Problems-Advice Needed

Hello all! I am finally able to sit here and type without too much pain. As some of you know I had Open RNY on Nov. 2nd. I am having a few problems and was wondering if they are normal and if anyone has any suggestions. 1. I lost about 30 lbs in the first 2 weeks- wonderful! I know! However- in the past 10 days the scale has not moved- actually it moved up 1 lb. Is this normal to have a plateau this early??? 2.I am having trouble getting all my protein in. I am on soft foods now and I tolerate low fat lunch meat turkey the best. I do not tolerate protein powders/drinks well. I hate anything milky or mayo like. Any suggestions? 3. I of course got my period in the hospital. 10 heavy days of it. Now it has been back for about 7 days. Super heavy, clotting, extremely painful and no end in sight. I was diagnosed with possible endometriosis a few months ago. I have been taking my Yasmin BCP and the period just won't stop. SOOOO painful and heavy. This happen to anyone?? I have spend 20 of the past 30 days with this!! 4. Constant morning nausea and tightness in pouch? I dumped taking Reglan today- normal? 5. Did anyone eat the following in their soft foods? If so is it ok? Healthy Choice Mac N CHeese, noodle soup (Lipton with Tiny noodles) & fruit (strawberries/raspberries?) Sorry for all the questions- I just am freaking out getting used to things and needed some advice from all of you friendly people out there! Thanks so much and Happy Holidays for whatever holiday you celebrate! Kim 11/02/05 367/333

1. Plateau: not uncommon. I plateaud about 3 weeks from surgery. Your body needs to catch up to the changes. Soon you'll start to see the scale slide again. 2. Protein: eggs if you can tolerate, with some melted cheese. Mozarella sticks chewed like the dickens, try protein powder mixed in SF pudding (can hardly notice it). 3. BUMMER! Sorry, didn't happen to me. 4. You can get sick on just about anything at this point and it changes from day to day. Hang in there! 5. Your nutritionis is the best person to ask about foods. But in my soft food phase I did alot of soups and pureed them. I found that raw fruit and veggies were difficult to eat and digest, but applesauce was awesome. Try the SF flavored varieties and add a pack of splenda to sweeten them up a bit. I'd caution you to be careful with any fruits that have small seeds in them. That might be painful. To make sure my soft food had a good balance of protein with the carbs, I often added finely chopped chicken breast to soups, cheese whenever possible (not fat free, just low fat) and snacked on tuna fish for my between meals meal. Again, check with your nutrionist. I also found that visiting the surgery date site on OH helped me connect with other people who were at the exact same stage as me. 6. You're doing a GREAT job, Kim! I hope you feel better soon. BUt remember that your body just went through a trauma--especially if you had OPEN RNY. Hang in there...it's worth it! Jen

Congratulations on the weight lose! You are doing just Awesome! 1. Now my answer to #1. STOP WEIGHING YOURSELF!!! I know that is difficult. I was a scale addict myself. When I came home my partner threw out our scales. The only time I weigh myself is at the gym on Mondays and during the first two months I only weighed in once every two weeks. The plateau you are experiencing is completely normal. Your body is adjusting to the shock of the surgery and being starved. In the next week or so I'll bet you step on the scale and your weight will have dropped 10lbs or more. I can't tell you how many times I would go weeks without weight loss and then overnight I'd feel like I lost some weight, step on the scale and was down over 10lbs. 2. We have all been there felling like we aren't getting in enough protein and other food. Just wait, in a few weeks you'll feel like you are over eating and question about whether your surgeon made you pouch too big. Again, completely normal. I am not a fan of powder protein mix either but have found the already mixed ones not only tolerable but also good. Worldwide makes a 35 gram canned protein shake that is good. I love the banana and vanilla crème but not the chocolate. They sell it at GNC, Bally's total fitness and Trader Joes or online. Also as a nice change I like the clear liquid protein drinks which you can find at any health food store (GNC, Trader Joes etc). 3. Not even going to attempt this one. 4. I have never dumped but know plenty of people who have and they tell me you go through stages where certain things are okay one day and not the next. My cousin swears that most of the time when she dumped was when she ate too close to when she drank. I definitely cannot eat and drink within 50 minutes of each other or I feel miserable. 5. Be careful of fruit with tiny seeds. I did not eat fruit the first month other than natural applesauce. I felt overly full eating any kind of noodle and still try to avoid them. The first real food I ate was mashed potatoes. I got a pint of them from KFC and it lasted about 4 days until I threw them out cause I was sick of them. Definitely get your protein in first. Cheeses, cottage cheese, tuna, any protein you can tolerate then eat the other stuff. Add lots of spices (other than salt) to your food. I found the spicier the better I liked it and can tell you I have heard that from a lot of people. You are doing awesome. This is a learning process but you'll get through it. I remember plenty of times thinking "what the hell did I do to myself?" but that has passed with every pound I have lost. Chip

In response to item #2. I had to laugh at this one because not more than two minutes before reading this I was saying to myself that my pouch must be WAY too big!!

Hi Kim ! 1. Not uncommon for your body to try to hold on to the fat. It is trying not to starve, and it doesn't know that the sudden major decrease in food isn't really starvation. Just keep doing what you need and the scales will move again. 2. There are some protein drinks that are fruit flavored if you can't do milk, although milk is one of the best proteins for you right now. Go to your local GNC. They will have several different protein supplements to help. 3. Same thing happened to me. The nurses told me that it happens more times than not because of the shock to your system. This too shall pass. 4. Are you eating the correct amounts and not overdoing? Your pouch will ease up with time, but you may want to keep a food journal to see exactly what you are reacting to in a nasty way. 5. I am 22 months out, and sometimes I still have trouble with noodles. This isn't the best choice for you. Really, starch shouldn't be a choice right now. Try to stick to protein, fruit and veggies. Remember, you need to try to change your relationship with food. Eating healthier choices now and relearning how to eat healthy food is part of this surgery. Experimenting with non-healthy food choices and sugar will get you into trouble again. It will also slow down your loosing at the time when it is easiest to loose. Honestly, too many of us think that this surgery is magic and we fall back into the habits that made us morbidly obese in the first place. To really make it work you have to do your part to eat healthy and exercise. Remember, the weight can come back on. Time to change your life to really live. You are doing great so far. Keep up the good work, and welcome to the loosing side! A better life is there waiting for you! Take care, Best, Amy

Hey Kim! Everyone's given some good advice. This is a great board, hu? Don't fret about the wt fluctuations - it's normal. I only weighed in once a week and skipped the week when I was on my period. Speakin of...I'm concerned about the amt of bleeding. I'd recommend you call your doctor - they may want to check your lab work to make sure your blood count is okay. Re eating..I ate eggs, yoguart - they are good on protein. It may be too early, but protein bars were yummy and a real good source of protein. I didn't have nausea or tightness or dumping. Check with your doctor. Sorry, don't mean to be a broken record, but thats always a good idea in my book. Keep us updated! Jo