KabinKitty

Nausea after surgery can be from your pain meds. Morphine make me sick. I told them before and they gave me dilauded (sp) in stead. It amazes me why some docs can't figure this out. Alot of people don't tolerate Morphine. The headaches definately can be caused by artificial sweeteners. I did not use sugar-free "anything" and I did not have headaches. For a protein drink that not the consistancy of paint, use Carnation Instant (not SF), two Tbls. Non-Fat Dry Milk powder, 8 oz milk and two ice cubes. Throw it in the Magic bullet, whip it up and it's really good. It's not syrupy sweet either. I ate popsickles (which went down GREAT) to get more fluids in at the beginning. Good luck to you!

My surgery was Feb. 2nd and I have no thirst or desire to eat. I do get a little nauseated if I haven't eaten for a long time. Can I ask why some people call their stomachs pouches? I don't have a pouch, just a stomach that's been reduced in size.

I had that problem for about 2 days after I got home from the hospital. I think it was due to the artificial sweetener in the Crystal Light and the sugar free popsickles. Artifiicial sweeteners do that to me. So I don't use them. I'll probably have a slower weight loss, but alot less chemicals in my body!

Sounds like you should cut back to one. Stool softeners aren't suppose to cause those kind of issues. I started having constipation this week, as soon as I started taking the Calcium citrate. I remembered then how calcium and Iron both have that effect on me. This is my second day of Miralax and today I took 2 stool softeners. I'm going to have to eat a prune everytime I take a calcium I guess. I have quit eating until I can get things moving again! Hope your problem straightens up soon!

I have been doing things to try and increase my energy level, ie increasing Protein and fluids, starting Vitamin B12, etc. I started to wonder if part of it could be low blood pressure, as I'm still on 2 of my hbp meds. Yesterday I purchased a monitor and today my bp is 107/55. That is very low for me. Did all of you who have gotten off bp meds just wait for a dr's visit for him/her to tell you to stop the meds? I've been on them for so long I'm a little afraid to just stop them. Should I just call my pcp or the surgeon's office. The surgeon took me off my potassium, which I put myself back on! He also told me to stop my dieuretic.

I am 1 month out and I don't really have true hunger. I do get that empty feeling. As for before surgery, I had pretty much already lost my appetite. The only thing I can attribute that to is that I gave up anything that contains gluten. I think the white carbs were feeding my pre-surgery hunger.

It is hard to eat or drink at first because you have to take a little bite or sip and wait to let it sort of filter down through your tiny swollen stomach. It's a little frustrating, but you get use to it. I'm on day 26 and it's SO much easier already. I have felt some mild depression. I think mostly because now I'm different in how I am forced to eat. I gave up soda (ie chemicals) before surgery and have not eaten bread for about 5 months. I don't miss it at all. You will have trouble eating bread early on cause it expands in your tiny tummy. I cook a delicious dinner for my hubby and sometimes it's something I can eat and sometimes it's not. I have gotten my tiny dish of shredded chicken and sat at the table with him while he scarfs down a loin chop, rice, cooked carrots and a gorgeous salad. Oh well, I'm still healing and soon enough I will be eating just about anything I want in smaller quantities. Like last night we went to Bob Evans and he ordered the sliced turkey dinner and shared some with me. He put mine on the bread plate (about as much as a 6 month old would eat) and we sat and chatted while we enjoyed our dinners. We laugh and joke that I'm a REALLY cheap date! This site is the best medicine and while I've been home recuperating I can spend hours on here and Obesityhelp.com reading posts and asking my own questions. I have a sleeve sister that I met on here. She lives in another state, and had her surgery a few days before me. It's SO very nice to share info and encouragement with someone who's going through the same things at the same time. We exchanged cell phone numbers and email addresses and talk often. Just remember after surgery you will be shocked at how much progress you make week by week!! Start a blog and you will be amazed at how fast you recuperate!

