Clary

Hi, July Buddies! I'm sorry I haven't been posting or replying for a few weeks; I'm bad at keeping up with social media. But I have been thinking about you all and praying for your surgeries to go well!
My July 12 surgery went well with no complications. I'm still finding it hard to get enough liquids in throughout the day. I've been averaging like 30 ounces a day. Even though my mouth is constantly thirsty, my stomach feels uncomfortably full all the time. Fighting thoughts of feeling like a failure. I want to get up and do more, but my one attempt at a short grocery trip made me break out in a sweat, and I'm worried about dehydration.
I'm finally on the last day of 2 weeks of twice-daily Lovenox self-injections and I want to throw a party. Anyone else have to do this? I bruise more easily than fruit so these have been more painful than my incisions. But of course bruises are far less deadly than blood clots, so I'm trying to be thankful for the medicine that hurts me.

Finally. Surgery day is here! God, I can't do this without You.
I completed my 14-day clear liquid sugar-free and caffeine-free diet along with some protein drinks. I didn't cheat once. That in itself is a miracle! I've lost 10 lbs. during this time, and 25 lbs. overall (since January 1st). I was placed on prednisone (steroid) twice this past Spring, which set me back. It causes. much weight gain whenever I'm on it and it takes many weeks to get the weight off. So as I was losing, I'd gain weight while on that medication. So frustrating, but it's behind me, hopefully forever.
These two weeks really prepared my mind for this journey moving forward. I will work to continue strengthening this new mindset. Not easy, right? I appreciate the input this forum - you beautiful people - has provided. I hope optimal health and strong minds for you all.
Onward! ?

So far, so good. I’m home now. Surgery went well. I didn’t have a lot of pain just discomfort. Felt like I did a heavy ab workout the day before. My chest felt tight too, like I couldn’t get a big enough breath.
They had me on IV Tylenol and Toradol around the clock. My last dose was right before discharge today. I’ve only had Tylenol since I’ve been home. I’ve also been doing the incentive spirometry, which helps, but the most effective “treatment“ has been walking. I saw others say the same thing and it really does work!
I haven’t had any nausea, vomiting, or issues with drinking. They had me take a pre-op antiemetic and I was on Zofran around the clock. I have some oral Zofran for home if I need it.
I hope the rest of my July buddies have a good experience too! Good luck!

I had my surgery on the 12th, and I agree with the getting out there! My first week post surgery was cold and wet out (I’m in Australia), and it didn’t really help with my mood. Everything felt dark, but as soon as I could, I got ours wide for short walks and it changed EVERYTHING! I hope your pain diminishes and you start to feel more like yourself soon! It’s just a matter of time!

Apologies in advance for the long post!!
Hello everyone! I had my surgery July 12th! I am a little over a week post op! Here’s a little bit of insight for those interested!
Before surgery I was given a whole bunch of stuff as well as some antibiotics in which I had an allergic reaction to and made me break out in hives. It was super uncomfortable considering I was then wheeled to the operating room shortly after. I couldn’t do anything about the itching as I had to lay in a particular way and kept thinking “I hope they put me to sleep under soon” because it was soooo uncomfortable.
After waking up I could barely open my eyes, and at some point I stopped trying but I was still aware of my surroundings for a bit. I just remember shivering and feeling extremely cold. My entire body was aching and I kept getting these chills of pain run through my body. I was in and out so I didn’t even remember leaving the operating room and into the post op room.
If I am being completely honest the pain was at its highest the day of the surgery and thankfully the medications they gave me were strong or else I didn’t think I would be able to bear it. I pushed myself to walk about 3-4 hours after surgery even though I wasn’t pushed to, I felt like I needed to?? (Idk my brain was all over the place). I just couldn’t stand laying down for all this hours so if it meant walking to use the bathroom to get out of bed then so be it.
I kept trying to push through it and walk walk walk. They were not kidding about the walking and how it helps with gas pains. The gas pains were so bad for me, it felt like bloating(?) just everywhere..the gas pains wow..
My entire stay everyone was super nice and attentive! My surgeon was also kind enough to fulfill my request in taking a picture of my stomach after he took it out! (I personally found it very fascinating!!)
I was finally discharged the next day after being able to handle water and soup about 4oz for 5 hours consecutively. And I was very homesick and really missed my bed (and pets).
By day 5 though I felt pretty good and a bit back to my normal self for the most part.
Until day 5 I could NOT stomach regular water. For some reason I could not stand the taste of it?? It tasted disgusting and I had to keep drinking Gatorade or mixing my water with daily hydration flavored packets.
After day 5, I was able to stomach protein shakes (mixed with collagen) and was super happy about the progress.
There hasn’t been any complications and for that I am thankful, I didn’t check in sooner as I was busy trying to consume fluids every 15 minutes (I got tired of the timers soooo quick).
An app that has been a staple for me personally is Baritastic, love the easy platform and the visualization of the water goal for the day as well as being able to log in my weight. It breaks down my goal into little milestones and basically an all in one app as I can also log in food and tracks weightloss from before and after surgery as well! I also lets me keep count of the days after surgery and my BMI! Highly recommend this app, especially because it’s free
Apologies for the long post! I wanted to be thorough and detailed especially for those that are still waiting to have surgery! I cannot think about anything else to write but if anyone has any questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to respond and as open as possible! I cannot wait to start puréed food though!! ?

