FutureSylph

GOOD LUCK TO ALL THE SURGERIES TODAY! THINKING OF YOU ALL FOR A SMOOTH RECOVERY!

Good luck to you too!!!

Well tomorrow is my big day. I am surprisingly not nervous...yet. I am super glad to be done with the pre op diet that's for sure! Will keep you posted as to how it went and my recovery.

My surgery was long but went well. I'm not in a ton of pain thanks to scheduled pain meds, I only took one oxycodone.

My leak test this morning showed the barium was still in my esophagus more than 10 minutes after I drank it. I got a dose of steroids to get rid of the swelling. I'm not surprised because I had the same thing happened with my sleeve. It looks like I'll be spending another day here



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Well done! You must be so proud and pleased.

Learn to curtsy, shown here as a "curtsy lunge:" https://www.byrdie.com/how-to-get-a-bigger-butt

It’s surgery month everyone! Best of luck to you all. Would love to follow your journey and progress!

Learn to curtsy, shown here as a "curtsy lunge:" https://www.byrdie.com/how-to-get-a-bigger-butt

Go, Kitty, go! I'll be thinking of you tomorrow and wishing you well.

The final countdowns have begun for me. After 5pm only Clear Liquids, at 6pm I'll call the scheduling line and get my arrival time, then I'll take a shower with the special soap and put the nausea patch on. Then it's chill time with my kitties until we go to bed. I need to wake up about 2.5 hours before arrival time to drink a 20 ounce full sugar Gatorade then take another special soap shower.

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WoooHOOOO! I just received word a few minutes ago that my insurance has approved my surgery, and that the clinic (which has been backed up for weeks due to COVID) has tentatively scheduled my RNY for March 3. That's only three weeks away! I've been working toward the surgery since January 2021, so this news is more than welcome. I'm crossing my fingers for no more delays, and an unremarkable procedure.

I'm looking forward to treating myself to a dude ranch vacation once I get down to a horse-friendly weight.

I did, too. Five more days for me. I'm about to jump out of my skin, I'm so excited. Hard to believe that a week from today I'll be home from the hospital.

You need to discuss this with your surgeon & dietician because there are lots of different answers & you need the one that is right for you & your needs as well as your team’s medical recommendations.
I was never given a caloric goal just Water, Protein & portion size recommendations. I’d check my calories myself out of curiosity & I was only consuming 200-300 up to solid food stage. But others are given much higher caloric goals like double & triple what I was eating. And some are given very specific macro goals - how much fat, carbs, etc. to consume each day.
Don't be afraid to ask for enough guidelines around this that you feel you need to feel comfortable about your food choices. I was fine with very few requirements but others feel safer if they’re given very precise instructions.

Now that I'm calming down from the initial rush of finally getting a surgery date, I'm in list-making mode. (I'm really big on lists, because what I don't write down, I tend to forget.) Which questions to ask my surgeon at my pre-op appointment, what to pack in my overnight bag, how to arrange transportation to and from the hospital, etc. One thing I really want to do is take (or ask my sister to take) some pre-op photographs of myself so I'll have some to compare as I lose weight. This one's hard for me, because I've avoided cameras for decades. But I'm sure I'll want to see the difference as my inner sylph emerges! (See my screen name? Does it make more sense now?)

While the majority of us lose our hunger for a while after surgery, a small number don’t. While a lot of our hunger hormones are produced in our tummy & mostly removed during the surgery, hunger hormones, though in much s,aller quantities, are still produced in our brains.
Head hunger can drive us to eat for different reasons. To soothe & comfort - post surgery your emotions can be all over the place & the surgery itself is stressful so you seek food to comfort but you can’t eat what you usually ate in emotional situations. Out of habit - you eat because of what you’re doing (watching tv, etc.) or the time (on the clock or how long since you last ate). Out of boredom - the act of looking for something to eat & eating is something to do & breaks the boredom. Craving a texture or flavour like craving sweet, salty or carbs, or wanting something crunchy or chewy, etc. - this craving can’t be satisfied during the liquid, purée & soft phases which seems to make the craving stronger. Eating mindlessly - nibbling, grazing, etc. because the food is there & for no other reason.
Because so many of us were driven to eat by our head hunger in the past it’s like we have to learn what real hunger feels like now & it does feel different. How it will feel for you may be different than how it feels for me. (I get restless, think something is wrong but I don’t know what till I realise I’m hungry.)
Working out strategies to manage head hunger can be challenging. Recognising it for what it is is the first step. Then look for ways to handle it: distractions (watch tv, read, do a craft, play a game, go for a walk, potter in your garden, etc), delay (wait to satisfy the craving for 30mins - it often goes), have some Water, a cup of tea (herbal or green as you’re allowed),. This can help with real hunger too.
It can seem a lot to work through but you’ll get there. Good luck & I hope you continue to recover well.

