BigSue

I had a pretty easy recovery. I had my surgery on July 16 (Thursday) and was discharged July 17 (Friday). I took the next week off from work and went back on July 27 (Monday). I have a desk job. If I really had to, I could have gone back a week earlier, but I wouldn't recommend it because for the first week, just getting fluids and protein is basically a full-time job. I had very little pain (other than gas pain for the first couple of days) and didn't need any pain medication after I left the hospital.

I first looked into weight loss surgery about 15 years ago. Things were different back then; the sleeve was not a common procedure (and not covered by some insurance companies), and the place where I attended an information session was mainly doing gastric bypass as an open procedure. They would only do laparoscopic surgery on patients with lower BMIs, and I wouldn't have qualified. I didn't go through with it because my family talked me out of it. The risks of complications were higher then. I have been lucky enough to have good health for most of my life. I'm in my late 30s and until the past year, I never went to the doctor or took any prescriptions during my adult lifetime. For all those years, I thought it would be crazy to take the risk of having weight loss surgery when I was perfectly healthy. I was afraid I would lose my good health to complications of weight loss surgery. I looked into it every so often, and when I remembered all the restrictions, I couldn't stand the thought of giving up my diet sodas and pizza and ice cream, letting my pouch rule my life, getting sick if I eat the wrong things, and having to take pills every day for the rest of my life. But aging takes a toll and my good health was starting to slip away. I found out from my work physical that I had high blood pressure, and they urged me to see a doctor. When I went to a doctor, I was diagnosed with hypertension and type 2 diabetes. It's gotten increasingly difficult for me to get around, which became a vicious cycle as I became more sedentary and gained even more weight, and the weight gain continued to decrease my mobility. I had a BMI over 60 at my highest weight. I came to the realization that I had a choice: I could keep going the way I was, keep gaining weight and losing mobility, see my health continue to decline, and probably die of a heart attack or stroke before I turned 50. Or I could have weight loss surgery, because I sure as hell wasn't going to be able to lose that kind of weight on my own. All that stuff I couldn't bear to give up for a chance at losing weight started to look a lot smaller compared to the life I was already giving up more and more every day at that weight, not just health-wise, but in my social life and my career as well. I went into it thinking that I wanted the gastric sleeve. It seemed less extreme, less risky than gastric bypass, My surgeon recommended gastric bypass because my BMI was so high. He said that for lower BMI patients, there's not a big difference in outcomes between sleeve and bypass, but for high BMI patients, the difference can be significant. Both are very safe procedures with low complication rates nowadays. So I ended up getting gastric bypass. I've since read a lot more information that has confirmed in my mind that gastric bypass was the right choice for me. I've seen a lot of people get their sleeves revised to bypass because of GERD and/or unsuccessful weight loss, and I don't want to have to get a revision. I had my surgery on July 16, and it went well. I was discharged from the hospital the next afternoon, and I had surprisingly little pain. I didn't need any pain medication, even Tylenol. The first few days were miserable (mainly due to gas pain from the gas pumped into my abdomen during the surgery), but I healed quickly and went back to work in a week and a half. I've stuck to the post-op progression plan very closely, and not gonna lie, the liquid phase is hell, but it went by quickly and it was much easier once I got to purees and soft foods. I haven't had any issues with anything I've eaten so far other than a feeling of food getting stuck sometimes (which isn't pleasant, but it works its way through after a few minutes). I lost 70 pounds before surgery and 40 pounds so far after surgery, for a total of 110 pounds. And now my BMI is about the same as yours, which is kind of depressing. But I have had great improvements in my health, like my blood pressure in the normal range and my latest A1C was 5.2 (down from 8.1 in February). My mobility is improving. I started out wearing size 26-28 and now I'm wearing 20-22. I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there. I'm not far enough out yet to know how this is going to work out for me in the long run. Obviously, I'm pleased with my results so far, but from what I've read here, the first year is easy. Here are some of the cons that are not so obvious: I haven't told anybody other than medical professionals about my surgery because people can be very judgmental about it. How many people you tell is a very personal choice that can be difficult. It is really stressful to keep this secret and try to hide this surgery that affects my life so very much! (But also stressful to endure judgment from people who are clueless about WLS.) The fear of regain keeps me up at night. I'm doing well now, but I've seen soooo many people lose a ton of weight and gain most or all of it back. I've yo-yo dieted all my life and I would be absolutely devastated if I went through all of this only to gain the weight back. Food is everywhere. I feel like I'm constantly being bombarded with ads for food and restaurants, seeing decadent recipes on social media, and watching other people eat foods I love but can no longer eat. It's rough going to the grocery store and seeing a great sale on something I love only to remember I can't have it. Maybe you get used to it after a while, but right now, I have these sad moments every day where I miss the food I used to eat. Even if you reach your goal weight, you're still not going to have a great body... unless you go through the pain and expense of plastic surgery. It will still be a heck of a lot better than where you started, but not the same as someone the same height and weight who was never obese. I think it's important to go into this with your eyes wide open, understand what the tradeoffs are, and accept the things you will have to give up or deal with for this shot at changing your life. Most people say it's worth it.

