Lots of questions!

Hey everyone - had some questions for the group. I am female, 43, six feet tall and nine months post-op. Thanks for any help you can give me.

1. Have you ever heard of someone with DS developing tinnitus (ringing in your ear)? Mine is non-stop and developed a couple of months ago.
2. What do you eat when you travel for work? I was at a conference recently and trying to find food I could eat was no fun. Plus, restaurant food seems to be not so great on my digestive tract. Of course I brought protein snacks, but I didn't have a fridge in my hotel and this limited me on what I could eat. I had diarrhea the entire week. How do you deal with travel?
3. I've complained about this before, but it's becoming more of a concern. I have lost about 30 to 50 pounds more than I thought I would. I weigh less now than I did as a healthy, typical-sized teenager. And I look terrible. My hair hasn't grown back from when I started losing it in January and it resembles a witch hairdo. I look emaciated. Like I've been rescued from a POW camp. I did a recording last week for my company and I couldn't believe how tiny and scary-looking I was. I've gone from a 37 BMI to 21, which I understand is still a bit away from being unhealthy, but I don't want to lose any more weight. My doctor thinks it's fine, and my body will level out on its own, and will give me a feeding tube (!) if I lose too much. But I have been eating carbs just to stay at this weight. Or to gain some back. People have started asking me if I have a terminal illness. The DS is working way too well. Has this happened to anyone else? Any advice?

I travel frequently for work, and most hotels do have refrigerators available (although tiny), and are available first come, first serve for medical reasons. If you let them know you've had bariatric surgery, they should be able to put one in your room for you.

My staples for when I am out of town are:

Rotisserie chicken from Walmart, Kroger, etc. (I can eat off of that the entire time I'm away :-) )

Low-fat string cheese

Triple Zero Yogurt (I add Julian Bakery ProGranola for the fiber)

Beef Jerky

I hope this helps. :-)

Never heard of anyone getting tinnitus so no help there.

I'm 5 years out and I just eat well balanced meals keeping kind of a low key account of how much protein I'm getting in. Early out I would do hamburgers from anywhere without the bun, Boston Market, any kind of fish at a restaurant. I see that mostly restaurant food doesn't sit well. I used to do jerky and Beef and cheese sticks, not good for a meal but OK in a pinch.

It's pretty common for people, including yourself, to not be comfortable with how your body looks. I think that it will level out but like you said in your post you can change your eating habits to maintain and probably to gain some back. It's harder to get in more calories without increasing carbs but if you want to plateau for a while that is part of what will help. Start eating less protein first and more of well balanced meals that also include a higher percentage of carbs and fat.

You have come a long way in 9 months so a lot of it can be a shock and people see the massive change and they don't have a frame of reference to think other than that you are sick.

Have you tried Biotin shampoo and supplements for your hair? some of this is the shock from any major surgery but some people are helped by the biotin.

I'm hoping the Doc was just trying to give you some reassurance with the feeding tube comment. IT shouldn't go that far. You might also ask him about digestive enzymes that would let you absorb a little more for a period of time.

Pete

I doubt the tinnitus is DS related. I have been around here for almost 20 years and it is not common for DSers.

Diarrhea should be treated. Always take Imodium with you when you travel.

Just keep on eating. Your doc is right. Things will level out.

ppl can develop many problems after the DS, that aren't related to the DS at all.

Carbs will cause wicked gas and diarrhea.

Losing too much weight. One lady had to add 5 protein drinks per day on top of what she was eating to gain 25+lbs to feel and look healthy again. Her posts should be back around 2009-2010. Have you had your protein levels checked?

Chia seeds will help with loose stools. I started posting about them back in Sept 2008.

When traveling - keep to protein. Eat the meat/cheese careful of the carbs (gas/diaharra). Carry nuts, jerky, string cheese...

I'm not a low BMI wise as you are but people are starting to ask if I'm okay. I think it was just a lot of weight off fast.

Premier now has a clear protein shake that is good over ice and doesn't need to be refrigerated. Also, I'll order Starbucks (shots of espresso) and add a protein shake in. those should both help a lot. I find if I eat just at a little higher end restaurants I don't have as many problems. It's more the hotel restaurant or fast food that I can't eat. I'm fine at a "cloth napkin" restaurant. They will normally steam vegetables for me and only add salt & pepper seasoning, same with the meat, no seasoning.

I do the full fat Greek yogurt, cheese, turkey jerky (beef bothers me), olives, artichoke hearts, and hard boiled eggs. I travel with an expensive ice chest that keeps thing cold for 3-6 days and I can always add more ice. I have shaker cups for my protein shakes that I put them into (container and all) then transfer into shake cups to drink so they don't fall apart in the ice chest. I'll mix cold brew with my chocolate protein shake in the morning for coffee and protein.

You're just going to have to find what works for you. I'm going out of town this weekend and this is what I'm doing and have done, it works for me.

Good Luck,

Liz

1. Assume the tinnitus is not DS related. I think most of us (especially at the beginning of the journey) just assume that everything that happens to us is related. It's probably not. I'm 15+ years post-op and never heard of this from anyone.
2. When I used to travel for work I would simply focus on protein. If I went to a restaurant, I would order whatever I needed to order to meet my needs. If you check into a hotel, them them to provide a fridge. Tell them you need it because of a medical condition (which is true). I always bring snacks (jerky, nuts, etc.) but head to the local mini mart, market, 7-11 and buy what you need. Cheese, cold cuts, cottage cheese, etc. Take a cab, check with the concierge, whatever you need to do.
3. If you're still losing and you're below goal, you're simply not eating enough to maintain. You need more calories, which unfortunately probably means more carbs. Find the carbs that work best (complex are better than simple). This is the biggest challenge but you'll figure it out.

You might want to share what you're eating on a regular basis so we can help you make adjustments. Forget the BMI numbers. You need to be comfortable. You may have some bounce back, but probably not 50 pounds (most of us have 10-20 pound bounce back).

How are you labs?

1. I have never heard anyone with the DS developing tinnitus.

2. I travel for work all he time. I never have had trouble finding food to eat. I eat out all the time. I don't get diarrhea from eating out.

3. You probably look fine. People tell WLS patients that they look sick all the time, because they are not use to seeing them thin.

You don't look like you have a terminal illness. Just google pictures and you will see that is not you. You are have a BMI of 21; you are not dying or too thin. You will eventually level off. Read through the posts on this forum. It's typical. You'll be saying "I wish i could lose 10 lbs" in about 3 years.

Scott