Search the Community

My scale tells me everything except the numerical value under penalty of debatterization. Been having a rough time this past week, but hope and determination live.

I think surgery and recovery as a single person is great. I don't have the pressure or temptation of people with partners. I don't have to worry about ruining date night, or dinners out. I don't have to watch someone eat a steak and baked potato while I sip on broth. I don't have to prepare meals for kids. The only food in my house are things I am allowed to eat. There is no way to mess up being in my house. Even if I made Cookies with the stuff in my house, they would be low carb. I am an independent kind of person. I have never been in a long term relationship, I value my freedom too much. If you are used to support I think it might be difficult. There is a lot of support available though. You can make a surgery buddy on this site. You will meet people in your pre-surgery meetings. You will meet people when you are in the hospital (if you walk! you have to get up and walk around). This forum is a great resource. I think it is better to go it alone, and stuggle a little than to go through it with an unsupportive spouse and family. You also live in a major city. I am sure there are meetup groups and other things for people that have had surgery. That might be a better option for some of your concern than posting on here. NYC and the NYC dating scene is another animal (I used to work in NYC). People in the middle of the country just aren't going to understand what it is like. Also your support doesn't have to be WLS. Try to find a gym or some exercise classes now, before surgery that are not packed with assholes. If you keep your surgery to yourself (you don't want to be the source of gossip for petty *******), and just connect on a fitness weight loss level, you might make some supportive friends. Another great thing about living in NYC or LA or large metro is that everyone is doing some weird diet. No one is going to care about your weird diet. You can fit right in. I suggest one solid personal friend that can be with you for surgery. I had a friend fly in from out of state. Someone you really trust and feel comfortable with. If you have a family member that can fill that role, even better. You can do it, do not be discouraged. Think about all the services you have available in the city at your disposal. When you are recovering, you never even have to leave your home. Also, at around 4 weeks out, I got a rescue dog. I have built in company and a walking partner. My dog thinks even my baked fish is delicious and begs for it (even though he never gets any). I promised myself if I survived surgery and was okay I would get a dog and it is the best thing post op I have done. We walk multiple times a day and one very long walk at night. @@Bufflehead You sound like me. I like to be alone so I don't have to compromise.

I go thru the VA and they gave me 11 boxes of opti fast shakes, I'm only allowed 5 shakes a day, beef/chicken broths, sf jello and popsicles for 2 weeks and the day before surgery on protein shakes and nothing after midnight

Hey there! I was banded on the 22nd! I was really strict about the 2 oz. rule for the first 5 days, but today, I've been sipping from the carton! I woke up at 4AM famished and the hunger pangs haven't gone away! I was fine all week until tonight! 3 more days till mush! I never thought I'd be so excited about it!

I am having hunger pangs that feel the same as "very full" pains. I can hardly get enough shakes in me to meet my Protein goal. I am just finishing up my first week on all liquids. Next week will be pureed foods. Are these pains normal? Is anyone else feeling this?

Thanks! Just seems like I should be seeing some progress. I guess its nerves too. Hard to believe next week already is surgery.

On my day of discharge (less than 24 hours after surgery), I was barely getting a couple sips of fluids into my new, smaller, swollen stomach. The charge nurse gave me a bunch of 1 ounce medicine cups and told me "Drink one of these cups of Fluid every hour, and you'll be fine". I immediately felt much better. A one ounce medicine cup is much less terrifying than a 16 ounce bottle of sugar free Poweraide! Believe me, I got no where near 64 ounce of fluid those first couple weeks post-op, but eventually the swelling went down and I could increase my liquid intake. My surgeon was a realist who reminded me that I had gone from a 32 oz. stomach to a 4 oz. stomach. I had just had major surgery. He gave me permission to just relax and not force myself to the point of being sick. Give yourself time to heal. Everything will eventually fall into place.

i'm almost 6 weeks out...and i get hungry...i still want chips and ice cream and cookies and cake and CANDY!!!!! i am just choosing not to have it.... just know....i think this is worth doing! i needed something to control my appetite...i've not been filled yet...have appt on 1/8/08... and i cant wait.. but dont expect to not want things...untill you get filled my dr even told me its a fight... just make good choices...but thats hard.... however....i do believe when i get restriction...it'll be great... gl to you... i love my band...i know its going to work... ps..even when you get restriction.... i know for me..i'll still want those things.. my mind lovessssss food... you can do it....if i can do it :bounce:

I feel hungry (less since my first fill back on 01/07/08), but initially I did not. The first three weeks after surgery I did not feel hungry. But there is another person on this site who was banded the same day as me and she has never had a fill and swears she is NEVER hungry. I am so jealous :cry Anyway, I know there are folks who have the band and are five or six months out, they originally lost 20 to 30 pounds but have not gone any further. I don't mean to judge that success, but I sure hope this does not happen to me. Honestly I am worried I might be, but I am going to fight the good fight and keep trying. I am still glad I had it. I have twangs that I should have had gastric bypass, but I really like my hair and bone mass to much to have gone that route. Plus the DH would not let us gamble with the mortality rate. Good luck with your decision.

That sounds like a money-making scam. I bought vitamins on my own. I had vitamins/minerals I was taking on my own before surgery: iron, B12, D3, folic acid. I generally buy those wherever I can get them cheapest. The important thing with iron is to not use time-release or slow-release formulas. I did use liquid iron for the first four weeks after surgery. Post-surgery I added in a multi-vitamin and calcium. For the first four weeks after surgery I did liquid forms of each (Wellesse - purchased through Amazon). After that, I switched to Trader Joe's chewable High Potency Multi-Vitamins and Citracal Petites (or the generic version my supermarket sells). For the first year after surgery I took a double dose of the multi's, then switched to a regular single dose. My surgeon's office also tried to sell me a huge, terribly over-priced vitamin package. I refused. I've had my labs drawn regularly since surgery and they have always been great.

