vertical sleeve gastrectomy – Fervently Falling Together

Enjoy your stay in “Onederland” :)

Wow, what a journey this has been! This last Wednesday (June 9, 2021) was 11 weeks post-op. It was a good week for me and I am excited to share my successes!

In the weight loss community, there is a term “onederland” that means you are finally under 200 pounds (one hundred something pounds). This is a goal for many of us trying to get healthier and change our lives. For me personally, I think it has been 20 years since I weighed under 200 pounds! This is a huge milestone that is definitely a cause for celebration!

Wow. Just wow. I know that weight is still far too high for my 5’2.5″ frame, but at my highest weight I was approaching 300 pounds (263 to be exact). So, seeing that number brings a sense of pride, accomplishment, and feeling that I am finally taking care of my health and life.

I had my first set of post-op labs drawn this week to check my vitamin levels, iron, and many other things following my restrictive gastric sleeve surgery. All of my labs were PERFECT! Clearly I am getting enough nutrition through my food and my thyroid supplement is working as intended!

There are some other exciting things going on in my personal life, but that is not weight loss related…buuuttt, I might discuss it here soon 😉

6 weeks post-op

(Above photo credit: Anastasia Purl) Two days ago, I hit my 6 week mark after my surgery! I am feeling pretty good and as of today, I am officially on a REGULAR diet!! The volumes I can handle are still pretty small, but I can have whatever I want now (within reason, obviously). I am establishing a new relationship with food. The sweet cravings, unfortunately, are still there. But, I am doing my best to not sabotage myself. Allowing myself some grace to navigate this next chapter of my life 🙂

This week I have been discovering and enjoying new flavors (and revisiting some old standbys). I have been enjoying vegetarian meatballs, eggs, mushrooms and green bell peppers. I even tried some black bean spaghetti!

My incisions are healing beautifully! I know that they will fade some more. Pretty happy with how they look!

I am getting very close to “onderland,” meaning I am almost under 200 pounds for the first time in MANY years. I have lost 20 pounds since surgery, and 28 pounds since I started my pre-op diet! Wow!

Post-op days 6-10

(Photo credit: Anastasia Purl)

Already seeing some progress! Top row was taken on post-op day 6. Already down 15 pounds on that day since the start of my pre-op liquid diet.

This week was fairly uneventful in regards to my recovery. My pain has greatly improved, although today on day 10 post-op (April 3rd, Saturday) is the first day that I barely notice it. Even 2 days ago, the pain would catch me off guard sometimes.

My biggest issue the last couple of days is that I am SO SICK of protein shakes and yogurt! I can have soup, but I am supposed to add protein powder to it. I have not found one that tastes very good yet. In about a week, I will advance to the “pureed” stage, which will open up many more options for me! Unrelated to my surgery, on a positive note this week, I got my braces off after nearly 3 years!! Things are looking up 🙂

Post-op days 3, 4, and 5

On post-op day #3 (Saturday, 3/27/21) my vision had almost cleared up completely. In fact, by bedtime, it was 100% back to normal! That blurriness had me a bit worried, so I was glad to be on the mend! However, I was feeling a bit tired and “off” when I woke up. Still no hunger pangs. Pain continued to be the worst on my right side, especially the right upper quadrant (RUQ). I took oxycodone two times during the day. Another thing that happened on Saturday was I tried some soup with added protein powder (per dietician recommendations). Unflavored does NOT mean it has no taste! I added half of the recommended serving size to some soup and it was so AWFUL! Definitely will be on the lookout for a better unflavored protein powder!

Post-op day #4, Sunday (see above pic): Still in some pain, was able to wait until 5:30 PM to take oxycodone, but needed it again at bedtime. Consumed protein water (had to dilute it because it was WAY TOO SWEET), protein shakes, yogurt, and adding crystal light mix to my water to ensure I was drinking enough fluids. Weighed in at 223.6 pounds, stomach still gurgling a lot after eating and drinking, laughing was painful, felt very bloated. Took senna (a laxative) syrup because I had small, hard, marble-sized (sorry, TMI) stool at 10:00 PM. Constipation is a real issue with high protein diets. I am doing my best to get a minimum of 60 grams of protein per day. Guess it is my own fault for not taking preventative measures up until this point.

Post-op day #5, Monday: Decided to be safe and take senna syrup again, which resulted in a similar “result” as the day before, just more of it (sorry, TMI again). Started getting hiccups frequently, which really hurt if I was not bracing my abdomen at the time. On the plus side liquid Tylenol was controlling my pain. My stomach was still gurgling loudly and frequently, worst after I ate or drank anything. I felt really run down and tired, even after 9 hours of sleep. That evening I had (sorry, TMI again) an urgent need to go #2… afterwards, I felt much better and it definitely helped my bloating!