Possum220

hello so I've had the lapband for year and a half and although I haven't lost much weight with it I'm still not giving up I do get hungry at nights and there is a supplement called protrim plus have any of u heard it? Well it's a natural supplement u take it before dinner and it expans in your stomach causing you to be full it's pretty much Fiber do you think I'm able to take that or will it affect the band causing me to be in pain like if food was stuck? I don't think it would beacuse it goes to ur actual stomach if I can swallow capsules no problem it shouldn't be a problem right since it goes to the stomach ??

When you had the bypass you signed yourself up for a spot in a marathon in a number or sports. Running (what you eat) Track and field (how you eat and why). Stamina (Patience). Synchcronized swimming (Creativity). Discus (More patience). High jump (Exercise). It will take a long time of practicing all of these elements to get to the end of your race.
It can feel very hard at the start to even see the finish line and that is why you just keep on showing up for yourself day after day. I struggled at the start with the length of the journey ahead. It has taken me a year to feel better about being in my own skin. Keep on doing what your team has advised. If you keep to new habits it will happen even though there may be hiccups along the way.
Picture where you will be at in a year and looking back at the victories you will have along the way.
1 - Stay off the scales they will do your head in. Weigh once a week or month.
2 - Measure yourself once a month a see the changes.
3 - Set mini goals along the way and reward yourself when you achieve them.
4 - Be proud that you are doing the very best you can. 💖

I'm drinking a lot of Water and I think (hope) it is getting better. My face looks slimmer and I can see the wrinkles / excess skin on my thighs which is a sign that the swelling is less now. I've avoided the scale this morning. Otherwise, I will go crazy if I saw a number that is higher than yesterday's. Pickles are banned in my house now haha

Thanks. It happened to me in the past (foot and face swelling etc) but I was not paying attention to my weight then. That was before the WLS. I've been going through what I ate over the past few days and it include salty food, processed / canned food, chicken Soup from a restaurant that I know uses bullion cubes in their Soups to make it more flavorful (hello MSG!). So I think it was just a bad food combo that resulted in the water retention. I hope this goes away soon.

Our bodies are not machines. It is quite normal to lose at different rates in difference parts of our bodies. Some people lose more on the top half than the bottom half and vice versa. Of course if you have muscles in your dominant arm then there will be a difference. Muscles are a good thing.
Also our bodies have differences from one side to the other. None of us a perfectly symmetrical.

I truly hope that it is just Water retention from the pickles and you body will be able to reset. Have you noticed that your body retains water because of the hot weather? Or maybe you are just more aware now that you are a lower weight? Just a thought. Good luck with everything.

Yesterday was my surgery date. I got to the hospital early, got all registered and up to the pre op room.
Got my gown on and IV in. Was given all meds and shot in the belly and was resting peacefully waiting on my turn.
Got moved to the OR holding area. I was next in line to go into the OR. The anesthesiologist was doing his thing when he got the results of my potassium level.
At my PST it was 2.9 so I was given potassium meds for 2x a day for 3 days. When he got the recheck of my levels the potassium was at 2.8.
3.0 is the cutoff for safety.
Surgery was canceled. I cried and cried and cried.
BUT my amazing surgeon and anesthesiologist both said "when we see this happen, it's the man upstairs way of saying not today". And then I was ok with it. Upset, but ok. It will be rescheduled in the next 2-3 weeks, but man after all that the let down was huge.
I wanted to eat everything in site, but I did not. I was told it was ok to eat small amounts this weekend and restart the liquids on Monday. So I ate scrambled eggs and had OJ.
THIS IS JUST A SETBACK NOT A BRICK WALL! I will have this done and it will be amazing!!!

Thanks for listening to my issues :)

I'm so sorry that happened but glad your new date isn't far away. That's the day of my surgery too! Come join our May thread!

Thank you. Just got new surgery date of 10 May!!!

Thank you Possum220. You have done so amazingly well, congratulations on all of the milestones you achieved. I am noticing little things and am very appreciative of the weight loss so far.

Yep, definitely going to stay off the scales for a while.
Thank you for your kind words and words of motivation xxx

You have done amazingly well. 😊40lbs is awesome. Take time out to Celebrate that fact. Get yourself a gift.
Like others have said please stay off the scales. Maybe weight yourself once a week or month. Get a tape measure and record your stats. In another 6 weeks do it again and see the changes add up.
I have never heard of losing 50% of weight in the first three months. This may be true for some but not most. Starting at a higher weigh will also affect what happens. I am speaking from personal experience.
When there is a very long road ahead it is easy to lose sight of the horizon and feel discouraged. I am nearly at a year post op and I am only now beginning to see a big change. I found it helpful along the way to celebrate the big little milestones. Milestones included being able to have a shower and not get exhausted. Walking further and further each month. I could only manage to walk past 3 houses at the start and now I can walk 5km and feel okay after that. Going shopping and not having to plan a trip around being able to sit every 5 minutes.
Start setting other goals. Exercise. Holidays. New clothes. Having fun. You get the drift. Focus on the here and now. You will get there. Baby steps every day.

