Arabesque

Can’t do anything with excess loose skin except to surgically remove it. Sorry. The skin has been stretched out for too long like a well used hair band. You may get some bounce back depending upon your age, genetics, how long you were obese. Also in the months after you stabilise your remaining fat does tend to resettle a bit so some areas may refill a little. Weight or resistance training may help the underlying muscles support it better. My friend has become an avid cyclist post surgery & her thighs are rock hard with great muscle definition but she still has loose skin on her upper thighs - she showed me last week 😁. All those therapies like IPL, RF, thermage, ultrasound, cryotherapy, etc. seem to cost a lot & offer short term if any effects on small amounts of loose skin. There are quite a few threads about people’s plastic surgery here if you’re interested in reading about other’s experiences.

The thing is you’re actually eating what is a recommended portion size now. Those massive meals that are served at some eating places are two, three or more times what you should eat in a serving. A steak should only be a maximum of 4ozs not those half a cow size steaks that hang off your plate. Look to the appetisers, soups or salads & as @ChubRub said most likely won’t notice. Someone my want to share a meal or ask if venue will do a half serve. (I’ve had cafes scramble a single egg without an issue.) If someone does comment (pretty rude if they do) simply say I’ve had plenty thank you. Or I’m not a big eater (remember hearing people say that in the past & not understanding how could they eat so ‘little’ - we’re through the looking glass Alice). It used to be the polite thing to do to leave a little of your meal on your plate. It let the chef know the food was tasty & the serve was enough to eat.

Some people can get back to chugging liquids some can’t. It’s all very individual. I’m a two good swallows & that’s all at a time person. Take a third & my restriction kicks in. So I don’t have to sip but I still drink regularly. It’s good though cause I never feel that ‘oh my God I’m so thirsty’. I drink while I’m driving. I drink if on the phone. I drink during the night to get my daily fluids in. I keep a glass beside me all day long. I find it easier to drink from a proper glass or cup than bottles or sippy cups (though I have a bottle in the car & beside my bed) . All fluids count so you don’t just have to drink plain water. I used to drink lots of water but since surgery it can taste almost heavy. I let sparkling water go flat & add a large glass to my fluid rotation every day. The minerally taste is a nice change to plain water. I also have a large mug of green tea & add extra milk to my porridge. I used to include a high protein yoghurt drink in my rotation (fluid & protein - double win) but they don’t make it anymore - devastated!

Sounds like the foamies. Combination of pain across your chest (restriction), hacking cough, feeling like something is stuck, spitting up a lot of foamy saliva &/ or regurgitating a little food (bubbles up not a heaving vomit). Usually you feel a lot better after it occurs. A lot of us experience these symptoms at various times. I get them if I eat too fast, eat too much or eat food that is too dry & coarse. Try eating a little more slowly, hold off on having ‘just one more bite’, eat until you’ve had enough not full, keep your food moist (add gravy, sauce, etc. if needed) & avoid coarse & fibrous foods for a while & see if that helps. Multi vitamins used to make me nauseous every day too. Make sure you take them after you eat. If you take several, split up when you take them across the day. Try a different brand or different combinations . Vitamin A, C, D, E, K, Iron, calcium, some Bs can cause nausea especially if you’re doubling up (e.g. taking iron & having iron in your multi vitamin). But do speak with your surgeon &/or medical team to make sure there is nothing untoward happening. Hope you feel better soon.

Exactly! I always say whatever style of eating you chose has to be sustainable. Doesn’t matter if it’s restricted calories, restrictive food choices (or even an excessive exercise routine). If you can’t do it for the long term & you can’t do it without limiting how you want to live & enjoy your life you’ll fail. Find your balance & what’s right for you & no body else.

