3 Months after Gastric Bypass Revision

Well, 3 months have gone by and I have lost over 4st in weight! I have still got a way to go but I definitely feel a difference now, and the impact on my confidence has been huge.

I am proud to say I have not been sick once, somehow managing not to overeat as I realised very soon after the surgery that I could remember the early warning signs of starting to get full from the first time round! And I could also remember how much I hated being sick if I overdid it.

I am still walking a lot, and do persuade myself to go on the treadmill sometimes, as I am half-heartedly doing a couch to 5k programme. It is difficult though because of the rollercoaster I am on with my depression, as the majority of the time I have barely got the motivation to get up from my chair let alone do any running! I have also just ordered some swimming costumes, my body is still very wobbly but I love swimming so going to clench my teeth and put up with the stares.

So what have I being doing with my new found confidence? When I'm having a good day, I am now able to go out by myself. I am not embarrassed to be seen buying food related items anymore. I have applied to do a postgraduate course. And I have been doing lots of writing . . Exciting news to follow in that respect!

Food-wise, I can now eat the majority of foods, albeit in very small portions. Chicken is ok although I do still only have it with a sauce and cooked very tender. I havn't tried bread yet, but toast is fine. And I do most to stick to a much healthier diet than before, with plenty of protein.

I am so pleased with the results so far, I am really glad I decided to have the revision procedure!

IDEAS FOR QUICK AND EASY PUREED FOOD AFTER GASTRIC BYPASS

Pureed food can be boring and uninspiring, and when you can only eat a few teaspoons of it anyway it hardly seems worth making it ,

Here are some extra ideas which involve minimum effort and which you can use in addition to your post-op diet sheet for more inspiration when you really feel like you can't be bothered!

• BABY FOOD - yes really! The stage one / 4 month+ food is completely pureed, otherwise you will have to puree it yourself to make sure it is completely smooth. The pouches you can get are especially brilliant for measuring out a small portion from. I have taken a liking to the cottage pie - it has protein, vegetables, a lovely smooth texture and, once mixed with gravy to make it thinner, a lovely taste! Yum!
• PLAIN YOGHURT WITH PUREED FRUIT (use soya if lactose intolerant). Again, the pouches of pureed fruit for babies are great for this purpose as you can squeeze out the amount you want and then put the lid back on, no mess. Much cleaner and easier (but lazier!) than making your own puree!
• CREATIVE MASHED POTATO - puree it if necessary to make sure there are no lumps then get creative! Cheese spread or Philadelphia mix in well and add protein, as do pureed baked beans. Make sure you also use plenty of liquid when mixing so that you end up with a consistency that will run off a spoon rather than being gloopy and thick.
• SMASH - all of the above but quicker! I had a really tasty combination of smash, philadelphia and bbq sauce yesterday, with plenty of milk to make it thin enough
• THICK SOUP with added protein powder / milk powder if made with vegetables only, or try to include high protein ingredients such as meat or beans. I also found that a CUP A SOUP with protein powder added and milk to make it creamier was actually quite a tasty option, especially when still on liquids but even now as a snack.
• BREAKFAST CEREAL such as weetabix or porridge, mixed to a runny consistency with no lumps.

DONT FORGET THAT MOST FOODS ARE SUITABLE IF THEY CAN BE PUREED TO A CUSTARD-LIKE CONSISTENCY, SO DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO MAKE YOURSELF SPECIAL MEALS.

 

These are just extra ideas in addition to the ones your dietitian has already suggested, as sometimes we just need a quick and easy fix!

Three Weeks Post-op (after gastric bypass revision)

So, that's the background story!

It is now three and a half weeks since my surgery, and everything seems to be going well. I have lost over two stone in weight (yes, really!) and already had to buy a few new clothes so I have got something to wear that doesn't resemble a clown's outfit!

Food-wise, I don't feel physically hungry at all and a meal at the moment consists of 3-4 teaspoons of pureed food before I am full. I am finding it difficult to juggle meal times plus taking all my medication and getting enough fluids in, but I guess over time it will get easier. I am sure I feel more restricted this time, possibly due to the fobi ring?

