OriginalGaPeach

I did the same thing...I only confided in my daughter, sister, my best friend and another friend. I don't want to hear anyones opinions again about my life.

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Hey gals, I am down to 290 at 7 weeks, other problems still there but I will gain "happy" where I can!

Tomorrow is my final pre-op appointment. Surgery is on Nov 5th. So many thoughts going through my head. Yes, I want to be healthy. Yes, I want to be thin. But I enjoy my husbands cooking. Or going out to dinner. I love beer with my friends. What will my social life be in the future? No tequila shots on New Years. Celebrate with sugar free popsicles?? I got this but have to get myself ready for a changing lifestyle [emoji13] [emoji30] [emoji15]
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Keep in mind that there are plenty of things you enjoy that you'll still be able to eat. You might just have to modify how it's prepared or swap out lower calorie/fat/sugar/etc. ingredients for the full versions. I recommend google searching various recipes to kind of get an idea of how easy it is to prepare foods that are perfectly fine for you to eat but can also be enjoyed in larger portion sizes by other people. That way you and your husband aren't having to prepare different meals.
Two books I recommend are: The Gastric Sleeve Bariatric Cookbook and The Bariatric Foodie Holiday Survival Guide. Especially with your surgery being so close to the holidays you wanna make sure you have a plan to get yourself through a time period that is so food-centric.
Alcohol is never a complete no-no. You could always do A shot or have A beer (although I wouldn't recommend the latter due to the carbonation), but maybe not so close to your surgery. A lot of people I've spoken to recommend waiting a year after surgery before reintroducing alcohol and only having 1-2 drinks a month because of how it affects you. It is not at all uncommon for WLS patients to become alcoholics as they replace their food addiction with alcohol, so be wary.
I'm 1 week post-op as of tomorrow and the only issue I'm having is boredom with the limited options of Clear Liquids. I start full liquids tomorrow so that will open up a few more choices for me and pureed foods start on Halloween (so that'll be my little treat). It's definitely gonna be a life changer for you so don't stress too much. Get it done and take each day as it comes as a new learning experience.

Everyone gets cold feet right before surgery. It is normal. You will be fine. The restriction only last about 12 months so make the most of it and retrain your brain. I am 15 months and have started to gain due to falling back into old habits. I don’t drink so I don’t know how that will affect you. But I have heard others say they get drunk of like one drink after VSG.

The first 6 months are the big change... once you are fully healed and cleared for all foods, then you get to experiment and find out what works, what doesn't and what causes issues. I'm pretty much able to tolerate anything at this point. Beer included. I avoid shots because of how quickly they hit my system with the bypass. But I still enjoy beer, I just have to take my time. You just really want to focus on what you need to be doing now to lose weight and heal before you start worrying about all the things you may or may not be able to do down the road, odds are, what you think you can and can't do... won't be what actually happens. I expected dumping with lots of foods, yet, that's not quite the case now that I'm healed up. I actually wish I had more dumping so I would be less tempted to eat the foods / items (candy) that I can, but really shouldn't be eating.

Don't worry about the future, focus on the now. The future will be here soon enough.

I’m doing great and thanks for asking! I see my surgeon on Thursday and hope to be onto purées! 👍

Anyone from the South or living in the South? How has your journey been so far and where are you at in your journey?
I am from Nashville, Tennessee and lived there most of my life. I live in Ashland City now and I"ve been here almost 4 years. I had my sleeve done in Nashville at Centennial on April 3rd of this year. So far, I have lost 45 pounds at my last appointment at the end of September. From my home scale, I have lost a total of 54 pounds.

Yup that sure sounds like the gas pains I experienced. Walk as much as you can and it should help to lessen the pain.

