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Wildabeast, I can't see anything there, other than the saltines, that would cause reactive hypoglycemia. Does your doctor offer any possible explanation? Has s/he suggested you journal your intake on a site such as fitday.com so that you can better assess how you're meeting your nutrient needs? Sometimes, it's helpful to see how many grams of Protein, etc., you're getting, because it can help you tweak things a bit. My doctor recommends 65 grams of protein/day. I have to tell you, I'd be a shaky mess if I stuck to that level--I aim for 100, and then I'm fine (even though I eat very low carb).

Carol, you're hungry because the band around your stomach does not yet restrict the flow of food from the little pouch at the top to the stomach below yet. As you work toward restriction with adjustments, you will have incremental improvement until you reach your sweet spot. Until then--yes, it is like dieting. But it will be the LAST time you are hungry in the name of weight loss! Wildabeast, can you post a typical day's worth of eating for us? Even if you've tested negative for hypoglycemia, you can be experiencing reactive episodes, and tweaking your intake can make a huge difference. (Oh--and 29 pounds since April, before having restriction? That's a great loss!) Peachpuffabilly--"fills" are adjustments of the band. The band is placed around the stomach to create a pouch. There is tubing to a port that is placed under the surface of the skin. For a period of months after the surgery (and periodically after that), your surgeon will access the port with a needle to inject saline into the tubing, which adjusts the pressure placed on the stomach by the band. This reduces the size of the stoma (hole) between the upper pouch and bottom portion of the stomach, slowing down the rate at which food leaves the pouch (and making you feel satisfied longer). (I hope that made sense!0

Unfortunately I think even Obama is being influenced by them because so far he has not seriously considered single payer. I think if we look objectively we can find enough good things in the countries that have single payer to make it work here. Heck, we have our own single payer systems here that work (Medicare, Medicaide, Tricare, VA, etc.) Now I know these programs aren’t perfect, but can we seriously say that private insurance companies do it better? They don’t and they have the power to deny people that really need coverage. Obviously the Insurance industry would take a big hit and that sucks for them, (dramatic pause while I shed a tear) but they have made a ton of money in a bad way if you ask me. I don’t get the whole socialized medicine BS. It is called “Single Payer” not “Single Hospital” or “Single Doctor”. I think everybody wants to be able to pick their own doctor, I see no reason why that ability couldn’t be written into the program. If you are one of those people that feels sorry for the insurance industry, don’t – they will adapt. Here’s an idea… Who’s to say we couldn’t still have supplemental insurance on top of single payer? Then, if you can afford the additional coverage you can get an upgraded plan. We all get the basic package; those that pay more get more. The good insurance companies can find a way to leverage that market and strive in the new environment. The other thing that drives me nuts is that we Americans seem to feel like we have the absolute best medical care in the world and going to single payer would endanger lives. Well I hate to break it to you folks – we don’t. If we did, we wouldn’t be ranked down in the 30s for infant mortality (Canada, the UK, and most of Europe are ahead of us) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_infant_mortality_rate_(2005) . We are also 45th in life expectancy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy . This one is interesting because it is not just about health care but it plays a major factor. If we had a system that rewards preventative medicine rather than reactive medicine I think this number would improve. Single payer could dramatically influence preventative medicine by forcing a change in this area.

Had my surgery 11/20/12 and was 315 the day of surgery. Most people don't believe me because I am 6' tall. I carried my weight well, but at the end of the day I was morbidly obese. I did get down to my lowest of 175 but that was short lived. Insert a bad relationship, holidays and a breakup and you have an increase up to 185-190. I am over it. And it is waaaay too close to 200 for my taste. That allll being said. I need help from my fellow veterans. What are you all doing to get to target and maintain? I need some guidance and I'm not afraid to try new things. I had to stop Crossfit due to an injury that is finally appearing to have healed. I would dearly love to hear as much as I can from you guys. I may not post as much but I do read what you guys share. Oh by the way, I also am experiencing reactive hypoglycemia and I'm trying to address that as well. Thanks in advance!!!!!

