After your gastric bypass surgery

The week before surgery, I weighed in at 332 pounds, which, for me, was a size 28 in really stretchy clothes.  The day of the surgery, I was very anxious and deliriously happy that my day had finally come.  My chance to be a 'normal' person again was here.  Tomorrow, I would be a new person!  I don't recall much about the surgery except that I was pretty sore afterwards.  I went home from the hospital the same afternoon with no problems.  I never even had to take the pain meds they sent me home on.  I dreaded the trek up the three flights of stairs to my apartment, but with the help of my boyfriend and my son, it turned out I worried over nothing. 

The most difficult part of the first few days was actually getting in and out of bed.  The nursing staff informed me that I would be "rolling" in and out of bed because the stomach muscles wouldn't be able to bear any sort of pressure, such as that from sitting up.  They were SOOOOO right!  I hurt like the dickens when I tried to sit up in the bed.  So, remember - practice rolling in and out of bed BEFORE your surgery.  You'll be glad you did!

Recovery goes pretty quickly if you remember to go slow those first few days.  I was even able to go back to work that first week.  Of course, eating is not in the cards just yet, and when you have that first morsel of solid food at day 7, trust me, it won't be as heavenly as you might think it would be.  For my first real meal, I had a hard boiled egg.  I made the mistake of trying to eat the whole thing, which, for my trouble and over-eagerness, I saw again a few moments later when I threw it up in the kitchen sink.  Shame on me!  I had eaten too fast...and too much!  Start SMALL!  That's the best piece of advice I can give anyone - go slow and less is more!

That first month, I didn't lose as much as some of the others in the doctor's office.  I only lost 34 pounds, but it was enough to get me UNDER 300 pounds, which had been a complete brick wall of a barrier for me for almost three years!  Nothing I did would get me below 300 pounds until the surgery.  When I hit 299 1/2, I felt like a whole new person.  That was the point that I absolutely knew, whether I lost weight slower than others or not, I was actually going to lose the weight that had been plaguing me for the most of my adult life. 

I've really not had any problems other than from my own misbehavior, such as eating too fast or too much, in which case you generally throw up.  I have had a few bouts of extremely uncomfortable stomach cramps from eating the wrong foods, but I have since learned what those foods are that I need to stay away from.  Until after the surgery, I never had a problem with any foods, but now, just like the doctor had told me, there are some foods that I just can't tolerate any more.  They are mostly milk, pastas, and breads.  It's weird because pasta just kills me but rice doesn't give me any problems.  The same is true of yeast breads and cake breads.  I can't do more than maybe a bite of any yeast breads, but I can sit and eat as much cake breads as I can until I get full.  Potatoes give me a problem sometimes, but not always.  I had been told that many people can't tolerate certain meats, such as red meats, after the surgery, but I do better with red meats than I do with chicken or pork.

To date, I have lost right at 100 pounds and I feel better than I've ever felt as an adult.  I've gone from a tight size 28 to a very loose size 18.  I just bought my first pair of size 16 pants last weekend!  My shoe size has gone from a 10WW back to my old, old size of 8 1/2 reg.  I've also  noticed changes in my skin, which is not nearly as dry or flaky as it had always been before, but my hair does get oilier faster, requiring washing every day now instead of every 2 or 3.  I did have a problem in the 3rd month after sugery of my hair falling out really bad.  It was so bad, I thought I might end up having to buy a wig or something, but I increased my protein intake, changed to a gentler shampoo (actually baby shampoo!), and got back on my regimine of fish oil and flax seed oil.  My hair has stopped falling out and is now coming in stronger and thicker.  Of course, I would rather it not be gray, but Clairol will take care of that for me.

Hope some of this was helpful.