Arabesque

I love my rolled oats. I was never much of a cereal eater before surgery. The odd bowl of untoasted muesli or rolled oats a couple of times a year. (I ate toast with fresh sliced tomato every morning.) When I was able to eat solid food again after surgery I ate either scrambled eggs or rolled oats. But about 6 months ago I lost my appetite for eggs so I just stuck with rolled oats. I make it with milk & add nothing else but blueberries. I get a good 10+g of protein which is a good start on my daily protein goal. I really enjoy it. It’s a good carb, good source of fibre, has no added sugar or artificial sweetener, it’s an appetite suppressor & helps flush out cholesterol. It easily fills me up for three hours. It’s an easy, no brainer in the morning.

I’ve been making soup again. Chicken & lentils with carrots, onions, celery & fresh tomatoes & a touch of cumin, paprika, garlic & fresh parsley. I only use chicken thigh meat - has way more flavour. Have to admit the fresh parsley was a bit raspy on my throat. ☹️ Forgot to clean the edges of my bowl before I took the pxt.

Don’t forget you’re not consuming very many calories at the moment & your body is using most of them to function. Therefore your body won’t have a lot to excrete. In saying that, it is important to work back towards healthy & regular bowel habits. I used to go every two days. If I got to a third day I would take a gentle stool softener so I would have some movement in day four. Are you adding some soluble fibre to your shakes, broths etc.? Avoid those that swell in your tummy though. Don’t force yourself to go. Stick to your old routine of when you used to go. Sometimes you just need to sit, relax & let gravity & nature do their thing. Somedays I felt like my niece who had just gone through toilet training. I wondered if I needed a chart on my fridge & some gold stars. 😆 Happy pooping.

Great discussion @catwoman7 & @summerset. I wonder if many don’t really hear or believe the statistics that most only end up losing about 65% of the weight they need to lose to put them into the healthy BMI range after surgery. Or maybe they weren’t even told that information? Though I was told & read about it, I still set my goal at 60kg a healthy BMI simply because I had reached that point many times before. I just couldn’t manage to stay there long term. Though my surgeon did support my goal & my reasons behind it he did it with a but remember... I know I’ve exceeded my goal but I also recognise I’m not quite 2 years out. Who knows what the future will bring. I’m a big advocate of finding your balance too @Creekimp13. Finding out what allows you to maintain a weight you’re happy at while being healthy & living & enjoying your life. Having a supportive & realistic team who listens as well as advises is invaluable. Have to admit, while I enjoy seeing before & after pxts on this forum, I was equally pleased that my surgeon only has 3 or 4 such photos on his wall taken over a number of years & only one had probably lost 100% of their weight. Plus I was never given caloric goals at any stage by my team. Only protein & fluid goals & likely serving sizes I would be able to manage as I progressed (about 1/4 cup, then 1/3 cup, etc.). @summerset, I liked your comments re those who continue to restrict calories & exercise compulsively. Have they swapped their overeating addiction to an under eating one? Are they now seeking emotional comfort through what may be excessive exercise & related goal setting? And if they’re not being honest about their activity levels &/or caloric intake, is that the same as when they may have been in denial about their weight & food intake when they were obese?

I just did a calorie check on what I ate yesterday. It was 1237 calories so my estimate was pretty spot on. It’s likely what you’re feeling is head hunger (hunger that is driven by emotions, cravings, habit, etc.) as most of the area that produces the hunger hormone was removed during your surgery. Working out the difference is part of the journey & unfortunately it’s not an easy thing to do. For many of us real hunger feels very different but then maybe we never felt real hunger before cause just head hunger dictated our eating habits. Liquids tend to go through you more quickly so you likely won’t feel full or feel that restriction we all talk about. (Though I did feel my restriction when I drank more than a sip - all tight across my chest.) keep to sipping slowly throughout the day. I’d start on my 400ml diluted shake at breakfast & would still be sipping it for lunch. The 200ml of soup/broth I ate for ‘dinner’ was the same taking about three hours to drink it. And yes that’s all I ‘ate’ each day during my two week liquid phase. No hunger or interest in eating. Don’t hate me. 🙂

