learn2cook

I eat a hard boiled egg, or one once of meat, or a meatball. Lately I have put 1oz of walnut and 1 oz of blueberries in a toddler size container to have after work to avoid the “hangry.” Recently I cooked up some ground buffalo and mixed in some marinara, then stuffed it into some pre steamed mini peppers. Roughly it was 1 oz of meat per pepper, I only measured my 20 grams of protein needed, then stuffed the peppers with it. It was a colorful meal, but leftovers were great as a meal or snack! I absolutely love @Arabesque ‘s egg dishes and will try them!

I saw “bar pizza” and I thought Mass! All is not lost as others have said. I plan my pizza into my intake. I see a special holiday or super birthday or a difficult week time wise for cooking. Then I buy a large pizza and purposefully share it so with teenage boys I’m lucky to get 1-2 slices and I’m done. I make sure the size is obvious to share and not a single serving like a bar pizza is! I also eat in front of people. No more secretive eating habits! That’s why this surgery is a lot of work and not the easy way! You probably also weren’t full because there’s no way even a fully loaded meat pizza has enough protein to keep you in check? Every day is a learning opportunity, we’ve all made our learning mistakes too!

I was told to never drink it. I really love the warm, deep umami flavor of coffee, so I brought it back in around 4 months. The caffeine could inhibit your iron absorption. It did for me. I just take my iron with vitamin C at lunchtime as a work around.

By the way, my midwife said “Babies are parasites and will pull from you what they need. Just take your vitamins!”

I was post menopausal for my bypass. Two of my friends had sleeves with the purpose of having good health and getting pregnant. They both had had issues with PICOS and “advanced age” , over 35. One got pregnant through IVF and had a healthy girl who was born deaf, but has warmly knitted our community closer by making us all learn sign language. The mother regained her weight, BUT the dad had bypass recently and is quickly regaining his health. This family also celebrated HIGHLY the adoption of a daughter prior to the birth. Isn’t that how it always happens? I’m going to say, build your family the way it happens and don’t worry about it. I knew a single guy who worried about never having kids of his own, and his sister and brother-in-law died from a freak plane accident leaving him with two nephews to raise!!! The second mother successfully had her baby girl (she may be younger but I’m not going to ask) the “normal “ way. She did regain after the 3 yr mark, but quickly got back to track using hot yoga and a new business she started. Everybody retained their good health. Isn’t this about health and creating family? It’s going to happen one way or another, watch and see, worrying won’t make it better. GBY

I slowly started cooked veggies around 4 months, just one at a time until I knew what I could tolerate. I was eating raw veggies and salad at about 8 months. I think it was because the weather got warmer and I wanted to eat cold served foods. Now at almost 2 years, most things are fine. When I still feel hungry, vegetables are my “filler.” I was so excited when I found wild grown arugula (ramp) when foraging (my new hobby)!

I had a year long wait due to Covid shut downs and pre-existing conditions that had to be resolved before surgery. It was worth the wait!

Anything unusual like that would require medical expertise I don’t have. I hope it’s simple and easily resolved. Best wishes!

All good vibes to you and your recovery! I was really loopy the first three days, but after that I only felt better each day. The best was finally sleeping in my own bed instead of propped up in a chair/recliner. Keep up with your water and move a little every hour you are awake. Just do a little something if you can because moving helps you get better faster, and prevents bed sores.

This is interesting, I like data too… 1. F, 53, 5’4” 2. 81 lbs 3. 274 lbs 4. 264 lbs 5. 240 lbs 6. 227 lbs 7. 215 lbs 8. 2 yrs 11 months post surgery 203. Resolving iron deficiency kickstarted weight loss again, still loosing :)

Basic first aide says anything involving breathing is a life saving matter to pay attention to, and seek medical attention ASAP. Try to go to your primary care doctor or medical WLS doctor and they can help you get more prompt care in hospital if that’s what you need. Best wishes!

I had bypass because my GERD was so awful. The surgery corrected the hiatal hernia and GERD so I’m very thankful. I do dump, but it’s simple carbs, which are very easy to avoid. I consider the dumping a stealth WLS weapon that keeps me in line. I am very grateful for it! I actually asked my surgeon for it and he didn’t make any promises, but when I told him later he made a fist pump. Hee hee!

Like others have said 800 calories is not much. I have mostly gone into maintenance at almost 2 years and I’m at 800-1000 calories a day. But, I was a yo-yo dieter for years, AND I’m post menopausal. I still talk regularly with my dietitian and I suggest you do too. Good news, I recently dropped another five pounds due to rectifying my low iron count in the labs. The dietitian said that the body holds onto weight if it’s missing nutrients. I’ll still strongly suggest you talk with your team to figure out what is causing the halt.

“Start counseling before you have surgery and you’ll be just fine”-@SleeverSk. I feel like that’s true. But, when I woke up from surgery I touched my belly and said to the nurse,” I still feel like me, good!” Yep, I was still me lumps and all, just on my way to getting healthier. I had zero hunger for 5 months and it felt like such a relief. The only comparison was when I weaned my son from breastfeeding and that constant unrelenting hunger was gone. The sudden lack of hunger was like that, pure freedom. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Hiatal hernia gone, asthma lessened, knees working easier, fun clothes, unbelievable strength and stamina, positive job and satisfaction with life. Some of that was was therapy, and some was feeling like I have some control over the amount of hunger I feel. I made those choices. Food does taste different, it’s not as vibrant. It’s hard to explain, a friend of mine who is trying wegroovy said, “Food doesn’t advertise itself to me with neon lights anymore”. That described it for me too. I do get hungry and want eggs or chicken or meatballs. I used to go for M&M’s but they taste like wax, weird huh? I now LOVE deep umami flavors. Be prepared for changes, and not what you would expect. I enjoy the process of cooking, that’s a miracle in itself!

