Tiffykins

I'm so sorry to hear of your complications. I've heard of pancreatitis post-sleeve, but it usually comes with gallbladder issues as well. I'll keep you in my thoughts, and prayers for a speedy recovery. I had a pic line, and while it isn't pleasant, it gave me the necessary nutrients, and calories to help my body recover.

Yep, do the half decaf/half regular until you get to decaf only. And, I was allowed to have decaf coffee and tea post-sleeve.

Are you allowed to have blended or mushed chicken tuna or eggs on mushies? I stuck to chicken, tuna and egg salad A lot in the mushy stage, mixed it with greek yogurt and a little sprinkling of dry ranch dressing, I'd use mayo or miracle whip sometimes as well, and that got me my Protein grams without protein supplements. I am not a milk drinker and developed lactose intolerance post-op so I couldn't use any of the whey Protein drinks and soy protein made me hurl because of the taste and texture. What Protein powder are you adding to the milk? When I was doing the trial and error thing for protein supplements, I made sure the protein count was at least 3-5 times that of the carb count. Most of the protein powders offered 20-30gr of protein per scoop with 3-6gr of carbs. I did get most of my carbs from cheese, and refried Beans were a staple in my diet. I didn't really freak out over the carbs in beans because I was eating so little, and it's good Fiber. I just ate my protein because I couldn't drink the Proteins. 4 meals per day with a minimum of 15gr of protein per meal gave me my 60grams of protein.

AMAZING pictures ! ! ! My favorite is #15, but I like #8 as well.

Definitely an NSV ! ! !

The only thing that I see is that your carbs outweigh your protein. I don't know what guidelines you were given, but see if you can cut some carbs and increase protein.

I pulled out 100 stand up crunches today, and walked the mall for an hour ! ! !

I was very size goal oriented since my "goal" weight was set high, but I wanted to be in single digit sizes, and was beyond content at a size 8. When I slid on a size 0 at the Gap, I never thought about losing another pound.

If it's just the good ole' fashioned way why in the hell is she whoring herself out with protein powders, body cleansers, fat expellers and the like? ? ? Because she's a douchebag ! ! ! I loathe her, seriously, there's very people that I can't stand, but she's #1 on my poop list and has been for years.

I didn't do net carbs, or net calories because I was fairly sedentary for the first 3.5-4 months. I only added extra carbs and calories when I started working out 4 days a week, but still rarely got in more than 50gr of carbs and I think I was still hovering around only 900-1000 calories a day. Coffee only counts for clear fluids if it's decaffeinated. My losing stage was just until I got to goal and it took me 6.5 months to get to goal. After that I went up to 1000 calories, 100gr of Protein, 60-100gr of carbs and continued to lose until I started adding more healthy fats avocados, Peanut Butter and nuts, adding white carbs which got me to 1500-1800 calories a day, and that's what I've been maintaining on for the last 7 months.

I didn't use protein shakes, and stuck to soft meats, cheese, yogurt, Beans. 4 meals with at least 15gr of protein for each meal. 3oz of chicken gives you 20gr of protein, mush up some cheese, and that adds 3-6gr of protein.

You're body is just pretty pissed off at you right now. We went from eating 2000-3000 calories a day to a mere 600-800, plus all we're giving it is fluids. You're bloated, retaining waters and was pumped full fluids during surgery to prevent dehydration. You will lose weight, and you really can not compare yourself to others. Your body is individualized and so will your recovery and weight loss. No one loses at the same rate, no one heals at the same rate, just stay the course with your prescribed post-op plan, and you will lose.

The part I can help you with is the smoking thing. I didn't quit before surgery, and have been a 1/2-3/4 pack smoker for 15 years now. I have quit 3 times since surgery, but always go back to it because I like to eat to replace the habit of smoking which is pretty standard. But, the issue with smoking after gastrectomies is increase chance for ulcers. I haven't had any issues thus far, but I know I'm at a higher risk because of my choice to continue smoking. Most surgeons want smokers to quit 4-6 weeks pre-op to help prevent anesthesia complications, and to avoid withdrawals post-op. It's the hardest habit to break for me. I like smoking, I stress smoke, I like to smoke when I drive, chat on the phone, when I have my morning coffee. Those are all my triggers, and well I obviously can't stop driving, I won't give up my coffee, and I'm on the phone a lot. I've tried all the cessation methods, and they suck. The patch made me a little crazy, Wellbutrin (Zyban) makes me super insane, and did help with cravings, but the side effects really wrecked me. I became pretty manic, and I lost all my appetite, and dropped down to 119lbs which didn't help with the body issues, and not being hungry issues. It's been a weird place mentally for me. I want to quit, but then the other side of me doesn't want to eat. I've tried gum, hard candies, lozenges etc etc. Nothing works because I am not ready to quit. For me, the life riddled with co-morbidities and dying early due to obesity related conditions really pushed me to have surgery. Staying fat scared me more than surgery. I also want to have another child and refused to get pregnant at 270lbs so surgery was my last resort option. Best luck in your research. I'm sure the other Canadians will chime in with information on coverage. I know a lot have had surgery in Mexico as an alternative to the long wait lists and limited VSG surgeons.

With my revision, I developed a leak 2 days post op right around where the band had been removed. I had hoards of scar tissue, and some of my stomach tissue had to be removed during the leak repair. But, the leak was repaired with heavy mattress suturing and then I was NPO for over 2 weeks to ensure it would heal completely. I've only heard of leaks being slow to heal, but never not healing completely. Some have stents put in and a feeding tube inserted lower than the leak to get in nutrients. I had a pic line in my arm for those NPO weeks so I never had to deal with the feeding tube thing. Both of my procedures were done lap, and I never had to be opened for either.

