Tiffykins

Let me check my links, and research articles for the information. Essentially, while the stomach is healing it shows that overeating can cause some stretching of the stomach tissue that is left behind. It'll probably take me a couple of days to find the stuff. My surgeon told me the same thing.

As the weeks, months and years progress, your stomach will more than likely stretch because it sounds like the fundus wasn't fully dissected. You're going to be on a forced diet at this point because you chose to have surgery, and not address the eating habits that come along with losing a portion of the stomach. Just because a portion of your stomach has been removed doesn't mean it won't accept whatever you put in your mouth. That's half the battle with obesity, I understand it, but without the surgery being performed within the standards established by reputable surgeons with proven results, you'll struggle just the same if not more to lose and maintain your weight. Also, if the fundus is not fully dissected, then the hunger hormone, ghrelin, will be produced more than what other sleeve patients experience. Unfortunately, statistics have shown that surgeons that use bigger bougies , leaving patients with larger stomachs have patients with a higher incidence of regain and hunger even after eating. If you are not on an acid reducer such as Nexium or Prilosec, you may experience hunger after eating. Try to stick to an Atkins diet, high Protein, low carb, and exercise is going to be your key at this point. If you can eat more, you can try the more frequent, smaller meals and see if that gives you satiety. I'm assuming you self paid for this procedure, and unfortunately you may not reach your desired goal weight or see a regain in the future. I don't have any solid advice except to invest your money in a gym membership, a nutritionist and a counselor to help you devise a healthy eating plan, exercise program, and some counseling to help develop other coping skills, and battle the food demons that most of us encounter on this journey. Best wishes.

It'll take a couple of months to regulate everything even on the pill. I would bet if you took a pregnancy test, and it comes out negative, you'd start. If you're stressing, it's going to make it worse because of the hormone flux plus the anesthesia, surgery trauma, and all that stuff your body has endured is trying to play catch up with your cycle.

I shoot for 60grams of Protein, and now can get in over 100grams. For the chicken, I have a recipe for chicken wings in the crock pot. They are so tender and juicy, it literally just melts in your mouth if you'd like me to share with you. If you can't do chicken, try canned tuna, crab or salmon for protein dense foods. My stomach holds by volume. I used those little medication measuring cups early out until I could eyeball a portion. Weighing food never made sense to me since our tummies hold food by volume and not weight. Food is always cooked for my measurements. I know some food will measure by volume the same as it does by weight, but others will be totally off. 3oz of chicken has about 21gr of protein so I shot for 3oz of chicken for most meals early out. If you can't do 3oz of meat, try adding a soft cheese (most have 2-6gr of protein), or greek yogurt to the mix to help max out protein grams. If you have a crock pot, have you tried dumping a frozen chicken breast or a couple of thighs in there with a can of cream of "whatever you like" Soup, and then shred the chicken. Cook it low and slow for about 6-8 hours, and you might have better luck with chicken that way. I also throw round steak in the crock pot with cream of Soups, and let it cook low and slow until it's super tender. Here's a recipe I found tonight, and it is deliciously wonderful. Spinach beef hot dish Beef Spinach Hot Dish Recipe - Allrecipes.com I added a bunch of minced garlic, and Worchestershire sauce to the meat while browning it. 1 can of cream of mushroom 98% reduced fat soup 1 package of frozen spinach 1 (8oz) package of non-fat cream cheese Brown the meat, drain Add the spinach, stir until mixed well and all liquid evaporates Add the soup Add the cream cheese Stir in skillet until mixed well Transferred to a 9x9 casserole pan sprayed with Pam. Baked in the oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. I added several heavy handed dashes of Season All No salt, and 1/4 tsp of ground cayenne pepper to the mixture before tossing it in the oven. I'll serve it to the guys in the house over no yolk egg noodles, and I'm eating it by itself no noodles tonight for me. I've also served it with mashed potatoes and long grain rice. It's a staple in our home. I've also made it with ground turkey, and the guys didn't know it wasn't ground beef. This recipe freezes very well, and tastes really great a couple of weeks later. It does make a large amount with just 1 package of spinach.

