Hi! Am joining to share with others like me. Had lap band dec 2011- had oesophageal dilatation band was opened from oct 2013 till my new surgery on July 31 2014; roux en y bypass . Am learning to live with new surgery. Found to be loosing hair now a little worried and still learning how to eat. Tonight had pistachios and had bad cramps and bloating . Not sure if blockage am waiting to see how it goes, am having hot water to help things go down... A little worried and new at this... Anyone with suggestions or just comforting words?

Hi, Fabsab and welcome (back) to the forum! I don't have any experience with surgery other than bypass last month, but it can definitely be quite a learning curve with a whole new stomach to get acquainted with! One of the hardest things for me has been the "Trial and Error" aspect of it- you never know what you'll be able to tolerate until you actually try it. And what a disappointment it is to try a nibble of something you really like, only to find yourself miserable for it. I wish I could offer you some hard and fast rules of how to learn to eat again, but RNY is such an individual experience, none of us seem to be exactly the same. One thing that is important though, regardless of the specifics from your surgeon is to get that Protein in every day! It'll keep you from losing muscle mass vs. fat and can help stop the hair loss as well, since your body seems to be switching into "starvation" mode because of your new eating habits.

Coming to this forum is a great choice though- you'll find all kinds of opinions and advice from folks in every stage of WLS- we'll always be here to help

We had one individual in our support group go from a lap-band to a RNY. His band was wearing into his stomach, so it had to come out. When they did the RNY, they had to make his pouch slightly smaller than the average RNY. This made it a little difficult at first because he found it difficult to consume much during his meals. But he adapted and was proud of his RNY.

If your hair is falling out, that is a symptom of too little Protein, so make sure you are taking the required amount each day.

I have heard that drinking a little Water with a small amount of meat tenderizer can help blockages. But since I never really tried this, you might get some input from others on this board about this first before you try it.

@@Fabsab -- not sure if bloating and cramps necessarily mean a blockage. Some foods just tend to "blow you up". The hair falling out is definitely a symptom of too little Protein, so you may need to keep up with your protein grams for a while and make sure you are getting your target. Mine is 80 grams per day but everyone can vary.

It might also be good to make sure you are chewing enough. Usually the only pain I ever feel in the tummy is when I don't chew enough or eat slow enough.

Wishing you wild success on your journey!