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Many people don't show an initial loss on the scale because of IV fluids and swelling post-op. Have you talked to your NUT? Did your surgeon or NUT express any concern when you had your post-op follow-up? If not, I you are probably doing fine. Almost everyone hits a stall about three weeks post op. Just follow your program. Focus on getting in all of your Protein and fluids, take your Vitamins and supplements as directed, and exercise. Even though you are getting 70 grams of protein, your calories are very low. You should do better once you are able to get in more calories. Embrace the Stall! http://BariatricPal.com/index.php?/topic/351046-Embrace-the-Stall

Don't be frightened, Lala. We all get the jitters as the date approaches. I had a lot going on in my life approaching my surgery date - so I pushed it back by three weeks and went on holiday to get some sunshine and reflect. The time gave me the space I needed to weigh up all the pros and cons. On reflection, the pros dwarfed any cons I could identify. Nearly 6 months out and apart from the stall frustration - I am a very happy camper. I suggest you write yourself your own list of pros and cons and see where that takes you. You might be in for a surprise. The best of luck with whatever you decide

I know many pre-op patients have questions about the process. Each one of us is different but I thought I'd share my experience around the surgery and recovery in case it is beneficial to anyone preparing to undergo VSG. Based on my BMI, my doctor put me on a one-week pre-op liquid Protein diet. This consisted of three Protein shakes a day and otherwise Clear liquids. The first couple of days were tough, but by day 3-4 my system had gotten over its carb withdrawal and I tolerated the diet fairly well. I also used this time to wean off of caffeine since my surgeon didn't allow any for 8 weeks post surgery. During the pre-op diet phase I dropped 8 pounts, from 285 to 277. On my surgery day, I arrived at the hospital fairly early. The nursing staff prepared me (IV, gown, support stockings, etc.) and I met briefly with the surgeon and anesthesiologist. I was wheeled into the very cold operating room. Shortly thereafter I was given the IV anesthetic and was fast asleep. I woke up in the recovery area. This was easily the most uncomfortable part of the process as I was coming out of general anesthesia, hooked up to everything and now had a wonderful (not!) urine catheter placed. As I came out of the fog, I remember trying unsuccessfully to negotiate with the nurse to remove the catheter as it was very uncomfortable. After 20-30 minutes in this area I was moved to a wheelchair (a surprisingly challenging endeavor) and was wheeled to my room. Once in the room the PCA pump was attached. This helped greatly with my comfort level. I was also allowed to start sucking on ice chips. I did experience some gas pains but they were manageable. The nursing staff got me up to walk within a couple of hours. My particular facility was absolutely wonderful. It is a small satellite surgery facility of a large hospital and is in the same building as the surgical practice. I think most of the patients are part of the weight loss surgery program. On my particular surgery day I think my nurse had two patients, so I was able to get as much attention as I needed. One key item they were monitoring was my blood sugar which was running low. This was surprising as prior to surgery I was a Type-II diabetic with a normal glucose of 115-120. They gave me IV glucose a couple of times and were monitoring it closely. I progressively felt better throughout the day and evening and walked a few more times. There wasn't much sleeping as it seemed like every 10 minutes someone was in the room to do something. The day shift nurse had been bringing me ice chips in a small medicine cup. The night shift nurse brought a large cup of them with a spoon (what an angel!) By about 3am I was able to get myself out of bed and move to a nearby chair, managing all of the lines and connections carefully. I found that the more mobile I was the better I felt. At 5am I was told that we needed to begin preparing for my discharge. This involved giving me a glass of ice Water which I sipped on. It also involved removal of the catheter and the surgical drain, both of which were momentarily painful. I did feel better after that though. One more walk, a visit from the surgeon and his assistant, and I was discharged a little more than 24 hours after arrival. We stopped at the downstairs pharmacy for the liquid narcotic pain medication. At home, day 1 post-op involved mostly sleeping and relaxing. I had to sleep in a recliner for a couple of days to limit suture pain. I used the narcotic pain med a couple times that day. I began sipping and walking, encountering a little pain but nothing unbearable. By day 2 post-op I was feeling much better. On day 2 I stopped the narcotic pain meds and switched to liquid Tylenol. I had been told I could drive as soon as I was off the narcotics, so switching to liquid Tylenol meant I wasn't tied to the house. By that evening I felt well enough to drive myself to a meeting of an organization I'm involved with. Moving slowly but without much pain, it was nice to get out a little. I noticed I had real challenges with capacity of my new stomach for the first couple of days. It seemed like it would only hold a couple of sips or maybe a teaspoon of broth. On day 3 this got better, and by day 4 I was able to drink liquids and even broth and Soup without much restriction. I think this was the post-op swelling going down a little. My surgery was on a Tuesday and I came home Wednesday morning. My first venture out was Thursday evening. I returned to work the following Monday without any real issues but I have a fairly sedentary office job. I have to say that my recovery was quicker than I expected with relatively few issues and no complications. I know this isn't the rule for everyone. I think it helped that despite weight and Type-II Diabetes I was in generally good physical condition which probably made things easier. I'm now about 10 weeks post surgery. I successfully transitioned diet from liquid to pureed to soft foods and then to regular foods. I've experienced two stalls (one early and one now). I've dropped two shirt and pant sizes and am almost ready for a third. I'm still learning how to manage my weight loss and diet while traveling extensively for business. I have yet to get locked into an aggressive exercise regimen but am trying to do so. But overall this has been a totally positive experience and a decision I am 100% happy with.