Everyone reacts to fills differently. Usually there will be immediate restriction due to the "trauma" of the fill on the stomach. This is just the stomach swelling due to what it senses is irritation. However, if you just got a small or initial fill, you probably wouldn't feel this because you'd still have a largish stoma, so any reactive swelling isn't going to be felt. In any case, your sense of restriction will always vary, day by day, as long as you are banded. Sometimes it will vary hourly! Most bandsters notice the band is tighter in the morning, and will loosen as the day progresses. Personally, my fills take two weeks to set up, in terms of judging the real fill level. Right after my fill I'm always restricted, but that's just the irritation and not the actual saline level. Two weeks later, the irritation was calmed down and that's when the fill level reveals itself to me.

yeah, that is super low. what did they recommend for you about the low blood sugar? did they suggest you get a glucometer to track your BGL? some people just cant do carbs that low. i did the slow carb diet (as recommended by my doctor) several years ago... it's no processed carbs, lots of lean Protein and non-starchy veggies and a small amount of fruit. i felt really crappy. recognizing my symptoms from when i was pregnant, i asked my doc for a script for test strips and got a coupon for a free glucometer. sure enough, i was low! (fasting BGL: 86) even after my morning coffee with 2 sugars. guess what? my birthmom has reactive hypoglycemia too! i need at least 100 grams a day too feel "normal" and not feel like i am in outer space. (i hated the feeling of ketosis after my surgery too... though some people claim they feel great when in it) so you should go with what is healthiest for you. i would ask for a script so you can track your BGL... fasting, before you eat, 15 minutes after (some people shoot up really high after they eat.. also bad for the body, so good to know), 1 hour and 3 hours. if you write down all this info, along with what you eat, you will have a better idea how to manage it. not everyone reacts the same to the same food, which is why everyone needs to listen to their own body when it comes to eating. (ie, some people can't tolerate dairy, despite the doc saying eat two dairy servings a day) tracking your BGL will take out the guess work and give you concrete info to go on when making decisions about what and when to eat.

hypoglycemia means LOW blood sugar. it means you arent eating enough carbs to keep your blood sugar up. some people make too much insulin and have surges when they eat. its called reactive hypoglycemia. i had it when i was pregnant. you need to eat more carbs. eat carbs from whole unprocessed foods. 20-30 grams isnt enough to even feed your brain. increase to 50-70 grams and see if it changes how you feel. make sure you do it first thing in the AM, since you are probably waking up with low blood sugar. as the PP said, always eat a carb and a protein together.

I've checked a few sites, and vomiting/nausea isn't listed for reactive hypoglycemia. It's more dizziness, weakness, palpitations... You should probably get that checked out regardless. I'm not sure what's going on - but even if they end up suspecting hypoglycemia after all, it'll still be a good idea to get it checked out. edited to add that I did just see a reference to nausea as a symptom, but that's to the hypoglycemia that diabetic patients sometimes get. Reactive hypoglycemia (RH), that some RNY patients get after the first year or two post-surgery (and it's usually NOT related to diabetes), sounds like it's a little different. Are you diabetic? I think you should probably contact your PCP so they can do a workup. Something isn't right. Plus the RH that RNY patients get is a reaction to sugar. It's sometimes called "late dumping", although it's actually reactive hypoglycemia rather than true dumping. But you said you don't eat sugar. That's why I'm thinking there's something else going on here...

And here’s a funny coda to yesterday’s chats: watched that drs video about Caloratio app, reread Glenn Livingston book about not binging. Great ideas about food rules - always, never and conditional- define with regard to your personal goals and needs and adhere to them, plus stuff about how to deal with the demons that make you want to break your own rules! This morning I think hmmm weetabix is on post op diet, banana good fruit with potassium... do it! The only weetabix in the house is a pack I got from a new brand sampling thing I used to get - additions with apple raisin and cinnamon. VERY HEALTHY I think. Two biscuits one small banana half cup of milk. Ate slowly. Then I DUMPED big time dumped. Cramps, sweats, hypo, nausea!!! Funnily enough I had a shop porridge mix in week three after surgery with apple cinnamon an raisin which gave me my first ever dump! Might need to plan my diet rules carefully. No processed apple n cinnamon products! Live and learn but feeling very positive about remembering old tools and picking up some new ones!

This was a hard thing for me too. I was a perfect eater for about a year after my surgery, and then I started bingeing out of no where. It got bad and I was scared that I was going to ruin my band. So I decided that I needed to be in control and decided to see a therapist to work on my binge eating disorder. It was something that was a problem before surgery, but sort of "magically" disappeared after, but then came back, rearing it's ugly head. One very helpful thing that made me feel more in control when I wanted to binge was a tracking sheet she had given me. It makes you write down on a chart the date and time, hunger level (scale of 1-10, 10=stuffed 1=starving), feelings and thoughts, food/quantity, place/context, if it was planned or unplanned, was the eating mindful or reactive, hunger level after, and feelings and thoughts AFTER eating. The hardest part for me was that you are supposed to start writing down the first 3 things (listed above) WHILE it's happening. For me, this made me feel like I might have the power to be in control because it made me actually think about it/face it WHILE it was going on. That then made me feel empowered to have something small and gave me the will power to wait the binge out and know that I would be okay. Maybe this would be helpful? I just know that it really helped me, so maybe my sharing this will help others. I will see if I can scan and upload a copy of the chart at work tomorrow if anyone is interested.

