Arabesque

Nope still can’t more than 3 years out. One maybe two larger mouthfuls & that’s it. I get gurgling or my restriction at that point. Certainly couldn’t do more. So I just do regular swallows & never get thirsty. In the past I could down 300/400 ml no trouble if I was thirsty.

Your surgeon should provide you with your plan including what you can eat when. Yes, there are variations in plans so It’s pretty important to follow the plan you’re given especially during the healing & recovery period (usually about the first 6 weeks). If you haven’t been given a plan yet contact your surgeon’s office to ask for it. I got mine almost three weeks before which gave me plenty of time to familiarise myself with it, shop in preparation & ask any questions if I needed. You can discuss any variations, clarifications or additions you may need or prefer with your surgeon during the healing stages & then your dietician as you progress. All the best.

Agreed as well. BMI is best used as a guide only to give you a bit of an idea not a rule. Actually any goal you set should be a guide only too. Your body will decide what weight you reach as the surgery resets your set point. This is the weight your body is happiest at. You can lose more weight but you have to work harder to lose it & harder to maintain it. Not everyone reaches their goal weight. (The average is about 65+/-% of the weight you’re to lose.) Also many find when they near what they thought was their goal weight, they’ve lost enough & they feel better being at a higher weight. Other get to their goal & think they are too thin for them. Others get to their goal & find they can or do lose a little more. Lifestyle, age, frame, activity levels (how much you do or want to do ), etc. should be considered when choosing the weight you want to attain. And yes, I’m someone who’s on the lower end of the BMI scale. It seems to be where my body is happiest so my set point - I lost the additional weight without intending to. I also have a smaller frame (for years I was told I had a largish frame - it was just fat) so being on the lower end of the scale is more appropriate. I don’t have protruding bones or look gaunt. I maintain my weight pretty easily & don’t really exercise (stretches & resistance type things). My doctors are happy but most importantly I’m happy & healthy. That is the real goal.

As you’re still on purée, maybe some apple sauce or yoghurt? You may find though that anything you eat is super sweet & not as enjoyable to eat at the moment. Head hunger is probably one of the biggest if not the biggest challenge we have to face. Cravings aren’t real hunger but your head looking for a way to sooth or comfort you. Why do you think you’re craving sweet? Is it boredom, emotions, stress, time of the month, etc.? Working out why you have the craving is the first step. Try looking for a distraction. Go for a walk, ring a friend, play a game, craft, read, check out your social media & this forum, & so on. Sometimes a warm drink can help.

It could be as simple as a pulled muscle but it is probably best to give your surgeon a call to be sure.

I’ve seen it described as lasting 18months. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I think how long the honeymoon phase lasts is individual much like most things during this process. There are just averages which you can use as a guide. Some people find their hunger comes back after 6 months which is a signal of the beginning of the end of their honeymoon. It doesn’t mean they’ll stop losing, they just have to work harder. Another signal is when your weight loss slows down considerably which happens to everyone when they get closer to their final weight. Mine started slowing a lot at 5 months when I was almost at my goal. I continued to lose for about another 11 months without meaning to. I lost around a kg +/- a month during that time.

And here it is. I got a little distracted (scrolling the sales 😆) & I cooked the steak more medium than the med rare I prefer. I didn’t eat all of it. May end up with enough for 4 meals. The broccolini heads are separate because they’ve started to cause me a little trouble so I now eat them separately so I can be more careful.

Walk, walk, walk. Deep slow breathing. March on the spot (standing or sitting), lift your arms (carefully) up & down. Gotta get the gas moving up & then breathed out. Heat packs can help. How much gas pain you have depends on your surgeon, how much they need to use to inflate your abdominal region & how you process it.

Go back to the surgeon who removed your gall or back to emergency sooner rather than later. You shouldn’t still be experiencing pain & the other symptoms three weeks out. I wonder if you may have an infection. I had my sleeve surgery about 2 months before you had your bypass. I had my gall removed in June 2021 so 2 yrs later. Gall stones are pretty common after weight loss. I’m surprised no one picked it up or explored the possibility more deeply sooner & you had to experience gall attacks for so long. They picked up my single gall stone about 8 months after my sleeve during a ultra sound of my liver to check it was okay. I had no symptoms. When I had my first attack (yes, it was horrendous too) I I knew what it likely was. Saw my GP, got a referral back to my bariatric surgeon & he removed my gall about 2 weeks after that first attack. Yes the recovery was a little worse than my sleeve but not much - had gas pain which I didn’t with my sleeve & a little more general discomfort for a week or so. I wonder if your surgery & recovery has been longer & more arduous because your gall wasn’t in the best way (lots of inflammation, the adherences, etc.) But definitely seek medical advice.