Thrilled, thrilled, thrilled. Saw the post-op bariatrics team last Wednesday. Kaiser defines a sucessful bariatrics patient as one who has lost 50% of the excess weight within one year following surgery. I have lost 81% in 7 months. This forum is a wonderful resource, with many people who are very successful with the sleeve in the long-run. I want to add my experiences to the pool of information. I plan on being one of the long-runs. To keep losing weight, I have to eat fewer than 50 grams of carb a day, and stay under 1200 calories. No, I usually don't get all my Water in. I also drink coffee, with 2% milk. This is the source of most of my carb. Eating too much is as bad as eating too little. Doing either one can make my weight loss stall. I can't snack anymore. The surgeon told me that, after 6 months, it's three meals a day, period. He's right. I still use baby bowls, a baby spoon, and 5-inch plates. I plan to use the small plates forever. I like my baby spoons, and the bowls are still portion-perfect. Too much Protein triggers insulin, and I gain weight. At my weight, 166.6, I only need 65 grams of protein a day, according to my NUT. If I don't eat enough fat, my weight stalls. Fruit = stall. I cannot lose without low-intensity exercise. 3 - 5 sessions a week, 30 minutes, on a treadmill that keeps me at a pulse rate of 107 (based on age) is the key. I also lift heavy weights twice a week. Throwing a 20-pound weight around does nothing for me. I use as much weight as I can lift for 5 slow reps. I am almost to the point of being able to do a real pull-up. I have loose skin. I am a shar-pei. But I am a proud, getting-healthy shar-pei. It doesn't bother my Best Half. Why should I care? I wore a bathing suit in Hawaii, and no one reported me to the Skin Police. Yes, I lost hair, starting at 3 months and it has slowed almost to normal. I ate my protein, took my Vitamins, and I still lost hair. It's based on hormonal changes, just like after childbirth. I still look like a girl. If you are scared to have a sleeve because of the potential hair loss, you aren't a good candidate for the surgery. You don't want to lose weight badly enough to be successful. I did not have a "food funeral" before my surgery, and I followed my surgeon's pre-op diet to the letter. I've spent years eating crap. Two weeks crap-less wasn't going to kill me. I don't miss any foodstuff. I don't cry over crap not eaten. I pull my vintage sized 14 Liz Claiborne clothes out of the closet and rejoice that I no longer wear a size 26, like I did back in 2000. If I really, really want it, I eat one small bite. Most sweets that I used to crave now taste terrible. One sweet potato fry satisfies as well as a bag of gingersnaps used to. Soda tastes like chemical-salts-bilge water. Yuk. I goof. I screw up. I eat too much. I still emotionally eat. That doesn't make me a bad person. There's always the next opportunity to make a much better choice. Veterans, please feel free to add on. I'd love to know what is down the sleeved road!

