Czuck1983

Anytime... always happy to help.

Yesterday I had my 2 week, post-op followup with my surgeon. He was extremely pleased with my progress, 60lbs down since I first met him, 40 since I started liquid only, 20 since the morning of surgery. My incisions are healing wonderfully and he approved me to start eating soft foods. One meal a day this week with 2 shakes, next week 2 meals and 1 shake, and so forth. I was so excited, went straight home and made myself a small omelet, 2oz of egg whites and a tiny bit of mozzarella. It tasted like the best meal I had ever eaten, even without any seasoning (I thought salt and pepper might be a little harsh so decided to leave it bland). Also spoke to him about last weeks issue with sluggishness and all, he said it is likely because I became overly ketoic, dropping 40lbs in 4 weeks on liquid only and struggling with daily protein shakes in the last 2, likely slowed my system down. I was instructed if I feel like that again to get a small amount of sugar, either some apple juice or Gatorade. When I was feeling it on Friday I had a small glass of apple juice and the improvement was almost instantaneous. Now that I'm on real foods, I shouldn't have that issue anymore, but it's good to know that it isn't that uncommon of an issue and can be easily remedied. But the last 3 days I've felt better then I have in, I don't even know how long. I have a ton more energy, I'm sleeping through the night... and best of all, today I'm at work wearing a suit that hasn't fit me in almost 11 years. Anyway, thank you everyone for all of the support on here...

I'm sure she will see the major difference and be extremely proud of you. It sounds like you have a great relationship and no matter what she is going to be excited that you are making positive changes in your life. You are always going to be your own harshest critic... you see yourself in the mirror every day, so the changes appear less drastic to your own eyes. If mom hasn't seen you in person for that long, trust me, the first thing she will notice is the difference. 75 lbs is a great progress in 3 months, and everyone's weight loss journey is different, so don't be hard on yourself if you feel you should have lost more. I'm sure your mom knows that it's a long journey and won't expect that you'd be at your goal weight just yet... that takes time, and you shouldn't even be expecting to be at that point yet... You're doing great, and you should be proud of yourself first and foremost... I can't imagine any loving mother would feel anything but the same.

Day after surgery, after the x-ray to ensure no leakage, they were bringing me 1oz cups of water to drink every hour. I was instructed that it should take me about half an hour to drink the oz. Day after surgery, it was 2oz every hour. My surgeon admits that he keeps things to the more conservative side... he has his own in office, as well as online support groups and actually warns about going too much for advice on boards such as this because every doctor is different. I understand that his instructions may seem a bit extreme to others, but I'm going to stick to what he tells me to do for now. Thank you however, everyone, for the concern.

Well the instructions from my surgeon for the first 2 weeks was 32oz a day plus a 12oz shake. So I'm actually following along perfectly as far as fluid intake goes. I keep a 40oz water bottle on me at all times, I fill it every morning and take small sips every so often as I feel thirsty. Next week, according to his instructions, I should be up to 64oz a day, I see him for my 2-week followup on Tuesday and he'll give me my next instructions.

Have you added anything high in sugars? Too much sugar too soon can cause some stomach issues, including dumping syndrome. Make sure you're sticking to your surgeons instructions and keeping hydrated. I've been having some mild stomach issues myself, but just keeping myself going through the motions and avoiding anything that might cause any further issues.

So I'm almost a week and a half out and still struggling a little with my intake. My stomach has not been in agreement with the shakes too often, so I've been having trouble getting a full 12oz in over the day. I have been drinking as much water as I can handle... usually between 20-30 ounces a day, plus a cup of chicken broth and a sugar free ice pop. I've been feeling a bit of soreness, I must have rolled over in the night and slept on my left-side for the first time, so I woke up in quite a bit of pain, but nothing unmanageable. Today I returned to work for the first time, everyone's reactions made me feel wonderful. But I have been feeling some mild weakness. I was standing around talking to my coworkers and suddenly started to feel very light headed. It was probably the first time I had been on my feet for more then 5 minutes since surgery, so maybe I just need to work on strengthening myself a bit. I realized today that I have not been walking nearly as much as I should be. I walk maybe 2-3 times around the main area of my house (I do this probably 4 times a day) and I definitely need to start doing more laps, and get out of the house for some laps I suppose. Hopefully the day improves and I have no more episodes, I can't afford to miss anymore work, so with luck, there won't be any serious issues causing me to need to leave the office.