Yeah, what NJMOMof 2 said. Hubby needs to cut the cord and be a husband first and a son second!

This is day 25 for me, 3 1/2 weeks post-op. It has been tough getting in enough protein. It's strange to be always be thinking about getting enough nutrients in my body, when I have no desire to eat. I definately have not been getting in all my fluids, but it is February, it's cold and I've never drank alot of water, even in the summer. I have to work harder on this! I'm still only able to get about 2 Tablespoons of solid protein in before I'm full. It is not too hard to know when to stop, when you start to get an uncomfortable feeling of fullness, stop or you will be miserable. It's almost not worth the time and effort to eat solid food because it's so much easier to get the protein grams in with shakes and protein bars. I found Pure Protein bars that are really great! I love the chocolate/peanut butter. The solid chocolate is way too rich!!! On February 14th I had my first visit with Dr. Lalor. It was 12 days post-op and I had lost 6 pounds. I was a little disappointed, but then I realized I had lost 1/2 a pound a day. I have always been a slow loser and I shouldn't get discouraged as I'm a "turtle" not a "hare". I weighed this morning and had lost 7 pounds since my doctor's visit, which brings me to 13 pounds post-op, and 34 pounds of the total of 100 pounds that I had to lose from the very beginning of this journey. Only 66 pounds to go! I'm going back to work tomorrow and I have a support group meeting tomorrow night. I had told the group leader I would stand before the group and talk about the sleeve surgery, since there are very few of us and no sleeve patients will stand up and share their experiences. I'm thinking of canceling this as I'm not sure I will have the energy to go. I leave the house at 6 am and would not be getting home from the meeting till after 9, then back up again at 4:30 AM the next morning may be pushing it too far. I'm taking 2 Centrum Silver vitamins every day, along with my PPI, half a potassium twice a day, a vitamin B12 and my two blood pressure meds. I ordered some Celebrity Calcium Citrate chewables and I will start taking 2 a day as soon as they come. This was something I had not thought about....how important it is to get these meds and vitamins in. My potassium tabs are so huge I break them in half and cut them into 6 pieces to get them down with some yogurt. My surgeon told me I could stop one of my blood pressure meds and the potassium when I went home from the hospital, but I soon learned I NEEDED the potassium! My heart started to beat super slow and I was VERY weak. I have a history of running low on potassium and realized my symtoms immediately. People promise me that this tiredness will eventually go away and I'll be able to get more solid proteins in. It seemed like alot of people have the same problems, but I wasn't prepared for it! It is true that we have good days and bad days....I'm waiting for more good days. I have to say my hubby has been SO supportive and understanding of my situation. After all he didn't sign up for all this, I did! I love him!!

I've heard the best way to overcome self absorbed behavior and thoughts is to look to others who are needy and volunteer. If you are feeling so much better about yourself and have more energy what better thing to do with your gift of better health? Also, remember the people in your life who loved and supported you, even when you were overweight. Congratulations on your weight loss and I hope you have continued success!!

(sheepishly raises her hand) Yes, I did cheat on the first week a couple of times. I did eat very low carb though. My labs before that were fantastic mostly due to not eating anything with gluten for months. So I was pretty sure my liver had shrunk and was not fatty. I had lost about 13 pounds also. The second week I stuck strickly to the full liquid diet though. I did not have to drink just Protein drinks. I lost about 6 pounds during those 2 weeks.

My nutritionist told me to practice the chewing till it's the consistancy of applesauce. If you don't chew well, you'll probably see it again. I didn't want to, so I'm a chew, chew, chewer! I also practiced the no drinking while eating pre-op. Now that I'm post-op, I am taking little sips to try and get more Protein down. I am never hungry so if my stomach empties out sooner, no big deal, I could go all day and not eat. I basically have to force myself to eat most of the time. When the swelling in my stomach goes down I may not need to do that. It's like a full time job trying to get in all the protein and liquids I'm suppose to be consuming! Use every trick you can come up that works for you! I've started using Protein Bars to help sneak in a little more protein. I love the "Pure Protein" chocolate Peanut Butter ones! I'm going back to work in 2 days and they will be handy to take along. As far as sipping goes, it stinks, but it's what most of us are forced to do.

