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Yes the pouch reset is a lie. You can’t reset your tummy. It’s working as it should. It doesn’t control you deciding to eat. What you need is to reset your head (thinking). Start reintroducing the behaviours you followed when you were nearing your stabilised weight. You can start by introducing just one or two changes every week or two (small changes are easier to accept, adopt & adapt to). For example: start by tracking your food to see what you’re actually eating (nutrients, calories), how much you’re eating ( portion size) and how often. Then ensure your meeting your protein & fluid goals. Then introduce reviewing portion sizes. Then maybe drop a snack or two. If you’ve let your activity slide start reintroducing something even walking at first. You’re on your way because you want to get back on track. May be see a therapist to discuss how you can avoid reverting back to your pre surgery eating behaviours again - can’t hurt. All the best.

My team doesn’t really give specific calorie goals either. But everything on the list is no added sugar and non fat or low fat so with the little portions we are eating it doesn’t add up to a lot. Plus it’s not all about calories anyways. You also have to consider fat and carbs )especially added sugars). What you’re describing sounds well under 1000 calories to me though. Have you really added it up? I mean my ready made protein shakes are 160 or 180 calories. Even three times a day is 540 and then a tiny bit of soup? I mean the fruit and the oats were not on my full liquid stage if that helps. But they are allowed on puréed Which I’m assuming you will be in very soon. But if they are in your list of food that are allowed then I’m guessing they know about how many calories you are getting and it’s okay. I honestly think you are doing fine. It’s so easy to stress over every little detail because we have fail at diets so many times but when you go to your post op appointments take your food log and if they feel Ike you are off track they should tell you what changes to make.

I am not preventing more weight loss however I am not a fan of how thin I am right now. I work out to build muscle but I like being curvy and I am looking pretty flat now lol I felt really good and *think* I looked good at about 175-180 Not that I don't feel good where I am at, but I am would okay with where I am at. My surgeon said that same lol But like you said I am not letting my foot off the gas, still working out 6days a week, tracking my food and prioritizing protein which I plan to do for the rest of my life. Thank you I am loving joining this new life!

I can seem to open what you have and of course I didn’t save the recipe I tried but I remember it called for vanilla protein powder (I’m sure you could substitute any flavor you like). If the recipe you have doesn’t call for protein powder you may need to add a splash more milk. To up the protein you can add things like Greek yogurt, nuts, seeds, or nut butter (just be sure to add natural nut butter and be conscious of the calories).

Congratulations on your weight loss. I hope your sweating issue has resolved with your being closer to goal. I have question though? Do you recall the name of the rx your dermatologist gave you for sweating? I have a similar issue which I know is exacerbated by my weight but even when I lost weight with the sleeve it was still an issue. It’s horrible to live with. I have seen every specialist and had every test I can think of. My dermatologist gave me oxybutwnin which was great for my bladder but did nothing for the sweating. I would be thrilled to know that thete is another option.

I just had my surgery on the 27th and am home from the hospital. I have been having a hard time with tracking how much I have been taking in with water and protein. Any tips or tricks to help track it so I make sure to try to reach my protein goal? I use the baritastic app but it doesn't allow me to go in and just put single ounces on some of my shakes. Also, I am experiencing a burning sensation on the right side lower part of my stomach. Any idea's what this could be from?

I haven’t heard of the gel either but I do remember something with the powder and adding it to the broth. I think it’s best to mix it into a little that was room temp and heat up the rest then mix the two together. I never tried it but someone said it was the solution to it being lumpy when mixed in the hot soup. So if you do try powder and it doesn’t mix well, maybe try that. Let us know more about the gel though if it does work out. Sounds like it could be better to mix in food? Is it whey protein though. That’s the one I was told we absorb the best post surgery.

I dump and my first sensation is feeling loopy, then I see bright spots that don’t go away, they get worse. Then the sweats and shaking starts, and if I haven’t fixed myself with some protein then it turns into vomit/diarrhea town. Others could feel different, but the clue to me is you saying your “skin was crawling.” If it’s food allergy related, it’s very serious. I wish you the best!

