RNY Tips

Hello! I'm new to the Sparklers team. I had lap band surgery in Feb. 2008 and a revision to RNY in Sept. 2011. I, too, have been a slow loser and had been in a plateau for 21/2 months. When I went back to the bariatric center for a follow up visit, it was suggested that I increase by protein intake to 80-100 grams a day. I have done this and the plateau has ended with a 12lb drop! Have any of you slow losers tried increasing your protein intake? It sure worked for me! Good luck to all of you! Michelle

Thank you Cindy for your reply!! Slowest Loser is right! I just got back from a visit with my surgeon and after only losing 5 lbs in a month, I was very discouraged, but she says any loss is still a loss, and without being able to exercise, I am doing a good job. I wish I could feel that way, but Ill take it to heart and keep trying. The bad news was that my hernia has opened completely, and they cant do anything about it for at least 9 months, providing I lose 60 more pounds. And then it will be "abdominal reconstruction" instead of "hernia repair"... BUT I will get a tummy tuck thrown in for free!!! They also are sending me to a pain specialist, so hopefully, I can get that managed enough so I can start exorcizing, I got a treadmill this weekend and doing slow walks 10 mins at a time. I would love to do water arobics, but there are no facilities near my home :( If ANYONE here has any advice, or hints for doing better with these limitations. I would appreciate it! Some days I am at the very end of my rope, sick of living with pain and need to know I can get past this and live a normal life again.

You sound a lot like me! I sometimes think I should be called The Slowest Loser! I have to fight for every pound I have lost. I still have a big stomach and most of the weight I still need to loose in in the stomach! Well I also have thunder thighs too!. Arms look good, lower legs are also good. Neck - turkey neck lots of loose skin and bat wings under my upper arms.

Good luck with future hernia surgery! Keep up the exercise! With a hernia ask the doctor about water walking or water aerobics class. The water will take some strain off the hernia area while allowing you to exercise more vigorously.

cindy

Hi.... I just had my RandY in November, I started at 269 and as of today I am at 232. Thanks to all of you for these posts. It helped me to read and realize that there is no normal, and I shouldnt worry that I am not doing as well as I hoped. That it might be normal to not have the regular bowel movements I was used to. That some people intake more food or less liquids than I do. I guess we are all doing the best with what we have. We all have medical conditions that led us to having this surgery. Mine is an impending hernia. My surgeon said that because of where the thinning of the abdominal wall is located, and the severity of the surgery, the risks of complications, he would not do the surgery until i have lost at least 100 lbs. It is a very painful condition, and debilitating. Now that I am losing weight everywhere but my belly, people are asking me "When is the blessed event?" It is difficult to exercise, but I still try... even if its just lifting soup cans 20 times at a time. I am highly motivated to lose this weight and once again, want to thank everyone who has posted their tips here. I would appreciate any other tips that will help me get rid of the weight faster so I can get rid of this stupid hernia!!! Thanks and good luck to everyone!

Bonnieellen, I am glad that you are taking back the reigns on your life! To avoid all the negative self talk I was told to start a gratitude log. Each morning I am two write down what I am grateful for and why. I must do the same at mid-day and evening. I am to read the days list before going to bed and upon rising the next day. I am to keep the list in a spiral notepad so that when I feel down I can look back at the old entries and be encouraged.
When weight loss is not going as well as I would like then the negative self talk starts in and I need that positive self talk from my gratitude log to cheer me up and move me forward.

So for any of you who are feeling like a failure at any time I encourage you to start a gratitude journal - write it in a notepad or on post-its on your bathroom mirror but put it somewhere where you will see it.

cindy

I can certainly commiserate with feeling like a failure. I am five years and one month from my RNY and have regained a not small amount of weight. 325 lbs on the morning of my surgery on 12/05/05 and 165 lbs at my lowest weight in the summer of 2007. Today I weighed in at 228 lbs. Intellectually I know it's because I was depressed about a year ago and not only did I stop exercising but I also stopped paying attention to what I was eating. Gaining weight, feeling crappy and not sleeping well were all a result. I have decided to start over and get my life back on track. The reasons for the depression are managable now and I'm looking forward to taking my life back. I appreciate all the information, assistance and support of SparkPeople and am going to be more active on the website.

Thanks for sharing that list Cindy, that's awesome!! I love it!

It takes a long time to build the muscles up and for the skin to tighten but if the skin was stretched for too long then it may need surgery to tighten it up. At fifteen months mine is looking pretty good but I still have some loose crepey skin that I hide under my shapewear.

Good advice Tammieann!
cindy

Edited by: CINDY-K at: 12/30/2011 (16:32)

Dear MAH,

I am praying for you to know God's will for you. In my case, gastric bypass surgery has been a wonderful blessing!

