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WOW!! A size smaller makes me smile
280 today losing it slowly.  But I like the direction the scale is going!
I love this losers bench. Everyone on the bench greats us new losers with open arm. Thanks!!!!!!!!!

Hi
Well I lost 10 pounds in 2 weeks. Should I have lost more? I feel like I should have. I am so scared I am going to fail at this to. My highest weight was 321.
The day of surgery I was 314 and today I am 282. I feel like I am struggling to get out of the 280's. AT my 2 week appointment with my doc I was 292 now 2 weeks later I am 282. I am not going to give up. hopefully I have a better week.

ADDED MY HOSPITAL PICTURES AND A COUPLE OF WHEN
I CAME HOME.

HI EVERYONE IT'S BEEN AWHILE. I HAD MY GASTRIC BYPASS ON MONDAY FEBUARY 25th. EVERYTHING WENT FINE DOC SID IT WAS A TEXT BOOK SURGERY. I WENT HOME ON THE 27TH. I HAVE BEEN WALKING. BUT FINDING IT HARD TO EAT BY THIS I MEAN I ONLY WANT AN OUNCE AND THEN I'M DONE. I AM TRYING TO GET MY PROTEIN IN BUT FINDING IT DIFFICULT!  BOY OH BOY AM I SORE CANT WAIT FOR THIS TO GO AWAY LOL

Life After Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Surgery (RNY)

Most weight-loss surgery patients recover from surgery without complications. Although you will have some discomfort from the surgery, you will need to get out of bed and start walking the next day. This activity is crucial in preventing surgical complications, such as blood clots.

If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea through a sleep study, you will remain on breathing monitors in a monitored bed overnight or until you are breathing well on your own.

The hospital stay for patients who undergo the Roux-en-Y procedure is usually two to four days. Before you are discharged, make sure to receive full instructions for your care at home and schedule to see your bariatric surgeon about one week after the surgery.

At Home After Surgery
If you have any questions or concerns once you are home, you should call the nurse who works with your surgeon. Specifically call your doctor if you experience any of the following:

• Persistent nausea or vomiting
• Vomiting a bright red or dark brown liquid (go to the emergency room)
• Increased redness, swelling or foul-smelling discharge at incision site
• Increased soreness or pain in your incision(s)
• Any new or unusual pain in your abdomen, chest or legs
• Temperature higher than 101°F
• Passage of very dark stool
• Acute depression or negative emotions

Eating
At home after surgery, you will need to follow specific eating guidelines that your dietitian will have explained to you. For the first six weeks after your weight-loss surgery, your diet will consist of liquid/pureed food. This includes foods that are liquid to soft in consistency. Examples of soft consistency foods are scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, sugar-free yogurt, hot cereal and mashed potatoes. You also can drink non-carbonated fluids that are sugar-free and caffeine-free. Good choices are water, milk, sugar-free flavored drinks and high-protein liquid supplements. Your dietitian should recommend liquid supplements to meet your nutritional needs during this time. As your tolerance builds, you will progress to a soft diet and then to regular foods.

Your “new” stomach is roughly the size of an egg. It will stretch to the size of a cup in about a year. You can avoid discomfort and complications if you do the following:

• Eat small, frequent meals (five or six) throughout the day. (Your stomach will be too small to hold large meals.)
• Chew all foods slowly and thoroughly. (It may take you up to an hour to complete your meals and snacks.)
• Drink fluids 30 minutes after your meal. Be sure to drink in sips.
• Do not drink fluids with your meals. Your smaller stomach may not be large enough to hold fluids and food at the same time.
• Do not eat sweets.

Avoid foods that cause any discomfort. You might consider keeping a diary of the foods you eat, as well as any foods that are difficult to tolerate. Your diary will help you identify which foods cause discomfort. During follow-up visits with your dietician, you can use your diary to report any foods you cannot tolerate.

Your dietitian will help you plan healthful, appropriate meals. You also will be guided in selecting a variety of foods that are rich in vitamins, minerals and protein so you will stay well nourished. Your dietitian will also recommend a multivitamin/mineral supplement.

Digestive distress, such as gas and constipation, is common in the first few weeks following bariatric surgery. Unless your physician instructs you otherwise, you can use over-the-counter gas relief medications and stool softeners. If you are constipated, you can add extra fiber to your diet by eating applesauce, oatmeal and pureed prunes.

