pre-op diet questions

I am almost through day two of my 2 week clear liuqid pre op diet. so far so good, but I am looking for any advice from anyone who had Dr. Glas**** (or similar 2 week diet) - I'm looking for any advice or suggestions that anyone might have. Thanks.. J. Renee

Well, by the end of the weekend, you'll be through the worse of it. It seems by day 4 or so, you just aren't as hungry or maybe food just doesn't seem so important. I'm sure Jane told you that chicken and beef broth gets really old so most of us bought canned soup & strained it instead. The flavor is much better. I wanted something to chew so made finger jello using sugarfree jello. Even though it is pretty solid, it still counts as a liquid. Do you have an ice shaver or a snowcone maker? If not, you might want to get one. It helps to be able to chew the shaved ice but after the surgery I really appreciated it. Pour Crystal Lite or watered down juice over the crushed or shave ice & it is an excellent way of getting in your fluids. I found that my pouch tolerated the slushes I drank better than just juice. Finally, the dietician told me that they suspect that everyone will "cheat" a tiny bit so don't beat yourself up if you do slip a bit. I confess that after I saw Dr G & he confirmed that the surgery was a go, I went right to Target & bought a container of Pico DeGaio and ate a couple tablespoons of it to celebrate. I felt so guilty but it tasted SO GOOD. Good luck! Dixie

I also ate a lot of popsicles just so I could chew something. It seemed when I was really hungry it helped to do the warm broth. Doesn't Dr. G let you do protein drinks as long as they're done with water now? I used Nectar protein powder (green apple and cherry berry) and blended them in the smoothie maker with ice. At least it was thick. You can also drink warm jello before it sets up. I got really tired of all the sweed stuff. The chicken soup you get in the box (Clifford the big red dog is on the box) is good cooked if you strain out the noodles. It does seem to get easier after day 4 or 5. I found the weekends at home to be hard anyway. Finding something to keep you mind off food seems to be the best way. Hang in there and call if you need support!! You'll be there before you know it.. Janie

Hi it gets better day by day. My first day I was preparing for a birthday party and that was so hard. I never slipped once even though I wanted to I just kept telling myself I can do it. Eat lots of jello the broth was kind of gross to me. I drank lots of juices but they have to be pulp free. Each day will bring you closer to your surgery and you will look back on it and think it was nothing this 2 weeks. But at the time your going through this it seems like it is taking for ever but you will get there. It will be a year for me this March 4 I am already down 147 pounds and it was so worth having this surgery. I wish you all the best and Dr. G. is an excellent surgeon and his office staff is so great and so helpful. Utilize the board for support and never be afraid to ask a question because someone else might be wondering the same thing. So pop sicles, jello and juices and caffeine free pop is what I mainly lived on. Good luck! Kim L.

The thing that got me through was buying the ramen noodle packages, throwing away the noodles, and using their broth packages. They come in all different kind of flavors and I found the spicy ones really helped me get through the cravings. A couple of times early on in my two weeks I would buy egg drop soup from the restaurant and take it home and drain out the egg. I felt like I was getting a real meal. Also if he still allows it, since its been almost a year from my surgery, I loved the frozen fruit bars. The frozen pieces of fruit in the bars let me "chew" on a little something. Hang in there you'll do fine. It gets tough but the end result is so worth. Good luck on your journey and get ready for the "ride" of your life! Don't be afraid to contact any of us who have been Dr. G's patient. We've been through it all and we'd love to help anyone out along their journey. Gail