AnaA

Hang in there Beverly, and keep in constant contact with the OCC. If you have questions about the jelly email Dr. Miranda, if you have questions about your procedure, email the Doctors. Does it feel different to you than the first time around? I wish you the best. Please keep coming back here for moral support. Keep talking to us sweetie! *HUGS* Ana

Hey Mer! Thanks for starting this post and for the shout out in the message It's true! We post all the time! You have a beautiful family. So checking in for roll call, i'm Ana and from NorCal. I had my plication done on July 20th, 2012 at the OCC and it is the best decision I have ever made. I will check in / weigh in tomorrow as I do on Fridays for my weekly anniversary. Tomorrow will be 3 weeks post plic. I can not wait to see what the scale says! You can see my weight progress in my signature line. So the whole lovely constipation thing. I have been able to go but only sporadically and not anything substantial. I can't wait to have that be regulated. I figure the way I will get around that is to buy some flax seed powder and stir it in to cottage cheese and oatmeal once i start my soft foods TOMORROW!!! Has anyone tried that? I have to admit, i'm kinda nervous to transition to soft foods. I feel a good amount of security being on just liquids and I have not been hungry except 1 day and that was only 1 small stomach growl and to regulate it, I did breathing excercises to get rid of it. I was totally water/juice logged and don't even know why that happened. It is amazing to me to think that I have been eating healthy since June! That was when I decided to do this. And I have been on liquids since July 18th! Wow. 23 days! It's been an amazing journey already. I have learned a lot about myself and have learned FINALLY to listen to my stomach in a way that is healthy and have gained mental control over my appetite. Honestly? I did not think there would come a time in my life when I would be able to say that my mind was in control of how I ate. I had felt like such a slave to cravings for so long! I feel so grateful to be experiencing this sensation and let me tell you, I will never let the stomach take over again. EVER. It's had control for most of my adult life! Thanks to the OCC I have a truly new lease on life! I have some questions for those of you who are going / or have gone through the soft food phase: 1. Were you able to get your protein in? I feel like i'm still going to need to get that from the drinks during soft food phase. I mean how much protein does cottage cheese, tuna and oatmeal have? No where near the 30-50 gram recommendation. And I bought these fantastic drinks called Nectar protein, 1 packet is 4 servings: 100 calories, 23 g protein, and I mix it with 16.9 ozs of water. That, my clam chowder soup, & my ensure give me my protein (38g). 2. How about fiber intake? 3. How much soft food intake were you able to take in the first day per meal? I have heard others say they could only take in 2 TBSPNs at a time. 4. Did you eat 3 soft food meals a day or more or less? 5. Did your initial soft food intake increase after the first 3 days? or week? 6. Did you have to start all over again when you went to regular food? 7. How did you do on having nothing to drink 1 hour before and 1 hour after soft/solid foods? OK! That's my intro. See u all tomorrow for weigh in at the end of Week 3!

Awww, You were thinking of me! *HUGS* I have been thinking about you too so thanks so much for the update! 12 lbs last month YOU GO MEREDITH!! I am totally sold, I feel better already and to just think of feeling better and better... WOW! I can't wait for it to keep on going! I hadn't thought about the sodium in pedialyte... hmmm, how much liquids were you taking in during your 2-3rd weeks of full liquids and did you ever get dehydrated? I would appreciate any/all information on how everyone is managing to stay hydrated because yesterday and today I started to feel the initial little pullings of cramps in the legs that want to come forth and I do NOT want that! Yes! It feels fantastic to be losing weight! Stay in touch And I look forward to hearing about how you and others keep/kept hydrated! Ana

I SAW YOU I SAW YOU! Meredith! You're a starrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol *HUGS* Ana

OK! Today is end of week 2 for me. I have lost 2 lbs. for a total of 24 lbs! This week was a challenge. I was already taking in 8 ozs of pedialyte daily when I showed signs of dehydration. This week I noticed some slight signs again and determined to stay ahead of it I upped my pedialyte intake to 16 ozs now. Still showing some signs, and have upped my liquid intake. I have seen some positive changes this week. I notice that my favorite jeans, jeans that I could NOT fit into before pre-op diet are now loose! I can pull them 2 inches away from me easily and that makes me feel good. I definitely feel like I have gone down in inches, and can see this in the mirror. I opted not to measure that stuff so no specifics, but it is notable. My energy level has been pretty good and that is saying a lot considering that before I even heard of the OCC my energy level was a constant struggle and low! I have been increasing my walking and am looking forward to resistant training and exercise which I can begin at the end of week 3, next Friday. I feel proud of myself that I have been on liquids for 17 days and feel good. I would have never thought it possible for ME? to stick to something like this for this length of time and I just feel very proud of myself.

