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December 2019 Sleeves



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Dec 18th and starting to getting cold feet already. Forever is forever. This has come on very suddenly for me as I have a hip injury that requires surgery to fix. I saw an orthopedic Dr. who told me insurance companies won't approve elective surgeries on people who are as overweight as I am (5'10 303) because they don't want to be responsible for post-op complications people who are as overweight as I am are prone to have after surgery (infection etc).

I have been ridiculously healthy my entire life, but am seriously overweight and started taking high BP medication about a year or two ago. I just turned 49, have arthritis in my right knee and in the past two years have been experiencing pain in my right hip and high thigh area. Walking makes it worse, and so I am limping around doing as little as possible these days. So I went to see a Bariatric specialist who was able to get me approved for surgery in less than a week. Today is day 3 of Protein Shake diet. It's not bad, I am not hungry, it's just a lot more rich and sweet tasting that I would normally eat. It is really boring and has taken all the fun out of eating. My relationship with food has always involved eating because I like to, it tastes good and eating all the wrong things (bread/pasta carbs fried foods, fast food, junk food, nearly exclusively red meat and some seafood.) I think the scariest thing for me is risking my hair falling out or some kind of internal injury to another organ, leakage/sepsis and my normal fear of needles, doctors sharp object surgery etc.

I am now starting to question if I am doing the right thing, or for the right reason but know in the long run I will be much healthier if I lose a lot of weight. Mostly I am tired of being in pain every time a take a step, but I question why an insurance co would not approve me for hip surgery why they would approve me for a bariatric surgery so quickly.

I also am concerned as my health insurance is changing companies Jan 1st and wonder if the new company could refuse to cover me if there should be an issue citing a pre-existing condition?

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I’m scheduled for the 18th too so is Chubrub ...

For more savory options I have been enjoying the Swanson sipping Bone Broth - 45cals 9g P . I also make Protein Jello and popsicles so I have something to crunch on . Just trying to mix things up from just strictly Protein Shakes .

hair is my fear too ... I’ve been adding collagen to my diet and doing deep conditioning hair treatments to hopefully come into this surgery with the best hair I could have 🤷‍♀️ I don’t have high hopes it will work but hair grows back

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I have long very healthy pretty hair and would be really upset if it started falling out, I'd have to cut it and I have had really long hair since I was a kid. Long story. My mom whacked it all of when I was seven and I never got over it. I hope I have the guts to do this.

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I like the popsicle idea ty Capycapybara. Have to get on that for the illusion of solid food, I do miss food I can chew already

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Check with your doctor about Biotin supplements. There is a sublingual sold by Vitamin cottage which tastes decent. Hair loss is usually inevitable due to the trauma that surgery is for our bodies. If I remember correctly, it starts about 2-3 months after surgery and then starts growing back 5-6 months after that. Just hang in there. 🙂

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ty Jenny. I had my gall bladder out in Feb and that didn't cause me to lose hair. I was more worried about my diet being deficient in some way. I was back at work in 8 days afterwards and healed up fine after that, but was not limited in what I could eat. I was sore that first week, and terrified to eat my normal greasy bad food diet due to all the horror stories people told me about how my body would be different when I was missing my GB and such. After about a week of eating Soup, applesauce, oatmeal and yogurt and taking it easy on my system I wanted some real food and went and got a nice greasy burger and fries and ate it just to see what I could handle (or not). Turns out having my GB removed cured my lifetime Constipation problem and made me normal. I was still able to eat anything I wanted without it "running right through me" like I was warned about.

