1 month post op and am worried.

Hello everyone, I'm 1 month post op today and am supposed to be on pureed until the 6th but haven't pureed anything since the 2nd day of being on pureeds! I couldn't stand it so I basically skipped to soft foods and am chewing everything to mush figuring that's the same thing right? Well I'm away on vacation and didn't bring my scale so didn't weigh in today but I'm feeling like something's not right. Why am I able to eat a considerable amount of food before feeling only slightly full? I thought I would feel full after just a little food? Also. I can eat bread!!! I'm not supposed to be able to do that am I? I've eaten some greasy foods.....nothing!! I'm drinking fluids the way I used to (ie: semi gulping) no problem! Did I mess something up by skipping the pureed phase?? GOD I hope someone can reassure me! At last weigh in I'd lost 24 lbs so that's 24 lbs in 3 weeks.. I guess that's good but I'm still worried....

Rosalind, Don't worry. I don't think you messed anything up. If you did, I'm sure you'd be in serious pain. I suggest you take it SLOW and don't eat bread!!! Bread can expand in your stomach, stretching it out. Stay away from bread and rice for at least the first year. Eat foods with a lot of protein to fill you up. DO NOT DRINK WHILE YOU EAT! Wait at least 30 min. after you finish eating before you drink something. If you drink while you eat, you will probably be able to eat more because you'll just wash out what you have already eaten. If you think there is a serious problem, go see your doctor or go to the ER. Maybe go see a dietician and explain what is going on. They can put you on a plan. You just have to stick to it! You can do it, just keep those things in mind. Congratulations on the 24 lbs loss! That's great Take care, Courtney St. Louis, MO OPEN RNY 5/21/02 310/161/135

Hi Courtney, Thank you for the reassurance. I'd also posted my situation on the Q & A and got a lot of good advise. Basically everyone says I probably didn't do any harm and not to worry. I did speak to someone at Barix and they too said that the eating phases are for the purpose ensuring the recovery of my stomach and that I should just take care to treat my stomach gently. It's hard to remember since I feel so normal! I've read some of your profile and noticed our start weights were close (mine was 308 lbs) so I'm hoping my total weight loss is as great as yours although I'll be happy if I get to half of the 308! All the best and God Bless.

You can't rely on physical sensation to tell you you're full this early out...so you really need to be measuring your portions and sticking to them. And just because you've skipped to mushies doesn't mean it's ok to eat stuff like bread and greasy things...a long-time lap-bandster, aftercare-giver and author coined the phrase: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should" and that's very important. Just because you CAN eat bread doesn't mean you should. This is the part we bring to our surgery...the effort we need to make to make better choices. Ultimately, WLS will not be successful if we don't do our part. We should never be looking for the surgery to actively prevent us from eating, but making the best choices we can and work with the tool surgery gives us. Please treat your newly formed pouch gingerly...it's not fully healed yet. Nancy 394/260/180

Nancy I could not agree with you more. Just because you can eat these foods doesn't mean you should. Why are you pushing the envelope especially so early out from surgery? Please don't continue to do this you will only sabotage yourself in the end. Your program gives you these food rules for a good reason, mostly to allow your tummy to heal but also to maximize your weight loss. You need to follow the rules if you want to be successful. You may not harm yourself but you certainly won't help yourself in the long run if you start pushing the limits this early. I only say this out of care and concern. The first 6 months post op are your golden time, you will lose weight quickly and fairly easily. But do not be fooled, you need to take these first 6 months to retrain your MIND. Your body is being given a time out from food for a while and you need to take this time to break bad habits and addictions. If you don't do it now it will be much harder to do later. Take this time to get your head straight and to really understand the commitment you've made. Start exercising and learning to enjoy it...you are going to need good healthy habits after 6 months or so and you need to implement them so you don't become a permanent resident of the failure board. I hope this doesn't come accross to harsh but please take your surgery seriously, this was a life long decision....do what they tell you to do!