In my own life, I too felt that I should be able to lose weight on my own without surgery. I researched, prayed, talked to family and friends, agonized, etc. for six years, all the while my health was worsening, my type 2 diabetes was harder and harder to control blood sugar wise, I was running out of breath so easily, migraines were happening about 5 - 7 times a month, I had a bakers cyst in my knee that made walking almost impossible (this is aggravated by obesity), leg pain was almost constant as well as back pain, cholesterol was high, my family's history of heart disease and stroke and cancer was hanging over my head, I had heart rhythym problems myself...

My doctors, every specialist I saw about various health concerns had been telling me since about 5 years ago that gastric bypass was the only way they saw for me to get weight off and lengthen my life and improve my health.

I am so grateful that God led me to have gastric bypass surgery on October 5, 2011!!!! God has blessed me to have a safe surgery and recovery, to be able to go off of all type 2 diabetes meds per endocrinologists recommendation, off all cholesterol meds, stay off blood pressure meds, have no migraines any longer, and to lose 60.8 pounds since surgery! I can walk easier, exercise longer, have more energy, and fit into smaller sized clothes already too!

I think some of the best supports for me have been first of all God, praying to God and reading the Bible. Also Telling family and friends that I was having the surgery, going to bariatric support group meetings before and after surgery, and talking with people that had already had gastric bypass were all very important to help me feel supported and prepared for the surgery and when questions came up afterward. I would ask your hospital team about what types of support they offer before and after surgery and if your own doesn't offer much see if other local hospitals allow anyone to go to their support groups. Reading books like Cindy recommended would also be helpful, making a list of goals you have for yourself as weight comes off and health improves can be motivating. I want to take a dance class, go horseback riding, go hiking, walk the Mackinaw Bridge next Labor day (5 mile walk), go skiing, and go parasailing :-)

May God bless you and guide you in your decision!
May you have a blessed, happy 2012!

Tammie

Well, although you must take the meds, it sounds as if it was all worth it! I think that is what matters. I also no longer have to use my CPAP and I am very grateful for that! I was getting a little discouraged because i feel that my body looks like it is just drooping. I go to the gym, I swim, I am lifting weights and hopefully something will happen. I am very happy though. My husband has been very encouraging and supportive throughout my entire journey. I am looking forward to greater things to come!!!

Devasinger, I am so envious and very happy for you! It turns out that most of my medication needs were not obesity related. So I still take my bloodpressure meds but my blood pressure numbers are great. I still take cholesterol meds and my numbers are great! I still take diabetes meds but much less of them. I still use cpap. I still need arthritis and degenerative disc disease meds sometimes. But I am ok with this now. It was devastating at 6 months out to realize that my surgeon had lied when he said I would be off all meds by 6 months. But I am healthy and active and no longer obese so I am happy. I feel great too!

cindy

I am grateful! I am off all meds except for my vitamins and a baby aspirin! I was taking 9 different pills in October!

At 15 months out my A1c is now 5.9 Yeah!!!! I spoke with my endo today and have decided to try not taking my lantus and see how my blood glucose does for a couple of weeks. Then I will report back if it goes back up and I will start back on Lantus with just one unit at a time to see if I really need 12 units a day.

We think for some reason the Januvia is working and so I may not need the lantus!

Next A1c test is March.

cindy

thank you very helpful

It is normal to be afraid.and everyone has to make their own decisions. Just talk to all of your Dr's. and do what they say. I had this surgery to save my life. I was a bad diabetic and my Dr. told me I would only live 2 to 4 years. My A1C went from 8.6 to 5.4. I am off all of my meds and feel great. That is just my experience...like I said, you have to be comfortable with your decision. I went to WW for years and couldn't lose weight. The diabetic meds I was taking made me gain weight especially my insulin. Praying that you have peace with whatever decision you make.

MAH, First of all you need to forgive yourself for not being perfect. We all have food issues and all obese people have dieted, lost weight, regained, lost regained......The gastric bypass surgery is one tool that helps us to not eat as much. What it does not do is make us eat the foods that will keep us at a normal weight. It does not change our emotions related to foods nor our food habits. It does not make us exercise every day. But it is a good tool to reduce the volume of food you eat every day.

Be sure to discuss these fears/issues with the psychologist. he/she can help you work through many of the food issues which will help you to be successful after surgery.

This is hard work but we do have a number of good tools to help us. My tools are RNY, exercise program, working on my food issues with counselor(start in 2012) and my dietician, reading the books I recommend in many of the threads, and never give up on myself. One of the best tools you have for your successful healthy new life is a piece of paper or a computer spreadsheet on which to log what you eat, what you are feeling when you eat, and how much you exercise. This tells you in black and white whether you are changing your relationship to food.