I guess I should have elaborated a little more on what I put in my Protein shake. My favorite one (which my hubby like to taste) is to use either a packet of Kroger or Carnation Inst. Breakfast (vanilla or choc), 2 Tbls instant non-fat dry milk, 8 ounces milk, 1 Tbls creamy Peanut Butter and 2 ice cubes. I put this in my magic bullet (Walmart-whole set $44) and whip it up. This is a delicious drink, not thick and yucky, no aftertaste and 35 grams of protein. I also put 1/2 a banana (instead of the PB) in the strawberry flavor to boost the potassium. It drops down to 31 grams of protein. You cannot detect the non-fat dry milk powder and it adds 18 grams of protein.

I had heartburn twice in my life and one time it was when I was 8 months pregnant, ate chili Soup and was doing alot of bending over. So, no real history of acid reflux here. I had my sugery 23 days ago and have had no issues. My surgeon had one patient who he had to revise to RNY due to extreme acid reflux. She had to be fed through a tube for a month, waiting to see if it would resolve. This was his first and he said he refered to other docs who say it's rare, but it does happen. I may be get beat up here, but I think some of the problems may stem from the surgeon's techinique. I would ask my surgeon point blank how many of his patients who have no acid reflux issues pre-op, end up with it after surgery. My surgeon wants us on a PPI for only 2 months. I will go off of them as he advises and see how things go. If I have a problem I will definately let him know. A friend's surgeon never put her on one after surgery (hers was 3 days before me) and she has had no problem. I want to get off of the PPI as soon as possible due to the calcium deficiencies!

For all my 9 surgeries I was told the same thing..."you might wake up with a tube down your throat". I never did remember any tube and I have severe sleep apnea. I think they have to tell everyone this, just in case someone wakes up a little early. I would not let this worry you. For my surgery I remember waking up with the anthesologist standing right beside me. I had some pain in my left shoulder (they warned me I might) and I told her about it. I went back sleep. When I woke again the pain was gone and she was still standing right there and I asked her to hold my hand. Then I went back to sleep. I woke again and I asked her to give me a huh!? LOL and she said, "you want a hug?" I said yes and she leaned over and gave me a hug. Then I woke up in my room. It was a funny experience! LOL

I love my little Magic Bullet! I bought mine off the TV ad, but now I'm seeing them in Walmart. This includes all the accessories. I make my Protein drinks in it. Dump everything in the cup (including 2 ice cubes) pop on the blade part and whip it all up. Rinse off the blade part and just stick my straw in the cup and drink it. Easy to clean!

I purchased a liquid Calcium Citrate from Swanson (which advertises on this site) and we have taken many of their vitamins in the past. I tasted it on my finger at first and it has a super strong, lemony flavor. I knew I couldn't stand it straight, so I mixed it with some water and even a little sugar, as it was very sour, and drank a small amount. Immediately it felt like it was burning my stomach! It scared me. The directions say you can mix it with your juice, but now I'm a little afraid of what it will do to my stomach at 21 days after surgery. So, bottom line I would be careful of this product.

My surgeon's hand book says not to even try red meat until 3-5 months to let the stomach completely heal. I can eat scrambled eggs just fine. I put a little milk in it and don't fry it too long, so it's moist. Add a little cheddar cheese to bump up the Protein. I can easily eat shredded chicken in broth. I like to mix a little flour and Water and add it to the hot chicken to make it creamier. Hubby let me try a couple of bites of his Crispy Chicken sandwich at Wendys (no bread). I chewed and chewed and it was really juicy and went down with no problem. I also had a couple of little bites of his baked potato. He laughed and said I was a cheap date!