Hi Bev, Welcome back to the forum. You being here and reaching out for support is a great step towards getting on track. Congratulations for that! After reading your post it seems like you recognize the problem, that you put weight loss in the background. I feel like for those of us who have struggled with our weights, that we have to acknowledge on a real level that junk food and places that cater specifically to them are like bars for recovering alcoholics, they are just not places we need to be around and we can turn our houses into bars by stocking alcohol, the same premise with stocking the house with "the wrong things" versus fruits and vegetables. You are great at identifying the issues, i.e. more granola bars, tortilla chips and popcorn vs. fruit and veg. the next step is following through and doing something about that. I have had the plication, not the band, so I am not sure how dangerous it is when you say that you have started drinking sodas again? I know for us plics, that is a no no. I recall Dr. Miranda saying to me that for the first year, do not do it and then after if you feel the urge you can have one once in a great while, but my thought was why?? Once you kick the urge, acknowledge that it was a thing that had a hold on you, and don't give it that power anymore. Have you tried to incorporate excercise into yardwork? Maybe after you are done walk around your neighborhood block until you reach 10,000 steps, get a pedometer and track that. All of these steps are putting you first. You count and you deserve to live a life where YOU are in control of food and NOT vice versa. Just remember that anytime you struggle with eating the right thing that is the junk food talking. The comments on how good you look are a motivation too! Keep thinking about that and how good it feels to hear that and know that the way you get back there again is by making smart choices that reflect how in control of your struggle you are. Realize that not getting those comments anymore and gaining 12lbs are both steps in the direction of the unhappy place you were before and don't you do that to yourself Bev! You deserve more than that. You deserve those comments and the adrenaline rush of self-satisfaction that comes with them! If you start to get bored with meeting those 10,000 steps, 1. acknowledge that, 2. realize that what you are getting 'bored of' is being healthy and 3. ask yourself what the long term effect of that attitude is. When you took the money your mom left you, I presume you felt her pride in you for getting healthy, right? And more than disappointing her, don't disappoint yourself. You knew your mom would be proud of you becaues you were doing something for YOU to make you healthy and what mother doesn't want to see her baby girl healthy? Honor that and begin right now by moving one step in the right direction followed by the steps thereafter. There is no 'getting bored' of being healthy. You need that. I hope this has helped you. Feel free to email me. I know we are in different places in terms of our WLS chosen methods, band and plication, but I am happy to offer moral support.

I would like to know thow one knows if they have "popped" the stitches or stretched the stomach after plication too, anyone??

Wow! Fantastic!! Contratulations WAY TO GO!

I don't intend to post my results at the end of every week, at that rate it would fill the entire page with butterflies! But I wanted to post at the end of my first week which this is and then I will post if something notable happens or I need advice or want to give tips, and barring that, I will update montly. I feel compelled to update monthly because when I was going through my decision making process what I wanted and didn't feel I got was someone who updated regularly. Peeps eventually dropped off the radar. Kay. Today is my 1 week post plication procedure anniversary and I weighed in at 199! I am sooo excited to be in the 19's! Wow. It is a great feeling to leave those 20's behind. Today I also started the full liquids so it was the first day I had soup and a protein drink, met the 64 oz. consumption of liquid intake and the 30g of protein intake Boy! Did I feel water logged! lol I was sloshing in my shoes. So much to keep track of! Until it becomes autonomic and I am sure it will, I am on myself to monitor the proper intakes to make sure that I don't get dehydrated because I had some baby signs of that. My 64ozs consisted of 1 liter of water, 10 ozs of ensure clear peach (I love this drink: tasty and protein!), a protein shake that recommends mixing with 1 cup of water, i changed that and made the protein powder scoop with 16 ozs of water, it was perfect! Not too thick, nice and watery which is how I prefer intake at this time. (I use GNC's Spiru-Tein High Protein Energy Meal protein shake, vanilla & chocolate because they are soy based and not made with milk) The soup I had was gluten free clam chowder. I have a couple of food issues pre surgery, I am gluten intolerant and lactose intolerant so I don't eat bread or drink milk products. I put the clam chowder in the blender. Wow, it was superb. The brand was progresso. They do nice soups. And for my probiotic because I can not drink yogurt I drank yakult which was pretty pleasing. I had an otter pop too. After I finished eating/drinking all that throughout the day I felt stuffed. I kinda had to push myself to get all that in. I am curious as to how this is going to go tomorrow because I have events to attend all day. Hmm. My gas/burping is still present but lessoning all the time. All in all I am very pleased with my procedure and my healing.