Slightly off topic, but important to me. As a morbidly obese woman I had some pretty serious confidence gaps. For many years I was a single mom. I did have the confidence to get myself through nursing school, raise my two kids on my own, and make a good career for myself. However, outside of work my confidence and feelings about myself were pretty lacking. It was honestly hard to see all of my friends partnered, doing all the “couple” things. I spent a lot of time alone at home reading and watching tv. I self medicated with crappy food.

Eight years ago some of that changed. I met a guy who I thought would be my partner for life. He and I had many adventures together, and as I became happier I started taking better care of myself. However, I think that baseline low level of confidence in myself allowed me to ignore some red flags. I allowed him to keep me in a place of not fully embracing my health. I allowed him to treat me in ways that I should not have, and I should have left sooner. I was still held back by my years of poor self esteem and not truly seeing my value.

I’ve been working in therapy to change that. My marriage has ended. I made a big move both physically and mentally. I left my long time job and moved from Seattle to Portland. I bought my first home-which at 52 felt like an insurmountable task. I’ve been renovating my kitchen. Seems simple, but every time I make these big decisions for myself and successfully execute them my confidence grows.

A long time desire of mine has been to travel to Europe. I always held off not sure enough of myself to take this on without a partner. Well today I took the plunge. I booked myself a trip in May! In my heart I’d still like a partner to do these things with, but I’m now at a place where I don’t NEED one to accomplish things I want to do. Although it’s more complex than just dropping the weight, that is a huge part of it. Moving through the world in a “normal” sized body has been a big piece of gaining confidence to make big moves, and to not accept behavior from people that I never should have.

Now that I'm calming down from the initial rush of finally getting a surgery date, I'm in list-making mode. (I'm really big on lists, because what I don't write down, I tend to forget.) Which questions to ask my surgeon at my pre-op appointment, what to pack in my overnight bag, how to arrange transportation to and from the hospital, etc. One thing I really want to do is take (or ask my sister to take) some pre-op photographs of myself so I'll have some to compare as I lose weight. This one's hard for me, because I've avoided cameras for decades. But I'm sure I'll want to see the difference as my inner sylph emerges! (See my screen name? Does it make more sense now?)

I'm a huge fan of privacy, but not of lying. I'd say "I'm having a procedure" without specifying which one, then change the subject.

Now that I'm calming down from the initial rush of finally getting a surgery date, I'm in list-making mode. (I'm really big on lists, because what I don't write down, I tend to forget.) Which questions to ask my surgeon at my pre-op appointment, what to pack in my overnight bag, how to arrange transportation to and from the hospital, etc. One thing I really want to do is take (or ask my sister to take) some pre-op photographs of myself so I'll have some to compare as I lose weight. This one's hard for me, because I've avoided cameras for decades. But I'm sure I'll want to see the difference as my inner sylph emerges! (See my screen name? Does it make more sense now?)

WoooHOOOO! I just received word a few minutes ago that my insurance has approved my surgery, and that the clinic (which has been backed up for weeks due to COVID) has tentatively scheduled my RNY for March 3. That's only three weeks away! I've been working toward the surgery since January 2021, so this news is more than welcome. I'm crossing my fingers for no more delays, and an unremarkable procedure.

Got some pics!! Of the race... not the towel wrapping!!

Mindful Moment: I'm feeling all kinds of emotions today. It's this weird mix of fear, anxiety, elation, resolve, focus, and super-charged anticipation of my future self all at once. If you may be feeling this way too, know you're not alone.
My surgery date is March 7th, just 21 days away. I've been on an 8-month journey filled with highs and lows like so many of you. As I reflect on my feelings today, I want to honor them wholeheartedly as each one of them is valid. Most of all, I felt it was important to share my feelings with others who may be feeling similarly.
While each of our journeys is that of our own, we're not alone. We all need to be reminded of that in our moments of mixed emotions.
~Meg

What to eat wouldn't be my chief concern in this situation (there's always baby food and Protein powder); staying hydrated and rested would. Remember to plan plenty of extra rest stops to pee and stretch. You didn't mention the children's ages, but hopefully they're big enough to carry everything you need (cooler, overnight bag, etc.).

Now that I'm calming down from the initial rush of finally getting a surgery date, I'm in list-making mode. (I'm really big on lists, because what I don't write down, I tend to forget.) Which questions to ask my surgeon at my pre-op appointment, what to pack in my overnight bag, how to arrange transportation to and from the hospital, etc. One thing I really want to do is take (or ask my sister to take) some pre-op photographs of myself so I'll have some to compare as I lose weight. This one's hard for me, because I've avoided cameras for decades. But I'm sure I'll want to see the difference as my inner sylph emerges! (See my screen name? Does it make more sense now?)