ktb2904

I will say it's comforting to know it's just not my nose that takes off for the races............but what the deal with the nose thing, does anyone know how this happens???

Yup Lindsay, you betcha........as I think I mentioned it happens now if I happen to not listen to my body and eat a bit too much. Getting far better at knowing when I'm full........measuring my food/or weighing it helps a lot. I double checked with the nutritionist thinking I should be long past that..............apparently not, it can also be a way my body is telling me I've eaten a bit too much and maybe my gauge....but what I have noticed is my nose starts to run when I'm getting close to being full. The breast bone thing started to subside about the time my nose started to run as I was getting close to the end of my measured food. Haven't heard of the nose running thing, so might not be related, who knows. I do know any changes to the body say after WLS take the body a few months(up to a year) to adjust to the changes, per nuturtist.......And yup, I do keep in constant contact with her cause i don't know personally anyone who has had WLS. Oh and thanks for answering the question about not loosing a bunch of weight but clothes have become so big needed to down grade size...............something I had such a great time doing last week end while I was in the States. K:)

Hi, Fellow Plicator................here's something to consider...if you get too few calories, our body auto goes in to starve mode and store absolutely ever single thing you consume.........I eat on average 800-1000 cal per day which is what the nutritionist recommmended...............here's what I did when that expected stall happened(aka plateau which happened on every single prior diet I had used)......increased my protein intake to over 80grms/day............made sure I drank those 64oz of water/day...Each morning I put out the amount of water that I must drink, then I know where I am at any time how much more water I need to drink...............then increased my movement. For me that means walking more each day and no skipping days cause the weather is perfect...meaning for me not rainning.........................Lastly I gave up those empty calories found in hard candies, even the ones that are sugarfree.........for some reason sugarfree ckicked in my sugar carvings...............plus they were empty calories. I use to suck on them for extreme dry mouth(side effect of my meds required for a chronic condition unrelated to weight gain or loss). Now even if I loose no weight or say 1/2 a pound in a week, what is happening is I am shrinking in size even without continued huge weight loss. There must be a reason for this, I just haven't found a possible answer. Good luck kt:)

Hi...............plication Jan 27, 2011 and yes in the beginning had that pressure feeling under my breast bone after I ate...............spoke to the nuturtist at OCC.....it's gas.....so that's when I started chewing Papaya Enzyme. Delish and breaks up that gas...............it would happen and still does when I eat as little of a tablespoon more than full. So I slowed down my eating, so I could feel that full sensation before I reach that over full feeling leading to that gas under my breast bone. Check with your surgeon, so you know what's happening with you. I'm happy I had plication for me it works. I wrote a post under another topic on why I think my weight loss has kept up. Maybe chick on my name to take you to that post. Cheers, Kt

Hi Had my plication done Jan 27, 2011..............so far down 37.4 and yes the fast weight loss has slowed down including a stall(aka plateau)...............which I remember happening with every single 'diet' I have ever been on. I do agree that if you're cal. intake drops, the body goes into starve mode and stores every single morsel you eat. Here's what broke my 'stall'...............increased movement, increased water intake(wasn't regularly getting the needed 64oz) and upped my protein intake to nearedr 80grms/day..was closer to 50grms. What I started to noticing even tho I might only loose half a pound like this week................inches are disappearing..............down into size 10 when just before surgery I was into a very very tight 16 .....then came going down to a 14, then a 12..which ended up only wearable if I sinched in my belt. What I keep telling myself is slow weight loss means more likely to be premanent.......................isn't that what the doctor's say to???? My surgery is a tool and I didn't expect mircles.....but really when was the last time I lost this much weight in just over 2 months and feel in control of my portion sizes, and eating health? For me the answer is never. Don't know if this helps anyone, hope so. K:)

