RainbowBrite57

I've recently started adding a serving of Benefiber to my 2 Premier Protein shakes a day & it's helping me feel fuller longer as opposed to just the Protein Shake. Does anyone else do this? Just curious. 😀

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the feedback. I still have Spanx from my wedding that I have packed up somewhere. I'll give those a go before dropping money on more just in case they still fit! And thanks for the encouragement! 😀

I’m 7 months out from my sleeve surgery. My lower tummy is really loose & has started flapping against my body any time I walk fast, jump, dance (like in my kitchen to my favorite music, not anything strenuous), etc. I’m getting really embarrassed at the slapping sound that’s happening now. I was looking into shape wear like Spanx but I didn’t know if that would help my situation. Can I get some advice? Thanks ladies! 😊

On 4/7/2021 at 12:10 PM, fitgal2021 said:

Thank you so much. I shouldn’t have waited to go back to my clinic but I’m really glad my appointment is coming up this Friday so I can talk to the doctor & nutritionist. You’re 100% correct, we can do it!

Something my doctor has said to me repeatedly - if you need help, ask for it. Don't do it alone. In the clinic I had my surgery, we had a therapy session with a psychologist who begged us to ask for help when it's needed. You're losing weight which is wonderful, but if you feel like something isn't right - ask for help. You've came so far it would be silly to let it go and not continue on your wonderful journey. You can do it, I can do it. Ups and downs, through it all, know that you are on a journey to a better life and better health. Sending hugs and love ❤️

15 hours ago, It's time. said:

Great way to look at it, thanks so much! ☺️

I was told to remind myself that it took years to gain all that weight, so why did I think it was going to go away with a surgery and a few months. It's going to take time and work to learn and change things. Not just what I'm eating but why I ate the way I did.

Great way to look at it

16 hours ago, GreenTealael said:

Hey, I appreciate that rant! It is so true & that's also a big reason I've been beating myself up over not doing what I should be doing. I will try to let some of this guilt go & just move forward from here! Thank you! 😀

Unless testing has confirmed it, don’t assume you’ve stretched your stomach.

[B-side rant]
My view (although no asked 😂) :

If it were any other surgery like knee, hip or even a heart valve replacement no one would bat an eyelash if you needed extra time to adjust or if it needed to be repaired again.

There would be no guilt or shame associated because it would be understood that you can’t stop yourself from using it or the wear associated with its use.

But when it comes to weight loss surgery it seems like you get one chance to have it go perfect and then everything is your fault if it doesn’t.

I have no clue where this ideas come from but I don’t think it helps us at all especially because it doesn’t seem to work like that with almost anything else in life.

Please be kind to yourself ❤️

20 hours ago, KeeVSG4life said:

Thank you! I'm definitely an emotional & boredom eater. I went into the surgery thinking I would overcome that when I didn't have an appetite. My mistake. I'm going to start working on changing those habits & move forward! 😁

Don't be so hard on yourself. This wasn't a temporary change it's a lifelong change so there is always time to re direct yourself. Before surgery were you able to pinpoint what exactly causes you to make bad food choices rather it be boredom, emotions or ect.. The first step to addressing the issue is to finding out the issue. From your rant I appreciate the accountability you take and challenge you to use that same accountability to make different choices going forward!

20 hours ago, summerset said:

How do you know that you've "stretched your stomach"? Because most likely you didn't. You got used to larger portions and that's normal up to a certain degree. Dr. Matthew Weiner has interesting videos on this on YouTube.

Honestly, I had heard about how the sleeve can stretch if you overeat day after day for a long period. Thank you for mentioning Dr. Weiner. I've already watched a couple videos & subscribed to his channel on YouTube. I feel a whole lot better after watching the videos.

But you did go to the planned appointments?

I did go to my first appointment & my second one is next Friday. The 6 month appt was originally in March but I had to reschedule.

