BlackBerryJuice

I haven't had pizza yet, but your post made me want to make one some time this week. I'm actually gonna post a recipe for my favorite home-made thin crust pizza in the recipe forum, now that I'm thinking about it, so check it out.

This is a favorite of mine, from a Middle Eastern cookbook. It tends to be a hit at parties. It also seems to work out every time I make it, which can't be said for some of the other recipes I've tried. The dough is phyllo, so it's not very heavy and won't expand in your stomach and make you uncomfortable. You can make a big pie or just make a bunch of little single-serving triangles (like spanakopita). The ingredient list is long, but a lot of it is just spices. Ingredients: 4 small or 3 large chicken breasts 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp cinnamon; another 1 tsp set aside for later 1 tsp turmeric 1/2 cup chicken stock some olive oil 2 leeks, chopped a handful of chopped parsley (about 1/2 a bunch) a handful of chopped cilantro (same) 2 jars artichoke hearts (canned in oil), chopped 200 g feta cheese, crumbled 2 eggs phyllo dough sheets (about a dozen for a large pie) butter, melted (about 2-3 oz) Bake chicken, covered at moderate heat with spices and stock, about 30 mins; chop the chicken into small chunks, reserve about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid for later. Stir-fry chopped leeks with olive oil (about 10 mins, until they are soft). Combine chicken, reserved juices, leeks, parsley, cilantro, artichokes, feta cheese, egg, and the extra cinnamon in a bowl; mix well. Be careful not to let the phyllo dough sheets dry out (I roll them back up every time I take one sheet). Melt the butter; use a pastry brush to spread butter all over the sheet. Put the sheet into a greased baking dish, so that the edges hang over. Continue until you have about a dozen sheets, arranged all around the dish. Scoop the filling into the dish; fold over the edges of the pastry sheets. If the pie is not fully covered, butter up a few more sheets and arranged them in the middle so everything is covered. Brush the top of the pie with butter. For a large pie, bake for 20 mins at a moderate-high temperature (I usually go for 350); then for another 20 mins at moderate temperature (e.g. 300), until the pastry is golden.

Great story!

Cocoa is an oft-overlooked source of fiber. Get some unsweetened cocoa powder and brew your own hot chocolate with splenda or some other sweetener.

Yeah, you should take B12. You can get a sublingual tablet, so you don't have to swallow the whole pill.

Acid is what protects your stomach against most bacterial infections, so the suspicion these days is that PPI use can put you at a higher risk for food poisonings and the like. So it's definitely possible that you'd be more likely to get food poisoning via bacterial infection and that it'd take longer than normal to kill it off because your acid levels are suppressed. I don't know about viral infections, I don't think it would matter because viruses work differently. With a gallbladder problem, you would have some pain on the right side of your abdomen, in the liver area (just below the ribs) in addition to nausea, vomiting, and other fun stuff.

I had a lot of food fantasies during the clear liquids and a few during the full liquids stage, but once you start on the more solid stuff, you realize it's not all it's cracked up to be. I find that my expectations of food these days are too high. I mean, there are still things I enjoy more than others, but no more food-gasms for me like before the surgery. :glare: When I try something for the first time post-surgery, I find that I care about it a lot less than I thought I would. My counselor thinks it might be because I no longer have the same amount of serotonin receptors in my stomach as I used to, so I can't derive the same amount of pleasure from food. For example, I was really gung-ho for an avocado half an hour ago. Had 1/3, and even though it was perfectly ripe and I put just the right amount of salt on it, it was just "ok."

....and left half a fudge brownie (a free one, if I must add!) uneaten today. It's official - this surgery is a miracle. Lol.

You should have a slow (complex) carb before your workout to sustain energy throughout - e.g. steel-cut oatmeal, bran cereal, other types of porridge or whole grain cereal. After the workout, it should be a quick protein (whey protein is the best) and a carb along with it (milk in your protein shake will provide the carbs).

This is kind of silly, but this is what I got for myself on Ebay a few weeks ago: http://iheartguts.com/shop/images/medium/stomach-plush_med.jpg

ROFL! Re: stuffing myself...I've done this, oh, maybe a THOUSAND times in the years preceding my surgery. Yesterday I had my first binge urge since the VSG. I didn't sleep very well, so that made me cranky from the start of the day, and then a lot of little things snowballed throughout the day. By the time I got home from school in the afternoon, I wanted to strangle about half a dozen people and felt this very familiar urge to go buy a bag of milk chocolate and just drown myself in the comforting feeling. It kind of freaked me out, because it was a flashback to how I dealt with things before surgery. I came home and had half a chocolate Protein bar hoping it will quell this urge to binge on chocolate. It went away, but I still had the urge to eat. I ate a few bites of a smoked salmon salad roll (you know these Asian ones rolled in rice paper with a bunch of fresh vegs). All of sudden, I felt that if I took one more bite, I'd feel sick....so I just put the rest of it back. DONE, just like that. Here's what would've happened BEFORE the surgery: I would've had 1 Protein Bar, then another one. Then I would've had 3 more. Then I would've headed to the mall near my place and bought a bunch of sushi and Haagen Dazs, eating until I felt sick. Then I'd lie in bed like a beached whale for like 2 hours until I felt functional enough to study. I'd have a crappy sleep because my GI system was so overloaded by this huge volume of food. Then I'd wake up even crankier than I was the day before AND extremely bloated and unable to fit into anything that didn't have a stretchy waist. This surgery will be a HUGE help in dealing with emotional eating.