Search this site for "three week stall" and you will find that this is very, very comon. Nothing to worry about. Just keep following directions. Remember what your body has been through in the last three weeks! Give it time to catch it's breath. 33 lbs in three weeks is really significant, you're doing fine.

Hello, my name is Annie, but I love the Beatles so I named myself Abbey I am 25 years old and I had weight loss surgery on 8/23/2010. My highest weight was 330 lbs and by that point I became really scared of reaching the 400lbs. I have always been overweight but I usually remained just 50lbs above my ideal weight (which for my hight it should range from 140 to 150). I began dieting one year before my surgery in hopes that I could lose the weight on my own, and I did lose about 20lbs. After a year of not being able to lose more I decided to have the vsg. My starting weight was 311lbs, on the day of my surgery I was 295 and currently I am 224. I used to be a size 28 and I am now size 18. I am currently at a stall and for the last three weeks I have not lost a pound. I am a big meat eater so my diet consists mostly of chicken or beef, I try to stick to the no carb diet. Usually I was eating three meals a day, but at the start of this month I began to snack still sticking to the no carbs. I believe that my snaking is the reason for me not losing this month. I exercise for about 2 hrs two or three days a week, I do cardio for 45 mins and the rest is weight lifting. I had my surgery in Laredo, TX at a hospital name LMC and it ran for about 8,500. I hope this is enough information but if you have any questiosn go ahead and ask I'd love to help. I also hope to have some of my questions answered I think it is an awsome idea that we have a forum to share info

I was sleeved on 3/22 and reached 21 lbs down three days ago. But now, I have gained three lbs back! I am so discouraged and upset, I just don't know why I haved gained 3 lbs. Maybe I am not getting enouch Protein. Or maybe its because I haven't had a bowel movement in a week. Anyone know what I should do? I am so discouraged. Please someone, tell me what to do. I have heard of the three week stall because at first before I was three weeks out I thought that is what had happened. But now, I get on the scales after two days and I have gained! Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Finally broke 200 as of this morning, havent seen this weight since my first semester of college! I was hoping to be at goal by 6 months but that is not happening unless I can get 14 lbs off in the next three weeks. I had a stall for about 3 weeks or so and then just lost about 10 lbs in the past 2 weeks. Pretty sure I can't sustain that rate of loss through the 23rd though! Anyway, I feel great, and for those of you doubting your decision to have this surgery, give it time and it will work for you!!!! I owe a lot of the inspiration to this site so thanks to everyone for being so positive and for posting progress pics!

Everyone's journey is so different, starting with your bariatric team's requirements, but some things stay the same......the Dreaded Week Three Stall, for one. My surgeon said he had never heard of it.....so guess what? It hit me right in the middle of week three. You have already found many nuggets of advice and fair warning here, so visit us often and let us know how you are doing. It won't be long before you can help someone following in your footsteps.

I am 6 weeks post op. The last two weeks I have lost a total of 5 pounds. I didnt have the three/four week stall but it has been a slow weight loss. They talk about protein, protein, protein but if you constantly vomit and can only eat soups with carbs maybe this is stalling my weight loss. I feel your frustration because I feel the same.

Hi Dina and welcome. You came to the right place. I'm three weeks post op and was in a stall too. I realized I wasn't putting in enough walking so I have added an extra mile to my walk and I walk to the beat of my iPod and I have finally started losing again! Hooray!! I saw my doc yesterday and he told me to do the same. Our body is in shock and still trying to figure out what just happened. Stalls are normal. Just keep plugging away!! you're bound to lose!! Best of luck!

Hello. I've been on here a few times and I REALLY enjoy reading everyones stories...so here's mine.... I have been overweight for the majority of my life. Three beautiful children added even more weight which was so hard to lose. I've tried diet after diet...pills ...everything. I would lose a little weight here and there then gain it right back. Recently I began looking into info. on the gastric sleeve. My PCP said I was a good candidate considering my history and my not so good family history. Eventually I started the 3 months of classes that Kaiser requires and completed them. Next was my consult with the surgeon. He put me on the 3week liquid diet and I lost the 10 lbs required.It was tough going through that phase! Finally the surgery date arrived...Nov. 27th 2012. Everything went well. They removed my gallbladder and repaired a hernia that was found. Hospital stay was rough...had horrible spasms in my chest ..but I was released the following day. Recouperating at home was a lot comfortable. The muscle spasms continued for a little over a week or so. Thank God they are gone!! Nausea has now kicked in which I take medication for. I am hoping it subsides soon!! It's been 19days since my surgery. Between the pre op diet and now I've lost 19 lbs. Happy about that even though I was hoping to of lost more...I'm now at the dreaded stall and haven't lost anymore weight in over a week and I'm really frusterated! Staying focused though! Ive come to far and refuse to give up. Hope you enjoyed my story as much as I enjoy all of yours. Add me as a friend if you'd like. I'd love to talk to you ...share encouraging words...advice...anything!!

Okay, I'm actually a little over three months out now. My surgery was 15 July with Dr. Aceves. I was down 45 pounds at my 3 month mark. My starting weight was 242 pounds and I'm 5'1" and change. I started in an uncomfortably tight 18/20 and I'm now wearing loose 16s. The 14s are still uncomfortably tight, but I'll be in them by next month. My shirts were XXL and XL and are now L. No more Xs on my shirts! I've lost a bra size (both band and cup) and I'm finally able to wear my wedding band again. My shoes went up half a size when I went over 220 pounds, and now all of the shoes I bought are too loose and slip off my feet. I stall every month, twice a month. I lose about 15 pounds a month but I lose those pounds in two and a half weeks. I'm a type 2 diabetic and I'm insulin resistant, and my weight loss is "slow" compared to a lot of people sleeved at the same time. It's normal for me to stall for ten days and then drop six pounds in the next four days. Milk is not my friend. After a lot of work to pinpoint what was causing my digestive issues, the answer is MILK. Even lactaid upsets my stomach. My Protein shake, cottage cheese and plain yogurt do the same to a much lesser degree. I was looking for alternative and my doctor suggested goat or sheep milk, saying that they don't have lactose. I'd switch to almond milk or soy milk (if I could tolerate the taste!) but I'm about to move to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and I wanted to go with an alternate I could find once we move. Goats and sheep abound in Tashkent, but soy milk and almond milk do not! The great news is that goat milk isn't too bad once you get used to the aftertaste. At first it felt like I was drinking milk while munching on chevre. Since switching a few days ago, I've been able to drink my Protein shakes with only minor intestinal distress. I've also broken through a two week stall and lost 2 pounds, so things are moving again. I am losing hair. Not too much yet, but there is definitely more hair on my shirts and in the drain catcher. I've been taking Biotin (5000 mcg) since preop and I get all of my Vitamins in - I think the newly increased loss is due to my lower protein intake. While I was unable to drink my shakes I wasn't getting enough protein. I hope that I'll be able to pull through this without too much additional loss. My diabetes is well under control with just diet and exercise. I sleep better and longer than I did before surgery. I'm also more energetic and move a lot more than I used to, without getting sore or tired. Sometimes I don't see much of a change, but then I'll see a picture of me from this summer flip by on our screensaver and realize that I've come a long way already. My face is definitely thinner, and I only have a little more to lose before that dreaded double chin is completely gone. I have no regrets and would have this surgery again in a heartbeat. I wish I lost a little faster, but even at this slow rate, I'll be at goal by spring. ~Cheri

I was losing a pound a day, and then suddenly one week out, I was losing four pounds a day! Three days of that, and I didn't lose anything for three days... this morning I weighed myself after a three day stall, and lost another 3 pounds. I think it is a strange hormone/pms/bowelm chain of events which cannot be considered on a daily basis. Think holistically in the greater scheme of things.

I was sleeved five and a half weeks ago. I lost 21 pounds in March and I've been stalled for the ENTIRE MONTH OF APRIL so far.. But I'm not worried about it.. I was eating at 800 calories a day for THREE and a half months preop so I lost 45 pounds during those three and a half months so I was due for a good stall! I'm eating between 800-1000 calories a day.

