One Year Check-up

Hey guys! Just wanted to let you know I had my one year appt yesterday. Bloodwork is fine, iron a little low, so I'm going to move up my iron from 1 tablet a week to two and check again in 3 months. I spoke to the nutritionist and she said at one yr out we should be eating a cup of food or less, no more than a cup though. I haven't measure in a long time and I got worried that I was eating more than a cup. So, I measured last night and I was a tad under a cup. I measured my Healthy Choice meal that I eat alot, just under a cup. I was relieved!!! Also, I know it varies for every WLP and depends on weight/height, but she says that I can cut back my protein to 50. Still need to get that 64 oz of water a day and my iced tea doesn't count because it has caffeine in it UGH!!

Janie, I was told the same thing about the protein. Since I workout I think I will keep it the same though. I have had problems with vit D. It is always low. They put me on a script of 50,000 twice per week and it is finally showing normal but I am told I will need to take 4 reg vit D tabs a day. Yuck they are horse pills. Well poo I guess my coffee doesn't count either. That's okay I usually drink a ton of water through the day. Good to hear your doctors appointment went well. What did they say about your weight? Anna

that I need to stop!! They said I'm at goal, have done good and will lose some with the TT and the doctor doesn't want you to be underweight when doing the surgery. But then the nutritionist told me (we were alone in a room) I was questioning her about ideal weight and she said that a person my height has a BMR (?) of 110 and can go 10 lbs under and be considered normal or 10-20 lbs over and still have a normal BMI. So, I'm fine at 123. But I could not imagine myself at 100. I would look sick and anorexic for sure. Did they talk to you about how much you should be eating at this stage? I'm curious as to what everyone else is eating.

Hey Janie...good job on the positive visit. I just had mine today...all is well except Vitamin A...who ever heard of being low on that? Anyway, it seems so strange how different all of our visits seem to be. I haven't even seen or talked to my nut since pre-op! My surgeon just basically asks if there have been any problems or concerns with eating or drinking...if no, all is good as long as the weight loss/maintenance looks good. I don't even get a recommended amount to eat...just eat balanced, healthy foods until satisfied. I guess I can do that...most of the time. Chocolate still calls to me on a daily basis....but at least I am eating a handful of dark chocolate chips now and not a giant sized bag! Doesn't seem to be affecting my weight one way or another. I have never heard of cutting back on protein, either, except in cases of weak kidney function...so that seems a bit weird. Also the iced tea not counting...it can't possibly have that much caffeine...at least my chai tea doesn't and I drink about 10 cups of that w/soy milk and Splenda each day!! I would float away if I had to top that off with equal amounts of water. But, again...our plans are all so different. I don't go bac****il 18 months in July...what's your next visit?

My surgeon was quick, in and out. Basically asked how I was doing and if I had any questions, then told me I did great and left! The NUT did spend a good amount of tiime with me though and answered a lot of questions I had. I'm going to be careful not to eat over a cup of food. Do you still measure your food? I have been (well for 2 days) and I am always under a cup. She says to eat 5-6 times a day and I don't. I think I would gain if I did! She said nope it keeps your metabolism going. How many meals do you eat a day? I don't have to go bac****il my 2 yr anniversary.When do you have your blood drawn again? I see that a lot on here, before and after surgery, the requirements from doctor to doctor varies so much. I am so glad that my doc didn't require a 2 week liquid diet before surgery, that would have been SOOOOOO hard!!

I don't really measure anymore...just sort of eyeball the amounts. I do measure if I am worried about the calorie count, though. For things that I have eaten since day one....I already know the amounts or numbers needed for a serving. 7 medium shrimp in 3 oz, 100 calories....or 17 soy crisps in a serving, 110 calories...see, stuff like that. Other things...I eat until I am satisfied. I do eat at least 6 times a day...but smaller calorie counts mostly, so it takes all day for them to add up. I don't seem to have the capacity to hold a 400 calorie meal like some can at this point. But, that's fine with me...I like to craze ! I go back two weeks before my 18 month visit, so mid July I get blood drawn again. At least it is a much smaller panel ordered next time. This panel for my 1 year was 20 or 21 vials. Friggen vampires! I did have a three day liquid diet...not fun. Two weeks? I would have sooo cheated! Did you have to do the liquid stuff the night before to "clean out"?