Hi everyone! Here's a new twist on an old subject matter - a bad breakup. I was happy, healthy, losing weight and working out. I had lost a solid 67 lbs since my June 14 surgery, had a great boyfriend and was really doing well.
Then, on December 26, my BF and I broke up. It was sudden and I was absolutely blindsided. I moved out of his apartment and moved in with my bestie and her husband in CT, away from my job (which I lost), my neighborhood, everything that I know.
The old Diane would be drowning her sorrows in Ben and Jerry's, crying and eating. The new Diane? She can't do that. She can't even eat ice cream because post surgery, she is lactose intolerant. She can't eat chips and dip, or go to McDonalds and get fries and a shake, she can't eat a lot of sweets, she can't drown her sorrows in food, she can't eat her emotions. And, she can't drink alcohol, because she's a freaking lightweight again, like a 14 year old girl at her first kegger.
Damn it.
But here's the good thing - the new Diane went to the gym and decided to get serious about working out. She is pushing herself harder than ever. She goes for an hour a day and REALLY works out, climbs the Stair Mill, takes a class, does 200 squats in the evening, does a lot of cardio. Why? Because she's in pain and needs to channel that pain somehow and also because SHE CANNOT EAT HER FEELINGS.
Why am I telling you this? Because I want you all to know how your relationship with food will change once you have this surgery. You learn to channel your emotions differently, you learn that food is not always the answer, you learn that alcohol won't solve your problems. Food and drink change post surgery. You have to learn to deal with your emotions instead of running to your comfort food or drink. And it sucks. It sucks big time.
Instead of gaining the post breakup 10 lbs that I normally do, I've lost 10 pounds. Maybe too much for me to lose in a couple of weeks. I had no appetite and I struggled to eat. But better to lose than to gain, to overeat, to push my stomach to full over and over again. I couldn't do it.
So I'm now 20 lbs to goal instead of 30, and I've lost 218 lbs too (that's how much my BF weighed). He was a good guy and I will miss him, but things happen for a reason. And this was a good lesson for me to learn.. how to deal with strong emotions without the comfort of food.
I think we all know that food isn't always our friend. We need it, but we don't need to be dependent upon it to get through some tough times. I am still crushed and hurt, and I miss him, but I really don't miss the food hangover that goes along with a bad breakup. Silver linings....

I made the ricotta bake. It was hands down the best thing I’ve eaten in weeks. Melty cheese, bubbly cheese, so. much. cheese. I portioned out my 2 ounces, happily ate it, and thought “a little more won’t hurt.” I ate maybe another 1.5 ounces. That 1.5 ounces is still sitting in my throat 30 minutes later. I am miserable. I can’t decide if I should try and make myself sick or just sit quietly and suffer.
I know I shouldn’t be beating myself up, but I’m screaming at myself inside. Why did I do this? I knew exactly what was going to happen, but it didn’t deter me. I know it’s only been a few weeks since my surgery and my mentality won’t change overnight, but it’s scary to see how self-destructive I am.
Tell me I’m not the only one who’s gone through this? I need a little pep talk.

I called the surgeon on call yesterday (due to the holiday). It was not my surgeon. He mad it sound like it was no big deal just take some Benadryl. It maybe an allergic reaction to Pepcid. Call tomorrow if it still worries me and get in with my surgeon. I now have large itchy bumps at the top the steristrips on two of the incisions. I am headed to PCP, now. Thanks for your help

Thanks everyone for the replies! I ended up going to see my PA and it is a sort of fungal rash...gross! She prescribed a topical steroid/anti fungal cream so hopefully that helps soon

The issues regarding alcohol and WLS are the following:
Healing - alcohol is corrosive to the raw stomach tissues that have been exposed during surgery, so we need to keep away from it while the stomach heals. Surgeons differ in their opinion as to how long that should be, from a few weeks to a few months.
Liver health - starting out obese or worse, our livers are often in pretty poor shape (hence the "liver shrinking" pre-op diets that some surgeons impose). Further, our livers are further stressed by their role in metabolizing all that fat that we are losing, and doesn't need any further stress from ingesting a liver toxin like alcohol (that's not a moral judgement, just basic physiology.) Surgeons vary widely as to how much this bothers them depending upon their backgrounds and WLS philosophies (short term vs. long term.) In my doc's program, we are under contract to not drink as long as we are in a weight loss phase (call it a year, though ideally forever) - with his "sideline" as a liver transplant surgeon, he doesn't want any of his bariatric patients coming back onto his transplant table.
Transfer addiction - to the extent that we are/have been addicted to food (a very individual thing) that we can no longer satisfy, courtesy of our WLS, we can be prone to transferring those addictive tendencies to something else - alcohol, drugs, gambling, shopping, etc. So, a casual drinking habit pre-op can (and often does) morph into full blown alcoholism.

