eriadne

The sugar is bad for you, caffeine can stimulate your appetite and the gas bubbles can put undue pressure on your new stomach. I've seen many people say it can be painful too. Plus there are much better ways to get your hydration in, like Water. Some surgeons ban it, some say only do soda that's been left out to get flat, some ban it immediately post-op but say you can have it if you tolerate it... it really depends on the surgeon. I personally gave it up several months before my surgery and haven't missed it yet. I also gave up drinking straws at the same time and when I tried drinking through a straw a few weeks ago, I was surprised how it hurt like the dickens so I'm definitely not that eager to test soda.

Skim milk all the way, although it took me about 2 years of stepping down from 2% to 1% and then 1% to skim for me and my husband to get used to it. Now that I'm used to skim milk, when I get 1% or 2% somewhere, it tastes so awfully rich to me now -- like there's just a coating of fat in my mouth, ugh.

Took me about 14 days to be able to lay on my stomach and fall asleep. I was sleeping so horribly on my back that I tried it from about a week out until I was able to do it. I slept on my side from about day 10. I'm about a month out now and my stomach and incisions all feel fine, no pain, pulling or burning at all. Just listen to your body -- if it hurts, you probably shouldn't be doing it yet :001_tongue:

I ate fat-free Oscar Meyer ones pre-op and hope to be able to still enjoy them on occasion once I get further out post-op. I could see how the casings on some of them and/or the high fat content of some types might give us trouble though.

I know I'm weeks away from being able to try it, but I was also curious about how long people waited before trying popcorn. A big tub of popcorn during the A-Team movie was the only real "last supper" I did for myself.

I'm thinking about seeing my gyn to switch to Nuva-Ring since I'd prefer a non-oral birth control method. I'm currently on Ocella which is the generic form of Yasmin, and while it works as well or better than other oral BCPs I've been on, I still get very bad migraines before and during my period. My acne is much improved but my skin still isn't as nice as I would like, or as nice as it was when I took another BCP (I forget which one it was now...) Now I'm really anxious to check out Nuva-Ring if it can help with the migraines!

Hope you get to feeling better soon zephra, and let us know what if anything works!

I have had a bad day with my big left incision, similar to that. In fact, most days by the end of the day the big one on the left is usually hurting a bit and my side is a bit tender. The large one by my belly button is also rather tender, but just the incision. All the other incisions haven't really bothered me at all. If it continues to bother you or if something just doesn't seem right, definitely let your surgeon know. That's what they're there for

I second the Sonic ice! I'm on my 2nd bag (I'm constantly using it plus my husband loooves their ice too for his sodas). It's not even $2 for a big bag of it around here, and it's so fresh and with a nice texture perfect for sucking on when you're thirsty.

Since surgery my nose is super-sensitive like a bloodhound too, I can smell things way way way before my husband can. I've had perfectly innocent smells also make me feel really nauseous. It hasn't seemed to be as strong the last few days, but my first week was definitely smell-overload. I can smell some of my Protein drinks and it does make it difficult getting them down for me.

I've been craving meat and cheese like crazy for about a week now too, and I cannot wait for my surgeon to advance me to mushies. I had dreams about meat. I even tried thinking about other things that I used to crave incessantly like donuts, cake, pizza.. the only thing that stuck was pizza, and that was thinking about a big meaty cheeseburger pizza or something. I have been getting in my 90g of Protein or at least very close to it every day (within 3-5g) and I try to do stuff like sf Jello or sf pudding to ward off the meat hungries, but it's just not working. On one hand, I am really glad that my cravings are for the good dense protein-rich stuff I'm going to be eating first now for the rest of forever, but on the other hand I've felt rather crazy for having cravings this intense when I haven't been physically hungry since surgery. I really don't think it's head-hunger because I don't feel hungry or even fake hungry. Rather, it's more like an extremely strong mental drive to seek out protein-rich food... which could just be my brain rewiring itself and getting ahead of my surgeon's schedule for mushies. I dunno, but I definitely do feel for you, mommytoethan! I'd be calling to cry at my surgeon and nutritionalist every day if he tells me on Monday to do liquids another week! I'm starting to have to force myself to choke down each sweet smelly Protein Drink... blegh. I have plenty of variety because all I got was sample packs from just about every whey protein isolate kind out there, but so many are either vile or borderline tolerable. Blegh again :lol0: Just wanted to add that I also started taking Prilosec about 5 days ago because my stomach was very gurgly and starting to feel rather "empty" all the time. My doctor doesn't require a PPI but since I'd read on the board about PPI's helping with weird hunger twinges, I was hoping that reducing the stomach acid would take away the meat cravings and pseudo-hungry feeling in my stomach. I am not sure how long it takes to fully start working but the gurgling has definitely come down and I no longer feel twinges... but the meat cravings are still pretty strong.

