place. How much salt you eat in a day can figure in significantly. Taking certain medications can also make you retain water. Weight loss is individual. Keep in mind you're not a couple hundred pounds overweight....you will lose less per month than many people who have weight loss surgery because you are starting smaller.

I burst into tears at commercials, got irritated with everyone, and had sinister secret second thoughts about cancelling surgery thoughout my liquid diet. When you stop consuming sugar and your body starts to starve...it forces your liver to do this magical process of turning fat into glucose...so glucose in your blood can power your body. (your brain lives on glucose...so when the glucose gets low...your brain is the first to get twitchy) Your liver uses it's private stores in the liver first...which is why the diet causes the liver to shrink a little as the liver gets called on to make the glucose. My liver was angry.....What in the hell? LOL. You want me to do...what? Do you have any idea how long it's been since I've MADE glucose for you? We don't make sugar...we EAT sugar, remember? Have a donut! Man, it was hard. Being glucose deprived is coorelated with all sorts of interesting things...lack of impulse control, bad judgement, bad temper... it really does affect your head. Try to have more trust in your usual self....the self that has been working toward this goal for months...the self that has worked really hard to get here. Trusting your current self....is not the best idea. You'll make it. And you'll look back and go...Man that was hard! So glad I stuck to it, though!

I feel your pain. I had to cook Thanksgiving dinner for family while on my pre-surgical liquid diet. I was starving, grumpy, my head felt like I was trying to think through cotton...and my husband, mom and daughter all said I wasn't myself. That I seemed vague and miserable and just washed out. I felt washed out! Bigtime. I had a pretty miserable time with my liquid diet if I'm honest. But surgery went really really well....I recovered really rapidly. You are halfway there. You can do this. Surgery will be a tough day or two...but then, it's just a matter of doing your checklist diligently, and you'll be on the mend in no time. Sip, walk, suck (on the lung clearing thingy). Just keep sipping and walking. At least after surgery, you have a clear objective and no turning back. Before hand...I understand how maddening it is. Those two weeks were one of the hardest things I've ever done. Particularly, Thanksgiving. But think of this....How tough and resolved do you have to be to get through this? You're a bariatric rock star. Facing Christmas and sticking to your diet....proves you've got serious moxie and that nothing is gonna derail you. I know it's hard as hell. But you've got this. You really do. Take it an hour at a time when you have to....but you'll make it.

Question: Why do you think your hunger is fake?

I think the point of the liquid diet is to prepare you mentally for what's to come. Right now, you can cheat a little and nothing horrible will happen (unless you don't shrink your liver and your doctor decides not to do your surgery....it's happened) But here's the problem.... Immediately after surgery, you have about two to three days where you don't ingest ANY calories...just clear fluids. Then, you're on shakes and clear liquid for TWO MORE WEEKS. You'll get like 400 calories a day if you're lucky. And If you screw up and eat something AFTER surgery? You can really hurt yourself and end up needing emergency surgery for whatever you get stuck. My doctor did a talk about all the horror stories of his career....the stupid things people ate and the trouble they got into. Not good. AVOID THIS. You're just getting started. For me, it was the post surgical period where I nearly gnawed my own arm off. LOL But yeah...that MONTH of freakin starvation just sucked. It really did. Honestly....it was much harder (in my opinion) than the actual surgery. But the good news...is that you will survive it. And you'll drop quite a few pounds to soothe your misery. And you'll be eating yogurt and cream of wheat before you know it. I was on the liquid diet for Thanksgiving and cooked for my family. OMG...so hard! For Christmas, though...I get to eat finely cut up turkey and mashed potatoes. And it sounds like heaven. You all have my sympathies. Stay strong!

Best wishes on an effective, healthy outcome:) Buckle up and get ready for the ride.

There's a lot of different information being given on caloric intake....and it's absolutely best to follow the advice of the professionals you're working with. That said, bariatrics is an emerging science and ideas about metabolic reset are changing in the bariatric medical community. My understanding is that the newest approach based on studies of five year outcomes... is to get people eating closer to their eventual calorie goal sooner, to get a better metabolic reset that serves them well for a lifetime. This approach is supposed to be associated with less regain past year three. We all take our best shot at this and follow the advice that makes the most sense to us....I get that. I don't mean to be critical of anyone's approach. What I've been reading, and the seminar my group gave about recent research developments in bariatric outcomes...was pretty fascinating stuff.

