ResaRoo

Feeling pretty down today. I’m 12 days out, and over the last 3 days I’ve somehow gained 4 pounds. I still weigh more than when I had my surgery. I don’t understand it. I know deep down that it will start coming off, but this really troubles me. I’m still primarily on liquids (including watered down Greek yogurt and soups), getting about 40-50 grams of Protein a day and under 400 cals. It doesn’t make sense to me that I’d be gaining weight.

I had a mini gastric bypass and after the surgery I was told I needed to take 2 weeks off. I thought I’d be fine after 1, but now I get it. Having extra time to heal and build back some energy is very important.


@fiddles - just a very heavy, uncomfortable feeling. It’s like I can feel food sitting in my esophagus. When I first started on liquids earlier in the week, I could tell right away when I had enough Water. But with the liquidy yogurt, it’s been harder for me to tell right away.

Welcome, Gina! And best wishes for your upcoming surgery! One thing a few of us have noticed is that day 3 post-op has been the worst, and that it gets better from there. So keep your chin up and remember that it is all worth it!

I’m 6 days out of my mgb and food has been playing mind games with me. I don’t really feel hungry, but making meals for my family (I have 4 kids and a hubby) and not being able to even taste it to check the seasoning, etc. is hard. My head is screaming at me for food, but my stomach says “no ma’am”. I don’t really feel hungry, but at the same time my body feels starved for nutrition, despite getting in enough fluids and all my Vitamins.< br />
On a positive note, I ate my first real “food” this morning - some heavily watered down Greek yogurt with a half scoop of unflavoured Protein Powder. It was about 1/2 cup and took an hour to eat, but I got it down alright. I have noticed, however, that I’m not getting that full stomach feeling until it’s over full. This is probably because it’s still swollen and healing.

How is everyone else doing?

You might need to add in some more approved foods with fibre in them. That helped me a lot during my 3 week pre-op. BMs were still very soft and loose, but not so runny or hitting so quickly.

I’d also suggest not looking at a scale. I did today, and I weigh 12lbs more than when I went in for surgery. I know it’s all bloating, etc, but it does suck to see a higher than pre-surgery number, especially when you’ve taken in fewer than 400 calls over 4 days.

Good luck with your surgery, Carmen!

@lisa - I had the exact same symptoms this morning. A raging headache, dark urine, extreme nausea. My doctor gave the same advice - focus on fluids, forget about Protein Shakes for now. He even suggested having some watered down apple juice. It’s definitely helped. I flew home today, and the last 30 minutes were awful. Constant turbulence that was so bad that my Fitbit was counting it as steps. 😮🤢Needless to say, it took a while for my tummy to settle down.

I’d highly recommend for anyone flying out after that you take gravel and have someone pull/push your suitcase for you. Mine wasn’t heavy, but after 20 minutes of walking with it, it felt like I had done a billion sit ups.

@lisa - are you struggling to get fluids in as well? I’m supposed to drink 30mL every 15 minutes, but am struggling to do this. I feel so full and then nauseous when I drink that much so close together. Hoping this gets better soon.

Had my surgery yesterday. Everything went smoothly. But I had a lot of upper abdomen and lower back pain, extreme nausea (mostly dry heaving and gas related). But it for way better by this morning. Pain and nausea mostly gone (I was told it may come back but not to the same extent.) Today I’m up and walking around the surgery ward and, unless something odd comes back in my blood, I’ll get to go home (to a hotel, actually) around noon.

Had my miniGBS yesterday morning. I wasn’t prepare for the level of nausea and pain. Also very dizzy, so I didn’t walk at all yesterday. Feeling more myself this morning. Mouth is insanely dry, but can only drink Water 2oz at a time, 15-20 minute apart.

I don’t want to scare anybody, just wants you to know that if you do get the same symptoms, they won’t last too long.

12 more hours to go until my surgery. I thought I’d be nervous, but I’m just excited! It might be hard to get to sleep tonight...

I’m having surgery in Toronto, so flying across the country (Canada). If I wasn’t flying, they wouldn’t have been needed.