50 pounds is a major accomplishment! Way to go! How many weeks have u gone without seeing the scale move? Are ur clothes fitting differently? I exercise like crazy and am mindful about my cals. I hit stalls pretty often, but they usually break after the three week mark. Keep plugging away and try not to compare urself to others. U really are doing great! Sent from my iPhone using VST

You may not see any loss for a few days after surgery, because you have been pumped full of Fluid. I started losing about two days after surgery and averaged a lb per day for about three weeks. I then stalled for about a week then lost about another 5 lbs and at a complete stall now. Going to have to have nothing but Protein, no carbs to get it moving again. I'm not really one to be compared to as I only had 60 lbs to lose to start with as I was banded until I had to have it removed and had to have bypass.

Hello! I'm 2 months out and I'm experiencing the same thing! I was bypassed 04/04/2019 and since then i've lost lots of weight but the pounds seem to drop all at once for a week or even less and then stall for two or three weeks, then drop a bunch in a week and then stall again for 2-3 weeks. I feel like all the weight i've dropped was in like 2 weeks total and the rest of the 2 months was just stalls. I think it's normal though, as long as we're losing weight in the end. I feel you, though, it's very frustrating. I'm 21 so yeah it may be our age too. Good luck!

I started out around your weight...227 on the day of surgery...I am 5'8. I had a stall last week at 4 weeks out...In fact, I gained three pounds..It was the week I introduced soft foods and I also did not exercise that week...But this week I kicked my workout game up a notched and I lost the three I gained and an additional 3 mo pounds...So I thus far, I have lost 27lbs including 1 week pre-op where I lost 5lbs...While the sleeve is a great tool, I am doing my darnest to help it with the weight loss by sticking to a workout regime...I started walking 3 miles at 60 minutes about 2 weeks post op...Now I walk/jog 3 miles at 46 minutes. I am working toward 30 minutes...I say all this to say I want to really maximize the first 6 mo of the sleeve loss...I want to be that non-ideal case and hit my goal 155-160lb within 6 mo. And that only happens with hard work both in being good with diet compliance and working out...I got 50lbs to drop over the next 5 months...I am going as hard for it as I did for cold stone creamery ice cream on double stamp day Mondays...

In two days I hit my three week mark, and I've noticed a stall also. I've gotten so used to dropping weight so fast (46 lbs so far) I got bummed but then realized I've hit the phase where it's going to drop less now I've already lost all the water weight. Just be patient and don't loose the good habits you've gained ????

I am just coming off of three weeks where I lost no weight and in fact went up three pounds. It was really frustrating because I was eating 100% on plan. I weigh or measure everything -- every gram of salad dressing is assessed and accounted for on MFP. How can you gain weight on under 800 calories per day? But I figure it must have been hormonal weirdness and water weight. Those three weeks where I was stalled/gaining were the same three weeks that my period was late. So maybe my body just bloated up like it usually does pre-period, and then when no period arrived, it kept on going in pre-period mode? I finally got my period on Friday night and when I weighed in Saturday morning I was down 2 lbs from the week before. Hopefully things keep going in this direction. This is the only time I've gained weight since being sleeved 11 months ago. I don't know if you'll find this helpful . . . I hope so!

Congratulations on the recovery! My recovery went very well also. Just be sure to still take it easy and allow your body time to recover. Just as a heads up...many of us experience a stall at three weeks. It's completely normal and weight loss will start again. Best of luck and welcome to the Losers' Bench!