Hello! My surgery day will either be October 15th or 17th! I’m very nervous but excited at the same time! I’m 30. Married with 2 boys, 11 and 6. I’m a Lending Manager. Nice to meet you! BMI 38 with high colesterol

I just found out that my insurance approved surgery!! I won't be able to have surgery until October because of my work schedule. Anyway, I really wasn't getting my hopes up in case insurance didn't approve it, but now it's real omg. I'm nervous and excited and would love someone to be buddies with through this. Any takers?
I'm 37. I have 4 kids (14, 11, 4 and 2) and I'm a teacher. I am starting with a BMI of 40 exactly with no comorbidities. Anyone out there with similar stats? Even different stats but you are having surgery in October? My date is 10/4.
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Nice! I love the "REFILL", how large is that? looks like it *might* be 24-32 oz. If so, that's a good start, but to maximize your fat loss, you REALLY want to try to hit 128+ a day if you can.

$40 with proof of purchase $20 without.
https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/lawsuit-news/858423-9m-settlement-reached-premier-protein-shake-class-action/

The jury went to work on Premier Protein, and the verdict is in – almost literally. Premier Protein is in trouble for its misleading label claims on its Protein Shakes. Not only that, but the shakes may not be all they’re cracked up to be when it comes to helping you lose weight. Here is the story.


Legal Trouble for Premier Protein

Premier Protein sells all kinds of protein shakes. The ones whose labels state that they have 30 grams of protein per serving are the ones in the settlement. Analysis has found that they have 26 to 29 grams. The flavors that are in the settlement are vanilla, chocolate, Strawberries & Cream, banana & Cream, Peaches & Cream, Cookies & Cream, Mixed berry, Organic Chocolate, Organic Vanilla, and Caramel.

While the company is not admitting wrongdoing or ceasing the sale of these products, there is a class action settlement. You may be eligible for a cash payout if you purchased any of the misleading shakes in the past 7 years, since 2011. Pre-op or post-op, you need to know how much protein is in your shakes.

Not Best for Bariatric Patients

Every gram of protein counts, but the deception in amount of protein per serving is not the only problem. Even if you are willing to overlook the shortfall in the amount of protein, Premier Protein has a problem with type of protein.

Read the ingredients carefully, and you will see that less than 1% of the product is “whey protein concentrate.” whey protein is the type of protein that you should be looking for because it absorbs more quickly than casein. Whey protein has been shown to increase weight loss and body fat loss in bariatric surgery patients.

Another glance at the list of ingredients of Premier Protein shows that “milk protein concentrate” and “casein” are the major sources of protein. Casein is slow-acting. If you had a bariatric surgery type, such as gastric bypass, that interferes with absorption, you may not get all the benefits from casein.

What’s Better?

We know that you need a protein supplement, so what can you find that has the amount and type of protein you need and the great taste that will encourage you to take care of your needs? BariatricPal Protein One gets our vote.
27 grams of whey protein. 28 Vitamins and minerals. Great-tasting French Vanilla, Cinnamon Swirl, and Double Chocolate Fudge. It has a few more advantages over Premier Protein.
Over twice as much dietary Fiber for fullness and digestive health. Choose from convenient single-serving packets or multi-serving tubs. Comes in powder so you can add Water or your favorite beverage. Has an “unflavored” option so you can add it to anything, from Soup to smoothies.< /span> When it comes to bariatric products, quality counts. Any purchase you make should be from a trusted source because there are a lot of poor-quality or misleading products out there. The few grams of difference between Premier Protein’s claims and reality may not be a lot, but along with the poor choice of casein instead of whey as the main protein source, you might want to seek another source for your protein. Look for a trusted vendor and name brand as you make your choice. What you put in your body really does matter.

Thanks, I can truly tell that you all supportive and positive.[emoji3]

Live...Love...Laugh [emoji3]

Hello Peeps,
I just wanted to put this out there for you guys. If you havent tried the StarKist tuna creations I would suggest them. They are only about $1 a packet and they are easy to grab and go. Only about 100 calories per packet and I can eat two packets and be very full. The salmon is also really good. a little more expensive but very convenient and filling. Just a thought.

I have yet to vomit since my sleeve in August (knock on wood). Came close one time at about 5 after eating some chicken that was too dry but the feeling subsided after 10 minutes. First few days I had a hard time getting comfortable in bed. Needed help getting out of bed for 2 days. Gas pain in shoulder was horrible but just the 1st night when in hospital. Tomorrow is 8 weeks since my sleeve and no regrets here! Down 38 lbs including the 2 week pre-op diet. 😀

Welcome and Congrats!!!! Good place you found here.

A Georgia Peach from Hotlanta, very happy to meet you!👋😛