I’m on Monday, too! It seems like there are a few of on the same day. Wishing you all a speedy recovery! I catch my plane in a few hours. Definitely not looking forward to a week of wearing compression socks. I tried them out for a day and they roll down a little bit but mostly just make the eczema on my legs go crazy.

I’m almost at the end of my 2nd week of my pre-op diet. I started 12 days ago and weighed 333. After the first week, I was down 316. The last 5 days, I’ve gained 2 pounds. I don’t understand why this is happening. I’ve been very strict with it (no cheats) the last 5 days. All told, I’m only getting between 600-700 calories per day, and I’m averaging close to 10,000 steps per day. What am I doing wrong? How is this possible? Am I just retaining Water? Has anyone else experienced this before?

Thanks for any ideas you may have.

9 days into my 21 day pre-op and I'm down 16 pounds. It's a good motivator to stick to the diet. I keep thinking "almost half way!" My diet is pretty strict (3 Protein shakes/day and up to 250 cal of low glycemic veggies). I don't always get in all 3 shakes, and am still working on upping my Water intake. I find evenings are the worst for cravings. How is everyone else doing on their pre-op (if you've started it yet).

My nutritionist would lose her mind if she heard that. It’s honestly the same as drinking sugary soda. Empty calories that will bloat you and the sugar will turn to fat. I’d suggest trying some sugar free drinks for a week and seeing if that makes a difference. Just adding ice won’t change the fact that these are awful drinks for weight loss.

Sorry - I’m having a MGB.

I am allowed some clear liquids, but it needs to be very low sodium. I can also have up to 250 calories of low (and a little medium) glycemic veggies every day. I’ve just been making a salad at night and filling it with spinach. I’ve cheated a little and used a sugar free balsamic vinaigrette, but it isn’t really allowed, so this week I’ll be switching to plain vinegar and spices. 🤮

I’m having surgery in 2 weeks (February), and wondered if I could ask you guys who have just had your surgeries as few questions...

1. My doctor says I can likely be back to work in 7-10 days. I’ve had my gallbladder removed and I felt like I was ready to head back to work after 3 days. Is 7-10 days after realistic? (I teach kindergarten, but can head to the washroom when needed and avoid lifting for the first few weeks as I have a full time EA this year).

2. Did your cravings drop after surgery? I’m 1 week in to my 3 week pre-op and not craving sugary foods. I think maybe because the Protein Drinks are sweet. But the cravings for savoury things is intense (cracker and cheese, steak, etc). I’m seasoning my roasted veggies and it helps a little. But when you have to make 3 meals/day for your family and see and smell the food, it doesn’t help much.

I’m scheduled for a MGB on Feb. 10th. I’m just finishing my first week of the pre-op diet. It wasn’t too bad until yesterday. I slipped up and nibbled a little cheese when making dinner for my family.

Is anyone else finding it hard to get through 3 Protein Drinks each day? I find I’m not really hungry until late afternoon. It feels counterintuitive to force myself to eat (drink) when not hungry, but I suppose that’s what we will be doing for the first few weeks after surgery, so might as well get used to it now.

Has anyone else started to lose any weight pre-op? I’m down 12 pounds and quite excited about it.

I started my 3 week pre-op diet this past Monday (Jan. 20th). I am allowed up to 250 cal of low glycemic veggies and can add some spices/vinegar if desired. I'm also supposed to have 3 Protein Shakes, and can have some caffeine free black coffee/tea with artificial sweetener. So far, I have lost 12 pounds in 5 days. Is this normal? I haven't been any more active than usual.

I am scheduled for my mini gastric bypass on Feb. 10th. Started the 3 week liquid diet yesterday. (3 specific Meal Replacement drinks and up to 250 cake of specific veggies). I think it will be doable, but man I am hungry.

Anyhow, the main question I have: how long until you returned to work afterwards? My surgeon said I’d need 7-10 days off and can then go back if I’m feeling well enough. I had my gall bladder out a few years ago and they wouldn’t clear me to return for 10 days, and I felt well enough to go back after 3. How long were you guys off work? Was the recovery easy? Is jumping back into work after 7-10 days reasonable? Just for reference, I teach kindergarten. It can be tiring at times, but I love it. I just want to make sure I have realistic expectations.