Maribelle76

My surgery was on 7/13, and I had my first day back at work as a teacher today. It went really well, and I didn't run out of energy even though we went from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. (open house). I think it helped that I was prepared with plenty of foods and I ate a few times.
We had a staff luncheon and I was a little worried what people might say because I haven't told most of them about the surgery. I ended up putting more on my plate than I plan to eat, and I slowly ate a small portion of those things. Nobody seemed to notice.
One more exciting thing for me: I went shopping for some new school clothes yesterday and I had to keep bringing back the bigger sizes for smaller ones! I got a couple of pairs of pants that were 14s and a few 16s and some shirts that were either XL or 1XL. The scale doesn't move very rapidly for me, so it was nice to see this NSV. I hope everybody else is doing well and getting back into the swing of things!

My plan has refried Beans and ground meat in the soft food stage. I also don't think eight bites total adds up to be a large amount (unless you're somehow managing to eat large bites currently). I guess I'm wondering why this is freaking you out? To me that is a good mix of Fiber and Protein.

My surgery was on 7/13, and I had my first day back at work as a teacher today. It went really well, and I didn't run out of energy even though we went from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. (open house). I think it helped that I was prepared with plenty of foods and I ate a few times.
We had a staff luncheon and I was a little worried what people might say because I haven't told most of them about the surgery. I ended up putting more on my plate than I plan to eat, and I slowly ate a small portion of those things. Nobody seemed to notice.
One more exciting thing for me: I went shopping for some new school clothes yesterday and I had to keep bringing back the bigger sizes for smaller ones! I got a couple of pairs of pants that were 14s and a few 16s and some shirts that were either XL or 1XL. The scale doesn't move very rapidly for me, so it was nice to see this NSV. I hope everybody else is doing well and getting back into the swing of things!

Beautiful before and after, but you look so fit and healthy now! Great job.

I have my surgery booked in 4 weeks time - it still feels too far away to be real in all honesty. My head was all over the place - am I making the right decision, am taking the easier way out ( I know it’s not!), am I being selfish spending such a large amount of money on myself ect ect. We had a family gathering last weekend, one of the first ones since Covid and lots of photos were taken. I saw said photos today. I burst into tears. I know and photo gate only reinforced that WLS is the right decision for me. I’ve been a yo yo dieter for as long as I can remember, I’ve been every size you can think of - but always always end up fatter than I started. Self esteem is non existent. I need to stop letting my weight control me and the quality of my life and decisions. Bring on 4th Sept.

When did you know, WLS was the right course of action for you?

I was too large for any scale but my surgeons so it really wasn't a choice. But it was a tremendous benefit. I *never* saw a stall but rather consistent weight loss month after month. When I got to a weight where I fit on a home scale (which was a goal) I used it for a couple weeks, then got bored with it.
I learned that my surgeon really didn't care about my weight but was concerned with how I was doing on the plan, how was my life, was I having issues. In point of fact, my weight never came up unless I brought it up. I took all this to heart and stopped worrying about my weight but focused on my plan, how I felt, how my life was going.
I still don't weigh myself. I get weighed at my annual physical and that's it. I stay on plan and that aspect of my life takes care of itself. The rest is where my head is.
Good luck,
Tek

has anyone here avoided weighing themselves at home and just rely on doctor's scale? I have found in my pre-op eating plan that not having a working scale was a great benefit - as i didn't feel there was any way to "game" the system. Would love to hear some other thoughts.

I am about 3 weeks out from the surgery, and I don't have any regrets so far. It is an emotionally trying time, because I'm having to learn how to control myself in ways I've never controlled myself. I'm not a disciplined person, so it can be a struggle. But I know that this is something that I have to learn how to do or I will not be able to keep up with my children.
I haven't had any complications thankfully. I was feeling good by day four and pretty much able to do most of my daily life by seven days out with the exception of lifting. I was also worried about chugging Water, but I can get a whole cup of water down pretty quickly now. The only time I have problems is if I let my acid reflux flare up (sometimes I forget my omeprazole because the surgery had helped decrease my GERD so far). If I start to have a problem getting down water, I make sure to get some antacids and that fixes it up the next day.
My thought is that if you've come this far in the process, it is most likely the best thing for you and something that you really want in your heart. Otherwise you never would have put in the effort and time to get this far. A life lived in fear is a life half-lived...
When I got a little nervous before surgery, I started looking back through all of the monthly threads. I think I looked at the March, April, May, and June threads. It was a relief to see that all of the surgeries were safe, and the complications were fairly limited and of short duration. Maybe if you go through those threads, too, that will help give you a good feel for the risks vs. the benefits.