At the conferences I have attended I have also learned that your choice of a goal is also important. If your goal is to lose 10 pounds what happens when you have attained that goal? In the past you "succeeded" and then the goal was over so you again ate and gained it back and then some. If you goal is to exercise everyday and one day you have a special event and you donot exercise then you have "failed". Do not pick a number on the scale because you may or may not reach that magic number. For example my goal is to be at a healthy weight and to live an active live with plenty of exercise.
Now with that goal I can live the rest of my life. If I miss exercising one day it does not matter as I have my log to show that I am exercising most days of the week. If I do not reach the number that I saw in my fantasy world I will still achieve my goal because I am healthy and and eating well and exercising most days.

So to sum up what I do in my efforts to be successful.

1) I had the surgery and followed my doctor and dieticians advice!
2) I try to eat healthy foods 3 small meals and 3 small planned snacks. Drinking as much liquid as I can (still have problems getting 64oz but I try every day).
3) I try to work my way beyond my food issues(emotional eating and grazing).
4) I have an exercise program - that I try to follow most weeks. 3 days a week water aerobics, 2 days a week exercise bike and 2 days hand weights and wall exercises.
5) Log food, log my emotions when I eat, log my exercise. I am accountable only to me. I am responsible for the food I eat and the exercise I do.
6) I use my support network, (I am hiring a counselor to add to my support team), forum members, support goup, friends and family all help me in all of the areas listed above.

So I recommend that you read the following books, take one day at a time, work with your medical team to change your relationship with food, start exercising or review how you are exercising with your physical therapist and doctors. Set realist goals that you can achieve and which will last you for a lifetime! Develop a support team to help you during those days and weeks when life becomes difficult and weight loss is not happening.
One tip is to be sure to take your measurments once a month and record the measurements and the date and your weight on that date. I also tried to get a photograph.
Celebrate your successes! But not with food find some other reward!

The books I recommend are
1) Weight Loss Surgery For Dummies - Great resource and easy to read and answers most questions before surgery and about the stay in the hospital and early stages after surgery.
2) Weight Loss Surgery Cookbook For Dummies - Healthy recipes for after surgery(or now before surgery!) and advice for revamping your kitchen for both before and after surgery.
3) Eat it Up! by Connie Stapleton PhD - It really will help you identify your food issues and move beyond them. I recommend using it in combination with a counselor.
4) Weight Loss Surgery - Stages of Transformation by Katie Jay MSW - short book about the various stages you will go through after surgery.

As to fear.... Being scared sometimes is normal. There will be days where you are excited, scared, and you will have a thousand insecurities that will pop up at odd moments. You emotions are in turmoil and that is normal. Forcus only on today.

I hope this helps.
cindy

Morning all. I wanted to say hello just joined the group last night and have read this whole blog. I have just started the process toward surgery, Met with my dietician on Friday for the first time, scheduled my first psych consult for the 23rd and have follow up appointments with dietician and consult with surgeon scheduled for January.

After reading through this post I need to ask you all a question. I feel like I'm Cheating/giving up/failing. I should be able to do this on my own. I've lost weight before, large amounts. And gained it back Usually larger amounts. If I'm not strong enough to succeed at keeping it off now what will change my thinking, my relationship with food, my failures. I'M TERRIFIED. I don't want to be fat anymore, but this is a major life changing decision that there is now turning back from. this isn't a month membership to WW or a gym. I'm out more than money. I am altering my body permanently. The sad part is in my mind I don't see me as fat. I see my self skinny, until I see my self, then it is a shock almost, or I try to do something physical and am exhausted in no time, Wrestling myself up into my truck, walking up stairs, Hiking. I want to do those again comfortably.

Everybody seems so confident in their decision, I feel like It's what I need to do but am terrified I'll fail at this also.

Advice?

HERE IS PART FOUR OF THE LIST OF

THINGS I WISH I'D KNOWN:

This list is provided by Connie Miller, Program Coordinator Virginia Mason Clinic Bariatric Surgery Department (Federal Way, Washington). I am printing it here with Connie's permission. She gave this information to us at our monthly gastric bypass support group meeting in 2010. If you wish to share this anyone please check with her about permission.

18 MONTHS TO 2 YEARS POST OP:
• I wish I had trusted my fellow GBS friends when they said “Don’t buy too many clothes…you will shrink out of them” I never believed I would ever be the size I am today.

• I wish I’d known that it would become a daily struggle for me to keep on track. I was told it gets harder and I have to work at it every day. The good thing is this tool works and forces me to eat well in order to feel good.