My doctor says 2 hours between calcium and iron is fine, and there are only 24 hours in a day, so I go with 2 hours apart. My doctor also says the body can't absorb more than 600 mg of calcium at a time and to split it up in 3 doses. My vitamin D is 5000 iu, and I haven't seen any calcium + D supplements with enough vitamin D, plus I love my French vanilla caramel calcium soft chews. Just a personal preference on the B-12 -- I'd rather take a pill than get a shot (and I don't mind the B12; it's a tiny sublingual cherry-flavored pill).

A year ago, I was taking nothing -- no prescriptions, no supplements. In fact, this year was the first time I ever filled a prescription. I would occasionally take OTC ibuprofen, and that was about it for pills. Now I am taking 12 pills per day (up to 20 at one point, but fewer now because I'm taking some with higher dosages per pill, and a multivitamin with iron). I have a pill dispenser with 3 compartments per day, and I can barely fit everything in it. Every day when I take the last one, it feels like an accomplishment. I feel like I'm being dramatic because it's not like it's hard work to swallow a pill, but man, it's a chore to keep up with all of these pills every single day. I wish I could just take them whenever, but I'm supposed to take Synthroid on an empty stomach first thing in the morning and at least 4 hours apart from calcium and iron, and I take iron 2x/day (one combined with a multivitamin and additional iron later) and calcium 3x/day, all at least 2 hours apart from each other. This schedule is further complicated by the "no drinking 30 minutes before or after a meal" rule. I have a reminder app (Medisafe), but I often get off schedule because if I take my Synthroid, calcium, or iron late, it throws off everything else. It still helps because I record what time I take everything so I can keep track of when I can take the next one. Here's my list: Synthroid Pantoprazole Multivitamin with iron Chelated iron Calcium soft chews (my favorites -- I actually look forward to taking them because they taste like caramels) D3 B12 Biotin (these are pretty tasty, like strawberry candy)

I weigh and measure most of my food pretty precisely with a food scale, but there are a few exceptions where I don't bother to be that precise, and salads are among them. For greens and veggies with negligible calories, I just guesstimate, but I do measure the toppings like meat, dressing, croutons, etc. I learned that a serving size of croutons is ridiculously small. 7 grams is like 4 croutons. If you were to guesstimate croutons and just throw on a handful, it would be 3 or 4 servings. Dressing is usually the big calorie contributor, especially if you're using regular (not light) dressing, so that's important to measure precisely.

