Arabesque

Give your surgeon a call/email & ask. They know you & your situation best & may give you different advice than they may give another patient.

I’m a sleever & at the 2 year mark my surgeon told me I could take NSAIDS but with limits. One tablet (so half dose), not on consecutive days & not for long periods of time. My back went out Sunday morning (fine all night & went to get up in the morning & oh God - well I said another word 😉). This is how infrequently I take NSAIDS though: two unopened boxes both expired & one small box of 12 with one tablet left.So 12 tablets over 3years including two surgeries (gall removal & a skin graft) & an unpleasant bout of COVID.

Try baby teething tips like wetting a washer & freezing it & then suck or press the washer against the wound site. Or there’s always rubbing Brandy or whisky on the site though it might irritate the wound - you may not care about the pain after that LOL!

If I remember correctly I think it was around one or so weeks. I remember the surgeon saying the dressings would slowly work their way off (loosening around the edges) & as long as the wounds weren’t being irritated by anything like clothing & looked healed on the surface I didn’t have to cover them again.

Your internal healing takes about 8 weeks.

I’ll add to @SleeveToBypass2023 response. We all carry our weight in different places. If you carried it in your tummy, this will take the longest to go simply because it has the densest volume of fat. For some it might be their thighs or their butts. Even when you get to your goal you may still carry some weight there. But yes as @SleeveToBypass2023 said, this will also likely be where you have the most loose skin after too.

Out of curiosity, have you had children? There could have diastasis recti where the abdominal muscles that separate during pregnancy don’t rejoin after. It can cause your tummy to protrude.

Congrats on your weight loss so far. Wonderful.

Constipation is very common. So your pain may be from that. Remember even though you’re only drinking liquids, those shakes & Soups have nutrients that end up as waste once your body has got what it needs from them. Your poop may be small &/or softer or you may have bouts of diarrhoea from all the liquid. Don’t expect to go every day either in the beginning.

Back pain can also occur because of your weight loss. Many of us experience this as our bodies try to rebalance ourselves as we get smaller. Our muscles, tendons, etc. have been compensating for our heavier weight & now it doesn’t have to. Our posture & centre of gravity changes too so don’t be surprised when at odd times you lose your balance.

The back pain can be from being moved about during the surgery too.

But as with all things, if this seems strange or unusual for you or the pain isn’t manageable, contact your medical team. Better to be sure it’s nothing than something.

Congrats on your surgery!

Remember too a lot of nerves were cut during the surgery so you won’t be getting messages in the same way or getting them at all. Plus all those sutures & staples holding your digestive system together. It takes about 8 weeks to heal so stick to the advice you’ve been given. It’s there to protect your healing tummy & support your recovery. All because you can doesn’t mean you should.

All those calculators are just averages so try not to get too caught up in what they say you’ll have lost at certain times. Some will lose more. Some will less. Some will lose as they say. That’s how averages work. And it may change time frame to time frame. Treat it only as an idea of what might happen not what will happen. You may end feeling like you’re failing if you look at their results as gospel.

We’ve all been where you are now. Loss of hunger & appetite is a benefit of the surgery (though there are some who don’t lose their’s) but it can be confusing & difficult to work with it. Aim for three ‘meals’ a day and eat what you can. Don’t force yourself to eat more even if that means you don’t eat all your portion. You’ll get used to leftovers in your fridge you’ll finish at your next meal or the next day. I only drank two ‘meals’ a day during liquids. I diluted everything and just sipped, sipped, sipped until it was finished - usually a couple of hours hence the two meals.

Probably the most challenging part is understanding the difference between real hunger & head hunger especially as many of us were driven by our heads when it came to eating not real hunger. Head hunger isn’t affected by the surgery so it can be a real struggle to manage as it seems almost stronger. Generally, if you’re craving a specific food, flavour or texture that’s head hunger (a craving). If you’re hungry out of boredom, emotions (like stress & worries after the surgery), habit (always snacked by watching tv or after dinner, etc.) that’s also head hunger. If head hunger is making itself known try distracting yourself: read, craft, do a puzzle, ring a friend, go for a walk, sip Water, a cup of tea, or similar.

It takes about 8 weeks for you to be healed after the surgery and this includes your nerves which carry the messages to tell you you’re hungry, had enough or are full. So for a while those messages may not get through or may get through differently and the signals may be different. Like some sneeze, or their nose runs when they’ve eaten enough.

Believe me, when your hunger does come back you’ll wish for the days you didn’t have it.

All the best.

PS - Yes they pump you full of lots of fluids so the scales can show an increase after surgery. You’ll pee it out over a few days.

I agree with @ms.sss. Stop the Vitamins & go to see your doctor. Ask to look into why you may be anaemic. Is it an absorption issue, do you have some internal bleeding/blood loss, etc.

In the past, I’ve always bought the non constipating Iron. Can’t recall what makes them different though. The link below gives some information about other drug & Vitamin interactions you may find interesting. Also advice to avoid caffeine - reduces iron absorption by up to 60%.

https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0036/931698/c-lifeblood-iron.pdf

Hope you can get some help soon.

I honestly didn’t notice it after my sleeve surgery but I was in hospital for a couple of days so it was day 4 before I think I weighed myself so had likely already peed most if not all of it out. I was out the next day after my gall removal & there was a good 2+kgs (5 odd lbs) on the scales (at my current weight so a lot comparatively). Yikes. I swear all I did was pee for the next few days. 😁

As all above 100%. Your medical team may track what you’ve lost since surgery but how you look at it is your choice. To me, it doesn’t matter that some weight was lost before surgery & some after. You’ve still lost all that weight & that’s amazing.

Congratulations.

Yep, it is. They pump you full of lots of fluids. You’ll pee it out over a couple or so days & the scale will drop. But it is a shock when you see the number on the scales & realise how much they filled you with.

PS Congrats on your surgery.

Absolutely gorgeous - the dress & your daughter. You’re so talented. So few people know how to sew on a button these days let alone make a dress as beautiful as this.

I used to make gowns to wear to B&S balls (bachelor & spinster balls in country Australia. Would go for two days & involve copious drinking & very little dancing.) Went to a few when I was teaching in central Queensland back in the day.

As @SleeveToBypass2023 said, it is perfectly normal to be able to eat more as you progress. Your calories increase & your portion size increases. Your tummy is stretching more that it is getting a little looser, plus your more healed & your tummy is less fussy & sensitive to certain or random foods. The trick is not to exceed either of those. And, yes, it’s okay to have the odd days when you eat less on those days you don’t want to eat more or can’t eat more.

Almost 5 years out & I still have days I’m not all that hungry (went through a few months of not being hungry earlier this year - it was great). I also have meals where I don’t want to or can’t finish my usual portion of that particular meal. Sometimes certain foods can sit more heavily at odd times than other times. I like to think it’s because I don’t need to eat more that day or simply because my tummy isn’t in the mood for that food/meal.

Yes chips like Doritos are slider foods. Crackers, pop corn, pretzels, chocolate, sweets like cake biscuits, etc. all pass through your digestive system more quickly & therefore don’’t fill you up so you are able to eat way more than you should. If you do eat any of these types of foods portion out a small amount to eat & put the rest away in the cupboard. Or don’t keep them in your house to tempt you.

There are healthier options to some of these like instead of chips (corn or potato) air fry some thin slices of other vegetables. Try baking/air frying some fava Beans or chick peas & sprinkle your own flavours (sea salt, chilli, paprika, garlic, etc.). Or get some edamame (I got mine from the freezer section at the grocery store).

Constantly weighing & recording food can mess with you sometimes but if you are someone who may be making less great choices or are worried about portion sizes you may have to keep it up if only for most meals.

Stalls tend to last 1-3 weeks and you’ll likely experience a few of them while you’re losing. They’re actually an important part of your weight loss. It’s the time when your body shuts down to reassess your new needs based on your weight loss. Your body works out what it needs now in regards to digestive hormones, metabolism, etc. When it’s done this & it’s ready to move forward again, your stall will break. Stick to your plan. Don’t make any additional changes other than what your plan requires - don’t stress your body more.

Many surgeons use an internal scaffolding type stitch around your larger incision through which they removed your tummy. This stitch eventually ‘pops’ around 4-8 weeks (individual healing times). My thought is this was the pop you felt. But always good to check with your medical team.

Almost 5 years out and I still feel cold. Was just at my beauty therapist & had a blanket wrapped around me while I had a pedicure. Bbrrr!

Simply it’s because you’re losing your insulation. Plus your body doesn’t run as hot as it did when functioning at your higher weight. Some people acclimatise eventually others, like me, don’t.

I keep a coat in my car for emergencies & try to dress according to where I’m going or what I’m doing.

So you’re in your third week which generally is purée. Can you give us an idea of what you’ve been eating.

Yes, some take longer to heal & therefore need to move through the stages more slowly so move back a stage for a few days. Like the purée you’ve eaten is still too thick for you yet. Try thinning them with Water, stock, milk, etc. Some allowed foods can still be too heavy for our tummy yet & you may experience discomfort though I wouldn’t say pain as you’ve described. And yes, eating too quickly can cause again discomfort. You can even have the foamies if something is too heavy, coarse or you eat to quickly but you’ve haven’t experienced that.

I’d still check with your surgeon or go to a hospital because you really shouldn’t be experiencing pain as strong as you’ve indicated.

I also suggest checking out you tube - exercises for those with mobility issues. I don’t have knee issues but I have lower back problems. I do my stretches & use my resistance bands sitting or lying on the ground. (I have an inch thick foam mat to protect my bony back 😉.) Also you didn’t have to do 20 - 30 odd minute sessions. I do 4 sessions of about 5 minutes (6 days a week). And I sometimes do some extra random stretches - like calf stretches when cooking or prepping a meal. You may find these short bursts less stressful on your knees.

6 hours ago, Spinoza said:

Sounds super expensive Arabesque. Absolutely beats me how people are expected to eat even remotely healthily. Especially people on lower budgets. A tax on sugary and ultra processed foods that directly subsidises fruit and veg maybe?

May be if they (the US gov’t) didn’t subsidise the growers of corn, wheat, soy Beans, rice, which are predominately used for the production of high & ultra processed foods, & they subsidised fruit, vegetables & meat producers instead you’d have greater access to healthier food & it would be cheaper. Farmers aren’t really subsidised in Australia. Subsidies are offered in rare cases to support producers in regard to our variable climate. It’s less than 2% - 2nd lowest in the world. So our prices for fruit, vegetables & meat are subject to the same ever cost of living increases (labour, electricity, Water, machinery, fertilisers, transportation, etc., etc.) as everyone else - producer, manufacturer, service provider, consumer here.

I was only eating around 300/400 calories at the soft food stage so these wouldn’t have even have been a consideration. My meals were often just Protein because I couldn’t eat thing else. I was advised 1/4 - 1/3 cup of food from purée slowly increasing to a cup at 6 months. Protein first, then any vegetables & then only if I was able any carbs. I was never able. 🙂 I’d think these noodles could still be considered a carb.

I still struggle with bread, Pasta & rice at almost 5 years out. They sit like a weight in my tummy & that includes vegetable pastas/noodles. So I don’t eat them. (Did try a hot cross bun at Easter to see if there’d been any change but no, that lump sat in my tummy for hours.)

But plans & experiences differ so check with your dietician to be sure.

First, there is no one right way to eat to lose or maintain your weight. There’s just the right way for you.

I agree to the suggestion to get in contact with your old dietician or find a new one. I’d also teach for a couple of weeks just to check your calorie & nutrient intake. I’d also get in contact with your surgeon as well to see what other options you have - revision surgery or maybe GLP - 1 meds.