I had to do the diet when I had the sleeve surgery 2 years ago AND when I had the revision 1 year ago to bypass. Some surgeons require 2 weeks, some require 1 week, and some only 2 days. Just depends on your weight, bmi, and surgeon preferences. My first time, I had to do 2 weeks. It was all liquid. I was on protein shakes, bone broth, protein pudding, jello, Propel drinks, protein gatorade, smoothies. I was 421 pounds when I started it and 388 the day of surgery because of that diet. It sucked, but was very effective. Thank goodness it wasn't anything I would need to do long term, because no way, no how lol My 2nd time was for a week. It was slightly less strict. Same liquids except I could also have things like 1 meal of ministrone soup, protein yogurts with fruit in it, or hummus, avocado spread, and cottage cheese. This one was much more tolerable, and while I did still lose weight o it, it wasn't as much and it wasn't as bad. Still sucked, though. But at least I knew it was for a very limited amount of time. Both times, I knew it was worth it to make my surgeries as safe as possible. That was the most important thing to me.

I completely agree with what everyone has said so far. I will add, there are many people on this forum who hesitated & deferred their surgery for many reasons (influence of family or friends, own fear & doubt, etc.) all say after they do have surgery, they wish they had done it the first time. I hate people, who have never had the surgery, say it’s the easy way out & that they care about you. If they cared about you & your health they would support you wanting to do something to benefit & improve your health. And, importantly, it’s not easy. You have to watch every thing you eat & doing some form of activity is recommended but unlike any usual weight loss diet & exercise program you have to do a lot of head work. The head is where many of the issues that drive excessive eating (addictions, emotional issues, etc.) originate. The psychological aspect of the surgical program is great & a vital aspect of continued success. I can’t stress this enough. The other thing is that the programs get you to examine & change how & what you eat which any traditional diet doesn’t. It’s why traditional diets fail - we all go back to eating the same way we always did. However, the whole process does get easier as you progress and get to the point of maintaining your lower weight. Many of your new learned eating behaviours & food choices become imbedded and second nature. New habits are formed. Less liked foods become favourites. You’ll discover & enjoy new cooking styles & ingredients. You’ll learn what you can & can’t eat to maintain your weight & how much & how often of some other things you can eat (like those old favourites). And you work out a way to eat that is sustainable and doesn’t feel like you are missing out or punishing yourself like a traditional diet does. If you decide to explore the surgical option again, maybe don’t tell anyone until you are completely certain about your decision and won’t be swayed by people who don’t understand or respect your opinions, intelligence, decision making abilities & have never walked in your shoes through your life. All the best which ever path you chose.

We're surgery twins! Well you're not alone. I've been struggling with my protein goals. I started putting ice cubes in a cup (filling the cup with ice cubes) and drinking my protein shake thus way. It's helping. I'm also feeling super hungry. I just want to chew something! Lol

Just got my surgery date 7/23 for bypass. Just bought all my vitamins from Bariatric Pal. Stocking up on shakes, protein powder, yogurt smoothies, soup, jello. I do 10 days of liquids preop starting this Friday with the last 3 days being clears only. Going to have my steak Thursday night tho! 😂😜

Wow I can relate to this and I’m 12 days post op. I’ve had a pretty bad experience so far with this. To begin with after surgery I developed a very rash all over body from a allergic reaction to the substance they clean your body while in surgery. So I felt with that for a couple of days. Went to the ER twice because the itching was unbearable. I swear I regretted the surgery at this point. I agree the protein and water you need to get down with just sipping is freakin hard. I’m in full liquids and I am starving. Sorry for all the negativity but that’s just where it’s at right now. I still pray every day I will see some type of light. I know God has me. Praying for you as well!!!!

I agree with @catwoman7’s suggestion for some anti nausea meds. Hope a replacement surgeon is engaged soon. So frustrating. I went through a phase when I found water too heavy to drink.I relied more on green tea & flattened sparkling water & not solely plain water then. Is that how you would describe how you feel before the nausea starts? On the days you struggle with water are you able to drink other flavoured or unflavoured fluids? Were you are big drinker of sweet drinks before you had surgery like sodas? Could there be an underlying craving for sweet drinks again which is why flavoured unsweetened drinks seem tart to you now?? Our brains can work against us sometimes. There are odd days when I don’t get all my fluids in. Life gets busy sometimes or the opportunities to drink more than a few sips at times during the day ate rare. I don’t mind too much when it’s just odd days because I know I’ll reach my goal (or drink even more) the next day & will be back on track again. (Same with protein goals too.)

