dennydenco

12 hours ago, catwoman7 said:

my hunger came roaring back at five months out. After it does, things do get a lot harder...

That’s for sure. Me too. I’ve had to work twice as hard since then and progress is slow. If anyone ever tells you that surgery is the easy way out…deck ‘em! (Well, not really, but…)

I just had the gastric sleeve surgery three months ago. I tend to find myself being really concerned about stretching my stomach or doing something that will cause a downfall. For those preparing to have revision surgery, is there any advice you can give regarding what led to having to have revision surgery? What wisdom would you pass on to those of us who just had our initial surgery? Thank you. Very very grateful.

I took two weeks off and that was about right for me. I work a desk job from home, so it was easier. Actual mileage may vary.

Has anyone had trouble being out in the sun during warmer weather since surgery?

25 minutes ago, Officially Not Fatty Matty said:

6’4” here. I was 400-500 for the first several months, lost really fast. I’m one year post op, below the arbitrary goal by quite a bit and having a hard time finding a maintenance calorie count I can manage. I’m up to 1800-2000 by using food I never thought I would eat again to keep volume low but calories high and finally seem to be stabilizing. It’s the first week I haven’t lost but I also haven’t pooped in five days (this has been typical for me for the past year). I seem to be in a cycle of not going, using epsom salt to vacate the inner tubes and then weighing and using that as my weekly gauge to see where I really am. But to answer your question 2000 and if I’m maintaining it’s very close.

At 400-500 calories per day, did you have issues with fatigue?

10 hours ago, bhrobins said:

49yo man here

6' 3", 382 HW, 309 SW, Sleeve 5/18/20, 216 CW

I stayed around 650 cals for the first 3 months post op then up to 900 thru 6 months. Hit goal at 7 months and bumped up to 1200 cals. By 9 months out was at 2000 cals for my maintenance level.

I always focused on Protein and hydration. My nutritionist wanted me to increase calories sooner, but I felt with my restriction I just couldn't get there.

It worked best for me to measure and log everything that I ingested. Even 1+ year out, I still do this daily. Helps keep me honest and gives me good data to look back on. YMMV, though, so find what works for you.

You will still be successful at a 900 calorie as you are well under your daily calorie need (BMR). As long as you are in a deficit, you will lose weight, even with an occasional stall. Most important thing is to stick with the program and not get into bad habits. During this time you almost can't fail to lose as long as you moderate your intake and keep moving - even just walking or other light exercise.

Stick with it, you can do it!

Excellent insight. Thx.

14 hours ago, The Greater Fool said:

I guess around your stage if I counted calories, which I didn't and haven't but once post-op, 8-900 would not have been a bad guess.

As you heal and recover it will be easier to eat. It's will eventually be often up to you to stop before you feel full, which is why you have a meal plan.

My plan was and has been 3oz Protein, 1oz veggies 3 times a day. Once, about 2 months post-op, I was curious about calories and it was about 1200 calories. Before and since I don't count anything but my previously mentioned meals.

I either stop eating when my pouch says to stop or when I hit my previously defined meal size, whichever comes first. Exceeding either is ALWAYS a mistake I've learned through much discomfort to avoid.

18 years later, my limits are pretty much where they were a couple months post-op, and sometimes as quixotic. I stick to my plan about 90% of the time. At this point I can handle most things to some extent. Moderation in all things, including moderation.

If you don't push your limits your limits won't change much. At least mine haven't.

Good luck,

Tek

This was excellent insight. Thanks so much, Tek.

For the guys - How many calories a day do you consume? I'm in my late 50’s and about 5 weeks post surgery. I hit about 800-900 calories a day, heavy Protein, low carb. The last few days, I seem to be able to eat a little more before satiety than I have in the last couple of weeks. I’m concerned about stretching my sleeve, over eating, etc. Probably not being logical, but still wondering. I know everybody is different, but is there a calorie range you try to stay within? Thx.