Apologies in advance for the long post!!
Hello everyone! I had my surgery July 12th! I am a little over a week post op! Here’s a little bit of insight for those interested!
Before surgery I was given a whole bunch of stuff as well as some antibiotics in which I had an allergic reaction to and made me break out in hives. It was super uncomfortable considering I was then wheeled to the operating room shortly after. I couldn’t do anything about the itching as I had to lay in a particular way and kept thinking “I hope they put me to sleep under soon” because it was soooo uncomfortable.
After waking up I could barely open my eyes, and at some point I stopped trying but I was still aware of my surroundings for a bit. I just remember shivering and feeling extremely cold. My entire body was aching and I kept getting these chills of pain run through my body. I was in and out so I didn’t even remember leaving the operating room and into the post op room.
If I am being completely honest the pain was at its highest the day of the surgery and thankfully the medications they gave me were strong or else I didn’t think I would be able to bear it. I pushed myself to walk about 3-4 hours after surgery even though I wasn’t pushed to, I felt like I needed to?? (Idk my brain was all over the place). I just couldn’t stand laying down for all this hours so if it meant walking to use the bathroom to get out of bed then so be it.
I kept trying to push through it and walk walk walk. They were not kidding about the walking and how it helps with gas pains. The gas pains were so bad for me, it felt like bloating(?) just everywhere..the gas pains wow..
My entire stay everyone was super nice and attentive! My surgeon was also kind enough to fulfill my request in taking a picture of my stomach after he took it out! (I personally found it very fascinating!!)
I was finally discharged the next day after being able to handle water and soup about 4oz for 5 hours consecutively. And I was very homesick and really missed my bed (and pets).
By day 5 though I felt pretty good and a bit back to my normal self for the most part.
Until day 5 I could NOT stomach regular water. For some reason I could not stand the taste of it?? It tasted disgusting and I had to keep drinking Gatorade or mixing my water with daily hydration flavored packets.
After day 5, I was able to stomach protein shakes (mixed with collagen) and was super happy about the progress.
There hasn’t been any complications and for that I am thankful, I didn’t check in sooner as I was busy trying to consume fluids every 15 minutes (I got tired of the timers soooo quick).
An app that has been a staple for me personally is Baritastic, love the easy platform and the visualization of the water goal for the day as well as being able to log in my weight. It breaks down my goal into little milestones and basically an all in one app as I can also log in food and tracks weightloss from before and after surgery as well! I also lets me keep count of the days after surgery and my BMI! Highly recommend this app, especially because it’s free
Apologies for the long post! I wanted to be thorough and detailed especially for those that are still waiting to have surgery! I cannot think about anything else to write but if anyone has any questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to respond and as open as possible! I cannot wait to start puréed food though!! ?