That’s exactly how I felt. I got down close to my doctors goal for me (18’ppunds shy) stalled there for about three months and then the hunger came back and I started to gain. If you haven’t spoken to your surgeon yet, definitely do that. They have some weight loss meds you may want to try (I couldn’t take because of other meds I’m on) and also the GLP-1 that some people are having a lot of success with (my insurance doesn’t cover but some do now). Plus there is the option of revision if/when you are ready. I am learning that it’s not super uncommon for people to have to revise the sleeve. Don’t quote me but it seems like it was 26%! Of people need revision within 3’years. Dom‘t personalize it like I did. I felt like I was such a failure that I stopped going to my follow up appointments and gained it all plus some. Hopefully they can help you before it comes to that.

For me, I use a European brand - barinutrics or else one of my many flavours from My Protein - salted caramel, vanilla, plain, mint chocolate.

Hi All...having some strange post surgery happenings and wondering what is normal. Let me first say that I do walk pretty briskly for an hour 5 days per week and I also swim laps 5 times per week for an hour. So, I am getting A LOT of quality movement on top of general stretching, etc. I am about 9 weeks post op for VSG and everything is SORE. My knees are killing me, my back, my legs, my arms..you get my point. Weeks 4-6 I was insanely tired and that has gotten better but now I have this new problem. I don't know if it's just because I'm existing in this calorie deficit or what. (?) I'm at about 900 calories per day and have been told to keep it there until I hit goal. I am getting about 80 grams of protein per day. I am very good about taking my vitamins. On top of the multi-vitamin, I take calcium, magnesium, tryptophan (for sleep), stool softener, ursodiol (gall bladder). Where I am not doing quite as well is water. Some days I am good with water, but I'd say about 50-60 oz of water might be my usual intake. I have a job where I drive a lot and I am not near a bathroom, so that's a problem I have to be careful about. There is still room for improvement there and I acknowledge it. I am working on it! Is this achy/sore feeling normal? Has anyone else encountered this? I'm not against asking my surgeon's office, but they have not been overly helpful with my questions in the past. It feels like I get dismissed by them and that has been very frustrating. I keep getting told "well you're not our normal patient" and then I feel like I am left to figure this all out on my own. It's lonely and frustrating. I'd like to do something to not be so sore, but this has been going on for about two weeks. Any thoughts?

I was allowed regular coffee afterwards, not restricted to decacf, so once I could have it I made a frappe version with cold brewed coffee, dark chocolate almond milk, a scoop of protein powder and ice cubes. Sometimes I include a syrup - Da Vinci Caramel Syrup Light. For the soft food stage I had a lot of bolognese or lentil curry/dahl - good amounts of protein and flavour for the small portions.

Really starting to feel like I am in a groove getting in all of my fluids, protein and vitamins. It’s no longer a huge struggle I have to constantly think about. I take my calcium with my morning proffee that I drink first thing that gives me a really good start at 20oz fluid, 30g protein and one vitamin down. (Just take the vitamin with the last sip as opposed to the first if your vitamin has a lot of iron) and I mix in a spoon of soluable fiber so I get that over with as well. While I’m drinking it I get out my three calcium’s for the day, take my stool softener and take my daily rx meds. The rest of the day is pretty easy. I don’t get up at a set time so I just make sure to wait at least two hours to take my calcium’s and just fit in all three like an hour before I plan to go to bed at which time I take my second stool softener and the magnesium she added for muscle cramps. If i am going to be out for the day I will set alarms for the calcium’s and put them in my purse during my proffee. . A long time ago I created alarms for every half hour of the day so that it’s super simple to just toggle on whichever alarms I may need in the morning and when it goes off I just have to figure out what I’m forgetting 😆 You may have to turn off the ”everyday” function so when you turn it off it’s really off but doing that has helped me with everything I have to remember since I get distracted pretty easily. This would be way easier if you get up at a set time because you could turn on that everyday function and set the alarm once and it’s done from then on. At this point I’m only reminded of the pain a handful of times throughout the day. The only thing that is still not easy for me is the 30 minute rule. I know that I was supposed to do that forever after my sleeve but around the time I gave up hope on that I started back with drinking while eating and it’s a really hard habit to break. I do find that if I brush after meals and swish water around and spit it out it helps some. Next step is soft foods I am so looking forward to this stage and at the same time anxious I will overdo it too fast. I believe I mentioned before I am a rule follower and prefer more structure “soft food” is a bit vague for me. I survived it last time, though so I’m sure it will be okay I really hope everyone else is recovering well if early out and starting to get in their groove as well if they are a little further out. Any tips that you guys have worked out to remember it all?

