ALRiGHTY! GIVE IT UP!

Help! Calling all new post-ops! Give up the good stuff! I want to know all those things you wish you would have done before surgery, AND all those things you did do that you wish you wouldn't have done, AND all those things that you did that worked out so well. Come on! Help us excited pre-ops out! Share the wealth of your recent knowledge!

I wish that I would have had one more bowl of pasta. I am almost 100% Italian and this post op diet is killing me. I think it was extremely beneficial that I lost 20 pounds pre-op. My surgeon put me on a long and dreaded liquid diet 2 weeks prior to surgery but it was a blessing in disguise. I lost 20 pounds and all of my fellow WLS buddies are so jealous because I had that much of a head start. I think it is very helpful to get some kind of food plan pre op. I came home from surgery not feeling that well and I did not want to eat. I think if I would have set up some kind of plan I might have done a little better. Protein shakes made me ill! Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! I called my doctor and he said that we all heal at different speeds and to start introducing pureed foods and the worst that could happen is my body could reject them. If something makes you sick put it down and try it again in a couple of weeks. Just because a scrambled egg doesn't woek today it doesn't mean you can never have them. I think there is no standard as to when you can move from Liquid to Pureed to Soft and so on. Know your body! Once you have mastered a good array of foods in each category slowly ease yourself into the next phase. I have felt like a weird alien is growing inside of me. i have had many different aches and tugs and pulls and pinches. They are not painful more uncomfortable. I use a bed buddy or a heating pad and these make my tummy feel very good! It is normal for the first year to have this because our body is going through many different adjustments. All of our organs are saying wait a minute "Why are you doing it that way now? Hey wait where is that chub going". My biggest advice is to take it easy and do not compare yourself to anyone else because we all deal with things differently. I hope that I was able to help you and if you need any support or have questions let me know. (Sorry this is so long)

Thanks, Vanessa! This is absolutely the sort of reply I was hoping to get! I know that there are still several of us in this group waiting (some patiently, some not so patiently) for our surgery dates. I figure we may as well benefit from the experience of those of you who have gone before!

I think the best way I prepared myself for surgery was to keep a positive attitude. I had a very uneventful process and am recovering nicely. I am still sore but it is getting better every day. my advice for post op is to make sure you have everything you need at home like water, sugar free Popsicles, and sugar free jello, although my pouch does not like jello I try every day to get it down. I don't have any problems drinking water it goes down fine. I do have head hunger and was craving peanut butter I know kind of weird. I think it will be allot better when I can move on to mushy foods something with substance. The weight loss is phenomenal I loose about one pound every couple of hours. Just hard to believe it is droping off so quick. I hope this has helped.

Thanks, Alice! I agree that having a positive attitude makes everything in life that much better! Take care, and keep up the good work! God bless! -R