Hello, I'm due to have MGB later this month. Hoping to get some questions answered.

Firstly, how long did it take before you returned to work? My surgeon advises 2 weeks until I can drive, and if I need will sign me off for four weeks. I'm a teacher and would be on my feet all day, although I could take it easy if needs be as I teach secondary/high school age. I know I will need to listen to my body, but I'd ideally get back to work as soon as possible so just exploring what's realistic.

Secondly, how did you tackle questions from other people about your absence and then weight loss? I've told absolutely no one apart from my immediate family, and want to be able to brush off questions but not sure what to say. I might disclose later on, but not particularly close to colleagues so would feel strange talking about it now.

Many thank

Jen

Edited August 3, 20206 yr by Jen2020MGB
Typo

1 hour ago, TrueNorth1 said:

And the other, similar to yours, is living with 1 cup meals for the rest of my life. Never having fatty foods. Or sweet foods or drinks. A little bit of anxiety on how you manage that in group settings ie friends birthdays, my birthday!, holidays with family, vacations in general. I am petrified of "dumping". I I don't understand the don't drink Water 30 min before you eat or 30 minutes after. So again, how do you do that when going out? I am afraid to have a drink without getting loaded! Its a major change.

I can eat more than a cup (I'm 5+ years out). I doubt anyone can tell I had surgery anymore - I eat about as much as my never-been-obese women friends who are watching their weight. If I go out, I'll order an appetizer - or if I get an entree, I'll take half of it home. Same as they do.

I can't tolerate really fatty foods anymore (I can maybe have one falafel - or a few fries), but some people can. Unfortunately, I can inhale sweets. I was hoping surgery would stop that, but nope. I can eat 'em just fine. I don't dump - never have. About 70% of us don't. And if you're one of the ones who DOES dump, you can manage that by limiting or avoiding fatty or sugary foods.

the first few weeks and months can be tricky because you're eating so little and you have so many restrictions, but that's not a lifelong thing. I can eat most things now and have been able to for quite awhile. I just have to watch my portion size and make sure I'm not going over my calorie range. Vacations, holidays, birthdays are no problem.

(I should add that the cup thing depends on what it is. If it's something like steak, there's no way I could eat a cup of that. Too dense. But stuff like soup, vegetables, salad, yogurt, popcorn - I can eat more than a cup of that)

another thing -- before I had surgery, I started paying attention to what my female co-workers ate for lunch. There were a couple who could pack away what I would have called a "normal" lunch at the time - sandwich, chips, and a cookie. Or burger, fries, and a coke. But most of them ate these lunches that I considered pretty microscopic at the time - a sandwich and a apple. Or a sandwich and some baby carrots. Or a thing of yogurt with a skinny bagel with cream cheese on it. I came to the conclusion that that's the way a lot of normal-sized women eat - and those who ate more were either blessed with great metabolism or were super active. Anyway, now I pretty much eat like those light eaters eat. I think most normal-sized women eat that way (unfortunately...)

Edited November 17, 20205 yr by catwoman7

It didn't hurt as such, but just felt a bit sloshy and tight inside when I took too much fluid in and made me feel nauseous. Someone on this board gave me the idea of using a shot glass to measure water and fluids so you don't over consume, and setting an alarm on phone for every 10 minutes to drink. I don't really have to think about water now though, I can taken reasonable sized gulps and get enough in no problem.

So at 8 weeks out I finally completed a qualification I'd been working on, and my friends threw me a surprise celebration with champagne and a beautiful homemade cake!! I held the glass, and sipped it very slowly. I had a sliver (2mm) of cake that I picked at over two hours. They know I'm watching my weight, so didn't say anything. It wasn't in my plan, and not ideal, but I went with it and was careful and I'm so glad I did because I hadn't seen them all since March and now we're in another lockdown. Like what catwoman7 said, my normal sized friends would have done similar sometimes. So after that I felt like having a social life and celebrating special occasions were things that i could do, even if I didn't consume as much as my old self, and that made me feel so much better.

I was also very scared of dumping, but I haven't experienced it yet.

You will be fine, and so glad you did it afterwards ?

On 11/11/2020 at 23:53, Jen2020MGB said:

A little update. All went smoothly with my surgery. I felt ok for the first week, just very tired and it was a huge effort to take in enough fluids, and I felt sick a lot of the time and did vomit on several occasions causing some panic but all settled down. sleeping propped up was not the best, but I couldn't lie flat because I felt so nauseous when i did.

Two weeks and i felt worse, blood pressure low, dizzy, and generally just not myself. Tired all the time. Vomited in my sleep and nearly choked, was pretty awful and scared me. There was no way I could've done a full days work, although I did do the odd hour at my desk doing emails etc.. I had to count the drops of Water going in my mouth because I was so sensitive to over filling.

By the end of week 3 i was feeling more myself, but still had a job getting in enough fluids and sustenance. Was sleeping lying on my side again which made all the difference.

After 4 weeks I was back at work and just had to be careful and make sure I took time to drink and eat regularly, not super easy when teaching all day, on duty and wearing masks. The other slight issue i had was the length of time to eat, I would finish two spoons and my one break of the day was over, and then for half an hour my stomach made really loud noises! Iced lattes got me through for fluids Protein and being able to sip it throughout the day. I also think the cold was soothing on my stomach.

I noticed a shift after 6 weeks when I could go hours without remembering I'd had surgery, and now by 11 weeks ish it's all good and I'm eating lots of different things just small portions and my usual - if not higher - energy levels have returned.

I was deliberately vague about the surgery, I wasn't ready to tell colleagues and they haven't asked. Only one has mentioned my weight loss. I'm still drinking iced coffee a lot (shot of coffee, ice and soya milk, no sweeteners). I think a few suspect but honestly I don't know them well and can't be bothered yet with explaining everything. I was prepared to dismiss any questions at the risk of sounding rude, rather than talk about it, but it's not been an issue.

It is major surgery, and impossible to predict how your body will react. Healing takes time. In hindsight, I think I was convincing myself I'd be fine so quickly afterwards because I was actually really nervous about having the surgery, I just hadn't realised it.

I hope it goes well for you TrueNorth1.

Hi Jen, it was really good to see this post. I’m also a teacher and thinking about how long I will need to be off. Currently 4 days post op and still in a fair bit of pain, although I feel much better today in general. My senior leadership team know why I’m off but I haven’t told anyone else from work so I’m sure questions will be asked when I return. I was signed off for 2 weeks but at the moment I’m thinking it will be longer. Good to hear your story so far ?

On 11/23/2020 at 8:00 PM, shellzuk said:

Hi Jen, it was really good to see this post. I’m also a teacher and thinking about how long I will need to be off. Currently 4 days post op and still in a fair bit of pain, although I feel much better today in general. My senior leadership team know why I’m off but I haven’t told anyone else from work so I’m sure questions will be asked when I return. I was signed off for 2 weeks but at the moment I’m thinking it will be longer. Good to hear your story so far ?

Glad it was helpful. How are you getting on? Hope you're having less pain now. I'm losing weight quite obviously quickly now, and students have started to mention it (in a positive way) which was both a surprise and nice.

2 hours ago, Jen2020MGB said:

Glad it was helpful. How are you getting on? Hope you're having less pain now. I'm losing weight quite obviously quickly now, and students have started to mention it (in a positive way) which was both a surprise and nice.

Hiya, definitely in less pain now although still hurts when I move too sharply. Glad to hear the students have started to notice! I’m looking forward to that part although for now I’m just looking forward to getting out of the house a little!