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chalcrow

Gastric Bypass Patients
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  1. Like
    chalcrow got a reaction from lisafrommassachusetts in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Lisa, thanks for the great post. I am going to take some of your suggestions about protein Snacks and use them. I am also clogging the drains with my hair! Omg. No bald spots to date but man is it coming out. Yikes! I also miss wine (never did drink a lot of it but...and gin and tonics. Those were my favourite summer drinks) and I am so tired of water! Ugh. I cannot seem to flavour it to my satisfaction and started making Decaf iced tea because I needed an alternative. Isn’t it great to be able to exercise more easily? Keep up the good work.
  2. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to Lesmud in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Great to see I’m in sync mostly with everyone else. I’ve lost about 50 pounds and still need 38 more. It’s coming off slow but I’m okay with it. I also am not wanting that saggy skin which I’m already having a bit. My Hair loss is crazy but just thin, no balding yet. Does anyone have recommendations for hair loss. Why does this Evan happen.
  3. Like
    chalcrow reacted to Too many dogs in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    So far in my journey this is what I have done and has seemed to work. I drink 2-3 Protein Shakes a day or eat once or twice adjusting Protein shakes. I keep moving as much as possible doing anything. I utilize our treadmill and do yard work. I do some walks here and there too. Sometimes I lift weights high reps low weight. No cheese, rice,potatoes,pasta or anything if goes in my mouth either grilled chicken fish maybe piece of steak and either piece of apple or some vegetable. Every thing seems to get hot sauce or vinegar with pepper. Now always have cravings for pickles plus eat almonds and shelled walnuts if want snack. Besides the beer I drank I’ll drink only abit of black coffee Protein Shake or Water.
    Everyone keep up the work stay on course I feel the head hunger wanting the junk food Both my wife and son are skinny and eat everything pizza chips ect
    if I can take it you guys can too. It is a good feeling when no one recognizes you. Good luck WE ALL WIN!

  4. Hugs
    chalcrow reacted to lisafrommassachusetts in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    I'll have to ask my nutritionist about the Vitamin with Biotin to stop the hair loss... I'd love to get my normal volume back.
    While I appreciate the support, I don't feel like I need to "get myself together". I was being honest about where my journey is right now. I put the work in every day. As for whether I'd act on lusting after someone else's man, I guess that would depend on the man just kidding.... happily married for 35 years and he's still plenty of man for me. Take care.
  5. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to Too many dogs in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Glad to see we are still here. Since surgery I have lost 105lbs.Been currently fighting this stall I go up a pound then down then up and down without changing my calorie intake. I drank a beer today to have a lot of carbs. I’ll see if that works.
    sw 349
    cw 244
  6. Like
    chalcrow got a reaction from 1JoAnne in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Lisa, sounds like things are going well except for the colds/illness. Hang in there! I am sure it will improved as you get more nutrition in you. I am enjoying walking now about 35 minutes/day after almost a month after RNYGB. Not sure what to tell you about the meeting for a drink...that is a challenge for now. Take care.
  7. Thanks
    chalcrow reacted to Imwichya in 2 Year Surgiversary   
    This is a long post. I promise there won’t be many like this. My hope is that my story will help inspire someone that is on the fence. My story is about some really good decisions I’ve made including marrying my wife. I submit to you that our respective journeys are about decisions and commitment to a process. The surgery fixes the physical for a period of time, but it does not work on your brain. The short and sweet version:
    HW: 602 lbs I very rarely admit to this.
    SW: 552 lbs
    CW: 260 lbs
    Total weight loss: 342 lbs
    On this day 2 years ago, I made one of the best decisions of my life. At the time, I had no idea how great I was going to feel or the new experiences I was going to enjoy. All I knew was that I was about to turn 50, and I came to the realization I had to make a change. I always told others, that you can’t do the same thing over and over and expect different results. That was my a-ha moment prior to the surgery. I decided I was going to undergo weight loss surgery. I decided I was “all in” on this process. The day I went to initially meet with my surgeon, I stepped on the scale and weighed 602 lbs. It was hard to look at. Every part of my body hurt... my knees, my back, my ankles, etc. Almost impossible to walk. To put it into perspective, I could barely walk for a couple of minutes without pain or having my heart beating heavily. The good thing was I had normal BP, sugar, cholesterol, etc. I can’t even explain my mental state. I had slowly withdrawn from almost all aspects of living. I am the by-product of losing weight successfully and then gaining it back with interest. I could always lose 75-100 lbs on my own. But since I had a lot more than that to lose, I would eventually hit a wall and revert to my bad habits. I initially wanted to have VSG surgery because it was less invasive and quite frankly I was scared of surgery. Although my surgeon recommended RNY, he left it up to me. I researched a lot and decided RNY. I asked soooo many questions. I spoke with people that underwent surgery. I also decided that I was going to pay out of pocket for the surgery. I felt it was an investment in me. I also didn’t want to chicken out during the insurance process as other times. From my initial consult to surgery day (about 60 days), I lost 50 lbs. 27 of those were during the liquid diet. And no, I did not cheat once during the liquid phase. Was I scared about surgery? Absolutely. But I also understood, statistically, men of my weight do not live long lives. My surgery weight was 552 lbs. I was blessed to go through the surgery without complications. The 1st 6 months out, I focused on the nutrition aspects. The only physical activity I tried was Water aerobics. At about the 6 month, I weighed in at 425 lbs. I felt things were beginning to slow up. I decided to hire a personal trainer. My first conversation with him was that I knew I needed to exercise for my health but there’s no way I could ever have the passion for going to the gym like him and others. My first goal was to walk a 5K. I accomplished that 6 months after. It took me 1.5 hours to finish. But I did it. What an incredible feeling. Today, I do that on a daily basis. Both walking and jogging. I have never felt this good during my adult life. I have embraced this new lifestyle and now look forward to working out. During these unprecedented times we are facing, I have found alternatives to going to the gym and refuse to allow the situation to dictate my life. Today, I stand at 260 lbs. This is the lowest weight I’ve been since high school. It’s important to build the right team. To my wife, my surgeon, my primary physician, and my trainer.......THANK YOU. I would not have been able to achieve these results without your support, encouragement, and advice. I also look at my own level of commitment during this journey. As I said, I hope that my story helps others.


