Sunnyway

Some people hold onto the IV Fluid from their surgery for slightly longer. You may just be one of those people. I'd say give it another four or five days before stressing about it. Your weight loss should pick back up then.

I just had blood work done today - will get the results in a few days.
I also have a meeting with a trainer today to learn how to do some strength training. I've done this before, but it was so many years ago that I don't remember and don't want to injure myself.
I have never been able to open jars. I even have a hard time with Protein Drink bottles!
Thanks for the supportive words!

For years your body has been holding itself in a certain way to compensate for your weight. Now you’re losing weight you will be standing & holding yourself differently & your centre of gravity is changing. Consequently you will be experiencing some muscle discomfort as your body relearns how to hold a smaller you. Back pain, hip & knee pain etc. are quite common. I had upper back pain because my bras were too big - no support. Bought new underwear & pain went.

I am three months out and I enjoy small "treats" occasionally. I will eat a tiny (about 1.5 oz) piece of cake on a holiday, but not a huge piece and not every day. My birthday was on Thanksgiving this year so we celebrated it the day before. I had about 1.5 oz of chocolate mousse cake on the celebration day, and then the next day was Thanksgiving so I had about 1.5 oz of a different cake (my mom keeps the local French bakery in business between her cake orders and croissants and baguette - she is not obese, just overweight). The next night we had a ton of leftovers plus a cake someone had brought and I decided two nights of dessert in a week was enough. I didn't want to start eating dessert again every day.
I also will eat a cracker or some cream of wheat if my stomach is upset, which happens a lot. AND... I drink diet soda! My surgeon said after 4 weeks we could have carbonation, so I drink it again. But very slowly, not like 6 cans a day like before!
I eat at restaurants most of the time because I travel for work. I try to make the best choices I can, but I know it's not perfect. Still, I'm not going to quit my job that I love; I'm just going to learn to make the best choices I can. I'm not aiming for perfect.

Although at first things are very restrictive, they become more loose after a few weeks. Like others said, I will have thin crust pizza once every couple weeks, equivalent of one slice. I also steal 3-4 of my children’s french fries on weekends, and am satisfied.
However, I haven’t eaten anything with added sugar since the sleeve. Not even a bite. The occasional sugar-free chocolate, as well as Protein Bars, more than satisfies me.

I think it really is dependent on the person, but this works for me.

NSV recently was for the first time in many years I am able to shop in the regular sizes and not Big and Tall.

I can sit in a booth again and behind my steering wheel without rubbing my belly.

A new NSV for me at 9 weeks post-op is getting out of the tub is much easier and I can push myself up with arm strength alone.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

How do you make a frozen dessert with s-f chocolate pudding and Protein Powder. When I mixed the two and put the in the freezer it just crystalized. Is there a trick to making it work?

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

I wear suits that look like bicycle shorts with tops with sleeves. You can find them on JunoActive and Swimsuits for All. I feel all covered up. No one is ever going to see my upper arms unless I can someday get plastic surgery. The top covers my belly and hanging apron.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

There are many brands of Protein Shakes and powders and each of them offer many flavors. Just do a google search to see what is out there. The prices varies from reasonable to ridiculously expensive, so shop around. Many can be found at Walmart or ordered online from the manufacturers or Amazon.
My clinic recommends these brands (but I've tried many others):
Premier Protein
Ensure Max
Equate High Performance
Atkins Plus
Musle Milke Genuine, Muscle Milk Light
Boost Max
Fair Life Core Power
There are even high Protein Soup powders from ProtiDiet and Bariatric Advantage, and others.
The variety is vast. Some you will like, some you won't. If you don't like something today, try it again in a week.
You can also make your own high protein shakes. There are lots of recipes online, using unflavored whey Protein Powder mixed with milk or Water, like GENEPRO I prefer plant-based unflavored powder, Like Orgain or Pure Protein. You can add protein powder to just about any liquid, even your coffee or tea or bullion.

I wear suits that look like bicycle shorts with tops with sleeves. You can find them on JunoActive and Swimsuits for All. I feel all covered up. No one is ever going to see my upper arms unless I can someday get plastic surgery. The top covers my belly and hanging apron.

