Randon daily thoughts and questions

Hi Everyone,

Rather than post three times with questions, had lots of different stuff going through my head this morning.

So here goes and trust me they are very random! LOL

So do any of you have very low blood pressure? I do and yesterday it was about 90 over low 50's. And yes, it has dropped over my normal low range which is about low 100 over 60's. Just wondering if side effect of surgery or some sort of hypotension issue. Yes, I get dizzy.

Some of you have posted your iron numbers. None of my docs seem to be concerned that my ferritin is 12 and my hemoglobin was about 11. Now the hemo is not so bad but the ferritin sucks! This is my baseline after surgery and I already have autoimmune problems so wondering if I should consider pushing iron infusion already?

Last and not trying to create controversy or drama about food choices: I noticed most of you don't eat very many veggies. I can't see myself living on a pure keto diet. I am already feeling like I need some veggies and my doctor encourages them. I noticed in my 5th week post op, that two ounces of mushy fish is not cutting it for me and I am noticeably feeling hungry like I need something else to fill the space after the two ounces. Since my diet at this stage is soft food, just wondering if two ounces is too little because it is mushy?

Also do you ever allow yourself a special treat once a week? I don't mean a slip up but something scheduled?

I experience a lot of orthostatic hypotension. I get up too quickly and I get dizzy. Quite normal especially in the morning when dehydration is at its peak as we haven't had water in 7-8 hours.

Veggies are great but I'd stick to roasted squash,zucchini,eggplant etc. Very soft. I avoid the starchy stuff. You really want to focus on protein. As we lose so much weight so rapidly we're burning fat but we're also eating away at our own muscles. Protein slows that down and muscle is good for keeping your metabolism going.

Id say it's a bit early for treats but that's really a personal choice.

Hi,

Thanks! I get 70-90 protein grams a day. Eating a low carb veggie would not impede on my protein intake. I wasnt looking for treats now rather once I hit goal.

There are a lot of different approaches to eating, as you will quickly find, on this site :)

What worked for ME, was high protein low carb for every minute until I reached goal. I periodically had some veggies, maybe some kale in a salad, or a few bites of asparagus or broccoli, but I didn't have much room in my pouch after weighing out my 2 or 3 or 4 ounces of protein. And my body needed protein so I didn't want to prioritize pouch space for veggies. I also never really craved them. I was 100% focused on having fish, turkey, chicken, bacon, shrimp, etc. If I were you (and this is just me), I would talk to your surgeon about moving to less mushy and more dense proteins. I was cleared for ground turkey, ground chicken, egg salad, fish, chicken sausage and more at two weeks post-op, but plans vary. I was not full on a container of Light and Fit greek yogurt (5 oz) but once I was cleared for regular meats, after weighing out 2 oz of chicken sausage (which looked SO small), I was STUFFED after just half of it. Even at 3 years and 8 months out, I still get full on dense protein (but can eat unlimited amounts of popcorn - go figure!).

I do allow myself to eat off plan now that I am in maintenance. I didn't do that until I got to goal. It's a slippery slope though. The more carbs I eat, the more I crave them, and my pouch seems to be much larger when we're talking about slider foods LOL.

Good luck!

1) my BP is about 90/60, 110/65 etc now. everyone is happy with it. additionally my pulse stay about 45-65 quite low, more like 'runners' heart rate now.

early out i would get dizzy if i got up to fast. I really don't have that issue now. im 18 months out.

2) My iron numbers are generally low due to having a rare blood disease which is genetic in my mom's side. I saw a hematologist before surgery and got an infusion the summer before i had surgery. he wanted to bump up my numbers before i was cut on.

3)I eat a lot of veg. meat first, but veg second. my faves are broc, cooked carrots, squashes of all kinds, tomato, okra, radishes, cabbage, spinach. I stay away from carby veg like corn. sometimes i eat veg as a 'snack' or with meals.

I stayed as close to plan in the losing stage.it was my ONLY job to get all that weight off, not start to eat off plan. I was super strict.