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My successful gastric sleeve surgery was Dec. 2nd and I'm doing great! No complications, little pain - haven't seen the need to take any of the pain med - and no nausea except one dry heave episode the first night, probably from the anesthesia. Right now it basically feels like I did a really hard ab workout yesterday. My surgeon has his patients continue on a high Protein liquid diet for one month post-op, the same as two weeks prior. Forever Breakfast will be a green smoothie with only two small chunks of frozen fruit, mainly spinach, Protein Powder, Water, and some kefir. I started taking Barimelt Vitamins prior to surgery and really like them. I'm losing a pound a day, though will only weight myself at home one day a week. Of course the weight loss will slow down but it's amazing right now. I have no hunger at all so have to keep careful track of when I've eaten and how much, but food journaling is an important habit to get into and keep and it's helping - once I waited too long and got a headache, probably from hypoglycemia which resolved immediately after eating. Everyone is different but so far my experience is an extremely positive one. Good luck!

Edited by RobertaMSN

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Thank you for sharing Roberta. I am glad this is going well for you! I am a MAJOR chicken, and pain is also something I am worried about. I am doing the shake diet fine, they keep me full and I am not hungry. My diet before these shakes had to be Protein deficient and very carb heavy

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Hi,

I was sleeved 12/4! No major issues except gas and nausea the first few days post op. Nausea is completely gone. Gas pains infrequently. My major issue had been trying to get down the Protein Shake. It was taking all day to get through 3/4 of one. Finally figured out that I had to cut it with milk. Now I can drink it in an hour or two. Plus I added Fairlife milk for 13g of extra Protein.< br />

Other than that, felt like I was starving or malnourished because of eating so little on the full liquid diet. Thank God my program switches to purées/soft food Day 7 post op! Wednesday can’t come fast enough!

Good luck all!

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Hi everyone,

Just got scheduled yesterday for December 31 surgery! I'm excited!

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Hi all! I’m new! My husband and myself were sleeved on 2nd dec. So far we are doing really well. Actually we are quite shocked after some things we had read. We have just started puree diet for 2 weeks.
good luck to those still yet to have the surgery!

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3 hours ago, Kiera123 said:

Hi all! I’m new! My husband and myself were sleeved on 2nd dec. So far we are doing really well. Actually we are quite shocked after some things we had read. We have just started puree diet for 2 weeks.
good luck to those still yet to have the surgery!

I know what you mean. I’m doing quite well too. Good luck everyone.

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On 11/20/2019 at 4:48 PM, jlb8080 said:

@JB1 That's some serious motivation getting surgery on 12/23!! That's how I feel with mine on 12/12 and starting my diet on Thanksgiving day... A new start needs to happen any time, any day. I'm ready!

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Anyone else having surgery 12/23? Looking for a twin to share with. Maybe all the doc's but mine took off for the holiday :))

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5:15am tomorrow... what time are all the other 12/18 sleevers that are around here? Anyone else nervous AF? Haha idk why this surgery is getting me so rattled vs previous

Hopefully I won’t wake up from anesthesia telling everyone to take Jell-O shots like I did from the scope hahaha 🤦🏼‍♀️ (never even had one before haha)

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    • Prdgrdma

      So I guess after gastric bypass surgery, I cant eat flock chips because they are fried???  They sell them on here so I thought I could have them. So high in protein and no carbs.  They don't bother me at all.  Help. 
      · 1 reply
      1. NickelChip

        It's possible for a very high fat meal to cause dumping in some (30% or so) gastric bypass patients, although it's more likely to be triggered by high sugar, or by the high fat/high sugar combo (think ice cream, donuts). Dietitians will tell you to never do anything that isn't 100% healthy ever again. Realistically, you should aim for a good balance of protein, carbs, and fat each day. Should you eat fried foods every day? No. Is it possible they will make you sick? Maybe. Is it okay to eat some to see what happens and have them for a treat every now and again? Yes.

    • NovelTee

      I'm not at all hungry on this liquid pre-op diet, but I miss the sensation of chewing. It's been about two weeks––surgery is in two days––and I can't imagine how I'll feel a couple of weeks post-op. Tonight, I randomly stumbled upon a mukbang channel on YouTube, and it was strangely soothing... is it just me, or is this a thing? 
      · 1 reply
      1. NickelChip

        I actually watched cooking shows during my pre-op, like Great British Baking Show. It was a little bizarre, but didn't make me hungry. I think it was also soothing in a way.

