Hello all-

This is my first time posting, although I have frequently visited the forum!  I am excited to be a part of this community!!!  Anyway, I am 7 weeks out from DS.  I have lost 47 pounds, most of that in the first month.  I feel like lately, my weight loss has slowed down, a lot and am afraid that I am doing something wrong.  I can't make it to support groups because they are all on a night that I have to work, so sometimes I feel like I am all alone.  My doc's office has been really great, but I don't want to call them every day to chat...I do have some issues that I could use some help with (and will be bringing them up at my next follow up):

I have run in to a couple issues that I was hoping someone could help with (or at least tell me if they are normal!)

1- Does anyone have days where they can eat a lot of food (more than you think you could) and days when you cant eat anything?  I seriously shocked myself with the amount of food I ate today.  I didn't think my stomach could hold that much food- but I didn't get sick or anything so I am not sure what to make of it.  Two days ago, I was so sick that I could barely eat anything...

2- Before my surgery, I loved to eat.  I topped out at 280 pounds, but I LOVED food.  Since surgery, I have tried to eat my favorite foods but I can't hold any of them down.  In fact, the one food I can consistently hold down is sweet mini-peppers and hummus.  I am finding myself feeling a sense of loss.  Is this normal? 

3- extreme constipation: I take 5 doses of metamucil, 3 doses of stool softener, and a probiotic and it is still really difficult for me to "go".  Does it get easier?  My doc says that it is a rare side effect of DS and suggested that I add Milk of Magnesia, but that doesn't seem to help at all.

Thanks in advance for the help!  

Lisa

Welcome aboard, Lisa.  I definitely had the same experience as you describe in #1. It gets better but you will likely still have "those days" for years to come. Totally normal.
I haven't had experience with your #2 and 3 but I'm certain other folks have, so probably totally normal as well. 

--gina

I did not have DS and do have the problem of not being able to keep food down. But most of the foods I enjoyed before surgery no longer appeal and I did have a feeling of loss. However over time I have grown to love new things and look back at the things I loved as part of the problem (weight) and I no longer desire them. Being thinner, being healthier and feeling so much better is so much nice than whatever it is you used to love.

Hi Lisa and welcome,

    We talk more often about tiny tummy days when we can't really seem to eat much but the corallary is that some days you eat more. As long as you are eating protein first and keeping up with your liquids I wouldn't worry about it unless you go for long stretches at one end of the spectrum or the other.

   Are you tracking you protein, liquids, and maybe carbs? It might be a good idea to do so and compare where you are at over time. I'm almost 3 years out and find my diet sliding into carb heavy territory if I'm not careful.

   Early out there isn't always a lot of interest in food of any type and for me the forst year was one disappointment after another as I tried things I remembered loving pre-op but the memory was lways better than the reality. That seemed to go away over time although I still have less enjoyment from food than I remember. For me, probably a good thing.

    For the constipation The only other things I would say to try are to up ypur liquids, start adding magnesium oxide to each calcium dose, and try some Miralax regularly too. I had that problem the first couple months but it went away and I certainly hope it never comes back.

    The weight loss sounds OK to me. You will hat plateaus where you may not lose as much but you should also check dimensions. Sometimes it seems like your bosy can be changing shape even though weight is not dropping off like you think it shoud.

Pete

Thank you so much!  Very helpful. It feels good to know I'm not alone! 

Just had my DS on 12/10/15 and have had brutal constipation.  Tried everything you did and more.  The thing that really seems to help is Miralax (much better than Milk of Magnesia), walking (gets the metabolism up and the system going) and lots of fluid.  Fiber and stool softeners certainly won't hurt, but the Miralax and walking are key.

Good luck!

Thank you so much!  It helps so much to know I'm not alone! 

Are you eating enough fat?

Hi Lisa, and Welcome! 

1 - Well this is me almost everyday. Almost everyday I eat my meal with about 4oz dense protein and am ready for a snack in about 30 minutes. Don't know where it goes, I know it will be an issue when I get further out (right now i'm at 19 months) but for now I need to eat so I don't keep loosing. 

2 - Not sure why #1 is bold and it won't let me change back. Hmm. Anyway, my motto has been "well I couldn't eat it last week so I'll try it again this week". No joke. Shortly after surgery tomatoes were killers for me. I let a little while go by and then viola now I can eat them. On another note, I didn't eat vegetables really of any sort for about a year, now I eat low carb veggies daily. With cheese of course. So I recommend laying off the peppers for now but not forever. 

3 - Oh yes, been there, been to the ER as a result. I currently take 6 sensa pills a day (8.6 mg? each). My gastroentinologist (sp) said you can't OD on them and to take as many as needed. I had no luck with miralax and I had a prescription laxative but it lead to the opposite problem. I wouldn't consider it a rare problem at all - I see it regularly posted about. Also, eat more fat. Have you made fat bombs? I just started, may want to give it a try. I used to eat lots of bacon, really just stopped for a change. I eat about 120+grams of fat a day, and just as much protein. Oh for me simple carbs cause super upset tummy and diarrhea SO that being said if I really need to get cleaned out I eat a bunch of sugar. Not ideal but the pain I got from being constipated was way worse than the gas/diarrhea pain. I don't recommend it long term, or really at all, it's just something I felt I had to do. 

Best of luck! This is an amazing tool.