I saw a study that said about 10% of gastric sleeve patients seek a revision, 5% of bypass patients have a revision & 26% of lap band. In 2019 around 256 000 people had bariatric surgery: 18% had bypass. 59% had sleeve & 1% had a lap band. (Included lap band just out of interest.) Some people develop GERD after sleeve surgery (I read it was about 10% so that seems to match the above revision stats) & consequently require a revision if medication or other management options don’t work. If you already have GERD sleeve is not for you. I had reflux before my sleeve which, like @Hop_Scotch, I mostly managed with dietary choices. Still have reflux but it manifests itself differently now. Some surgeons recommend bypass to patients who have more weight to lose or who they think need extra help to loose their weight as bypass is considered the ‘stronger’ surgery. Sleeve is a less invasive surgery (fewer changes to your digestive system). Generally though the average stats on how much weight is lost with either surgery is about the same at the 5 yr mark (about 65% of the weight to be lost). Malabsorption issues & dumping are a consideration with bypass. You’ll need to continue to take vitamins & may have to adjust medications you take. Malabsorption is rarely an issue with sleeve & dumping is not common. Sleevers often do not need to continue taking vitamins (individual health issues may mean they have to). Personally I haven’t taken vitamins since goal as I absorb all I need from what I eat. Some choose to have a revision because they have had regain or want to lose more weight. Regain can occur because of complacency, bounce back weight, medication, changes to your lifestyle, job, health, etc. or sometimes just life in general which can just throw crap at you. Have a long conversation with your surgeon as to which is the best surgical option for you from a medical perspective & which can best help you achieve your goals (health, weight, lifestyle). Then you know yourself best as to which surgery best suits how you want to live your life after surgery & whether you will need the stronger surgery to get you where you want to be in the long term. All the best.

I’m 2 years & almost 8 months post surgery & I haven’t had a protein shake (or used powders) since the first day of purées. I ate ‘regular’ food from that point on. It was always my intention to get all the nutrients I needed from ‘real’ food. It can be done. I make choices based upon nutritional content of any food I buy (which isn’t a lot as I try to prep most of what I eat from scratch). I look at the protein content, sugar, carbs, fats & artificial sweeteners & make choices based on that information. Find a good high protein yoghurt & yoghurt drink (watch the added sugars or sweeteners though) to help with your protein intake especially while losing. I still count my protein every day & it is the focus of every meal I eat including all my snacks (except fruit). At the beginning when you ate eating so little it can be a challenge to get your protein in so bariatric protein enriched foods like the soup can be helpful. Have a chat with your dietician to identify high protein food options or what you can do to add extra protein. For example I made my scrambled eggs pretty milky & same with the rolled oats I ate. All the best.

I never carried anything either. Simply because you can’t tip the food off your plate into a measuring cup when you’re out. Well I guess you could but … I used body parts to give me an idea of portion sizes etc. Do some measuring at home so you know about how much fits in your palm or in your cupped hand, etc. Then you can eyeball it. It’s not precise but it gives you a pretty good idea. Same with utensils, cups, glassware, plates. How many spoons can you usually eat? How much is 2, 3 or 4oz in a glass or a cup? How many fingers is it (like measuring a spirit)? How much of your portion fits on a side plate? A dinner plate. Etc. I still use these cues when I’m not eating at home. Listen to your body. Eat slowly. Over time you’ll learn your signals that tell you when you’ve had enough.

Aah, yes. Commonly known as bony butt syndrome. I eventually had bony shoulders, elbows, wrists, hip, knees, ankles, … Any joint that you put pressure on. Used to wake every 90mins or so because of the shoulder, knee & ankle pain (I’m a side sleeper). Glad to say this does improve considerably - must develop some callouses on the non padded joints over time.

Out of curiosity, what’s your blood pressure like? I get dizzy, lightheaded, vision blacks, & I feel weak every day because of my low BP. Also I have occasional hypoglycaemic episodes. I tend to have bursts of energy & then nothing - rest now. Always had a tendency towards low BP & had experienced some hypoglycaemic episodes in the past whenever I was in my previous low weight range. Now my blood pressure sits in the 80s over 60s every day. (My heart rate is low too. Like athlete low which is hilarious as I doubt I could run 200m 😂.) Try adding an electrolyte drink to your daily fluids. I found them very helpful while I was losing. And I try to remember to take one with me if I’m doing any exercise or physical activity.

That’s what happened to me. Reached my goal & had hardly any loose skin at all. Little pinch at the top of my thighs & my arms (bat wings) were a little empty. Actually was quite chuffed about how little I had but then I lost that additional 11/12kgs & there it was. Mind you I still don’t have much at all. Not worth having surgery. And I can wear a body con dress without ‘suck it in & hold it firm knickers’ & you can’t tell I have any loose skin. I was 54 when I was losing. I had been at my highest weight for about 4 years & prior to that I’d been bouncing between my usual 60-75kg range. Genetics also helps.

Thankfully I never had to do that excessive chewing thing. If your food is soft & moist enough & you take small bites (use a teaspoon) you shouldn’t need to chew 20+ times before swallowing. But most certainly your body will tell you what you need to do. Personally I wait 2-5 minutes between bites. That is between swallowing & taking the next bite. Sometimes I go longer. I often distract myself between bites. Wait for an ad break. Read a couple of pages. Check social media. Read this forum 😉. Have a conversation. Play a game on a device… Not only put your cutlery down between bites, but also sit back from the table. It takes time for the message to get through to tell you you’ve had enough hence us being told to eat slowly. I still do - anywhere from 30-60+ minutes. It will take time to work out all your signals & cues & what strategy will work for you. All the best.

