vikingbeast

I am five weeks and one day post-op and down 41 lbs. from surgery weight, 50 from before the pre-op diet, and 76 from my heaviest. My incisions have all healed except one that looks a little bit herniated. My surgeon said he'd look at it at my six-week appointment on Tuesday, but didn't sound overly concerned since there's no pain. I had a slowdown (not really a stall, just a significant slowdown in weight loss) for two weeks but now appear to be back on the loss rollercoaster. My dietitian told me to start eating small portions of carbohydrates (potatoes, etc.) because apparently my system doesn't function well on protein-only. This has had the added benefit of relieving my constipation, so I no longer need to take docusate. I'm on about 1000 calories a day, which seemed high to me, but the dietitian pointed out that my activity level is more intense than many bariatric patients, PLUS I return to my physical job next week. I am completely off my blood pressure medications and my blood pressure is usually around 125/70 or 125/75. Not high enough for my primary care physician to be concerned, especially since I still have weight to lose. I also am on half the dose of antidepressant I was on (and feel great), and I need to make an appointment with my sleep clinic because I think my CPAP either needs to be dialed way down, or just simply eliminated. I am allowed to return to lifting weights (slowly) next week, so I have been running. I spent the first two weeks just walking, then did short (~100 m) jogs to get my body used to it. I am now on week 3 of Couch-to-5K and my mile time has gone down by almost four minutes since pre-op. I am with you on the mental portions. I have been trying to train myself to be willing to throw away food rather than finish it just to be polite. I am looking for a therapist to help me through this. I am discovering what foods fill me up and what foods "slide" through me. Today I met a friend for coffee and ordered ricotta toast. Ended up with an absolutely enormous slab of sourdough with what had to be 250 grams of ricotta on it. I ate two bites and was done, and am still full two hours later. But if I eat, say, a hamburger patty, it just goes right down. Absolutely zero regrets. I wish I'd done this 10-15 years ago.

I think you could certainly argue if he chose not to, especially since your weight can fluctuate 3-5 lbs. just based on things like how much salt you've eaten, stress level, whether you're close to the monthly time, or a zillion other factors. You could point out that you've lost N pounds and are clearly able to follow instructions. Honestly, I doubt you'll have a problem.

I can't sub Greek yoghurt or skyr for mayo—it just doesn't taste right to me. But I found that Best Foods light mayo (1/3 the calories and much less fat) tastes just as tangy... so much so, that I don't even use all of a tablespoon for a seafood, tuna, chicken, or egg salad.

My surgeon was one of those who said never again. I laughed in his face. But I did go off caffeine (and sugar and carbonated beverages) during pre-op. I had a cup of coffee last week (would have been week 4 for me post-op) and found it spiked my appetite, which is NOT what I need to happen... so no más coffee. I haven't tried decaf yet. I have a coffee shop meeting tomorrow, I'll try decaf.

You won't cause a leak by eating soft foods, but you should introduce them one at a time, because some foods may not work for you. I can't eat whole beans (but can eat puréed beans), for example. It is not surprising that you can only eat a few bites of mashed potatoes... you have a very small sleeve. Some foods will go through faster (we call those "slider foods" here) and some will just sit like leaden lumps. Fish goes right through me; ground meat fills me up. Just eat very slowly (a bite every 3-5 minutes) and stop when you think you're getting full. The nerve pinches and twinges are because your nerves were cut during surgery and they're regrowing. It can even feel like stabbing pain. I called my surgeon twice and he kind of pooh-poohed it and said it would go away—and it did.

I was told to bring my mask and hose, but not the machine. I didn't use it at all (I was in and out the same day). I did sleep and somehow I managed to sleep without it, and apparently I wasn't snoring.

I got over the corral fence without heaving and having to stop and readjust my center of gravity... just went up and over.

Yah... I actually added the bean broth (I make my own beans, not canned) to make it more liquidous, like I would for enfrijoladas if I could eat tortillas. Were these canned beans? Somewhere on this site (recently!) I posted a recipe for "not-refried" beans that start from dry.

It could be gas pain, or it could be your nerves that were cut regenerating. Also, I had MASSIVE pain from beans once I was allowed whole ones, even chewed to a paste. Puréed with some of the bean broth? No problem. But I mean puréed puréed, not just chopped up. I felt every one of those freaking beans move the entire way through my digestive tract. It was horrifying.

Hi Hailey, I also had hypertension (notice that past tense there!). The day before your surgery, your hospital coordinator will call you to give you specific instructions (wash with antibacterial soap, nothing by mouth after midnight, etc.) and should go through your list of medications and tell you which to take the day of surgery and which not to take. Some of them, like losartan/Cozaar, interfere with anesthesia. Your anesthesiologist has ways to control your blood pressure, so I wouldn't worry overmuch about your anxiety spiking your BP. I was as anxious as all get out and scored a super-awesome 🙄 145/87 even on amlodipine the morning of surgery, and things went just fine. But here is the awesome news: my PCP told me to take one more dose of the losartan with hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) the day after surgery since the HCTZ is a water pill and would help me pee out the surgical fluid. That was the last time I took that pill—the day after surgery. Within two weeks, I was on half my dose of amlodipine, and my doctor said to take my BP every morning and if it was below 130/80, don't take the half-dose. I haven't taken it in a week and a half, and my blood pressure has remained firmly below those numbers. So it can happen very fast. I would speak to your psychiatrist to ensure that the anti-anxiety med you're on isn't some kind of extended-release thing. Your medication won't stay in your digestive tract long enough for extended-release medications to work. I had to be switched from Wellbutrin XL (which I realize is not an anti-anxiety med...) to Wellbutrin IR... and then the dose was halved. You will be totally fine.