Some people get that with to much sugar or fats. It could also be reactive hypoglycemia I would contact your surgeon.

I was also hoping this surgery would magically fix all my body pain. I have Hashimotos, Fibromyalgia, and a few other autoimmune disorders. The other reason I wanted to lose weight was to keep my weight from being brought up as a reason for my pain. Doctors are so bad about saying if you lose weight you'll feel better. I have lost 78 pounds and I'm running 3 times a week, but still in pain. I think I remember reading that you have hypothyroidism, but can't remember if it was Hashis? Many docs are now saying that 90% of patients with hypo do have Hashis. I've been doing an enormous amount of reading on it to try to find a solution to my issues. I have never gotten any relief for my thyroid symptoms from taking Synthroid and getting my TSH to the low end of normal. I am frustrated that I still have a tremendous amount of hair loss, cold hands/feet, dry skin, losing the outer part of my eyebrows, severe brain fog, lack of concentration, slow weight loss, etc. I've started going to an acupuncturist that specializes in guiding Hashimotos patients through bloodwork and supplements to help decrease symptoms. Although the acupuncture seems to help, he has said that my solution lies with western medicine, not eastern. He recommended the book "Stop the Thyroid Madness". There's also a pretty good Facebook group called Hashimotos 911. Based on my bloodwork, I am adding some T3 hormone, sublingual Vit D, slow release Iron, and magnesium. Have you had your Vitamin D and iron levels checked since your surgery? I have trouble absorbing Vit D from food and the prescription supplement that I take is not absorbing as well as it did before surgery. I have had to add some sublingual Vit D. The pain that I get is deep and aching. Since I've added the sublingual, I'm not in as much pain. My endo got me up to 35 on the Vit D levels (I was at 11!), but according to my research, I need to be above 80 to be at the optimal levels.

dumping syndrome is pretty rare with sleeve, but it does happen to some people. However, it occurs very shortly after eating - like within an hour or so (usually less), so yours might be something else. Reactive hypoglycemia (sometimes called "late dumping") happens to some people who've had bypass - not sure about sleeve. Similar symptoms (well, the rapid heart rate, anyway - and dizziness), but that happens two or three hours after eating a bunch of sugar - but that doesn't sound like what you have, either. Not sure what's going on. Maybe you should check with your bariatric clinic and see if they know what might be causing it. I'm wondering if maybe you've developed an intolerance to certain foods or something (??).

Fair enough. I agree, people do have to eat to live and people don't have to do heroin to live, but eating more food than our bodies need is a choice. That is correct. Unless we choose to live on Artificial Nutrients, or Some other way... As far as being over weight.. Not everyone is a addict, some have Medical Problems. Mine started at the age of 4 months ! I began to get "BLOWN UP". Only to learn later that I had a Fluid RETENTION problem. So they put me on Water pills about 2 yrs. ago, and I am still on them. Also found a extremely HYPO THYROID. I am just now getting on medication for that. So with the band, and the Meds, and control. This will work, and I will do this. Just wanted to add that I had a PARASTIC TWIN inside me, found out with the removal of the gallbladder, and exploratory. It was attached at the intestines, and if it would have been on the outside? We would have been conjoined twins. The problem was no one new about this, and I was for ever sick. As a result parents, and Grandparents were forever stuffing something in my mouth so I would get nutrition, and Vitamins, and be Healthy. Well, it didn't work ! the twin still got it all, and I still got sick. When the surgeon found it in my 30s, I was already stuffing all kinds of stuff in my mouth, because of a learned habit, and everything tasted so fantastic "ADDICTION" I believe. He was shocked, I thought I was pregnant with twins, then even still under Anesthesia, I thought he was crazy, until he brought me the pics with my name on them. I almost threw up. It was terrible. He told me I would be better now. Well he was right. I barely get sick, but the love for food was always there. What to do.... My oldest son was playing catch with a baseball, and he threw when I was not looking, and broke my nose. I can't taste anything, and can barely smell bleach. So the specialist said forget it ! ! ! That's nerve damage. So now my hang up on food is over. I'm just telling my story, but I don't have a thing for it anymore. I do believe in Food Addiction, but I also know that complex medical problems can cause anything to happen. So now I am waiting to see my surgeon next week, and see if my turtle moves. That is a big deal to me...

I have hypo thyroids and I'm trying to figure out would it help me or just be a waste of time?