Hi I did not have a weight probem in my teens, 20's to my mid 40's.............but during my whole life I was either going on a diet to lose that 10lbs, or going to start one of those crazy diets on Monday. Here's what I have learned..................I had a distorted imagine of myself. No way at 130lbs was I over weight, but I thought I was.................I think there's a name for that distorted body imagine, just can't think of it. Then in my 40's my weight went totally out of control. I gained and gained and for about 6 years I was about 170lbs. I only knew this because I would have to weigh in at my doc office, I didn't own a scale until just before my surgery. I went by how my clothes fit................and as years went by I had to buy larger and larger sizes. Last year I peaked out at a very tight 16 and finally last fall a very tight 18 and 2X tops. I finally realized if I didn't get my emotional eating under control, and fast I was going to end up being a full blown diebetic just like many of my family members. I was already on high blood pressure meds. The straw that broke the camels back was having to buy yet another size dress pants for a family function because the pants I had made only a few months earlier was 2 sizes too small.. This was the best decision I ever made for myself. I'm not sure how it happened but my emotional eating has disappeared. And I have had some quite stressful situation happen since my surgery date, and a huge mircle has happened.............I didn't turn to food..........I wrote more in my journal,.............walk more...........and starting taking better care of simple things like using a good skin care line, making a point of fixing myself up every day, something I haven't done in years and years. Somewhere along this journey of mine, I recognized taking care of myself isn't so much about the numbers on the scale each week....it's about simply focusing on taking care of me including eating better, drinking the 64oz of water, and simply moving around more......I like going for walks now..............so it's so much more than those weekly weigh in numbers. Took till now to realize this, guess I'm a slow learner. K:)

Hi Klose..........what shakes are your referring to, the ones that may tighten your body????? K:)

Hi ....where do you buy this item besides through your life coach??? Thanks K:)

Hi, My surgery experience was awesome. OCC is beyond clean, professional and they know their stuff.....they are patient focused. I weighed 211lbs on Jan 10th, 2011 at my doctor's office. Day of surgery 198.01lbs, last week weigh in was 173.5. I had been in a stall(aka plateau) for a couple of weeks floating between 174. & 177. Did a review of what I was and wasn't doing.....went back to basics...food journal, making sure I got a min of 64oz of water, upped my daily protein to closer to 80gms(was getting about 50gms). I do listen to a lot of You Tube videos for helpful hints and inspiration. I carry Papaya Enzyme chewables with me all the time, just in case I get any gas. I did have lots of post surgery gas, totally normal as during surgery CO2 is used to inflate your tummy area so the doc can see better. Now they do release it, but your body does need to release any residual.....I took Gas X strips with me, an idea I picked up from reading posts here. There are only 2 items I have not handled well. First was home made canned salmon. Being an oily fish, during cannning those oils are released, and I didn't drain it enough, not pat it dry....that made me nauseaed...Papaya Enzymes to the rescue. Also I had a steak at a not great restaurant. This restaurant used this type of meat that is a combination of all sorts of left over meat, then an exzyme is added, then it gets compressed and then they cut off a section.I had never heard of this type of meat prep..............apparently it is quite common..that gave me major gas.......those sharp stitch in left side kinda gas. Again, Papaya to the rescue. Obviously not ever going to that restaurant again and will ask every time I order a steak anywhere. Had a small rib eye at home and no problem. Now I eat whatever I want keeping in mind that it's high protein first......cold water fish and seafood have really high protein, low fat and good fats like Omegas. I have only had a couple times when I wanted candy..........H2O and a few minutes and the craving passes, so far, I'm sure those craving are there, and I will have to face them again....I know now I can make better choices.......and I know at times I will not always eat things that are the best choice. Also know it won't be the end of the world when it happens.............now I have the tools to not make it a daily habit. This prespective is a huge change for me. A few non scale victories have become more important to me than even the scale numbers(ok lets face it, ....those are great too)....things like down from a very very tight 16 jean to a very loose 12........or giving away all my 2X and 1X and XL tops...........having friends and family tell me I looked great and look and sound much happier(didn't even realize this had disappeared as my weigh sky rocketed).............I have lost my double chins, my cheek bones are back........even little thing like the cupid on my upper lip is back. Or to just be able to sit in an over stuffed chair with my bf, there's room now. My only regret is I waited for so long to do this for me. Very soon my high blood pressure meds will be history. If you want to email me, I will answer any question....ktbaillargeon@gmail.com cheers, Katie