Keep in mind that every hospital is a little different, but I can tell you what they did where I had surgery. When I arrived, they took my temperature before they let me in the building (COVID precaution). Then I checked in and had to sign some paperwork, and then they took me to a room and told me to take off all my clothes (including underwear) and change into a hospital gown, grippy socks, and mask (I wore a cloth mask in, but they wanted me to change into a disposable mask). A nurse came in, weighed me, and took my blood pressure, then gave me a cup for a urine sample (pregnancy test). Based on your picture, you look like a woman of childbearing age, so they will almost certainly require a pregnancy test. This was an issue for me because I was not allowed to have anything to drink after midnight the night before, and I peed before I left the house, so I was not able to produce a urine sample at the hospital. The nurse pleaded with me to squeeze out three drops, and I tried, but I couldn't, so they had to do a blood test for pregnancy. The nurse told me the blood test would take longer and could result in delays, but that was not true at all because I can see the time on my results and the pregnancy test came back at the same time as the rest of the bloodwork (45 minutes after they drew the blood). These are the blood tests I had the morning of surgery: Pregnancy Comprehensive metabolic panel Complete blood count (CBC) After they drew blood, they did an EKG, which consisted of a nurse sticking leads all over my body and then hooking it up to a machine, and a doctor came in to look at the results. That part was very quick and easy. My surgeon said they normally do the bloodwork and EKG a few days before surgery, but they started doing it the day of surgery because of COVID precautions. I was worried that something would come back abnormal and they would cancel the surgery, but the surgeon assured me that was very, very rare. He said that the EKG and bloodwork are mainly so they have a basis for comparison after the surgery. After the testing, they moved my bed into a staging area with a bunch of other patients. Several nurses came over one by one and introduced themselves, then asked me my name, date of birth, and what surgery I was having (they ask this over and over again and compare to the wristband to make sure they have the right patient for the right surgery). My surgeon stopped by and talked to me briefly. A nurse started an IV in my hand. The anesthesiologist came over and asked me a bunch of questions about my medical history. Another nurse said she was going to give me a heparin shot in my stomach, but then said she would wait until the Versed kicked in. I was lying there waiting for the nurse to come back, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up after surgery. My surgeon did not test me for vitamins before surgery, but my PCP and endocrinologist did. My vitamin D was very low, so I was taking a prescription vitamin D, but it was still low even after I had been taking the prescription for months (I am now on a higher dosage).

Yes, this a VERY common problem for post-op bariatric patients. If you search this site, you will find a lot of helpful info. Here's a recent thread that may help: I am curious, though, why you are starting your pre-op diet so very early? If I understand correctly, you started this about 3 months before your surgeon said you should? It's great that you're an overachiever and working hard to prepare yourself for the surgery, but I'm not sure it's a great idea to do the pre-op diet for so long. The purpose of the pre-op diet is to shrink the liver to make it easier for the surgeon to access your stomach, and the purpose of the post-op liquid diet is to allow the stomach to heal. Once the stomach is healed, though, most surgeons want us eating real food. My program recommends the "3-2-1" rule (3 bites protein, 2 bites non-starchy vegetables, 1 bite complex carbs), which is a pretty common thing, although some programs focus more on vegetables. I am not a medical professional, but I encourage you to discuss with your doctor the best diet to follow before you get to the pre-op diet. Eating more fruits and vegetables and fewer protein shakes may help with your problems.

Yes, I think it's a good idea to ease into it! I didn't set out to lose 70 pounds before surgery. I was just trying to lose the 20 pounds my surgeon wanted me to lose. The first week I used MyFitnessPal, I averaged 2018 calories per day, which was under my goal, but the next week, I aimed lower. As I made small changes, like having a salad with light dressing for lunch, or a big serving of green beans instead of a side of rice or potatoes, or a Built Bar instead of a Snickers, it got easier. BTW, I had some food funerals in the days leading up to my pre-op diet, and I don't regret it. But even when I was indulging in my favorite foods that I may never get to eat again, I still stayed under my calorie goal. So don't feel like you have to totally deprive yourself in order to do this.

I do like those 2-ounce cups with lids -- very useful for dividing up food into small portions. In addition to what everybody else said: Unflavored protein powder - this will be very useful for mixing into purees to help you get enough protein. Vitamins and a pill organizer - you will be taking so many pills after surgery, it will be hard to keep track of them. This one is pretty full with all of the pills I take, so you might want to consider one with 4 or 5 compartments for each day. If you don't already have your recommended vitamins, make sure to buy them before surgery. Small dishes and storage containers - it's just a mental thing, but I just think it's more pleasant to eat out of glass bowls than plastic, and when you're eating tiny portions, it's easier to use small dishes than full-sized ones. A set of small spoons and forks - they help you take small bites. I like these because they are metal rather than plastic. A milk frother/mixer - I actually got this as a free gift with my BariatricPal order, and I wouldn't have purchased it otherwise, but it is so useful! I use it just about every day. Protein powders can be challenging to mix into liquids by hand, but this thing makes quick work of it and makes sure there are no lumps. It is really inexpensive even if you don't get it as a free gift. (You can find the same thing on Amazon.)

I'm 2 months post-op, and I've been doing pretty well with fluid intake, getting about 60 ounces per day (mostly water, sometimes protein drinks as well). But for the last few days, I've had a lot of trouble choking down water. I've struggled to get 40 ounces. Just taking a sip makes me feel queasy, even when I should be thirsty, like after a workout. It tastes bad to me, whether it's plain or flavored, ice cold, room temperature, or hot tea -- my stomach doesn't want it. Eating is fine; I can eat 1/2 cup without problems and it tastes as I expect. Has anyone else experienced this? Should I be concerned?

Haven't tried broth, but that's a good idea... I only managed 25 ounces of water today, so I have to figure out something.

I second that... I'm 2 months out and I can't get 60 grams of protein without adding some protein powder to some of my food. I eat a lot of fat-free refried beans mixed with unflavored protein powder. Also soup, oatmeal (I use protein oatmeal from the BariatricPal store, which is already protein-fortified, but I only eat half a packet and I add some more protein powder to it), yogurt, applesauce, sugar-free pudding, mashed cauliflower... Anything mushy is easy to mix with protein powder. For sweet things like yogurt, sugar-free pudding, or oatmeal, I prefer to use flavored protein powder (vanilla yogurt with vanilla or strawberry protein powder, chocolate pudding with chocolate protein powder, oatmeal with cinnamon roll protein powder). My dietitian also told me I should be eating more. I'm averaging about 450 calories per day and she says I should be eating 800-1000 calories per day. I really don't see how that's possible within the guidelines I was given (3 meals per day, maximum 1/2 cup per meal, no snacks except protein shakes).

Stalls are a normal part of weight loss that just about everyone experiences (search this site for “three week stall” and you’ll see thousands of results). This won’t be the last time you stop seeing your scale move for a little while before starting up again. in your case, though, I’m not sure I’d even call it a stall. This soon after WLS, you shouldn’t even be looking at the scale. Your body went through a lot during surgery and it has to adjust to the changes. While you were in the hospital, I’m sure they pumped you full of IV fluids, and that alone can cause weight gain. I actually weighed more at my one-week follow-up than I did right before surgery (my surgeon didn’t care — at that point, he was more interested in how I was healing from the surgery). You should also be aware that since you’re starting at a relatively low BMI, your weight loss is likely to be slower than someone starting out 100 pounds higher than you, so don’t get discouraged by comparing your weight loss with anyone else’s. A lot of people only weigh themselves once a week so they don’t get freaked out by normal fluctuations or stalls, and you might want to consider that.

Has anybody tried this product? Foster Farms Smart Crust Pizza: I just saw an ad for it on Facebook, and supposedly a grocery store in my area carries it!