You have done amazingly well. 😊40lbs is awesome. Take time out to Celebrate that fact. Get yourself a gift.
Like others have said please stay off the scales. Maybe weight yourself once a week or month. Get a tape measure and record your stats. In another 6 weeks do it again and see the changes add up.
I have never heard of losing 50% of weight in the first three months. This may be true for some but not most. Starting at a higher weigh will also affect what happens. I am speaking from personal experience.
When there is a very long road ahead it is easy to lose sight of the horizon and feel discouraged. I am nearly at a year post op and I am only now beginning to see a big change. I found it helpful along the way to celebrate the big little milestones. Milestones included being able to have a shower and not get exhausted. Walking further and further each month. I could only manage to walk past 3 houses at the start and now I can walk 5km and feel okay after that. Going shopping and not having to plan a trip around being able to sit every 5 minutes.
Start setting other goals. Exercise. Holidays. New clothes. Having fun. You get the drift. Focus on the here and now. You will get there. Baby steps every day.

You have done amazingly well. 😊40lbs is awesome. Take time out to Celebrate that fact. Get yourself a gift.
Like others have said please stay off the scales. Maybe weight yourself once a week or month. Get a tape measure and record your stats. In another 6 weeks do it again and see the changes add up.
I have never heard of losing 50% of weight in the first three months. This may be true for some but not most. Starting at a higher weigh will also affect what happens. I am speaking from personal experience.
When there is a very long road ahead it is easy to lose sight of the horizon and feel discouraged. I am nearly at a year post op and I am only now beginning to see a big change. I found it helpful along the way to celebrate the big little milestones. Milestones included being able to have a shower and not get exhausted. Walking further and further each month. I could only manage to walk past 3 houses at the start and now I can walk 5km and feel okay after that. Going shopping and not having to plan a trip around being able to sit every 5 minutes.
Start setting other goals. Exercise. Holidays. New clothes. Having fun. You get the drift. Focus on the here and now. You will get there. Baby steps every day.

3-4 pounds a week is an amazing loss by any yardstick. Thank you for sharing your story OP - your honesty will help loads of others. I think you'll be absolutely fine at this rate of loss and I wish you all the luck in the world.

700 would be the very minimum to aim for. 300 is way too low. Your body needs fuel. You may find it easier to to have a combination of fluids and and soft foods until you can see the dietician. There is no one size fits all. Just do the best you can. At five weeks you are still healing and finding your way. I found that baked Beans or soft scrambled eggs (including the yolks) was a tasty way to get my protein in. Warmed Tomato juice and added my own Protein Powder.
Stalls will happen along the way. Do yourself a favor and stay off the scales.

after what you've been through, a stricture is nothing! (I had two of them - very easy fix). Malabsorption usually isn't a problem as long as you keep on top of your supplements.

Third day post op I was still in hospital after having those things done. Day by day you will get better. Be gentle with yourself and stay on top of the pain medications to ease the pain. Try to keep those fluids up while understanding that your insides are swollen.
You may be more emotional thanks to the changes in your hormones and the anesthetic. Being aware of these changes can help you in this adjustment period. Be kind to yourself.
Yay, You made it out to the other side. 😊

Yep doing much better now at 11 months out. food is normal now. Some days I get my Fluid in others not so much. I have written things down in a journal along the way and have found it helpful to remember the little details. Now is a good time to take your measurements so your brain can 'see' the changes when the scale don't reflect any movement.
Good luck on your journey.

Third day post op I was still in hospital after having those things done. Day by day you will get better. Be gentle with yourself and stay on top of the pain medications to ease the pain. Try to keep those fluids up while understanding that your insides are swollen.
You may be more emotional thanks to the changes in your hormones and the anesthetic. Being aware of these changes can help you in this adjustment period. Be kind to yourself.
Yay, You made it out to the other side. 😊

Your body has just been through major trauma & is still healing & adjusting to your new normal! It’s gonna take a couple of weeks. Listen to your body & don’t do too much too soon!

Humor

700 would be the very minimum to aim for. 300 is way too low. Your body needs fuel. You may find it easier to to have a combination of fluids and and soft foods until you can see the dietician. There is no one size fits all. Just do the best you can. At five weeks you are still healing and finding your way. I found that baked Beans or soft scrambled eggs (including the yolks) was a tasty way to get my protein in. Warmed Tomato juice and added my own Protein Powder.
Stalls will happen along the way. Do yourself a favor and stay off the scales.

When was the last time you were checked for levels? You may need an infusion/iv.

Use this one last appointment to ask all the questions that you want/need. Have you had a dietician assigned to you. Does your surgeon supply written information on the procedure and after care? Are there follow up appointments afterwards?
There is a very informative book called - Your complete guide to nutrition for weight loss surgery. Written by Sally Johnston, Great information on all the procedures, stages and the journey post WLS. Also includes Fluid and Vitamin requirements.

You are more than welcome in check back in with the surgeon now rather than continuing to gain. They would much rather see you now than waiting too long and reversing all the good you have done. Your dietician would also rather see you now. Sometimes a few words really can help turn things back around. Talk to some-one who is rooting for you. Kick those old and failing habits back to the curb, 😊