Just because your ex was an addict, and this one seems like a god send, you have to decide what you are willing to accept. No one can tell you to leave him or stay with him, but don't settle for less than everything from him, and from yourself. I think the hardest lesson any human has to learn is to love yourself enough too not settle. This journey is extremely emotional, and a lot of people are not prepared for the roller coaster ride that begins immediately after surgery. You really have to surround yourself with positive, uplifting people. It's bad enough that you lose the ability to cope with emotions without food much less having to deal with a non-supportive partner. I know this is a lot to process, and it's overwhelming. Just remember that you have to do what is best for you for the rest of your life not just during the recovery period after a major, life altering surgery. I never hid what I ate from anyone. I threw down on food on dates, and in front of friends and family. I never hid my food habits. I can only imagine how difficult that can be especially when in an intimate, close relationship with someone. The biggest issue I had with what you wrote is that you know he is going to throw things in your face, and not be supportive. My husband is lean, athletic, and doesn't understand obesity. He married me at 270, and loved me regardless and I loved myself fat. But, I really wanted to live my life without pain, and pure misery from being morbidly obese. It's a lot to take on surgery, and trying to manage a relationship. A lot of relationships go through a transitional period when one goes through WLS.

Gold bond ultimate healing powder. The heat and moisture under your breast is just irritating it. The benadryl is only going to help the symptoms, and not resolve the issue. If you had steri-strips or tape, you could be allergic to the adhesive that is used on those type of things. It could also be the scrubbing solution dried your skin, and the cortisone cream is not helping in that department. After showers, use your blow dryer if it is a cool setting to dry your skin thoroughly, and then apply a liberal amount of the Gold Bond powder. GB powder rocks. My husband uses it when he is overseas, my kiddo uses it in the summer, and I used it when I had a reaction (just like what you are describing) after my surgery from all the glue and tape they used on me.

Glad all is well, and believe me you aren't a wimp. If I could have had a lortab drip at home, I would have been pushing that little button frequently ha ha ha.

I haven't read the other responses so if this is a repeat I apologize. The very first things that I thought are: 1) If he is such a great guy, why does he insult you, not support you, and why do you feel it necessary to hide things from him? 2) If he loves you, and wants you to be around for several years, not deal with conditions and co-morbidities related to your obesity, why can he not get on board to a healthier you? 3) Is he insecure because he fears if you lose weight you won't put up with his b.s. behavior, and you'll finally see that you are worth more than what he is giving you, and then you'll kick him to the curb? 4) Is he overweight as well, and does he fear losing his "eating partner"? 5) If he doesn't understand you, then why are you with him? 6) Do you not believe you deserve the very best not only from yourself, but from a partner? Those are some things that I would really think long and hard about before you call off surgery for a man that obviously has his best interest at heart instead of yours. When you allow people to treat you a certain way, it's exactly what you will get from them. When you demand better, you get better. That doesn't mean he isn't a great guy, but honestly, how great can someone be that "great" who makes comments such as No one should keep you from living your life. My husband wasn't too keen on me "getting skinny". I simply told him "get on board, or shut up." I know it seems harsh, but I absolutely refuse to live my life for anyone else and that includes my husband. I love my husband and son more than anything, but I love myself and them enough to live a healthy life. They both benefit exponentially because of my weight loss.

With a 32fr size sleeve, I can eat 1 cup of food if it's mushy consistency, and I eat super slow (over 40 minutes). I can eat 3-5oz of dense Protein comfortably without issue. 3oz if I want a few bites of veggies, 5oz if all I want is the protein. Remember, that what you will be able to eat at 2-3 months will nearly double at 1 year out. If you go too big, it's been shown in the earlier sleeve days when larger bougies were used that there is a higher incidence of significan regain. Discuss all the options with your surgeon.

Maybe we could get this "Sticky'd" on the forum. I ran across this link and think has some really great information. It's a long, detailed PDF file chalked full of information for VSG Patients. This covers post-op diet to vitamins/supplements, quick guide to Protein count in certain foods. http://www.iabsobesitysurgery.com/Media/Forms/SleeveDietGuide.pdf

Ha ha ha, I had a hell of a belly for a girl, and try to be sensitive about it... I would venture to guess that you're having that lovely gravity pain, plus the bloating, gas makes it 10 times worse. I moved extremely gingerly the first few weeks, but it still felt like someone was ripping my abdominal wall from the inside when I went to stand or lie down.

Here's some of my replies to other posters that you can find in the band to sleeve revision forum on the main page. And throughout the forum as well, I post this often when people ask me about band vs. sleeve.