Hi Meredith! Thank you for the welcome back! It feels great to be posting again. I have missed my friends here, you all know what it's like to go through this so there is so much comfort in that! Thank you for your sympathy, yes, it was hard to stay 2 extra days! I got so fussy for wanting to be home. Funny how when you have surgery all you want is to lick your wounds at home in the comfort of all that is familiar to you. That sure was true! But yes, all is well now. The Dr. set a goal weight for me of 149, so I am hoping that come next year I will be there too. I feel like that is totally going to be the case! I could have clear liquids after the surgery and until now, but the first two days after I did not want to take much in. I think I only took 3 ounces in the first day and maybe 10 ounces the next day. I'm doing better now, but I will not be on full liquids until this Friday 7/27. I am following the Gastric Plic Diet to a T. I want to see how much weight I lose following it exactly! How are you doing?

in that past when clothes have gotten too big I have gone to the thrift shops, always nice things to wear as long as you mix and match, its the perfect transitional store, you help a great org. and when you no longer need them, donate them back!

This is Post Plication Day 5 for me. I had my procedure July 20th. I had to stay an additional 2 days near the OCC because my stomach swelling was slow to reduce and I was having some phenomenal gas pains. Wow, can gas really really hurt! Everyone at the OCC was fantastic and the Dr.s took good care of me, very reassuring and very thorough on follow up testing to make sure that what I was experiencing wasn't anything to be concerned about. And as it turns out, it wasn't. I got home yesterday and wow am I happy to be home. I did my first weigh in today and weighed in at 200 lbs!! OH MY GOSH! I am soo very excited. I may actually be seeing some 1's pretty soon instead of these terrible 200's! And when I say terrible 200's I want to make it absolutely clear I am referring to myself alone. All total, I started out at 221 lbs. lost 15 lbs prior to my surgery weighing in at the OCC at 206 lbs., gained 3lbs after the surgery (you gain 3-5 on average right after surgery due to gas and swelling etc.) so then weighed 209 lbs 2 days after surgery on 7/22/12 and now wow, lost that 9 lbs and am at 200 lbs. I am just so happy! Overall I feel good. Trying to adjust to drinking in as much liquids as possible. One of the benefits of the barium test is that the Dr.'s noticed that the post operative sips I was taking were too small, they said sipping that little was only going to take in more air than liquid thus adding to my gassiness! Yikes! Like I need help with that! So they had me continue taking bigger swallows until I was where they wanted me to be and so I know what that means. It's essentially a 1/2 oz. of liquid. I was probably taking in 1/8 of an oz. with my sips... So every day I take in more liquids. The first day post surgery I maybe took in 3 oz.s all day. I just was not hungry or thirsty. For me, post op, smells were really strong too! I smelled food and I felt nauseated. ew. Today so far, it's 3pm I've taken in 16 ozs of water and 5 oz. of half apple juice half water. I haven't been hungry really. Tomorrow I get to start on full liquids meaning protein shakes and blended soups so that is going to be nice. I also started taking my 1500 mgs of calcium today and added in B12 and 800 mg of D Vitamin for good measure. My bariatric vitamins are on order and I will start those as soon as they arrive. All in all, I am feeling very excited about having had the procedure and what wonderful things will come of it health wise. Having now lost 21 lbs. I have 51 lbs. to go! WEEEEEE!