• I wish I knew how badly I would hate the sagging skin. I thought I would be ok with it and it would be better than having all of the extra weight, but it really became and still is an issue with me. The thing I cannot tolerate the most is my calves…all of those who know me know that I am so called teeny tiny, but my calves are huge. I have to roll them up in my pants…literally. When I wear shorts, and my legs are relaxed, I have calf wings…seriously. I am not exaggerating. The nurse at my PCP told me yesterday that she can’t believe how big they are in proportion to my body. I was lying on the table and my calves were flopped there skin lying there…looked like slabs of meat with the skin hanging off. At least she was honest with me. She told me my tummy and chest look great… I think because she felt bad after she talked about my legs. No worries…I know they are gross. Anyway, skin is a big thing with me and I just wish I knew that I was going to need help with it…mental help that is. I don’t regret surgery though…not for a minute.

OTHER THINGS I WISH I HAD KNOW:
• That smells are so much stronger now and can make you ill.

• That skin is not always so elastic when it’s going down as it was going up in weight.

• That your relationships change so much because you change, not just physically but emotionally.

• You have to deal with the issues you stuffed down your mouth, so the rawness of that can be hard to swallow.

• People don’t always think you look good.

• Some people like you better fat and don’t know how to deal with you skinny.

• You really could lose your life and surgery is a huge step! I was so lucky my doc was a good one and fixed me up quick.

• How eating is a chore sometimes and you won’t be hungry for food some days.

• People will think you are sick “all” the time even if it only happened 4 times in 9 months.

• That you won’t see the changes as fast as some other people see them so you can get discouraged when you haven’t lost as much weight as so n so.

• That the people who were attracted to you when you were fat, may not be attracted to you skinny.

• People who wouldn’t look at you before, now have an interest in you.

• Family can ignore your accomplishments because they are jealous or resent you took a chance on your life.

• That it would give me back my life such as playing, running, jumping, stretching, walking, etc…

• Fitting into clothes you haven’t ever dreamed you would is such a HIGH!


The list is now complete. I hope you have found this list as interesting as I did. I wish I had laminated it because I have gone over it so many times that it has become tattered and torn.
Good luck on your journey!
cindy

I know that this list was helpful to me too. I think I got it when I was about 3 or 4 months out. I enjoyed typing this last section because I am just over a year out now. It is so true!

I have added your surgery date to the calendar!

cindy

I haven't posted in a while - been preoccupied with pre-surgery and grandchildren stuff. My surgery date has been set for Nov 18. I am more than ready but I just checked in here today to reread the postings on "I wish I knew..." . Thank you, Cindy for sharing those. I plan to reread them several times more before my surgery. I am sure they are easing my mind more than even I realize. I am ready for the change!!

Cindy-K,
Thanks for posting these lists. They are great and very helpful. Some are very surprising, while others not so surprising. I am just grateful that i am not alone on this journey and that somebody understands what I am going through!

HERE IS PART THREE OF THE LIST OF

THINGS I WISH I'D KNOWN:

This list is provided by Connie Miller, Program Coordinator Virginia Mason Clinic Bariatric Surgery Department (Federal Way, Washington). I am printing it here with Connie's permission. She gave this information to us at our monthly gastric bypass support group meeting in 2010. If you wish to share this anyone please check with her about permission.

9 MONTHS TO ONE YEAR POST OP:

• That at 9+ months out you REALLY have to work at eating correctly... you CAN eat more and you DO have the old cravings. I did know this before surgery...I knew this during months 1-9...lbut I thought to myself, "nope, not me...I am going to be one of the ones that is never hungry...that never wants to eat!" YEAH RIGHT! What a dork I am...it has just in the past few weeks become such a job to eat correctly and not eat crap.
• I wish I had known that I am NOT truly that big boned….and therefore know not to overbuy clothes when I get to the limit my mind had made. Yep, a whole bag of my “never can imagine” size barely worn if at all, and hanging in the closet are the clothes in my “shut up…I would never be THAT small” size!
• I wish I had known that my tastes would change and make some of the healthy eating aspects easier than I imagined.
• I wish I had known that I would still somehow miraculously be able to consume mammoth amounts of salty munchies…which makes some aspects of my new life more difficult than imagined.
• I wish I had known not to overbuy the supplements, but rather to stock up on tea, cocoa powder and dry milk.
• I wish I had known that I was not saying good-bye to food, but just setting new boundaries in our relationship.
• I wish I had known that I would like my body more and more with clothes on and less and less naked as I get smaller.
• That WLS can be lonely if you don’t have support.
• I wish that I realized how difficult “head hunger” was going to be for the first few months post op. I kept hearing about the fact that although I would be on a restricted diet, the DESIRE to eat “regular” food was going to be nearly insatiable. I couldn’t eat like a normal person and I knew that, but I wanted to so bad.
• The mental changes that you go through to change the way you think and feel about food is a slow, phased and sometimes painful (but necessary) process. I did not understand that pre-op. I kept thinking that I could deal with it without any problems at all and I was wrong.
• I also wished I listened to people tell me that I should not buy any new clothes (except for thrift or deeply discounted) until I was ALL THE WAY down to my new weight. Along the way, I kept thinking that was the smallest I could get, so I may as well get new clothes. I got a little wear out of the in-between sized, but not much.
• I wish I had known the REAL reasons why I was doing it – which had nothing to do with losing weight, but was about reclaiming my life.
• I wish I had known that the way I felt the first month post-op was temporary. Maybe it was better that I went in not knowing how truly awful I was going to feel for a while. Looking back on it, it passed quickly, but they don’t call it hell week for nothing.
• I wish I had known how amazing it is to meet people who haven’t seen me since before the surgery.
• I wish I had known that my life would change so much so fast. I love who I am for the first time in decades, and glory in the ability of this body to do so much without pain or tears or humiliation.
• I wish I truly understood the COMMITMENT…100% life style change…they told me but real life is different from a Xerox handout/support group once a month. (1 year post-op).