The band never gave me satiety. I had to quit eating because my pouch was full, but I was still hungry. Physical hunger, and it didn't help that I could not eat Protein dense foods to help keep me full. The hunger resolution is responsible for 80% of my success. The other 20% was my hellbent determination to stick to the guidelines, and then introduce foods slowly and in moderation that allowed my body to acclimate to all the changes. Honestly, the sleeve works like a band is advertised to supposedly work. Sadly, most bandsters know all too well that it just doesn't work that way. I truly do love my sleeve, and life post op. I have recently been forgetting that I even had surgery. Mainly because my eating habits are just that habits, and practically involuntary at this point. I know what I can eat, and how much I can consume at any given time. This makes things so much easier. I feel like I had a large portion of the learning curve with the sleeve beat because of my battle with the band. You'll do great, and if you need anything, feel free to message me.

I'm sorry you are hurting so badly. I'm not trying to get too personally, but do you carry a lot your weight in your abdomen? The reason I ask is because I had a lot of abdominal discomfort, and slept in my recliner for a good 2-3 weeks. The gravity weight on the internal incisions, and lap sites caused a lot of pain, and kind of a pulling sensation if I bent over, or tried to sleep on my side. I have a high pain tolerance, but this pain was a nagging, draining pain that didn't let up for the first month. Try supporting your stomach with a pillow when you get up from a sitting position. They do make belly bands that you can google and see if you can find one that would help you during this healing period. Also, I coughed a lot post-op because of my anesthesia complications, and being on a ventilator for several days. That caused a lot of pain that is similar to pulled muscle pain. Don't hesitate to go to the ER. The last thing you need is to develop a fever with the pain, and then one of your incisions (internal incisions and staple line) get infected. Take care of yourself, and don't stay miserable. Pain like this is not the "norm".

Stretch marks will not go away. They are essentially scars, and they will become less visible when you lose weight, but they aren't going anywhere. Mederma makes a scar cream and a stretch mark cream. I used the Mederma for a bit, but didn't really stick with it. My son has a small scar(head met metal truck bumper and he needed sutures) on his forehead that he's pretty insecure over. He used the Mederma religiously for a solid 6 months with no noticeable change in the scar appearance. I hear prefer-on works pretty good. I use a heavy cocoa butter body butter that has Vitamin E infused in it. I have the completely opposite happen with my stretch marks when I tan. My stretch marks do not tan at all, and look like glowing white stripes on my hips, boobs, and tummy. I have those little thin stretch marks, and they've faded as I've lost my weight, but they're still there.

Hi there, feel free to send me a message with any questions or concerns that you may have. I'm almost 14 months out, and don't mind helping or supporting anyone, anytime.

I chew gum all of the time. I eat breath mints constantly. I love the sugar free candies.

I didn't drink them during my losing stage. I think I might have taken a few sips here and there, but I didn't drink them because I was losing, and focused on getting in my fluids. I drink them on occasion now. Maybe 2/12oz sodas per week. For me, I beat head hunger, and a lot of the "food demons" with the band. I seriously do not have a problem going back to Protein only. I don't go into carb withdraws, I don't crave carbs after eating carbs, I just don't have those issues. I'm not bragging. I got over a lot of that crap because the band forced me to do it. It's not because I wanted to do it. I learned a long time ago, and hundreds of pounds later that deprivation does not work for me. I'm not saying it doesn't work for some, but for me, my mental caseload, deprivation only causes binging on junk. When I'm out drinking with the girls. I'll drink rum/coke. Think about a 12oz glass full of ice 1.5oz of rum and then it's got less than 6oz of soda. I sip on them. I don't down 10 of them a night, but I do drink 4-6 on any given night without issue. When I say night, I'm talking we start out at dinner around 6pm and we close the bars at 2am. So, over 8 hours I might have 4-6 drinks. Seriously, it's not that much over that much time. Not to mention the Water I'm drinking in between. Early on I agree that soda would be uncomfortable. But, there is minimal sleeve stretching. We can eat more sliders as time goes on, but honestly I can eat the same amount of dense protein that I could at 6-8 months out, and I'm at almost 14 months out. I also know several vets with 2-4years under their belt and none of them can eat anymore now than what they could at 1 year out. The stomach finally heals, relaxes and learns to accept food again. As long as the fundus (big stretchy part of the stomach) has been fully dissected, the remaining portion of the stomach will have minimal stretching. I can still barely eat an entire 6oz of yogurt in 15-20 minutes. The slower I eat, the more I fit in. It's a "trick" to fitting more in, just like drinking warm liquids before eating. I broke down last week and did the cottage cheese test . This was established for RNY pouches, but several sleevesters have done this just to see how we measure up. I could only eat 4.25ounces in the time limit before I had my little hiccup, and then I felt uncomfortable as it moved through. I forced myself to eat cottage cheese because I wanted to see just how my sleeve was doing. It's been published that excessive overeating early out can cause stretching, but even many studies are being shown that carbonation has no bearing on pouches or fully functioning stomachs. If carbonation stretches out our stomachs, why didn't our stomach stretch out to huge amounts for those of us that consumed 6-12 sodas a day pre-op. I'm not trying to argue. I'm just playing devil's advocate. Follow your surgeon's advice. I'm doing exactly what my surgeon and nut suggest and it's apparently working. I'm not suggesting your (general you here) program or surgeon/nut advice won't work. I'm just saying that there does NOT have to be a cookie cutter rule for WLS, especially for the sleeve.

