notmyname

I eat with a tiny fork and cut things into small bites. I also put my fork down between bites. I'm able to chew a lot without thinking because if I don't, I get a stomach ache. I also find that having fewer distractions helps me enjoy my food and feel the fullness sooner. But that's me. May or may not work for you.

I eat parm chips. They're made of 100% Parmesan cheese. The brand I get are Whisps from costco. I just eat a few chips, but one serving is like 23 chips and 13g protein. I'll have them with hummus for an easy lunch.

Honestly, I had some regrets immediately after surgery (I had the sleeve). I think that's fairly normal. And I wasn't 100% sure going in to the surgery that I'd go through with it. The week before I told my surgeon I still wasn't sure. In pre-op, he asked me if I was sure, and I said "No, but I don't think I'll ever be, so I'm just going to do it." I'm two months out now, and I feel pretty good about it. I will say it helped that I have a therapist that specializes is weight issues and is familiar with surgery. She reminded me that in the immediate aftermath of the surgery, you're hormones are a bit off, so you can feel a LOT of emotions. One thing - I don't think you lied to your friends about this being a surgery about health - it absolutely is. Some things that helped me - planning for foods at every stage that I like. I love lasagna, so I made ricotta bake for soft foods. I still eat that several times a week, and add some pureed spinach for extra flavor. I also love beans, so I did pureed beans and cheese - really good. I also got a meditation app for my phone. When I'm feeling a bit stressed, I listen to a 3-5 minute meditation and find it helps me. I also keep a list on my phone of why I wanted this for myself I also find that walking - even a little - helps. Reading a good book and watching fun new TV shows on Netflix have also helped. I'm sorry you're going through this. I wish you the best and hope that it gets better for you like it did for me.

So, I'm 2 months post-op and have a rash on my abdomen and the side of my breasts. It isn't where any of my skin overlaps, so I don't think it's that. I've tried cortizone and nystatin (a powder for fungal infections my doc gave me a while back when I had bad heat rash). No help. Anyone else have this post-op? Any suggestions?

Thanks - just looked this up - it is pretty much what it looks like. Thank you!

Thanks - I'll try to get some nystatin cream.

I have a slightly different take on issues like this at work. I'd bet a lot of people don't quite agree with me. It is inappropriate to discuss coworkers' bodies. Seriously. If it were me, I'd talk to them, say you overheard them, and tell them that it just is not OK to talk about another coworker's body - no matter what the context. Also remind them that pretty much no place in an office is private and they should never think they can't be overheard. At my job, we had a successful claim of harassment because someone overheard a coworker talking about her body. Not in a sexual way, but bodies at work should be off limit.

I'm only 2 months out, but I've been seeing my therapist for awhile. She specializes is weight issues. Just today we talked about this and how to set myself up to feel like I have structures in place to keep me on the right path. She even gave me permission (and some ideas) to have a bit of my favorite christmas food and set up some structure for not having it become a problem. I can say, talking it out with someone who specializes in these issues really, really helps.

I'm in your shoes too. I've lost 32 since surgery/46 since pre-op diet/54 total. I just this week dropped into one size down (so I can now wear 22w). It was really frustrating. But I took measurements and saw that weight was coming off - just mostly in my hips, legs and arms. So, I figure that at some point my waist has to catch up.

Well, I got through my office holiday party. Actually had a fairly good lunch. Shrimp and cheese cubes. I did have one tiny forkful of apple pie when I was cleaning the pie plate and it was enough (anyone know how to track something like that in Sparkpeople?). Unfortunately, this morning I fell about 1/3 of the way down my stair case and hurt the crap out of my food. Nurse at work said if it doesn't feel better tomorrow, I need to go to urgent care to see if I have a stress fracture. Ugh - no exercise for me for awhile . But really, REALLY glad I didn't hurt myself worse in the fall.

I was sleeved 10/29 and am trying to set myself up on a schedule to do measurements and progress pics. I had originally thought I'd do them every month. But I did them this week and it was a bit dispiriting. Pics look the same. Lot inches in my bust/chest and legs, but almost none in my hips/waist. I've also lost a fair amount in my fingers (so much that my rings no longer fit on my ring finger without my being afraid they'll fall off, so I wear them on my middle finger). And this after losing 20# since surgery and 40# total. So I know its working, and I'm not going to get discouraged. All that said - what is a good schedule for doing progress pics/measurements? Thanks!

It may be worth checking with your surgeon, too. Mine said that that pill isn't as effective post-surgery (something about absorption, even with the sleeve - I admittedly didn't listen too closely because I can't take the pill).

