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Day 1 of The pre opt Diet! We got this! Surgery date is Dec 20th. Lets gooooooo!

I eat rice "backwards" ... Most dishes have the rice as the base of the dish. I put the vegetables, and protein at the bottom or as the majority of my meal, and then sprinkle the rice on top .... I can add as much or as little as I desire, but this way, I see the rice .... and I have some, just not as the majority of my plate/meal. I do this in many different cuisines !

I was always ready for the next phase after the monotony, though I was discharged from the hospital on the pureed stage. I did not have any liquid only phase post-op. I was on yogurt, ricotta (ricotta bake was a lifesaver), pureed soups. The shakes were hard to get down. I couldn't manage 2 a day. Protein water was a good option to change up the flavor and not just the creamy stuff. Half applesauce and half greek yogurt was a decent changeup. When I was first cleared for eggs, I couldn't stomach one scrambled egg. I found the soft boiled egg far easier to tolerate. I don't typically have protein shakes now, but I do still like them as my base for coffee every now and again.

I used to have "sulfuric" burps (rotten egg smell) and it's from my gall bladder and/or gerd....so hopefully it's something like that. Please let us know what you find out. Pray all goes well!

Head hunger is the worst for me, and if I eat anything with a lot of starch or sugar, I crave it constantly. I'm having to distance myself from anything with more than single-digit carbs, otherwise it takes me about 3 days to get rid of the cravings, which is misery. Also remember when chewing up and spitting out carb-heavy foods, just to get a taste, your mouth will absorb some of those carbs, which can trigger those cravings. Not so much with protein or fat heavy foods. I'm trying to remember my wife's motto, she says Little Debbies lead to Fat Deborahs. Although there's days I'd do something regrettable for one of their Christmas Cakes lol.

WHOOOO! I needed a "formal" dress for a Charity event. I walked in, saw a dress I liked, grabbed a size. Tried it on an BAM! DONE!!!! Never in a million years would this happen. Normally it would be 45 stores, 2 weeks of looking and basically finding something I hate but fits.. WHOOOOO HOOO Also- I HIT MY FIRST "ORIGINAL" GOAL THIS WEEK! This was what my surgeon and myself agreed on from my initial appointment and I am perfectly fine here.. but my "updated" goal is just there to be able to say I lost half of my original body weight!

Yes! January 3rd is my date!

You’re right, it is a long term diet (or lifestyle) that doesn’t have an end date and for most of us it will be restrictive. Some people have no issue with this, some need to work a little harder to come to terms with it and some never comply. My only suggestion would be to work on accepting your new diet/lifestyle well ahead of surgery or you might just rebel against the rules your team set up (for your benefit) because you’re being forced to do them rather than choosing on your own. I don’t think anyone really likes being forced to do anything so I completely understand where you’re coming from. Good Luck! ❤️

Learning to eat slowly can be challenging. Over time you can speed up again or find you’re subconsciously timing your bites with whoever you’re eating with. I found putting my cutlery down & sitting back from the table helped. I still take a long time to eat - 30-45 mins to eat a meal though it used to be longer - up to an hour. The slowing your eating is also to ensure you haven’t eaten too much before you recognise your full signal. This signal can take 20+ minutes to kick in so if you eat quickly you can eat more than you actually need & are then are over full. I often have a very slow full message which is also why I eat slowly. I also can’t drink more than two mouthfuls at a time. I was having trouble swallowing a med for my Meniere’s vertigo one day. It starts to dissolve when it gets moist & even just putting it in your mouth it will stick. Took a 4th swallow to get it down & then I swear within seconds up all the water came … & the med.

Sward, I know the feeling. It is odd not feeling the anticipation/joy about food in certain situations (I had my birthday last month about 5 months out from my surgery), but you do get used to it. Not being able to look forward to a Brazilian Steakhouse (all you can eat meat), or a good mexican restaurant (where I would eat too many chips + salsa), etc is a negative, but reframing those moments in my mind has helped me a lot. I can focus on talking more with my friends, or trying new foods (I was a pretty picky eater before and have taken this opportunity to try out a lot of new stuff with the mindset of "If I don't like it, I won't have to eat too much of it :D") Stick with it for a while and you will start to look at this in a different light (although mine still hasn't gone away completely).