Congrats! Hope the time flies by for you :thumbup:

I've had 3 surgeries since November '09 and they've all been spaced a few months apart to where I've been constantly shedding hair since February. My hair was already much thinner and lankier than it used to be because of my PCOS, but I definitely noticed more coming out. I don't have any bald spots, I just have thin coverage. I am not happy with it, but my husband has been adamant the whole time that my hair looks "fine" so I'm not too concerned that it's unsightly or something! I've been taking Biotin the whole time, which I feel is important so that when my hair does start growing back, it can grow in healthy, full and quickly. I know it's not going to stop it from shedding in the first place because of the physical processes occurring (see Tiffykins link about telogen effluvium), but 1) it does give you some sense of control over a somewhat distressing problem and 2) it's a good investment into the awesome hair you're going to wind up with. I've had lots of people at my doctor's office who had WLS themselves say their hair wound up growing back so much nicer than it ever was before since their hormones and diet were under control. I'm definitely looking forward to that. I haven't been happy with my hair for at least 5 years and it used to be so thick and nice. Keep a positive attitude and try not to fret too much. :thumbup:

I hope you're feeling better today, delawaregal! Hang in there, chica :thumbup:

Sorry to hear you are all so ill. While I haven't experienced nausea with my sleeve, when I had horrible nausea last fall I went to the drugstore and bought these things called PsiBands which are sort of like watchbands you put on your wrists and press on a pressure point between your wristbones that can help alleviate nausea. There are other brands like SeaBands and BioBands too. I thought it was some bogus hippie thing, but it really did work for me. Apparently they are used by some hospitals and doctors for people undergoing chemo, women with morning sickness, people with seasickness, etc. You can also just press on the spot between your wristbones with your fingers. How to Stop Nausea With Acupressure - wikiHow I wore my bands all day and it helped, and whenever I started to feel some breakthrough nausea, I'd press down on the bands to exert a bit extra pressure on the pressure point and it'd let up within a few minutes. It wasn't a 100% foolproof cure, but it definitely made my days and nights a lot more bearable and allowed me to get down more sustenance.

I'm currently taking bcp but I am considering seeing my gyn to ask about something not connected to my stomach like the Nuva-Ring or the patch. Something like Mirena would also be on the table except I've never had a baby and they seem to mention already having a kid before in the ads, so I dunno. My sister has tried IUDs, depo shots and the like and had so many truly horrible experiences that I'm not going to take the chance, since we seem to share some similarities with our female hormone issues. It is weird for me to go from being utterly infertile due to PCOS to having to worry about getting knocked up. :thumbup: I'm confident that the BCPs are absorbed just fine, but I am concerned that the stakes are just so much higher while I'm actively losing if I somehow forget to take them or don't use backup if I come down with vomiting/diarrhea or take antibiotics.

Delawaregal, sorry you are ill and feeling blue. I'm sure it's 100% natural to feel down in the dumps between being sick and recovering from surgery and everything else. Don't worry about losing weight, just get to feeling better. I'm sure once you get on some antibiotics and things start clearing up, all that swelling and Fluid retention will go away and you'll see some dramatic results on the scale. Get well soon!

I keep getting really hot and then really cold and then really hot, back and forth. Mostly cold though, because I can tolerate being cold longer than I can being hot. My bedsheets are tied in knots from me flipping them of and on all night, yeesh!

My gurgling was insane the first few days. Lots of pressure, gurgling, gas, burping, feeling like you need to pass gas, but can't... You might try some Gas-X strips (I was doing the maximum 8 a day until things calmed down and now I'm doing the chewable gas-x pills), try a heating pad on your stomach and walk around! Let all that lovely gas out and the gurgling and pressure will ease up. And keep taking your tiny sips! It will get better every day. I thought I was prepared for those things, but the reality was so much more than I ever thought! I was sort of in a disbelieving daze for the first couple of days at how much like a parade float I felt! The heating pad, Gas-X, walking combo really sorted me out though.