On 5/3/2021 at 5:58 AM, catwoman7 said:

P.S. my RNY took about an hour. VSG is not as complicated, so they can probably do it in under an hour. Twenty minutes doesn't sound right, though. Is he sure it was just 20 minutes? If so, I'd ask the surgeon about that...

EDITED to add that I just read the comment above about VSG normally taking about 20 minutes - so maybe this is accurate after all..

I had the sleeve. Mine took 60-90 minutes. My surgeon said that’s the norm.

You look fantastic! Very, very inspiring. Go Bills! (Even though I’ve been a KC fan for 50 years) 😁

Just curious - Do the staples used in the sleeve surgery trigger the alarm in an airport scanner when you pass through? Just wondering if anyone was questioned by TSA or anything like that. Thx.

Thank you, All. Very grateful for your responses. 🙂

I’m two weeks post surgery. I’ve been told to expect fatigue for up to a month. Been feeling rather fatigued as predicted. Has anyone else had fatigue after surgery? How long did it last? Thanks.

Are any of these family members overweight?

1 hour ago, StartingMYjourney2021 said:

I’m so happy to hear you’re doing well. Today I’m 10 days post op and I’m fine. I’m walking and climbing on to my extremely tall bed lol. It was horrible in the beginning but I think it helped me relax the incisions/stitch tightness. If I laugh or sneeze then I have a bit of pain but I just place a pillow across my tummy. 😋.
I don’t know many people who had surgery around our time, I was wondering how is your diet going? Are you on full liquids? I don’t think my dietician is very good... I had my surgery done in India so the foods recommended are all Indian cuisine haha. Could ya share a bit about your food diet please ?

thanks so much

I’m on stage 2 until May 18th. My stage 2 is yogurt, shakes, Soup broth, and occasional very thin cream of rice. During pre op, my dietician was lousy and didn’t give any useful guidance. 20 minutes before being released from the hospital, the hospital dietician came in and laid out everything perfectly. Yes, coughing or clearing my throat is extremely painful as well. India? Are you recovering in India?

18 minutes ago, StartingMYjourney2021 said:

How are you feeling now? Able to walk a bit straighter ? 🙃

Yes! Thank you for asking. Got better every day. Mostly, it was due to the incisions. For me, I walked every day a little bit, made sure I rose up and sat down in the chair slowly, and I am temporarily using a cane to keep the stress off my stomach when moving around. Will be ditching the cane in a couple of days. Pain from the incisions is the only pain remaining but it is diminishing daily. How about you?

I had surgery on April 28th. My wife reminded me of something really great: after going through many months of prep working up to the surgery, then having this surgery, and now recovering from the surgery... this is a major event that easily drains a person physically and emotionally. If you would allow me to say - Connect to the people who give you support. We may have to drown out the voices of those who scoff or try to make us feel guilty. Our jobs right now are just to recover, adapt to the changes, and move forward into a new prosperous life. We have nothing to feel guilty about. We did something that will not only affect us positively, but also those around us positively because we will have something much better to give. People who really love us will support us and not make us feel guilty. Anyone who makes us feel guilty really needs to take a look at themselves inwardly.

Thank you both. That is extremely helpful. 🙂

Is it normal to have trouble standing up straight right away? I feel like everything feels really tight and it takes me a minute or two before I can even really straighten up at all. I don’t know if it’s all the glue on the scars or some thing internal or what. My surgery was only a few days ago so I’m less than a week into this. Did anyone else have a real tightening feel on their stomach when they tried to stand straight up? I’m trying to keep in mind that I was pumped full of Fluid and the organs may be pretty sore and swollen after the surgery. Grateful in advance for any feedback.

I came home from the hospital a little heavier than when I went in and thought, “Oh no!”. Now, a few days later, I’m exiting a lot of Fluid and the scale is showing movement a little bit. I agree with the more experienced folks here that it’s better to stay off the scale for a couple of weeks.....but I admit I just can’t help myself. I decided not to be too concerned what my weight does for the first few weeks. There’s a lot of adjustment going on. Right now, I believe it’s best to work on doing stage 2 well, build good habits, and start being active when my body can handle it. Starting slowly now.

April 28th.