Jeanniebug

For the first few months, I was using the Bariatric Pal one-a-day chewable vitamins. Once I felt that I could swallow a pill that large, I started taking the Bariatric Pal one-a-day vitamins.

Welcome!

That's amazing! October 18th was my surgery date, so I'm right behind you!

I have 2 goal weights - my surgeon's and my own. My surgeon's goal for me was 163 lbs, by the 1-year mark. My own goal is 150 lbs. So far, I haven't hit 165. I've been bouncing between 166 and 170. I'm 9-months post op. It's worth noting that I haven't been able to exercise much, due to an issue with my diaphragm (surgeon thinks that perhaps my xiphoid process may have been injured during my bypass) and a rotator cuff injury. I'm currently taking a short course of Celebrex to see if that knocks out the pain. I know that once I can start lifting weights, my body will change. Walking doesn't seem to be enough. That said, I'm pretty happy where I am. I'm an easy keeper at this point. I'm not struggling with my diet. I'm maintaining well. I know that regain may happen and I'm hoping to prevent that with activity. I'm just super happy that I have other health wins. I'm no longer diabetic. My cholesterol is normal again. My blood pressure is back down to where it should be. I'm wearing a size XL - and while that's still fairly large, it's an off-the-rack size and I can shop in pretty much any store. So, goal weight... It's something to think about... But, I'm really more focused on my health and my size.

20mg and still taking 20mg.

3 months post op: Jan 9th - Ferritin - 162 (normal range 13-150), AST - 35 (normal 5-32), ALT - 51 (normal 5-33) 7 months post op: May 12 - Ferritin - 90.5, AST - 43, ALT - 77 - Ferritin has come down to normal and liver still going up. I saw my surgeon the day before yesterday. She said that high ferritin and high liver enzymes is fairly normal, after bariatric surgery.

Welcome! Hang in there! This too shall pass. It might pass like a kidney stone, but it WILL pass.

I reckon that's why they strongly discourage grazing.

Thank you for keeping us updated. I pray all goes well!

I'm not sure about DS patients, specifically, but I know that leafy greens can be difficult for a lot of people after WLS.

As @catwoman7 said, surgery doesn't treat food addiction. The surgery will help with hunger and satiety hormones. But, it does nothing for "head hunger". You're getting surgery on your stomach, not your brain. So, you'll be like a drug addict that has suddenly had their drug of choice taken away. Transfer addictions are very common. I started seeing a therapist, a couple of months before surgery. I knew that I was going to need to work on my brain and that most of that work was going to come a few months after surgery. I wanted to get a foundation laid and I'm so glad that I did. My therapist has been a lot of help.

This too shall pass. It might pass like a kidney stone, but it WILL pass.

I did the same thing as @BabySpoons - but a few years before surgery. I switched from cigs to vapes and weaned myself down to the 0% juice. Smoked that for awhile, then put it down completely. You can do this. You can do hard things!

Yay! I've been thinking about you. I'm so glad to hear that you have a clean bill of health and the process is moving forward.

I'd ask my surgeon to order an upper GI series.

Hmmm... You have 4 kids. Clearly there's enough attraction for him to be able to make babies... Nevertheless, he's saying inappropriate things and you are getting angry and resentful. Thankfully, these are things that can be worked on. I see you mentioned that you go to church. Perhaps you can utilize your pastor for marriage counseling?

I remember when I hit the "overweight" category. I nearly cried. Keep up the great work!

Welcome! You are going to be consuming about 500 calories a day, at first. You may be dehydrated, as well. You might have diarrhea or constipation. You're going to be tired and sore. You're going to be thrown into ketosis and may end up with the keto flu. They are going to be rearranging your organs - this is major surgery that you're having. I work a desk job, from home. At the time of my bypass, I was working part time. I took 3 weeks off, but wish I'd taken more. I was exhausted and had a lot of diaphragm pain that kept me from sitting upright. I wouldn't count on being a mover and shaker, just a few days out from surgery. Some people have no problems at all and can resume their normal life the day after they get home from the hospital. Not me, man. My recovery was rough - though uncomplicated. Plan for the worst, hope for the best.

Welcome! Chew and spit is a technique that many people have used to get through their cravings. As long as you aren't swallowing it, you should be fine. You'll want to be really careful that you aren't swallowing any of it, though. So, you might want to rinse out your mouth, afterward.

Yes, it's quite common. Take your Tylenol.

If it wasn't the right thing to do, your doctor wouldn't've allowed it. Remember your reasons for wanting the surgery. Life can be kind of hard for the first couple/few months after surgery. Thankfully, the time went pretty quickly for me. You're tired, you're sore, your body is freaking out and super stressed. This too shall pass. It might pass like a kidney stone, but it WILL pass.

Are you getting enough water?

Fairlife were really the only ones I liked. Most of the others made me nauseous. I didn't use powders to drink, I used premade shakes. I used powders to add to things like soup and I mainly used the Isopure unflavored. Whey protein isolate is what you want, not whey protein concentrate.

They tested me for nicotine. I don't think they tested me for weed, but I'm not exposed to that so don't really care. I was worried about the nicotine, because my husband vaped at that time. I was afraid of the second hand exposure. But, it was fine. You might want to seek professional help for your addictions. This is actually going to come up later, because you might have an issue with transfer addiction to food. You want to set yourself up for the best success. Even if your drug tests come back negative, you're going to want to deal with these issues as soon as possible.

Welcome!