I don't like hardly any of the Protein drinks, except one. Try Carnation Instant Breakfast (or store brand for 5 grams of protein), add your 8 ounces of milk (8 grams of protein), two ice cubes and you can add one or two tablespoons of instant non-fat dry milk (9-18 grams of protein), and to bump up the protein more you can add a tablespoon of creamy peanutbutter (4 grams of protein) and put it all in your blender or I use a Magic Bullet. It does not have that nasty thick Protein Drink consistancy or aftertaste. This gives you 26-35 grams of protein and is delicious! If you like cream of tomato Soup, add some cheddar cheese to it. I take chicken add some chicken soup starter and Water. Then mix some flour and cold water and stir it in the hot chicken with broth. I started eating this on mushies, just chewed it well and had no problem with it. Hope this helps you!

I started mushies a week ago, but I haven't tried tuna. I've eaten well shredded chicken, scrambled egg, ground sausage, soft cooked veggies and cottage cheese. I would never say I felt anything like shards of glass. Are you sure you are chewing your food till it's like applesauce consistancy before you swallow? Also, could you be taking too big of bites? I always kept in mind that my stomach is not nearly healed and that I needed to be very gentle with it. Don't want any leaks here!!! You'll have plenty of time later on to eat more normal bites and not need to chew your food to death, but for now you need to baby your stomach till it heals. Enjoy your mushies and I hope things go better for you today!

Dr. Oz says, dark red blood is old blood. Bright red is a new bleed. I would take that to mean it is blood from where your insides are healing and it's making it's way out. The incision you're talking about may be from your J tube. That was my only incision that was not steri-striped and I got a tiny bit of pinkish drainage for about a week. I kept gause on it for about 3 days then after my shower I would put antibiotic cream and a bandaid on it. I never had any pain with mine. I'm still doing the cream and bandaid as this incision is very close to the waistband area and gets rubbed. Mine is no longer open and my surgery was February 2nd. If you have any worries I would call the doctor's office and see what he or the nurse says.

I am no spring chicken, but I have noticed that losing about 35 pounds from my original weight has made me feel much more feminine. Has anyone else notice this? My husband has not said much about my weight loss, but he is showing me that he finds me more attractive by being alot more attentive. He is opening doors and just doing little things he used to do when we started dating 38 years ago. Things had slowed to almost a complete stop in the bedroom.....until recently. Before sugery I was beginning to think it was all over, but just because there's some snow on the roof, it doesn't mean there's no fire in the furnace! When I asked him if his recent interest in me was because I had lost weight, he said no. Hmmmmmm, okay, well, I don't care what has recently sparked his interest in me, I'm just going to enjoy it!!

Anna, I don't know if you remember me, but I was a newbie back in April of 2010. I finally got approved and had surgery in February 2011. I know those of you who have gone on to be so successful with your weightloss are out there living your new life, but it's SO great to hear from y'all once in a while. Congratulations and WELCOME BACK!

Those slacks really show off your trim figure!

Hopefully your experience will be alot like mine. After it was all over I realized that everything my surgeon and the anesthologist told me is exactly what happened. The anesthologist told me that I could have some pain in my left shoulder when I wake up, and I should just let them know and they would take care of it. I did feel some pain in recovery, I told them and they took care of it. I never had any gas pains after that....none at all. The surgeon told me, you've had major open abdominal surgeries and the pain after this surgery will be laughable. He was right. I used the pain pump mostly to get some sleep. When it was removed, I took two oral doses of pain meds and no more. I didn't even fill the prescription for Lortab...I never needed it. The only thing I can say surprized me was the day after surgery I was extremely weak and shakey. The Foley came out with no discomfort. The drain came out and the nurse warned me some people say it stings a little. All I felt was a little tickle in my left shoulder.....no pain. So my advice is to ask questions of everbody. No question is a dumb question!