Question:
The pre-op diet is making me question whether or not I should be having surgery.

I'm having VSG on Saturday and I started my liquid pre-op diet yesterday and did alright but today I gave in and had a bit of a binge and now I'm feeling like maybe I am not ready for this...I'd hate to waste sooo much money or feel the bitter sting of failure on this thing. I need some encouragement or a voice of reason or something.    — scraft120 (posted on December 21, 2008)

December 21, 2008
BELIEVE ME when I say that PRE-OP is the HARDEST PART of this procedure! Having to DIET and then NOT EAT for the day or so BEFORE the surgery was the hardest part for me. FOR MONTHS afterward, the HUNGRIEST that I got was as if I had been working along and NOT thinking about food and someone suddenly said, "I'm going to Taco Bell, anyone want anything?" It was as if I would have to STOP what I was doing and THINK for a minute before deciding, "Yea, Get me a burrito or something." This was after NOT having had SOLID FOOD for OVER A MONTH! I DID NOT EXPERIENCE HUNGER to ANY extreme like I had before! There was just the SLIGHTEST little bit of an INKLING that I was hungry and that was usually LONG after I had OTHER warning signs that I was hungry (usually things like light headedness when standing up or being too grouchy). It took some getting used to not having that CONSTANT hunger pangs that were driving me to over eat all the time. Even NOW, 10 months AFTER my surgery, I STILL do not have much hunger. I have MORE than I did right after the surgery, but I can IGNORE the hunger if I have to. I could never DO that before. We ALL fail on occasion, the TRICK is to get back up AFTER failing and get back on track! You need to forgive yourself of this transgression and get back on track. I hope that this helps. Hugh
   — hubarlow

December 21, 2008
oh sarah, im so proud to know im not the only one that has fallen on the wagon. i am having RNY on jan 5th, and am having to do a 4 week liquid diet before hand. i started my diet on dec 7th and it has been pure hell. I have cheated a few times, but really not cheating. I had a few bites of salad and i ate a peice of grilled chicken. I have lost 16 pounds so far. Its gonna be ok. what i have learned is to pick myself back off the ground when I fall. Tomorrows a new day and you CAN do it. You will be in my prayers.
   — jackie L.

December 21, 2008
The good thing about the VSG is they are removing the part of your stomach that produces most of the hunger hormone. I didn't feel hungry at all till about 6 months post op. Then it wasn't really hunger, it was more of a reminder that it was time to eat. I never feel that horrible hunger I felt before surgery. I hit goal at 6 months, then adjusted my goal and have been staying steady for almost a year. Also, with this surgery, you will no longer be able to gorge the way you can now. You might eat the wrong foods, and it might slow down your weight loss some, but you will not be able to eat like you can now, and you wont even care. I love how I eat now, I love how I feel now and I love how I look now. It's impossible to explain to someone who hasn't had the surgery, how we feel now regarding hunger and stuff, because you just can't imagine it till you are here. Everyone seems to say the first 3 days are the hardest on the preop diet, but on the 4th day, it just seems to click. You don't have much longer, you can do it. It does get easier, but those first few days are very hard for someone who is preop.
   — Teresa V.

December 21, 2008
don't beat yourself up!!! the pre-op diet is hard, after years of eating, just get back on track and remind yourself that you are worth what ever it takes in effort or dollars to get healthy. good luck and I'm sending you positive, encouraging, strengthening, supportive vibes!!!!
   — jeanne_wise

December 21, 2008

   — nursenut

December 22, 2008
Sarah, just hang in there. Pre-op is the hardest part; however, 3 yrs ago most Drs did not require the liquid diet prior to surgery and people would go out the night before and fill up on a buffet. Start each day with a fresh outlook and don't dwell on the failures of the day before. It will be different once you undergo surgery, the hunger will be gone. Good luck.
   — amistique569