40 days out - My journey so far

[Jobu 3]

Sleeved on 12/10/16.

Weight at Thanksgiving was 335.

Weight on surgery day was 317 after liquid diet.

Weight at one week followup was 299.

Weight at forty day followup (today) was 285.

It seems to come off in waves for me. Got stuck at 292 for a week. Now stuck again at 285 for about a week. Hopefully I can push through. Seems to be a common experience.

Joined a gym but having a hard time motivating myself to go in for the first workout. Very intimidated.

Feeling a lot of energy and tackling things I've generally put off and avoided for years. Feel great in the mornings but less so as day goes on. sleeping better. Depression is definitely lifting, but it somehow feels temporary. Like the whole thing could revert at any time.

Scariest part is that I am very often hungry. And it seems to be a legit hunger. Having the procedure done and coming off the liquid diet right at the holidays was tough and not something I would recommend. I'm afraid I may have advanced my diet to solid foods too quickly. Now I find I can eat a lot more volume and variety than other friends and family at the same stage in their journeys. Makes me scared that the whole thing can be undone so easily. Feeling very disappointed in myself that I may have stretched the pouch out and worried why I have so much hunter despite the massive reduction in ghrelin I hoped for.

Trying new recipes but also abusing myself with occasional fast food when I cannot be home to cook.

What calorie and carb goals is everyone using? My nutritionist and program do not specify these numbers and are vague when I press them.

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[Guest]

Hi Jobu. It sounds as if you are doig really well. Youve already lost 50lbs!!

The concept of everything being undone is scary for me too. I hope that will be my motivation to keep in check.

I am only a few days post op so am not yet on solids.

Ive always reached for fast food and convenience food but during my pre op diet i found i had to prepare and freeze things. Is that something you could do to be prepared when you are not able to cook?

I wont be working to specific calorie or carb goals. Im using my fitness pal to log in intake and im focusing on reaching my Protein goal using healthy choices. So far im finding that quite difficult but its something to work towards!

Have you spoken to your surgeon about being on solids and what is expected for you at your stage? Every surgeon is different. My team reccomend puree foods after 3 days which im nervous about!

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[JamieLogical 8,684]

You didn't stretch your pouch. First of all, you don't have a pouch. You have a sleeve. RNY patients have "pouches". Second of all, there is virtually no evidence that a sleeve can be stretched in any significant way. It will "relax" over time. You will definitely have more restriction at 2 weeks post op than at 2 years post-op. If you are able to eat more than a friend who is the same length out of surgery as you, it's because your sleeves are different sizes to begin with. It doesn't mean you are doomed to failure.

As for your hunger situation, are you sure it's not acid or head hunger? Are you on a PPI? Can you describe what exactly it is you feel when you feel "hungry"?

[Jobu 3]

Thank you both for responding.

Oompa Lumpa (ha) - First of all, I hope you are doing well after a few more days post operation. Did you go to the purée foods after 3 days? I did the liquid diet and Tomato Soup for like the first 12 days, then I cheated with a scrambled egg on day 13 and 14 to test. The 15th day was Christmas and I didn't want my first experience with non liquid food to be at a holiday dinner party in someone else's house. I agree about the preparation. I guess it all comes down to that because if you are out and about, there are less healthy options. I've started keeping a Protein bar in the car in case I get really hungry on the road. Not the best but better than stopping for fast food.< /p>

Jamie - Thank you for the feedback. A little bit of semantics with pouch versus sleeve and stretch versus "relax", but I think you know what I really meant. So yes, I believe my concern is that my SLEEVE is bigger than other people I know who had this same procedure. I'm doing well now but it's still early. And if my sleeve is gonna RELAX more over the next year, I'm concerned that a procedure that relies on physical restriction may become far less effective. Takeaway is that it wIll be something I need to be aware of as time progresses and work hard to maintain a changed lifestyle. I'm not sure about the hunger. I don't think it is head hunger because I feel it even when I'm keeping busy. I don't wake up with any hunger really and feel great and rested now in the mornings. But late morning, even if I had Breakfast an hour earlier, hunger shows up and gets stronger as day progresses. I'll have to research acid hunger so thank you for that suggestion. I was on a PPI for the first month but got cleared this week to stop it. I won't bore you with a description of HUNGER but I again think you know what I must mean. LOL. Just teasing you a bit. Again, thanks for reply.

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[JamieLogical 8,684]

My ex-husband's doctor used to say "are you hungry enough to eat an apple?" If not, you aren't really hungry. I wouldn't recommend apples for WLS patients, since fruits are high in sugar (though apples ARE a pretty low-sugar option), but the idea is that if you aren't hungry enough to eat something nutritious, it's not hunger, it's a craving. So if you are "hungry" and, lets say a container of Greek yogurt won't satisfy that hunger, then you aren't hungry. If Greek yogurt would satisfy the hunger, then maybe go ahead and have it, since it's low calorie/high Protein and will keep you from making a worse choice if the hunger becomes overwhelming.

[rebecr 1]

The hunger is real. I just had my one month follow up to sleeve 12/20/16 and asked the nurse about feeling hunger. I was under the impression that I wouldn't feel hunger after surgery. She said half her sleeve patients report hunger. I started feeling hungry about two weeks after surgery and when I went back to the gym last week. Definitely.

[DecemberSleeve 18]

Yup, I get genuinely hungry too. It's much easier to satisfy my hunger now than it was back in the old days, but it feels like real hunger.