I'm a week out and almost all my swelling/gas/soreness is gone and I managed 6oz of vanilla yogurt in about an hour or so after I woke up today. My stomach felt pretty "empty" and I feel quite full and I'll probably stay full for a few hours. I've had to put back half a container of sf Jello before and part of my yogurt container as well, so I'm guessing right now my little sleeve is just a yogurt pouch right now, ha!

I'm only a week out with a 32f and I had a cup of cocoa and a 6oz cup of vanilla yogurt for Breakfast and it took me around an hour of leisurly drinking and eating to finish it, and I feel quite full. It wasn't a chore to eat or drink or have it take that long... I was watching TV and talking to my husband and it just paced out that way. It was amazing to me, because whenever I would go on a diet and try to eat just a cup of yogurt for breakfast, I'd be done in about 2 minutes and feeling so empty still! If at a week out I'm already able to eat what I've always considered normal for skinny people but impossible for me, then I have no doubts by 2-3 months out let alone 1-2 years out that I'll be able to eat healthy portions that don't make my "hungry girl" mind cry and moan. Don't be scared off by the idea of having such small portions. You can be satisfied with a 32f. No one's ever dropped dead from not being able to clean their plate at Applebee's and if your dining partners are too distressed by your leftovers or your doggie bag or whatever, let them finish it off and find out what it's like carrying around an extra 150lbs or so 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in exchange for the ability to make large quantities of food vanish :001_smile: As a pre-op person reading the stories here, it was extemely hard to conceptualize the small portions, being satisfied, having eating and drinking take a bit longer and all that. But now that I am post-op, it really all feels quite natural, if a bit novel. I used to eat fast and for a long time and now I just eat slow and for a long time. I am sure the gee-whiz factor will wear off as I get used to my new stomach and the "limitations" turn into "just the way I am now".

My doctor had only done maybe 20 sleeves by the time I was scheduled for surgery, but he has done thousands of RNYs and bands. It can be hard to find US bariatric surgeons who are in your area AND covered by your insurance AND have a lot of sleeve experience because the sleeve is just now starting to move into the mainstream now that insurance is starting to cover them. I was very comfortable with my surgeon's credentials and trusted that his experience with RNY's and bariatric patients in general coupled with him having done at least a few sleeves before me would be enough. He does nothing but weight loss surgeries, the hospital is a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence and he's was very open, knowledgeable and awesome throughout the entire process. Definitely do your research, but do be aware that even among veteran bariatric surgeons, they all just haven't had the numbers for sleeves that they might have had for RNY and certainly the band.

Hi Lou! Wow, what a rollercoaster ride this has been for you. I never considered WLS because the thought of having an RNY just makes my hair stand on end. When I hit 300, I finally decided I had to do something though and was considering the band when I heard about the sleeve at my surgeon's informational seminar. At the time, it was just sort of a passing mention, but it did intrigue me since the rerouting of your intestines was the part of RNY that I couldn't stomach (haha, pun!) the most. I was all set to do a band even though my surgeon cautioned me that it might not have enough oomph to get me down to a good goal weight. Luckily my insurance added VSG coverage within a few weeks of my band approval so I was able to switch. I definitely think this is a fantastic option for people looking into WLS. My surgeon was ridiculously excited when I asked if I could do a sleeve instead and he's just over the moon with how many sleeve patients he's already starting to get. I think you've definitely wound up in just the place you need to be -- I think we all look back and wish we could have come to the "eureka!" decisions earlier so we didn't have to go through all the crazy ups and downs, but what's really important is that we're here now. So congrats and welcome, I am so excited for you! :thumbup:

Gas-X is basically a gas relief medicine -- the active ingredient is simethicone. You'll want the strips that dissolve on your tongue since you can't swallow pills until you are ok'd to take oral medicine. Between the Gas-X strips and the heating pad, I was finally able to pass some gas this morning and I'm already feeling a lot less pressure and pain because of it. Hopefully I can get the rest out today or tomorrow. Other than the gas pains, it mostly just feels like I've done a ton of sit-ups and my abs are sore. Unfortunately I can't twist around to reach behind me so I have to have my husband wash the back half of me and wipe my bottom (poor man knows I'm not thrilled about it, but it's very sweet that he loves me enough to help me wipe, LOL!)

I'm so glad your surgery went well BandMomsRock! 3 incisions only? That's cool! I have 6, and didn't get a drain either. Glad your hubby is so supportive and helpful, mine is too and I know I couldn't have done this without him. Yay for wonderful husbands :blushing: