kc892020

21 hours ago, AngieBear said:

I couldn’t tolerate coffee for a month after my surgery, it was a very sad month

That is sad...are you able to tolerate it now?

22 hours ago, JRT Mom said:

Right after my surgery I got a Decaf Pike's Place from Starbucks that was drinkable. All the others I tried tasted like a$$. Don't even think about trying the Kroger's Private Selection Decaf. TOTALLY undrinkable!

Thanks for the heads up (and I won't)!

Attention post-op coffee drinkers!

Are there any good Decaf and/or low-acid brands of coffee you can recommend? How about chains like Dunkin or Starbucks? Since having the surgery, I've found out I'm sensitive to caffeine. The program I'm in doesn't allow it anyway, but they did say I could drink decaf, especially if it's low acid.

Thank you for your help!

On 2/16/2020 at 7:08 PM, catwoman7 said:

some surgeons allow patients to have caffeine, some don't. I don't think it would cause the bleeding, otherwise, no surgeons would allow it.

Looking back to what I posted, I definitely overreacted. It wasn't the caffeine, though the caffeine could've been linked to other issues I was having. My surgeon told me that there was actually no way to determine what caused the bleeding. He said every year, "there's always one bleeder," and it looks like for this year that was me. I then proceeded to ask if that meant I get a prize and he just laughed.

On 2/17/2020 at 9:42 AM, jlb8080 said:

I am not limited caffeine. I am 9 weeks out and drink coffee here and there. Not a lot, but it's not against my surgeons plan..

It's interesting how every surgeon is different in what's allowed/not allowed.

On 2/16/2020 at 9:57 PM, GradyCat said:

Now that you mention it, they gave me coffee the morning after surgery too.

Wow, just goes to show every doctor's different in what's allowed, what's not allowed.

On 2/16/2020 at 5:59 PM, JRT Mom said:

I've posted this on every forum where appropriate, and I'm gonna again:

I'm always astounded at the lack of consensus these bariatric doctors have. Everything is waaaay all over the map concerning pre-op and post op diet requirements. Some allow this, others ban that...I really wish they'd get together at some symposium and come up with some guidelines they all would use and then maybe things would be less confusing for their patients!

I couldn't agree more. The confusion is terrible! Every surgeon and nutritionist is different. They need to be more organized. This is too life-altering a procedure for everyone to be all over the place. I would also like to add that they are in terrible need of educating hospitals and other medical professionals about bariatrics. There are certain medications and foods we can't have anymore and also no NG tubes (God forbid anyone never needs one of them). You'd be surprised at how many other healthcare professionals are totally unaware of all that. It's crazy.

49 minutes ago, elcee said:

I am sure that the caffeine had nothing to do with the bleeding. It was probably related to poor healing or just plain bad luck.

I hope so. I think the most challenging part of this journey is while we're all on the same one, we all come from different doctors who prohibit and require different things. Everyone's case is different. It can be frustrating when one doctor says, "this is allowed" and another says "this isn't allowed."

14 minutes ago, kristieshannon said:

Every surgeon has different restrictions/requirements. From nearly day one I’ve had a cold brew every morning as well as 2-3 cups of caffeinated tea each day. My surgeon has no problem with this as long as I also drink my Water each day. The caffeine is highly unlikely to have been the source of your bleeding. I’m glad you’re on the mend now!

Thank you! I feel like I way overracted now.

But like I said, it was drilled into our head to avoid from day one.

15 minutes ago, MsMocie said:

I've never heard of this no coffee thing. They offered us coffee at the hospital even.

As I said, it was drilled into our heads since pre-op.

In the binder they gave us it says caffeine causes "dehydration, gastrointestinal irritation, and increased appetite. It can also slow down the weight loss process."

I'm so confused.

6 minutes ago, GradyCat said:

I'm sorry about your surgical complications, but I'm not so sure it was caused by the caffeine. It could have just been one of those unfortunate things. My doctor didn't prohibit or limit my caffeine post-op at any point.

Thank you. I'm actually curious now why some doctors tell you to stay away from certain things and other doctors don't. Now I'm all kinds of confused.

3 minutes ago, rene50 said:

Did the physicians in the hospital offer any clue to what caused the bleeding?

My surgeon doesn't prohibit caffeine, rather says a small amount is okay. I would definitely get a clarification from your surgery team and try to find out if caffeine was the culprit.

Sorry you had to go through that! I know it must have been very scary for you and quite perplexing since you had followed all post op rules.

Thank you, it was scary!

My physician just told me that every year, there's always one "bleeder" and this year, it was me. All he told me was that it was coming from the bypass section, not the pouch.

That's interesting. The surgical weight loss center I got to has a strict no caffeine rule. It's printed all over every page of every packet we get from the moment we start the program. So since my first pre-op appointment, it has been drilled in my head that caffeine is bad.