Are you still in contact with your dietician? If not give them a call. They should be supporting you along the way & should work with you to develop a way of eating that works for you. How you are eating now should be getting closer to how you will eat in the long term. Do you still track your food? Personally I kept my food choices pretty simple. Protein & vegetables for lunch & dinner. Chose healthier cooking methods. Cooked & prepped 90+% of the food I ate myself. Anything I did purchase I read the nutrition panels very carefully. Kept low fat, low carbs, low sugar. Portion size was very important. And yes as @catwoman7 said the last pounds are the hardest to lose & take the longest to go. Congrats on your weight loss so far.

It’s for tonight. I had leftover veal last night. Another freezer leftover meal. 😁 I’ll get three meals from the two pieces.

It likely is head hunger. Very understandable to feel anxious & stressed after your surgery. You question your decision, wonder if you’re following your plan correctly, worry about your healing & recovery, doubt such small portions can be enough food, etc. It can be a real emotional roller coaster. For many of us when we felt this way in the past we turned to food to comfort us and your head is still trying to make you do this. Real hunger feels different to head hunger. I get restless & think something is wrong with real hunger. With head hunger I want to eat a specific food, flavour or texture. Head hunger will disappear if I can distract myself or by having something to drink (like a herbal or green tea). Real hunger doesn’t disappear. Also your excess stomach acid (as a result of the surgery) can make you think you’re hungry (hunger pangs) when you’re not. While most people lose their hunger for a time after surgery not everyone does. Average seems to be for it to be lost for about 6 months but some find it returns sooner while for others it doesn’t return for a year or more.

Stalls happen. They’re your body’s reaction to the stress of weight loss, reduced food intake, etc. plus as @Hop_Scotch mentioned your surgery. You’ll likely experience more stalls while you’re losing but this perfectly normal. Most last 1-3 weeks. Your weight loss will never be a continuous straight downward line. It will zig & zag, go up & down & not move at all. Stick to your plan & the scale will start to move again. Some people find that while the scale doesn’t move they notice a change in their clothing. Try taking body measurements & comparing changes that way too.

Yumm. I have fillet steak in my fridge for tomorrow night. And asparagus will be one of my sides too. Twin eaters. 😁

That is a pretty strong drink. Don’t know what your daily calorie intake is but 248 is a lot of calories to waste on a single glass of alcohol which provides no nutritional benefit which should be your focus. 248 calories would have been 3/4 of my daily intake then. The carbs would also be a significant percentage of your limit too I would guess. And alcohol dehydrates you & slows your metabolism. In saying that I had a gin & tonic at around 2 months at my cousin’s 40th. I nursed that drink for more than 4 hours. Didn’t really enjoy it either & I didn’t have another drink for months. I don’t drink much at all since my surgery. An odd glass of champagne or a G&T maybe once a month or less often. My friends don’t pressure me to drink even though they drink. I realised I don’t need to drink to socialise & enjoy being with my friends. My question is what sort of friends are they to try to force you to drink when medically you’re advised not to? Are they trying to sabotage your weight loss? Ultimately though it is your decision. If you want to have a drink maybe look for a lower calorie drink with fewer carbs & less alcohol.

Not as such but my first bowel movement (awful diarrhoea) about 3 days after my surgery was very dark & smelly with old blood from the surgery but that was all. If your blood is bright red & it is persisting contact your surgeon again or go to a medical centre to be sure everything is ok.

Remember stalls are very common & you can experience a few of them while you are losing. Many experience the first one around week 3 +/-. They can last 1-3 weeks. Stick to your plan & the scale will start moving again. In the meantime, take some body measurements. Sometimes you notice changes with a tape measure even though the scales don’t move. Did you experience many stalls after your bypass?

Our hair can be such a strong representation of how we see ourselves soo losing it like this can be stressful & difficult to accept. I cut mine to just above my shoulders. My hair looked thicker, bouncier (didn’t have all the weight of my long hair pulling my remaining hair down) & the shorter strands didn’t look so scary in the bottom of the shower or in my brush. Plus it takes less time for your new growth to catch up to the shorter length. You can always grow it again to a longer length if you want. Try not to let it stress you more - you don’t need the extra worry to add to the loss. It will slow back to its usually shedding rate in about 3 months.