Some lose in that first week. Some don’t. It depends on things like how much fluid & gas you were pumped with during & after surgery. How long it takes your body to express it. How your body responds to surgery - the stress. You may have diarrhoea or be constipated over the first week or two. You may retain more of the fluid you’re consuming to begin. It’s all very individual as to what shows on the scale. Some surgeons actually advise not to weigh yourself for a week or more post surgery to allow for these factors as you can weigh more after surgery than you did before. (I weighed a good 2kgs more 24 hrs after my gall removal & took 4 days to get rid of it.) if you do weigh yourself after surgery don’t be surprised if there’s no loss or if there’s gain. But you could be someone who does have a loss in that first week (I did - almost 3 kg.) Your weight will be falling off you soon enough after & it will be fantastic. All the best.

Think you’re approaching this with the right attitude @MiniGastricBypassDude. I’ve just survived my third post surgery Christmas lunch. Honestly, it was probably a little harder this year & I’m reflecting on why. Did I nibble on the lollies & chocolates strategically placed around the house? Nope. Did I want to? Yes. Did I have a glass of champagne? Yes - took 90+ mins to drink it. Had a little baked ham, a little roast beef, a little turducken, a little green vegetable salad, potato bake & had still had empty spaces on my plate. Did I eat it all? Nope. Did I eat slowly? Yes - others were finishing their second helping but I was still on my first. Ate a little too much (thought I could have that bit extra.) & had a small bout of the foamies as a result ☹️. In reality if you ignore the potato bake (all that cream & butter) the main course options would be considered sensible healthy food choices. Had some dessert about 2 hours after lunch. The dessert & potato bake were my Christmas treats as I rarely eat them. Don’t regret it & don’t beat myself up about it. No one says anything about what anyone eats or doesn’t eat & no one cares if you don’t eat everything on offer. Generally, I try to basically follow my usual eating regime if I can. I choose the healthier option or take a smaller portion: ‘a taste’. I’ll have a treat or two if I want. It’s only one day. The trouble comes if it becomes two days, three days, etc. Sometimes things are beyond your control especially if you’re a guest. You have to accept that for this one day aspects of your eating routine may have to be put aside. Happy Christmas.

Merry Christmas from the Southern Hemisphere. Picture of the traditional Christmas dessert, well in my family anyway, pavlova. We also had steamed marmalade pudding, fruit salad, trifle, egg custard & jelly. (I had a little marmalade pudding, jelly & custard - my Christmas treat.) Have to admit the pavlova was a shop bought one but it was lovingly decorated with Chantilly cream & fresh fruit by my nephews (21 & 16) under close supervision of Nana. Think they did a damn good job.

Generally post bariatric surgery we’re advised to avoid bread, pasta, rice especially while losing. They are nutritionally poor food choices, can swell &/or sit heavily in your much smaller tummy. Your focus should be protein. If you can only eat say 1/3 cup of food for a meal the majority of that 1/3 cup should be protein focussed. Some people do eat small amounts of vegetable pasta, cauliflower rice, etc. as they progress through the weight loss phase. And some find they can eat a little traditional bread, pasta or rice as they are able to eat larger portions at a meal. Many avoid these foods until maintenance when they start to reintroduce them into their diets. It does depend upon the plan you have been given & also how you react to certain foods. What does your plan/surgeon/dietician recommend? I still don’t eat bread or pasta or rice at 2yrs 7 months. They tend to still sit heavily in my tummy & I also try to focus on nutritionally dense food choices.

It could be that you have reached your low weight point. You could be in a prolonged stall which is more noticeable because you are getting close to goal & your rate of loss has slowed. You may need to up your activity or tweak your food choices a bit. What does your dietician or surgeon say or suggest? Unfortunately, the truth is not everyone reaches their goal weigh. Some lose more, some less. Some regain, some maintain. Remember, the average weight loss at the 5yr point is about 65% of the weight you had to lose. I reached my goal at 6 months but continued to lose for another 10/11 months. I struggled to eat enough to stop the loss. The rate slowed a lot over that period down to about a pound or less over two weeks or more. I’m what is termed a statistical outlier & have beaten the odds so far but I have no idea what the future will bring. Congratulations on the weight you have lost. Whoo hoo!