Hello Everyone,

I'm in terrible need of advice. I am one month and three days post-op, gastric bypass. I just got home from spending almost five days in the hospital due to gastrointestinal bleeding. Throughout my hospital stay, I kept asking myself why this would have happened when I was complient and followed all the post-op rules.

Then, today when I got home, I think I figured it out.

I was about to make my daily Protein Shakes (since the doctor told me to resume protein) when I noticed some interesting fine print on the canister: "contains 100mg of caffeine pet scoop." Oh. Holy. Crap.

I had purchased this canister at the surgical weight loss center UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF MY DIETICIAN. Purchasing three canisters of this brand was a requirement for surgery. Given that nothing was said by my dietician when I purchased it, I naturally assumed it was ok to buy this particular flavor. After all, why would they sell you something that contained ingredients you couldn't have?

Given that the recipe the dietician wanted us to follow per day was two scoops plus twelve ounces of milk, that means I was drinking 200 mg of caffeine for the first month!! It's no wonder I had so many problems!

Caffeine as you are all aware, is forbidden the first six months after surgery, as it can lead to serious gastrointestinal irritation, dehydration, and difficulty losing weight. Given that all that clearly happened to me, that particular flavor of Protein Shake had to be the culprit.

My question is, what would you do in this situation? I know part of it is my fault for not ready the label, but again, I trusted the dietician and the surgical center. I had so many witnesses when I bought it, you think someone would have said something if they knew.

I don't know how to approach the surgical center about this. Part of it is clearly my fault for not reading the label thoroughly, but at the same time, I trusted them. That's why I'm asking for advice. I see my surgeon again this week to follow-up on last weeks' hospital stay.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

On 1/28/2020 at 6:29 PM, catwoman7 said:

I was a slow loser and still had a fair amount of loose skin. When you're talking that much weight, you're very likely to have it (I lost over 200 lbs)

Congratulations on the 200 pound weight loss!

On 1/28/2020 at 6:54 PM, KarenLR75 said:

I understand the temptation and actually feeling that way..let's see you are 16 days out from surgery, is that correct?

I was...a bit stunned during my first month that barely anything happened (my DEFINITE interpretation at the time and the first 2 weeks weight loss was from all I had been given to understand and yes..comparing myself against others....was so so little.

I called my surgeon's office and talked to him and the nutritionist. They told me repeatedly something I had not seen here before (not that it might not have been said many times by others) but they told me DESPITE what I have found on many forums, they have done this for well more than a decade and that directly post-op, whether you were on IV fluids for 1 day, 2 days or more..or even NONE, that MANY people do not start hitting their body's full potential for weight loss until after they have HEALED which would be 6 weeks for RNY - unsure what it is for sleeve..maybe the same.

I, however, felt after haunting WLS forums for 3 years PRIOR to surgery, that while I knew my doctor was very good, they simply HAD TO BE WRONG....I mean...I read how many hundreds of post of all of these people losing at LEAST 10 lbs a month. I thought I was 'oh so careful' to only compare my weight loss against other women...around the same age...and who had additional metabolic challenges (whether it be from medications, illnesses, PCOS, thyroid, etc.).....so I thought sensibly...I'm not comparing myself against a 'young man' or even a young woman.

I finally quit looking at some of the posts, I sought out my surgery siblings more..the ones who had a slightly slower weight loss...I read some of the threads from the vets and basically white-knuckled my way thru month 1, month 2.

Flash forward to now...6 months out as of 3 days ago and I started posting on this thread. In working with some of the vets when I posted here, we have looked at my total weight loss since surgery and then averaged it out and my monthly weight loss at SIX MONTHS is 12.6 lbs a month! If you had told me in Months 1 or 2...like my poor doctor tried to tell me...that things would WORK THEMSELVES out if I just stuck to it, I'd be leery...and that indeed was what I was told. Ironically in week 8, 2 weeks after 'you are healed by now' date, my weight loss kicked up higher.

Some of my fellow siblings or ppl who had surgery in the late summer, early fall...the ones who lost a lot in month 1, oh how i remember that month, are starting to slow down a bit (nothing to be worried about)...some are now hitting 10 lbs a month consistently (and hey, I literally AM losing roughly 12 lbs a month and that is NOT with just averaging).

Please hang in there...be kind to yourself and your body...it is literally still healing. The surgery is a big one and your body has been shaken up. You are a rockstar with the working out! I truly admire that. If you hang in there, the weight will come off and it won't remain in single digits.

If it helps, even though you are on liquids, post what you are drinking, overall calories, etc. but again, the first month after surgery is really really rough on your body even if you feel 'ok'. My calories for the first month were 450 or less..some days 100, some days 200-250. Your body has to settle itself out so some of us do not see that gigantic loss in the first month and we think it is for nothing. It WILL COME OFF. With your level of exercise, and knowing what month 1 is like...I promise it WILL COME OFF if you are working your plan.

Wow, thank you for this.