Having just come back from my procedure and not even having completed week 1 (I am on Day 4 post op) I am completely following you ladies, Vanessa, Meredith to see what can be done. How are you both measuring the 700 - 800 calories that you are eating? This is something I have not yet come to! I appreciate any and all tips. Another Pal , Ana

Hello All, I just got back from the OCC today. My procedure was Friday and I was to return Sunday but I had to stay an additional 2 days because my stomach swelling was slow to reduce. The irony is that come Monday I was feeling so much better that I was good to go home! But the Dr.'s at the OCC really do take care of you and they would not let me go until they were sure I was absolutely 100% fine so I stayed the 2 extra days, feeling better and better each day. Today I just got home and feel sooo happy to be home. There truly is no place like home. I met some really great people there, 1 plicated right along side me another 2 who were going to be plicated today. What an international scene it is there! So I am Day 4 post procedure. In a couple days I can have soup. I feel excited about the coming results and can't wait to see the weight drop off. I have to laugh at the irony though of gaining 3-5 pounds during surgery. I gained 3. Common sense and the Dr.'s tell me that this is due to the bloating caused by the gas, etc. and that makes total sense, but still, DOH! lol May we all drop the weight right off! Cheers!

OK! Two days left to go until my plication procedure. WOW! This is Day 1 of the liquid fast phase. It hasn't been bad. I haven't felt hungry at all. I am sure this has to do with the fact that i've got both eyes glued on my up coming procedure lol. I weighed in this morning at 206 and I am VERY excited at having lost 15 pre op pounds! Yea! I am now at 206 and will keep this info updated in my signature. I fly out tomorrow having decided to go out 1 day ahead to just relax and calm myself in my new surroundings pre-pre op. Well. I don't know if i'm going to have the time to post here tomorrow as the leave time is early, so I wanted to do that now. It's funny, this board has become a very important part of my journey and it's going to feel strange being unable to post to it for the next 4 days. And also the thought that the next time I do, I will be posting having come out the other side of the procedure. I hope I feel up to posting on Monday. Take Care All. Xxx

OK!! (Hi to Pam, Southernguy and Laura) Today is day 1 of all liquids, and tomorrow I fly to San Diego, so I this will be my last weigh in for how much did you lose pre-procedure. My total is 15lbs! I lost 7% of my body weight whick is perfectly within the lose 5-10%. WHEW! lol ok on to post at large

Hey! Fantastic!!!! :) Thanks so much for the update! Tomorrow I begin liquid fast. . lol so I am preparing for that. Surprisingly, it doesn't seem like much of a stretch? Since I have been looking at my behavior etc., I am actually able to make smart choices. Now that's a nifty little trick that evaded me for WAY too long! It makes me so happy to hear that 1 week out tomorrow you are feeling great! Yessss! Positive positive Positive! I am lactose intolerant so I will be drinking Yakult when I finally get to the probiotic stage. So that's why you drink those before protein shakes. hm. Good to know! I will post here tomorrow i'm sure because it's the day before my flight and then after that, it'll be quiet until possibly Monday (I come back Sunday the 22nd). OK! Keep up the great work!! I am sooo happy for you! Go Southern Guy!!

Thank you for your encouragement and updates! I appreciate both. Wow, how fantastic is this that at the hotel gift shop they sell peach electrolite! Nice. I'm glad that you are able to find soothing things. Today I went on my pre op shopping spree! clear broths, fruit juices, vitamin waters, papaya enzyme, calcium pills (i guess I will be dissolving these in water initially?) and all that good stuff. Continued healing success Southernguy! Stay in touch

There are 7 days to go until my procedure. I have met the 5% loss of weight and have even exceeded it by over 1%! That makes me really happy I began at 221, now at 207, lost 14 lbs. so far, over 6% of my initial body weight, began with a BMI of 35 now at a BMI of 32. Yesssssssssss! GO ME!

PS I love the rhyme! never heard it

Hi Paula, How are you going? I have just begun to read blogs and just wanted to reach out to you to ask how you are doing? I hope that this finds you doing well and feeling rested. I have had to care for loved ones before and know how demanding and emotionally draining that can be. Best!

