Jnfinney

@Betty1971 and being able to tie my shoes without having to hold my breath!

I thought a comparison would be interesting while I was wearing the same outfit!

Chrissy Teigen does this with Doritos ?

Wiping my own butt without breaking my back trying to reach ??‍♀️

Your description of “hollow” really speaks to me. I constantly feel empty, but I’m not hungry. So knowing when and how much to eat has been confusing. @catwoman7 I’ve never appreciated such honest, raw advice from a veteran as much as I appreciate you sharing your struggle with this. I think it’s important for us newbies to understand that we will always be working for this.

I’m just over a month post op and I have a long way to go, but I can already see so many differences!

I was only prescribed Protonix for a month due to the gastritis.

Every little bit counts! Great job!

I was given zofran to take home for nausea. However, I didn’t need it. Probably the first week after surgery I just focused on staying hydrated. I occasionally had some fairlife skim milk, but mostly drank clear liquids because it was all I could handle.

@ShoppGirl my ideal body weight is ~120 lbs, but my surgeon's office set my goal at 145 lbs (which would be a BMI of 25.7).

I didn't calculate my own goal weight, my surgeon's office did. And, they actually picked a weight that puts me at a BMI of 25.7 which is just into the 'overweight' category. So, I'm not really sure how they decide that.

They told me I had gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) just before I was 4 weeks out. It was super painful - a sharp pain up by my breastbone and would radiate to my back. Nothing made it worse or better, it would come and go randomly. So if this is what you have, are you on any antacids or PPIs? I was put on Pepcid immediately after surgery and then they ended up prescribing me Protonix (PPI) for the inflammation and the pain was gone within 2 days.

My surgeon said it is really common for people to question their decision for the first week or so after surgery because we've put our bodies through major trauma and the recovery can be extensive. I am just over 4 weeks out and it really does get better. I am still unable to drink protein drinks (they make me sick) but I can take normal sized drinks of water now.

That is really interesting. They were on my 'recommended' list by my clinic! @catwoman7 does centrum have a chewable? Maybe I'll switch.

It depends on your surgeons plan. I’m not allowed that until at least 6 weeks post op.

1 tbsp cream cheese 1/2 oz gouda 1/2 oz sharp cheddar 1/2 oz parmesan 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt 1.5 oz canned chicken a splash of milk season to taste (I used garlic salt, oregano, onion powder and paprika) bake at 400 for 5-8 minutes

I will also miss a good cold beer!! I wasn’t much of a drinker before surgery, but sometimes a beer just sounds delicious.

Hi all! I am not on stage 4 quite yet, but I was thinking about some of the comfort foods that I've always enjoyed making and eating. I thought it would be fun and interesting for people to share their bariatric friendly comfort food recipes, because I need some healthier versions of things I enjoyed pre-surgery. ?

@ms.sss I also run in the morning (well, not right now as I am still recovering) and I also prefer to run on an empty stomach - eating before I run makes me feel sluggish and can give me an upset stomach.

So I'm seeing that many of you are not breakfast people -- is this correct? I was never much of a breakfast person, but my dietician strongly recommended I eat something daily for breakfast, but I noticed I'm hungrier mid-morning if I eat breakfast versus just having liquids.

My clinic said the same thing as catwoman, no gummies. But the flinstones complete chewables are on my list of vitamins that are allowed.

I completely understand, but start small so you don’t get overwhelmed. Start with 10 minutes of walking or some other exercise 3 times a week and you can increase from there.

Not sure about the nausea, but for me making exercise part of my routine helped with motivation. If it’s part of my routine, I don’t even get to consider skipping it. In fact, skipping a workout kind of messed up my day after I made it part of my routine. I would pick the days, times, and type of exercise you plan to do and do it for every time you plan it. I would get up 2 hours early in the morning to get a workout in.

@sleeviewonder2021 that sounds extremely frustrating and I am sorry to hear that. I think I am too early out (4 weeks post op) to offer any real advice. I will ask this - are you sure you are counting calories correctly? Other than that, my best advice is to contact your dietician and/or surgeon and discuss this with them. After all, they are the professionals. Sorry I couldn't be much help, but hang in there! It will all work out!

I think that is kind of what I have been doing, @njlimmer. I want to get myself into a routine, but sometimes food just doesn't sit well at meal time so I find myself picking at things during the day.