Apologies in advance for the long post!!
Hello everyone! I had my surgery July 12th! I am a little over a week post op! Here’s a little bit of insight for those interested!
Before surgery I was given a whole bunch of stuff as well as some antibiotics in which I had an allergic reaction to and made me break out in hives. It was super uncomfortable considering I was then wheeled to the operating room shortly after. I couldn’t do anything about the itching as I had to lay in a particular way and kept thinking “I hope they put me to sleep under soon” because it was soooo uncomfortable.
After waking up I could barely open my eyes, and at some point I stopped trying but I was still aware of my surroundings for a bit. I just remember shivering and feeling extremely cold. My entire body was aching and I kept getting these chills of pain run through my body. I was in and out so I didn’t even remember leaving the operating room and into the post op room.
If I am being completely honest the pain was at its highest the day of the surgery and thankfully the medications they gave me were strong or else I didn’t think I would be able to bear it. I pushed myself to walk about 3-4 hours after surgery even though I wasn’t pushed to, I felt like I needed to?? (Idk my brain was all over the place). I just couldn’t stand laying down for all this hours so if it meant walking to use the bathroom to get out of bed then so be it.
I kept trying to push through it and walk walk walk. They were not kidding about the walking and how it helps with gas pains. The gas pains were so bad for me, it felt like bloating(?) just everywhere..the gas pains wow..
My entire stay everyone was super nice and attentive! My surgeon was also kind enough to fulfill my request in taking a picture of my stomach after he took it out! (I personally found it very fascinating!!)
I was finally discharged the next day after being able to handle water and soup about 4oz for 5 hours consecutively. And I was very homesick and really missed my bed (and pets).
By day 5 though I felt pretty good and a bit back to my normal self for the most part.
Until day 5 I could NOT stomach regular water. For some reason I could not stand the taste of it?? It tasted disgusting and I had to keep drinking Gatorade or mixing my water with daily hydration flavored packets.
After day 5, I was able to stomach protein shakes (mixed with collagen) and was super happy about the progress.
There hasn’t been any complications and for that I am thankful, I didn’t check in sooner as I was busy trying to consume fluids every 15 minutes (I got tired of the timers soooo quick).
An app that has been a staple for me personally is Baritastic, love the easy platform and the visualization of the water goal for the day as well as being able to log in my weight. It breaks down my goal into little milestones and basically an all in one app as I can also log in food and tracks weightloss from before and after surgery as well! I also lets me keep count of the days after surgery and my BMI! Highly recommend this app, especially because it’s free
Apologies for the long post! I wanted to be thorough and detailed especially for those that are still waiting to have surgery! I cannot think about anything else to write but if anyone has any questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to respond and as open as possible! I cannot wait to start puréed food though!! ?

Apologies in advance for the long post!!
Hello everyone! I had my surgery July 12th! I am a little over a week post op! Here’s a little bit of insight for those interested!
Before surgery I was given a whole bunch of stuff as well as some antibiotics in which I had an allergic reaction to and made me break out in hives. It was super uncomfortable considering I was then wheeled to the operating room shortly after. I couldn’t do anything about the itching as I had to lay in a particular way and kept thinking “I hope they put me to sleep under soon” because it was soooo uncomfortable.
After waking up I could barely open my eyes, and at some point I stopped trying but I was still aware of my surroundings for a bit. I just remember shivering and feeling extremely cold. My entire body was aching and I kept getting these chills of pain run through my body. I was in and out so I didn’t even remember leaving the operating room and into the post op room.
If I am being completely honest the pain was at its highest the day of the surgery and thankfully the medications they gave me were strong or else I didn’t think I would be able to bear it. I pushed myself to walk about 3-4 hours after surgery even though I wasn’t pushed to, I felt like I needed to?? (Idk my brain was all over the place). I just couldn’t stand laying down for all this hours so if it meant walking to use the bathroom to get out of bed then so be it.
I kept trying to push through it and walk walk walk. They were not kidding about the walking and how it helps with gas pains. The gas pains were so bad for me, it felt like bloating(?) just everywhere..the gas pains wow..
My entire stay everyone was super nice and attentive! My surgeon was also kind enough to fulfill my request in taking a picture of my stomach after he took it out! (I personally found it very fascinating!!)
I was finally discharged the next day after being able to handle water and soup about 4oz for 5 hours consecutively. And I was very homesick and really missed my bed (and pets).
By day 5 though I felt pretty good and a bit back to my normal self for the most part.
Until day 5 I could NOT stomach regular water. For some reason I could not stand the taste of it?? It tasted disgusting and I had to keep drinking Gatorade or mixing my water with daily hydration flavored packets.
After day 5, I was able to stomach protein shakes (mixed with collagen) and was super happy about the progress.
There hasn’t been any complications and for that I am thankful, I didn’t check in sooner as I was busy trying to consume fluids every 15 minutes (I got tired of the timers soooo quick).
An app that has been a staple for me personally is Baritastic, love the easy platform and the visualization of the water goal for the day as well as being able to log in my weight. It breaks down my goal into little milestones and basically an all in one app as I can also log in food and tracks weightloss from before and after surgery as well! I also lets me keep count of the days after surgery and my BMI! Highly recommend this app, especially because it’s free
Apologies for the long post! I wanted to be thorough and detailed especially for those that are still waiting to have surgery! I cannot think about anything else to write but if anyone has any questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to respond and as open as possible! I cannot wait to start puréed food though!! ?

