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@Drinkwine28 and @Iluvbats I’m with you on it being HARD! I posted earlier because I was so excited I did it (surgery 6/21) and was feeling good. This is post op day 4 and now I’m feeling lots of things. 🙃 Still have pain from hernia repair (minor but annoying), weird bubbly tummy that sometimes feels like hunger growls - but isn’t, and feel gassy. I have major head games happening. My brain will not stop thinking about all sorts of junk food - even food that I didn’t really care about before (it’s like a junk food slide show in my head). I am on a liquid diet the first two weeks and can then introduce softer foods slowly. I’ve been having lots of water, Gatorade zero, protein drinks, and tried some broth. I’m fantasizing about those eggs and cottage cheese among other things! 🤤 I am keeping a journal and telling myself that I can’t give into my brain games the first 6 months. I think being able to chew will help in the future. It has to get better, right? We can do this!

Bariatric Surgery patients represent a surprisingly increasing number of patients in inpatient treatment for anorexia according to John's Hopkins. Yes, anorexia and other eating disorders are a serious risk for our population. Yes, treatment....including eating more.... will be a help even if you gain a little weight to find a managable maintenance level of calories. Passing out is incredibly dangerous and can kill you or others if you drive. It's also incredibly unsafe on stairs, around heavy equipment, and in the company of unsafe people. Being that low on nutrition is hard on your body, particularly your heart. You can do permenant damage in short order. Take your condition seriously. Your very demanding job and thinner body are of no use to you if you imperil your safety, health, and eventually your life. (it's tough on relationships, too) Wishing you the very best.

Day one post op everything went well just try to keep my pain under control Sent from my SM-N950U using BariatricPal mobile app

I just had my sleeve on 25 June also…24 hour out I am able to get water and broth down with little pain. The gas pain, which hurt the most has finally started to dissipate. Walking when I get a serious bout if pain seems to really help. I hope everything is well with you! It is just the start for us!

Technically speaking they would be the same except a bariatric soft would focus more on proteins than just general calories. This would include easy to chew foods that are also easily digestible. This list will give you an idea of what to include and stay away from. Keep in mind though that actual liquids are ok with soft foods, especially after hernia repair.

a lot of us were told to take whey protein isolate (when early out and doing protein supplementation) because it's the most easily absorbed by us. The others are right - collagen is not a complete protein, so that's not going to work early out if you're using it as your main protein supplement.

I’m 25 months post my sleeve. I was almost 54 when I had my surgery and I’m so glad I did. I had a friend who’d had sleeve surgery & I did a lot of reading before seeing my surgeon so generally I felt pretty prepared. But because we’re different, there will be differences in our experience too. You just never know how your body will respond after surgery to the change. For example my occasional blood pressure drops have become something that occurs every day - annoying but manageable. The parasite that hid out in my tummy (multiple antibiotics over years couldn’t kill it) was cut out with the bulk of my tummy & now I’m not sensitive to lactose anymore - unexpected win! As @Creekimp13 said the surgery will give you a tool to aid weight loss by reducing your tummy but it doesn’t do anything for what drives us to eat. That’s the work you have to do. Many do the head work with the help of a therapist, short or long term, others do it alone. It’s an essential component to the success of your surgery because the things that drove you to eat will always be there. You just have to learn & develop strategies to manage those drives. The surgery doesn’t educate us on how to eat better & in a healthier way either. Keep in touch with your dietician while you lose & maintain. I also did a lot of reading, ignored all the fad diet stuff & worked out how I wanted to eat long term to maintain my weight loss & still enjoy my life without feeling I’m missing out. What drove us to eat & bad eating habits & food choices are the reason why we always regained after we lost in the past. I don’t know what the further will bring. None of us do. Life can throw a heap of sh*t at us sometimes. But I do know I’m going to try to keep working at this every day.

Hey! 5weeks out for me too! Done mine on May 11th, but I've only dropped like 11pounds in 2 weeks, stalled til now 🥲 it's definitely unnerving and I truly understand how you feel! Had my first month check with my doctor last week and even he thought that I was kinda slow (they expected abt 17 - 30lbs lost in first month before The Stall) so... a bit demotivating but I've been getting a lot of positive vibes from the peeps here! I guess our diff is that I tend to miss hitting protein target at times due to work but I've started working out a lil and try to eat more protein now. Hoping all the best for you and cheer up! You're not alone )

I needed every minute of the 6 month diet to do the work of understanding my eating habits and what I was in for....and I still could have used more time to prepare. I understand being excited and impatient to move forward...but the six month diet is important. Without learning to control your eating habits, you're going to be in trouble. This surgery is a tool, and it's a tool that fails...a lot...when people are not prepared for the lifetime changes they need to make. And I don't mean just adjusting to your new anatomy...that's relatively easy. What I mean is...the fact that you will STILL have to count calories, record everything you eat, fight temptation and cravings, and especially... find other outlets for emotional eating, identify your triggers, cope with the things that drove you to eat. Most of the people who make noise on the boards fall into two catagories. The people who have experienced some degree of success working very very hard. And the people who have experienced some degree of success by the good fortune of an excellent physiological reaction to the surgery regardless of their habits (luck). Who we DON'T tend to hear from, or see posts from....are the majority of people who have these surgeries.... who never lose more than 50% of their excess weight. When people get unhappy or feel unsuccessful...they don't post about it. Half of people who have this surgery will fall in this category. You can eat around an altered stomach and gain it all back. It's not even hard to do. The surgery changes one anatomical element to give you an advantage....not a fix. Your head is the place that needs the real fix. Six months...is a great investment in working to fix your head before you have to deal with your new digestive system. Are bariatric surgeries a terrific tool? Yes. The new anatomy helps a lot. Another terrific tool...one that is arguably just as helpful and arguably more important to your longterm success......a bariatric therapist. Make sure you have access to one. Best wishes to all!

WHY? Weight loss surgery is weight loss surgery, with the same challenges and victories for everyone. We don't need to know someone's race, age, gender, or sexual preference to offer encouragement, advice, and support.