I am seventeen months out and I do not count calories. Never have. I eat Protein first and then veggies followed by my carb whatever that is. Breakfast I eat Raisin Bran with 2% milk. I find it keeps me regular. After 1/2 hour I drink a tea with 2% milk in it and take my morning pills and Vitamins. Noon I always eat a 1/2 sandwich with real meat and cheese on it. Sometimes I eat a salad with wheat hearts or legumes. Or crackers with hummus..I make sure they are complex carbs..As they are much better for you. I then take some more vitamins and at three o'clock I have a second tea and take more of my vitamins with that. Meanwhile I drink 1/2 bottle of G2 Gatorade mixed 1/2 and 1/2 with Water. That is 32 oz of water right there. I get that down before early afternoon and I fill up my 32 oz container with water again. This time with lemon water or just plain water. I then eat dinner and have protein of some sort. I love fish and chicken but will make lamb too..I eat a lot of Beans and seeds and wild rice...I always try to make my meals pretty and interesting so that even though I am not eating a lot I feel like it is special. Dinner has always been my favorite meal. After dinner I wait and at nine or 10 I have a few nuts and seeds or fruit depending on my mood. Sometimes I have a hot chocolate and ( diet one ) make sure I finish all the water for the day. Before bed I take the rest of my pills with orange juice like clock work because the Iron works better with orange juice. There are things I love to eat and others not so much. I will eat a Smart for Life bar instead of lunch if I am on the road going somewhere. The days I work out I eat added to the list above a 1/2 larabar before workout and 1/2 after. My daughter makes them for me and they are so good. I am very, very picky now when it comes to quality. I deserve quality. So I make sure I have it. I hardly ever weigh myself. I think it is harmful to our minds because we become obsessed with the numbers instead of what we need to concentrate on. And that is our need to change how we feel about food. Fix the brain, we fix the body. Working out has caused a problem for me as I now have reactive Hypoglycemia. It came on hard and fast. So now I have to change my program to accommodate that lovely problem. So added to what I said above I started today after talking to my dietitian, a snack at 11:00 and a snack at 3:30....one cheese the other yogurt or nuts protein of some sort. I believe that we can tell how we are doing by the clothes we wear. I think once I hit maintenance then I will weigh myself more and be concerned if I gain and lose 5-10 lbs. One thing you need to know is that if you are not eating enough your body will shut you down. It will protect itself so you have to be careful how you treat it. This is not a race this is a change of life a learning experience and one that did not happen over night and will not be repaired in a few months. Hope this answered some things.

YES. HYPERthyroid. NOT HYPO. I know what I have(believe me-I've been dealing with this for over 4 years..lol..) and what I'm talking about. I realize that hypothyrodism is usually associated with the obese, yet there are more people than you think who are overweight and have hyperthyroidism.I REFUSE to take irraidiated iodine(which my doc NOW understands why I will not..) just to "kill" my thyroid and make me dependent on Synthroid for the rest of my life(also, I've seen and heard what can happen to a person with hypothyroid, who doesn't take their medication. I'll pass..) So, TRUST me guys, I KNOW what I have. I just wanted to know if anyone is dealing with it and what they've had to do to get their band. *sorry about the rather cranky tone, but it's frustrating that people assume I don't know my own diagnosis(and this happens ALOT..)just because they've never met an overweight person with hyper before.. tamp='1305766138' post='1615359'] HYPER? That is not normally associated with obesity, HYPOthyroidism or Hashimoto's disease is...are you sure that's not what you're talking about? I do have hypothyroidism, have the band, lost 30 lbs, and still have hypothyroidism....did you know you can take iodine for thyroid dysfunction? I think it's sold as potassium iodine....

Synthroid for me won't absorb into the system at all. With Blood Tests I would be asked if I was even taking the Medication... Of course I was, but, it did not show up. So they put me on Generic Synthroid, and I felt terrible. So with the blood work, they now said I have both Hyper, and Hypo Thyroid. So I put it in the hands of a specialist, because it didn't sound good to me. He seems to be a good Dr., but if this up and down keeps up, then I have a feeling that this Thyroid will someday come out.

I'm not trying to play devil's advocate per se. Is he more reactive with other things? I could do the most amazing thing and my DH would only notice if it involved the very small world of things he pays close attention to. If there's something I particulary want him to notice, or I particulary need a compliment, his "usual self" might hurt that much more, and I might feel like he's purposefully ignoring it. Especially when to me, it might be the center of my universe, and to him, it just isn't something that really matters. (I tend to think much more like a man than a woman, so I just want to offer up another perspective.) That said, lots of insecurities come and go with relationships, including relationships where some significant physical change happens. I don't have enough hands, fingers, toes or hairs on my head to count the marriages I've seen end over what seems like a physical change, but in 100% of those cases there has been something else going on. (Hmm, kinda like obesity, no?) Even secure marriages will still ask, "What if?" Have you talked to him about it? What did he say?