Oh yeah, my metabolism was well & truely wrecked from decades of literally starving myself to try to lose or maintain. That has been a bonus of this surgery: a metabolism that actually works again. I’m truely surprised by how much food I eat to maintain my weight now which would have resulted (& did) in weight gain at my much higher weight pre surgery. I am still a believer of calories in & calories out (not that I’m a regular calorie counter by any stretch of the imagination) but temper it with the calories in are what your individual body needs to function. No one’s body is exactly the same as another’s & therefore our bodies have different caloric needs & we process the nutrients we need from the food we consume differently so we also have different nutrients requirements. That’s why one diet/style of eating will work for someone but not for someone else. It’s why so many of us advocate you discovering what works for you. That’s a benefit of this forum, lots of ideas, suggestions, experiences from which you can start to develop your eating style from people who truely understand the struggle.

My niece stayed for a couple of nights & we made rissoles - basically meat balls served with a brown gravy. Of course you have to use your hands to mix in the diced celery, onion, grated carrot, egg & panko crumbs. Lots of fun as you can see by my niece’s smile (with an 8 yr old’s obligatory missing teeth 😉). No after pxts - I forgot ☹️.

Unfortunately, if you have GERD, a gastric sleeve really isn’t for you. It is very likely your symptoms will get even worse & you could face developing Barret’s Esophagus like @ElyQuint (sorry this has happened to you). In saying that I had acid reflux before my sleeve surgery which isn’t isn’t as severe as GERD. I managed it with diet & had only rare episodes - less than a handful of times a year (usually if stressed or if I made poor dietary choices - like too many champagnes or gin & tonics 😉). I still have reflux post surgery but it manifests itself differently now. I still watch my food choices (no spicy food, low caffeine, rarely have carbonated drinks or let them go pretty flat, avoid rich & creamy foods). A daily esomeprazole in the morning generally manages it - sometimes have burning in my throat for an hour or two at night but that’s all. But again that’s reflux not GERD.

Exactly. Remember also we, all have a natural weight fluctuation, we just notice it more now because we ‘re more vigilant with weighing ourselves & recording our weight. I’ve discovered my natural fluctuation is a kilogram (2.2lbs). Any more or less & I reflect on what I’ve eaten or not eaten. Has my water intake been more or less? Did I have some alcohol? Am I constipated? Am I peeing more or less? … Should say I’m maintaining & am pretty vigilant but the principle is the same. If you’re still losing & your weight loss trend is still downwards your golden. If you’re maintaining, reflect on your last week & see what next week brings. Three pounds may be your natural fluctuation. Congrats on your weight loss. Whoo hoo.

As the others have said: it’s just a part of the experience. Your natural hair loss cycle accelerates as a result of the shock of the surgery, stress, anaesthetic, decreased protein intake, dietary changes, etc. The hair you lose was destined to be shed it just happens a bit faster than usual. Just keep on top of your daily protein goal & take your multivitamins. Taking additional supplements that supposedly stop hair loss or strengthen your hair will only help new growth not the hair on your head which is already dead if it does anything. Nothing happens to your new growth cycle so you still ate growing new hair while your losing just at it’s usual rate. A lot of us cut our hair shorter so the new growth doesn’t have as much to grow to catch up plus short hair always seems to look thicker. Same with your skin. Protein is important. You can try taking collagen & silica. Keep it well moisturised & regularly exfoliate. You may look more gaunt & tired for a while but it does settle once you start maintaining. Genetics, age, highest weight, length of time being obese all influences how much your skin has been stretched, how much will bounce back & how much loose skin you end up with. All the best.

It does get easier to eat slightly larger portion sizes (not talking more than a recommended portion size though) as you progress. I also added more snacks & stretched out my meal times more so I could eat a little more. I did feel like I was eating all day though so be warned. I should stress I was trying to maintain when I was doing this. I added some more fat but only a small amount: a few nuts, salad dressing (not diet), liverwurst, etc. Added some multigrain crackers for a few more carbs. Added another serve of fruit to my snack rota. Included a protein bar. Generally, I kept to nutrient dense food. Took me some time to discover what worked for me.

As I said above, I just sipped the diluted serving for ages. If I remember correctly, it made up one cup of shake but I’d diluted to 1 1/2 or 2 cups. Sometimes alternating my sips if shake with water or green tea. It counts towards your fluid goal as well as your protein goal so double win. I didn’t think of a shake or soup as a ‘meal’ as such that I had to consume in a specific period of time. Some days I would still be sipping that shake 4 hours later.

Smoking hinders your healing. Don’t know if that’s specifically tobacco or if it includes pot, etc. too. Better to ask & avoid it for a few weeks then do it & extend or compromise your healing.