Perplexed!!

Ok , I have this burning question LOL.AndI guess it really doesnt matter but I want to ask it anyways. If all RNY is done the same why does do the before and after diets vary so much? It looks to me like it should be the same across the board. I for one know that my doctor put me on a low carb(less than 50gms a day) diet for 2 wks before surgery and all clear liquid the day before. Then I was on clear liquids for 3 days, then full liquids for 2 wks and now I am to his soft/puree foods for 3 wks, finally I will be able to go to reg foods. But I know my friend in Greensboro was on a NO carb diet for 6 months after surgery. She went straight from liquids to meat! And I see  Jami has been on Optifast for a month! ( God bless you girl ). I just wondered why their is so many huge differences in the diets. It all seems to be the same about what meds you can take after and what you can do but the diets differ SO much! Just wondering Melissa

All RNY is *not* done the same - different surgeons do the surgery different - they have different techniques.. as well as different surgeons use different parts of the stomach to make the pouch and there are different amounts of intestines bypassed (proximal, medial and distal). That explains just a small mart - but as for the diets the majority of it is surgeons preference as to what they feel works best - some surgeons are much more extreme, others more liberal.  The meds you can or cannot take should be the same no matter what - NSAIDs (sp?). As for the vitmains/suppliments again it varies by surgeons preference and also how much is bypassed - typically with more bypassed more vits/supps are required because of the additional malabsorption.

Your diet sounds similar to what my Dr. wanted me on leading up to and after my surgery.  I think it really depends on what school of thought your doctor belongs to.  Some doctors, I think, go with the "worst case senario" plan, where if ANYONE has ever had a problem with a certain type of food at a point in time after surgery he/she wants you to avoid it altogether.  I feel this also helps assure "some" compliance because, in my experience speaking with others, most people "cheat" on the pre-op diet plans.  Some may go with a more statistical view, whereas if a vast majority of patients did ok with soft foods after two weeks he will advise that.  I suppose there are some out there that are more liberal than that.  I think, personally, that everyone is different, and everyone will tolerate certain foods at different times.  I am almost 13 days out and I had my first scambled egg this morning (well half and egg).  My wife was jumping up and down telling me that I shouldn't (the doc's office told me to cook it and then put it in the blender-YUK!),  but I ate it really slow and chewed very, very well and I feel fine.  Anyway, I'm by no means telling anyone to ignore your doc's orders, but I think the variance that you see in postop diets can be attributed to your particular doctor's preferences. 

OMG! NO carbs for 6 months? I didn't even know that was possible. Imagine if she couldn't eat meat?  Glad I didn't have HER surgeon! LOL I still have a hard time choking down a piece of fish. If I were her, I'd have to ask if I heard that right. Hmmm...

Your doctor's diet pretty much sounds like mine but I know what you mean about it being different. Ours seems pretty do-able. Sometimes it's hard just getting in what we're supposed to. *sigh* Protein bullets are a Godsend! Mare

I just had to laugh when I read your post. Now let me tell you why. I have had a box of those nasty protein bullets since the day before surgery and I have managed to get one complete one down. OH those things are too thick and just like syrupy kool-aid! I dont see howyou do it. The one Iactually did get all of it down, I took a medicine cup and down one shot at a time. Followed by a half bottle of water! Took me like 4 hours to get the whole thing down. O have thought about putting them in the blender with ice and water tho... see if that helped but I havent gotten up the cahonies to try it yet. I just stick to my 4 bottles of K2O and my 2 low carb slim fasts. Have you been to the health nut in hampstead yet? They have some different protein drink mixes. And they have talks and all kinds of other things.  Anyways.... oh and yeah she had no carbs for 6 months. She is 1 yr 5 mos out and lost 125 lbs. She is the main reason I thought I could do this! And I am glad I didnt have her doc too....heck i thought air had carbs in it! LOL Melissa

I just add half a bullet to a bottle of water. Not bad at all. Straight? Hell no! Yuck! 21 grams right off the bat. I do that once a day just for the protein boost since it's so hard to eat all my protein.

Melissa, My surgery sister recommended adding a bullet to crystal light and it makes all the difference in the world!!!  Here's how I do it:  I start with a 32 ounce bottle (like a Nalgene bottle), add some ice, and fill with water to about 28 ounces.  Then I dump in one of the crystal light packets.  I've been doing the fruit punch crystal light.  Now, these are supposed to be 1 packet for 16 ounces of water, but I just add one packet to the Nalgene bottle (by the time you add the bullet, it'll be strong enough.)  I shake that up good to mix it, open the top back up and dump in a fruit punch 42 gram protein bullet.  Mix that in a little bit, and drink a little at a time.  Within a few hours, I have half of my fluid intake done and over half of my protein for the day.  It is the ONLY way I can supplement protein without that nasty aftertaste.  I actually even like it!

I don't eat any carbs and am almost 7 months out. I was told to stay away from them as much as possible because they cause hunger.

That must be so difficult. I hope you don't mind me asking...what do you eat? Basically just meat, fish & cheese? I love ALL that but it still must be hard without a salad or vegetable with it. Just curious... Mare

Thank yOu girl!!! LOL It stinks, especially seeing those that had surgery the same day as me and they go to Olive Garden 3 days prior to and eat tuna 1 week out...LOL  I seem to have the STRICTEST of the strict!!! Seriously :( BUT i am very glad now that I think of it, because being on the 2 week liquid diet before, helped me deal with being on the 2 week liquid following!! But the thing that stinks is it was not even liquids ( jello, soup, popcicles, broth, etc) None of that,  It was Optifast/ Optisource..and that stuff is just nauseating after having the same flavor every day, 4 times a day for 2 weeks. UGH!!! The Optifast prior too had 3 different flavors.  BUTTTTTTTTTTT it is out of my life FOREVER now!!!! Yahoooo! My surgeon is different in so many ways and it may be because he works on the team that literally created the RNY procedure! Dunno!!  Like i said in my post, i went from 1 month  of the Opti stuff, then completely skip pureed and no soups, but 2 weeks post, go straight to soft foods and next week i add in seafood, the week after I add poultry and then the week after that I add pork & beef!! Oh and I cannot have soups, those are on my FOODS TO AVOID list!! :( OHHHH and get this...NO protein  shakes or bullets!!!! YEP, NONE!! He doesn't believe in them..he believes we need to get our protein from our food!! So I have to aim for 30g of protein right now...simply from my food!!  And each week add 5-10 more grams of protein a day! It is soo odd that almost EVERY surgeon has a different protocol!! OH and also he didn't want me starting any vitamins until 2 weeks post!! BUT my Opti-stuff had a ton of vitamins, so I suppose that is why! Your post is something I have been wondering since the day i started my pre-op diet...LOL It is amazing how many different pre-op and post-op diets are out there, all leading to the same surgery!!