Any temp from 97.7 to 99.0 is considered normal. When your temp is 99.8 ask yourself what you've been doing? Sleeping under heavy blankets? After exercise? After a shower? After being near heat in the kitchen? All of these can cause a slight tick up for a little while. Multiple catheterizations can be associated with urinary tract infections. You could have someone take a urine sample to your doctor's office to be checked and if necessary, get started on an antibiotic. If you find you can't make your fluid and protien goals within a few days, get seen just to be safe. Best wishes.

Best option = none. If you don't drink and it's not important to you....maybe just abstain. If it is something you enjoy and don't want to give up....here's some advice from google: The best form of alcohol, from a calorie perspective, are the classic spirits. We’re talking about tequila, rum, vodka, whiskey, and gin. One ounce of any of those classic spirits contains around 64 calories, most of which come from the alcohol content. So, maybe a small margarita, or any of these spirits mixed with low calorie diet juices? Good luck.

My nutritionist says that by six weeks you should be eating 1000-1200 calories, and that if you're eating significantly less than that, you're creating a starvation metabolism that conserves every calorie it can...and results in little to no weight loss. Also makes you feel exhausted and less likely to do the cardio and other exercise that would boost your metabolism. I keep reading dozens of posts like yours...people eating at starvation levels...losing no weight. Kinda makes me think there's some truth to what my nutritionist says. I'd rather lose slowly, eating normally and exercising regularly.....and have a great metabolism for life....than have the rush of losing weight insanely fast and reset my new metabolism to sluggish starvation levels. At some point, you have to eat. Don't trade one eating disorder for another.

First off, so sorry for the loss of your mother in law, that has to be very painful. It's understandable that your husband is scared since the news is still so new. I think what will help both of you is understanding your mother in law's cause of death. What happened? Was her health in jeopardy before the surgery? Was her weight responsible for comorbidities that caused complications? Or was it a freak issue like a blood clot? I wouldn't argue with your husbands wishes right now...I'd simply ask to table the conversation for a couple of weeks when maybe you'll have more answers about what happened and have some emotional distance and perspective. Right now, the best thing to do is to concentrate on helping him with his grief and paying tribute to his mom. Later, in a few weeks.....have a talk about the risks vs benefits. Talk about how you and your MIL differ healthwise. Talk about tests you can do and preventative measures you can take to ensure the same issues don't occur. Again, so sorry about your loss. My advice. Don't cancel yet. And don't make a decision yet. Just take some time and help your husband. Particularly given this happening at the holidays, that's enough to deal with for now. Wishing you both healing.

Elevated heart rate is a sign of serious dehydration. It can also be a sign of a leak or other problem. If your temperature is elevated, this is especially true. Be safe...go to urgent care/ER.

Go to the hospital or urgent care. Do NOT drive yourself. Bring documentation of your surgery and make everyone aware of when your surgery was. If you have a number to call from your surgeon's group, call it. Sip. Sip. Sip. Take fluids with you, and keep sipping.

Some meds are available in liquid form. Others you can break into quarters. Some you have to crush and take with a spoonful of sugar free Cool Whip...but it's no big deal. Time release meds can require a different strategy cause you can't break them. If one of your meds causes stomach upset, I'd ask about that one. My doc puts everyone on Omeprazole for a few months to protect the tummy while it heals. After surgery, I quit taking my diuretic, my blood pressure meds, and my antidepressant. My prediabetes is in remission....my latest A1C was normal. Only meds I take now, are thyroid and vitamins. (and Omeprazole for a few more months)

I think a lot of plans emphasize fluid the first week because fluid is so important. Dehydration is the primary reason people end up in the ER post surgery...so I can understand that emphasis. Try high protein oatmeal, add some protein powder to cream of wheat or cocoa wheats, use a whey protein shake for creamer in your decaf coffee.....lot of great strategies to get your protein in. Sounds like you're having really good luck and an easy time of it. That's worth being thankful for.

Mycoprotien (fungus protein) like Quorn products...also fit your requirements. You can also get egg protein powder if you eat eggs.