Please help I have some questions

Hi everyone,

            I had my RNY on 2/18/14 and I have lost 115 lbs in a little over 3 months so I am happy about that but I feel like the nutritionist in my surgeons office has not clue.  Currently I am taking 1 chewable multi vitamin 4x a day and that's it.  I have other friends who have had the surgery that are taking so much more than that.  Also nothing sounds or tastes good to me so I am basically surviving on watermelon.  Please tell me this gets better, I have no energy and all I want to do is sleep.  Any input or help would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!!  Diane

Where is your protein if you are surviving on watermelon? 115 pounds is an average of 9.5 pounds a week. That seems really fast. I do not have gastric bypass but from what I have read they use more than that for supplements. You may want to address your lack of eating protein as well.

Your body can live off of your fat stores for a bit, but it's time to start nourishing yourself NOW.  

• First of all, your suspiscions are spot on that you need more vitamins.  Get to the RNY forum and ask for help from a seasoned group who have been there and done that.
•  You may be dehydrated if you're feeling so lethargic. Fatigue and nausea are key symptoms.  You need 64 oz of fluids daily - no ifs, ands or butts.
• You need some protein in a bad way now.  Shakes at the very least, but try some softer foods and work your way up.  It's normal for nothing to sound appealing for a long time in the ways of food and drink.  It doesn't mean your body doesn't need nourishment, though.  Try some cheese, egg custard, something that has nutritional value.  Watermelon will get you nowhere.  Just eat because you have to, not because you want to.

U need multi vitamin, b12, calium citrate daily. Protein shakes are good for protein and high protein foods(soft) anything that's smooth with high protein.. Water or flavored water just to get ur liquids in.. Take a 30 min walk twice a day.. Hope this helps

I am actually taking a chewable multi 2x daily, calcium citrate 2x daily, D3 2x daily, and iron and B12 once daily. Had my RNY on 5/12. I would most definitely double, even triple, check on what types of supplements you should be taking. Just a multi is not enough.

Good luck!

The ASMBS says you need two multivitamins, 1500 to 2000 mg calcium citrate, iron, B12 and probably D3.  Why are you only taking a multi and why four of them?

If you're only eating watermelon, I guess you're getting very little protein, too.  Lack of protein, iron deficiency and B12 deficiency will make you very tired.  It will not get better unless you start getting your protein and taking the appropriate vitamins.  If you continue not taking the recommended vitamins, you may end up with much more serious issues.  For instance, B12 deficiency can lead to permanent nerve damage.

Thank you so much everyone for the replies. I have a call into my surgeons office and I will follow all of your advice. Plus let them know what everyone else takes for vitamins and find out why I have not been told the same. Thanks 

Make sure you get your protein! You are losing really fast, which may seem great, but please talk to your doctor! My surgeon would tell me, protein first, vegetables and fruit and carbs last (if you can get any in.) You should also be taking multivitamins, iron, b-12 and calcium. 

Best wishes!
Am

You need to address both the vitamin issue AND the protein issue.  You are losing at a VERY fast rate (probably too fast unless you started out extremely heavy) and you are getting in NO protein.  Getting in only a little protein for a little while isn't a major issue, but getting almost no protein for over 3 months is a serious concern.  

First, you need to be sure to let your surgeon know about this so that if, heaven forbid, something should happen and you become ill or you end up in the ER, he will know that protein deficiency may play a role in your condition.  If he is not aware, it might delay diagnosing (and properly treating) the problem.

Your body stores protein in your muscles.  It needs a certain amount of protein to function, so if you don't get enough in your diet, it pulls the protein that it must have from your muscles.  That means that some of the weight you are losing isn't fat, it is muscle.

In the short term, protein deficiency can cause fatigue, weakness, headaches, water retention, moodiness, and hair loss (even more than you would/will lose (starting right about now for you, actually, at 3-4 months out) because of the telogen effluvium after surgery even if you get proper nutrition).  

In the long term, if the deficiency continues, the body will be forced to take the protein from your most significant muscle: your heart!  The biggest cause of death in severely anorexic people is heart failure.  The heart fails because of a combination of various chemical imbalances and deficiencies AND because it becomes weakened by the loss of protein.  

There are many different ways to get protein in, and surely watermelon is not truly the ONLY thing you can eat.  I hope your surgeon is able to get you in quickly.

Lora

I personally have to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily.  Also I have to get in at least 60g of protein daily.  I take a multivitamin chewable in the morning, also at least 1500 mg of calcium citrate, and I will be prescribes vitamin b12 injections at 6 weeks out, and I have to get in at least 3,000 ui of vitamin d daily but I personally take a prescription vitamin D pill for that ... Those few things are in essence the essentials.