18 MONTHS TO 2 YEARS POST-OP:
I will work on this section later this week.

Edited by: CINDY-K at: 10/25/2011 (01:47)

I assume you are looking for muscle milk lite. It is available at Vitamin Shoppe and I believe you can sometimes get it at Super Supplements. It is also available online. I do not remember which stores online but I have seen it many places.

Try netrition.com and mybariatricpantry.com and bariatriceating.com

cindy

@MZCHIEVIOUSNAZ

May I ask what area the Costco store is? Costco does not have it on their website so maybe it's a area product, the Costco near me has only the Muscle Milk, too much carb count for me.

Edited by: ZULEBENLEBEN at: 10/25/2011 (00:29)

I will try to finish the last two pages tonight or tomorrow night. I just have to find the darn paper that I am transcribing from!

cindy

I will try late this week or maybe on the weekend to type up the last two pages.

cindy

Thank you Cindy. You have given me lots of things to think about and some things I want to work on resolving, or at least come more to terms with, before surgery. This has been very insightful. Looking forward to the rest of the list.

Thanks for posting Cyndy!

Next week I will try to type up the final section of it. No time this weekend.


cindy

Yes Cindy

Thanks for posting the articles ! It took a lot of time to retype them !!! I hadn't checked the RNY postings for a month or more....glad I did !

Ruthie

Thanks Cindy for taking the time to post these articles.

HERE IS PART TWO OF THE LIST OF

THINGS I WISH I'D KNOWN:

This list is provided by Connie Miller, Program Coordinator Virginia Mason Clinic Bariatric Surgery Department (Federal Way, Washington). I am printing it here with Connie's permission. She gave this information to us at our monthly gastric bypass support group meeting in 2010. If you wish to share this anyone please check with her about permission.


FOUR-SIX MONTHS POST OP:
• I wish I had know how obsessed I would become with my weight and my
appearance. Pre-surgery I was aware of how fat I was I just didn’t dwell on it.
As long as I was clean and semi=presentable I was fine. Now I find myself super
conscious of everything I wear, every pound I lose and obsessing on how I can lose more
weight in the fastest amount of time. Now I have to have pedicures, manicures, and my
hair done. I feel uncomfortable without make up. I thought losing weight would make me
more comfortable with my appearance and instead it has made me more self-conscious.

• I wish I understood how EVERY aspect of my life would change dramatically.
• I wish I understood how tremendously happy I would be.
• I wish I understood how for me…the benefits far outweighed the risks.
• I wish I understood how many beautiful people I’d meet, and how much they would
add to my life.
• I wish I understood how committed I would be, how strong I would be, and how
wonderful I’d feel.
• I wish I understood that I needed to do this a long time ago.
• I wish I’d known how quickly you’d forget about the early stuff; pain, weakness,
exhaustion & struggling with only drinking fluids for a month. It’s horrible I know but
it will pass believe me & is soooo worth it.
• I do kinda wish I’’d have done it in my younger years, but then again, I think timing
and such is part of our great plan for our life. I wouldn’t want to alter who I was
supposed to be and what I needed to learn by my experiences. But it would have
been so cool to be thinner and still be a young thing!
• I may not recognize myself in my reflection.

