Zeal33

On 02/22/2024 at 14:55, Nan CC said:

I need to rant a little! I have always struggled with excess weight in my adult life. Over the years I tried Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig, my own thing, you name it. For the past 8 years I have been struggling to lose 50-60 lbs. It was extremely difficult for me to lose anything at all unless I severely limited calories - like 800, 900 per day - which I could only do with the help of prescription medicines. When I'd stop taking them the weight would come back despite that fact that I was rarely overeating, usually around 1500 calories per day. Over the years I gained and lost the same weight this way. I took Contrave, but it hyped me up so badly I couldn't stand it. I took Belviq, which worked well - I didn't care if I ate or not so it was easy to consume so few calories, but it was taken off the market. I used Qysmia, which also worked the same way. I lost 30 lbs, but I was paying out of pocket and couldn't afford it any more. One of my issues is that I lose weight VERY slowly, and it was frustrating to work so hard and lose a pound or 2 a month. After gaining all the weight back plus 10 more pounds in 2 years, I knew I could lose it again by getting back on Qysmia but I couldn't bear the thought of the "yoyo" again. I'm 67 and have diabetes and heart disease in my family, which I was afraid of developing if I didn't take and keep the weight off. I'm on blood pressure and cholesteroI meds already. I can't play with a yoyo any longer at this point in my life and so I began to consider sleeve gastrectomy. I researched and thought about it for a long time before finally having surgery 1/24/24.

Yesterday it was 4 weeks since surgery. In the 1st 2 weeks I lost 10 lbs. While I hoped to lose more, this was a good result because before surgery it would have taken me about 6 months to lose 10 lbs. Victory!! Or so I thought. Since then, however, I haven't lost any weight. I've read about the 3 week stall, which I guess is what I am experiencing. I think I get it. And at the same time I am enormously frustrated and sometimes find myself thinking that I made this drastic and permanent change in my life only to have the same result - consuming very little calorically and the weight just not coming off. Except now I'm consuming even fewer calories (still on purees). And on top of that, I am hungry almost all day. After Breakfast, I wait 15 minutes and start on water/fluids again. Fifteen minutes after that, I am hungry again. And yes, it's genuine hunger - with growling and an empty feeling. Eating 1/4 cup of food is not filling me up. I am getting usually around 70g of Protein each day in what I'm eating and drinking, so it's not that.

I had some wild expectations, I'll admit. My doctor gave me a goal weight that requires me to lose 50 lbs. (60 for a "stretch" goal). I (crazily) thought that it would take about 2 months to lose that much. I've since realized that with relatively little to lose it will go slower, but geez! For who knows what reason, I also thought I would hardly ever be hungry. Five days post op, natural hunger returned. I was mad! And surprised, but I relied on this forum and learned that hunger was still normal. I thought once I could actually eat something it would be more like "normal" hunger - like before surgery - when it was about time to eat. Instead I find that I am often just hungry all day (usually worse at night) and the amount I'm eating isn't enough. I eat the recommended 2 oz of food and I never feel full, but I stop because that is the recommended amount. The instructions I've been given have implied that this should be more than enough to fill me at this point and that I might not even be able to finish that much, but it hasn't been the case for me. In 30 minutes or so, it's like I didn't eat anything and I'm hungry again.

Of course I realize that a lot of my problem is my unrealistic expectations. But sometimes I do feel frustrated that I did this drastic thing only to have nothing change - I still can't lost weight. Mostly, reason prevails and I know that sooner or later the weight has got to come off. Reason is reassuring for the mental issue I have here, but reason does nothing to help the hunger.

Ok, rant over. Does anyone have experience like this? Very slow loss and constant hunger? Does the weight loss pick up? How long does the 3 week stall last? Does the hunger ever return to normal? Help!!

I’m sorry I don’t have any magic solutions. Only to say that I am in the same boat as you. I has RNY on January 22, 2024 and I constantly struggle with hunger. I have zero restriction. I have found some YouTube videos by Dr. John Pilcher to be really helpful. I am refocused on eating to stop the growling sensation rather than eating until I feel restricted. It’s such a mind game too. I need to reflect constantly on is this true hunger? I hope there is a support group in your community.

On 02/20/2024 at 14:59, Kri-star said:

Ok surgery buddies. I don’t mean to go share too much, but I haven’t had a bowel movement in almost 2 weeks. I’m starting to get really concerned. My support staff suggested Mira lax which I may have to get.

Anyone else experience this so far?

This happened to me and I was so worried about a bowel obstruction. I went to the emergency department at the hospital two days in a row. The first day, they did a CT scan and ruled out a bowel obstruction and then directed me to take PEG powder (poly ethylene glycol) twice a day in Water (which is the same as mira lax or restoralax) and then was discharged back home. By midnight that night, I was in such agony that I returned to the emergency department. I was then given suppositories and mineral oil enemas all without relief.

They then brought me a jug of colonoscopy prep liquid to drink and when I say it was a jug…it was a jug like what you refill your car’s windshield washer Fluid. I drank that but was still not totally effective. I then needed a 2 liter tap water enema to dislodge the baseball size mass of hard stool from the anus. I ended up with an anal fissure and a prolapsed bowel from the ordeal.

I will never take a bowel movement for granted

I am 100% along with you all…3 weeks stall over here too. My surgery date was January 22. I’m trying to do some positive self-talk. As my husband always tells me…be kind to my wife.

I’m 11 days post RNY. Can’t wait to be cleared for purée diet!

January 22 in Canada!