abefroman329

I’ve had nausea when I eat too much, or too fast, or don’t wait long enough after eating to drink water.

I do miss food! I can tolerate popcorn just fine. Probably just a kids pack at the movies, though.

I haven't LOST hair (I don't think so, anyway), but it does appear it's growing slower than before. I've noticed that less is coming off when I trim my beard each week, and the last time I got my hair cut, I was asked if it had only been 2-3 weeks since my last one (it had been about 6 weeks). Has anyone had this issue?

Nausea was horrible for me while I was in the hospital and coming down from the general anesthesia (when they wheeled me up from recovery to the room, I had the dry heaves), but that's been it for me. Your program's dietitian will be able to tell you what you can eat and when, it varies widely by program. I was on a general diet six weeks after surgery. That being said, I'm over two months out, and still can't tolerate rice or fast food hamburgers. Your mileage may vary, or YMMV, as they say on the internets.

If you're having trouble maintaining a relationship, at any size, it's probably worth it to look at yourself on the inside, too.

No, but I have a six-year-old niece in England who hasn't seen me since I had the surgery, and I'll be curious as to what she has to say (assuming she can tell via Skype, anyway).

It's been hard for me to get to my water goals lately because it's been so cold out, but once spring arrives and arrives for good, I should be able to get my water goals in just on the train to/from work.

Eating is three meals and two snacks a day, and they want you to eventually get to three meals, so that's a temporary problem. As for water, if you have a long enough commute, you could drink 32 oz on the way to work and 32 oz at home, or 16 oz on the way to work, 16 oz on the way home, and 32 at home.

Oh I, too, feel like a teenager!

I think that telling the surgeon how big to make your stomach is like telling your PCP that you have herpes and need Valtrex because you saw a Caltrex commercial, and if you feel compelled to tell the surgeon how big to make your stomach, you should find another surgeon that you trust.

Down 60 pounds, another 30 or so to goal. Tolerating pretty much any food. Waist is down 4 inches. Down to XL shirts. Stopped 3 prescription meds and down to a really low dose of the fourth (and should be off that one in a few months).

Also, caffeine is a diuretic, which doesn't help when you're already having trouble staying hydrated because you can't drink that much water. At this stage of my plan, I'm allowed 8 oz of coffee or tea a day, and I'm probably going to start drinking it because I've been so tired lately.

It sounds like the diameter gets smaller.

My sides were still touching the armrests. Yes, touching, as opposed to "spilling over" when I last flew coach in September, but still.

I heard something similar to that from my wife, “well, what if you lose a lot of weight on the pre-op diet? Then you could just cancel the surgery!” She was concerned about the risks of the surgery, whether I’d be happy with it long term, whether it would work... She’s been really supportive post-surgery. She talked to the surgeon right after the operation and found it really helpful when he told her that my stomach was larger than normal and that I would have a strong chance of being successful. Having observed my dad’s quality of life rapidly diminish due to being morbidly obese in his 60s...a) you’d be surprised how quickly it happens and it’s not something you’d want for yourself. And if you’re like me, and you’ve tried everything else, and nothing worked, this is really your best hope.

Frankly, that’s why I wouldn’t recommend going out of town for the surgery, at least, so far that you can’t also travel for post-op care from the same surgeon. When I realized I needed to have surgery to repair an anal fissure, I was on the verge of moving from DC to Chicago, and my surgeon in DC recommended moving and having it done in Chicago for continuity of care purposes. And that surgery was much less complicated than weight loss surgery.

I had those on my legs from the time I entered the OR till the following morning. After that I was on blood thinners the rest of the time I was in the hospital. I did not have to take them home with me, no. I guess my risk of a blood clot wasn’t that high.

Pre-surgery I was taking 5 psyllium husk capsules twice a day because I had an anal fissure that was surgically repaired in 2014 and needed to not ever have that happen again, and was initially told I would need to stop post-surgery, although later I learned they were talking about the powdered Metamucil you mix with liquid and drink, because you would need to drink that faster than you can safely drink post-surgery. After several weeks of constipation and one VERY uncomfortable episode passing a blockage, plus reluctance to rely on Miralax long term, I went back on the same fiber regimen and have been regular ever since.

Interesting. I noticed that GNC now sells unflavored 100% whey protein powder and I almost bought some, but I have no idea what I’m currently eating that I could mix it into.

It was “highly recommended” that I lose 10% of my body weight. I did not and was still approved for surgery by both the surgeon and my insurance company (BCBS, not Kaiser). Having both a BMI over 40 and comorbidities probably helped.

I wouldn’t do that, it’s still been deep-fried.

So... for “smaller” read “tighter,” then?

If you’re talking about string cheese, some people have been allowed that as part of their soft foods stage. I did ok with it but had to eat it very slowly. It did help with hunger. If you’re talking about the deep-fried ones they sell at TGI Friday’s, though, absolutely not.

That’s just weird! The surgeon wants your A1C be,ow 7 so they know your diabetes is controlled and you won’t have complications from the surgery with healing. That was a requirement from my surgeon. Luckily mine has been below 7 for about 4 years. The good news is, I had my A1C checked as part of my annual physical and it fell from 6.2 to 5.2. My primary was “thrilled” (his words) and took me off the Janumet. No more diabetes meds at all! So you have that to look forward to.

My skin is not shrinking with me, and my primary told me at my physical that I would have leftover skin from where my belly was. There’s a guy in my support group who lost 200 pounds from the surgery, maybe even 300, and he has some obvious leftover skin above and below his beltline. If it’s that obvious when I get to goal weight, I’ll look into plastic surgery. It’d be worth it if it also meant my cellulitis scars went away.