Oh I love Papaya Enzymne...............even now 2 months out, I keep them with me all the time..chewable and yummy too. Within 15 minutes gas is resolved, and it helps with digesting solid protein. Get them in the vitamin section of Walmart or The Vitamin Store. Highly recommeded! K:)

Holy smokes, how yucky for you!!!......Ten days after my plication surgery I picked up a flu bug. I had not ever had the flu before, but man, I don't remember being that sick. I had both ends going, for over 36hrs straight. My bf emailed Dr. So, explained what was happened and how concerned he was about dehydration. I remember having horrible sharp pains in my new tummy and was worried I could hurt or pull out an internal suture. Dr So called within hours to review my symptons. The main concern was dehydration.....so I started eating jello every half hour and drinking vitamin water and Isopure(think that's how it's spelt).....so maybe contact the follow up doctor right away and discuss your specific concerns. I will tell you it felt like I was busting my sutures, but it didn't happen. The flu bug did knock me around mostly cause I'n never had a flu before and because I had just had surgery. Better safe than sorry, call your follow up doctor.

Hi, I'm new to plication, January 27th, 2011, best thing I ever did for myself. Dr Ortiz has done over 300 plication plus has over 10 years experience in WLS general . You're in good hands. If you want to communicate with someone who has had their plication much longer...suggest you ask either Lori or Caroline to pass your email address along to some of their patients who are further out, and ask them to email you. Because of patient/doc relationship, OCC can't give you their email address. But before my surgery, I ask Lori(my corrdinator) if she would send my address to a few patients asking them to contact me. This was my first excperience in how supportive and helpful fellow WLS patients are. I got emails from 3 other gals who were having their surgery and we are still in contact. You might want to try this too.

Hi Feather,.............. We all have been where you are. Not sure if you have been told why the need to lose some weight before surgery............when we are overweight, one place that fat accumulates is around our liver which is right next to the stomach....so to lose some weight before surgery, makes it much safer because some of that fat around the liver will disappear. The post surgery eating plan, for me, intially I wasn't hungry(first 2 weeks), others were, just saying I wasn't. So when I got to the stage past clear liquids(4-7 days post surgery), cream soup, protein shakes, and drinkable yogart taste really good....although, the only protein shake I have ever not gagged back up is Slim Fast. That time seems long but it goes by really fast. Remember soft foods includes things like salmon, tuna, basically any food that doesn't require lots of chewing. Try to stick to cold water fish like salmon(the Pacific Wild Salmon, the other from Alantic is farmed and not as tasty), the cold water fish and seafood are much higher in protein and low in fat(plus some really good fats like Omega's)..............I found frozen 4oz salmon fillets at the market and they cook in microwave in about 2.5 minutes. I did initially lose quite a bit of weight(20lbs) in those first weeks pre and post op.......mostly I think because I no longer was drinking Pepsi, and I'm satisified with much smaller portions. High protein and getting the 64oz of water is really important. So if I lose one or 2 or even 1/2 a lb a week is more than I did pre surgery. That;s why I got the surgery, needed the tool to help me along. I will tell you WLS isn't the magic bullet, it is an effective tool, if you stick to the rules that come with any WLS. We all have learned to adjust because we want to end up not being overweight. Stick close to this the forum, we are here to support each other on our WL journey. Someone will have dealth with whatever you're expereincing. So be sure to ask those questions even when they seem silly to you. Voice your feelings, we will know what you are talking about. I am just coming out of a stall(aka plateau) and what helped was reading other's posts....going back to the basics like food journal, making or exceeding the 64oz of water, and the higher intakes of protein. Hang in all those feelings you have are totally normal. Cheers, K:)

