ShoppGirl

29 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

hiya @ShoppGirl!

ive been reading all your posts about your decision making process on your decided SADI revision! i commend you for your Quest in educating yourself around the whole thing.

i realize im just a stranger on the internet with just a two cent opinion, but here it is anyway:

from the sounds of it, your surgical team sounds ill-prepared to provide any meaningful assistance to you post surgery. at least not the kind of assistance it sounds like YOU are seeking. this may be a problem for you as i gather (from your posts) that you would greatly benefit from more structured guidance vs being left to your own devices.

while posing your questions to a whole slew of strangers on the internet (i.e., us! lol) could definitely help, i feel like there are just too many variances in responses that can add unnecessary stress and confusion.

would you consider having your procedure with an establishment who has more working knowledge with the SADI?

while, in my opinion, a capable surgeon is a capable surgeon is a capable surgeon whose skill with a knife and needle is easily transferrable across procedures IF EVERYTHING GOES WELL (experience is golden when the unexpected arises) your surgeons seemingly lack of knowledge on SADI overall gives me pause. the fact that he/she seemingly isn't researching is at least half as much as YOU are also makes me go hmmmmmm.

your dietician on the other hand is completely useless (though i have thoughts on hospital provided dieticians/nutritionists on the whole, which is beyond the scope of this post...but i digress...) with zero knowledge on how to advise SADI patients.

personally i navigated my post surgery nutrition without the help on my nutritionist. i listened to her and told her what i was doing but i basically did my own thing by researching and reading (more medical journals vs anecdotal text) and doing good old personal data collection with trial end error. BUT that is just my nature AND there is a wealth of info on my sleeve out there. and while i didn't adhere to much of my NUTs recommendations, at least she HAD advice to give me.

would you consider moving to a team with more (any!) experience with SADI and who are better equipped to guide u and answer your questions? you seem like a gentle-ish soul would benefit from a more hands on, knowledgeable team.

of course you could also be a bee-yatch and i am waaaay off in my assessment of what i think you need from a team based on your posts! 😂😂😂😂😂 in which case please ignore the ramblings of this old woman hahahahha!

BUT if i am even partly right, pls consider your choice of team and if u are setting yourself up for success (which u totally deserve) by aligning yourself with them.

good luck! ❤️

Hello @ms.sss

I actually really do appreciate your response. You are pretty accurate in your assessment, lol, I definitely have my moments but for the most part I tend to be pretty agreeable and sometimes that bites me. i have taken A little breather after yesterday’s meeting with my surgeons’ PA and waking up to a stranger taking their time to say I should too makes me realize I’m not just being overly anxious. Thank you!!

I did make a call just now to see if the only other surgeon I would consider does this procedure and he does not So I guess the most obvious options at this point are to just go with the bypass instead or to ask ALOT of questions and pose some really uncomfortable ones about the surgein and that team that I may not like the answers too. Regardless I realize I need to slow this bus down a great deal and really think this one through.

My thoughts so far are, when the surgeon sits down with me and my list of questions IF I feel better that HE has done his research and both he and I are confident he has this, then I just need to worry about the aftercare. I need to be bold and require that he gives a way to get HIM, post op if I have any urgent concerns. And I need to know who he turns to if he doesn’t know the answer.

I know for my first post op appointment I will see him but maybe I can see him ever so often past that. Especially if I am feeling lost. The PA said yesterday that I may get him or the surgeon if I called with questions immediately post op and he claimed he wouldn’t just give me an answer to give me an answer but it sorta felt like what he did for a half hour with my questions.

I am just going to have to go out of my comfort zone a bit and bluntly say that I don’t feel like the rest of the team is prepared to handle my care with this particular procedure. I must get the point across that the PA just can’t answer all my questions at this point and I wouldn’t feel confident in his advice about any post op questions.

Or, Perhaps he could just make the PA do the research now? I mean he is practically a doctor. They know how to learn things. I just don’t think he has tried with this procedure yet. He did seem to know alot about the DS, Just not this modified version. I can ask to meet with him again after he has had a chance to prepare and see how I feel with him. My gut has gotten me this far??

As far as the dietician goes. I think I just need a list of what macros he wants me to stick to and to know what type of carbs really count and I think I can take it from there at least witb the help of this community. I also think I can shop around for a different dietician once I have the requirements If I feel like I even need one. I’m hoping that the dietician gets the exact requirements from the surgeon in preparation for our meeting in two weeks. If not I will need to ask him that when I meet with him as well.

I guess the skinny about the surgeon, though is that I am going to have to pump the brakes a bit and put on my big girl panties. I need to have some awkward conversations and just mentally prepare myself that the result could be that I don’t get exactly what I thought I wanted.

