Hi everyone! I am scheduled for my gastric sleeve for August 17th. I am 5'3" and 230 lbs so the doctor said I need to lose 100 lbs. Honestly I am super nervous and keep having thoughts of excitement but then I think well maybe I will just cancel it. Is it normal to feel this way? I would love to meet other people that are scheduled on the same month or around so we can somewhat do this process together.

3 hours ago, ShelbyGeorge29 said:

Are you still taking an acid reducer? I read someone was having a lot of nausea weeks after surgery and when they added Prilosec it got much better.

Yes, I'm taking Omeprazole. My nausea isn't that terrible anymore, I just have to be very careful what I eat, and eat very little at a time and slowly.

The way it works for me, is that I'm eating and everything is going fine. Everything is measured in advance and I'm not eating more than usual. And then all of a sudden, I feel like I've eaten too much and sometimes I have to throw up. It comes on pretty fast and here's no prior warning.

Edited September 13, 20223 yr by Sunnyer

2 hours ago, SuziDavis said:

I come home exhausted and can't sleep till well after midnight. The only time I took my pain meds was one night because I knew it would knock me out.

I have been taking cannabis at night to help me sleep. It was cleared by my surgeon and has been very helpful. However, I have been waking up in the middle of the night and just lying awake. I'm wondering if because we are losing weight we do not require as much sleep as we used to. I do however LOVE my sleepy time and I'm gonna hold onto every minute that I can! LOL

SO I've had a couple of NSVs lately and couple of learning how to eat episodes too. I'll be 1-month post-op on the 18th and this is what I've seen. Clothes that I haven't been able to wear in over 6 years are fitting me again. I've had people come up to me in the grocery store telling me how much different I look than the last time they saw me. And I've had to remove a link out of my watch band about my wrist! I've also learned that I need to drink my protein drink in the morning before food otherwise everything is just too dry all the way down. It's kinda weird. but starting the day with liquids helps everything else to follow. I had an episode where I overate because I was not paying attention. I'll NEVER do that again! It ruined the whole day and hurt like hell!! So no matter what, set your timers, eat slow, chew, chew, chew, and pay attention to how you feel after every bite! I've recently begun to start having family meals again no one makes comments or says anything unkind as to how little I'm eating. I tell them that I get dinner twice because I can eat the rest later on I'm so full that only one bite of dessert goes over the lips because I'm completely satisfied. So far, it's working!

I am about 6 weeks post op, I just started eating solid food a week ago, I can only eat 2 to 3 bites before I feel like I am going to throw up. Since introducing food I have not lost any weight. Anyone experiencing the same? Any advice how to stop the Plato?

9 hours ago, Tiffany84 said:

I am about 6 weeks post op, I just started eating solid food a week ago, I can only eat 2 to 3 bites before I feel like I am going to throw up. Since introducing food I have not lost any weight. Anyone experiencing the same? Any advice how to stop the Plato?

I had a stall for more than two weeks after I started on solid foods. It was really frustrating, but recently I started losing a little weight again.

All you can do is be patient. In the first days and weeks after surgery, you are losing a lot of water weight. Then your body starts adding the water weight again, but you're still losing fat. You just don't see it on the scale for a while, since the re-added water makes up for the fat loss on the scale.

Just stick to your program. Eventually you will start losing weight on the scale again.

14 hours ago, Tiffany84 said:

I am about 6 weeks post op, I just started eating solid food a week ago, I can only eat 2 to 3 bites before I feel like I am going to throw up. Since introducing food I have not lost any weight. Anyone experiencing the same? Any advice how to stop the Plato?

I lost my first week and then it just stopped at week 2. I am not at almost a month and am finally losing again. Everyone stalls. And a lot of people stall in the first month while your body is adjusting, try upping your calories a little to kick it. Best advice, DO NOT WEIGH YOURSELF DAILY. You will torture yourself with the up and down. I am doing once a week right now, and might switch to once a month.

1 hour ago, SuziDavis said:

I lost my first week and then it just stopped at week 2. I am not at almost a month and am finally losing again. Everyone stalls. And a lot of people stall in the first month while your body is adjusting, try upping your calories a little to kick it. Best advice, DO NOT WEIGH YOURSELF DAILY. You will torture yourself with the up and down. I am doing once a week right now, and might switch to once a month.

Yes to this! I lost every day the first week and now I am just about a month out and have only lost 1 more pound. I see my doctor at the end of the month and I'm afraid they are going to think I'm not following the diet. I am. I have a protein shake for breakfast, yogurt for lunch and an egg for dinner. I was told not to add any more protein shakes because those count as meals and I'll have too many meals if I do that. I am honestly sort of regretting the surgery a bit since I'm barely eating but not losing any weight. I could have just had the hiatal hernia surgery if I wasn't going to lose weight. I feel like I've permanently altered my insides for nothing.

It has been very frustrating for me. A friend of mine had surgery and has lost over 100 lbs in 5 months and she has even told me that sometimes she cheats. I am happy for her, but frustrated at my lack of losing.

53 minutes ago, LibbyAbby said:

Yes to this! I lost every day the first week and now I am just about a month out and have only lost 1 more pound. I see my doctor at the end of the month and I'm afraid they are going to think I'm not following the diet. I am. I have a Protein Shake for Breakfast, yogurt for lunch and an egg for dinner. I was told not to add any more Protein Shakes because those count as meals and I'll have too many meals if I do that. I am honestly sort of regretting the surgery a bit since I'm barely eating but not losing any weight. I could have just had the hiatal hernia surgery if I wasn't going to lose weight. I feel like I've permanently altered my insides for nothing.

It has been very frustrating for me. A friend of mine had surgery and has lost over 100 lbs in 5 months and she has even told me that sometimes she cheats. I am happy for her, but frustrated at my lack of losing.

When I asked my doctor he said to add more calories to help your body adjust, when I did that, I lost more weight. I only increased by 100 cal. but that was enough.

The schedule my doc put us on was eating every 2.5 hours or so. breakfast - snack - lunch - snack - dinner. and multiple shakes were fine.

The shakes I use are only 140 cal, but 24 grams of protein.

Remember not just about weight loss… but the other benefits too!

I did notice when installed - I upped my protein and then I started losing again. I am 6wks out from surgery and had the same type of stall the first month. Give your body time to heal! You just had surgery and when it’s ready, changes will happen! Ps I’m supposed to get 80g protein a day… that’s why I mentioned maybe upping your protein. But always check in with your dr and or nutritionist! Good luck ☺️

One Month Follow-up

I was sure I would get scolded for not doing better - but both the dietician and the surgeon are pleased with my progress.

My BP was super low - could be mild dehydration, could need to transition off my BP meds - my extended period (or a combination of all three). I see my PCP Monday so hopefully we can work on that.

I’m the meantime, my focus is hydration, work on bumping my protein and calories and increase my activity as I am able.

I wanted to have lost more by now but both the surgeon and dietitian reinforced: I’m healing, I’ve had some added challenges and I’m doing well - stay on plan and track and things will keep progressing.

The surgeon, who I expected to be the hardest on me, was very encouraging.

On 9/14/2022 at 10:48 AM, LibbyAbby said:

Yes to this! I lost every day the first week and now I am just about a month out and have only lost 1 more pound. I see my doctor at the end of the month and I'm afraid they are going to think I'm not following the diet. I am. I have a Protein Shake for Breakfast, yogurt for lunch and an egg for dinner. I was told not to add any more Protein Shakes because those count as meals and I'll have too many meals if I do that. I am honestly sort of regretting the surgery a bit since I'm barely eating but not losing any weight. I could have just had the hiatal hernia surgery if I wasn't going to lose weight. I feel like I've permanently altered my insides for nothing.

It has been very frustrating for me. A friend of mine had surgery and has lost over 100 lbs in 5 months and she has even told me that sometimes she cheats. I am happy for her, but frustrated at my lack of losing.

We all have different starting points and the more weight you have to lose, the more weight you will lose and it will come off faster. I know it's easier said than done, but it will drive you crazy if you compare yourself with others. Everyone's journey will look different.

I had my 1-month appointment this week. My bloodwork came back great, except some minor elevated liver functions which worried me, but didn't worry my surgeon. They were pleased with my progress and told me that they measure percent excess weight lost and in 1-month that was 23% and they want 30% at 3-months, so they don't expect me not to meet that goal. I'm not sure what numbers they are using because they won't tell me a goal weight, but they have to have it somewhere!

