I agree and think Dr. Oakley and his staff are he best! As long as you are doing good then he will let you advance. He probably feels we know our bodies best and what works and doesn't work for us.

 Hi,
I take the Bariatric Advantage Chews that they sell at the Pharmacy at St. Luke's Hospital. They come in Lemon, Chocolate and Raspberry and they taste pretty much like Starburst candies.

Hello...  No you are not a wimp at all... I have surgery on 3/29 and i hated the liquid diet part. What i did that helped me was i purchased Gensoy Protein Powder (i bought it at Rite Aid). I would mix between broths and sugarless drink aids (like crystal like, Hawaiian punch ) and i would mix this powder. There is no flavor to it so it made it a lot easier. Plus if you drink the broths warm it taste really good and the punches or drinks cold. It helps a lot.  I wish you the best of luck and wish you much success!   O in regards to snacking... u can not snack but freeze crystal like cubes or sugarles*****hes and its really like drinking liquids but its really good!   Take Care

Am I the only wimp who is having such a hard time on the month long liquid diet? It is killing me!!! You can't make a decent shake with only 4 oz of liquid and i have found out that the protien stuff I have doesn't keep very well. I am drinking ensure and boost and putting it in that. They dont want you to snack so I try not to.

The first couple of weeks you'll be on soft foods like protein drinks, cottage cheese, cream soups, refried beans and yogurt (look for the low sugar variety Fred Meyer has a good low carb yogurt that actually has more protein than greek yogurt but less calories). 

Then a couple of weeks later you'll get to try soft foods for a couple of weeks (they'll give you a list of stuff you can eat). 
Then at around 3 months they give you the green light to eat fresh veggies and you're pretty much unlimited in the food you can eat so long as it's low carb/sugar/fat.  Plan to give up caffinated drinks for a year.  I know it can be hard, but I haven't touched a soda in 10 months now (not even diet).
In the beginning, he expects that you'll need supplements.  It takes some time to be able to get all your protein in and he knows that.  Eventually, he recommends that you eat 3 meals per day that are comprised of lean meats to be eaten first.  Having said that, he isn't going to jump down your throat if you use supplements after the first couple of months.  Depending on how you do after your surgery he can advance your diet.  In my case I lost 100 pounds in just over 6 months, so he gave me the go ahead to incorporate more veggies into my diet.  I followed the plan pretty strictly (with only a few exceptions) and he said that I'd lost as much in 6 months as many people lose in the course of a year, but like I said "I tow the line".  You've chosen a great doctor that you can be confident in his abilities as a surgeon.  I'm really happy for you.  Good Luck on your journey!