25 minutes ago, TinyBink said:

These tips are super helpful. Is there an app or a tracker that you are using to see how much Protein you are taking in?

I haven’t had my revision surgery yet and I did it the old fashioned way with my sleeve but someone mentioned the Baritastic app. I’m pretty sure that tracks everything.

Well I met with the PA who did not know a lot about SADI at all. I asked several of my questions and he said ALOT if words that actually said nothing to answer my questions. I guess I just need to sit tight and see what the surgeon has to say. I am not a very patient person though. It’s killing my to wait a whole month for answers. 😩

15 minutes ago, Spinoza said:

Brilliant, I'm so pleased for you ShoppGirl. Everything is lining up nicely.

Thanks. 😊

2 hours ago, NickelChip said:

My program has one week of liquids, soft Proteins at week 2, and then if you are meeting your Protein and hydration goals, you can start adding some veg and fruit starting the third week. So, I was eating things like eggs, tuna, cottage cheese, salmon, and some very well cooked veg like broccoli and green Beans. I was doing fine until last week when I had several incidents of vomiting. So my doctor moved me back to liquids 5 days ago to allow healing. I'm stuck with it until my appointment a week from today and pretty much everything sounds terrible. Anything with sweetener is too sweet. I have clear protein Water and I swear it tasted like perfume. I made a smoothie with frozen banana today and even that was too sweet. Protein Shakes disgust me. I have one flavor I can handle. So I'm mostly doing cream Soups with a scoop of unflavored protein. Everything about eating feels really disgusting right now, although I haven't had any issues with my stomach, so that's a good thing. And my hydration has been consistently good.

I’m so sorry you are having issues. Hopefully it’s just the one week and you are back on track. If you are allowed caffeine, the premiere protein caffe latte was the only shake that didn’t taste extra sweet to me. Some people said they just mixed a shake with coffee to achieve this as well. Others on here have mentioned mixing the shakes with fairlife milk to thin them out a bit and I’m guessing that cuts the sweetness too. If not, I guess just stick with the Soups since they are actually staying down okay. I’m glad you are not vomiting anymore and you are meeting uour hydration goals.

20 minutes ago, SomeBigGuy said:

My understanding was that the "Net Carb" count was more for Keto / Atkins carb counting to be a guide for staying in Ketosis. Then it became a way for marketing to say its lower carb to sell more stuff. Both my primary care doctor and my surgeon told me to measure total carbs and disregard net carbs if I'm not doing either of those diets.

it’s interesting to hear the differnt responses from differnt teams. I think which surgery we had plays a part in it too. I’m meeting with the PA in a couple hours in hopes of getting some of these questions answered. I’m really curious to see the response.

16 minutes ago, NickelChip said:

There is a brand of Peanut Butter powder that has flavors like cookie dough and such. I think that might be nice.

And yes, the Protein Shake powder is way higher in Protein. I feel like mixing it as a shake makes me gag, but using it as a fruit dip somehow changes how it tastes to me. I may try it with a strawberry banana shake mix I have too. Being back on liquids right now is messing with me because I've come to hate the texture of shakes. And even a more natural version made with yogurt, banana, and pb powder is making me gag today. One more week of this and then hopefully I can go back to eating soft protein and maybe a little bit of veg. I miss veg. I didn't expect to be back at square one 5 weeks post-op! As soon as I can, I'm going to have fruit dip!

Ooh. PB cookie dough does sound good. Why were you set back to liquids? Have you tried the clear protein. I used the ones by premiere protein my first time around and they are pretty good. Seems like it was fruit punch or peach flavor was the options. I don’t lile peaches but the fruit punch wasn’t bad.

I supposed the OP has already worked this out since the post was 2015 but I just want to add that the surgeons do then to weight loss drugs as one of the tools in their belts post surgery now. They have quite a few in addition to phentermine nowadays too. For anyone out there experiencing weight gain please touch base with your team. I was unable to take the meds because if interactions with other meds I was on but that was definitely an option that was presented to me early on and for someone with only a fair amount of weight to lose it could help. I have taken phentermine in the past and it did reduce my appetite significantly. My problem is I wake up several times and night and eat too so once the med wore off I was hungry. For those reasons they didn’t work for me but they do work for many people.

From what I understand if you actually have low B12 then the shots make a significant difference in energy levels. I have a friend that gets them and when she doesn’t have anyone to do the injection and runs low she really notices it in her energy levels. I haven’t heard her mention any effect on weight but she is thin so I don’t know if she would notice a couple pounds one way or another (she’s not like us on the scale everyday).

22 hours ago, NickelChip said:

Hey there, fellow Massachusetts person!