You’ve likely reset your body’s set point. The surgery lowered it but returning to larger portions, poor food choices & bad old habits have raised your set point again. So you’re actually fighting your body now. You’re trying to lose weight & your body is doing all it can to hold on to it. Have a look at Dr Matthew Weiner’s Pound of Loss metabolic reset diet (not that I’m an advocate for any ‘diets’.) It may give you some ideas you could try to see if works for you. He’s a great source of information around all things weight loss, bariatric surgery, etc. (He has a website & a you tube channel.)

If you like being active, I’d add in some weights. Building muscle will help burn more calories & help counteract any muscle loss you experience while losing. Walking will help with general fitness. Remember though, activity only contributes to about 10% of any weight loss.

Oh & don’t listen to your family & friends when they offer advice about your eating, nutrition or weight loss. They mean well but unless they’re qualified nutritionalist, dieticians, bariatric surgeons or medical doctors or had bariatric surgery they really don’t know what they’re talking about. And they’re not you. You know yourself best. You know your psychologically, physiologically & emotionally self best & know how you want to live your life.

All the best.

I agree with @SleeveToBypass2023, a weekly loss of around 1-2lbs is considered a healthy rate of loss & it is where many of us settle at losing after the initial couple of months of higher rates. Then we all seem to slow to a snail’s pace. I’m talking 1-2lbs a month.

This process is so individual. So many factors affect your rate of loss, how much you eventually lose & how long out it takes you. Most totally out of your control.

I wasn’t given macros either. Just the 60g Protein & 2 litres of Fluid. I didn’t have to track my food either. I did do random checks but that was for my own interest. And I didn’t exercise. I know. The shock! The horror! Lost all my weight & more at a fairly average rate for my height & starting weight to goal. Six months to lose 31kg to goal & almost another year to lose another 11kgs so the 18 months with a sleeve as your PA told you. Your potential for weight loss is not near over yet.

Celebrate & enjoy every pound you lose. Look at those amazing wins you’ve had already. Fantastic!

6 hours ago, BlondePatriotInCDA said:

Thank you! Now do you have one that works well on those resealable food packages..or heat sealed bags? 😋

Oh, I use scissors to open them 😁 & either pour the contents into other containers or use those clip seals (love my IKEA ones). Some of those zip seals are impossible to open - those teeny tiny tabs you’re supposed to pull to reveal the zip. I had a skin graft on my dominant hand thumb & have reduced sensitivity which makes it harder to grip & yank. My seed mix comes in the worst one & second is the bag of my washing powder pods.

The purée stage is a struggle for lots of us. A combination of the taste, smell &/or texture which is temporarily haywire post surgery. The worst things I pureed was tuna & salmon. Shudder.

I survived on runny scrambled eggs (you could mash soft poached eggs too), boiled eggs mashed with mayo, thin instant rolled oats (made in milk), yoghurt, thicker Soups (pre made or make your own & puree) & a couple of times I ate baby food. Friend said she survived on chicken breast puréed with chicken gravy - it was the only meat Protein she could tolerate.

hi Christine.

I find the reverse is just as true too. Where the most commonly experienced effects of surgery just aren’t shared with patients by their team. How many post do we see from people upset, depressed & frustrated about stalls, Hair loss, foamies, etc. Though I know there could be things missed simply because there is so, so much information we’re given & have to absorb.

I do advocate sticking to the plan given to you by your team but we know there is no one size fits all (in life, clothing or plans). If something isn’t working for you, ask for alternatives, other options or suggestions as to what you can do or eat or drink, etc. Take suggestions & experiences people offer here & ask your team if you could try them. They’re supposed to know you & are best placed to advise what will support you without compromising your recovery or progress.

Hope your upcoming surgery is successful & everything is put back to where it’s supposed to be.

PS - Fellow teacher here too - well was one of my careers. What year levels or subjects did you teach? Congrats on your retirement.