I'm pre-op but a little scared

Anyone. Please need suggestions. Going to the store in a couple hours.

Hi Mike.  My surgery is Dec 18 and I am on day 4 of the pre-op diet.  Mine is not completely liquid.  I can have 4 oz of lean meat and a yogurt as well as a vegetable and a fruit.  If you drink a lot of caffeine start weaning off of it now--I am having some pretty bad headaches, even though I started weaning off the caffeine early.  

As far as the protein shakes go--start trying them now--don't go buy a ton and then end up hating the product.  Some of them are really bad.  I have ordered a few samples online--the one I like the best is called UNJURY--I don't believe you can buy if in a retail store--but I buy the unflavored one.  It can be mixed with anything like broth (warm not hot), water, skim milk etc.  

If you are looking for a product you can just drink from the bottle, I know the Atkins High Protein shakes are supposed to be decent.  Your doctor problem gave you guidelines for calories, sugars, carbs and protein. Make sure you follow his instructions.  

Good luck to you-I am scared as well--I had this surgery 10 years ago.  I have regained a lot of the weight back.  The reason for this is I started getting back into bad habits--I quit attending the support groups, quit posting on this site, and didn't handle some stressful situations very well. I started drinking beer again regularly, an Diet Coke, and eventually stretched my pouch out.  Yes, after surgery you will most likely be able to get to a point where you can eat almost anything. (I still cannot eat much sugar without feeling sick--which is a blessing IMO)  However, it's hard to digest rice, corn, a lot of veggies etc.  

I am so blessed to have this new opportunity (hernia repair and a revision to my pouch).  I am determined to make it work this time--the key-for me--is staying around people who have been through this--and remaining focused.  My kids, who were much younger the first go-around, are now in college and high school.  I want to continue living life with them and my husband of 21 years.  I do hike, but I want to REALLY hike.  I want to feel good again.  

God bless you on your journey--I will be thinking of you.

Hi Mike.  My surgery is Dec 18 and I am on day 4 of the pre-op diet.  Mine is not completely liquid.  I can have 4 oz of lean meat and a yogurt as well as a vegetable and a fruit.  If you drink a lot of caffeine start weaning off of it now--I am having some pretty bad headaches, even though I started weaning off the caffeine early.  

As far as the protein shakes go--start trying them now--don't go buy a ton and then end up hating the product.  Some of them are really bad.  I have ordered a few samples online--the one I like the best is called UNJURY--I don't believe you can buy if in a retail store--but I buy the unflavored one.  It can be mixed with anything like broth (warm not hot), water, skim milk etc.  

If you are looking for a product you can just drink from the bottle, I know the Atkins High Protein shakes are supposed to be decent.  Your doctor problem gave you guidelines for calories, sugars, carbs and protein. Make sure you follow his instructions.  

Good luck to you-I am scared as well--I had this surgery 10 years ago.  I have regained a lot of the weight back.  The reason for this is I started getting back into bad habits--I quit attending the support groups, quit posting on this site, and didn't handle some stressful situations very well. I started drinking beer again regularly, an Diet Coke, and eventually stretched my pouch out.  Yes, after surgery you will most likely be able to get to a point where you can eat almost anything. (I still cannot eat much sugar without feeling sick--which is a blessing IMO)  However, it's hard to digest rice, corn, a lot of veggies etc.  

I am so blessed to have this new opportunity (hernia repair and a revision to my pouch).  I am determined to make it work this time--the key-for me--is staying around people who have been through this--and remaining focused.  My kids, who were much younger the first go-around, are now in college and high school.  I want to continue living life with them and my husband of 21 years.  I do hike, but I want to REALLY hike.  I want to feel good again.  

God bless you on your journey--I will be thinking of you.

Thank you for all of the info and the blessings. I feel like Job must have felt. Although I've been a Christian for over 31 years, I wasn't really living Christ's example. About 4 years ago, my wife and I started looking for a church. We found one and started really learning and studying the Bible. Since then, my health has really took a turn for the worse, almost as if God has given the devil permission to really test my faith. I've been in the hospital over 12 times in the past 18 months with a-fib and chest pain. I have absolutely no energy, and my joint pain is excruciating. I can't walk 50 yards. But I still have faith and hope that God will heal me. He may have to usea man to do my surgery to do it,but I still believe that it's God's good works that will bring me through this. 

I received the list of recommended productsfrom my Dr on Friday. Some products I've already tried are on the list, so I was able to go get enough products to give me a vavariety of flavors for the next month or more. 

I'm starting my liquid diet tomorrow. Went to Sizzlers after church today to eat the last big juicy steak I will ever eat. I savored every bite. Boy was it ever good! I am excited to get started tomorrow.

You'll have steak again. I have a steak almost every day. It might be the perfect RNY food. I don't have anything with it, since there isn't room. Just the steak. Ribeye. Mmmmmmm.

I had the New York steak. It was tender and juicy and full of flavor. God I love steak. I am so glad to hear I am going to be able to still eat it. I bet Elk back straps would be great too.  Very low fat high protein, and if prepared correctly, it is just as juicy. One more reason to get better, so I can hunt again. 

My surgery is December 18th too! Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Hi Mike. I was in your shoes with diabetes, aching back and knees and the rest. Good news is that my surgery cleared all that up. My diabetes even went away. They say that happens in 80% of the cases. Mine has never returned after 10 years. Few people have complications after surgery, though it happens. I think you have way more to gain than lose as you are on your way out early if you don't lose that weight as it puts a strain on your heart and the rest of your organs. I am so glad that I had my surgery, and I'm certain you will too. And I wouldn't say you can never eat the food you liked again. Just in moderation. I can eat all the things I used to and am certain my stomach has stretched back out so I got to be careful of how much and what I eat. After I first had my surgery my taste buds changed and the only things that tasted good were melons like watermelon and cantaloupes. All the foods I used to love now tasted like doo doo. Your taste buds will come back on line after awhile but hopefully your bad habits will have changed by then. All in all I would say don't be scared. Instead be happy you are saving your life.  - Jerry

Hey Jerry,

Thanks for the encouraging words. I went ahead and started my liquid diet yesterday. I figure if 2 weeks is good then 3 weeks is better. I am doing OK. My nurse told me to make sure to get 100gm of protein daily. This was based on my height and weight. This morning I weighed in and I finally broke the 300 mark. I am at 299.4lbs. I know that is probably water weight, and I did a magnesium cleanse because of the swelling in my legs. I do that about once a month. I did it again yesterday. Whenever I did it before, I never broke the 300 mark. Always got to 300 or 301 and then right back up to 314 to 323, which is my highest ever. So this is a little bitty victory for me. I am expecting to see many more of them.

My wife and daughter are very supportive. When we found out about the $500.00 fee that I didn't know about until yesterday, my wife told me not to worry about it. I am worth it and we will find a way to get it in time, even if we have to get it on a credit card or something. Thinking on that though, I had gotten a pre-approval letter in the mail last week for a Capitol One card with 0% interest until September. Something told me to apply and I was approved for exactly $500.00. The card will be here in 2 to 4 days. Amazing how God works huh?

Doo doo?