Here are a few options that might work for you for protein:

If you like Soups such as creamy Tomato, butternut bisque, etc., add a scoop or two (10-20g protein) of unflavored Protein Powder such as Isopure or Syntrax to the Soup. Also, if you make a canned Soup like cream of chicken, make it with Fairlife skim milk for even more Protein. 1/2 a cup cream of chicken with 1 scoop of Protein would give you about 17g protein.

If you are at a stage where you can have apples, make a great protein dip by taking 1 cup Greek yogurt and adding one serving chocolate protein powder and 1 scoop powdered Peanut Butter and eat 1/2 cup with 1/2 an apple. This gives you around 25g protein depending what brands you are using and tastes delicious.

A great source of plant-based protein is edamame, which they sell already shelled and lightly salted, ready to eat, in the produce section of Hannaford (and probably other stores, I would assume). Also, four of the cracker-sized slices of Cabot cheddar have 8g protein, and if you pair it with Triscuit thins, that's another 3g for a nice 10g snack (when you can have crackers).

if I’m not mistaken the PB Fit came in different flavors at one point??. I haven’t seen them in a while though. I’m wondering if that would be as good (if I can find it) since your dip sounds absolutely delish but I don’t like just chocolate shakes at all so I would have a ton of Protein Powder leftover. Edited to add that I realize why you do it that way now that I looked it up the PB Fit is only 6 grams of protein and the scoop of protein powder is a lot more. Ignore me. Lol

3 hours ago, Tomo said:

You will be successful. Supporting your success!!

Thanks so much.

I agree witb others that a call to your surgeon is in order. Until you get to the bottom of it perhaps try the 5 smaller meals or shakes to up your calories a bit if you get too low. Although keep in mind that many people do have a bit of bounce back weight a while after they get settled so some will say a little wiggle room isn’t a bad idea.

2 hours ago, Tomo said:

I don't follow a low carb but I had asked something similar to my team, and basically they said that you count only Net carbs. So if it were up to my team, you can definitely have that tortilla lol. ^^

Hummm….i wonder if the difference is because our anatomies vary post surgery so we will process carb differently?! I can’t wait until my appointment with the dietician to learn the answer to this question per my surgeons reccomendations. A life without ever being able to have another wrap, at least on occasion, is going to take a second to “wrap” my mind around. Haha. I couldn’t resist.

I am currently three years post sleeve sitting ten pounds heavier than when I stared contemplating the SADI revision surgery. I am pretty hopeful and excited this time though. I am already eating better, exhaustively researching the procedure and the future diet. Finally I found a therapist that specializes in disordered eating near me who is taking new patients. It wouldn’t be possible without telehealth because she’s a couple hours away (something positive that came from COVID). Within 15 minutes tonight we discussed my mental health, medications, medical history, potential surgery, a change in the dietician and touched on some of my emotional eating concerns. She thinks she can help me and she asked me to think about it and talk it over with my current therapist and if we agree it’s a good idea she wants me to sign a release so that she and my therapist can work together. I feel so excited and hopeful that this is going to make all the difference this time. I am curious how long the process usually takes. I’m hoping I will have a pretty good idea of how much help I need and know whether I am ready to move forward by the time my surgery date rolls around.

Just now, NickelChip said:

Not necessarily. You need to find out if your doctor is following that same guideline, or if he follows net carbs. Just send his office a message and ask for clarification. If you have a healthcare portal, this should be super easy to do.

Right now I am not getting a great deal of help from his team. I am trying to decide between SADI and bypass but I honestly think I may be one of the first patients to get the SADI with him. A fact that if it is true scares me a bit but the possibility of greater weight loss has kept me interested. I do have an appointment tomorrow with his PA and in two weeks with the dietician to help in my decision. I hope I get quite a few answers between the two. I am just really trying to figure things out so I can eat that way now to see what I am possibly getting myself into. Lol

12 minutes ago, BeanitoDiego said:

I can't speak to the question of Fiber, but I can share with you what my dietician said about net carbs. She told me to ignore net carb count and focus on total carbs. So on my tracking journey, I would count the tortilla as ingesting 32g of carbohydrates.

So basically no, I can’t have the tortilla. lol. Thanks for your help.

Idk these mission carb tortillas have 28 grams of Fiber in one. I think the things that are man made in order to have low “net carbs” they add a ton of fiber to them?? I imagine that would be really hard to get from Whole Foods though.

I finally have some appointments lined up. I am seeing the PA at the surgeons office tomorrow, the dietician in two weeks and I do a pre screening for a bariatric therapist this week. They don’t take my insurance and I THINk it said it’s $175 a session but I’m hoping I don’t need too many. None of this is mandatory for revision but I want to dive in this time 100% readh!! I am just excited that I should finally be getting answers and some help.

Since posting this I have been searching for recipe ideas online as well. A lot if the low carb seem to be much higher In fat. I guess we have to sift through to those that focus on Protein. There is a website called Delish that has a lot of pictures that are making my mouth Water but it’s a paid site and doesn’t even let you see the macros without paying. Assuming they even post the macros.