Yes,

I love meat, fish and tuna, just finding that the 2 ounces of mushy leaves me wanting either more protein or a veggie. Also as formerly super morbidly obese person who has already lost and maintained 2/3 of my loss over 15 years and had revision, I feel like this is "longest get to goal from super morbid to normal weight" process in the history of bariatrics~ LOL I dont even know if it is realistic at my age and with the amount I have to lose to put a target of 145 which would put me at a normal BMI. I would be thrilled to get to 160 which would be less than half of what I started at!! :)

some proteins never stick in my pouch. like fish. I would eat more proteins and fats and add little veggies. 5 weeks is still early - cook them well.

Hi,

I was thinking the same thing on the soft food vs like a real piece of grilled chicken or shrimp or a piece of a chop. I haven't tried solid food yet as according to my docs plan, I will still on soft food. But its worth a try to see if the 2 ounces of solids would satisfy me.

So do any of you have very low blood pressure? I do and yesterday it was about 90 over low 50's. And yes, it has dropped over my normal low range which is about low 100 over 60's. Just wondering if side effect of surgery or some sort of hypotension issue. Yes, I get dizzy.

I have always had low blood pressure, and it's even lower after WLS. I average 80/50 normally. I do not feel negative effects of that -- it's simply my normal. Doctors/nurses tend to freak out if I forget to warn them that I run low. I can suffer some orthostatic hypotension if my salt intake is too low. That's the only time that I feel any dizziness.

Some of you have posted your iron numbers. None of my docs seem to be concerned that my ferritin is 12 and my hemoglobin was about 11. Now the hemo is not so bad but the ferritin sucks! This is my baseline after surgery and I already have autoimmune problems so wondering if I should consider pushing iron infusion already?

A ferritin at that level is extremely difficult, but not entirely impossible, to bring up via oral supplementation after an RNY. Iron is absorbed in the duodenum -- the area that is mostly bypassed in surgery. The average doctor is sorely uninformed about non-anemic iron deficiency, thus, we often need to advocate and educate to get the care and treatment we need. I would at minimum, ask for a referral to a hematologist.

Last and not trying to create controversy or drama about food choices: I noticed most of you don't eat very many veggies. I can't see myself living on a pure keto diet. I am already feeling like I need some veggies and my doctor encourages them. I noticed in my 5th week post op, that two ounces of mushy fish is not cutting it for me and I am noticeably feeling hungry like I need something else to fill the space after the two ounces. Since my diet at this stage is soft food, just wondering if two ounces is too little because it is mushy?

If two ounces of protein isn't cutting it, why not add more ounces of protein? You'd be really hard pressed to take in too much protein right now.

To answer your question about the "mushy" -- the denser the protein, the more filling it is. Mushy can be close to "slider" -- however, I have no idea what your stage is per your orders.

Would I add veggies right now? No. I would not -- not at such an early stage. Closer to goal, further out, or in maintenance -- sure. Most of us eat non-starchy veggies. Of course, what you eat is entirely up to you. That's what I have done that works.

Also do you ever allow yourself a special treat once a week? I don't mean a slip up but something scheduled?

No. I really do not. I am 3.5 years out.

I have learned to change the way I view food -- and I try very hard not to view food as a "treat." I view most things people consider "treats" to be a drug that I am addicted to -- that was literally killing me. No one plans to have some grilled chicken as their treat -- it's usually something sweet or starchy -- SUGAR/CARBS. I like being healthy -- and I've worked too hard to be in recovery. For me, a planned treat is like an alcoholic having a planned shot, beer or glass of wine once a week.

I've learned other ways to treat myself.

YMMV.

Hi and thanks for your advice! I think I will ask my doctor about setting me up with a hematologist. Iron is a big problem for me and I have had multiple infusions in the past.

Blood pressure: People do say that unless it is causing a problem, which in my case it is the dizziness, I could wait it out.

I was thinking of adding more protein instead of a veggie but everything I read online and on here for RNY newbies seems to be people who can only eat two ounces of meat, fish or something else but I don't think I would have trouble adding another ounce of meat. I was justreluctant to do it off the time table suggested by my surgeon. That being said, my surgeons post op diet included potatoes, grits and a whole bunch other hi carb foods so advice here is definitely preferred.

As an italian girl a treat for me would be a piece of bread or pasta, but you are absolutely right about finding other ways to treat myself instead. If you gave me a choice between a piece of bread and a piece of chocolate, the bread would win hands down!! LOL