I've kept myself satisfied, don't feel too thirsty overall. I should add I do have a cup of broth and a sugar free ice pop each day as well. So I guess my liquid intake is probably slightly higher overall. Sent from my VS988 using BariatricPal mobile app

So wanted to post a small update. I'm now one week post-op and while I still have some mild discomforts at times, I've been feeling pretty good. I have been struggling to get all of my fluids in. My surgeon wants me drinking 32oz a day of water plus one 12oz shake broken down over the day. I haven't kept a solid water count, but I'm likely getting about 20oz or do and drinking half of the shake each day. Despite these little issues, I'm doing really well. Down 13lbs since last Monday and I'm looking forward to returning to work on Wednesday. Sent from my VS988 using BariatricPal mobile app

Oh. Ok that makes sense. I'm going to blame the dilaudid for failing to get that. Sent from my VS988 using BariatricPal mobile app

That's kind of a horrible thing to say to somebody you don't know. Sent from my VS988 using BariatricPal mobile app

I am officially POST-OP. Surgery went as good as can be expected and I'm relaxing in my room. Pain is practically non-existent and I've barely needed to use my magic pain button. Hopefully the next 2 days to by just as easily. Sent from my VS988 using BariatricPal mobile app

Sounds like it's going to be a great time. I hope you have fun, and make sure you don't drive yourself too crazy running around making the day perfect.

Also try UnJury if you haven't already... the chocolate splendor powder is really good, probably my favorite right now. Also their vanilla pre-made shakes taste like your drinking melted French Vanilla ice cream. Yeah, that does a lot for keeping the embarrassment down as well. It's still quite an annoyance overall.

Anyway... I didn't mean to hijack the thread... let's get back to Happy Friday.

Absolutely... it's not much longer. I'm just about halfway there til I can start having some soft foods again. Yeah the aftertaste is pretty terrible. I've been struggling with my breath for the last week. I'm told by those close around me that it's not as bad as I think it is... which at least solves some of the embarrassment... but it seems no amount of tic-tacs or mouth wash seem to help get this damn sour taste out of my mouth.

Thank you... I don't totally hate my shakes... I have a good variety of flavors and try to mix them up as much as possible. But I would kill for something chewable right now... maybe a nice juicy steak. I think Friday's are the worst in general. Usually at work we order lunch together because it's payday. Friday nights I attend a support group and we usually go to Denny's after for a bite. I look forward to being able to participate in either of those again. Although I guess in 2 weeks once I'm onto soft foods, I can go out with my friends and just have an egg-white omelet.

This is my... "3 days til surgery and I'm sick of protein shakes" face.

Isopure unflavored is disgusting... it definitely needs a flavor boost, try some orange crystal light. It makes a good mix and reminds me a little of Hi-C orange. Unjury is my favorite so far, the vanilla is best mixed with either a teaspoon of sugar-free chocolate pudding and a scoop of P2B powder. But another good mix that I've come to love is with (again) the crystal light. It's almost like a creamsicle. Finally... One last mix that I have come to love is a half serving of chocolate protein with a half serving of isopure banana protein along with a scoop of P2B. It's not the same as eating a legit Peanut Butter and Banana sandwich, but I think Elvis would approve nonetheless.

I will definitely stick around... I do have a tendency to ghost from forums at times... but forums like this are too important. Thankfully my surgeon has a dedicated closed Facebook group as well as bi-weekly in office support groups for his patients. In addition, I've recently become friends with another of his patients, and I attend another weekly support group that isn't necessarily for weight-loss, but they are all amazing and have become a second family to me. So thankfully, I am definitely not lacking in support.

Thankfully carbonated beverages is a vice I never took up (along with smoking). Supposedly when I was very young I took a sip of a soda and I guess I wasn't expecting it to be so bubbly and I choked or something like that... by the time I was old enough to realize how silly the phobia was, I didn't care enough to try. In turn, I've never drank any sort of soda (not even seltzer) and I don't drink beer either. I'm planning on taking a bunch of pictures on Saturday. I have definitely felt and seen the loss thus far. I'm down 2 pant sizes and it's making me so happy to not only be under a 50" waist but also under the 300lbs mark in the first time in nearly 10 years.

Yeah I've been doing a lot of prep as well and making sure everything is in order. Ironically, I'm also a banker and thankfully my team has been great in helping me get my time off worked out and my benefits are about as good as can be so there shouldn't be too much out-of-pocket for me. I did get one temporarily rejection from the insurance company because my hospital apparently doesn't have some certification that was asked for. But we appealed it and had it approved within 2 days.

I do not use a CPAP... thankfully that is one thing that has stayed strong in my system. I was tested about 2 years ago for apnea but thankfully I passed that test with flying colors.