I've been home for a few hours now. I passed out pretty much as soon as I got home. I'm currently sipping on a Gatorade Zero, and now that I'm out of the hospital I can do a liquid diet instead of just clear liquids. So there's that, at least lol. My biggest problem is water. Doesn't matter if lukewarm or cold, straight water makes my stomach cramp. But because I am able to consume other liquids just fine, they went ahead and sent me home. The water thing is just something I'm going to have to keep working on. My other big issue was my body did the opposite of that they expected it to do in regards to my blood sugars. AKA, every time they tested, I was in the 200-300 range when they were expecting me to go down post-op. So I came home with rapid-acting insulin on a sliding scale. Hopefully soon we can discontinue that. For those of you asking about recipes, my doctor has me use the Baritastic app for my logging and tracking. It does have recipes on there as well, if you are looking to spice things up in the land of boredom. Now time to catch up on posts. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @ShoppGirl - Amazing that they had you drink Gatorade 2 hours prior to arriving for surgery. I had to drink mine the night before, and absolutely nothing by mouth after midnight. It's wild to me how different doctors prefer their things to happen. As for taking the shots, I'm sure you are going to rock it. I struggled with the idea of giving myself shots, but over the years it just became another thing for me to put on my calendar to remind me to take. Your question about how long to wait between trying new things, my doctor said I could not try anything new on the same day. So if I tried something and it seemed to work, that would be my thing that day. Then the next day, I would keep that for the first meal, and then as long as it still agreed, I would try something new for the 2nd meal. Maybe that helps you out some? Thank you again for the recipe/website. The site has been bookmarked for me. So the straw thing is for life, it sounds like? At least based on your experience. Chewing your eggs to liquid is still really good. My nutritionist said that every bite I take from now on needs to be the consistency of applesauce before I swallow it. And that chewing even beyond that would be great. But you're rocking it! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @Pepper_No_Salt - Thank you for the idea of mixing things in. I guess I've been scared to do that because I didn't know if it was allowed or not. How do you like the Orgain powder? I use the Owyn premade shakes and Vega powder. They sent you home same day?!?! Holy crap, and I mean that in the best way possible lol. My doctor and nutritionist vehemently told me no straws. Apparently because you can actually suck up air as well as the liquid if you use a straw. I just don't know if that is forever, or just in the post-op period. But my stomach cramped drinking straight water no matter what temperature. However, I did exceptionally well with ice chips - letting them melt in my mouth and then trickle down with a swallow. That didn't affect me at all, so maybe see if you can get some ice chips from Sonic or something similar to maybe give you an idea of how much a 'sip' is? Another suggestion I got from my nutritionist as well as people who my husband work with that have had the RYGB is to buy shot glasses for your water. It should take you about 10-15 minutes to finish a shot glass of water. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @AndreaJD - Thank you for the well wishes! Water was a struggle, but I was up walking on my own the next day. So I feel like I was doing pretty good for myself! I get to start my full liquid stage today now that I'm home. But man, I can't stay awake enough to do much of anything. Hospitals and rest do not go in the same sentence, unless it's discussing negative rest. (My care team was absolutely great though, so I very much appreciate all they were doing for me even if it meant not getting nearly enough sleep.) This will be an experimental phase for me as I have to find dairy free options to make my life easier. But even if I had to literally water down yogurt, that would be better than the chicken broth I had in the hospital. lol ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @Hiddenroses - I have a bunch of staples as well, and have never experienced them before. So thank you for that explanation. Hopefully when I get mine out at the 10 day post-op, I'll be able to at least tolerate it now that I've kind of been forewarned. And yay, WrA peeps! Honestly we probably did cross paths, but in the early days of RP for me I was stupidly shy. For your chair question - I noticed sitting in any chair for longer than an hour bothers me currently. Which they didn't like in the hospital, because they wanted me in the chair for two hours at a time. And I just... could not do it. It ached too much. Even being home now, sitting in chairs I've sat in previously, I have about an hour long time span before it starts to ache. I take that as my sign to get up and move around. Dry mouth is a problem in particular for me. I still try to sipsipsip but I hate the feeling of dry mouth. And that's made worse by the fact that I'm a diabetic. And yes, I was thrilled (/s) to find out I was starting my period. Thank God for mesh panties and pads they had on hand. They assured me this happened quite often, but it still annoyed me to no end (especially when I'm on multiple birth controls to prevent having said periods due to endometriosis). As for poor executive function, I have that in spades as well. I had to come off my Adderall a couple of days prior to surgery because you know, they want me to go to sleep during anesthesia and not be on stimulants. And hoooo boy did that make the problem that much worse. If it wasn't for my poor husband, pretty sure I would have lost my head and left it laying somewhere. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @Onemealplan - Did your doctor allow ice cream for the puree foods? That's kind of awesome. I don't have recommendations for that stage yet as the earliest I will get to it is 8/28 after my post-op appointment. I do remember a recipe back from one of my diet days (Weight Watchers, maybe? I don't remember) that I think might be helpful. You take a helping of ricotta, mix it with Splenda (or whatever sugar alternative you prefer), and some cocoa powder that has no added sugar. Makes it a friendly chocolate treat. I can't give exact measurements on it because I played with it some to get the consistency I liked at the time. I also don't think I could handle the pureed proteins lol. I'll be saving those for when I get to the final stage. I can survive on tuna for a while, especially when I'm having protein shakes alongside it. They gave me a walking goal of 4 laps per 12 hour shift. i was doing those just fine, and when they finally let me walk on my own I extended how long a lap was. But I could not pass gas until they started giving me what is essentially children's Gas-x. And even now, I only pass gass within the 2-3 hours after I've had it. So thankful they sent me home with some. As for in the hospital, the only options i had was water, chicken broth, ice chips, and no sugar added hot chocolate when I specifically asked for it. They brought in 10oz bottles of Dasani water, and it would take me 12 hours to get through one of those due to the cramping. But everything else went down fine. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @Rob Nissam - Thank you for that explanation. My left shoulder was hurting the most over the last day, and they said it was the gas pain. It was the thing that made sure I did not skip any pain medicine, because I was almost in tears over it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Okay, I think I got through all the posts and everyone. If I missed someone, I am really sorry. For those of you in recover, I pray the pain lessens and the intake gets better daily. For those of you who are still waiting on surgery, YOU GOT THIS! I'll be praying for a safe and healthy surgery for you, and that your recovery process is simply fantastic. ❤️