SEVEN MONTHS POST OP:
• I wish I had known how bad I would feel not being able to help my daughters lose
weight. I have this great tool and I try to lead by example, but you all know how
hard it is without the tool.
• On the other hand: I wish I had know how good it would feel to wear whatever I
want and know I look good in it. Sometimes when I am out I have to remind
myself that I am small! (7 months post-op)

EIGHT MONTHS POST OP:
• I wish I would have understood how losing weight would affect my relationships
with other people.
• I wish I would have known that eating and drinking were going to become a full
time job. The planning and weighing, the grocery shopping and reading labels
on everything you buy.
• I wish I would have known how difficult it was going to be to answer the same
questions from people daily after surgery: How much have you lost? What did
you eat today? Is that a new shirt? Did you get your water and exercise in today?
• I wish I would have been told how rough this surgery is mentally. The physical
and mental changes that your body goes through are unbelievable. It is way
more than just “losing weight”.
• And the biggest one for me is that I never understood how hard it was going to be
to say good bye to my best friend in the whole world. FOOD! It was there for me
for any emotion or feeling that I had. It is like a death in the family not being able
to rely on it or us it anymore.
• I wish I knew that I would be thinking about food constantly throughout my day.
Food is on my mind now more than it was when I was 265 pounds!
• I wish I knew that I would be disappointed in myself for “only” having lost 70 pounds
I would be jumping for joy but now I can’t help but feel somewhat unsuccessful.
• I wish I knew I would feel guilty for eating certain things even though its nowhere
near the amount I used to eat (i.e. cookie…)
• I wish I knew that my butt and my chest were going to become flat and my hair
was going to fall out so much.
• I wish I knew how overwhelming shopping can be when you’re not limited to
the “Lane Bryants” of the world.


Next week I will finish the list with Nine Months to One Year Post Op, Eighteen Months to Two Years Post Op, and Other things I wish I had Known.

I hope you found this list thought provoking and sometimes funny.

cindy

Edited by: CINDY-K at: 10/8/2011 (00:22)

Congrats! I can't wait to have my surgery!

I will try to find my copy of the list on my desk at work tomorrow.

I am also looking forward to part two. Thank you for sharing this.

I thought people weren't interested. I will try to add a second installment sometime this week.

cindy

Cindy, Thanks for giving us that list. Looking forward to the next installment,

We got a booklet and CD from Pacific Bariatric that I read before my surgery and then again after my surgery when it was a lot more meaningful. I was lucky I didn't have any pain with my surgery. I was lucky again because my sister (who had the surgery a year before me) was there during my first two weeks and answered a lot of my questions. There are constants for everyone post surgery, but it is also important to pay attention to your individual progress. Each one has a unique experience. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I have to buy all new clothes 9 months post op. Yippee what a problem.

THINGS I WISH I’D KNOWN:
This List is the property of Virginia Mason Clinic Gastric Bypass Department. It was provided to the participants of the Virginia Mason Gastric Bypass Support Group by Connie Miller, Bariatric Surgery Program Coordinator, at Virginia Mason Clinic in Federal Way, Washington. Connie has given me permission to share this with the Sparkpeople Gastric Bypass Sparkler Team members. If you wish to share this list with others please contact Connie Miller at 253-838-2400 to gain permission.
Connie gathered the information from the support group participants over the years.

I am re-typing the document so I will do this in parts. This week I am sharing page 1 -- One Week Post Op through Three Months. Over the next two weeks I will share the other two pages. The list goes out to 2+ years after Gastric Bypass Surgery.

THINGS I WISH I’D KNOWN:

ONE WEEK POST OP:
• How hard it would be to eat and get the protein in.
• How hard it is to drink constantly.
• What types of pain I really would go through.
• What types of pain were “normal”.
• What type of protein I would be able to handle in the liquid stage
(at this point, not much).
• The protein drink I had with the pre-op diet tastes very different
after surgery, shouldn’t have invested too much in one kind or flavor.
• Taste changes, dramatically.

3 WEEKS POST OP:
• I thought I would have no appetite, but I do once I get through the morning
sickness stage of my day. I didn’t believe anyone when they said they
couldn’t tolerate water – I am one of those people.

ONE MONTH POST OP:
• I wish that I knew how truly hard it is to eat!! I am not hungry and it is very
hard to get in all the protein that my body needs. Not only is it hard to
get all the protein in, when I do eat I feel guilty.
• I also wish I’d been warned how emotional I’d be too & that sticking to
fluids only is psychologically very difficult; If you used to be a “foodie”.
• I wish I’d know how tired & weak I would be, just having a shower would
exhaust me in the early days & I’d have to have a rest!

2 MONTHS POST OP:
• I wish I understood what a challenge taking pills would be…at least at the
beginning, an dhow all-consuming the transition is until it becomes ‘just life.’
• Something I ate today may not sit well tomorrow. Something that upset
my pouch today will be ok next week.

