BeanitoDiego

Well said, @NickelChip. I agree that we need radical change from our policy makers at the highest levels, and some real nutritional education. Part of my journey is that I have finally gotten very angry about the marketing/indoctrination and policy lobbying that the for-profit "food" industries have been allowed to get away with, at the expense of our health in the USA.

I'm old enough to recall that the first food pyramid from the USDA said to eat 6-11 servings of bread, rice, Cereal, or Pasta every day. As a young person, I thought I was practicing healthy eating when I would have two servings of cereal for Breakfast, then two sandwiches for lunch, and three servings of rice for supper. 9 servings was totally within the guidelines, so why was I gaining weight???

Thank you for sharing the article, @GreenTealael. I felt like I was reading about myself! Body size, obesity, health and their places in society and the science of medicine seem to get more complicated every day. I found the short history lesson on BMI quite fascinating.

I have a different flavor of BCBS that required 6 months of physician-monitored diet. But from the time that my program submitted all of the required paperwork to approval was 9 days. My surgery was scheduled for two weeks later. Out of pocket, I paid around $1000. The anesthesiologist was not in-network and was about $270 of the total cost.

I have not tried Revolution products but am seriously considering buying something at that price.

My final FINAL moments were last year. I saw a photo of myself at Thanksgiving, and I resembled a potato. I was round, just like a circle. At that time, when I would sit down, I noticed that the way that my stomach would land on my thighs was only about 5 inches from my knees.

I had the distinct thought that the weight gain was going to continue unabated if I did not make a radical life change.

First appointment was almost one year ago, and *everything* is SO much better.

Very cool information, @GreenTealael! Thank you very much for sharing that calculator.

I am 10 weeks out from surgery and felt a lot of pain for those first 4 weeks. Could not bend over to tie my shoes, felt like something was pulling in one area on my left side, dull aches everywhere in my abdomen. A giant, flat ice pack was my friend... the kind that you would find in a physical therapist's office. I have a couple on had for an unrelated knee issue. Here is where I got mine:

https://www.optp.com/Chattanooga-ColPac

Looks like there are some on Amazon, too. I was fortunate to be able to lay around for those first couple of weeks at least. Truly hope you feel better soon!

My body temp has been lower than normal for as long as I can recall, so I definitely feel that "bariatric brrr" these days. Camping a couple weekends ago saw me wearing 4 and 5 layers. I don't mind being chilly, though. I find that is quite preferable to being sweaty, just like @BabySpoons

I had a movement the day after surgery.

I'm a little over two months post-op and I am amazed at the things I can do with my body now. I went on a 4 mile hike yesterday and was not exhausted and in pain afterward. I did not have to huff and puff when going up the small hills. In fact, I have to work harder to get my heart rate up for cardio when I'm in the gym. That is something that I've never experienced in this life.

There's another sensation that I'm having that is hard to explain... It's like I'm able to move through space with more elegance.

A third thing that is amazing to me is that my dog can pull me around a bit! I'm not the planted anchor that I once was.

Way to go! Thanks for sharing this part of your journey. I hit One-derland last week, and it doesn't seem real to me, either ☺️

I was never told to sleep in any certain position. I'm a lifelong side sleeper, and I move from side to side during the night. The transitions would hurt at first, but I was much more comfortable on my side than on my back.

I have begun to notice more confidence in myself when walking around at work and in public. A very nice feeling ☺️

All of my pain issues are mostly gone. I only feel a bit of pain if I drink too much Water. I will put my hands up in the air and stretch upwards until the water moves on. I'm happy that all of my incisions have healed up well, and I went swimming for the first time last weekend. This may sound very strange, but now, jiggling my lower belly around feels nice, kinda like I'm massaging all of those areas that are still healing inside.

My go-to was low sodium vegetable broth, with added scoops of collagen Protein.

Merry met, and sending you all the good juju today! Look forward to your post-op update.