Apologies in advance for the long post!!
Hello everyone! I had my surgery July 12th! I am a little over a week post op! Here’s a little bit of insight for those interested!
Before surgery I was given a whole bunch of stuff as well as some antibiotics in which I had an allergic reaction to and made me break out in hives. It was super uncomfortable considering I was then wheeled to the operating room shortly after. I couldn’t do anything about the itching as I had to lay in a particular way and kept thinking “I hope they put me to sleep under soon” because it was soooo uncomfortable.
After waking up I could barely open my eyes, and at some point I stopped trying but I was still aware of my surroundings for a bit. I just remember shivering and feeling extremely cold. My entire body was aching and I kept getting these chills of pain run through my body. I was in and out so I didn’t even remember leaving the operating room and into the post op room.
If I am being completely honest the pain was at its highest the day of the surgery and thankfully the medications they gave me were strong or else I didn’t think I would be able to bear it. I pushed myself to walk about 3-4 hours after surgery even though I wasn’t pushed to, I felt like I needed to?? (Idk my brain was all over the place). I just couldn’t stand laying down for all this hours so if it meant walking to use the bathroom to get out of bed then so be it.
I kept trying to push through it and walk walk walk. They were not kidding about the walking and how it helps with gas pains. The gas pains were so bad for me, it felt like bloating(?) just everywhere..the gas pains wow..
My entire stay everyone was super nice and attentive! My surgeon was also kind enough to fulfill my request in taking a picture of my stomach after he took it out! (I personally found it very fascinating!!)
I was finally discharged the next day after being able to handle water and soup about 4oz for 5 hours consecutively. And I was very homesick and really missed my bed (and pets).
By day 5 though I felt pretty good and a bit back to my normal self for the most part.
Until day 5 I could NOT stomach regular water. For some reason I could not stand the taste of it?? It tasted disgusting and I had to keep drinking Gatorade or mixing my water with daily hydration flavored packets.
After day 5, I was able to stomach protein shakes (mixed with collagen) and was super happy about the progress.
There hasn’t been any complications and for that I am thankful, I didn’t check in sooner as I was busy trying to consume fluids every 15 minutes (I got tired of the timers soooo quick).
An app that has been a staple for me personally is Baritastic, love the easy platform and the visualization of the water goal for the day as well as being able to log in my weight. It breaks down my goal into little milestones and basically an all in one app as I can also log in food and tracks weightloss from before and after surgery as well! I also lets me keep count of the days after surgery and my BMI! Highly recommend this app, especially because it’s free
Apologies for the long post! I wanted to be thorough and detailed especially for those that are still waiting to have surgery! I cannot think about anything else to write but if anyone has any questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to respond and as open as possible! I cannot wait to start puréed food though!! ?

Same here! I only told certain people only when it was necessary but it somewhat spread through friends and family. I now wish I did the same as you and just kept it to a minimum or refuse to expand further as now they all believe to be weight loss experts and chime in with their unwanted opinions, and it’s a bit frustrating..
I have always felt like the fat friend as well and it has really killed my social life mostly due to embarrassment about the way I look and feel like I take a ton of space for those around me you know?
Hopefully this lifestyle change will improve our confidence and change our way of life for the better! Good luck on your journey!

Hi LibrarianErin and others! First time posting here! I am scheduled for July 12! Currently on my pre-op diet. To be honest, it is a lot harder than I expected trying to fight the urge to eat and constantly having to remind myself that I cannot. Although it feels hard now I know future me will thank me for it.
I’ve also found TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit nice for information and following others to see their journey. Especially the food recipes.
Currently on day three of my pre op diet and on the first night I had a little moment where I started to panic thinking and just overwhelming myself with “what-ifs” but I found that watching videos and reading threads such as this one has helped ease my nerves a bit.
I was met with some criticism from peers and others about having the surgery mostly due to my age. Also the typical “just diet and exercise” answer which is frustrating as I’ve been trying that the last 4 years and struggling to lose anything. But I am doing this primarily for my health (a little tiny bit for myself lol) because I want to enjoy life again.
Excited to start the journey of a new lifestyle and learn to have a better relationship with food and myself! How is everyone else doing?