Just had my surgery on 1/14. I would love to talk with anyone who has been thru it and help answer some questions.

For instance - this is day 11, why have I not list anything yet? I'm living off of Protein Water plus had the mandatory 2 week Protein shake diet prior to surgery. I still hurt, I'm hungry at night and I haven't lost anything. Sorry, I'm not known for my patience.

A lot of times it takes people a while to get their weight loss going after surgery. Your body is freaked out and injured, plus you got pumped full of a ton of fluids in the hospital. Have patience, follow your plan, and the pounds will come off.

Tip - don't be surprised if you start losing weight for about a week, and then pause again. It's completely normal to hit a minor plateau around the 3 - 4 week post surgery mark. Just keep pushing and the weight will come off.

Sip, sip sip sip sip, pee, walk sip sip sip. We NEED the water!!

As for talking to someone who has been there - read the posts on this site. They are FULL of wisdom!

Follow the rules and it will happen.

Thank you both so much for the replies. I will continue to sip, sip, sip to push the fluids. I've been reading through the posts. There is quite a lot of insight. Very nice for when I get to those stages as well.

Hey Bud,

Don't get discouraged! You are less than two weeks post-op. I lost 10 lbs on my pre-surgery diet and gained back every ounce thanks to the intravenous fluids I had in the hospital. My husband said my tummy was the biggest he had ever seen it in the first days following surgery. You have had your entire abdomen traumatized, and your body is rushing resources to it to aid in healing. It no different from the swelling you have with a sprained ankle or busted lip.

I don't know if you would do better with a scale or not. I personally know that I need one. I have done very well, but I don't lose every week, much less every day--even at the first. This is not a 50 yard dash, it is a marathon. And unless you are planning a vacation to Maui in a couple of weeks, there are no deadlines or "use by" dates for losing after surgery.

You will get to eat real food before you know it. I remember being hungry while on the liquid stage and my Protein shakes were nauseating. I'm so glad to have that behind me. But I have been amazed that hunger is not really an issue for me. But, the caveat is that I didn't get to 280 lbs by eating because I was hungry. So even the lessening and hunger, while a great gift, does not solve all of my eating problems.

Concentrate now on healing, resting, moving, drinking, and you will lose! But even better than the scale moving, you will begin to feel so much better. If you are like me, it takes a while for your clothes to show the loss because they were pretty tight to begin with. And those lumps and bumps didn't come on us overnight and they won't disappear overnight.

I will pray for you and wish you well! You have taken the first big step in a long and wonderful journey, as have I.

Cooterbrown - thank you for your response. This made me feel better. God bless.