surgery June 2010

starting weight 298, current weight 150

Have been up to 165 but had surgery 6 weeks ago and back to 150

Diagnosed with breast cancer april 2011, early stage so great outlook, think the weight loss surgery saved me. I don't think I would have felt the lump had I still been overweight.

double masectomy June 2011

diagnosed Mutated BCR1 gene (greater chance of cancer) because of this decided to have hysterectomy and ovaries removed 6 weeks ago.

due to surgery forced into instant menopause (yikes!)

What I can and can't eat

I am not one of the lucky ones who can eat anything but in small portions, a lot of food makes me sick and causes me to vomit

foods I can't eat

most bread

rice

Pasta (except mac and cheese for some reason)

noodles

hotdogs

hamburgers

sandwiches

anything acidic

tomato sauce

pizza (sometimes can eat thin crust with white sauce)

red meat

Mushrooms (used to love them now they make me throw up)

I am sure there are more but this is what I can think of at the moment

foods I can eat a lot of but should not

Cookies

candy bars

cheetos

potato chips

cake

popcorn

ice cream

diet soda (does not stretch the stomach at least not mine)

french fries

chocolate

mashed potatoes

I throw up at least 2-3 times a week, sometimes I throw up all day long

some is my fault because I eat too much, but mostly is because I get nauseous and can't keep something down

My stomach might be ok with a food one day and not ok the next

would I have the surgery again... yes.. but I do wish I could have done it on my own I do miss being able to eat like normal

this post is not meant to discurage... just wanted to share my experience and help others to make a well thought out decision.

best of luck to everyone.. and if anyone has a personal question please feel free to contact me..

Sherri

You said diet pop doesn't stretch your pouch? I thought with VSG no carbonation is allowed?

Amy

Amy,

There have been MANY MANY threads in the 2 years I have been on this board about drinking soda or not. I for one have been drinking diet soda since I had surgery. For one, I hate regular Water, got tired of drinking crystal lite ALL the time, hate tea, don't like the Protein water stuff, etc... It has not affected my restriction what so ever. Some Dr.'s have the opinion that it will stretch your stomach, others don't believe in that theory. There is no medical studies to prove one way or the other.

So, I guess what I can tell you is that if your Dr. tells you not to drink it- then don't. But, LOTS of people do drink diet soda and have not had any problems, myself included. I can't drink a lot of anything w/carbonation. Often, one 20oz soda will last me an entire day at work and I don't takes swigs- couldn't if I wanted to.

I am not sleeved yet but I do like my diet coke so I was interested to hear about the pop I currently have a band that has caused nothing but trouble. It is completely unfilled and I am in the procces of going through all the insurance stuff.. Etc to have a conversion. Thanks for all the advice!! I am soaking up as much information as I can.

Amy

surgery June 2010

starting weight 298, current weight 150

Have been up to 165 but had surgery 6 weeks ago and back to 150

Diagnosed with breast cancer april 2011, early stage so great outlook, think the weight loss surgery saved me. I don't think I would have felt the lump had I still been overweight.

double masectomy June 2011

diagnosed Mutated BCR1 gene (greater chance of cancer) because of this decided to have hysterectomy and ovaries removed 6 weeks ago.

due to surgery forced into instant menopause (yikes!)

What I can and can't eat

I am not one of the lucky ones who can eat anything but in small portions, a lot of food makes me sick and causes me to vomit

foods I can't eat

most bread

rice

Pasta (except mac and cheese for some reason)

noodles

hotdogs

hamburgers

sandwiches

anything acidic

tomato sauce

pizza (sometimes can eat thin crust with white sauce)

red meat

Mushrooms (used to love them now they make me throw up)

I am sure there are more but this is what I can think of at the moment

foods I can eat a lot of but should not

Cookies

candy bars

cheetos

potato chips

cake

popcorn

ice cream

diet soda (does not stretch the stomach at least not mine)

french fries

chocolate

mashed potatoes

I throw up at least 2-3 times a week, sometimes I throw up all day long

some is my fault because I eat too much, but mostly is because I get nauseous and can't keep something down

My stomach might be ok with a food one day and not ok the next

would I have the surgery again... yes.. but I do wish I could have done it on my own I do miss being able to eat like normal

this post is not meant to discurage... just wanted to share my experience and help others to make a well thought out decision.

best of luck to everyone.. and if anyone has a personal question please feel free to contact me..

Sherri

Sherri,

Was it the VSG surgery that you had or the Lap Band?

You said diet pop doesn't stretch your pouch? I thought with VSG no carbonation is allowed?

Amy

It isn't allowed but some people still drink it. I am a year out and have not had any carbinated beverages since surgery.

I am not sleeved yet but I do like my diet coke so I was interested to hear about the pop I currently have a band that has caused nothing but trouble. It is completely unfilled and I am in the procces of going through all the insurance stuff.. Etc to have a conversion. Thanks for all the advice!! I am soaking up as much information as I can.

Amy

Congrats. I am a band to sleever and life with the sleeve is a breeze in comparison to the band. You will love your sleeve!!!

Hi: I am sorry about your diagnosis of breast cancer. I am a surviovor myself. I had a mastectomy 10 years ago and am doing great. And so will you!!

I was sleeved on April 2012 and I like to read what people write. I find myself these days wondering if he really did sleeve me - I have never thrown up I can eat everything I have tried and that scares me. I have lost 40 lbs including the pre-op. I thought I would have lost more weight by now. I am afraid that I am starting to go back to my old habits and no matter how many times I self talk myself I find myself reaching for that candy or looking for something to eat. I have never really experienced no hunger. I am so confused by what people say on here, some say eat no more the 600-800 calories and my doctor says 1200 - I know I am still new, but I read your post and thing she is normal. - sounds like you tested your sleeve but still lost. Did you lost most of your weight in the first 6 months? and kept it off?

Do you feel that after two years it would be hard to gain the weight back? - that confuses me too, if I can't eat what I normally ate how could I gain the weight back.

I am sorry to bombard you with questions, I just feel I am not doing this right. Any suggesstions would be so appreciated. Thanks

You just had surgery in April and you have lost 40 lbs. That is great. I only lost 22 lbs in my first month. Be patient, it will come off. Best of luck to you!

Grateful for your wellness and your willingness to share.

I think I read somewhere that the point of avoiding carbonation was to avoid ulcers (maybe)? I am pre-op, and do my final weigh-in today, then can turn in paperwork for approval. I remain excited and terrified by the possibilities. I appreciate those 'who have gone before' so freely sharing such experience.

Wishing you all the best!

It isn't allowed but some people still drink it. I am a year out and have not had any carbinated beverages since surgery.

It's not allowed by some surgeons, not all. My surgeon says there is no evidence that carbinated beverages cause any issues other than it takes longer to drink- but there is no medical evidence that it has any side effects for sleeve patients.

Grateful for your wellness and your willingness to share.

I think I read somewhere that the point of avoiding carbonation was to avoid ulcers (maybe)? I am pre-op, and do my final weigh-in today, then can turn in paperwork for approval. I remain excited and terrified by the possibilities. I appreciate those 'who have gone before' so freely sharing such experience.

Wishing you all the best!

I just responded to someone else on the same thing. Just like all things, there will be medical professionals who have different opinions. A surgeon who says carbonation is not allowed may have developed an opinion based on his personal experiences - there is no medical evidence that carbonation causes any issues with the sleeve.

You said diet pop doesn't stretch your pouch? I thought with VSG no carbonation is allowed?

Amy

Carbonated drinks are the only thing I will never reintroduce in some small quantity. I know where my weakness is and that is it. I can tell you that since I quit drinking diet soda I haven't had A SINGLE migraine and I used to get 2 to 3 a week. Before anyone says it, no it isn't the caffeine either because I do drink coffee in the morning. I just feel anything that would do that to someone CANNOT be good for you. Since I had this surgery for my health, quit smoking 7 1/2 months ago for my health, there is no way I can say in good conscience that I kept drinking soda.

Carbonated drinks are the only thing I will never reintroduce in some small quantity. I know where my weakness is and that is it. I can tell you that since I quit drinking diet soda I haven't had A SINGLE migraine and I used to get 2 to 3 a week. Before anyone says it, no it isn't the caffeine either because I do drink coffee in the morning. I just feel anything that would do that to someone CANNOT be good for you. Since I had this surgery for my health, quit smoking 7 1/2 months ago for my health, there is no way I can say in good conscience that I kept drinking soda.

I too was a diet pepsi fanatic before surgery. My surgery was 12/11 and I stopped drinking it cold turkey in about September. I used to have migraines every night. I drank caffeine free so it was not caffeine, it was all the junk that is supposedly in diet drinks. I have not had one headache since my surgery, so apparently my body is finally rid of all the junk that was in the diet soda. The doctor said it would take a couple months before the side effects of the diet soda would cease. Never felt better. LUV my sleeve.

Sherri,

Was it the VSG surgery that you had or the Lap Band?

I had the sleeve (vsg)

Congrats, Sherri, on your successes. Thank you for posting your experience and giving people a view of the longer term picture of life with the sleeve. We're all different in what we can/cannot eat. Being honest lets people researching know that for some people it's difficult after surgery. People should pay attention to this because we're all individuals that react differently, so comparing diet or speed of loss with everyone else is usually pointless.

I say that knowing that we all do it!

In any case, best wishes to you and I'm thankful you're a survivor.

~Cheri

Congrats, Sherri, on your successes. Thank you for posting your experience and giving people a view of the longer term picture of life with the sleeve. We're all different in what we can/cannot eat. Being honest lets people researching know that for some people it's difficult after surgery. People should pay attention to this because we're all individuals that react differently, so comparing diet or speed of loss with everyone else is usually pointless.

I say that knowing that we all do it!

In any case, best wishes to you and I'm thankful you're a survivor.

~Cheri

Thank you Cheri and everyone else who responded.. I appreciate all the well wishes and feedback :-)

Hi - don't worry about how you're doing, tomorrow will be my 2nd anniversary. I've lost a total of 81 lbs, 20 prior to surgery. I reached goal in just under 5 months. I've never felt better in my life. I wear a size 4 jeans! I am 52, I've NEVER worn this size. I totally skipped it when I was a teenager! Seriously! I have never thrown up, although there have been a couple of times I've thought I would, pretty eary out and after eating out. I still weigh and/or measure most of my food most of the time and I keep an on line food log so I can keep track of the calories and my Protein. I weigh twice a day, it's like a game with me. At night I guess what I'll weigh in the morning. I go up and down, some times 3.5 lbs in a week. I eat anything I want, but since I am not really hungry any more, it's easy to make wiser choices and not over do. A piece of cake or a cookie rather than 4 Cookies or two large pieces of cake. I am never hungry like I use to be, for the first year I basically had NO HUNGER. I ate because I knew I needed to, it tasted good and it is what we do socially. I think now I eat like a naturally thin person. I still have good restriction, I needed this, it's forced portion control. I love it and would do it again in a heartbeat! There are things I don't eat, or certainly not often. If there are french fries, I may eat four or five. Not an order and I do NOT mind throwing food away. If it's something I can eat the next day, I'll bring it home, but if not.....I make sure to eat the protein first, the rest, not a big deal. We share a lot when we go out to eat, which costs less and is healthier for my husband as well. I've been maintaining for about eighteen months, to stay between 143 and 147, I need to eat about 1200 calories a day. When I was in the losing stage, early on especially, I was only eating 500 - 650 calories per day. I was healthy and felt good. I was eating 60 - 80 gr of protein a day. Cottage cheese, eggs, tuna, chicken, fish, beef....all high in protein. Fish went down the easiest as far as meat, it still does. I keep a frozen bag of shrimp in the freezer and will steam a few oz for lunch some times. Back then I started and ended every day with a cup of skim milk, protein right there!!! Good luck.....you are on track, every lb you lose is forever! I averaged 10 lbs a month after surgery. I'd go up and down, week to week, but it was steady. Shopping is fun. Life is good!!!

Hi: I am sorry about your diagnosis of breast cancer. I am a surviovor myself. I had a mastectomy 10 years ago and am doing great. And so will you!!

I was sleeved on April 2012 and I like to read what people write. I find myself these days wondering if he really did sleeve me - I have never thrown up I can eat everything I have tried and that scares me. I have lost 40 lbs including the pre-op. I thought I would have lost more weight by now. I am afraid that I am starting to go back to my old habits and no matter how many times I self talk myself I find myself reaching for that candy or looking for something to eat. I have never really experienced no hunger. I am so confused by what people say on here, some say eat no more the 600-800 calories and my doctor says 1200 - I know I am still new, but I read your post and thing she is normal. - sounds like you tested your sleeve but still lost. Did you lost most of your weight in the first 6 months? and kept it off?

Do you feel that after two years it would be hard to gain the weight back? - that confuses me too, if I can't eat what I normally ate how could I gain the weight back.

I am sorry to bombard you with questions, I just feel I am not doing this right. Any suggesstions would be so appreciated. Thanks