Suz - yeah I just had to clean out my system, I am serious, I was a big baby and *****y all day! Just for that one day!! I would have died doing that for 2 weeks. I guess I'm going to try to eat smaller meals and 6 times a day. Oh, I love shrimp and it's so good for you too. THe ones that I eat are 12 @ 60 calories and I can eat about 24 of them!! Gosh, that sounds like a lot. I also can eat a whole Healthy Choice meal. I measure it though and it's just under a cup. I do watch the carbs that I eat though. Last night we ordered chinese and I never eat the rice. If we go out, I usually will get fajitas and eat one w/ the tortilla and then just eat a few more bites of the steak and then I'm stuffed. I just don't want to ever gain the weight back. That's why I weigh daily, to keep myself accountable. But if I were like you, had to gain weight, I think that would be fun, I would just make sure not to eat more quantity of food, just higher calories! Oh the chocolate, let me just say "I hear ya loud and clear" and that's all I can right now. lol! Ok, you have got to be kidding me, they took 20 vials from you? HOLY COW! Seriously, they did tons of tests on me but only 4 vials. What in the world???

I still watch the carbs a bit just because generally speaking they don't feel so good in there. I can eat a half of an english muffin or a grilled panini...but I try to skip the regular flour tortillas. They taste SSSSOOOOOO goood...but they don't feel good in the pouch. As for trying to gain...it's sort of a mind f*ck (excuse the language, but it says it exactly as feels!). I know that I need to put on a couple of pounds...I am too bony. I could technically still lose down to 131 and be in the normal range, but for my frame...not a good look. So, having to eat more seems like something great, but from a psychological standpoint, it's torture. It feels fine at the moment that I am eating, but seeing those numbers climb on the scale makes me feel guilty or like a bit of a failure. Here I am not even officially a year out and I am already gaining? I know that I am the one forcing it to happen, but it does make me fear what could happen down the road, how easy it is to gain. That said...I'm not giving up the daily chocolate for anything!! Crazy how we can become attached to food so completely and easily. I can not live without my chocolate and my chai tea w/soy. It feels so good to be in love . About the tests...it listed out to over two full pages. I was amazed at the amount of information on there. When they did the draw, the chick used a IV type of thing that allowed her to change the vial at the end of a tube attached to a needle in my arm. She even had to leave the rubber band around my arm the entire time to keep the blood pressure up for all of the vials to fill. Anyway,I think at 18 months I am going to ask for a copy of my records just so that I have them should I have a need for them. *sigh* this whole thing just seems like a never ending string of tests and appointments and counting and weighing. When does this go back to normal?

Janie- I just had my one year on Thursday and it sounds like we had similar experiences... iron low, focus on keeping portions to 8 oz or less, cut back on the protein if you want. Too funny that it was SO similar. I also was worried about my portions sizes because it has been so long since I measured, and sure enough, 3/4 to 1 cup seems to be right where I am. She said that you can stretch your pouch out to TWICE that size byt the end of the second year. THAT IS A HORRIFYING THOUGHT! Gave me a major reality check that perhaps I have gotten a little too comfortable since I don't want to lose any more weight. Yikes! One happy thing is that she said exercise 3 X's a week for 20 minutes cardio was fine at this point for a maintenance routine. Good thing, because that is the best I have ever been able to do and I have always felt like an exercise failure! Oh yeah, about the labs... she drew 13 vials of blood and the cost to my insurance was $2400 just in lab fees! Talk about a thorough bloodwork-up. One more thing about the iron... make sure you are not taking your multivitamin with dairy or your calcium supplement. My RD thinks that may be part of my problem that I take them all together. She said that the same receptors in your body absorb calcium and iron, so if they are taken together, the calcium can get in, but the iron is washed out of your system. She also suggested washing my supplements down with OJ because tablet pills are created, generally, to absorb and digest in an acidic environment, which we no longer really make at an optimal level. Don't know if any of that is helpful, but it was news to me. Congrats on a good check up! It is a good thing to get all that done before your surgery so you know you are in tip top shape to heal.

Hi Belle...I know that you were trying to reply to Janie...but if you click the reply button under someone else's post, the reply goes to them. To reply directly to Janie, click "reply" directly under her individual post, or click "reply" at the very top of the original post. I'm sure that she'll see this one eventually, but you might want to let her know that you wrote to her. ~Suz