what do you wish you knew before hand

[salty91 0]

Hello! I am going to have GS in Dec. I am wondering what you all who have had surgery all ready wish you knew before hand? Or what would have made it easier for you?

Thanks

Linda

[cwalker 12]

Hi, Linda-Welcome to the forum. I wish I had journaled everything from the day of surgery. It has been incredible and I believe I would have enjoyed looking back as a way to keep motivated. Ididn't have to have a nut before or after and I think it would have helped.

I have zero regrets,zero complications so far, Good luck!

[Maddie 9]

Good question. I wish I had asked it, LOL.

Rapid weight loss can cause gallstones. I wish I had know that there was a medication that helps prevent them. I wasn't on that medication and I developed gallstones, had gallbladder attacks and had my gallbladder removed 7 weeks after my sleeve.

I knew, but didn't fully understand that you can't compare your progress with others. It's hard not to do, but everyone heals at different rates, lose at different rates, etc. But, if you you work your sleeve, you sleeve will work for you! Focus on yourself and you will do fine.

I wish I had ordered samples of chewable Vitamins and Protein powders instead of buying them without trying. I wasted a lot of money.

The best thing you can do is read all you can and educate yourself. Continue to ask questions so that you are well prepared for all possibilities.

Oh, and welcome!

[peatie 4]

Hi, I'm planning to be sleeved in December and glad you asked this. I had no idea on the gallstones so you better believe i'm off to do my research now. good luck to you...we're on the same timeline.

[clk 3,519]

I second the idea of getting Protein samples. I did do this, and it saved me a small fortune. I used Vitalady's site and sampled a bit of every low carb Protein powder she had, and found several I liked but even more that were horrid. Save your money and do the samples until you know what you like!

I wish I'd known about stalls - that they happen for almost everyone. I had this unrealistic expection that I'd just drop weight like crazy and that it would keep up until about six months out. WRONG! I'm losing in stops and starts, and while I'm thrilled about my loss so far it's not what I had in mind.

Expect your body to lose at it's own pace. Yeah, the weight IS going to come off, but not at a regular rate of a pound a day for the first six months! I went through a lot of frustration because I had unreasonable expectations.

I also wasn't 100% on the supplements I would need to feel like functioning human. I take Iron, Calcium citrate, nexium, B12, 2 multis and Biotin every day. I also drink a dandelion or milk thistle tea (I have both), because someone recommended them to reduce gallbladder inflammation. The gallbladder IS a big issue for a lot of folks post WLS. Be aware that these teas cause a small increase in blood sugar for me (I'm a type 2 diabetic), so if you're diabetic be mindful of this.

Good luck! Trust me, you're going to love your sleeve once you start to see the scale moving. It's been a pretty easy ride for me, and I have nothing to complain about.

~Cheri

[goodlife 3]

I honestly can't think of anything....I had researched very thoroughly including reading a million different threads from VSG'ers both here and on OH so I was pretty well prepared.

I can't say there have been any surprises.

A few suggestions though....take before pics AND measurements. It's fun watching the inches melt away. My hubby took a bunch of before pics of me the night before my surgery and we lost them! Can't figure out or remember if we uploaded them to one of our computers or if they are on a memory card somewhere...I'm pretty upset about that. Hopefully they will turn up one of these days!

[BlackBerryJuice 349]

Good question. I wish I had asked it, LOL.

Rapid weight loss can cause gallstones. I wish I had know that there was a medication that helps prevent them. I wasn't on that medication and I developed gallstones, had gallbladder attacks and had my gallbladder removed 7 weeks after my sleeve.

Just so you know, I contacted my surgeon about that medication (can't remember the name off the top of my head, sorry), and he said "You can start taking it after 6 months as it is hard on the stomach." Well, 6 months out I should be at my goal weight, so I don't think I have to worry about gallstones from rapid weightloss at that point!:tongue_smilie:

I just try to eat a reasonable amount of calories (1,000) and hope that it will help slow down my weight loss to a healthier amount and also spare some more muscle mass until I can work out again.

[salty91 0]

Wow thanks this is helpful! :biggrin0:The makers of muscle milk sent me a bunch of samples - it's the only product I can find that is gluten and lactose free

[chilo1 62]

I've been taking the medication to prevent gallstones 2 days after surgery, hadn't had any problems yet and hopefully won't have any! Different surgeons have different guidelines from what i can see on this forum, so best stick to what are doctors recommend!

[educationrulz 18]

I wish I had known how painful the hernia repair can be. I woke up from surgery feeling like there was a hot poker in my esophogus. Don't mean to scare anyone, but it's the truth. I would of course still have it done in hindsight. I mean, who wants to get a whole new tiny stomach and still have it deformed because of a hernia? But, had I known to expect the pain, I would have been more mentally prepared. This was a total bummer on my mood early on. In all my research, I knew to expect the gas pain and nausea, but I missed the painful hernia part. Luckily, it went away after a few weeks and I'm glad it was fixed.

On a lighter note:wink0: I wish I had known how great it feels to be satisfied with such a small amount of food. I still have occasional moments of just wanting to "chow down", but for the most part it's very liberating.

[peatie 4]

I wish I had known how painful the hernia repair can be. I woke up from surgery feeling like there was a hot poker in my esophogus. Don't mean to scare anyone, but it's the truth. I would of course still have it done in hindsight. I mean, who wants to get a whole new tiny stomach and still have it deformed because of a hernia? But, had I known to expect the pain, I would have been more mentally prepared. This was a total bummer on my mood early on. In all my research, I knew to expect the gas pain and nausea, but I missed the painful hernia part. Luckily, it went away after a few weeks and I'm glad it was fixed.

On a lighter note:wink0: I wish I had known how great it feels to be satisfied with such a small amount of food. I still have occasional moments of just wanting to "chow down", but for the most part it's very liberating.

Hmm...i always thot the hernia was in those who got the band to sleeve revision. Crud. Now i gotta do some reading up on that too. :thumbup: Thanks for the heads up..

[DougNichols 124]

I wish I had known how painful the hernia repair can be. I woke up from surgery feeling like there was a hot poker in my esophogus.

Oh God, I had this when I was much younger. It was so painful, I woke up and asked my mother if I was dead.

[AutumnLily 77]

What kind of hernia?

Lily

[PamelaAM 16]

Yes, please explain more about the hernia that you talk about? Is this something that was specific to your case or is it something that is standard with all sleeve patients? This is the first I have heard anything about a hernia situation.

[mp8btpc 33]

No it is not a standard thing. She had a hernia of some sort that they apparently corrected while doing her VSG. Hernia repairs are very painful but at least they killed two birds with one stone :001_smile: