Tauret

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My VSG was performed on 5/19 at about 8 a.m. Doctor told my husband "no surprises" and everything went well. I didn't have any extra pieces of me removed (my consent forms included permission to remove gallbladder or spleen if necessary, to biopsy the liver if necessary, etc), which was a huge relief. I'm guessing I didn't even have an hernias to repair (he didn't say so), which is surprising.

Recovery was pretty smooth, a little nausea the first few hours out of the actual recovery area, but that's all. I was up and walking that evening, and on purees and out of the hospital by 5pm the next day (most of the wait was for the surgeon to visit! The residents saw me in the afternoon and said I'd almost certainly be fine to go home). 

Evening at home was TOUGH, without any more hospital-strength pain meds. But Day 1 home wasn't too bad. Day 2 has been even better, and I think I'm going to meet my protein goal today! Amazing. 

 

Things I've noticed so far: 

Every time I swallow food or drink, I have to pause to let air back up. It's like there's air trapped in my sleeve at all times and when I eat/drink, that takes the place of the air and pushes it back up. Whatever, it slows me down and it's not too painful. 

Crushed pills are the worst. I'm putting them in my liquid Norco right now, and that actually helps a lot. Going to be a rough couple of days between the end of pain meds and the end of crushed pills, though.

I get hungry. But it's quelled by just a tiny bite or two, no problem. I actually think this is good for me, as I am likely to be a person who forgets to eat if I'm not hungry.

Yogurt is my go-to right now. I tried scrambled eggs (they count as puree on my doc's plan), but they were just too dense and I couldn't get in more than a bite. I can eat 2-3 oz of yogurt in one long sitting, and if I add protein powder to it, that makes for a really good meal. 

Liquids are a lot easier today. I got in maybe 24 oz yesterday, only 8 of them from water, the rest from a protein drink and diet snapple and sugar free popsicle. I was trying everything! But today I'm getting my entire protein drink down without much trouble (11 oz plus melted ice, so probably 15-18 oz?) and sipping my water, too. 

Thirst is a problem. I was a BIG water drinker, and I would get thirsty and really enjoy chugging down a glass of water. I am still getting thirsty, and I miss that. I also have trouble with no eating/drinking together. I decided to let that slide while I'm on purees because a: they're slidey anyway and b: water needs are so important and hard to meet right now. I can only do so much at one time, you know? So I'm focusing on protein & liquid intake and will deal with the rest of the rules as I can. 

I haven't started weighing my food yet - I need to do that so I can keep better track! I estimate I got less than 200 calories Tuesday and Wednesday, but will be closer to 350-400 today. 

Everyone says not to weigh immediately after surgery because of all of the fluid they pump into you. I won't record an official change until Tuesday (1 week from surgery) but so far, I'm down 4 pounds from SW, and 19 from the start of my pre-op diet. I'm happy!

 

Other reflections: 

Prior to surgery, I had pretty good food habits. I ate too much, yes, and sometimes out of boredom, though I tried to be mindful of that. But I mostly ate healthy, and mostly didn't use food as a coping mechanism. It's just that being overweight your entire life is hard to come back from, no matter how healthy your habits become, without obsessing and restricting (I've done much of both) and even then, you bounce down and back up again. What I am really hoping for this surgery is that it is a tool to give me the right place to start from. If I can get my body down to a healthy weight, I really believe I already have many of the habits that will keep me there. My sleeve will help me keep my portions under control without feeling deprived, and once I lose some of this weight, I can develop exercise routines I enjoy instead of suffer through, which will make me more likely to maintain them.

I can do this. 

Wow. I just went back and read that post from three (!) years ago. I have since accomplished my personal goals (and lost 50 lbs gained another 30) and am finally ready to take this step. I have a new job and new health insurance, and have a consultation with a surgeon on January 19. After more research, I have decided to press for the DS surgery instead of the sleeve. While I think the restriction will certainly help, and might even get me down to goal, I think that the malabsorption of the DS will increase my chances for long term success. 

I'm also amazed to read back and realize I have all of those same problems, and had kind of glossed them in the intervening years between that post and this. I have recently been thinking about my levels of exhaustion, sleep quality, and joint pains. I am really looking forward to losing the extra 100-130 lbs (that's a WHOLE PERSON) on my frame and lightening the load on my joints, my heart, and my other organs. I want to run without pain, I want to sleep and feel rested, I want to have the energy to keep up with my kids. I'm not going to deny that I like the idea of being thinner as well, especially the idea of being able to shop at thrift stores and find nice things in my size! 

I'm likely to be 3-6 months out from an actual surgery date - my insurance requires a doctor-supervised diet before giving pre-approval. I don't know how long; they only release that information to the surgeon when they call for the pre-approval requirements. It just feels good to be doing something, though. 

 My story is long, and I'll probably take the time to tell it at some point. Right now I just feel like whining a little, and this is my safe space in which to do it. 

I'm frustrated that I have to wait a year (at least) before I can have this surgery. Now that I've discovered it, researched the hell out of it, become a regular lurker on the message boards... It's so hard to wait. I think about it every day. That in itself is a good thing, because I'm constantly thinking about what I'm putting in my mouth, how MUCH it is compared to the volume I'll be able to eat later, what the protein content is, how fast I'm eating, etc. I'm able to think about and make some of the head changes that will be necessary after the surgery. I'm hoping that makes it all easy for me in the end. 

But I KNOW that this is my perfect solution. I lost weight pretty quickly at one point because I wore a corset every day, which restricted my hunger and capacity (in addition to watching calories and exercising religiously). So I know restriction works well for me, and I'm excited about the idea of restriction of my food intake without restriction of my movement! (corsets are a PITA for living modern life!)

I am watching people go into surgery and come out triumphant. I'm watching the pounds melt off some other recent sleevers. I'm seeing the long-term results of people who were sleeved years ago. Every time I step wrong and my knees hurt, every time I have trouble sleeping (I suspect apnea, though I haven't been diagnosed), every time I am exhausted, every time I am winded from two flights of stairs... I think about this surgery and how wonderful it will be to be a normal weight for the first time in my life. But I keep thinking - if it takes me six months to lose most of my excess weight (I "only" have about 100 lbs to lose), that's late summer 2013 at the earliest before I'm at goal. And I know my boobs are going to deflate even more than pregnancy and nursing has done for them, and I'm going to have lots of excess skin. So plastics will be another step, and I want to maintain goal for 6 months first. So two years at a minimum before I am at goal, healthy, and looking the way I think I should when I look in the mirror. It seems SO far away, and there's very little "prep" for me to be doing right now (my wait is personal, not ins-related. Ins won't pay :( ), so I'm just spinning my wheels, waiting.