As Catwoman7 said all programs are different. You’ll see a lot of similarities like protein goals but also lots of differences. I didn’t have to count macros except for protein & it was 60-70g. Then just generally low carbs, low sugar, low fat. In maintenance I was aiming for 1g per kg but my dietician said I should aim for 1.2g as I’m a woman in her 50s. I’ve never heard/read that anywhere but as my protein levels are on the lower end of the good scale I do aim for 60g per day. I’m still pretty low carb getting most from fruit & vegetables, then rolled oats & some multigrain crackers. I was watching a video by Dr Matthew Weiner the other day & he said he tends to push vegetables first. I think this is to reduce dependency upon animal proteins and increase plant proteins like including legumes, etc. in your diet. Do you still see your dietician/nutritionalist? They should be able to make some recommendations on what should make up your basic diet to ensure you’re eating a range of foods & getting your nutrients in each day. You can vary it then to suit your likes & dislikes & what works for you. As we well know from years of experience, extreme diets don’t work long term. For me, it’s all about balance, a variety of food sources, portion size, calorie & nutrient awareness.

Fabulous @WishMeSmaller. Congratulations on reaching your goal. And I agree with @ms.sss - your legs ❤️ OMG I so hear you re the saggy butt skin. I remember walking around my house pulling & readjusting my knickers, thinking these uncomfortable knickers are going in the bin, only to realise it was my lose butt skin. 😱 I had to rearrange myself when I sat or lay down too. It’s not as bad now. Combination of some of my remaining fat rearranging itself & just getting used to it I think. (Wish I still didn’t suffer from bony ass pain though. It’s the worst.)

Watch out Palm Beach. Jake & Sophie will be hitting the town together again. Wild days & nights ahead. 😆😆😆 Just jealous, I can’t be there.

You’ll get various responses on how many calories people consume to maintain. It will depend on a number of factors like how active you are, age, gender, your metabolic rate, etc. I’m not very active, am short, almost 56 & my metabolism has slowed a little (it was going real fast originally in maintenance but as it’s slowed I’ve dropped a snack). Someone taller, younger & more active would be able to consume more than I do. I don’t actively count calories but am aware of the calories of the food I eat. I would estimate I consume around 1200.

Regardless of how far along I was, I found if I explained I was on a medically restricted diet most places were very understanding. You can ring them before or have a quiet aside with the host/hostess on arrival. I also would check the menu before I went anywhere so I would be able to plan ahead what I would be able to order. Purée stage will be tough, but as others have suggested, choose the soup but avoid any large lumpy pieces of meat or vegetables that may be in it. They may even blend the soup for you. You can only ask.

For me it comes down to portion size, awareness of calorie & nutrient content, & a balanced diet. I guess it depends upon what you consider a variety of foods. I eat a variety of plant & animal proteins (more animal I admit), vegetables, fruit, a small amount of whole or multi grains. No breads, no pastas, or rice or alternatives. Avoid sugar, artificial sweeteners or sugar additives as much as I can (can be challenging cause it’s everywhere & yes I had cake & dessert over Christmas). No carbonated drinks (except for tonic/soda/sparkling water which I let flatten & drink slowly). I drink a glass of alcohol once a month or two. I don’t take any supplements. Since my surgery almost 2 years ago, I’ve had takeaway three times - braised chicken & vegetables twice & steamed gyoza once (ate the filling only). Do I miss it? Nope. I never was a big fast food eater so no loss there either. I cook most of my own food because I can control the ingredients & how it’s cooked & prepared. My decision came down to two things: what I used to do which contributed to my history of gaining weight & the things I realised I just didn’t need. Does it restrict my lifestyle? Nope. I go out to restaurants & socialise with friends & family without a problem. I freeze meals so if I need a quick convenient meal I just defrost something from my freezer. (God bless my microwave.) Honestly my inability to eat spicy food is my greatest problem - it seems they put chilli in every darn thing these days. But this is what’s working for me. You have to work out what works for you. If that means you can have some dessert or takeaway or become vegan or whatever it’s all good. If your diet becomes so restrictive it compromises your enjoyment of your life (i.e. being happy & healthy), you’ll likely fail. Good luck on your journey. Sorry for the long post🙂.