Hiya all, I'm new to here and just was wanting to make contact. I am insulin dependant diabetic with sever insulin resistance, I am 1 week away from rny surgery and on day 3 of the pre surgical prep. From what I have seen I don't really have much to moan about, as I am still able to eat actual food, but wondered..did anyone else have extreme cravings, headaches, insomnia, low mood, and agitation when doing the prep? Also did anyone feel just generally really unwell? It's only day 3 but it's kicking the hell out of me. I am able to have the following each day (which I know is more than most), but am worried that I am maybe eating a bit too much to shrink my liver, or that I am just getting it all wrong. The hospital have me the following diet: Breakfast - 1 weetabix Lunch- small portion of lean meat or fish, salad (no dressing), 2 crisp breads or a slice of bread Dinner- small portion of lean meat or fish, 3 small potatoes or 3 spoons of rice, vegetables 1/2 pint of skimmed milk per day (to be used in tea or coffee and my breakfast) A sugar free & fat free yoghurt No sauces no alcohol no fizzy drinks I had a hypo today I am currently 106kg, I weighed 122kg at the start of my journey 2 years ago. I have gone from a 44 inch trouser to a 34/36 inch. Am having the surgery for diabetes reasons not so much for weight loss. Thank you in advance for any replies xx Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Wow I am so sorry to hear this. Trust me I understand your frustration. Often times our system reactive instead of proactive to most things. It's seems logical to approve a person for weight loos in order to prevent the person from other issues such as diabetes and heart conditions which are more costly then just performing the WLS. I hope you do not go into debit but I know how important it is to get this done.

Hey, ya'll!!! I'm a November sleever, too, and just found this site!!! It's encouraging to me to see how others are doing who had their surgery about the same time as I did. My surgery was done on 11/10/14. So far I'm doing quite well, although the weight loss is a little slow right now. Several days after surgery and while at home, I began experiencing some complications. I we admitted to the hospital again with pleural effusion (reactive fluid collecting around my left lung), infection, hematoma in the gut, and bile collecting under the diaphragm. Spent 13 days in the hospital and another 6 days in inpatient rehab for some intensive physical therapy. Even though I had to deal with all of this, I'm glad I had the surgery and would do it again. I've joined the Memorial Day Challenge with the goal to break under 200 lbs. I'm so close, but keep bouncing around within about a 5 lb. range. I am doing what I'm supposed to be doing - tracking food, keeping within calories, carbs, and protein goals, and exercising (all more days than not ). I'm hoping this challenge will get me into Onederland .

I know this conversation started a few months ago but I thought I'd add my piece. I recently got diagnosed with spondyloarthritis. It's basically ankylosing spondylitis but they couldn't diagnose AS officially because my lumbar spine is fused. I started humira about 5 weeks ago and it isn't helping yet. I also have autoimmune thyroid but we aren't sure if it's hypo or hyper because my test numbers are all over the place. I could possibly lose the weight on my own because I workout like a total maniac but losing weight will help my joints and reduce my other symptoms. Plus, I'm borderline on several other diseases and my GI thinks I'm basically "pre-crohns". I also have a worsening incisional ulcer that my doctor can't fix till my BMI is below 30.

I'm glad I found this thread. I have Hashimoto's and fully expect to not lose weight as fast as some others when I finally get the surgery. I was diagnosed with hypo about 18 years ago, and diagnosed with Hashi's about 7 years ago. Finally everything made sense, ya know? Nice to connect with others going through the same.

No, you don't come on too strong. You are straight forward, and I appreciate that. My first surgeon gave me his rules: Protein shakes for 2 days after a fill, then soft foods, like soft scrambled eggs and sugar free pudding and Jello. Then I can work up to fish and soft veggies. The last doc said nothing but Water for the first day (clear liquids) no milk, then the 2nd day Protein Shakes, and the 3rd day soft foods. Told me I shouldn't be able to eat much, but I can eat an entire 12 in Subway sub (toasted ham and cheese). You are right. I have to get back to basics. I do drink when I eat. I will work on that this week. No more bread, rice or Pasta, either. What about coffee? Can I still have my coffee? The dietician said I had 3 overlapping issues with sugar. She said I may be having dumping syndrome, reactive hypoglycemia, and pre-diabetic hypoglycemia. She said that each of these things can mess up my sugar, but can be controlled. Also, when I had my gallbladder out, I get the Worst case of burping! It doesn't matter what I eat, I burp.