Hi Yolana.......here are a few ideas for starting soft foods........Wild Pacific Salmon(rather than the farmed Alantic salmon, no where as tastey)...I buy it in 4oz fillets in the frozen food area. In fact any cold water fish or sea food. All are high in protein, low in fat and has lots of good oils like Omega. Jenno O makes great frozen white meat turkey patties and meatballs, again another low fat high protein.....for example one white turkey pattie has 30gms of protein and only 5gms of fat. I use Lite Laughing Cow cheese in place of mayo or cream cheese. It comes in all sorts of flavors like Herb and Garlic.....6gms of protein and 2.5grms of fat per serving, melted on turkey pattie or the meatballs......delish! I usually have one of those roast chickens from the market.....I cut it into 4-5oz servings, and freeze the portions, defrosts quickly and great when you're not sure what to eat. Chicken and celery diced into very tiny pieces mix in low fat Oliva oil or melted Laughing Cow and serve it on lettuse leaves roll it up and eats like a sandwich. Within a week of soft food I ate a romaine lettuse salad with some of that roasted chicken etc.or salmon. Or serve it on melba toast, or Stone Wheat thins. The two things that haven't agreed with me were a steak, but I think that was just a bad one from a restaurant, cause I've since had a piece of Rib Eye and was fine. The other thing was some of my home made canned salmon. Being an oily fish, once canned all the oils come out and I didn't pat it dry with paper towels. Oh one other thing that didn't go well was home made beef barley soup. That one broke the golden rule of mixing a solid with a liquid.........missed the obvious.........take the solids out and leave the broth for another time. Other than those things, I've been able to tolerate everything I've tried. I keep Papaya Enzyme chewables with me all the time. Got the idea from a lap bander on You Tube...solves any gas issues within 15 minutes, and thye taste yummy too. Cheers, k:) Yolanda

Hi, I don't know about revision surgeries, I'm just over 2 months out from gastric plication, but it might help you to have a discussion with Dr Ortiz at OCC. Do you have any idea how you think you gained back so much of you weight?? There are people here who have had revisions, and I'm sure each had their own reasons. Might help you to know what habits contributes to your back slide so you don't carry them forward after another WLS. For sure WLS is only a tool, we still have to do the work each day to get to our goals including weight loss, but the other non weight goals include things like seeing food differently....approaching WLS from the prespective of not how much can one eat after weight loss surgery but how little can I eat and be satisfied. I wish there was that magic bullet too, but each of us have to do the on-going work to get where we want to be.............and for me that is a healthier lifestyle including a healthier weight so I can cut out some of the meds that come with the excess weight. Maybe it's time to have a heart to heart with Dr Ortiz, explain your situations, what your challenges have been and why you think you have re-gained the weight. Then he can give you some honest input about your options. Do stay in touch, this forum is so helpful and supportive. Cheers, Katie

Hi .I had my plication surgery Jan 27th, 2011. My weight on Jan 10,2011 was 211(on my doc's scales) and 198.01 on day of surgery. Current weight is floating between 174-176.......think this might be a stall and have upped my daily H2O and protein so I expect that will help. My goal weight is 143lbs. There were 2 other gals who had their plication surgeries done at the same time. I've kept in toucjh with them.....we each had between 80-100lbs to loose. So absolutely talk over your concerns with Dr Ortiz, ................Carolina or Lori will set up your phone consult. I will say I did consider both a lap band and the Gastric Sleeve, and for various reasons chose the plication. What I must constantly remember WLS is a tool and I must still do the work. No magic bullet, but a very effective tool. And I am sorry I missed you're queries earlier, it must have felt like no one was here to talk to and that is just not the case. If either of you wish to email me, please so...ktbaillargeon@gmail.com. I'll try and answer your questoins and feel it is my part to help those who came after me in the WL journey. I have found people on this forum to be very helpful and supportive. cheers, Katie

