February 2022 Surgery Buddies

[ElleyOtter 8]

59 minutes ago, Shikin.k said:

My surgery was on 16/2. It’s been 5 weeks post surgery. My Fluid intake has gone up so much and I’m starting to lose weight again now. On the advice of my surgeon and dietician and trial and error, I’ve done these things:

1. Track my Water usage using the Waterllama app. it’s cute and easy to use

2. track my food intake using the “see what you eat” app, making note of only the Proteins I consume (I don’t count macros otherwise. Just make sure everything is “light” or “Low fat” and mostly “sugar free”)

3. set reminders on my phone to take medications, eat and drink (I don’t feel thirsty or hungry so this has been dangerous for me)

4. use Water enhancers and uncaffeinated herbal teas to vary the taste of my fluids

I haven’t been hospitalised other than that 1 night post surgery however I’ve been making weekly trips to meet the care team. I’ve lost 25lbs, which isn’t much. I was barely losing any in the previous 2 weeks but according to the body analysis, I was losing muscle and water. I was lethargic all the time but could still move. Once I got the proteins and Fluid settled, I’ve been feeling so much better.

For movement, I searched for anything “post bariatric surgery” and was doing basic stretches and walking for 15min then moved to 30 min. Now I look for “Low impact/intensity beginners cardio” lasting for about 30min to 45min. Don’t push yourself to the point of pain. Once I feel twinges, I stop. The physiotherapist in the care team suggests that movement be done for 10-15 min, twice a day at a start. For the first 3 weeks, my heart rate doesn’t go beyond 65% of my max heart rate. Now I’m pushing it to about 80%. After week 6 I will incorporate weights again. I enjoy resistance training and can’t weight to get back to it so just do what feels right to you. Find the type of movement that you enjoy.

Whilst my body has been changing even without exercise, I am constantly reminding myself this is the same body. WLS is not magic. I have to take care of my body before I can get it to work right. This means eating drinking moving and resting sufficiently.

I’ve been on 5 weeks of leave and this has helped me with my new-habit forming as well as allow me to heal gently. I will finally get back to work next Monday. I don’t know how I will be energy and pain wise but we’ll see.

I returned to work a week ago, and I definitely recommend continuing to utlize timers and reminders on your phone to remember to drink and eat. I use an app called Multitimer and have several timers pre-set, one of them for 5 minutes that goes off on repeat all day to remind me to take a drink!

[ElleyOtter 8]

17 hours ago, Doddlemom said:

It was really hard the first two weeks but then things got so much better! Eating some new things but mostly still wanting everything soft. I’m down 30 too. Not getting enough Protein or Water but still recovering well. Thank you for the prayers and prayers to you and everyone!

I'm looking at y'all's post and just being jealous, lol. My surgery was 2/16 and I'm only down 20 lbs, and have been hitting my Water and Protein goals consistently since day 1 home from the hospital. Sometimes I'm like "Did this thing work?" and then my stomach makes crazy dinosaur noises and I know they did SOMETHING in there, LOL!

[Doddlemom 1]

On 03/24/2022 at 13:52, ElleyOtter said:

I'm looking at y'all's post and just being jealous, lol. My surgery was 2/16 and I'm only down 20 lbs, and have been hitting my Water and Protein goals consistently since day 1 home from the hospital. Sometimes I'm like "Did this thing work?" and then my stomach makes crazy dinosaur noises and I know they did SOMETHING in there, LOL!

Oh my goodness the noises! Lol I get them too. I lost 20 in my pre op diet and then 10 after surgery. I’m not losing super fast after surgery since I’m not eating enough Protein. I’m adding it all together though as my total loss to keep me staying positive. Congratulations on your 20 lbs loss!

[fourmonthspreop 522]

Yeah, it's not clear yet and it was a new guideline from my dietician post-op. She switched me to eating every 2 hours to avoid nausea. Initially, I tried to eat my meals just the 3 times a day and found I'd get sick at night. She thinks I need to take in less amount of food more frequently instead of more less frequently. It's worked so far, I'm not getting sick from eating but it's hard to get my Water in too. The meals I have, I usually eat them in parts. Like I'll have half of it and then the other half later so I am taking in small amounts of food all day.

They also want me to cool it on the Protein Shakes because they think it's causing my a lot of Constipation. I started making my own because I couldn't do all the milk products so now I just have one a day and get the rest through food. I def think you're right though... I need to drink more water and hopefully, some of the painful movements will get better. Water is soooo difficult though but I'm determined. Still trying to figure out the right balance for me.