  8. Thanks
    chalcrow reacted to Mbeasley in One Year After Surgery 2/20/19   
    WOW, i am close to one year in and i started this journey at 306lbs and i am 191lbs. I started at a clothing size of 22 and now i am a size12. Wow wow wow!!!!! All heath issues resolved as well.
  9. Like
    chalcrow got a reaction from AZhiker in Super cold hands and feet?   
    I took your suggestion and searched but didn’t find a lot about this when I searched specifically for « cold hands and feet » so maybe I will search for « being cold » instead. I am always wearing slippers and sweaters now. I will check with the surgeon on Wednesday to see if there is more going on. Until then, I cannot wait til summer! Lol
  10. Like
    chalcrow got a reaction from GreenTealael in Super cold hands and feet?   
    Hi everyone, just wondering if anybody else out there has had very cold hands and feet after their surgeries? I had a RNYGB Feb. 13, and have managed to take all my Vitamins and Iron, but seem to have frozen hands and feet since then. I am down 32 pounds since Jan. 29. Can anybody shed some light on this? Am I anemic? I have a followup with my surgeon next Wednesday. I will be sure to bring it up but would appreciate your comments and info. Thanks.
  11. Like
    chalcrow reacted to FluffyChix in I screwed up   
    Ok, so former smoker...and you know what they say about us...well it's true. And I watched my mom die of lung cancer. She smoked 44 years...
    But you all DOOOO see the irony here right? You get a life changing surgery that GIVES YOU BACK your life. But AJ in your case, not only are you choosing to drink heavily, you are choosing to smoke too...one just has to ask, WTF did you have this surgery? Why not remain MO? Fat, drunk, and smoking is sure a fun way to go through life, isn't it?
    Jasus, Mary, and Joseph...SMH.
  12. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to GinaFigz in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Hi everyone I can’t believe it’s been 3 weeks. I returned to work 2 weeks ago and overall feel good. By the time I get home from work I can be pretty wiped. I have three girls so I try to get it together for them. I’ve lost 16 pounds since the surgery and I sometimes find I miss a particular meal intensely but I can be satisfied with Water, a Protein Drink or Soup. I’m completely over Jello. I have had moments where I chew something and then spit it out. Now that I can eat soft foods, I had one incident where I couldn’t keep it down so lesson learned. I’m looking forward to trying scrambled eggs tomorrow and building from there.
  13. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to slsvacha in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    I felt the exact same way! 16 days of liquids was rough, but finally being able to eat some non-liquid food helped me with continuing to get the liquids in. I'm entering week 5 and just started feeling "hungry" again recently, which seems new and interesting! I had to change up my "eating" schedule to curb this. Now I eat something small about 4 times per day, and that seems to work for me (and allow me to drink 64oz without doing it 30m before, during, or after a meal!).