I was cleared for all foods but I've been having issues with meats so we will see how that goes. I had an episode of the foamies and it was terrible. That happened with chicken.

Also cleared for exercise, although I get between 7-8K steps just at work, so they suggest 45 min 3x a week for now.

NSV: I had a Zoom meeting today and it was the first time in such a long time that I didn't loathe how I looked on screen! It was pretty cool!

On 09/14/2022 at 10:48, LibbyAbby said:

Yes to this! I lost every day the first week and now I am just about a month out and have only lost 1 more pound. I see my doctor at the end of the month and I'm afraid they are going to think I'm not following the diet. I am. I have a Protein Shake for Breakfast, yogurt for lunch and an egg for dinner. I was told not to add any more Protein Shakes because those count as meals and I'll have too many meals if I do that. I am honestly sort of regretting the surgery a bit since I'm barely eating but not losing any weight. I could have just had the hiatal hernia surgery if I wasn't going to lose weight. I feel like I've permanently altered my insides for nothing.

It has been very frustrating for me. A friend of mine had surgery and has lost over 100 lbs in 5 months and she has even told me that sometimes she cheats. I am happy for her, but frustrated at my lack of losing.

I’m with you.

I just had my appointment today and was so stressed that I was going to get lectured or my team would think the same things. I have about 150 more pounds to loose (at least) - so I was expecting to have lost at least 30 this month. It was just a goal I set for myself, but I really thought I could do it.

After loosing about 23 pounds the first 7-10 days, I thought I’m so going to crush this…. Then a stall hit. My period came back (had it three out of the last 4 weeks) and I’ve been beyond drained. Turns out my BP was low and I’m mildly dehydrated. I kept saying “if I could do more I’d loose more”.

The dr and dietitian both told me to ease up on myself. They said I’m doing great and they are pleased with my progress (turns out my weight fluxed up with my period so I’m down exactly 20 pounds from surgery day). Even so - they are happy with how I’m healing and told me to get hydrated, up my protein & calories (they gave me a range) and then told me to follow up with my pcp (see him Monday). But to stay on plan and they both think I’m off to a good start and that I will do well. The first month is all about healing, recovery and getting used to our new routines as we progress through the phases.

They asked me what NSV I noticed when I was frustrated with the scales and encouraged me to keep watching my body change because that is sometimes a better indicator of progress (and I do see a lot of changes).

I know it is hard, especially when we set goals for ourself and we don’t meet our own expectations. But slow and STEADY wins the race… we can do this!! I was so stressed going into my appointments but I was so happy when I came out hearing their encouragement to keep doing what I’m doing.

One Month Follow-up

I was sure I would get scolded for not doing better - but both the dietician and the surgeon are pleased with my progress.

My BP was super low - could be mild dehydration, could need to transition off my BP meds - my extended period (or a combination of all three). I see my PCP Monday so hopefully we can work on that.

I’m the meantime, my focus is hydration, work on bumping my protein and calories and increase my activity as I am able.

I wanted to have lost more by now but both the surgeon and dietitian reinforced: I’m healing, I’ve had some added challenges and I’m doing well - stay on plan and track and things will keep progressing.

The surgeon, who I expected to be the hardest on me, was very encouraging.

Yay! I'm so happy for you!

Good morning from slightly overcast San Diego (man I'm going to miss this city as I leave my home of 25 years a week from tomorrow morning).

My 1-month surgery-versary is in a few days. There was a week when I was gaining weight (yes, even following guidelines)--probably from water retention, but it's coming off again now, and I'm less puffy having discontinued one of my two BP meds at my doctor's request. I'm down 31 pounds since the liver-shrinking diet (2 weeks before surgery).

NSVs:
1. Yesterday, I went to Target with my daughter. It was the first time in ages that my back wasn't killing me, and I didn't have to stop and rest my hand against walls to relieve the back pressure.
2. I can fit behind the wheel easier... even when my thin 17-year-old daughter forgets to put the steering wheel back up when she's done borrowing the car.
3. I've been able to stand for longer than 3 minutes without pain, which helps me do more packing (soooo much packing... the movers arrive this coming Friday).

Edited September 18, 20223 yr by suzecate