Creekimp13

I actually started calling the liquid diet...The Auschwitz Diet..(which I know is horrible and disrespectful of holocaust survivors, I apologize) But yeah...it's not fun to slowly starve on nothing but disgusting flavored waters and sickly sweet vitaminy yucky protein milk and jello. It's dehumanizing and feels like torture. Then it occurs to you that you're choosing to do it to yourself and you think...what in the hell is wrong with me that i'd do this??? I used to love jello. There is only so much sugar free jello you can eat and not come completely unglued. When I was able to eat soft solids, I pitched about 24 jello cups in the trash...which was an awful waste...but seriously....with a gun to my head, I couldn't eat them. They had to go. And I took a certain delight in pitching them. After a while everything tasted like the chemical version of "fruit flavor" and "salty beaks and feet"....Protien drinks started tasting like Milk of Magnesia. it was all so gag-worthy at the end. If I'd had to go another week on liquids...I might have done something insanely desperate. I feel your pain:) It gets better!

This is incredibly common. i was freezing after surgery. This week, in fact, is the first time since surgery that i've gone to bed without taking hot water bottles and heating pads with me. You'll feel more like yourself when you start to consume more calories each day. Nothing burns calories like generating heat. When you're starving...your body cuts resources for this. I got by with lots of cardigan sweaters, fleece socks and lots of hot baths when I couldn't take it anymore:)

The liquid diet was the hardest part for me. Worse than surgery. Worse than the feeling of anxiety when you first start to drink and every sip has to be less than a teaspoon. Worse than the days of feeling like ALL I DID WITH MY DAY...was watch the clock and sip sip sip...walk walk walk. The liquid stage...both before and after surgery... flat out sucked for me. I was starving and I hated it. It crushed my morale and yep...I had a few second thoughts. I remember one afternoon bursting into tears because my husband brought me some chicken broth and I just couldn't face it. "It tastes like a stinky chicken armpit, I just CANT. I will puke." I wasn't supposed to have it until the next day, but he made me some cocoa wheats. My rule conscious by the book husband....knew I'd reached my breaking point and suggested that one day early...cocoa wheats thinned with protein drink....would likely be ok. Best cocoa wheats ever. I felt almost human. By the time I tried cream soup and oatmeal and yogurt....I was convinced I was going to live and not go bonkers. God that was so HARD! I do remember. But I promise....it's all downhill from here. You start adding things and it doesn't take long. You keep adding new stuff until you're 6-8 weeks out and can eat almost anything. And you forget how hard you struggled...and feel completely confident that the world is in your pocket. Don't lose hope. You're almost to the really fun, really good, really exciting part:)

Nicotine is a harsh mistress. I love it, but won't touch it now. Active and historical tobacco use has been shown to increase risk of mortality, 30-day morbidity, venous thromboembolism (VTE), respiratory and pulmonary complications, marginal ulcers, and slowed wound healing among others after bariatric surgery. People who smoke have a complication rate of over 27% and over 5% greater chance of failure to wean off the ventilator over 48 hours after surgery. Pneumonia rates are much higher, too. Nicotine coats the inside of your mouth and throat. You will swallow it constantly, it will coat your internal wounds..and it can cause your incisions to leak and fail because it's extremely toxic and impedes healing. Why we have such well developed nicotine reception...is anyone's guess...but it's a bad joke of evolution, because as wonderful as it makes us feel....the schit is deadly. I, personally, would NEVER have bariatric surgery if I could not give up nicotine use completely. Too dangerous. My two cents. Take what you like and pitch the rest. No judgement meant.

I woke up super quick. I was alert and oriented in the recovery room for over an hour before they had my room ready. Sitting up, feeling pretty good, begging for ice chips. Man, your mouth gets dry!! As soon as I got to my room, I was out of the bed using the bathroom and roaming the halls. Had half a dozen visitors that night and took a walk with all of them:)

Or maybe he's a selfish lazy jerk and needs to have some consequences for not doing his part. Just sayin. Lotta fish in the sea.... and many of them don't need to be babied like toddlers to do the most fundamental things. The men I know are strong, capable and do schit on their own initiative without being begged. They're awesome people, and they think exactly how I think. You play..you pay. You do your part. I respect men who act like adults and women who don't placate and enable infantile behavior.

I had really hot Thai food and survived:)

I had gastric sleeve and we were NOT required to do a colon prep. That said, the final 5 days of our 2 week liquid diet...we did shakes only. Except for the night before surgery...when we had to drink a TON of white grape juice.

Everyone hits stalls. Jenn's link is awesome. Give it a read:)

They billed another person who had my name and birthdate. Her insurance didn't cover the surgery. Mine does:) When they sent the right info in, it showed up as being pre-approved.

The best answer is to talk to your surgeon's office:) Something I like that helps settle my stomach....ginger lemon tea.