I'm going to dissent a little bit from the comment above, though I agree in most part. Your nerves are regrowing after being cut during surgery. It was so painful for me for like a week and a half... and then, BAM, literally overnight, no problems. I can bend forward to pick things up, I can wriggle in the bed to turn over. Definitely call your surgeon. Make a whole lot of noise if you need to. But I would say only go to the emergency room if it is absolutely debilitating OR if you have a fever, swelling, or redness that is hot to the touch.

I still drink a protein shake every morning (Fairlife chocolate for me, tastes like chocolate milk). But you could make a scrambled egg, just don't overcook it so it gets all hard and chewy. Or perhaps a little Cream of Rice in a cup of chicken broth (kind of like congee if you get the proportions just so). Or "not refried" beans puréed with a little of their broth and some onion and chile, if you want something a little heartier.

The Premier multiflavor pack is a good idea. Also, I love the Fairlife ones (they're dairy, so if that's an issue, try OWYN instead).

OK, stop cheating. Seriously. You will be glad you did. And if you have to cheat, only eat one bite of the cheat and chew it all the way down.

A dime is 19 mm in diameter, the closest British equivalents would be the 5p (18 mm) or 1p (20.3 mm).

It's so strange to be told not to eat vegetables, isn't it? After so many decades of "get your five a day!" But it's not forever. You only have a little room for food, especially at first, and so it's not "no vegetables", it's "vegetables only after protein", and at first there's not room for vegetables. It will get better, and fast. And you'll learn how to re-eat. The best part (though I had sleeve, not bypass) is that things I thought I would be tempted by aren't tempting at all. Last night I went to a birthday party and there was a whole tray of cookies and candies. None of it looked good and the size of the brownies actually made me a little queasy. In the Before Times, I'd have knocked down two or even three brownies. Now? Meh.

Yah, I've had these a couple of times. Feels like my skin is being stretched behind my left armpit. So weird and annoying, but it did go away.

You're right about where I was when I started (I was 392, 375 when I started the weigh-in process, bounced between 350-400 for ten years). I am almost five weeks out and a week from tomorrow I can start slowly re-incorporating weights back into my life (the barbell is one form of therapy...). Hoping to get down to 240 or so. I was 220 when I was playing rugby and had a flat stomach, so I think 240 some (*cough25cough*) years later is a decent goal for me. Currently in my three-week stall. Sigh. Get going body, I'm feeding you plenty.

You can't tell whether you're failing the liver shrinking diet because you can't see your liver. Just because you're not seeing big movement on the scale doesn't mean you're not changing on the inside. As long as you are following the diet and not cheating, you should be okay.

My surgeon (in the US) counted anything allowed on the liquid diet as liquid. So not only water but protein drinks, broth, soup base, sugar free jello (UK jelly), sugar free pudding, low carb yoghurt, &c. The goal was 80 oz. of liquid, not 80 oz. of water. These days I usually drink 2 L of water in addition to what I eat/consume, which is about 67 oz. of water.

I was just thinking about this today. When I renewed my license I was probably 380, and the woman made me change my hair color (some days it looks browner, some days it looks blonder) and then said, "And your current weight?" I couldn't bring myself to say "380" out loud so I put 340... and now I'm 20+ pounds below that.

Egg salad, canned chicken salad, seafood salad (made with that fake k-rab that I think is called surimi). All with light mayo. Cooked non-gassy vegetables (green beans!). Not-refried beans (my recipe below). NOT-REFRIED BEANS 1 cup (200 g) dry pinto beans (or whatever dry bean you like) 1/3 medium onion, peeled, not necessary to cut up 1 large or 2 small cloves garlic 2 bay leaves or 1 avocado leaf Salt and (optional) Knorr "suiza" (chicken bouillon powder) 1 jalapeño 1/3 medium onion, peeled and chunked 1 tsp oil 1. Soak the beans in water to cover by a few inches overnight. 2. Drain the beans, then put them in a pot (I have a clay pot but any heavy pot that retains heat will work) with the 1/3 onion, the garlic, the dry leaves, and salt or suiza. Cover with water by a good 2-3 inches (5-7 cm). 3. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer at least 2 hours until the beans are nice and tender. 4. Poke a hole in the jalapeño with a knife (so it won't explode) and fry it and the second onion third in the oil until softened. Cut the top off the fried jalapeño (take out the seeds if you don't like spicy or if seeds aren't allowed). 5. Blend the beans, the jalapeño, the fried onion, and enough of the bean broth to make a purée the consistency that you want. Save the bean broth separately, because the purée will set up overnight and you can thin it with tasty bean broth instead of just water. The entire recipe is 773 cal, 42.6g protein, 133.7g carbs, 7.5g fat. It is easily 8 bariatric servings.

Yes, it's normal. You are healing inside and also your nerves were cut, so they have to regenerate. It takes time. You can get a binder or use a pillow to brace yourself. It does get better within a couple of weeks, I promise.

One important data point: the faster releases of Wellbutrin are well known to spike anxiety in many patients. I manage mine with those ashwagandha gummies from Goli but you can find liquid ashwagandha too. 300 mg a day.

Your gyno gets a gold star. That's outstanding.