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

Not murdering all the people who told me how gross I used to look pre WLS is my only regret. 🙂

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

I was excited/nervous about the bypass on 10/5/21. Initially I was ok. Surgery was good, sent home on track. Walking and working the discharge orders successfully. 10/10/21 back in the hospital with a bowel blockage after taking the suggested Metamucil. It gels and potentially can cause blockages. Another surgery, NG tube, and 6 days in the icu I was terrified. I am a mom, I was doing this to be better for myself and my family but I suddenly feared the choice I made could possibly have taken me from them. After coming home I have had challenges with intake, collapsed lung, incision infection, and the loss of control in bm’s . I researched this for 10 years and ignored my fear because I would read so very many success stories and think I was being over dramatic or paranoid. Although I will say my last 3 days have been better, infection seems to be doing better, lung better, fever gone and increased intake on fluids. This is definitely a life decision that can not just effect you but your family, and your mental state. Be sure, talk with your loved ones and your doctor. The most emotional moments have been during my struggles in the hospital, pain, missing my family, fear the wonderful, caring nurses that really supported me so that I could get back home to them.

I'm pre-surgery still, but I will say the hardest thing I've done so far is go on vacation and not eat everything in site. Usually I gain 5-10 lbs on vacation, but this time, I gained only 0.4 lbs. I did it by tracking everything I ate and sharing meals with my mom (she actually did gain weight, which is unusual for her, but she's a lot thinner than me). It's hard especially because my mom is so focused on which "nice" restaurants we go to and what we're going to eat; if it was just me and my dad we'd eat from a chain salad place every meal.

One of my biggest challenges post op was developing a wheat allergy. They don't tell you that it can happen to you after surgery, but it CAN! Learning how to eat around it is insanely difficult! Eating out was already tough, but now it's next to impossible... you have to constantly ask "Is there wheat in this? And if you say no, is there flour in it, because if there is, then yes, there's wheat. I'm allergic to wheat." It gets annoying. I had no idea just how many things have wheat in them! Learning to eat different was already difficult and then I had to change things to take wheat completely out of my diet but due to wheat being in more than 90% of flours it's in pretty much everything! You have to look for either 'wheat free' or 'gluten free' most of the time to know right off the bat that there isn't any wheat in it.

1. Figuring out what to do with the pissed off/sad feelings when food wasn't an option to self soothe with.
2. Grieving no longer liking foods I've used as a comfort crutch for a lifetime.
3. Being suprised that this is a lifelong challenge, a lifelong calorie count, a lifelong need to be mindful, a lifelong fight.
You don't "overcome" this. You learn more strategies to deal with disordered eating....every day....for the rest of your life. You learn more about how you ended up fat. You learn more about yourself.
Most newbies think of weighloss surgery in terms of....
First hurdle....getting surgery
Second hurdle..surviving post surgical diet
Third hurdle..doing extreme things to get down to goal weight as soon as possible. (terrible idea)
and at Goal....the fantasy ends.
The typical Newbie thinks goal weight is the yellow brick road happy ending with a rainbow over it. Goal Weight is arriving at the destination you will never depart from. It is THE END, the reward, Bliss, Victory, blah blah blah...
The problem with arriving at goal....is that you wake up the next day....and you're still you. LOL.
Look past goal. Goal isn't the end. You don't get fixed just because you reach goal. Your brain and eating aren't less disordered. You have to work through all sorts of weird behavior and fix the parts of you that need attention...the parts that drove you to morbid obesity.
That's the real challenge....living permanently with new eating habits, new physicality, and finding new outlets for toxic feelings that don't end up being self sabotaging.
The work is never done. I won't say it doesn't eventually get easier. But it's never done.
I will be working on this big life change....for the rest of my life.

One of the bigger challenges many people face is thinking the surgery magically fixes you (it doesn't), thinking that the surgery does the work (it doesn't, but you do), and thinking that you're cured somehow at goal.
You are just getting started.