[Shikin.k 7]

7 hours ago, fourmonthspreop said:

Yeah, it's not clear yet and it was a new guideline from my dietician post-op. She switched me to eating every 2 hours to avoid nausea. Initially, I tried to eat my meals just the 3 times a day and found I'd get sick at night. She thinks I need to take in less amount of food more frequently instead of more less frequently. It's worked so far, I'm not getting sick from eating but it's hard to get my Water in too. The meals I have, I usually eat them in parts. Like I'll have half of it and then the other half later so I am taking in small amounts of food all day.

They also want me to cool it on the Protein Shakes because they think it's causing my a lot of constipation. I started making my own because I couldn't do all the milk products so now I just have one a day and get the rest through food. I def think you're right though... I need to drink more Water and hopefully, some of the painful movements will get better. Water is soooo difficult though but I'm determined. Still trying to figure out the right balance for me.

Oh yes. The Constipation. I was crying when I finally had to go in weeks 2 and 3. Stool softeners helped.

[Hot Mess Bypass 8]

8 hours ago, ElleyOtter said:

I'm looking at y'all's post and just being jealous, lol. My surgery was 2/16 and I'm only down 20 lbs, and have been hitting my Water and Protein goals consistently since day 1 home from the hospital. Sometimes I'm like "Did this thing work?" and then my stomach makes crazy dinosaur noises and I know they did SOMETHING in there, LOL!

Dinosaur sounds is so accurate. I'm over here wondering about mine aside from the sounds too.i had surgery 2/21. I've lost 40 total, but only about 13-14 since surgery. I don't have much restriction, but I don't push myself. I get hungry quickly though, like stomach growling, can't sleep... not cravings. I just hope I continue to lose. I just took it as a given if I do my part, but I didn't expect it to look like this either. Regardless... I've never lost 40 lbs. before and still losing. So building on that momentum!!

[emilyemiliemilu 10]

Anyone get super sick when taking their Vitamins? I can’t seem to keep them down!

[fourmonthspreop 522]

Anyone get super sick when taking their Vitamins? I can’t seem to keep them down!

I did but then I started taking them close to a meal and if I take it after a meal, I eat a teaspoon of very strong tasting hummus with it to get the taste out of my mouth then wash and brush because they are that awful. But really, food seemed to do the trick. If I take it on an empty stomach, not fun.

Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

[jentyree 7]

19 hours ago, emilyemiliemilu said:

Anyone get super sick when taking their Vitamins? I can’t seem to keep them down!

No, thank goodness. I take ProCare Now Vitamins. They're big, but they're easily digestible and break down quickly in the stomach.

[Ccosta0425 20]

Well everyone just had my two month follow up and I’m officially down 50lbs! How’s everyone else doing?

[Hot Mess Bypass 8]

I'm down 47. 2 months out as well. Only lost .3 this week, unfortunately.

[fourmonthspreop 522]

I had my surgery on Valentine's Day [emoji3590]
I'm officially at 270 as of this morning. I was at 309 when I went in for surgery. I want this damn weight to come off faster but I guess slow and steady wins the race. Its still funny to me being the fat person that doesn't eat anything. Obviously people who know I had surgery don't judge me about that but going to events and stuff with people I'm not familiar with and eating a couple bites of food while weighing 270 lbs is a funny image [emoji1787]

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[Ccosta0425 20]

2 hours ago, Hot Mess Bypass said:

I'm down 47. 2 months out as well. Only lost .3 this week, unfortunately.

I stopped weighing myself weekly because it would stress me out I now only weigh monthly and it’s a good surprise lol

[Ccosta0425 20]

1 hour ago, fourmonthspreop said:

I had my surgery on Valentine's Day
I'm officially at 270 as of this morning. I was at 309 when I went in for surgery. I want this damn weight to come off faster but I guess slow and steady wins the race. Its still funny to me being the fat person that doesn't eat anything. Obviously people who know I had surgery don't judge me about that but going to events and stuff with people I'm not familiar with and eating a couple bites of food while weighing 270 lbs is a funny image

Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

Don’t rush it everyone’s body is different it will come off at it’s own pace

[fourmonthspreop 522]

2 hours ago, Ccosta0425 said:

Don’t rush it everyone’s body is different it will come off at it’s own pace

You're def right! I try not to check my weight every day anymore. Usually every 3 days. I should go less because some days it makes me so frustrated. I also bought a smaller pair of pants that are soooo tight so when I can fit in them or they're loose, I'll know regardless of the number that my weight has gone down.