Body dysmorphia. It can bring us down, make us doubt ourselves & mess with our reality far too often. I have odd days when I question & doubt my size. Even yesterday, I very tentatively & reluctantly put on a pair of jeans thinking the worst: they won’t fit, they’ll be tight. Were they? No. They fit fine. Looked good. Logically I knew they would but my head was saying Christmas, too many desserts, fat. I knew the scales read only 200g more over the week of Christmas. Yep, 200g, 7 freckin’ ounces, & my mind went to crazy extremes Thankfully it was only a brief bout of insanity until I told myself not to be so damn foolish. Wish I’ll never have those thoughts ever again, though I think they may always happen in some form. I am glad though that over time I’ve got better at recognising them for what they are (mind games) & can remind myself of the truth of my reality more quickly so I can ignore them. Hopefully you will too.

No, you haven’t wasted your time or money. So you ate some dessert & other treats over Christmas. It’s not Christmas every day & if you’ve recognised it for what it is (a special occasion exception) & gone back to eating as per your plan you’re fine. You’ll always be faced with these type of dilemmas (travelling, dining out, holidays, etc.). Over time we learn how not to beat ourselves up about it, make the best choices we can in the situation, accept it & move forward. Part of the weight loss process is learning about your eating, what foods you can or can’t eat (or are or are t willing to eat) & how much or how often you can eat some foods. I described it as discovering what foods I could eat regularly, occasionally, rarely & which foods it was best if I avoided. I don’t eat sweet foods except at Christmas & certain special events - rarely. Some people work out they can have a small serve of say pizza with the family or they work out healthier ways of eating old favourites like a bun less burger - occasionally. I don’t eat high processed carbs like bread, pasta & rice - avoid. Oh, and I’d lost about 68lbs at 6 months so not much difference. Seems like you’re pretty much on track. And the accelerated loss of the hair you would naturally be shedding usually lasts about 3months +/-. Your new hair is still growing just at it’s usual rate. Losing some hair, which regrew, was a small temporary price to pay for my weight loss. You’ve got this.

You’re depressed (& likely bored, tired, stressed, sad, frustrated, etc. - it can be an emotional roller coaster) so you crave junk food to comfort you then you feel down because you’re craving junk food. It’s an awful cycle without any easy solution or cure. I’m glad you’re seeing a therapist who should help you start to work your way through this. The tiredness is very common and part of your body healing & recovering from what is pretty major surgery. It does get better & you’ll eventually notice you have more energy especially as you start to eat a broader range of foods.in the meantime enjoy those mid morning & mid afternoon naps I say. Can’t offer any suggestions about your textural issues in regards to purées. You can purée many foods just be adding enough stock, gravy, milk, water, etc. to keep it moist & dollopy. It may be a case of trying different things to see what you tolerate best. But puréed soups & slow cooked stews, sloppy scrambled eggs, yoghurt, applesauce, custard, mashed boiled eggs with Mayo, milky instant oats, etc. are a good place to begin. Personally the worst thing I puréed was tinned fish - disgusting. I even ate baby food a couple of times as it was no prep needed.

Same thing happened to me. As @catwoman7 said this is pretty common with our weight loss. It’s tough on our liver & lots of hormones, triglycerides, etc. stored in your fat are released into your bloodstream as you lose weight. Always a good idea to keep watch on it but it’s likely once your weight stabilises your levels will revert to what they were before surgery or be better.

No, not just you. Been exhausted for days. I’m blaming the stress of Christmas prep & eating too much. Don’t think I was anywhere near my fluid or protein goals for days plus too much sweet stuff. So glad to get home yesterday & my routines. Also excited to cook & eat my food tonight after restocking my fridge with vegetables & non Christmas meats today. Thank goodness Christmas is once a year.

Unfortunately, reflux or gerd is a possible side effect of the sleeve. Definitely speak to your surgeon about how it can be better managed & your options. I had reflux before my surgery which I managed most of the time with dietary choices. My reflux is worse now in that I need meds every day versus rarely before surgery. But the surgery also reduced some of the reflux symptoms I had like the horrendous hiccups. Try avoiding caffeine, carbonation & spicy & rich foods (though your current eating plan probably avoids a lot of these). Try not to eat heavy/dense protein a couple of hours before going to bed. Sleep on a wedge or raise the head of your bed with a brick. Worth a try to see if any of these things can help you even a little.

I agree call your doctor to be sure but it likely is rising surgical gas. The gas they pumped you with rises & settles behind your lungs & presses on nerves causing discomfort especially in the shoulder region. Heat packs usually help.