Dumping Syndrome
Dumping syndrome is fairly common following bariatric surgery, particularly if you don’t follow all of the special dietary instructions given to you. The signs of dumping syndrome are:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Bloated stomach
• Diarrhea
• Excessive sweating
• Increased bowel sounds
• Dizziness
• Emotional reactions

These symptoms need to be addressed during the initial follow-up with your doctor.

To prevent dumping syndrome, DO NOT eat or drink the following:

• Beverages containing caffeine such as coffee, tea or chocolate
• Citrus food or juices such as orange, grapefruit, lemon or lime
• Carbonated beverages
• Sugar and sweeteners such as dextrose, fructose, mannitol, sorbitol, white sugar, brown sugar, syrup, molasses, candy, jelly, desserts, jams or preserves
• Alcohol
• Sweetened beverages including regular soda, coolers, drink mixes, Kool-Aid, fruit punch or undiluted fruit juice

In addition:

• Eat only canned or very tender, well-cooked fruits and vegetables.
• Do not eat any raw fruits or vegetables, except bananas.
• Do not eat the skins of any cooked vegetables or fruit.

Bariatric surgery will change your eating habits quite a bit. Rely on close family members and friends for support and encouragement, as this may be an emotional time in your life. It is important that you keep a healthy mind and body. Keep your follow-up appointments, exercise and learn to cope with emotional difficulties. Your healthcare team will also be there to guide you after your weight-loss surgery.

Activity Restrictions
Avoid any strenuous activity until you are healed, but do not avoid walking! Walking is a required activity at this stage of your recovery. Don’t drive if you are taking pain medication other than Tylenol. At your first follow-up visit, your doctor will determine when you can return to work.

Incision Care
Even though you may have staples or steri-strips on your incision when you are discharged, you may wash your abdomen with mild soap and water in the shower. Do not take a tub bath or use a Jacuzzi, pool or hot tub until your incision is fully healed.

Call your doctor if you experience any of the following:

• Increased redness, swelling or foul-smelling discharge at incision site
• Increased soreness or pain in your incision
• Temperature higher than 101°F
• Any new or unusual pain in your abdomen, chest or legs

Exercise
After you have healed, you are encouraged to embark on a physical fitness program. Exercise will keep you feeling well and energized. Always discuss exercise options with your doctor so you know what type of exercise is most appropriate for you. Choose an exercise that you will enjoy and look forward to doing. In fact, for many people, returning to physical exercise is an important step toward feeling better.

Avoid Pregnancy
If you are a woman of childbearing age, you must not get pregnant within the first 18 months to two years following bariatric surgery. The rapid weight loss and nutritional deficiencies associated with weight-loss surgery make pregnancy very dangerous for you and for a developing fetus. Take special precautions to prevent an unsafe pregnancy, particularly because weight loss after bariatric surgery tends to increase fertility.

Follow-up Visits
Regular follow-up visits are scheduled during the first year after weight-loss surgery to check your overall physical and mental health, metabolism and nutritional status. It is crucial to your health that you keep these follow-up appointments.

Your first follow-up visit with your bariatric surgeon will be seven to 10 days after discharge. Subsequent visits are scheduled for one month, three months and every three months thereafter for the first year. After the first year, follow-up visits are required on a yearly basis. You also will likely be scheduled to see your dietitian and psychologist about one month following discharge

Febuary 25th 2008 is my big day! 

I called wednesday and they said I was 11th in line to get a date.
Anytime now. I am exited and scared at the same time.

Last week I Got Insurance approval and they said they would call me this week with a date. I know there are people ahead of me but I am still anxious
and excited I have many things to do. I have to get leave at work approved,
Get things in line at home. Some of my family are out of town and they want to be there. I rush home every day to see if a message was left. The call will come on Friday (lol) But with a great doc and staff
at tri state weight loss surgery ( Dr. Sonnastine)  Im lucky could be a longer wait.

Found this and thought wow I will need this one day and not be able to find it so I put it here for easy accesss hope someone else finds it useful too. Donna

Plateau Buster We see this all the time- "I’ve hit a &$@#$^%!!! PLATEAU!!!" Typically on the Mainboard this is immediately followed by- "Plateau Buster? Will someone Re-post?" "Stalls or Plateaus are normal. Stay with protein first And stay the course, but don’t fall back into the ‘Diet Mentality’ That didn’t work for you before WLS." Well, that’s not what they asked for, So who am I to "tag on" the little But what to do? Then it occurred to me…. What about a whole NEW (or 'alternative')PLATEAU BUSTER! A "Life-Style for Life." Not just a terse little list that reinforces the Diet Mentality that "Yo-yoed" so many to where they needed WLS to get a new start. So, I 'glommed together a whole 'butt-load' of stuff--- Here’s my "beta-version" that I posted o the Grads-Board some years back. I’m not sure about the feasibility of it at all. But Like Me, It’s a "Work in Progress." --------------------------------------------------------------- To ‘really’ Break A Plateau: BEFORE DOING ANYTHING- Realize many, in fact Most Post-Ops Share this common experience- Done everything right and lost weight steadily, Suddenly- the scale won't budge. Like many others, you've reached a plateau. When weight loss slows and comes to a stop. Before you get discouraged and abandon Your long-term weight loss Strategy of life-style change, Understand that plateaus occur in any slimming-down process. Stick with the program and your weight loss will kick in again. Before you rush to "prosecute," And take drastic action, Do some investigation. Figure out if you really are on a plateau. The scale may be a less than least reliable reflection of fat loss. Look at other indicators. Are you feeling better? Do your clothes feel looser? If you're losing inches but not pounds, Your fat cells are still shrinking/re-arranging location. Figure in the duration of the stall. You're only on what could be called a "plateau" If there's NO change at all For more than four weeks.And even at 4 weeks, don’t "assume" anything. There may be a very Tangible Reason For the slowdown and Plateau. If you Truly want to BREAK a Plateau, Identify and understand the true "Culprit" Before you just "Open Fire!" Get this one out of the way first By being scrupulously honest with yourself. Are you "Cheating?" Cheating? It’s not a Diet! Correct, But weight loss is directly the result of – Calories in versus Calories Used. Are you putting in any "unplanned" nutrition? Empty Calories? A little thing will be the "tipping point." Emotional and compulsive behavior May allow you to "sabotage" yourself. It certainly does. For so many Pre-Op. Yes? Look at what you are doing with Extreme Objective Scrutiny. Then- Check for hidden sources of – Calories / Carbs / Sugars / Un-wanted Fats- Read Your Labels Carefully! Sugar goes under many different names And in some cases does NOT appear as "sugar" on the label. Many vitamin tablets have sugar fillers. CHECK! Conversely, Are you taking in too Little Nutrition? Many times you carry over habits from other diets & eat too little. EAT UP... Food is Necessary Fuel, not the Enemy! Don't skip meals. Just eat Protein First, Higher nutrition, Lower Calorie Foods. Don't cut your caloric intake to less than 1000 calories per day. Increase the amount of protein in your meals. Don't starve yourself. Cutting calories to an extreme will eventually cause loss But at the expense of your health. It Does Not Help you. Try cutting excess fat and calories to a reasonable level (usually 1200 to 1800 calories a day, but determined by YOUR Size.) And divide these up into frequent small meals (of about 200 to 300 calories each) every few hours. Eat a decent amount of protein with each meal To help you feel satisfied longer. If you keep your carbohydrate intake to no more than 20 grams a day Your body will go into a state of Ketosis and it will be Hard Not to lose. A frequent eating schedule will provide a constant source of energy, Keep your metabolism higher without the insulin rebound. Six small feedings a day are better AT maintaining level metabolism Than 3 large meals. (notice I did not say that 6 meals are better than 3, just better at…) Perhaps aim for foods with a lower glycemic index. Check into it at- http://www.glycemicindex.com/ You may have a mineral imbalance. How’s your blood-work? Such as zinc/copper. Or a trace mineral shortage. Such an imbalance can definitely slow the metabolism Reducing your "resting consumption" of calories. Certain nutrients are often recommended to aid in weight loss, Including chromium, pantethine, selenium, vanadium And biotin to help stabilize blood sugar and metabolize fat. Getting enough Potassium? Potassium shortages are common For early out Post-Ops. How’s your blood-work? Exercise? Exercise can improve circulation, Stabilize