So this week I went to my surgeon for my 3 month post op visit. 3 months!!! ALREADY! Wow, I cannot believe how fast the time goes when you are so focused on a goal! So, I went there and first off got weighed by the nurse. She says to me, "Wow, you are down another 26.3 pounds since the last time we saw you just over a month ago!" So I tell her about the hair loss and the little bit of worry that I have about the loose skin, and she gives me some fliers about what other Vitamins I can be taking for the hair loss (BY THE WAY, ANY ADVICE IN THIS AREA WOULD BE GREAT!!!). She then tells me to ask the Dr. about the skin and what he thinks. So the Dr. comes in a few minutes later. Says to me, "Hello, Kim. I'll tell you, you used to look like someone I would perform surgery on, but not anymore!" So I smile and turn beat red (i'm sure) and then he looks at the chart again and says, "Kim! Do you realize you have lost 90 pounds in 4 months!?! NO ONE has ever lost that much that fast in our program!" Thats when it hit me. I have officially "lost" my 12 year old niece. WOW! Now for the bad news... My hair is 1/2 gone. Thank goodness I had a really thick head of hair to start or I would be bald by now. It's horrible! Every time I touch my head I loose a whole hand full of hair. I am really starting to worry about it but don't know what kind of vitamins to invest in so that it at LEAST slows down. HELP!!!! More bad news: I'm on another stall. I wanted to start the new year off in Onederland. I haven't lost in over 2 weeks. I am 10 pounds from Onderland and am stuck. Go figure. I just hope I can be within 5 pounds of Onderland at least by the New Year. Over all, I am happy as a lark and LOVING my new life! Thanks to the surgeon, their wonderful staff, and the sleeve I am happier than I have been in a very very long time. I finally feel good about myself and therefore am able to tackle the everyday things that used to tax me to even think about. I don't have a lot of full body pictures to post but I do have just a few to share. The first two pics is from a wedding I was in this last June (5 months ago). The last three were taken just this week. I will do my best to find some full body pictures this week and get them posted. ONDERLAND HERE I COME!!!!!!

Losing 40 lbs is awesome. I went through the same thing. I lost about 40-50 lbs for the first three months after my surgery didn't move much for about a month. I talked to the Doctor about six weeks post op your body will stall so that it can adjust to what's happening. Stalls are okay, it's just your body adjusting to the rapid weight loss.

This post helped me when I started to compare my story to others on this forum. I have reprinted it with permission from Cheri, the author. I hope this helps you stay positive. Please stop and do the math by Cheri People get completely freaked out by what I feel are unreasonable expectations. They fly into a panic. They assume that the first time they don't lose on the scale that their loss is done. They think that two weeks at one weight is a massive stall. They look at other people's large losses and forget that we don't all lose at the same rate. First - if you did a pre-op diet you are not going to have the same loss your first month as someone who didn't do one. Your pre-op loss should get counted into your loss calculation if you did a pre-op diet. Second - a stall is three weeks or more at the same weight with no fluctuation. Are you panicked after that? Well, my friend coops once spent twenty one MONTHS at the same weight. She finally broke through and never regained during that time, and even lost two sizes while not budging on the scale. Is it the miracle cure you may have been hoping for on the scale? No. But stalls are not the end of the world. They are certainly more normal that flying to goal in six weeks, I promise you. Third - losing anything more than a pound a week is good. Are you eating less than ever before? Yes. Does that guarantee you'll lose faster than ever before? No. I had two nine week stalls - no movement except upwards for my monthly cycle. I had months where I lost but only in the tenths of a pound. It's not normal to expect a big loss every time you step on the scale. It's setting yourself up for disappointment. Fourth - your pattern is your pattern. You can compare yourself to other people sleeved the same day or with the same stats but it doesn't matter. So much of this is individual. So if you're constantly seeking out other people and comparing your losses to theirs, you are eventually going to discourage and frustrate yourself. Fifth - are you closing in on goal? We all lose even more slowly the less weight we have to lose. So if you only have sixty pounds to lose but shed thirty in your first three months, please don't be hysterical because you're "only" losing a pound a week now that you're past the halfway point. It's normal. Stop. Breathe. Do the math. Adjust your expectations. This is not a race. You do not get a special award for reaching goal more quickly. Your surgery was not pointless or worthless if you manage to get to goal in two years instead of six months. The real goal is not losing the weight. It's keeping the weight off. That's real success - that's what we're here to do. It does not matter if you hit goal in nine months or two years - the real challenge and the real journey begins with maintenance. How quickly or slowly you lost does nothing to change the challenges you'll encounter there. I am not ranting at anyone in particular. I just feel that this is an issue that comes up constantly and it's actually pretty silly for people to fly into such a panic without really thinking. I've seen folks upset when they're logging losses of upwards of four pounds a week. Point to the diet that helped you accomplish that and was easy to maintain prior to surgery.