Okay. If left to my own devices I basically eat like a child. In terms of health food I really only like chicken breast and mahi fish and i don’t love either of those. I also tend to like mostly higher carb veggies and higher sugar fruits. Lucky me, right?. Anyways, the only common veggies I seem to hate are Brussels sprouts and mushrooms and I like most of the typical fruits but I still need to manage to stay low-ish with the carbs. Three years ago post sleeve I ate grilled chicken or grilled fish with a veggie every single night. Just those two Proteins on the grill with a couple basic spices and veggies and it got SOOOO boring that of course I didn’t stick to it.

What I need is some recipe ideas that add variety to my low carb diet so I have better luck sticking with it this time around. I am going to get a cook book once I speak with my dietician (who I just left a second message with) if there is one that’s appropriate for SADI but I just hoped others would share their favorite recipes to get me started. last night my husband made me a fajita wrap with grilled chicken, sited peppers and onion and just a bit of reduced fat cheese and a low carb wrap and I thought to myself if I had more options like that I think I can do this.

I am thinking I probably need to branch out to cuisines other than my typical American, Mexican, and Italian but I may need a little nudge. I am currently looking for a Mexican recipe with caluliflower rice. And I’m wondering if cauliflower pizza is a good option for once in a while and if so is the frozen one okay. I think my store has one by California kitchen. It’s 29g of carbs so I would have to be an angel the rest of the day but is there a better option? Also, I don’t hate the zucchini noodles or the spaghetti squash but I feel like that needs a really good sauce or something to make up for what’s missing. Any suggestions for sauces?

3 hours ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

LRD is the liver reduction diet that most people are required to go on before surgery

Ooh okay. I just never heard the acronym. Yea. If the carbs make you crave more carbs but you can do a diet once you get going (until you’re tempted with something or you have a stressful day or whatever) then try what I did. I just ate healthier the couple days before. Basically lower carb but as much of it as I wanted so I wasn’t hungry. Then, MY preop diet wasn’t bad at all. I’m all fairness, though, I was allowed one low carb meal a day so mine was a little easier than some. (I’m not sure if this was because I started at a lower BMI or just because my doctor has a different plan).

1 hour ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

After reading everyone's comments I have decided not to go too mad with it haha. I will be mildly restrained!

I think the LRD is going to be helpful in weaning me off of sugar and other things that I tend to binge on, so I am just preparing for that!

What is LRD? I do not “binge” per say but I do tend to eat because of emotions and it’s always bad choices and more fhan I should eat is LRD a type of surgery or a Medication or something else?

On 3/4/2024 at 9:27 PM, Pines said:

Absolutely! It’s from the cookbook “The Complete Bariatric Cookbook and Meal Plan”. Made the recipe for eight other people at Sunday dinner and they all really liked it too.

Does that have a lot of low-ish carb recipes included? I was looking for one specific to the SADI and I can’t find it but I THINK I just need low carb versions of what what everyone who is post op can have.

I think it’s tastes better if you don’t call it rice!! Don’t think of rice because you will be dissapointed, lol. But like others said, I don’t think it has much flavor. Just adds texture and it’s kind of a filler. With enough seasonings it can “fill out a meal.”

37 minutes ago, Arabesque said:

Oh @ShoppGirl, this is why I was so so glad I never had to count carbs. I was just told keep carbs low and I still generally do (usually keep to two serves a day). I go by complex carbs are always better than simple carbs and low processed carbs cover highly processed ones so whole & multi grains wherever possible. And I ignore the carbs in fruit & vegetables - too many other good things in those. My thinking was those old food pyramids separated fruit & vegetables from ‘carbs’ so that was good enough for me.

Have you spoke to your dietician about this conundrum? They may be your best source of guidance around this.

Thanks for uour advice. I agree with you about the fruits and veggies. I actually didn’t realize there were carbs in them until now but I have always tended to give myself leniency with them in terms of calories, even when I was dieting thinking I didn’t get overweight eating fruits and veggies but I’m not sure if my post SADI body will agree or not

I did leave a message for the dietician but so far she isn’t calling me back. I honestly fear that she may be like the rest of my team and be clueless about the SADI. People have mentioned in the other surgery forums not to be surprised if I run into situations like this just because it’s far less common but I am not going through with this before I have some answers. I just figured I will post as many questions here as I can from my list. I will try the dietician again this morning. I am Even going to see if they will let me see the PA before I see the surgeon in hopes she can answer some but I have a feeling my list for him is still going to be pretty long. The support staff just doesn’t seem to have the information yet. This one is less researched, there is less info available online and the risks are alot more serious though, i would be a fool to not take this seriously.