Good Evening Fellow PLay Cats (Plicators) & WLS-ers: I wanted to share my story with you here. My decision to be a PLay Cat (be plicated) came out of a need to be healthy. My health. I'm 41 and I had this super candid conversation with my mom not long ago. She's had a mild stroke (10 or so years ago) and a major heart attack all fairly recently. But her health decline? That started when she was 47 (20 years ago). That's the age she became diabetic. The big bad D. As a result, her health took a slow and steady decline. Well I went to the Doctor 4 months ago, and he told me that I was just a few points away from being Diabetic and that if I didn't start to lose weight I would have big problems.Nearly diabetic? At 41? Six years ahead of my mom?? And what's worse? What triggered my visit to the Dr.'s was this hot numbing pain in my upper right thigh. The Dr. said that was because my weight was pushing down on that vein, and while the vein is regenerative (thankfully!) the fact that my weight was triggering pain in me delivered a pretty tough message very quickly. I looked at this unfolding total health picture: being over weight, potential diabetes, the talk with my mom, potential strokes, arriving in a world of heart disease ahead of schedule vs. possibly not at all. All this happened within 3 days. And I thought, do something now while the warning is mild. It became brutally clear that at the rate I was going, I would get diabetes younger than my mom. I have seen my mom suffer through those life shocking diseases, it's pretty bad. And wasn't I the one who said to my mom as I held her hand in the cardiac room before heart (bypass) surgery that I knew it would be hard to change her way of life, but that it was now a matter of life? And wasn't I also the one who used to think, "I would rather change my habbits of my own accord, however rough, versus being told I had to?" Yes. That was me. I need to be healthy. RIght now, I feel good about having reached my "lose 5%" goal, and know that for the next 10 days I will add to that weight loss, especially with the pre-op liquid diet and fast.. And that is me. That is my story. I honor you all and I want to take this moment in time to honor the courage you have for even coming here. Please feel free to email me here or reply if you'd like to share the ride. PLay Cats, Bandsters and all walks of WLS Life Welcome. Inner Peace, PLay Cat Ana

Good Evening Fellow PLay Cats (Plicators) & WLS-ers: I wanted to share my story with you here. My decision to be a PLay Cat (be plicated) came out of a need to be healthy. My health. I'm 41 and I had this super candid conversation with my mom not long ago. She's had a mild stroke (10 or so years ago) and a major heart attack all fairly recently. But her health decline? That started when she was 47 (20 years ago). That's the age she became diabetic. The big bad D. As a result, her health took a slow and steady decline. Well I went to the Doctor 4 months ago, and he told me that I was just a few points away from being Diabetic and that if I didn't start to lose weight I would have big problems.Nearly diabetic? At 41? Six years ahead of my mom?? And what's worse? What triggered my visit to the Dr.'s was this hot numbing pain in my upper right thigh. The Dr. said that was because my weight was pushing down on that vein, and while the vein is regenerative (thankfully!) the fact that my weight was triggering pain in me delivered a pretty tough message very quickly. I looked at this unfolding total health picture: being over weight, potential diabetes, the talk with my mom, potential strokes, arriving in a world of heart disease ahead of schedule vs. possibly not at all. All this happened within 3 days. And I thought, do something now while the warning is mild. It became brutally clear that at the rate I was going, I would get diabetes younger than my mom. I have seen my mom suffer through those life shocking diseases, it's pretty bad. And wasn't I the one who said to my mom as I held her hand in the cardiac room before heart (bypass) surgery that I knew it would be hard to change her way of life, but that it was now a matter of life? And wasn't I also the one who used to think, "I would rather change my habbits of my own accord, however rough, versus being told I had to?" Yes. That was me. I need to be healthy. RIght now, I feel good about having reached my "lose 5%" goal, and know that for the next 10 days I will add to that weight loss, especially with the pre-op liquid diet and fast.. And that is me. That is my story. I honor you all and I want to take this moment in time to honor the courage you have for even coming here. Please feel free to email me here or reply if you'd like to share the ride. PLay Cats, Bandsters and all walks of WLS Life Welcome. Inner Peace, PLay Cat Ana

Thanks Lara! Heeeeeeeeeeeeeere weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee goooooooooooooooooooooo :)

Hi Laura, I've heard quite a bit of talk about band vs. plication and what I seem to be getting, definitely read it all and decide for yourself, is that people who do not want to be hassled by going in for fills do the plication and if you don't mind doing the fills, go for the band. I read somewhere that the plication is supposed to be slightly better in terms of weight loss than the band, but then again, every person is different and it could be that the person posting happened to be the one who responded best to plication. I don't mean to flip flip all over the boat deck here, but I just wanted to encapsulate the language out there while also really truly making you aware it's your decision. I know one day I read about a person who did better on the band and thought hmmm... but for me, personally, in the end I just don't want to be hassled with fills. Keep in touch (I think i've said that to you now on 3 or 4 different posts! lol)