What "lies" did you tell yourself and why do you feel that you "didn't earn" your weight loss? Weight loss after surgery is nothing that needs to be "earned". WLS is a surgical therapy that is supposed to work for the patient like coronary bypass surgery is supposed to work for the patient. You don't need to earn anything here!

I would tell myself the lies I would tell myself before surgery, such as "oh well, I've ruined the whole day by eating this one doughnut, I'll start fresh tomorrow" and the like. It just feels like I've cheated my way through the weight loss so far since I haven't done what I'm supposed to be doing. I appreciate your analogy, makes perfect sense.

Having WLS is like learning to swim. You can read everything about swimming that's available, you can get lessons on how to learn the best technique, you can talk to people who have learnt to swim until you're blue in the face - but you know what? Most of this stuff means diddly squat the moment you hit the Water for the first time!

Oh, how true this is!

I'm curious about the title. Tell us!

It's called The Emotional First+Aid Kit: A Practical Guide to Life After Bariatric Surgery by Cynthia L. Alexander. My bariatric center recommended it. It really is fantastic but I stopped reading it after I had my surgery which was a mistake.

There are people who lost weight without exercising. Yes, there are many benefits to exercising like cardiovascular health, bone strength, uplifting your mood etc but if you hate it - you don't need to.

I don't hate exercising, it's just been hard getting motivated. I'm so excited to ride my bike & I'm hoping I'll be more apt to hopping on the elliptical after I start biking.

Stop acting like a sinner that needs to do penance, it's so damn destructive and will get you nowhere in the end. There's nothing to confess. We all screwed up with quite a few things in life.

Be kind to yourself, as hard as it might be right now.

Thank you so much for your responses. I really appreciate you taking your time to offer me great advice. 🐵

Hello everyone! It's been a hot minute since I've posted or even visited this page. I need to rant about myself & I know this is a safe, non-judgemental place to do so. I had my surgery on 9/13/20. When I got home from the hospital after a 2 night stay, I was SO HUNGRY. I told myself I wouldn't be a casualty of going off the rails, especially right away but that's what happened.

I hold myself fully accountable. I've most definitely stretched out my stomach although I know it's no where near what it was. My surgeon made my follow-ups for a month out then six months out. The surgeon's office had just switched from doing a month, three months, then six month follow-ups, although I've been told I can make an appointment anytime I want to, free of charge for the rest of my life. I wish I would've made an appointment right away for guidance, instead I listened to the lies my mind was telling me. Now I'm almost 7 months out. I'm down 40 pounds which I'm very happy about but I don't feel like I've "earned" that loss at all.

I know all the things I should be doing. I read & read & read before surgery- on this forum, books, other online resources, etc. I felt so ready. Silly me. I know I can get back on track right this minute & stop any more harm to my health and to my stomach size. I have a book sitting at home that I know will be fantastic at helping me. I ordered an adult tricycle that should be getting put together today or tomorrow. I even bought a $1,400 elliptical trainer I've used maybe 5 times.

I'm just so very disappointed in myself. I'm hoping this confession to y'all will relieve me of some of this guilt I'm carrying around. I feel like crying & if I could kick my own booty. Thanks for listening y'all.

I had resigned myself to a very plain Thanksgiving meal this year when I decided to see if there were any good low carb chicken & dressing recipes online. I found one for “Southern chicken & dressing” and it was a huge success! (https://www.mytableofthree.com/low-carb-southern-dressing/)

My mom had laughed & said I’d probably be eating that on my own when I told her it involved almond flour as the main cornbread ingredient. It’s not low fat because it’s made with almond flour, coconut oil, & heavy cream but we aren’t exactly eating much right now. I even decided to sub low fat buttermilk for the heavy cream/vinegar combo it suggested & it was still fantastic. I couldn’t find oat Fiber so I just added the amount called for in more almond flour. I’m not supposed to have onions yet but I used a plain white onion & I didn’t end up with any gastrointestinal distress.
I cooked my chicken breasts in the Instant Pot so they wouldn’t dry out. The dressing was so moist & delicious, y’all!!! I hope your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as mine was!

I think my only "never again" food is going to be spaghetti with regular noodles & sausage. I will definitely be trying spaghetti squash & I'm hoping that'll fill the spaghetti void! I might even add a little bit of sausage to that from time to time. I will have to stay away from the carb-filled noodles though, they are a trigger food for me, big time. pizza is also a trigger food but I now make a flatbread alternative that I love!

Congrats & best wishes for a successful and exciting journey! You'll go far!

Thanks y'all! It'll be so much easier to put a whole scrambled egg on my plate & eat until I'm full instead of trying to divide it out. 😀

I was in horrible pain when I woke up too. At the very beginning the gas pain was overriding my surgical pain. That quickly changed. They kept wanting me to take pills for the pain which I knew wouldn't kick in for a while. I'm also already on a low-dose narcotic for back pain so I knew my tolerance to pain medicine was built up. I finally made sure my nurse knew that & begged for my next few doses of pain medication be delivered through my IV. She was able to do that & it helped so much. If you haven't asked for something stronger or told them the amount of pain you are in, please do. I hope things get better for you!

Right now I'm allowed 2oz of a Protein per meal. When y'all were at the 2oz phase, did y'all eat a whole egg? I'm getting some conflicting info so I wanted to ask y'all. Thanks!

Congratulations & I hope you are feeling better! I, like you, spent so many hours on this site & on the internet as a whole. I made myself a binder with different categories that I refer too often. Best of luck to you!!!

Also, I’m definitely breaking out my coloring books & rock painting kit today! 🤩

Thanks for the advice everyone! I guess I was more looking for soft things I can eat for the next few days that have become a new food you turn to when you’re sick that’s still a healthy alternative to your old comfort foods. Although I’d love those iHop pancakes right now & I could get some down if I really wanted to, I won’t because that would certainly be a slippery slope for me. Mashed potatoes & cream of wheat in my allotted amounts will suffice, I just thought something different might cheer me up a bit. Thanks again!!

I’m 5 weeks out from my sleeve surgery. I had major tooth extraction surgery yesterday & I'm miserable today. I wish I could order in some iHop pancakes so bad! What do y’all recommend for comfort food? I know I can make mashed potatoes or cream of wheat but I was looking for some different ideas. Thank you!!

I’m a big fan of the Wal-Mart Great Value Water flavoring powders & I've bought them for years. They just came out with a Tropical Limeade flavor that’s amazing. Like, I went & bought 7 more boxes amazing!

I just combined some grape flavored water & the limeade and it’s delicious. Almost like the Sonic grape/lime slushees I used to get, without being slushy of course. Next I’m going to try cherry limeade. And I just know these are going to make amazing popsicles!

I’d like to find out how others drink around mealtime. I’m told that I can drink up until I start eating & not to drink again until 30 minutes after my last bite. I know this advice varies from doctor to doctor, with some even saying nothing an hour before or after.

Has anyone that does it the way I was told ever had trouble with it, such as stomach stretching or food washing away to quickly?

Thanks & happy Saturday to you all!

Out of everything I packed, I used my chapstick, lotion, & phone/charger the most. I had a 2 day hospital stay.

How’s everyone who’s already had your surgery doing? I had my surgery Wednesday & came home Friday afternoon. As Saturday has progressed I’ve found myself feeling really hungry. I think it’s because I’m not allowed to start my Protein shakes/powders until Monday. Protein really helps me feel full so I’m looking forward to that. My main incision still hurts a lot but other than that I physically feel really good. I hope everyone else is doing well!

Way to go!!!!!! 🎉🎉🎉

This may be extremely commonplace, but did anyone have an incision that was closed & stitched to your abdominal wall so that your stomach looks indented in that spot? Besides general soreness in my stomach, that incision is the only place that hurts & boy, does it hurt! The surgeon said that incision was the one used to cut out the stomach, remove it, & work the staple gun. But I’m not sure why they had to stitch it to my abdominal wall. Once it feels better, I’ll be feeling great.