My surgery was on 7/13, and I had my first day back at work as a teacher today. It went really well, and I didn't run out of energy even though we went from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. (open house). I think it helped that I was prepared with plenty of foods and I ate a few times.
We had a staff luncheon and I was a little worried what people might say because I haven't told most of them about the surgery. I ended up putting more on my plate than I plan to eat, and I slowly ate a small portion of those things. Nobody seemed to notice.
One more exciting thing for me: I went shopping for some new school clothes yesterday and I had to keep bringing back the bigger sizes for smaller ones! I got a couple of pairs of pants that were 14s and a few 16s and some shirts that were either XL or 1XL. The scale doesn't move very rapidly for me, so it was nice to see this NSV. I hope everybody else is doing well and getting back into the swing of things!

My surgery was on 7/13, and I had my first day back at work as a teacher today. It went really well, and I didn't run out of energy even though we went from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. (open house). I think it helped that I was prepared with plenty of foods and I ate a few times.
We had a staff luncheon and I was a little worried what people might say because I haven't told most of them about the surgery. I ended up putting more on my plate than I plan to eat, and I slowly ate a small portion of those things. Nobody seemed to notice.
One more exciting thing for me: I went shopping for some new school clothes yesterday and I had to keep bringing back the bigger sizes for smaller ones! I got a couple of pairs of pants that were 14s and a few 16s and some shirts that were either XL or 1XL. The scale doesn't move very rapidly for me, so it was nice to see this NSV. I hope everybody else is doing well and getting back into the swing of things!

Hi I got my revision on July 26th and been on a liquid diet since. Some days are easy but some days are so hard especially when time is soooo slow and everyone munches around you!

It could be a number of things, most common this far out would be a hiatal hernia that could cause these problems. Is your protonix once a day, or split into two doses, morning and evening? If it is consistent with the labelling, try taking it in the evening, as that is where your biggest problem seems to be, or splitting it morning and evening (if it is two 40mg pills.)
Short term to help with the overnight problem, try elevating the head of your bed 3-6", or elevate your head and torso with a wedge pillow, or sleep in a recliner if you have one - anything to get your upper body (not just your head) angled down toward your stomach. Avoid eating anything 2-3 hours before bedtime. These are classic DIY reflux mitigations that the gastro will probably also suggest.
You can consider going to the ER and hopefully they can get some of the tests done necessary to diagnose your problem (likely an endoscopy and/or barium swallow imaging. The may also just send you home with a larger dose of protonix or maybe a switch to dexilant and possibly carafate. An urgent care clinic may be able to help, particularly if you have one affiliated with your hospital - they may be able to short cut getting the tests done that you can then take to the bariatric surgeon (who would likely order the tests anyway. Many hospitals run these clinics for just this purpose - not really an emergency, but too urgent to wait a week or two for an appointment. This may save you a couple of weeks.
Don't worry about insurance coverage as if a revision is needed, it would not be considered a second WLS (which some insurance limits) but as corrective surgery for you complication.
Good luck in getting some resolution soon (er, rather than later)

My plan has refried Beans and ground meat in the soft food stage. I also don't think eight bites total adds up to be a large amount (unless you're somehow managing to eat large bites currently). I guess I'm wondering why this is freaking you out? To me that is a good mix of Fiber and Protein.