It seems to be all carbs that give me trouble, although "bad" carbs make me sick almost immediately. My body went from constantly craving carbs to seemingly not being able to process them anymore. It's really weird. And frankly, annoying. And I agree, a few of my doctors are seeing numbers on the scale and bmi and not me as a person and my overall progress. I've lost 246 pounds from my highest weight. And 213 pounds from my original surgery weight. And that still doesn't seem like it's good enough!!! My current weight is lower than some other people's final ending goal weight. THEIR doctor's are ok with that, yet MINE seem to think I need to lose more, more, MORE!!! This is how people fall into disordered thinking and eating. I'm trying very hard for that NOT to happen to me again, and this is not helping. Also, yes I have started adding a Chobani Complete liquid Greek yogurt to my snacks. They have 20g of protein, 15g of carbs, and 180 calories per serving. I've got myself up to 40 carbs per day with that (without working out) and seem to be doing ok, so I'm going to go up to 45 carbs daily without working out (that's where I was at but with workouts) and then sloooowly try to increase from there and see if I can. My body just really resists carbs, so it's really slow going.

Hi from UK, Ive been booked in for surgery in July and was told to go on 12 week diet. I thought that's excessive as I've seen heavier people only do 2-3 weeks max. I have to do 9 weeks on milk and jelly, then 3 weeks on weight watchers soup and Muller. For example I've started today and I'm at weight I should be on 20th if I have like healthy protein based meal once a day in the 9 weeks that should be fine isn't it? I had boneless chicken today and weight didn't fluctuate thankfully so one meal a week for 9 weeks should be fine? Sorry if I'm rambling