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This is the main reason I've avoided our support group. I hated, hated, hated WW meetings. I hope you find a group that can give you the support you need, and that can help you grow through your sleeve journey.

I never used shakes or bars. I stuck with Protein dense meats, cheese, and greek yogurt. 3oz of chicken has about 21gr of protein. Shredded up added some greek yogurt, and some ranch style dressing mix, makes a great protein filled chicken salad. I could never eat protein bars because of all the sugar alcohols, and they were just too filling. I still can barely eat 1/2 granola bar comfortably. It takes me a good 20-30 minutes to eat a chewy granola bar, and then I'm stuffed if I eat the entire bar. Can you not eat meat? If you eat 4 meals per day with 15 grams of protein, you'll hit at least 60gr of protein per day. That's how I did it during the losing stage and when I could not eat anymore than 3-4oz of food per meal.

You aren't going to be able to eat a huge amount. Plus, the Fiber in Beans help with the carb count. Add some greek yogurt for extra Protein, or some low fat cheese. Most people stall at the mushy stage. It may not be related to the carbs, it might play a small part. But, mainly, it's the body trying to adjust to everything, and recover from surgery and major dietary changes.

My hunger is 100% resolved. I do not feel hunger, my stomach does not gurgle, growl, make any noise. I have gone up to about 14-16 hours without eating before realizing "holy sh*t, I need to eat !" And, even then I wasn't hungry, I was simply out running around, and realized I hadn't eaten anything all day. 1) How long have you been sleeved? Almost 14 months 2) Who was your surgeon? Dr. Michael Michel (Major Michel USAF) 3) What were your experiences with your surgeon? He is fabulous. He is compassionate, caring, positive, and extremely supportive. I don't think I've ever been treated with more professionalism, more genuine care, and his knowledge and experience is vast with general surgery, combat surgery, and bariatric surgery. 4) Would you recommend your surgeon? I already have to 4 of my friends. 3 have had surgery, one will have surgery in August. 5) How much weight have you lost since your sleeve date? 143lbs (I lost that in less than 11 months, and have been maintaining for over 3 months at this point) 6) What type of sleeve do you have? I have a standard sleeve gastrectomy. My surgeon uses a 32fr bougie as his guide for the stapler. There is nothing special about my sleeve, it's the standard just like all the other sleeve out there between 32-40fr sized sleeves. 7) Would you recommend the type of sleeve you have? Yes 8) Do you find you still have the necessary level of energy to sustain a good workout? I have 100 times the amount of energy I had pre-op. With the first 40-50lbs loss, my energy level soared even though I was only consuming 600-800 calories. 9) Do you find it difficult to keep the weight off once you have lost it? Not at all. Maintaining is easier now that I have found a balance. For me, losing my hunger has made eating less, and making the best choice on what I put in my mouth much easier therefore I don't put a lot of craptastic, empty-calorie foods into my body. I do eat treats, Snacks, Cookies, 1/2 cupcake, chips, pretzels, but I'm not on a diet. I've made a lifestyle change and a lifetime commitment to make better choices, and feed my body "right". I actually had a more difficult time getting my weight loss to stop, but I figured it out, and apparently my body is happy at 120-123lbs. 10) Do you have trouble eating, such as getting “stuck”? Nope 11) What is the one things about getting the surgery that you regret? Not one single thing 12) Would you do this surgery again, or would you have made another choice? This is the only surgery I would have when I decided I was going to have to revise. If I could not had VSG, the band would have come out, and I would of stayed fat. NO way I'd get DS or RNY or another band. It was VSG or nothing. I fought for it, and I got it. Best decision I ever made.