There is a lot going on right now, and many, many people have gained weight during the pandemic, so for you to lose even a little weight and not gain any is a victory! If you're looking for someone who has been there, I have! Check out this post I made 7 months ago at the beginning of my journey: My surgeon wanted me to lose 20 pounds before surgery and I had NO IDEA where to begin! My PCP was no help at all. Guess what? I've lost over 100 pounds since then, 70 before surgery. When I went in for my last pre-op appointment 2 weeks before surgery, the nurse questioned whether my initial weight was recorded correctly. I did two things to lose weight before surgery. The first thing is what you are already doing: logging everything I ate. So you have already made a good start. The second thing I did was intermittent fasting. This can be a little controversial, and some doctors don't like it, but it worked for me. I did a 16-hour fast every day with an 8-hour eating period. That meant I ate lunch and dinner (and I allowed myself to eat snacks in between), and then fasted until lunch the next day. It was hard at first but got easier. This helped me because in addition to cutting out breakfast, I cut out all the snacks I would have had during that time period, and when I got used to going 16 hours without eating, I ended up cutting down on snacks between lunch and dinner, even during the time I was allowed to eat. I also think it made me feel less deprived. Let's say I wanted pancakes at breakfast time. I would just tell myself I can have pancakes, but I would just have to wait until my fast was over. And splitting my calories between two meals instead of three meant I could eat bigger, more satisfying meals. If I really wanted to eat 4 slices of pizza, I could, as long as I didn't have a big lunch. Speaking of calories, MyFitnessPal gave me a calorie goal of 2190 calories per day. The first week, it was a challenge just to stay under that, but I gradually reduced it down to an average of 1500 calories per day. I would suggest you challenge yourself to reduce your calories a little bit, let's say just by 100 calories per day for a week. Try some lower-calories substitutions, like light salad dressing. Measure out slightly smaller portions. By recording everything I ate and staying within a calorie limit, I had to be strategic about what I ate. I wasn't ready to give up all the foods I loved, so I looked at what I was eating and found the healthiest things that I already liked. I used those to fill me up so I could also afford to indulge sometimes. A big thing for me was eating salad for lunch every day. I discovered I could make a generous salad with lots of grilled chicken for about 300 calories. Then I found a light salad dressing I like and that put it under 250 calories. Popcorn was one of my favorite snacks because, while not the healthiest choice, it really filled me up for not a huge number of calories (BTW, I still ate the blast-o-butter kind, but a whole mini bag is just 210 calories). A big side of green beans sauteed with 1/2 tsp of butter is less than 100 calories. I discovered Built Bars, which are these amazing protein bars that taste like candy bars -- honestly, I think some are even better than candy bars -- and they became my daily treat. Maybe I didn't HAVE to lose 70 pounds before surgery, but I think it was good to start changing my habits for a while before surgery so that surgery wouldn't be such a shock to the system. Only time will tell whether or not this will all lead to long-term success, but I am glad to be down over 100 pounds from my highest weight, just two months after surgery. You can do this!

What form of intermittent fasting were you doing? 16/8? 18/6? OMAD? I did intermittent fasting (16/8) before surgery and I lost about 70 pounds in 5 months. It really helped me to get out of the habit of snacking. The psychologist who did my psych eval for surgery didn't like it, but nobody else (the surgeon, bariatric nutritionist, PCP, endocrinologist) had a problem with it. Can't do it post-op, though (at least initially) because I'd never be able to get all my protein. Anyway, my suggestion is to think of it as doing mini-fasts. If you were doing 16/8 and skipping breakfast, maybe you can change to 12/12 (have breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but fast for 12 hours between dinner and the next day's breakfast). Have a small breakfast and fast between breakfast and lunch.

This happens to A LOT of people! That's why it is highly recommended that you track measurements in addition to weight. I think it's a good thing because it means you're losing fat. I actually have sort of the opposite problem; I've lost over 100 pounds since my highest weight (only about 35 pounds since surgery, though), but I'm not much smaller. Only just this week did I retire the pants I was wearing at my highest weight because they're so big on me that they're falling down. Hard to believe it took 100 pounds to change pants size.