Mine is in Michigan:) And yep, I'm going:)

Good Luck! Crossing fingers for you:)

I think your hubby needs to up his game. That sounds incredibly unfair. You are not being unreasonable. Have a heart to heart with him. I hope things improve. Take care of yourself!

I love dill pickle chips...will definitely try the almonds! Thanks for posting:)

I had a really easy surgery. Everything went much better expected...with the exception of one little hiccup:) I had just gotten to my room, was talking to my husband, feeling really good.....when this extremely worried looking hospital administrator came in and asked me if I was feeling up to talking for a minute. I felt great...so I was like...Of course.. And she asks me..."Are you in the process of having your surgery financed?" And I go...."Uh, no. I have insurance." And she goes...."I was just on the phone with your insurance company and apparently there's been some mistake. Your rider doesn't cover bariatric surgery." I can't overemphasize how grim this woman looks. She knows she's giving me horrible news, and it's her job to protect the hospital financially....she looks like she feels terrible for me. She's trying to be really gentle and says "We could do an 18 month financing plan. We don't usually do this and we're really not sure how this happened. Usually financing is in place." And I go..."Um, can I show you something?" I had my husband get my folder of stuff that I had sense enough to bring to the hospital with me. In it...was a copy of my approval letter from my insurance company. So I give her the copy of the letter....and she looks baffled. I go..."Will that help you?" And she goes..."It just might. Please give me ten minutes. I'll be right back." She comes back in ten minutes...all smiles. "I'm so sorry. You have the same name and birth date as another patient in the system and we were trying to bill the wrong person. You're all set. I really appreciate you bringing this letter with you, it helped immensely. I'm really sorry about worrying you when you're already stressed." And I'm like..."I feel so shockingly good, I'm just grateful the surgical team is top notch. No one's perfect. If mistakes are gonna happen, I'd rather they happen in billing, you know?" She smiled, apologized again, and excused herself. Later that day I got flowers from the hospital with a note from her thanking me for being understanding about the mix up. Moral of the story: Bring a copy of your approval letter to the hospital with you. Other Moral of the story: Give your kid a somewhat unique name. Mine is as generic as John Smith... and this has caused me issues a couple of times.

I walk 8 miles a day and I'm looking at a water aerobics class in a heated therapy pool at the Y.

Wishing you a safe effective procedure and a speedy recovery:) let us know how it goes!

NewBeginnings, are you planning to go?

Wishing you a successful effective SAFE procedure and a rapid recovery:) I was bracing myself for puking, too....and guess what? I haven't puked. Not even once since surgery. No nausea what so ever. I was stunned...and extremely grateful:) (I hate puking more than you could ever know..lol) I had a super easy recovery. I walked A LOT. Got up as soon as I could and just kept wandering around like a zombie. It really helped:) Best wishes and please keep us posted how you are!

I'd put your concerns in writing with the dates you need....and drop an email carbon copied to all the coordinators in your group. I have had really good luck using my group's email to get my needs met. it gives them a chance to do it at their convenience, and the written record gives them something to refer to in case someone else cancels. I lucked into a canceled slot and got my surgery the week after I was approved. This was at an office where they're scheduling surgeries two and three months out. Leave an electronic paper trail...it helps more than leaving phone messages.

Today's lunch:) Ok, before you judge...lol....let me tell ya about this lunch! This is frozen banana ice cream....here's the recipe: https://blog.thatcleanlife.com/one-ingredient-banana-ice-cream/ 1/2 Cup frozen Chocolate banana ice cream 80 calories 1 g Protien 1/2 tablespoon pecan pieces 25 calories 1g of Protien A few coconut flakes 15 calories Two chopped strawberries 15 calories One Tablespoon Sugar Free Hershey's Syrup 5 Calories So....this Sundae is 140 Calories. I had it with a big mug of decaf coffee with half a Premiere protein caramel shake in it 80 Calories 15g Protein So my lunch was 220 calories 17g of Protien And it was delicious.

Dr. Nowzaridan

My nutritionist was really intrigued when I brought her pix of my meals. She really seemed to enjoy having a new tool to evaluate what I was doing. Anytime I go in now she asks if I have photos:)

Be careful about chugging too much! It is absolutely awesome that you're getting your fluids in effortlessly...but keep in mind that your incision is still only a few days old and you need to baby it for a while...because you do NOT want a leak. They're awful. And yep, you can still get them in the first 30 days after surgery...so be gentle and don't overfill! My doctor stressed not to put more than 4 ounces of fluid in your new tummy per hour for the first week. Preferably one ounce per 15 minutes. I could do much more than this as time went on...but I did my best to limit it to his recommendation for the sake of letting my incision in my stomach heal. Better to be safe than sorry. Discretion is the better part of valor, here:) It sounds like you're going to have an easy time of it...like I did...and I know I'm truly grateful for my good luck. Glad you're feeling so well:) Do hold your horses a little, though! Let that tummy heal:)