    • Clueless_girl

      How do you figure out what your ideal weight should be? I've had a figure in my head for years, but after 3 mths of recovery I'm already almost there. So maybe my goal should be lower?
      · 3 replies
      1. NickelChip

        Well, there is actually a formula for "Ideal Body Weight" and you can use a calculator to figure it out for you. This one also does an adjusted weight for a person who starts out overweight or obese. https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/68/ideal-body-weight-adjusted-body-weight

        I would use that as a starting point, and then just see how you feel as you lose. How you look and feel is more important than a number.

      2. Clueless_girl

        I did find different calculators but I couldn't find any that accounted for body frame. But you're right, it is just a number. It was just disheartening to see that although I lost 60% of my excess weight, it's still not in the "normal/healthy" range..

      3. NickelChip

        I think it's important to remember that the weight charts and BMI ranges were developed a very long time ago and only intended to be applied to people who have never been overweight or obese. Those numbers aren't for us. When you are larger, especially for a long time, your body develops extra bone to support the weight. Your organs get a little bigger to handle the extra mass. Your entire infrastructure increases so you can support and function with the extra weight. That doesn't all go away just because you burn off the excess fat. If you still had a pair of jeans from your skinniest point in life and then lost weight to get to the exact number on the scale you were when those jeans fit you, chances are they would be a little baggy now because you would actually be thinner than you were, even though the scale and the BMI chart disagree. When in doubt, listen to the jeans, not the scale!

    • Aunty Mamo

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      I'm in day three of the "puree" stage of eating and despite the strange textures, all of the savory flavors seem decadent. 
      I timed this surgery so that I'd be recovering during my spring break. That was a good plan. Today is a state holiday and the final day of break. I feel really strong to return to school tomorrow. 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      Now that I'm in maintenance mode, I'm getting a into a routine for my meals. Every day, I start out with 8-16 ounces of water, and then a proffee, which I have come to look forward to even the night before. My proffees are simply a black coffee with a protein powder added. There are three products that I cycle through: Premier Vanilla, Orgain Vanilla, and Dymatize Vanilla.
      For second breakfast on workdays, I will have a low-fat yogurt with two tablespoons of PBFit and two teaspoons of no sugar added dried cherries. I will have ingested 35-45 grams of protein at this point between the two breakfasts, with 250-285 calories, and about 20 carbs.
      For second breakfast on non-workdays, I will prepare two servings of plain, instant oatmeal with a tablespoon of an olive oil-based spread. This means I will have had 34 grams of protein, 365 calories, and 38 carbs. Non-workdays are when I am being very active with training sessions, so I allow myself more carbohydrate fuel.
      Snacks on any day are always mixed nuts, even when I am travelling. I will have 0.2 cups of a blend that I make myself. It consists of dry roasted peanuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, pistachios, and Brazil nuts. This is 5 grams of protein, 163 calories, and 7 carbs.
      Breakfast and snacks have been the easiest to nail down. Lunch and dinner have more variables, and I prepare enough for leftovers. I concentrate on protein first, and then add vegetables. Typically tempeh, tofu, or Field Roast products with roasted or sautéed vegetables. Today, I will be eating leftovers from last night. Two ounces of tempeh with four ounces of roasted vegetables that consist of red and yellow sweet peppers, sweet potatoes, small purple potatoes, zucchini, and carrots. I will add a tablespoon of olive oil-based spread, break up 3 walnuts to sprinkle of top, and garnish with two tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese. This particular meal will be 19 grams of protein, 377 calories, and 28 grams of carbs. Bear in mind that I do eat more carbs when I am not working, and I focus on ingesting healthy carbs instead of breads/crackers/chips/crisps.
      It's a helluva journey and I'm thankful to be on it!
       
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
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