It is quite possible that your insurance does not cover WLS under any circumstances, regardless of BMI or comorbidities. If your insurance is through your employer, the employer can choose whether or not to include WLS coverage. But that doesn't mean you need to give up on ever having WLS. Here are some options: Change insurance. If you have a spouse who has insurance through a different employer and your spouse's insurance does cover WLS, you could get on your spouse's insurance. Even if the premiums are more expensive, it could be worth it to get the WLS coverage. Or you could try to find a different job with better insurance (easier said than done, I know, but depending on what type of work you do, it may be feasible). Self-pay for surgery. Shop around with different surgeons. They will often have lower costs for self-pay patients than what they charge insurance, so make sure to tell them you'll be self-pay. The advantage to self-pay is that you don't have to jump through as many hoops as the insurance companies require, so you can get surgery sooner. There is a place called Blossom Bariatrics in Las Vegas that specializes in self-pay patients, so you might want to check them out. Medical tourism. A lot of people go to Mexico for WLS to save money. It costs less than surgery in the US even with travel. There are some risks to it, but a lot of people have great experiences with WLS in Mexico. I saw somebody post about it a couple of weeks ago who only paid about $5000 out of pocket, which is almost as much as I paid out of pocket with insurance coverage. Does the seminar you planned to attend cost any money? In my program (and many others), the informational seminar is free, and in that case, it wouldn't hurt to attend just to learn more about the surgery. If it costs money, though, you can get the same information for free online.

I'm the last person who is qualified to give relationship advice, but hey, it's the internet, so I'm not going to let that stop me from throwing in my 2 cents. It is true that a lot of marriages end after WLS, so I don't blame him for being worried. But marriages don't end as a direct result of WLS; they end as a result of changes to the marriage from the (mostly positive) changes of losing weight and improving health. Sometimes it's because people put up with more than they should because they don't think anyone else will love them, and when they lose weight, they realize they don't need to put up with abuse to be loved. Other times, it's because your interests and priorities may change when you're physically able to do things you couldn't do when you were bigger. It's not fair for him to put it all on you, though. If I understand correctly, you have tried to get him to go to marriage counseling and he won't do it. If the marriage is so important to him, he needs to put some effort into it, too. It is NOT a selfish decision to do something to improve your health. Unless you are actively planning to lose weight so you can find a better husband, deciding to have WLS does not equal choosing to end your marriage.

I see these posts here periodically (exact same words), posted on a bunch of different boards (often early in the morning, and they get deleted before most people see them). It is spam, although I'm not sure what the point is since I don't see any links or ads.

It happens to everyone and there's not much you can do. You're right on schedule -- it usually starts 3-4 months after surgery. Some people say biotin helps, but even if it does, you'll still lose some hair. It should grow back, though. I've always had fine hair, so I'm afraid it's going to be really bad for me. I freaked out a little when I went to the dermatologist last week and he asked how long I've had thinning hair. I was like, "That's not supposed to happen for another month!"

There's a lot of variation in pre-op diets between one surgeon and the next. Some don't require one at all. Some don't require it for patients with lower BMIs. You'll be fine if you do what your surgeon says (and you're lucky -- a 2-week pre-op liquid diet sucks!).

FYI, Beachbody is an MLM, so a lot of the "coaches" are trying to sell shakes and/or recruit you to be a "coach" so they can make money off your sales. There are no qualifications to be a coach -- they are just independent sales consultants.

I am now 100 pounds down from my highest weight. I lost about 70 pounds before surgery, and I've only lost about 30 pounds since surgery. I can hardly believe I've lost 100 pounds. I've seen other people who have lost 100 pounds and wondered how they did it because it seems impossible. I've gone on a lot of diets in my life and never lost anywhere close to that much. But even more amazing than the fact that I've lost so much weight is the fact that I have so much more to lose. A lot of people start their journey at my current weight or lower. If I lose half of my highest weight, I will still be obese. I started out the weight of two obese people. Now that I'm 100 pounds down, I'm the weight of two normal people.

I've never experienced nausea from calcium supplements, but if the soft chews aren't working for you, you could try BariMelts. They have a sample pack for $5.95 that includes calcium (among other things), so you can see if you like it before you buy a whole bottle. I took those for the first 6 weeks after surgery and they're not bad (though I now take BariatricPal French Vanilla Caramel soft chews and much prefer them). They are very large and you have to take 6 per day. They melt in your mouth, and you don't need water, but I prefer to drink water while they're in my mouth to make them dissolve faster.