Your body is adjusting and attempting to reach homeostasis. It's very normal and it will pass. I wish I had listened to advice from veterans like JamieLogical who suggest staying off the scale. At about 8 weeks out I stopped weighing daily and weighed once a week. This gives me a better view of my weight and even when in a stall, I can see an ounce or two gone. You may find that you are smaller in size even if the weight is stalled. You'll get through it just fine! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I am 4 weeks post op. I lost 21 pounds in the first two weeks and lost 3 pounds in the next two weeks. I did switch to mostly regular food ( one shake and two protein meals) and I think that might be it. They say if you want to get out of the stall switch back to protein shakes for a few days. Lili

My husband told his boss that he'd be working from home for at least two weeks after my surgery. My surgeon and the nursing staff told us several times that even though this is an out patient surgery, it IS a major surgery and that I need to take it easy. When I told my surgeon that my son wanted to know how long we have to wait before we can go swimming. He very pointedly told me that there will be NO swimming or any other heavy / strenuous activity until he releases me. He made it clear that he would begin making these decisions at my 2 week post-op appointment. So. Yes. you over did it. You need to sit back and relax while your other family members take care of things. That includes driving.

I'm almost 3 weeks post op and I can tell you each day gets better and better! The first week was so hard for me but now I feel good! Just take it one day at a time and you'll feel better soon! Just make sure at this point you stay hydrated! Congrats on this big step!

I was sleeved Aug 29, my surgery weight was 225 my current weight is 194 and I've hit a stall....I have been at the same weight for 2 weeks and I'm so frustrated....

I had to take the apin meds right on schedule for the first 3-4 days, then things began to subside. It took about a week for me to be able to sleep on my stomach again, aaahahhhhhhhh that was a relief! I have never been able to sleep on my back. hang in there, it will get better

Our instructions seem to be on the liberal side, which is nice. For our two weeks of full liquid we can have: Milk/Milk Alternatives Protein shakes (low sugar/carb) Low fat yogurt (with no chunks/fruit pieces) Low fat cream Soups (strained or pureed) sugar free pudding Cream of Wheat or oatmeal, thinned until it falls off the spoon. All Clear liquids (water, broth, sf popsicles, sf Jello, etc.) So far we're tolerating it all very well and while I'm looking forward to purees, if we mix up the flavors of the Soup, yogurt, pudding, and cereals there's just enough variety that I'm not going nuts. Plus I'm not hungry like I was before surgery. I still get hungry and things still sound good, but it's not that desperate, crazy hunger anymore.

Thank you. I came into work today still feeling a little lightheaded. Forced myself to walk and felt a little better. When I got back to my desk I found out that most of my team has been sick since last week. I didn't know that and now I know why I wasn't feeling well.

I too was sleeved on 9/25 and I have been losing weight consistently. Since the surgery, I have lost 35 pounds. I try time weigh myself once a week but didn't lose anything in the past week. My exercise routine has picked up so I'm hoping it's due to muscle gain.

Hi all! I was banded 10/21/09 in Kansas. It has been a pretty easy process so far aside from the awful gas pains I had that first week. I'm excited about getting healthy and thin (well maybe not thin, but at least out of the obese categories). I turn 30 tomorrow, yikes! I'll treat myself by going to the gym :wink2: What else? Hummm... I started down this road in August when I made the very difficult decision to have weight loss surgery. It snowballed from there. I went to a meeting at my surgeon's office. A few weeks later I met with the surgeon. My insurance approval came a few weeks after that! Yeah, surprised me too. I got in my visits with the psychologist. Then it was time for the longest two weeks of my life doing the pre-op diet. It was tough but I did loose 20 pounds! Surgery day came and went without any problems. Now I'm just waiting for December 3rd when I should get my first fill. I guess I am in bandster hell right now. I try to only eat 1 or 1.5 cups at each meal but I get hungry about an hour or two before it's time to eat again. I'm getting through it though, just gotta bide my time until I get fills and get some restriction going on. Good luck to everyone here, I'll be hanging out from time to time!

I'm one week into my 2 week preop diet. It consists of 2 shakes a day either protein or no sugar carnation instant breakfast, nonfat yogurt, low fat cottage cheese, steamed or raw veggies and fruit. ( they gave a couple of different meal plans switching up the servings on these so the amount varies). I can also have up to 64 oz of low calorie sugar free fluids like crystal light, unsweetened iced tea, water, sf jello, sf popsicle, or broth.

I've eaten off salad plates from the beginning and still do three year later (almost). I also use ramekins for bowls!

I was aloud to have sf hard candies very early out still have to watch the carbs. I had to wait three months to have gum.

Hiya I've already said this in a message to you, but thought it might help others on your post..... you're in a similar situation to where I was.... a lighterweight than most, so it is harder to lose. Think of it all as a % of your body weight....rather than how many lbs. I actually gained in hospital which gutted me (literally! LOL) as I'd worked so hard on my pre op diet. But now, 3 months out and I am just over my half way marker already. Don't fret - it'll happen, the first 8 weeks are the worst IMO weightwise as you have to cope with recovery, then the food stages you must go thru and the possible stalling. It'll pay off in the end, you'll see. Hang on in there!!

Well I am a slow loser but I am losing. So Im happy. Sure I would like to be losing quick but at least I'm not gaining quick. I am stalled and have been for 3weeks. Don't worry you will start loosing. How far out are you?