SleeverSk

did anyone else try the ones that stopped you absorbing fat and it came out in your poop? they were doozies if you ate anything slightly fatty it came out very quickly in your poop lol, oh dear, I remember it well, needless to say I didn't stay on them long.

it was ok, I think the first week you are tired and just concentrating on healing, week 3 however I was over it and regretting it big time, but I don't anymore.

38 minutes ago, Dastodd2424 said:

I’m 8 days in and I feel your pain! I was drawn to this forum bc I felt totally alone!

It gets better guys it really does

25 minutes ago, KathyLev said:

Ok-- raise your hand if you just tasted your skin ...... LOL I did - nope no bitterness. I do have a wonky sense of smell though .I just noticed that I smell things that I'm not sure are real or not. My taste buds also changed a bit. Now to me - cottage cheese tastes so salty . Maybe it's all connected somehow.

I am really sensitive to salt now I used to think cheddar cheese slices were so creamy now they are really salty

🙋‍♀️

I have started to smell smells that I don't think are there, I can't remember if this was happening before surgery, but it does happen now, don't know if its surgery related but I don't think so but maybe it is.

On 6/22/2023 at 10:43 AM, Jenniferx4 said:

I just posted this I’m regretting this hard! Its so hard. I’m even more depressed then before! 😨😫

this was me all over I am almost 2 years out now I don't regret it one bit. when I was in the stage you're in now I was even googling stomach transplants lol. but I know it doesn't feel like it now, but it does get better took me about 4 to 6 months to feel better then 10- 12 months to realise it was the right thing to do. Big Hugs you will get there.

When you have eating disorders I don't think it matters what surgery you have , its how you deal with the physiological side of things that will make it successful or not. I still have emotional triggers, and the night time nibbles. But there is no way I could eat as much as I use to when I felt like this but I still feel like I want to stuff my face and I realized I have some sort of sensory thing going on cause I constantly want to taste strong flavours and have always been like this even as a child

I think as long as you are not taking them everyday or frequently and have food with them its ok, but yes taking them regularly could become an issue even for non surgery people

Once you have WLS, in the first couple of months post op - what is your mind doing? I know people struggle to hit their Protein and Water goals a lot. I know it's a huge learning curve to adjust to the new stomach and relearn your limits and to feel full faster. But for those of us with food addictions who are looking at this as tool to get us through therapy and really force change - what is your mind doing?? when you realize you can't anymore - are you ok with that? are you angry? are you still craving the food? are you sad? are you relieved? are you satisfied? what is your brain telling you and your heart feeling in those moments as you adapt to not eating foods you used to crave, or if you can eat them how does it feel to limit those portions? I understand this is a tool. I KNOW this is necessary for healing and retraining and to make it through therapy successfully but I'm really wanting to try to know what to expect my mind and heart to feel when this massive part of my life is just ripped away. I am probably to equating it (albeit maybe not fairly) to a drug addiction rehab where they make you go cold turkey... i know i won't have physical withdrawls (aside from minor, potential repercussions while i learn to adapt to the new food intake) but what is my mind going to feel? what will i tell myself? what was your experience?

This is where I struggled but I got through it, I felt all of what you asked, regret, anger, denial that I even needed the surgery, stupid for doing it, sad everything, it was like losing my best friend. I also didn't realise how much I relied on food so that was quite a shock too. the first 6 months were rough but once I realised, I could eat normally just in smaller amounts I was fine. Start counselling before you have your surgery, and you should be fine. Keep in your mind if you do go through rough Patches that it does get better, and you will be happy you went through it in the end. I don't regret it for a minute anymore and would do it all again if given the choice. You will be one step ahead of me because you are aware these feelings can come up. I had absolutely no idea and it knocked me for a 6 but I got through it.

On 6/17/2023 at 3:26 AM, Tomo said:

I never once had acid reflux before my sleeve and I had to get revised for severe gerd. If you are already on omeprazole, then you are probably more likely than not to have to get a revision to rny in the future. I'm not a doctor so I can be wrong.

RNY is an extremely safe procedure these days. I wish I didn't put it off as long as I did. My revision was the best thing I have ever done. It fixed all my problems from the sleeve and more. I'm in the minority who had vsg problems. Most do not. But since my revision, I have never felt so normal. Not normal WLS normal but before any surgery normal. There only thing I have to do is wear a Vitamin Patch every day and take 1 or 2 tsp of Miralax in my coffee. It's been wonderful.

