The Greater Fool

1) Continue the plan that has proven successful; 2) Get off the scale; 3) Don't try to fix it when it's not broken; Good luck, Tek

I intended to have a nice dinner but didn't since I had a late lunch and wasn't really hungry. I ended up just spending a nice evening at home playing an MMORPG with my spouse. I had no bowel prep and was simply told not to eat after 6:00pm. Good luck, Tek

Brains suck. This is one of those times you just need to soldier through and do the best you can. With persistence your best gets better. The carrot is that the more you do it, the easier things become and the better you will feel. The stick is that if you don't get through this mental block you may end up making your already tough situation worse. Know this is temporary. Good luck, Tek

I'm sure I had stalls, but since I only weighed at monthly follow-ups I never actually saw any. Good luck, Tek

Never took bariatric vitamins. Good luck, Tek

I know the OP profile has Sleeve but this being the Gastric Bypass forum I believe some things need to be said. The OP is describing a time released medication. For Gastric Bypass, time released medications can be problematic. Some seem to have no issues while others seem to fail completely, and of course many fall in between these extremes. I had pain medications that failed completely, while my Iron seems to work adequately. My heart Doc didn't even want to risk time released not working. There are meds I take where I handle spreading the immediate release meds through the day. Further adding to the mix, my experience and the experience of many others is that some non-time release medications for which you can feel an effect don't last as long as they did pre-op, so it requires a bit of manipulation/planning to deal with the changes. Talk to the surgeon because if they actually talk to their patients they should have a decent idea of which time released meds can be problematic. I've noticed also that some Sleeve people dump (which would indicate the pyloric valve isn't working as a gate keeper as well as pre-op, so for some Sleeve folks all these time released issues may possibly likewise be an issue, perhaps to a lesser extent, so pay attention early on. Good luck, Tek

I'm not sure how temporary the irritating smells thing is because when I'm fatigued, stressed, sick, in pain, or in any other way out of sorts I'm very sensitive to smells. Honestly I don't know if this is as a result of surgery or just what I call 'part of the joy of being me.' It did start with my WLS surgery. It's certainly nothing to vex about at worst it's usually mild and passes quickly. Good luck, Tek

It sounds like he's made changes with in the basic surgery, removing the blind stomach means changing the part of the stomach the pouch is created from so the bile ducts that used to dump into the blind stomach now dumps into the pouch. Less importantly (I suppose) the bypassed intestines would also be removed since there is no longer a blind stomach to attach them to. I would be upset that he didn't actually perform the promised surgery, as this is no longer an Roux En Y Gastric Bypass. I would be considering legal action if this happened to me. Good luck, Tek

Well, the surgeon didn't say "all in a row" Good luck, Tek

Welcome to the forums. This is a rant I can get behind, quite familiar to be honest. Aside from the promotion, which seemed out of your control all the way through, you actually took steps to deal with your frustration and angst. I'd call your response to your lack of control a win. Good show. Bear in mind that the first few weeks or months post-op can just be a circus of out of control situations. If you approach them in the same problem solving way you should do great. Good luck, Tek

On sites like this it's problems that get talked about. People will sign up just to ask about a problem. The vast majority of patients have no problems and are not motivated to look for answers to problems that don't exist for them so they are not here, while the minority of patients with problems are motived to post questions so represent the vast majority of posts. That sentence sorta got away from me. Don't let it skew your perceptions. But, on the flip side you become aware of possible problems for which you can prepare even if they are unlikely to occur. Good luck, Tek

It's said WLS makes good relationships better and bad relationships worse. Good luck, Tek

Scales are crazy making tools of the devil. Cast them out. I am so glad (for a quixotic definition of glad) that pre-op and for at least the first year post-op that I was too large for a home scale. I could only weigh at monthly at follow-ups. As a result, I never saw the stalls that I inevitably experienced. I also noted that my Doc never talked about my weight loss unless I brought it up. He was concerned with how I was doing on the plan, how my health was, my mental attitude, or whatever I wanted to talk about. Once I was able to weigh at home I weighed myself 2-4 times a day for a couple weeks, mostly for the novelty of weighing on a home scale. After that, I just went back to weighing only at follow-ups. All these years later I don't weigh at home, but only at my annual physicals. I can tell by how I feel or how my clothes feel if I need to adjust anything, but honestly don't worry about my weight otherwise. All this to say that especially early on you don't need a scale. Follow your plan and it will work for you. Good luck, Tek

I recall feeling this way during the 6 weeks of puree and another month or two with real food. Just had to pay attention to the mechanics of relearning to eat that the actual food was secondary to the process. Once the mechanics became normal eating was more enjoyable. All these years later I still go through periods when i'm fatigued, stressed, focused elsewhere, or in pain where eating is a chore, but this I think is more about the joy of being me than anything else. Good luck, Tek