Oh haven't we all felt where you are..........I lost weight great in first 7 weeks, then I hit a stall. I did exactly what Ihad read as suggests here........write everything down......get the water intake up to 64oz(that one took a while and some days I miss the mark..........and protein first. You're just starting your journey, try not to think of it as a race but you're in this for the long haul..............Olivia is so right..our yo-yo dieting has so messed up our metabolism..........keep to the post surgery eating guidelines and you will loose.......the hardest thing I've had to gain is 'patiences'.... and I have them for everyone but myself, so I'm saying this to you as much as saying them to myself. And come and voice your frustration here, each of us has expereinced similar things too. cheers, Katie

Quick hi there.I had plication surgery Jan 27th this year, and I am 56 years old. Not sure what type of WLS you're having, but do talk over your concerns with your surgeon. Like Dolittle said, my only wish was I had done this sooner. My recovery time was near zero.....day after surgery I was up and ansy to get released, day following that I went exploring in Tj, Mexico followed by 5 day holiday in San Deigo including the Zoo. Oddly enough the pre surgery diet upped my energy level, must have been from improved eating habits. Everyone responds to surgery differently, remember, the pre surgery prep and the post surgery eating guidelines need to be followed. You might find post surgery during the first 10-14 days a drop in energy until you add protein shakes back to your diet. All the same, don't let your age stop you from having WLS............just talk out your concerns with your surgeon and voice your emotions and queries here...somone will give you information or support. I've found people in the WL community very supportive, we've been on taht same road you're on. Cheers, Katie

Holy Smokes O.............well congraz big time......have you talked it our with your doctor in light of the plication? I mean, you do have the tool already, and you cant be the first person to have had WLS including plication and then conceived, right???? If my math is right, doesn't this mean you got preg, shortly after you got home??? Wow no wonder you are surprised, but all the same, your tool is still there right? K:)

No problem, I took notes cause I just knew I'd forget things, drugs or no drugs.....terrible memory at times...age ya know.....lol............ I know when I'v eaten even a tablesppon too much cause I end up feeling nauseaed...to avoid that I try and work on this premise..............rather than trying to figure out how much I can eat post surgery, I try and work out how little I can eat and still feel satisfied, slightly different prespective. My 64oz of liquids do not include shakes, I count as part of those 64oz any liquid which has zero calories. I didn't do very well with protein shakes, Slim Fast was the only one I could drink without gagging it all back up. Here's a sample of what Ive eaten in the last 3-4 days...........breakfast...4-5 large strawberries, and a low fat Baby Bell Cheese, maybe 2 if I am still super hungry............usually 6grams of protein in each Baby Bell(lots of flavors now), or Laughing Cow spread on sliced crisp apples(usually only half of an apple), I don't eat eggs but if I did I'd include a small omlette, with one slice of a whole wheat extremely low cal bread like say Weight Watchers...............so far only 3 bread type products Ive tried is Melba Toast, Stonewheat Crackers, and one other cracker.............Lunch, usually leftovers from dinner........so 4oz of salmon, leftover veggies............and yes I do weigh or meassure my food. I made a Shepards Pie using lean ground turkey last week.............used that for a few meals......1/2c only with veggies not including the ones in the Sh. Pie. Usually say 4 aspargras, or 8-12 green beans. Lunch or dinner can be a grean salad(1c.) with fat free dressing(meansured) add leftover chicken diced up.........or diced chicken, with finely diced celery with 1/2t. fat free mayo or melted Laughing Cow..........that LC can be used anywhere you'd use mayo or cream cheese anyway.......wrap all the chicken etc in a lettuse left...you got yourself a sandwich. I do eat a lot of cold water fish and seafood cause they are high in protein and low in fat, but high in Omega's. So that's like say 4-5 large Tiger Prawns, or same for Scallops........I usually have one or 2 Lean Cuisines in the freezer for those days when I've not got leftovers or don't feel like cooking something fresh. I look for the Spa ones cause they are higher in protein and lower in fat and carbs. I have taken some of leftovers and mix in some melted Laughing Cow and spread it on some Melba Toast or Stone Wheat cracker. I buy the ones that are 60% lower in salt. Label reading has become a new hobby, so no more going shopping without my reading glasses...............I also try for say ones a week to have something I really love......for me that would be like spegetti sause with pasta....but instead of pasta I use spegetti squash.................works so great with the sause. I have also eaten a steak once............didn't go well, but I think it's because of where I ate it, at a not so good restaurant...............I have one rib eye steak which I will split into about 4oz each(might be just under of over depending on how I cut it).....but I know that cooked it is going to bew less than 4oz. Trick is don't eat fast.................take tiny bites and wait say 45-90 seconds between bit.......difficult to not be full after you eat day 4oz of salmon with green beans, or sliced tomatoes with sliced cucumbers..............the laughing cow on melba toast with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers is tasty and filling too. One thing I dont' go anywhere without is Papaya Enzyme.......it's chewable and if you get gas........those gas stitches in yoru left side or just plain gas or you do end up taking that extra tablespoon of Shepards Pie..............the Papaya Enzyme will solve that problem super fast. Hope this helps some.....if you would like to email me, please do.........ktbaillargeon@gmail.com