I feel like a big weight has been lifted off me, thank you.

I'm starting to think given the molasses-slow rate my weight is coming off, I probably won't even need plastics given loose skin is affiliated with rapid weight loss. #slowloser

Ugh. Well, I'm definitely starting to identify as a slow loser.

I'm pissed. I went through all that and after two weeks of only liquids, I only lost a few pounds. I don't understand. I'm compliant, I'm exercising at least one hour every day on the treadmill and I'm drinking way more than 64 ounces of Water a day.

It isn't fair. I'm only two weeks and one day out but I'm already thinking all this was for nothing.

18 hours ago, Superman84 said:

What exactly did you eat?

Chili is bad or pepper

You were right. I took out the pepper and nothing bothered me today. Thanks!

10 hours ago, FluffyChix said:

I was told if that happens, it means to go back a step. I think like @Brent701 I'd probably go back a step to thick liquids. I'd try things like kefir then thinned down yogurt (Greek, fat free plain) mixed with bananas and cream or strawberries and cream or peaches and cream Premier Protein. Very delicious, not as sweet, etc. But make it more of a runny kefir thickness yogurt Soup. Then maybe do blended cream of chicken using fat free Fairlife Milk. And try those for a few more days. We heal only as quickly as we heal and it sounds like you have a lot of inflammation going on.

Water and hydration are KING! Even over Protein. Staying well-hydrated is the key to diet progression IMHO. Cuz it makes the inflammation go down and makes food slide through your new tool easier. ((hugs)) Let us know what the doc says!

Hi! I haven't heard back from the doctor yet. I altered my pureed recipes today and that seemed to do the trick. At this point, the only frustration I'm having now is I'm not really losing any weight yet. I managed to lose some the first week and a half but now it seems I'm stuck. I hadn't weighed myself since last Thursday at my first post-op follow-up. Today I did and I'm very sad to see only 1 pound gone.

9 hours ago, Sosewsue61 said:

Early out there is still a lot of inflammation and you might have to take food stages a bit slower. Also you fill a little faster than with liquid and it could be a bite too much food causing the burning, or it could be acid reflux. Just take it very very slowly. Keep a chart to see if it is a particular food combo or time of day. And if burning persists get the doc to prescribe a PPI.

Today I altered some of the recipes and was able to tolerate them. The foods I had yesterday had some pepper in them, so it looks like that could've been the culprit.

2

2 hours ago, ms.sss said:

Here was what I did:

• 1 day clear fluids
• 1 week full fluids
• 2 weeks pureed ...did 2 more weeks of full fluids instead
• 1 week minced food
• 3 weeks soft food
• Cleared for everything, as tolerated

The nutritionist at the SWLC did it a little different:

-Three days Clear Liquids

-One week and three days full liquids

-One month pureed foods

-One month soft foods, then cleared for everything as tolerated

So I started the pureed foods stage today and I swear everything went to hell. I've been experiencing pain and burning after eating and can't seem to figure out why. I'm following the instructions on how to puree and am not eating anything with chunks. I'm taking my time between bites and am using my SWLC's (surgical weight loss center) recommended recipes in addition to waiting 30 min. before and after I eat before drinking Water again. Is this normal? Is it because it's a new stage? I don't know. I just know today sucked big time.

I left a voicemail with the SWLC. Has anyone else ever experienced this with the pureed stage?

On 1/24/2020 at 1:13 PM, Wickedwinner said:

My best advice would be to exercise as soon as you can, adding in toning and strengthening. Building muscle while losing fat will help. It’s not going to totally prevent it, but it helps.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

When did you start doing exercises beyond walking?

On 1/22/2020 at 12:42 AM, Losingit2018 said:

No. This is not good at all. Try milk of magnesia, stool softeners, magnesium citrate and/ or an enema. You should never go more than 3 days without bm or you risk having a blockage. If none of those things work you need Togo to the er.

I use a scoop of Miralax every morning. Sometimes I still need to use mom or stool softner.

My surgeon today told me to take Miralax. Fingers crossed!

On 1/21/2020 at 5:50 PM, MarinaGirl said:

I’m almost 3 years post-gastric bypass and am scheduled for a lower body lift (no lipo) and brachioplasty in mid Feb 2020. I’m low BMI but my wrinkled stomach & lower butt cheeks, ugly belly button, and bat wings still really bother me. Another reason I’ve decided to go forward with PS is studies have shown body contouring post-WLS can help people keep the weight off. Perhaps it is because when you’re happier with your body that can serve as a motivation to eat healthier, thus minimizing regain.

Body Contouring Improves Long-Term Weight Control After Gastric Bypass https://www.plasticsurgery.org/news/press-releases/body-contouring-improves-long-term-weight-control-after-gastric-bypass

Wow, I was not aware of that study. It's a good thing to know. Fingers crossed someday I'll have enough for PS.

Good luck to you!