3 MONTHS POST OP:
• I wish I had known or realized my surgeon didn’t operate on my head at
the same time as my stomach. Surgery didn’t change my relationship with food.
• It’s hard to get in all the food you are supposed to every day.
• Some days are easier than others.
• How emotional you are when you get home.
• Why your pouch is happy one day and not the next.
• Plateaus…..need I say more!
• That my co-workers are MORE supportive than I thought.
• That I would show my scar off to people all the time – I am proud of it.
• How the smell of some food turns you right off.
• That there are many different rules from doctors….and it’s ok, they are
all correct.
• How much I would really miss food early out. It was crushing to not be
able to run to the fridge an drown my sorrows and pain in a pint of Ben
n Jerry’s.
• How much I actually thought about food! I didn’t understand why I was
so obese; I honestly thought I ate pretty well most of the time.
• What a pain in the butt it is to sip sip sip sip sip sip liquids allll day.
• How weird it is to “eat” dinner with your family without shoveling it in like
everyone else.Having people that don’t know you have had the surgery
assume you’re becoming dethly ill or suddenly anorexic.
• How completely amazing it feels to be at the same weight I was when I got
married 8 years ago and know that I could be at a high school weight by
Christmas!
• How weird it would be to look in the mirror and finally see the person I
thought I was all this time emerging from the layers.

Next Week I will share part 2 of this list. It begins with 4-6 months after surgery.
I would try to do it this weekend but I left the pages at work!

Cindy

Edited by: CINDY-K at: 9/17/2011 (02:10)

WhoIAm, I enjoy drinking Premier Nutrition Chocolate Protein drink, there is 30gms of protein in one serving of 11 oz. To me it tastes just like liquid milk chocolate! Also another protein that tastes quite good is Unjury, their Chocolate Splendor, Vanilla, and Chicken soup all have 20gms of protein in them and taste quite yummy. You can find Unjury at Unjury.com and the Premier Nutrition Chocolate Protein drink is at Costco. They all are my favorite's to go to when I find I'm lacking in getting my protein requirements in. Oh, btw, I had my RNY Aug. 24th of this year and I'm doing pretty good with soft foods right now, adding a new item every day. Good luck to you!

Hi
I am 6 weeks out and can now eat regular food---no restrictions. Nothing disagrees with me.
I can eat cottage cheese mixed with tuna or canned salmon--sometimes I add FFSour Cream and add seasonings. I do well with chili. I can eat a whole banana.

I am off all meds except one for Restless Legs and a sleeping pill. No meds for diabetes, high BP or HI cholesterol I do take my vits. Drinking enough water is still my challenge. I'm working on it..

I am grateful for the above.

Ruthie

Thanks for sharing your tips. One caution bananas are very high is carbs (sugar) too much and you will be dumping before long! I learned that with my diabetes.

cindy

I wanted to give an update on my recovery. I just re-read my original post, and it seems like I made it seem much worse than it actually was. I think I've actually had a much better experience than anyone else I've spoken with, and I feel a TON of guilt over that. I am just over 7 weeks out, and am completely recovered. I'm going to Taekwondo 3-5 times a week and am finally able to stretch out the way I could when I was a teenager. I am on a chopped diet by my own choice. The dietician would rather I still be on soft foods, and while I still eat a lot of soft foods, the lack of texture was starting to drive me nuts, not to mention it was too hard to cook for my family and cook for me separately.

I have been reined in by my doctor, who told me to quit eating pork and beef, as it was still too soon. That's a shame, because I didn't have an adverse reaction to either. He also told me that I am ahead of the curve on weight loss, but behind the curve on food choices (see beef & pork, above). So he says it all evens out, but I've got to get a handle on the food choices thing if I want to stay ahead of the curve on weight loss. He's happy with my liquid intake, as I'm getting roughly 60 oz. each day.

I'm paying strict attention to the "no nuts, no seeds, no skins" rule, which is killing me with the berries that I'm finding in the market right now, and the veggies in my garden. The dietician told me that fresh veggies are not okay for a while yet, but canned tend to be okay (except for corn - verboten until next year). I've pulled out my South Beach cookbook. I like many of the phase 1 recipes, because they tend to be wet-cooked, so are better for me at this stage. I've tried many of the chicken and fish/seafood recipes. Tonight I'm going to try adjusting the ingredients on an old favorite in my family - mushroom stuffed tomatoes. I'm going to chop tofu and mix it half-and-half with the mushrooms, and add protein powder and an egg to the mix. I'm looking forward to it!

Some hints
- Edy's (Dreyer's in some states) makes a sugar-free ice cream that is quite good in very small doses.
- Bananas with peanut butter are super yummy.
- I've started adding whey protein isolate powder to almost everything I make. For example, I made some banana bread with the highest protein content flour I could find, and then added in about 40 g of protein powder, and substituted applesauce for the butter/shortening. It turned out fantastic, and I only got about 2 tiny slices before my family devoured it. Works well with peanut butter.
- When craving chocolate, try the Dove sugar-free dark chocolate. Another thing would be Ghiradelli's 60% cacao chips - 3 is plenty.
- For protein drinks, I have been drinking the Nectar brand exclusively, and the chocolate truffle made with skim milk, peanut butter, and Hershey's cocoa powder is great. Made with just water, I have really liked the fuzzy navel (which really tastes like Tang) and the cherry. The lemonade is not as good, but I've found either making it with only half the water or WAY more water than called for fixes the taste.
- When my family gets a craving for potatoes, I either substitute South Beach Mashed "Potatoes" or I make some and add in fat-free half&half, fat-free sour cream and the lowest-fat cream cheese that I can find, and I leave out the butter. I haven't tried dumping protein powder in them yet, but plan to tonight.