blood sugar & other important metabolic benefits. If you’re walking, great. But at some point in your loss, Walking becomes just Activity And no longer "Exercise." Are you Breaking a Sweat? If you have been only walking or cycling, Try doing some weight lifts and vice versa. If you are not yet exercising Try to add some sort of activity to your regular schedule. At least 20 minutes a day is recommended for beginners. Walk, Walk, Water, Water… There’s a reason for that "Mantra." Increase your water consumption to stimulate lipolysis (The breakdown of fat stored in fat cells ) And clean your system of excess ketones. Many Nutritionists recommend Avoiding eating within 3 hours of bedtime. Especially avoid any foods that are higher in carbs As this can trigger insulin production which in turn Will inhibit fat-burning while you are asleep. Have you considered Food Allergies? These may cause all sorts of problems, fatigue, headache, etc… Check possibility of such causes by dropping out one food From your diet and checking for changes in how you feel. The most common culprits are- Milk, Eggs, Nuts & Peanuts, Fish, Shellfish, Soy and Wheat. Perhaps checkout- http://www.foodallergy.org/allergens/index.html Maybe you have issues with food additives? Some food colorings cause metabolic responses Such as sluggishness or hyperactivity in some sensitive children. Example- YELLOW 5 ... Artificial coloring found in Jell-O, baked goods, etc... Causes mild allergic reactions, Primarily in aspirin-sensitive persons. Check some of the food additives that show up on your labels. Perhaps a look at- http://www.cspinet.org/foodsafety/index.html Caffeine? Yes, it’s a "fence sitter" when it comes to "Dieting" But- Coffee, cola & tea stimulate release of insulin With a temporary lift in energy, But followed by hunger, Fatigue & slower weight loss. Are you Drinking Alcohol? Empty Calories and Alcohol stimulates insulin. While we’re on "the bible-belt vices," Smoking? Smoking uses up vitamin C & stimulates the adrenal gland. Although quitting smoking is classically A cause for weight increase, Long term non-smoking, actually aids The metabolism to remain a constant fat-burning, healthy machine. None of the above? It may be medications you are taking. Many drugs, even aspirin, can cause or increase incidence of hypoglycemia. Watch out for hormones, amphetamines, diuretics, antihistamines, Anti-inflammatory drugs, analgesics, anticoagulants, antidiabetics, Antibiotics, tranquilizers, clofibrate, acetaminophen, and propanolol. Beta-blockers, can make your body extremely resistant to weight loss. Sometimes it isn't what you ARE taking But what you WERE taking that slows you down. Different meds last month? Hormones? They can slow down weight loss And stimulate the production of insulin. Estrogen (for the Gals-used in birth control pills) and Testosterone have much the same effect. Too much Salt? Typically early on this is not an issue, But later, excessive salt can cause some water retention. What about ‘plain old’ portion sizes? Many people misinterpret the instructions regarding Eating as "Just Eat till you are Full! The pouch size will ‘tell you’ when it’s too much." That assumes you have "re-learned" the feeling of Satiety As opposed to "Full." You may need to track your caloric intake and exercise more closely. Many people find "tracking at fitday.com" a very useful tool. Check it out at- http://fitday.com/ also- (new find since I first compiled all this babble- http://sparkpeople.com/ So you’ve made it through this long list and everything Checks out. Perhaps you have a metabolic resistance to losing weight, And if that is the case, you must consider everything – Except giving up and admitting defeat. Your Plateau, if it continues, could possibly require Medical attention. Continued thyroid problems would definitely call for medical solutions. Excessive yeast infestation may be part of your problem. Overgrowth of yeast in the digestive tract has been shown To provoke food intolerance, headaches and immune-system weakness, And can keep you from losing weight By causing unstable blood sugar. If your plateau WON’T Break, Enlist your physician to help find the problem. Done all of this and still looking for the "short list?" Then what can I say- "Eat Meat, Cottage Cheese and water for 10 days! – NOTHING ELSE! NO EXCEPTIONS! Just try Not to Think of it as a Diet." (this is of course very tongue in cheek...looking for sarcasm sign?) You will most likely get a "Bang!" That will jolt your metabolism into losing. But if you want more than a bang, If you want a real "Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster" To make your system Un-inhabitable for excess fat, For generations to come, Then adjust your "Life-Style for Life." Best Wishes- Dx __________________ “Everyone is born a genius, but the process of living de-geniuses them.” ~ Buckminster Fuller

 

doctors office called i am approved!