Hi, Yes contact Dr.Miranda, and keeping the food journal will help ID anything that is 'slipping in' and it will also help track your water intake. I had my plication done on Jan 27/11 and there has been 2 week weigh in's where I didn't loose a single ounce. I was missing the daily 64oz of water(which I count as liquids with zero calories as part of the H2O intake). I do eat alot of cold water fish and seafood like baked salmon (wild only....which is always Pacific ) with veggies, or tiger prawns, scallops etc................... and yes I do feel that 'restrition' you're asking about. Not really restriction as much as a feeling of being full. I also measure my portions since 'eye balling' it was part of what contributed to my weight gain orginally. If I remember correctly post surgery we are looking at 800-1000 cal./day. But it's the actually choices to make up the calorie intake will decided what the weight loss will be for that period of time. I also switiched exercise routines to aqua fit as it is much easier on a pre-exsisting Si joint injury. Hang in, talk to Dr. Miranda and remember...........we didn't gain this weight overnight, taking it off takes time. I hear the frustration in your post, try to remember it will get better.

Hi Totally normal, mine made those sounds for a few weeks. I agree, walking helps, so does Gas-X. If you're using a straw, will add to the gas issue too, as will gulping. I did find hot tea helped a lot too, espeically when that happened at night. K:)

Hi, Ice cream is not a really good idea. Try say your protein shake, vanilla or chocolate, a few ice cubes, half a sliced banana with a bit of vanilla extract. Magic Bullet or blender will make the whole thing taste like a flavored smoothie. Or some drinkable yogart or Greek yogart, ice cubes, vanilla extract or any other extract you like......with a tad bit of OJ and blend, blend, and blend. When in doubt, contact the Nurtitionist. K:)

Hi, Had my plication surgery Jan 27, 2011. Bread products were not on my list of recommended soft foods. Things that were on my list were things that very easy to chew, and high in protein, things like salmon, tuna, diced chicken(when Isay diced, I mean cut into very tiny pieces). One day I really wanted a sandwich, and realized bread is a carb(so obvious right???......lol) which my digestive system would convert to sugar. Then the day came when I craved that sandwich, probably cause it was on the best for me not to eat list. So I got a piece of lettues, and built a sandwich using the lettuse in place of the bread. I was surprised this worked for my sandwich fix. If you're not sure about what to eat, you could email the Nutritionist, and ask how best to determine what are good choices and what are not the best choices. I feel like how an addict refers to these best not to eat foods....................I just tell myself for today, I'm not going to eat whatever it is I want. Rather than saying I'll never have 'whatever it is' again'. Much easier on my brain, mind to stay focused on today. Cheers, K:)