As far as mindset throughout the process, I always felt relieved, happy, lucky that I had WLS surgery. I would have done almost anything to get the weight off. Before WLS, I was miserable and sick due to the excess weight. It was only challenging when I had severe gerd and esophagitis but even then I was happy with my weight loss and always always always found it worth it.

I had reflux before surgery was on 40mg of nexium a day and constantly swigging on a bottle of gaviscon after surgery 20 mg nexium every other day, I get a touch of heartburn if I eat to much other than that surgery has helped my reflux

I didn't get to my goal weight gained 3 kg and I tend to bounce around that 3 kg

I have been in a stall for 12 months 😜

2 hours ago, BriarRose said:

I hate to say this, but 1800 calories a day is too much unless you are doing really strenuous exercising. I can maintain my 150 plus pound weight loss at about 1000 to 1200 calories a day, and I currently weight about 160, I am 67 years old and have had no skin removal. My doctors feel that if I did, I would be around 145 to 150. But I need new knees and there is no way I am going to have more elective surgery. But If I eat 1800 calories a day, I gain weight. Fast. Like in a couple days.

And yes, there IS more restriction in eating chicken, and fish and other meats. I eat more cheese and dairy than I probably should. But it works for me. I also eat eggs. I make sure at least 2 meals a day have a simple Protein like eggs, or chicken or fish, and the occasional beef meal. I happen not to eat shellfish or pork. If I have oatmeal for Breakfast, I make sure to have a yogurt for a midmorning snack. I eat few processed carbs and keep my Pasta, rice or bread to very very low amounts. Protein, vegetables, fresh fruits. This morning I am having my coffee then, fresh watermelon and scrambled eggs with some shredded cheese.

Get back to basics and re check with your doctor or nutritionist about calories. Frankly I rarely if ever count calories; but I know what I am eating and what I can eat to maintain my weight loss.

Best of luck and healthy eating to you !

i agree especially this early in the "journey"

I use raw sugar, just make sure you include the calories in your daily count

You are looking fantastic and healthy, good luck with your surgery. I am still waiting for my endoscope ...........YES over 12 months GEEZ.........but anyway so glad you have a surgeon who treated you quickly and got it all sorted for you

BIG HUGS I went through the same thing. I had a terrible time. feel free to stalk my profile and go back to my original posts and you will see what a bad head space I was in, but I am here to tell you it's gets easier and by the 6 months mark you will wonder why you felt like you are feeling now. With your hydration I found Powerade a life saver I was a big coke drinker before surgery, and I was like "I can't drink anything !!!" but you can you just can't have bubbles for a while, I also found a splash of cloudy pear juice in Water was great,went down really easy and helped with number 2s

Yes, everything you are going through is normal. Yes, it does get easier. Make the most of this time because certainly doesn't last forever. My surgeon told me once you get to the 2 years mark it's up to you to make sure you don't put on weight because you will be able to eat normal amounts of foods, and this happened for me at the 12-month mark and now I am getting close to my 2-year mark I can eat a lot more than I ever thought was possible after having surgery.

Don't be to eager to "push the boundaries " stay away from no go foods and drinks as long as you can.

I couldn't wait to see when I could eat/drink my old favourites which lead me on a slippery slope. I didn't reach my goal and now the kilos are creeping back on.

I had a crazy rash after surgery I still don't know what caused it. It lasted 6 weeks. I now also get this crazy rash on my stomach every now and then again no idea what's causing it and it's only been since surgery it's been happening

This is the time frame I stopped loosing weight too

It gets better trust me, in 12 months time how you are feeling now will be hard to remember. I felt like this and even worse at times but I am fine now. Focus on the improvements each . Once you are eating normal food you will feel even better.

Remember your hormones are out of whack now too so that won't be helping with your moods either. I actually started HRT Patches to help stabilise my moods, I was perimenopausal prior to surgery though.

Big hugs it does get better. My counsellor also said we go through a grieving process too which makes sense. I went through all of those emotions.

4 hours ago, Dfidelman said:

I'm sorry you had such a hard time my friend. I hope you are doing a lot better. This journey is harder than most of us realized. But we got to stick together we got this.

Thank you, Yes doing great now thanks, it will be 2 years July 28 for me.

Don't forget your hormones will be reeking havoc on your feelings and moods. I had a terrible time in my first few months post op. I spent 6 weeks curled up in a ball on my sisters couch. Cried multiple times a day for weeks thought I was going to die etc etc. it does get better and a lot easier every week

That's about the time frame i stopped loosing weight too