Have to admit I have considered a thread lift only because of the deep marionette line I have on the right side of my face. I’ve had it for ages but it’s deeper now cause I don’t have any fat to puff it out anymore. Lol!

I was alone. The surgeon did keep me in an extra day just to make sure I was stable. Was fortunate as my back went to spasm from a pre existing condition & tension I was holding cause I had a lot of swelling & had trouble swallowing so I had another day in hospital. All was good when I went home on day 4. I just made sure I had all the recommended over the counter meds (gasX, Imodium, pain meds, etc.), prescribed meds, broths, soups, protein mixes, & such I’d need when I got home so I didn’t need to go out nor did I need anyone to get things for me. I had little or no surgical pain by about day 4 & no gas pain at all. Could get about my house with little issue - just carefully. I spent most of my days on my couch resting. My family lives away from me too but I a couple of girlfriends who lived locally rang or txt daily to check on me.

Besides your taste buds changing so too may your sense of smell. So don’t be surprised if the smell of some things turn your stomach too. No idea why it happens but it does pass. I love my vegetables but for a good month or two I could only tolerate steamed cabbage & cauliflower. Was so glad when I could enjoy them again. I also couldn’t stand anything sweet but that was likely because I cut it out of my diet wherever I could. No loss there I still avoid sugar, artificial sweeteners & sugar alternatives as much as possible. The restrictive diet you’re on pre & post surgery can change how sweet or high fat foods taste to you. The thing is not to start eating them again so your desire & enjoyment of them is not reinvigorated.

Was thinking about my mother’s rice pudding yesterday & realised I’d never eat it again. She used to make it, bread pudding or Queen’s pudding on the weekends I went home in winter. All those carbs & sugar. So delicious. There aren’t any alternatives that taste as good. What family favourite foods did you use to enjoy but can’t/won’t eat now?

Congrats on getting your surgery date. Whoo hoo from me too! As to your questions: Nope, you won’t be able to eat as much as you did before the sleeve unless you want to experience discomfort but then would you want to eat that much again? Look where it got you then. I’m 21 months post surgery. There are times now when I can eat a true portion size of food, which fits nicely on a side plate, but most times it’s still less. I can easily eat a single serve of rolled oats, a loose cup of vegetables & 3oz of meat but I can’t eat 2 eggs. Can it be challenging to maintain? It sure can. For me, I had those old habits for almost 54 years. I went out to dinner last week & boy did that dessert menu look tempting. Before surgery, I would have ordered something without thinking if I needed it or if I was already full. Now I made the decision not to - yummy but no thank you. Plus there was no way I could have eaten anything else - I’d had enough. Do I have the odd thing I usually avoid? Sure. Over Christmas I ate dessert one night & had Christmas cake. But I haven’t since. If you persisted in eating larger servings, ignoring the discomfort, you may be able to stretch your tummy after surgery over time. Much like you likely did before surgery over the years. But again, would you want to? Part of this journey is coming to terms with how, why & what you ate before & discovering how this needs to change post surgery to be successful. I hope your surgery goes really well.

29lbs in 6 weeks is great. You’re averaging a good 4lbs a week. In that time I’d only lost about 10kg (22lbs) & that was considered a good rate for my starting point which was less than yours. The general rule is the more you have to lose the faster you’ll lose at first. The rate slows as you get closer to your goal. You’re not going to lose large amounts like they do on My 600lb Life cause they’ve a lot more to lose than you. But when they get down to around 200lbs their rate is more like 15lbs a month. Celebrate every pound you lose. You’re doing well.