One step at a time. This is just a consultation - you're not committing to anything. You don't need to be sure to meet with the surgeon. And if you meet with him/her - even multiple times, you're not required to go through with anything. Go, talk, write down some of your concerns and talk to the doc about them. It took me a year to really decide to do this, but while I was thinking about it I continued to do the steps my insurance required. They also likely have a bariatric support group. Go to that and talk to folks who have had the surgery to see how it is. In the meantime, read your insurance booklet. It should tell you its requirements (mine were 3 months supervised diet - 1 appointment a month, 2 years diagnosed obesity, and either a 35 BMI with comorbidities or a 40 BMI). Some insurance requires longer supervised diet, some require you to lose some % of body weight before surgery approval. One doctor I saw had his own requirements. Things like doing an endoscopy, and seeing an exercise physiologist. As for recovery - that will depend on the surgery. I had the sleeve and mine was fairly easy. Post-op diet will vary by doctor. Again, go into the appointment with your mind open. You haven't decided anything. You're information gathering. That way you can make an informed decision one way or another. Good luck.

Also see if elevating your head when you sleep helps. Sometimes it does. An extra pillow or a wedge of some sort, maybe?

I made some raspberry macarons for my office holiday party on Wednesday and have NO desire to taste one. Yay. Now I just need to figure out why they turned out purple instead of pink (unfortunately, I realized far too late in the process that I didn't have any food coloring). Hmm - not super Christmasy. I may need to take one to a taster to make sure it doesn't taste bad.

Hey friends, I'm thinking about my Christmas menu. It'll just be me and a friend this year and I'll be about 2 months post-op. My favorite Christmas food (at least for my family) is corn casserole - you know, the one with whole kernel corn, creamed corn, jiffy, butter, sour cream, and cheese. I know I don't want to eat that right now (or maybe ever - too much fat/butter and I haven't had anything carb-y like jiffy corn bread mix yet), plus I don't want to make a big pan of it just for two people, one of whom (me) can only eat about a tablespoon full. So, does anyone have any ideas on how to make a single serving of something kind of similar, but lighter? I've been searching the internet, but haven't come across anything. I realize this is a long shot, but I thought I'd try. Thanks in advance!

Thanks - I'll check. Although I find Pinterest frustrating, likely because I just don't get how to use it.

I was allowed to have broth and strained soups (so healthy soups run through a strainer). Bariatric Pal has some protein soups - I didn't like them, but some people do I really like the Millie's sipping broth. Counts as some of your liquid. You can put unflavored protein powder (note - it is not no flavor, just no additional flavor).

OK, so I've been having a kind of cruddy day. so, I decided to put something good out there. I'm 7 weeks post op. I've lost 29.6 lbs since surgery (23.49% of EWL), 43.6 since my pre-op diet, and 51 total. I can eat pretty much any healthy food I've tried (although tuna is my nemesis). This week is my first full week back at work because of the various holidays and I have every other Friday off. And I don't have another full week until mid-January sometime. Not that I need it for recovery, but I need it just to be away from my job. And, really, life is pretty good. Sometimes I just need to remind myself. And put it out there for a bunch of strangers on the internet.

Like I said, I told a couple friends -really the folks I'd eat out with. For my coworkers that ask, I just look them dead in the eye and tell them that talking about a coworker's body is beyond inappropriate. Maybe they talk behind my back, but by now most people know better than to say anything to me.

I'm super jealous of you guys that are losing sizes. Sleeved 10/3, down 30 from surgery, 45 from pre-op. Still mostly in the same pant size - the legs are just baggy. Although it appears I *may* be getting into my larger 22s rather than a 24. I know I'll get there and I'm super happy with my #s, just not seeing it play out in my inches/clothing.

Bodies are strange. They can fluctuate for many reasons - salt, time of month, exercise (you're muscles can retain fluids while healing), or just because it wants to. Don't look at the daily/weekly - look at the trend. You can create a trendline in a spreadsheet that will show that even if you're up a little this week, the overall trend will be down.

I'm so sorry. But good for you for continuing to care for yourself during this. Maybe screaming into a pillow (careful not to blow your sutures). Write down what you're feeling? What about a meditation? Kaiser has some good ones on various topics - anger/forgiveness, grief, stress, relaxation, etc at the link below. https://healthy.kaiserpermanente.org/health/care/!ut/p/a0/FchBDoMgEADAt_iAzYZEYfFmhH6hhdsGiZIIGELt99seZ9DjC33hO-3cUy18_uxCLD22md9bqnCnLVZ8okd_Nd4zoysVAocj_o9bT-GM6IzVap2MBamlBCGsgEWPBohoUkKp8UErXjnTZxmGL2IKPpI!/

Good luck with it all. i will say, I saw three different docs to get different opinions. As long as I met the insurance requirements (for me, seeing a doc once a month for 6 consecutive months sometime in the last year), I didn't need to start over. So what you've done so far likely won't be for nothing as long as you continue to meet with someone consecutively. Of course, this is subject to your doc being willing to do that.

I'm also in the it didn't work for me camp. But there are several folks in my weight loss support group who have used it and gotten great results.