Mine was a several hundred multiple choice and true/false questions. Some of them were hilarious like "I would like to be a florist" True or False, others asked about my mental state, if I had been suicidal , my drinking and illicit drug use past, and present, history of depression, etc etc. Then I met with the psych to discuss the mental aspect of body changes, dietary changes, and expectations. I was cleared, and reading the report after was pretty funny. It was close to accurate with the exception it apparently thought I was a bit of an introvert which is totally wrong, and that I enjoyed reading novels, and good romantic stories. BIG wrong on that one, if it's not Better HOme and Gardens or Cosmo, I'm not reading it. For the most part, it is there to help gauge your compliance level, to make sure you realize what you are getting yourself into, and to identify any issues that you might have with food. If you're an emotional or stress eater, it's good to get some ideas on other coping mechanisms to use post-op since binging really isn't an option. Overall, it was no biggie. My second psych eval for my revision was mainly because my husband was deployed and my surgeon wanted to ensure that I wasn't overly stressed by his absence.

For my losing stage, I stuck to 600-800 calories a day, 30gr of carbs, and 60+ protein grams. I tracked everything I ate, and was diligent about what I put in my mouth. Protein first, avoided all white carbs, and ensured I was getting in my 64oz of fluids. The best way to get rid of water weight is more water/clear fluids, and to lay off high sodium foods.

I was bad yesterday, but my son and I did go to parade last night. We walked a gigantic parking lot, and then up and down the parade row to stay warm for an hour. I froze my toosh off, but I did get in some form of walking so I don't feel entirely guilty. Today's plan is abs and legs.

I couldn't lift anything over 10lbs for 6 weeks because of the concern with incisional hernias. I would just ask that you get additional assistance so you do not hurt yourself internally.

Hi there and welcome ! ! ! As for the alcohol, I was restricted for 3 months. Sodas were out for 6 months, and heavy lifting (anything over 10lbs) was restricted for 6 weeks. Normal working out could resume at 6 weeks out. As for the pills, I was allowed to swallow pills no bigger than a regular m&m around 4 weeks out. You'll want to remember that with alcohol comes some dehydration and immediately post-op, you might struggle to get in fluids. That goes for night clubbing, dancing etc. You'll just want to make sure you're hitting your calorie/protein/fluid goals to ensure success. Just play smart, and you'll be fine.

WOOOHOOO Congrats ! ! !

You make egg and meat or egg and spinach quiches in muffin tins. Just whisk the egg, sprinkle some browned sausage, or bacon into the eggs and spray the muffins with non-stick spray. Fill 3/4 full of egg and meat mixture, sprinkle with cheese, and make for 25-40 minutes at 350 degree until knife is inserted in center and comes out clean.

I also get the lidocaine because my veins are horrible, and they have to dig around in my hand or wrist to get an IV set. My elbow joint and feet veins typically blow so they can't ever get IVs started in those areas. The lidocaine stings for a few seconds, the lovenox or heparin both burned, but it only lasts a couple of seconds, do not rub or put pressure on the area when they give those injections because it can cause bruising. All of mine were given in my upper thighs because they didn't want to give them in my stomach area. It's a tiny needle, and the poke doesn't hurt as much as the liquid going in at least for me. I've got 3 decent size tattoos so needles do not bother me in the least, but I hate getting IVs set only because I have horrible veins. If you are anxious, talk to your surgeon about getting a pre-anesthesia cocktail. Valium can be your friend, and I'm a firm believer that going into the OR with a calm sense, it makes the recovery smoother. I went in to my band surgery, bawling my eyes out, and it was not fun waking up. I requested valium for my other procedures, and it made a world of difference in how I felt going back to the OR and in recovery. I cry every time I have surgery, it's just what I do, but I won't ever have surgery without getting some good drugs before they wheel me back.

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Angie, I"m so proud of you for staying the course, and not giving up ! ! ! You look phenomenal ! ! !

Or you can check out the Leslie Sansone "Walk Away the Pounds" dvd. They are super cheap at amazon.com, I found one at books a Million for $5.00. I've thought about the mini trampoline thing for myself just because it looks fun and could really be a good work out. I'm in the NW FL Panhandle(near Pensacola), and you're 100% correct, it's bitter cold out there. It's too cold to do much outside, and it gets dark around 5pm.

I hope you feel better soon. . . I really hate feeling blah, and sick during the cold months. I found some Levis that fit perfectly in the thigh and actually made me look like I have a butt. Unfortunately, the smallest size they make is a 4. I even went to Levis.com to find out if they make 2s, or smaller, and I'm not finding them anywhere. I've searched Kohls, Sears, JCPenney, Dillards, all the major Levi retailers and can not find a size that fits right in any of their cuts. I love Levis. One of the biggest issues I have is that I am only 5'2" and I have super short legs. Bootcut and flare legged jeans look ridiculous on my body, so straight leg and skinny jeans are the only ones that look right. So many jean makers do not make straight leg anymore since bootcut and skinny is so popular. I have a trip planned to New York and Co. here in a couple of weeks because they apparently have straight leg jeans. I love skinny jeans because they fit so great in the thigh and butt, but they look silly with sneakers and I can only wear them tucked inside boots or with wedges. Bootcut jeans are okay if I can find them in a decent length. Petite cut jeans seem to ride up in the crotch which I hate, and my inseam measures 28 or 28.5, and petite have a 29.5" measurement usually. I prefer a little length at the bottom of my pants so when I sit down, I don't get the "high Water pant" effect going on. But, it's tough to find the perfect length and fit to suit my picky ass preferences LOL. I haven't been able to get motivated today either. I'm an emotional mess today, and just blah. I will work out later this afternoon, and hopefully it'll help me kick these blahs.