Life (so far) After Gastric Bypass

I recently felt the need to explain my choice and life after gastric bypass. The following is a "note" I wrote on my Facebook to my friends who felt the need to criticize me.

I do think people should read something like this and/or other blogs to get a real good sense of what the surgery is all about:
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"I feel I need to write a note about this so people can truly understand what I have gone through before and after gastric bypass surgery.

Pre-surgery, I was a fairly happy individual. However, I lacked self-confidence with respect to how I looked. I always yo-yo dieted and pretty much gave up. I had become obese. Obviously, as you all know, my love of food was a bad thing, and I finally realized the issue at hand instead of being in denial. I ultimately decided on going through with the gastric bypass surgery.

I weighed approximately 250lbs. I am 5'3. That is considered morbidly obese for my height. It shocked me.

The pre-surgery aspect was insane. I had to be in "tip top" health (obese people are healthy?), physically, mentally and emotionally. I was healthy, no other health problems, other than being fat.

The surgery itself was not so bad. I was in the hospital for 3 days. The pain was something I never want to feel again. EVER. Just think, the surgeon basically went into my stomach through 5 insertions, rearranged my intestines so that food "bypasses" my stomach when I eat and creates a man-made pouch to store foods and liquids.

I was not able to use my stomach for anything for WEEKS. You really don't know how much you rely on your stomach/ab muscles until you can no longer use them. I couldn't walk. I couldn't stand up. I couldn't get myself off a couch or out of a bed. I could only lie on my back...which, having had back problems being overweight, was not fun.

I barely ate in the weeks recovering. I lived on protein drinks, freezies and broth. Slowly but surely, however, I transitioned to being able to eat real solid food.

My pouch (because, really, I can't say stomach since it doesn't hold anything can only hold about a cup to a cup and a half of food at any given time. An average person's stomach can expand to the size of a football when they eat; mine does not. It will burst. I will be in serious pain. I will be back in the hospital.

Another thing to consider: an average person's stomach contains a significant amount of acids which aid in the areas of food breakdown and digestion. My pouch does not. This results in very serious debilitating gas pain. Because of this, I am no longer able to eat certain foods and have to ban some foods altogether. Here's a list:

- no bread
- no pasta
- no white potatoes
- no white rice (carbohydrates fill me up so damn fast, and are unbelievably hard to digest)
- absolutely no meat whatsoever - my body cannot break down animal proteins any longer and they make me super sick
- no eggs (they give me what is called "dumping syndrome" which is exactly what you think it is)
- limited dairy (Greek yogurt and cheese, only)
- no fried foods or high-fat or high-sugar foods
- no carbonated drinks

That really limits me, especially since I have to get at least 60g of protein every single day. I have totally and completely become a vegetarian. You need to know, this is NOT BY CHOICE. Because of this, it has really affected me mentally. To want to be able to eat something so bad, but knowing the severe consequences I suffer is almost cruel and unusual punishment.

On most days, this is what I eat:

Breakfast: 1 vanilla Greek yogurt w/ 1 tbsp flax seeds, 1 tbsp wheatgerm, 1 tbsp hemp seeds and 2 tbsp low-fat granola

Lunch: either 1 cup of some sort of bean salad or 1 cup of grain salad and a Babybel light mozzarella cheese - if I'm extra hungry, I'll eat a few slices of cucumber or snow snap peas or green beans.

Snack: gluten-free crackers and hummus or roasted chickpeas

Dinner: 1 cup of bean salad or 1 cup of grain salad - however, lately I have been venturing out and trying things such as tofu spaghetti, 1/2 a sweet potato, bean "burgers" and tofu "dogs" - they taste like crap, those tofu dogs, yuck.

Snack: gluten-free crackers and hummus or roasted chickpeas

So, to put into perspective, I eat beans. A lot of them. Too much of them. I am afraid to try new foods because I don't want to experience pains. Do I get 60g of protein every day? Nope. That's pretty obvious. I am living on about 700-900 calories a day. That's enough to make ANYONE go somewhat mental - let alone a former morbidly obese person.

One of the cons after this kind of surgery is absorption rates. My body just does not absorb the nutrients, vitamins and minerals it needs. Being vegetarian does not help. I have become iron-deficient anemic (I am fatigued and sleep all the time), I am B12 deficient and could develop osteoporosis if I am not careful. Every single day I take 4 calcium pills (morning and night), vitamin D3, vitamin B12, a prenatal multivitamin, iron, cranberry extract and acidophiles.

Another issue I want to bring up with my friends is my mood. I apologize to anyone I have upset, angered, pissed off in the past few months. Serotonin is stored in fat cells and in women, particularly, this is stored in their stomach area. When drastic weight loss happens, your fat cells decrease and shrink, thereby decreasing your levels of serotonin. As we all know, serotonin is our "happy" chemical. If the brain cannot get enough serotonin, a chemical imbalance happens therefore leaving someone depressed. I am depressed. I have uncontrollable mood swings. I am not happy, save for having a lot more confidence with my appearance.

But let's flash forward to today: I am still 5'3. That won't ever change. I am 180lbs and still dropping. I only have 30 more lbs to reach my goal weight, and I am only 5 months post-surgery. "