Edited by: ACUISLA at: 9/9/2011 (11:48)

Thanks so much for the tips Cindy.I had heard of adding pudding to the protein powders and actually bought a few boxes of sf puddings but wasn't sure how to put everything together. I will have to look into the Click powder.I drink everyday, all day. Thanks again.

WhoIam, Do not despair. I too struggled at the beginning, middle, all the way along but I still think it was worth everything I have gone thru. So let's take this one thing at a time. Protein drinks Below I listed some ideas to help you find protein in a form you can eat. I was out probably 4-5 months before I got all my protein and liquids in. It was a long time before I could eat more than 1-2 ounces at a time.

I too struggled with drinking and eating enough early on. My surgeon told me these are goals to strive for but that in the beginning your pouch is swollen and you will probably not be able to get in everything. So do the best you can. You do need to get liquids in or you will dehydrate and end up in the hospital.

On full liquid stage I tried to drink the protein drinks but it was too tough. I just hated the taste. My surgeon finally gave me permission to have Click protein powder because at least I would drink that! What I ended up doing was adding plain or vanilla protein powder to pudding. I scoop to 4 servings(1/4 cup). I add the powder at the end and add a little more liquid to make the consistency right. I made a pumpkin custard with liquid egg, pumpkin, fat free evap milk (soy or almond milk would also work) spices, and followed the directions on the pumpkin can. I added extra milk and 2 scoops of protein powder if large can of pumpkin. 1 scoop if small can of pumpkin. I added made a gravy or creamy soup with broth and soy flour and butter. When I had everything almost done I took the soup off the burner and waited 2 minutes before adding the protein powder and then blending in blender. You can puree some chicken or egg or whatever protein you like in the soup just do it all before adding the protein powder. Thin with broth if too thick.

I spent 3 times as long on the pureed stage as I was supposed to. Each time I tried to eat soft food I would get sick. So I was told to spend more time on the pureed stage but to keep trying to eat the soft food. What I found was that I can no longer eat chicken at all. Even now a year out I try chicken (dark meat) I get sick. Scrambled eggs need to be watery in order to be able to swallow them. I even added protein powder to jello. It was not that bad. Better than in a drink. I was two months out before I could eat stage 3 soft foods. I never did do stage 4 as my surgeon gave up and told me to try whatever I wanted as I was 4 months out. I now can eat well. I do have many more food sensitivities but I get my protein from food each day and only have protein drinks occassionally for breakfast of if I am running late for water aerobics class. I really need to be on the no lumps and bumps full liquid stage for a long time and that was right for me. So I hope this will give you ideas for how to hide the protein powder in foods you like to bump up the other foods protein levels. I lived on three things in the beginning. wet scrambled eggs, tortilla soup blended with some protein powder, and pumpkin custard (pumpkin pie recipe but made healthier) with protein added and using a little sweetener. Applesauce (make sure no lumps) with protein powder added. Any pureed fruit will work in place of apples.

If you like the hot drinks then put protein powder in blender. Cover it with a cold liquid and then add the hot liquid and blend quickly so it does not curdle.

Mybariatricpantry.com has a good selection of products for the early stages of recovery. I enjoy ProJoe from Bariatric Advantage is available on their site and mybariatricpantry site. I saw they came out with some cream protein soups.

cindy

Cindy, I knew that things would be hard after surgery but I seem to be struggling with what should be simple stuff. Like protein...according to my nut I'm supposed to drink 2 protein shakes a day but that stuff tastes terrible, I try really hard, I bought the Syrups, frozen fruits, a magic bullet but no matter how I make the shakes, they taste really bad. And I get food stuck all the time and end up throwing up. I guess I just thought I'd have a better hang of things by now. thanks for asking.

How can we help you WhoIam? What are the issues that are giving you trouble?

cindy

Thanks so much for this post! I realize it is an older one but at 6 weeks out, I need some help.

Nice to meet you VitaminAJ, Welcome back to the team. I am sure that you will be providing us with much wisdom from your experiences.

cindy

Just checking in...as I haven't in for..ev..er!! I had surgery 11/25/2009 surgery weight was 318 and I'm currently stuck (for a few months) at 199. I'm not stressing though. It beats the crud out of the 376 I used to be. I feel great!!! Hope everyone is well!