Nature camp is all day M-F outside (except thunderstorms) with 4-14 yr olds climbing, canoeing, hiking and learning about the environment. We teach nature/science things the kids are interested in. We found a vernal pool yesterday on a trail to show the kids on Monday. There were tadpoles with some legs coming out. Each age group will get about 45 minutes to experience the tadpoles. We’ll keep visiting to see the frogs emerge. I wasn’t mobile enough for hiking all the trails before WLS. I grew up in the woods and didn’t realize how much I missed greenery while I live in the city.

There are a lot of videos on making smoothies on YouTube. There’s also protein water. Did you try the non dairy shakes?

This made me smile today because I love nature. I even got a job at a nature camp this summer which I would not have been able to do without WLS. Funny could be off during weight loss faze if the hormones are really out of wack, maybe? You’re still you after surgery lumps and all, just less physical lumps!

When I freak out I ask myself, “What is my end game?” My goal is to enjoy the journey, live in the moment. If my moment is rough, I tell myself that drinking water is an immediate way to nourish myself. No big deal, it’s a journey. I still play around with flavors in my water. I like herbal teas and fruit, cucumbers and herbs, Gatorade Zero. It’s a journey.

I’m so glad you got to the bottom of all those issues! It’s going to be rectified! I’m so happy for you to be feeling better soon.

I have found that adding higher fat foods are ok once in awhile, it’s up to you and your plan. If you find yourself not loosing weight when you want to or should, maybe avoid those foods for awhile. My guilty pleasure is desserts like pie. If I actually said, “Never!” I would probably go buy one and eat the whole thing. Now I just sample my favorite in public and share it with others. My problem with liverworst is that it’s made with milk products as a binder ingredient and causes flames to shoot out both my ends. My father thought it was the elixir of gods because cans of liverworst were given out with rations during his childhood in post-war Europe. To each their own.

Like @Tomo I try to stay clear of an all or nothing mindset. When I feel my underwear get tighter (undies and bras don’t seem to lie to me) I evaluate how I’m doing. I start with water. Am I drinking enough and throughout the day? Then I look at my vitamins, did I forget anything lately? Then I start logging my exercise, have I been cutting out leg weight lifting day again? Maybe it’s time to try a new activity like birding or paddle board? Then I look at stress and emotional needs. Do I need to talk to a friend, go to a book club, rejoin my yoga buddies, check in with a therapist? Then after all those check lists do I re-examine my food intake and usually start logging my intake again. Am I bored with my selections and need to change up my menu? Seasons switched and salad looks so good compared to cooked veggies, grilled meats smell so much better than meatballs right now. Fish seems so exotic and fulfilling now too. I made a cold salsa from mostly peppers and spices then threw in scallions and brewers yeast (for b vitamins) and it tasted more like gazpacho so I chopped up some cucumbers and POW! I dropped 8lbs after eating that all weekend last week with my regular chicken breast and hard boiled eggs. So finding new recipes (and maybe some fiber) is what gets me going with healthy food choices. I’m playing around with blanching broccoli in a cold served salad this week. That’s my reset.

Like the others have shared, your weight is lower so loosing will be slower. My program doesn’t count carbs either, but I only give them side eye because they might make me dump. Food isn’t evil, it nourishes us and keeps us healthy and alive. Diet culture encourages this good/bad thinking. If you’re feeling stuck in rewind over fears and anxiety about eating and falling into old habits, it will only help you to seek a therapist who specializes in disordered eating. Like old me used to wake up in the middle of the night to eat 1-2 lbs of M&M’s in secret. Then I would run 4-6 miles for two weeks everyday to even out the calories. Newer me says, let’s do some yoga to get the feeling out of my body, then journal to explore the feelings that are honestly bothering me. That’s how therapy helps you to differentiate and evolve. Are you throwing all your energy and attention into making pizza, milk and a few candies into a monumental experience of all your life efforts? Or is pizza just pizza? Only you know.

Like others said, communication with your team is important! I was super scared of the anesthesia too. I found that talking with the team about my asthma reactions to being under worried me. They were honestly unaware of my symptoms after, so we managed them. The thoughts that calmed me were;1 I’m not doing the surgery, I’ll essentially be asleep. 2. The anesthesiologist and my surgeon were clearly friends and joked happily with me and the nurses. 3. I pretended I was going on a flight to Hawaii. The sounds of the air, and beeping noises, conversation, and music were all part of a great flight to a new land. You can pretend it’s a bus or train ride, pick your adventure.

I’m so sorry this has been happening to you. It’s so hard to stay positive and focus on navigating through the hospital world and then insurance is even tougher! You can get through this! When my favorite aunt started having strokes, but she was a doctor and didn’t want help from family, we asked for a hospital social worker. The hospital didn’t want to do it, but by law they are required to provide one if requested. The worker helps folks figure out the medical issues, the insurance, and navigates all that stuff with you and ALL the different doctors involved so they act as one team for your benefit. The worker is like a conductor of an orchestra and you are whispering in her ear, so that the orchestra plays for you. Getting all these people to play together nicely takes some time so it’s not instant. Start with the last time you were in the hospital. Look at your paperwork and call the money payment number because hospitals are quick to respond to money issues. Then ask for a social worker to help you navigate. When you get one, tell her what you wrote here. Or, the next time you go to the hospital because you’re vomiting blood from the GERD, (it looks like coffee grounds in the vomit) ask for the medical social worker right away. Or ask your general physician for a referral. If you have been visiting regularly for checkups, they will willingly recommend a medical social worker because they will know you and your family situation.

Hurray!