Oh gracious don’t be down on yourself that you can eat most if not all foods. Some can just like some can’t. Some our experiences will be the same others won’t. Your experience is still right cause it’s working for you. Don’t get too caught up on comparing your experience to another’s. You’re different people. I could eat most things too without a problem. But every now & them my tummy would throw a tantrum & say No! Not that today. But then two days later it would be fine. As long as your portion size is still within your medical team guidelines, it’s ok. To slow my eating down, I always made sure I put my cutlery down between bites, would sit back or would even push my plate away. I also used to take a bite every 5 minutes. It just helps to make sure the message you’ve had enough gets through. I also would ask myself I’d I really needed that next bite. Not wanted it but needed it. I found this worked for me. There’s a lot of learning on this journey. Discovering what works for you, what eating is & means for you post surgery, etc. Good luck.

I started taking my multi vitamins in capsule form the day after I came home from surgery so day 5. I was able to swallow them ok being a smaller capsule. I did have trouble with nausea even taking them after eating & vomited a few times. I spread out taking them across the day so I wasn’t swallowing them at the same time. But multi vitamins always made me nauseous in the past so I wasn’t surprised it was worse after surgery. I gave them up after 8 months with my surgeon’s knowledge. I was in maintenance at this time. I felt it was better to eat than feel too nauseous to eat or to vomit. It’s been 13 months since I stopped & I get all the vitamins & minerals I need from what I need as my 3 monthly blood tests come back very good. I’m glad because I didn’t want to be dependent upon taking supplements for the rest of my life. Good luck.

Put that dress in your shopping cart now @BayougirlMrsS. Gorgeous. The little crosshatching down the sides just lifts it. Such a cute couple, @JAKE H.

Multi vitamins made me nauseous too even taking them after food. I had two capsules to take so I took one in the am & the other in the pm & it did help some. The morning still wasn’t the best though. Try taking you vitamins at night. We can buy over the counter anti nausea drugs in Australia so I expect you could too. it would be better to take them than drink a carbonated drink this early out. Try a ginger or peppermint tea or ginger root capsules. Most people on this forum just want to help & share their experiences. While some doctors have different programs or timelines for their patients to follow, there are a lot of similarities. Avoiding sugar & carbonation is pretty common especially at the beginning. Sugar makes a lot of people nauseous, including sleevers, & carbonation can at the very least can cause discomfort/pain. Good luck.

I slept most of the day after my surgery. No nausea & the pain was managed by the meds they gave me so didn’t really feel any at all. Slept a lot of the next day too. Couldn’t concentrate on anything. Tried to read. Tried to watch Netflix but couldn’t focus. No trouble strolling around the ward & showered myself on day 2. I was to spend two days in hospital & home day 3 because I live alone but ended up staying another day because my back went into spasm. (Pre existing issue plus holding a lot of tension cause I had trouble swallowing because of swelling.) That pain was terrible. Went home day 4. Took prescribed pain med in the morning but didn’t need to take anything after that. I didn’t have any gas pain. I rolled the waistband of my pants below my incisions because it irritated a bit - sort of uncomfortable pressure. Had no trouble sleeping on my side or partly on my stomach. Getting up & down was ok just took it slowly. Worst was the sudden & unexpected diarrhoea. OMG. Be ready for it.

Honestly, first I had to put my eyes back in my head!! A few years back at a girls’ night, we were a few drinks in & decided to send pxts to a friend who was at a dinner with her husband’s work colleagues & not with us. I sent one of my cleavage. She thought it was a pxt of one of our butts. Sad but true. 😆

Me too. So frustrating to buy, wait for the delivery & then have send it back cause it’s too big or too small. The last two things I bought online were too big. A jacket I can sort of get away with because it’s a wrap but the pants I gave to my niece cause they were on sale & unreturnable. The inconsistency is so frustrating. And don’t get me started on one size fits all. I drown in them.

I always wanted to sleep fully on my tummy but couldn’t cause ... well you understand. I trained myself to sleep with a twist: on my side at my shoulders & then twist my body so my hips & tummy are almost flat on the bed. Mind you I have to twist more to get my tummy to the bed now. 😆