I took Zumba when I lived in a different city where my gym offered it, it was awesome! I'm taking my first ballet and modern dance class today. It's 2 classes back-to-back, so I hope I don't die from exhaustion - my endurance is still below what it was pre-surgery. Beginner ballet's gotta be pretty low-impact, but I'm not sure what to expect from modern dance.

I stalled in week 3 and then again in week 5. No relation to what I'm eating or how active I am. Seems like losing in spurts is normal.

I generally eat 900-1000. I walk daily and do more strenuous exercise about 3x a week.

Interesting. I wish she shared a little more. Just a note to those who haven't viewed the vid yet: that particular story starts about 3 mins in.

I wouldn't say sweet things taste badly to me now, but I'm a lot more apathetic towards sweets. I've had half a cupcake and a few bites of a really good brownie since my surgery. They didn't taste funny, but they just weren't as satisfying as they used to be before surgery. I didn't really feel any desire to eat more, although I certaily had room for it.

So we are covering gastroenterology now, and while we don't specifically talk about bariatric surgery, it's a risk factor for gallstones, so it's come up on occasion. Today we had a small group session and the gastroenterologist wanted to take the time to talk about the different surgeries in a bit more detail. He mostly talked about the bypass and the band, but then added "And then you hear all these people going to Mexico to get something called the gastric sleeve" and explained a bit more about it. I fought hard to resist the urge to share my experience with the surgery and I'm glad I did! My lovely classmates were quick to comment with things like "What a waste of money!" "Can't these people just buckle down and lose some weight!?" (at 181 lbs, I'm the fattest one in the group, everyone else was skinny, of course) and, my favorite: "Oh, and then MY tax dollars are paying for their complications!" (most of these people have never worked outside of a summer research job, and most definitely have never paid taxes). Future doctors for you!

I contacted Dr. Aceves because a friend of mine was looking to get abdominoplasty after major non-surgical weightloss. He recommended Dr. Bello, also in Mexico. Based on the Canadian prices that my friend mentioned to me, it didn't seem much cheaper for that particular procedure, but it's worth checking out other procedures.

To add: Being able to cross my legs the "girly" way Lasting all day in high heels Not dying of foot pain every time I jump in ballet class Actually LOOKING like I work out instead of just working out like a maniac and remaining fat Being able to wear lace without looking like a bloated streetwalker EDIT: also, to wear those little ruffled cap sleeves without looking like a crossdressing linebacker

I had soft sashimi (tuna, salmon, scallop) once I got to the soft foods stage. I've enjoyed sushi rolls about 5 weeks out for the first time. I can have 3 small or 2 big pieces at a time.

Sorry you've had such a rough time. While most of us have a good experience with the VSG, it's important to hear that just like any surgery, there are risks. It's too bad you ended up in the minority that encounters difficulties. I'm less than 100 lbs overweight and have been happy with my surgery; I had some nausea and other issues in the 3rd week, but that went away within a few days and I've felt fine since. I think it's very important to tell your surgeon flat out that YOU don't think you are healing well at all and demand that he address your concerns, as it sounds like your quality of life has decreased an awful lot. I'm not sure why you have bile coming up, I think your pyloric sphincter may have been damaged during the operation (bile is normally in the small intestine, not stomach). I would definitely mention this particular issue to your surgeon, as that sounds a bit suspicious to me. Also, I just wanted to comment for any others who might read this thread - Iron absorption is not affected by this, as iron is absorbed in the small intestine, not stomach. Iron absorption will be reduced while you are on a PPI, so it's recommended to take an iron supplement until you are no longer taking PPIs. The only things absorbed in the stomach are alcohol and aspirin. B12 is absorbed in the small intestine with the help of something called the intrinsic factor, which is produced in the stomach. The amount of cells producing it is decreased after surgery, so B12 deficiency is, indeed, a possibility. However, taking a shot resolves that problem, and I think these shots are only to be done once every month or 3 months, so it's not as huge of a commitment, as, say, taking care of the diabetes one could develop from being morbidly obese.

Check the Fitness & Exercise forum, I posted my surgeon's guidelines there.

I guess if you have to take a few pounds off in a few days, you have no choice but to undertake some extreme measures. I'm not sure how many days/pounds you're looking at exactly, but it's either time for a liquid diet or major workouts. A liquid diet or an hour of cardio in the morning/hour in the evening will take off pounds quickly. It will suck, and the weight WILL return after the weigh-in, but at least you'll make the weight to qualify for the surgery. If you really can't control yourself with food, have whoever you live with keep tabs on you or if you live alone, see if you can crash at a friend's place for a few days - you'll be less likely to overeat if you are surrounded by others who are aware of your goals.

I was told 3 months for abdominal work (this includes push-ups). I've started light weights already (I just do one full-body set 3x a week), and of course it involves the abs a bit, but it seems to be fine. I'm starting ballet and jazz classes next week, I hope it's not gonna involve my abs too much.

I was 5'5" and 208 when I got sleeved. One thing I noticed is that a fair number of heavier people complained about belly pain and issues with moving around because of it. I didn't have anything like that, I think maybe it's because I simply had less flesh on my belly pulling on the incisions when I moved around. I did, of course, feel some soreness when I'd bend down to tie my shoes the first few days, but that's it.