Arabesque

Congrats on your surgery. Whoo hoo. It always surprises me the different post surgical diets people are given. I wasn’t on puréed foods until week 5. Follow the plan you were given but don’t be surprised if something on the plan upsets your tummy - just avoid it. As Gradycat said take it slowly. And if you feel you’re struggling, never be afraid to go back a step. Potatoes are a starch which provide energy but if you don’t use that energy it will be converted to fat. The same with all carbs. This is why many of us are told to avoid them during our weight loss phase. Plus the fat you add when you mash them isn’t the best. They weren’t on my post surgical diet from either my dietician or my surgeon. I still avoid potatoes at 19.5 months out as they tend to sit in my tummy & consume very few carbs (except for whole or multigrain crackers or rolled oats). My 2.5week pre surgery diet was keto but all the reading I did & conversations with my dietician suggested keto was good as a kick start but because of the high fat not good long term. Don’t worry too much about fluctuations. Fluid retention, constipation, etc. will up the number on the scales. Plus you know sometimes it’s just our bodies. We can eat & drink exactly the same thing one day to the next but can gain or lose. As long as the your general weight loss trend is going down you’re doing well. (Ignore when you have a stall of course.😁) Good luck on your journey.

I’ve been drinking green tea for about 17 years because the caffeine in coffee was just killing me. It has about a quarter the caffeine of black tea & yes you can purchase decaffeinated green tea but it still has a small amount of caffeine. My surgeon was very happy for me to continue drinking green tea from right after my surgery probably because it’s lower in caffeine & I don’t drink multiple cups each day. I drink about 300-350mls a day around mid morning. Adds to my fluid intake too. But check with your surgical team.

Congrats on your surgery. Constipation & random diarrhoea is common during the weight loss phase. My first bowel movement after surgery literally just ran out of me on day 3. It was horribly embarrassing. They were giving me a very strong laxative in hospital but I stopped when I got home cause I felt it was too harsh & didn’t want any more experiences like day 3. Then I think it was a couple of days later before I went again. Catwoman7 is right: you really haven’t been consuming much so there’s nothing much there to pass. I added benefibre to a shake everyday & then if I got to three days without going I’d take a gentle stool softener. I was happy if I went every two days. Things went back to normal when I was eating more in maintenance. Good luck.

You can only eat what you can eat. There was no way I was eating 800 calories even close to maintenance. You will find you slowly increase your portion sizes as you progress but don’t force your self. As you increase your activity you likely will be able to consume more too. As I always say: listen to your body. It will tell you pretty darn quickly what you can or can’t do, or can or can’t tolerate. You have to discover what works for you. Aim to keep meeting your protein goal. Take you vitamins. Monitor your blood work & adjust your diet accordingly. Don’t ignore your dietician but maybe that their advice as guidelines rather than rules you have to follow. I’m not tall either. Nor am I overly active. There’s no way I need the same calories as someone who is very fit & active & 6 inches taller. But that’s my opinion. Good luck.

I eat very much to routine most of the time i.e. to time. I also don’t mind if I take an hour to eat a meal. It’s how I ensure I meet my goals & get in enough food during the day. There’s no rule to say you have to eat all of your meal in one sitting. As long as your meeting your goals each day. Skyewolfe’s suggestion to eat 4 or 5 smaller meals is a good one as is Mr Alley Gator’s of trying nutritionally boosted shakes to sip during the day. Give them a go. Different things work for different people. You just have to find what works for you. Have a chat with your medical team about your reluctance to eat. They may suggest you speak with a therapist to work through why you’re feeling this way. Good luck.

Unfortunately negative comments from our loved ones always hurt the most. I think it’s because we want them to be happy for us. I’m sorry your mother is being so hurtful instead of being supportive. I think you do have to be selective about what you tell different people. I have a competitive friend who almost always asks what I weigh, what size I’m wearing, etc. I give her the most basic response: Maintaining. About the same as I was. My dietician’s happy with my progress. Etc. (She doesn’t know I had surgery.) You can always share your progress with us. We’ll celebrate every pound you lose.

This sounds much like acid hunger. It’s not a real hunger. Just the acid increasing in your tummy. It disappears when you eat because you’re using the acid to digest the food. Are you taking esomeprazole? Some surgeons don’t prescribe it. Some only for a short period. Mine told me I’d be on it forever as I naturally produced a lot of stomach acid & suffers from stress related reflux. My friend was having the same problem & was snacking a lot. I suggested she start back on her esomeprazole because it sounded like stomach acid & her problem went. Have a chat with your surgical team. Good luck.

Welcome. Lots of great information here & lots of helpful advice. So sorry your surgery was delayed but very happy tomorrow is your day. My surgery was the best decision & I’m sure yours will be too. Good luck. PS. Hope your daughter is ok.

I guess the first question is is it really hunger? There’s lots of things that make us think we’re hungry but we’re not: head hunger, emotional hunger, habit eating hunger, etc. Even when acid builds in your tummy you can think you’re hungry. A lot of the part of your tummy that produces the hunger hormone was removed in your surgery. But, all that other stuff that drove us to eat, mentioned above, that are often more powerful, are still there. That’s why doing the head work is important. There’s a lot of learning as we go through this process about why we eat, when we eat, what we eat, etc. Ask yourself do you need to eat something or just want to eat something. I still often just don’t feel hungry & my real hunger feels different now. I feel restless, hallow & I often don’t realise that’s what’s wrong for a while. I was told to avoid carbs because they slow weight loss, fill you up more quickly & many aren’t nutritionally rich. I don’t know about whether they make you more hungry. Portion control is very important. If your meals are 2-3ozs or quarter to a third of a cup & predominantly protein you’re on the right track & you won’t be stretching anything. You’ll work it out & there’s a lot of people on this forum willing to share their experiences & offer advice. Good luck.

It’s pretty common for foods you used to enjoy suddenly tasting terrible. I loved asparagus but post surgery it was disgusting. Don’t worry, your taste buds do return to normal in a few months. I’d didn’t experience the issue with smell but a lot of others have. Don’t know why it happens though.

I’ve watched two episodes so far and it’s great. The truthfulness in those voices ... inspiring. And such honest reactions from the ‘judges’: no performances just for the camera. I don’t know how they’re going to choose. Thank you for recommending the show. I’m looking forward to watching the next episode.

I’m jealous you’ve kept your luscious hour glass figure @BayougirlMrsS. Mine’s gone. Sigh. That green dress is fabulous. Great find. And with boots - gorgeous. Baggage handler @ms.sss. Hilarious. Gotta love the kid. I like the black jumpsuit. I like that fabric you’re using in your foyer project @Sophie7713 especially the touch of pink which is lovely with the green.

That fish stew looks dang delicious. Is there anywhere to eat beside the couch?? 😂 Happy anniversary Sophie. Should we expect Mr Sophie’s Christmas cookie care packages in the mail soon? Tee hee!

Are the pain meds prescribed by your surgeon managing the pain? If not, ring his team. We all experience pain differently. Unfortunately some suffer for longer while others experience less pain for a shorter period of time. I was fortunate, I put aside the opioid I was prescribed on day 4. Took an over the counter pain med on day 5 which I didn’t really need then nothing. Remember, you’ve had a big chunk of your stomach removed, so pain is to be expected but it should be able to be managed by the medication prescribed you. Good luck.

I tend to scar badly & I’m very fair too. I used bio oil on my scars & honestly I have to really look to find them. They are just tiny faint lines now. I couldn’t tell you when they faded to this point but I remember having trouble finding them to show a friend about to have surgery about 7 months ago. But remember we all heal & scar differently. So you may have a different experience.

I had five incisions in line with my belly button. They were small 10-15mm. They healed over a couple of weeks. I used bio oil too & now I have to look hard to see the scars: they’re little faint lines. Yes, you’ll have saggy skin. It stretched out carrying your weight. Factors like your age, gender, genetics, how long you were at your highest weight, how overweight you were all impact how much sagging you’ll have. As catwoman7 said saggy skin is better than being obese & unhealthy & you can have skin removal. I didn’t have much loose skin when I reached my goal weight but I do have more on my upper inner thighs & upper arms now that I’ve lost more. I just don’t wear short shorts or strappy or strapless tops. I’m just wearing ordinary cotton hipster briefs under this dress. Oh, & my breasts are pretty deflated. Walking is excellent post surgery. Start walking at the hospital to help get rid of the gas they fill your abdomen with during surgery. Your surgical team will probably advise when you can start to increase your activity or introduce other options. I was put on a keto diet for 2 1/2 weeks pre surgery so I can’t advise on what your diet requires. Your dietician or surgeon should have given you a plan to follow. Good luck.

Having stalls where you lose nothing or slight daily variations are all perfectly normal during the weight loss phase. You will lose more slowly the closer you get to your goal too. But is your weight still trending down? Are your clothes getting loser? Do you have more energy? I’m 19 months out & mine’s working fine. I still lose if I don’t keep my food intake up. My restriction is still there and I often am not interested in eating. Three years out seems to be the point people may start to put on weight. Why, I don’t know. It could be because their will power starts to fade or they start introducing more less healthy choices into their diet or they reduce their exercise or maybe life gets in the way. Maybe it’s just where their body wants to settle. Shrug. Your tool will always be with you. You just have to decide how you are going to use it, not just while you’re losing weight, but for the rest of your life. Good luck. You’ll be in ONEderland before you know it.

I have a new one. Was told I had lovely arms yesterday. No, I didn’t then wave my arms in the air to show my bat wings. Lol! I kept my arms securely against my body & graciously thanked him. What the eyes can’t see .... 😂

We often say hunger feels different after surgery. Last night, I hosted Christmas drinks. With all the rushing about prepping I skipped lunch. Then over five hours I ate 4 crackers with blue cheese, 2 slices of bresola, 1/2 thin slice roast lamb, 2 slices of cucumber. It was enough. I wasn’t interested in eating more. I woke at about 2am. Very restless. Tossed. Turned. Wriggled. Squirmed. Felt uncomfortable & a general discomfort. Then I realised: I was hungry. I was going to do a Nigella Lawson & raid the refrigerator for a midnight snack of leftovers but settled for a protein bar. And then I was able to go to sleep again. It’s happened once before. Very similar experience. Busy day so ate less. No dinner, just a canapé at a party. Then woken by the same feelings as last night. I think this was a true hunger. My body needed fuel. Not a head hunger. Not a ‘I could eat’ hunger. Not a habit eating hunger. Not a craving hunger. Not a ‘oh I better have some lunch’ hunger. Not a ‘I’m starving’ hunger. All those reasons we used/use daily to justify our eating. It got me thinking & made me question what hunger really feels like. What does your hunger feel like now?

I just watched the trailer. I’m adding it to my watch list & I don’t like those singing competitions. Thank you BayougirlMrsS.

Hot! Hot! Hot! Jake. Look at that definition. 😁 Such a good story to tell too.

What a great story. We all know how a random comment has the power to crush us but we forget how the right comment can be so empowering to someone’s self esteem. I have two. The day someone said: you really are tiny aren’t you. And the day someone said: there’s plenty of room for you to sit here. I never though I’de ever hear anyone say those things to me before I lost the weight.

You can’t predict how much loose skin you’ll end up with but you can guarantee you’ll have some. I feel like I’ve earned my loose skin. And, for good or bad, a part of me thinks I deserve it too - I put on the weight & stretched out my skin. No one else did it to me or made me do it. I don’t have a lot of sagging skin but it’s there. It doesn’t really hinder anything I wear. I never wore a bikini when I was slim & younger so there’s no way I would now so no loss. I also have no desire to wear shorty shorts or mini skirts so no one will see the saggy bits on my inner thighs. And to hide my bat wings, I just don’t wave my arms in the air & don’t wear anything very strappy or strapless. Honestly, I had minimal pain after surgery. By day 4, I didn’t need any pain meds & I didn’t have any gas pain at all. My only problem was my back which went into spasm on day 2 but it really didn’t have anything to do with the surgery as such. I had quite a bit of swelling which caused me difficulty swallowing to begin but it was gone by day 4. I had no trouble sleeping on my side from day 1 & healed very well. But we’re all different. You can’t predict how you’ll respond to the surgery. Just be realistic & be aware of the possible side effects, but don’t let something that may not happen or is easily managed scare you from having the surgery. Stress is never good for healing or recovery. Good luck with your surgery & on your journey.

I still eat slowly. 20 mins is a quick meal, 40 mins is common & I’ll take more than an hour to eat others. I’m a believer in putting your cutlery down between bites & waiting - sometimes for a couple of minutes. As I also ask myself do I need the next bite or do I just want it. If I eat too quickly or feel pressured to eat more quickly (like by hovering wait staff) I get tightness & I can’t eat more even I need to. I’m used to eating cold food now too. Or I’ll just pop my plate in the microwave to reheat it.

Oh you poor thing. Something similar happened to me at a restaurant. I was making all these terribly loud retching, gagging & belching type noises in the bathroom for several minutes & then had to walk out in front of everyone. Embarrassing! You’ll find that your tummy is extra sensitive to foods you used to eat pre surgery for the first few months. Sometimes even food you’ve been successfully eating for weeks post surgery suddenly make you unwell. I described my tummy as being a petulant 2 yr old during that time - you’d never know when it might have a tantrum. But you may find there are some foods you’ll always struggle with. Good luck on your journey.