Hi! I had surgery on the 13th and a few days ago I made a post called "I hate the scale" lol. I have sort of been all over the place, too. Actually in the past few days since I upped my calories, I am having a more consistent downward weight trend. I think mine was a mixture of body fluids and Constipation for the first 10 days after surgery. Today I had my two week appointment and I was down a total of 9 lbs, which doesn't seem like a lot especially compared to those people who lose like 22 or 25 lb in 2 weeks, but I'm following the plan, so there's not much else I can do. I was happy to find out that that loss finally put me under a 35 BMI, so little losses are adding up. I know that people usually talk about the three-week stall on here, but the second week was really chaotic for me weight-wise. Hopefully we will both be slow but steady to meet our goals. Ps I just realized this is the bypass forum, and I had sleeve, but I don't think it makes that much difference in the first few weeks.

I was allowed to have refried Beans and cheese from Day 3 on, and I never had any problems with them.

Ok ready to post my final before and after photos. Before is around 350lbs, 3 or 4xl shirt. My highest ever confirmed weight was 356 and this was very close to that date in 2014. The other is today, wearing a size medium shirt. Surgery was June 12, 2020, weight 334lbs, 6’4” BMI 40. I hit this weight (193) about 10 months post op and have been maintaining fairly evenly since (up a couple down a couple etc). For anyone on the fence about surgery, do your research but don’t let the scary stories you read here overwhelm you or give you a false sense of their frequency. Yes, bad things can and do happen in any endeavor. No one has a crystal ball, but the statistics of health issues from being obese and the statistics of coming through gastric surgery safely and enjoying positive results speak for themselves. I never dreamed I would feel this good again. I didn’t even think I was that fat…. Just a “big guy.” Looking back at old photos I’m mortified. Looking forward I’m so optimistic and full of life and joy. I feel like this is the “me” that has always been in there, hiding, hoping, waiting to come out. What “you” do you have inside longing to come out and face the world?

I was the same. I had farmer’s feet. Plus dry, itchy skin on my legs & little pimply type things on my arms. All gone. I think it’s the reduction of sugar in my diet. Your body produces various hormones to try to process excess sugar. These hormones can cause skin dryness, reduced elastin, acne, wrinkles & skin dullness. It’s why a lot of diabetics suffer from dry skin. Plus excess sugar causes inflammation which also can cause dryness, wrinkles, etc.

Just a note, you will be saving so much money after surgery because one small container of Panera Soup will last for 3 days lol. That money alone will pay for your Vitamins.

My biggest irrational fear was that somehow - even after all that - I STILL wouldn't be able to lose weight.

P.S. I am losing weight

I was allowed to have refried Beans and cheese from Day 3 on, and I never had any problems with them.

Hi! I had surgery on the 13th and a few days ago I made a post called "I hate the scale" lol. I have sort of been all over the place, too. Actually in the past few days since I upped my calories, I am having a more consistent downward weight trend. I think mine was a mixture of body fluids and Constipation for the first 10 days after surgery. Today I had my two week appointment and I was down a total of 9 lbs, which doesn't seem like a lot especially compared to those people who lose like 22 or 25 lb in 2 weeks, but I'm following the plan, so there's not much else I can do. I was happy to find out that that loss finally put me under a 35 BMI, so little losses are adding up. I know that people usually talk about the three-week stall on here, but the second week was really chaotic for me weight-wise. Hopefully we will both be slow but steady to meet our goals. Ps I just realized this is the bypass forum, and I had sleeve, but I don't think it makes that much difference in the first few weeks.

Surgery was July 23rd, everything went smoothly I although it did take me a hours to completely wake up from anesthesia. I came home the next day just a little sore and have them had pains. I feel good, if I didn’t have the incisions or pics of my stomach my surgeon took for me.. I wouldn’t think I had surgery. I feel very blessed that everything is going well. I am just sick of having nothing but liquids :/

My Gastric Sleeve is scheduled for 7/29 8am !! last day of waiting !!!!
Plano Texas

Awwww relief! LOL I was feeling much better today 10 days out, my body did as it should this time. It was also intense. HAPPY 😃

So sorry to hear that! That would suck to have that happen, but especially even more on vacation. Hope you're back to 100% soon!