~ Hello to all ~

    Well, I am down to my last 2 clearances and I am pretty nervous.  My sugery date is on Aug.2 and I have a few weeks to get my mind, body and soul together.  My question is, how did you deal with the 4 weeks of just liquids?  Did you start your liquid diet like 1 or 2 weeks prior?  I ask is because I am seriously thinking on doing that part 1 week before to get a head start.  Last, is there a morning support and walking group?  Thx Lovie

You need to follow the directions the doc gives you for your liquid diet.  I believe everyone is different depending on cir****tances.  On my last appt prior to surgery (the one with all releases you sign) I was given my instructions for my liquid phase of the diet. 

Good luck Lovie, and it's alright to be nervous, I was second guessing myself right up to surgery day, but at this point I would never look back.  It was the best and most healthiest decision I've made for my life and has made the world of difference.  As for a walking group or morning support, I am unaware of any.  I do walk almost daily with my husband and exercise here at work.   If there is anything else, any questions, please feel free to ask. Michelle

Lovie,  I wouldn't start your liquid diet until the doctor tells you to.  Believe me 1 month is hard enough.  I dealt with the liquid phase by doing other things,  I organized closets, cleaned the house, worked outside of the house as much as possible.  I visited this website quite a bit and talked to people on the lap band forum quite frequently.  I don't know how I survived but If I could do it,  so can you.  Also,  get yourself a magic bullet,  everything you put in that thing turns to liquid quite easily.  Be creative.  Thankfully,  I like cream of wheat, I truly enjoyed each meal of that during the liquid phase.  The health wise hot chocolate and cappachino's were excellent and very high in protein,  they sell at the doctors office and at PMRI.  I personally wasn't a fan of the health wise soups.  Good Luck.  Lisa

Whoever said to wait until your doctor tells you to start the liquid diet has the right idea.  I also took another person's advice & got a Magic Bullet.  It made life so much easier!  I think it was harder for me to just do liquids BEFORE the surgery but I knew the consequences of not following directions.  Afterwards, I didn't feel like eating much at the beginning, so it wasn't too bad.  By the time I started getting an appetite, I was starting to see some results and that helped a LOT. It also helped to go to some support meetings.  You might want to check out a few before surgery.  They might be able to answer your questions about a morning group and a walking group.  I don't know of any but I've never been able to go to a morning meeting so I wouldn't have paid attention. Best of luck on your journey.  Let us know how you're doing! Love & Peace, Fran

Lovie - I'm 6 weeks out, and I have a confession - I only did about 2 weeks of liquids before I moved to mushies, and then was on full food ( mostly soft and EXTREMELY well chewed) about a week later. I had some serious problems with shoulder pain until about 2 weeks after surgery.  About 2 days after Surgery I was back in the ER to try to figure out what it was, since the codeine only made the pain subside for about 15 or 20 minutes. They did a CT scan, etc. and found I was full of gas and air in my stomach and colon, but the pain meds were paralyzing my colon and keeping me from getting rid of it.  So I had to just tough it out.  After a few days it was a lot better, but then when I went back for my 2 week check-up it was bad again.  I mentioned to Dr. Wynn that I had been much better, but I had only had one protein shake that morning and lots of water all day long, and my stomach was grumbly. She said that hunger can cause the problem because the stomach can pulsate when hungry and that was probably causing the tubing from my band to touch the diaphragm and give me the shoulder pain.  I went back to work after my appointment and had some milk, and 5 minutes later the pain was gone.  Since then I've had small twinges of shoulder pain whenever I get that grumble in my stomach. After that, I realized that I had to avoid hunger pains, so I started doing more yogurt and cottage cheese (mixed with sugar free applesauce), and then went on to other soft mushy foods pretty quickly. I figured if I tried it and it didn't hurt, it couldn't be bad.  And I knew what the hunger pains did to me with my shoulder pain, and that wasn't fun. I just saw Dr. Wynn yesterday for my first fill, and told her that I moved onto mushies and food early, and she said that was totally fine. She agreed with my philosophy - if it didn't hurt me, it was probably ok, and she said she frequently recommends that to patients (I'm probably divulging a trade secret here....) - that if you're really hungry, you probably need something more substantial. I actually think liquid is easier than purees logistically, because you can carry drinks around with you - purees are a bit harder, but manageable if you plan ahead. As for the liquid diet 2 DAYS (not Weeks) prior to surgery - that's a little bit more difficult. Living on nothing but sugar free clear liquids for 2 days made me crazy. I was cranky, tired, and felt like my brain was misfiring. I'm so glad I have the flexibility to work from home, because if I had to go into the office and present myself to others I would have been a mess. The pre-op liquid diet is very different from the post-op liquid diet. Best of luck to you! Beth