I take Slow-FE, which is time released, so not hard on stomach or constipation. I've had Gastric Bypass and concerned about time-released, which on other meds has been a problem, but I apparently absorb enough to deal with my anemia issues. Available everywhere. Good luck, Tek

This is what happens when someone is wrong on the internet! Back to the OP, reality is we're going to do what we're going to do, whether drinking, smoking, vaping, injecting, or any of a number of other whatevers, even when our plans forbid them. Statistics apply to groups, not individuals. Statistics describe risk. Choose the level of risk you are willing to take. Not everyone that jumps out of a plane without a parachute dies, but it's probably something best avoided if possible. I recommend a trial run (perhaps two) at home to see how you will be affected. Once you've figured it out, a public run should be more secure. Good luck and enjoy your drink(s). Tek

My surgeon had no general rule against NSAIDs, as he preferred to look at each person as an individual, each of which have different needs. For me, NSAIDs were OK but I needed to monitor for side effects (as with any med). Acetaminophen (Tylenol) was a definite no-no for me as I had chronic liver issues. My WLS was open, so I was in a fair bit of pain. At this point I don't recall if I took the narcotics they gave me or if I just continued my ongoing pain relief. Either way, I was OK. I imagine with the current angst about narcotics a lot of places wait for a need before they hand it out. Good luck, Tek

Some of this changes with the type of surgery you have. I found oxycontin, which is time released oxycodone didn't work for me at all. I do straight oxycodone and manually time release it (take a pill or two every few hours). There is also no crushing or chewing problem with oxycodone, one can even get used to the flavor... if flavor is what you want to call it. I've also found that many meds where I can feel an effect don't last as long as they did pre-op. There is nothing for pain like losing a few hundred pounds. Good luck, Tek

The extent of my pre-op diet was don't eat after 6:00pm the night before surgery. Again, surgeons' have a wide range of differing requirements. I believe the key issue for us is to follow the plan we are given. If you start picking and choosing from different plans then you are on no plan at all. Good luck, Tek

Welcome to the forums. I told my spouse who was 100% supportive. I told the CEO because important arrangements had to be made, and he was also 100%, and being a Doctor of Pharmacology, wrote a supportive letter to the insurance company. I told my parents, from whom I needed medical history, who were also 100% supportive. I didn't tell our grown 4 kids, nor any other family. I wasn't particularly secretive as no family lived in the same area as us. Didn't tell anyone until they happened by and noticed I was missing a few hundred pounds. This is the beginning of when we start worrying about our needs and feelings before anyone else's. Good luck, Tek

I got the foamies in the first month during my puree phase, when I was in a lot of pain from the drains and staples. Once the drains, staples, and attendant pain subsided, so did the foamies. For me, the foamies never seemed to relate to overeating or eating to quickly. I related it more to stress and pain. Been a lot of years since the foamies. Good luck, Tek

I'm glad she is doing better now, and I hope it continues. I'm sure your ongoing support and encouragement has been important to her getting through all this. When she gets sick now, what is it she is eating? What does "sick" mean? What are the foods she's comfortable eating? Is she tracking her food in any way? Where is her weight? This stuff will help folks understand and offer ideas, if necessary. She's apparently doing well now, and she may not want to mess with success. Good luck, Tek

I believe for most people the restriction does reduce over time. I don't know if I'm just lucky or if my aversion to the discomfort of pushing it early on kept me from, well, pushing it later on. However, I'm glad it's still there. I'd wager there are a lot of folks that can eat a reasonable sized slice in a reasonable time, eventually. Good luck, Tek

I'm trying to keep this in the spirit of the thread. You should start a fresh thread on your wife's issues. I'd wager folks here could offer up some good ideas to perhaps help. I had my surgery about the same time as your wife. I dump pretty easily on sugars and fats, but I'm generally able to avoid them or at least avoid the amount that causes dumping. Not always, though. More generally, my restriction is still in full force. If I eat too fast it can still cause pain or discomfort, so again, I try to watch HOW I eat. I most often have issues when I'm eating out or in social situations, as I get involved in conversation and don't pay attention to my eating. I need to always be aware of what I'm doing. I can see this being defeating and problematic for some people to the extent they regret the surgery. I just take it as part of the joy of being me. So, all this being said, I wish I had done it 15 years earlier. I would have the surgery every year if I had to, well, I'm old now, so maybe every 5. Good luck, Tek

Hello again Coop. I'm doing just peachy, So, what kind of issues is your wife having? You are intending to have WLS still, are you worried about similar issues? How does she feel about you having WLS? Tek