I take a one-a-day Bariatric Advantage with Iron before bedtime. It is a fairly large green capsule. I know that they also come in a chewable, but I've no experience with them.

https://www.bariatricadvantage.com/ultra-solo

Wiser minds than me have mentioned that the dark diarrhea is from old blood that is still getting purged from your system. I think that if you don't feel comfortable having pureed foods, you don't have to eat them. I consumed broth fortified with scoops of collagen for the first two weeks after surgery.

And definitely contact your bariatric provider if the color changes or pain gets any worse. I'm sure some of the forum legends will chime in to help support you, too.

My partner had anxiety about my face pre-op. They were afraid that I would look like someone that they didn't know once I lost a lot of weight, and they even shed tears. Was this a subtle way to try to talk me out of surgery? I'm not sure; they really weren't behind my decision at first, but they at least saw that I was not going to be deterred by their nor anyone else's opinion. This is about ME.

We haven't spent a lot of time together since one week post-op, because of travel commitments that they had. I do wonder if the relationship will change once we spend more time together.

6 hours ago, Arabesque said:

Wait until the bony shoulders, knees & ankles actually make sleeping on your side painful. It used to wake me every 2 hours +/- & I’d have to roll over to my other side to tame pressure off those joints.

This started happening to my knees last week! I've been using a pillow to help cushion them at night. Nothing in all of my pre-op education classes prepared me for this.

Thanks for sharing your story, summerseeker. I am a frequent traveller, and have been thinking about how having a GB might complicate life when trying to navigate airports, restaurants, that eventual cocktail that I want to treat myself to in 11 months.

I had two weeks off from work. I would have liked to have one more week, but that wasn't an option. I also had a hernia repair on top of WLS, so that made a for a little more pain and discomfort.

I stretch and do some body weight exercises like wall pushups. I think about the positive things that I have accomplished in life, and imagine the new things that I will get to accomplish once all of this excess weight is off of my precious body. Sending big hugs! We are all pulling for you 🌺

That long, large black area is one of your incisions? I am only 24 days post-op, and I have fresh pink skin and two small scabs. I don't think this is normal, and I would definitely be contacting my surgeon for help with this. Let us know what the surgeon says and good luck with healing!

On 8/31/2023 at 10:39 PM, Anc85 said:

Hello! I’m new here and 8 days post op from gastric sleeve and a hernia repair. My incisions don’t hurt but I am getting a sharp pain on the upper left side of my abdomen. I am just wondering if anyone else experienced this when they had surgery? I did contact my doctor but waiting to hear back from them so just wanted to see if this is part of the process. I just didn’t know if this is a symptom of a leak or infection or if it could be coming from stitches on the inside or if this is where they could’ve cut the stomach or fixed the hernia. Thanks to anyone who replies!

I had a bypass with a hernia repair, and the hernia repair hurt. Bad. (I was fleeping terrified of that first sneeze.) I am 24 days post-op, and the pain of the hernia repair has gone. That first two weeks though... I wish I had gotten more of a warning about how painful that would be.

And I still have a bit of pain in the upper left abdominal area. At my two week checkup the doctor wasn't concerned. Ice packs have been helping a lot! Every day the pain is a little bit less.

On 8/27/2023 at 2:24 PM, Danielle07 said:

Hi everyone! I’m having surgery Tuesday the 29th, anyone else? I’m so scared, not so much of going under, but what to expect afterwards. I feel like no matter how much you prepare for it, you’re never full prepared if that makes sense?

That makes total sense to me. I am 19 days out, and I felt prepared before surgery. However, the restrictions, the effort to get in fluids, the different sensations, the lack of solid food, the changes in the internal plumbing... I could not have prepared for any of that. One must experience these things to really understand them.

That's one reason that I am very grateful for this support forum! So many people can understand where you have been and where you are going. There are people here who are 10+ years out, and they are still very willing to share their wisdom and experiences for us newbies.

I'm sending you internet hugs and so many well wishes for tomorrow! It is rough at first, but every single day does get a little bit better