30 days and counting

I'm now 30 days away from surgery. On Monday 3/2/2015 I will have my pre-surgery nutrition appointment. I still have a few items left to order mainly vitamins & protein drinks.

The day that my God Sister/BFF goes in for surgery marks my first day of protein liquid diet. 

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The liquid diet lasts 2 weeks. (Here is it broken down accordion to my surgeons wishes)

For the first 12 days I will replace 2 out of 3 meals with protein shakes. I get to have one protein rich meal per day. And small protein filled snacks if I am physically hungry through out the day. The snacks must consist of 7-12grams of protein.

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For the last 2 days or 48 hours I will only be consuming protein shakes (3 per day), and clear liquids. And beginning at midnight the day of surgery I am not allowed to eat or drink anything until after my surgery and once I am okay-ed to do so by the surgeon. Even then it will only be very small amounts.

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On another note my God sister starts her liquid diet on Monday, and my mother begins hers the day I go in for surgery.

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My family's gastric bypass surgery dates:

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My God sister: Monday March 16
Myself: Monday March 30
My Mom: Monday April 13

Pictures added: 35 days left, I'm in the home stretch!

There are only 35 days left until my surgery! I have purchased most of what I'll be needing for my stay in the hospital. Also I'm on track with the purchasing schedule I planned out for myself.

Here is what I have bought so far:

A large black Duffle bag, I didn't have a suitcase so I needed to purchase one.

A thin but cozy large blanket. I like to have my own blanket when staying in a new place. So I bought one that I could easily pack and I was comfortable with. 

Travel size items: deodorant, an empty squeeze bottle for body wash, mouthwash, toothpaste, toothbrush covers, q-tips, scented hand sanitizer.

Blender bottles, as mentioned in a previous post. (On top is a "GoStack", also made by blender bottle, for easy storage on the go)

A 4x a day medicine planner. This is an interesting one. The first planner I bought was way way way too small (although it was adorable) Now I have to buy a replacement one. But my God Sister purchased one that one of each of the celebrate pills fit into one compartment with room to spare.

It just so happens that was the first planner I had looked at. Initially I had decided not to get it so we wouldn't have the same planners, but after I had to return the other one, I decided to buy the one I was going to get before & I labeled mine so that they wouldn't get mixed up.

I was thinking about buying a toiletry bag but I decided to use the one I already have, because it's free, and I don't need to bring much anyway.

I know this is a little gross to some people but I will most likely not wash my hair while I'm in the hospital, but I'm bringing shampoo & conditioner anyway. Just in case I need to wash it. My reason is because I have curly hair and I will be straight ironing it for my stay, so that my hair doesn't get horribly tangled. straightening makes my hair a lot easier to manage since I won't want to be doing my normal complicated shower routine. In order to bathe I will simply put my hair up and wear a shower cap. Showers go a lot faster that way as well

Oh and did I mention my fancy thermos water bottle that has a lock and a counter on the top.

Omfg nectar naturals are delightful

Whey protein taste testing update: Nectar Naturals

I tried on of the nectar naturals samples that my mom bought and omfg I actually like it!!! I tried the peach, it's delicious totally worth the extra money to buy the naturals!!! I can't stress how happy I am that I found a flavor I like that tastes like fruit.

I totally recommend this product, it's even a good looking color, unlike the apple that was electric green and reminded me of Slurm!

Another day another flavor

Today I'm going to try the strawberry kiwi syntrax nectar. I just finished shaking it up it foamed up a lot so I'm waiting for the foam to go down before I drink it. Geez I hope I like this one.

Yeah so I just took my first sip. I don't like it. In going to starve to death for at least 4 weeks. Dam my sensitive taste buds. I can always taste the whey protein no matter what.

However the taste was very faint, if your taste buds aren't as sensitive as mine you most likely won't even notice the taste.

I am afraid I may have to find a brand that is not nectar after all. I was hoping that nectar would work out because I'm a bit lactose intolerant, and I don't like the taste or exit off milk either. Well do far I think the pre made pure protein vanilla has been my favorite. Never would have seen that coming.

Hiatial Hernia

**warning this post has some descriptive content that may be upsetting to some people**

During my initial testing when entering the weight loss program at Emmerson Hospital in Concord MA I found out that I have a hiatial hernia. I found this out during an upper GI test, they have you drink barium and roll around on an x-ray table so they can see if there is anything wrong with your upper gastrointestinal tract, such as a hernia.

I didn't really know what that meant until tonight. But I found out I have been living with these symptoms for a few years now. Since long before my testing in August and September of 2014.

So upon doing some research on hiatial hernias I found out that they are likely the cause for my bloody stools. The dark blackish color in the stool comes from bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract which is most likely caused by my hernia.

Certain foods appear to be more likely than others to upset the hernia. Other foods are less likely to upset it.

Luckily for me when I have my bypass done the surgeon will also repair my hernia so I will no longer have to deal with this discomfort.

Disclaimer*** I am not a doctor, the contents of this blog are my personal experiences, and not medical advice. I am a bariatric patient and not a qualified professional. Always ask your doctor about concerns you have about your health.

Protein Shakes

I order a sample pack of syntrax nectar from mybariatricpantry.com a few days ago and it got here today!!! Along with the shake bottle I purchased. 📦

I received almost all of the flavors I requested. I asked for 2 packets of strawberry kiwi, 2 Apple, 2 fuzzy navel, 2 lemon tea, and 2 lemonade.  Sadly I did not receive the lemonade packets, instead I received pina coolada.🍓🍏🍊🍋☕🍋🍍🍌

I tried the apple one today.🍏 i like it better than the unjury strawberry I tried. But I just don't like protein shakes. I can't stand the smell, even when it's faint.

I honestly have no idea how I will cope with drinking these for at least 4 weeks, yuck! And the one I tried today tastes better than the last one I tried