I have had a few mental cravings for food, mainly when I see family members eating something nice or smell their meals cooking. I seem to be able to cope with this better than I did after the first surgery, possibly because I have more of an idea of what to expect from the surgery and know that my food intake will increase slightly in the future. I can see why it would be easier living alone though! They had pizza hut takeaway yesterday and I really felt like I could sit on the floor and cry!

But it will all be worth it! The feeling I got from needing to buy smaller clothes already was amazing!

My incision wounds have healed well with no infections or problems. I am looking forward to 6 weeks post-op when I can go swimming so I am glad that my wounds will not be a problem in that respect.

At the moment, I am very glad that I made the decision to have revision surgery. My life had become intolerable due to my weight, and it was holding me back from making positive changes that would help me recover from depression. Or it seemed like that anyway. So hopefully losing weight will contribute to helping me find a life for myself that I actually want to be living.

Surgery!

I was so scared on the day of the operation. I knew that revision surgery had a higher risk of complications and I was worried about whether I was doing the right thing. I had to be at Southampton hospital for 6.30 in the morning, which meant leaving my house at 5am. I decided to set my alarm for 3.30am so I would have time to shower and wash my hair, but to be honest I don't know why I went to bed - I don't think I slept at all!
Everything went smoothly at the hospital. I was admitted, saw the ananesthetist and then the consultant to sign the consent form and found out I was first on their theatre list. What a relief!
The surgery went well, and the surgeon said he had experienced no problems. The only real hiccup came in the anaesthetic room - as usual my veins were awful and the anaesthetist started talking about central lines. Eventually he managed to find a very small vein so he could send me to sleep, but had obviously decided that would not be adequate as I woke up to find a line in my neck. A bit gruesome but obviously necessary, and as they could also take blood for blood tests from this line as well as using it for several medication drips at a time it saved me any more jabbing and poking. The worst bit was having it removed before I went home!
After the operation, I woke up in recovery. The pain was unbelievable but they soon had a pca (patient-conteolled-anaesthesia) set up and after a few presses of the button I began to feel more comfortable. I also felt really cold and was shivering uncontrollably until they inflated a lovely warm air-filled blanket over me. I want one at home!!!
I was soon taken back to my room, and installed in a not-very-comfy chair. I was also set up with a very glamorous pair of inflatable boots to help prevent a deep vein thrombosis (dvt). Although in some ways the boots were a quite annoying, they were reassuring too. The hospital's policy is not to allow bariatricsurgery patients in to bed after the operation for at least six hours. It makes sense as sitting up helps with breathing and lowers the risk of complications such as pneumonia, as well as encouraging mobility. It was hard to sit in a chair for so long feeling so tired and in pain however, especially with a very inviting looking bed next to me!
Despite the discomfort, I was glad that the surgery was over and had gone well. I felt able to start looking forward to the future now that I had survived the operation! I didn't want to jinx it in any way beforehand!

Stretched Anastomosis and Weight Gain 8 years Later

This story really begins at the end of another. I originally had a gastric bypass in 2006, but after regaining most of the weight in the last couple of years I was extremely fed-up. The worst thing was, I was still unable to eat normal portion sizes, but then usually within an hour after a meal I was hungry again. I tried and tried to diet, but the hunger and accompanying severe heartburn meant I rarely lost more than a stone before giving up. I decided it was time to seek advice from my original surgeon.

A gastroscopy showed some stretching of my pouch, and also a hugely enlarged anastomosis (opening out of the stomach in to the jejunum). The surgeon explained that food was literally passing straight through my stomach in to my intestines. This meant my stomach was never able to sense the presence of any food, hence the almost constant hunger. He suggested a surgical revision of my gastric bypass to make the pouch smaller again and create a new anastomosis. He also suggested the addition of a fobi ring (a small band made of silicone), which would sit above the anastomosis and prevent it from stretching. Hopefully this would prevent a similar problem occurring in the future. I went to the appointment with an open mind, and this approach sounded like a reasonable and hopeful one. After some thought, I decided to go ahead and my date for surgery was booked for the 21st August 2014.

 

 

Introducing my new blog - about life after weight loss surgery, but also just about life

Hello, welcome to my new blog! I needed somewhere to record my journey back to slim-ness (well, hopefully!) and I thought it might be nice to share it with other people who are going through the same thing. As I like to dabble in many different crafts, plus other hobbies, I thought this would be an ideal place to combine all of them. A blog all about me - that sounds scary!