  14. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to Xx1jpt5xx in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Eating my first solid food. Chose an egg. Wish me luck
  15. Haha
    chalcrow reacted to CheerfulLoser in Super cold hands and feet?   
    Agree 1,000%.
  16. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to catwoman7 in Super cold hands and feet?   
    very common after surgery. Sometimes it eventually resolves; sometimes it doesn't. I don't really get cold very often anymore - but I did that first year!
  17. Haha
    chalcrow reacted to AZhiker in Super cold hands and feet?   
    Once you start losing your fat, it only gets worse! Losing weight throws you into a different metabolic mode, and getting cold easily is part of it. Now that I dropped 110 pounds of insulating blubber, I am cold ALL the time. Can't believe I am looking forward to summer, for the first time in my life!
  18. Like
    chalcrow got a reaction from AZhiker in Super cold hands and feet?   
    I took your suggestion and searched but didn’t find a lot about this when I searched specifically for « cold hands and feet » so maybe I will search for « being cold » instead. I am always wearing slippers and sweaters now. I will check with the surgeon on Wednesday to see if there is more going on. Until then, I cannot wait til summer! Lol
  19. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to CheerfulLoser in Super cold hands and feet?   
    I’m the same way, and it’s unfortunately not uncommon post-surgery. There are many threads on this topic, if you use the search function.

    I had surgery in December 2019. I wear slippers while home, and warm socks always. If that’s not enough, I made a foot warmer (flannel bag with rice in it, reheats in the microwave) that I use daily.
  20. Thanks
    chalcrow got a reaction from Lesmud in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Hi Lesmud, I hope you get to feeling better soon. I can sympathize about the Protein drinks. It’s just a “no” for me there. My gag reflex has gone back to thinking it’s pregnant! Ugh. Try whirring up the Greek yogurt with one of the protein rich milks, and some (1/4 c) crushed pineapple, 1/4 c frozen mango chunks, 1/2-1/3 banana, 1 T ground flax and hemp hearts. That should deliver about 30 G protein. Of course, you might have to wait to try this but it is saving me, atm. Take care.
  21. Like
    chalcrow reacted to GradyCat in Fitness trackers   
    I have a Samsung 8 phone and am using the Fitbit Versa smart watch. It also worked with the Fitbit Inspire HR.
  22. Confused
    chalcrow reacted to Lesmud in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Hi Lisafrommassachusetts,
    im 10 days out from my sleeve. I’m also feeling little pain already. Just really struggling with the Protein. I cannot drink the drinks period. I made a spinach/carrot/leak Soup in beef stock I’ve been living on. I’m walking but woke up yesterday with an intense pain in my eyeball. No idea what’s going on there. Going to have to go to the dr. I guess. Overall good just really struggling with the protein. Yes I too have to choke down my chewable vitamins. I’d rather just swallow a Multivitamin like they gave me in the hospital. Looking forward to different meals
  23. Like
    chalcrow reacted to MorganF in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Congrats Lisa! I was sleeved 2.26 and down 20 pounds (starting weight 223). I’m still on liquid diet until 3.26 which is so hard but I’m hanging in there!
  24. Like
    chalcrow reacted to lisafrommassachusetts in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    4 weeks out today! I am down about 13 pounds since the day of surgery, plus the 10 I lost during the 3 week pre-op. I have lost 10% of my body weight from my high of 260 last October.
    On the upside: I am getting all my Protein in; I'm not hungry; I seem to be getting in to more of a rhythm with this. I have had no pain to speak of.
    Downside: I keep getting colds, sore throats, etc. I think my immune system is just really low; I had the flu before surgery, then the surgery, and have not really gotten my strength back. I am hopeful I won't get that coronavirus! I'm still struggling with the liquids; I can get to 50, but getting to 64 is a stretch. I have not been able to significantly increase my exercise (which is just walking). Also, although I was not a heavy drinker, I did enjoy a glass of wine or a beer, and I have to learn how to meet up with friends now that I am not drinking. Seems odd to meet for a glass of Water
    I'm looking forward to getting healthy, not feeling so run down, increasing my walking especially as the weather gets nicer, and being released to full foods so I can experiment with some different meals that I can share with my family.
    How are other February surgery folks doing as we move through the post op phases?
  25. Congrats!
    chalcrow reacted to Xx1jpt5xx in February 2020 Post-Op Thread   
    Ya the Protein Shakes have been hard for me. Greek yogurt goes down easy. Try those Protein isolate drinks that are more like juice. Isopure and syntax nectar. Those have been going to easy for me.

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