Well I read that like 26% of sleeve patients end up revising whether it’s because of GERD, inadequate weight loss or regain. My surgeon said that it’s less risky and it’s a very good surgery that works fine for many people but it’s just not enough of a metabolic change for some. I honestly think he leaned towards it because my BMi was low (for this surgery at least). I was barely 35BMI but I tried telling him that was only because I was literally dieting my whole life and even then I didn’t eat that bad. I just ate a lot of food. I’m sure he hears that a lot but I think I just needed the bigger change from a more drastic surgery. From day one with my sleeve I felt like I was on a diet. I never did find healthy foods that I enjoyed, I ate chicken breast and one of the three veggies that I liked and downthe road I ate a tiny portion of something not so good for me (nothing terrible but not good either). I also never felt the spurt of energy that I felt this time so I never got into the exercise. It just wasn’t the whole lifestyle change. It was like any other diet when my hunger came back and my portions got bigger but it was healthy food at first. Then I started gaining and it just made me so depressed I was trying so hard and I was gaining already. I went to my surgeon and asked about bypass and he said he didn’t think it was a good option for me. I still don’t understand why he said that and later changed his mind. Anyways, after that I stopped following up with my team, stopped posting on here and I never went to in person groups. All of my friends and familY had already told me how big I was before thinking it was safe to say because I was thinner then so as I continued to gain I knew what they were thinking of me so my confidence just plummeted and that just snowballed into my gaining all of my weight back and then I just said forget it I guess this is just my life and I didn’t even try anymore. Finally one day my doctor said that I should really go ask him why it is that he doesn’t think it’s a good idea because they felt I was a good candidate and he said he would do it and asked me if I ever heard of the SADI. He sent me home to do research on that surgery and come back and tell him which one I wanted. I said I think the SADI and he said he needed tests to make sure I was a good candidate. He did an endoscopy, a barium swallow study and a gastric emptying test and then he said I was good and put me on the schedule. Then at the last minute they figured out I needed the nutritionist visit and the psyc eval that they didn’t think I needed so I did those in a hurry and started my preop diet. This time I told everyone about my surgery. Even though I have terrible fears that I will regain again I know that I need them cheering me on to keep me going as well. I started the In person support groups before I even had my surgery and I started posting here again as well. I have done so much more with finding healthy foods that I don’t dread and adding exercise so I can have things other than chicken breast macro wise as well. I also know this time that even if I don’t reach my goal weight or my secret goal weight that I already feel so much better and hopefully I can keep that In mind and not get caught up trying to do this just to be skinny because that isn’t the most important thing. Last time I reached the first goal I had set for myself but I never did reach the goal that I secretly wanted to get to. But I was only 18 pounds away and I let that make me feel like a failure. I would give anything to be that weight now. I just lost perspective I guess. Being healthy is really why I did it then and now and I’m already on the road to being a lot healthier so if I do lose more that’s really just icing on the cake. I just have to remember that and I think I will be okay.

My go-to marinara brand is Bove's, which is made in Vermont and only contains plum tomatoes, olive oil, fresh onions, fresh garlic, salt, and fresh spices. It's delicious, but is pricey and can be harder to find if you aren't in New England. But the one I will get if I'm not able to find Bove's (or if I'm feeling like a cheaper option) is Ragu Kettle Cooked tomato basil, which you can get at Walmart and Target for under $3 a jar. It's about as close to homemade as you will find from a bigger brand and the ingredients look like things you keep in the kitchen. The turkey meatballs are fresh but precooked from Shady Brook Farms and can be found in a lot of grocery stores. The ingredient list is kind of terrible, though. They are tasty and heat up in 2 minutes, but once I actually looked at all the crap in them (I tossed them in the cart without checking), I will probably opt for a frozen version in the future if I don't want to make homemade. Speaking of frozen, they make frozen zucchini spirals, and I think you can get butternut squash and beet spirals, too. When made with fresh (not frozen) ingredients, I just toss it all in a bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Dinner done!

I haven’t tried contrave but I’m pretty sure that is one of the meds that my doctors considered for me when I started to regain as well. I wasn’t able to take it because of my other meds in on, unfortunately. I do have a friend that took it within the last year. She said Her dr wrote the rx for the two meds that it’s made from separately because it was quite a bit cheaper that way. I guess it wasn’t the right med for her, though, because she is now trying Wegovy. They started her at a really low dose and she said it will take until month five or six for her to be on the therapeutic dose of the Wegovy. I’m kinda surprised if you had side effects right away if they started you low as well. If so, that’s for sure not the one for you. Anyways, there is a reason that all those meds continue to be sold and prescribed. What works For one person may not work for another. It’s the same as antidepressants. There are a zillion of them because it really does vary from one person to the next. I’m my opinion it’s definitely worth a try. I did take phentermine when I was younger if they offer that option at some point. It worked during the day but of course as a stimulant was designed to run out at night. I did lose a little but not what I had hoped. I’m all fairness I tend to do the majority of my eating at night anyways. I can see where it could work for someone who does not have that terrible habit.