swizzly

That is my worst nightmare. I think you handled it very well.

My nutritionist said it makes no difference -- I have to add in flavour as well or it won't go down.

I think it's a great idea -- I wish I had done anything like that!! I'm already post-op and mostly staying at home still, aside from walks, so I've been in trackies and PJs for the most part. But I'm a little freaked out by the fact that I have a huge wardrobe full of clothes in all one size (I've been the same exact weight for like 12 years ) and I have no idea what I will wear. I guess desperation will force me to the shops one of these days, but I don't have any plan in place and no smaller clothes tucked away to try and fit into. If you're over-preparing, I'm definitely under-prepared!

You look so great! Love the new sparkle in your eye especially. Also, your hair looks fab -- did it not thin at all??

I started at 240 and am almost two weeks out, have lost about 11 lbs since then.

B: 1/4 c steel-cut oats with milk + 1 small hard-cooked egg L: 1/4 c refried Beans and cottage cheese (adds Protein and when heated together tastes VERY yummy) S: Fresh mozarella stick D: 2 T creamed spinach and five wee shrimp + 5 wholegrain spelt very small pretzel sticks -- totally tasty and slightly too much, oopsie. Evening snack will be probiotic yogurt and a square of dark chocolate. Did good today.

Mine was: Don't eat or drink anything after midnight the night before surgery. Before that, the surgeon specifically requested that I not change *anything* about my eating habits (ie, no drastic reductions; no big last-supper blowouts) prior to surgery. Note that this instruction came after it was already established that I was not a binge-er and had fairly regular/good eating habits.

I didn't have a pre-op (or post-op) liquid diet. My surgeon (well, all the doctors/surgeons in my clinic) is not a fan of liquid diets, in nearly any context. (Also, I know may people allude to fatty liver and shrinking it and all that -- but it in fact takes much longer than a week or two to shrink an actual fatty liver.) I hypothesize that it's actually more to do with compliance and patient readiness than physical reasons. But this is all just my opinion and I am not a doctor.

I have no idea if your wife is addicted to food/eating or not, but never underestimate the level of threat and fear involved in depriving an addict of comfortable access to their drug of choice. Or their favorite partner and enabler in the addiction. If you want this, you need to move ahead with it with love and care and loads of affection -- but do move ahead with it if you feel it's right for you. Individual and/or marital counseling may be in order. Good luck!

I would say I've had significantly less gas since surgery (and not that much before hand -- unless you count burping, which has always been more of a problem for me, and this has been reduced by not having fizzy drinks) and notice zero difference in the smell (which is also very little -- lol, which is not to claim that my s**t don't stank or anything ). We have a running joke in my house where DH always apologises for farting (ie, when it's me that's done so) because only boys fart don'tcha know -- and we haven't had one of those since I've had the surgery.

Mine was solid foods from day four, so there is wide variety. I've been on "real" food for over a week now -- so far, so good!

Good luck -- you'll do great!!

My program seems to be by far the most liberal, and even it says no salad or raw fruit/veg for a minimum of four weeks after surgery. By that measure, you'd be okay to have salad now -- but the nutritionist just today told me to be very careful about which lettuce, picking the more tender ones and using only the green part of the leaf, not the stalky bits that are more fibrous. I would think lamb's lettuce/mache with the stems cut off would be the perfect lettuce for an early salad. That stuff melts in your mouth practically!

If I'm honest, the first 72 hours were AWFUL. I didn't have the dreaded gas pain, but my damn little tummy HURTHURTHURT. Plus, I had intractable nausea and kept violently vomiting, which made everything hurt worse. But once I got past that, I felt better very quickly -- and now just 12 days out, I'm feeling quite good -- get tired and am still obviously mending, but feel pretty well.

Salt & Vinegar potato chips, our love had only just been discovered a few months ago -- cut short by fate and a scalpel. Alas. Salamis of all kinds, I will miss you -- your fatty lusciousness will not fit in me wee sleevey. Almost everything else I like, I can still eat -- one square of dark chocolate per day seems to be doing me right. And I was never much of a bread/pasta girl anyhow.

Well done you -- you look completely fab!!

My sleeve is only a week old, so I can't say anything superlative about it yet (so far, so good). But prior to that, the hysterectomy is the best thing I've ever done. So. Awesome. Get better quickly!!

I hate that feeling!! Try to get more protein in, even in icky liquid form. Good luck!

My program has me on food from day three (for me, four) post-op. It also calls for three meals and three snacks per day (in addition to 1.5 - 2 liters of water). I believe this whole program is based precisely on what OliviaM is talking about. I haven't hit 1000 calories, but I've been hovering around 850, just about 10 days post-op. I'm not meant to be calorie-counting, but I too am concerned about hosing my metabolism (more than I already did with eating disorders in my younger days). A 1000-calorie-per-day diet is still very low cal, and I would be fine to hit 1000 and keep it there for a few months.

This is a huge ranty topic for me, so I will spare you all the long ALL CAPPED emphatic response LOL. This is my single question back to anyone who says I took the easy way out: Why should I NOT take the 'easy' way out? Seriously -- this is not a rhetorical question: Why not? Fat is not a moral failure; I didn't do anything Bad or Wrong, and I don't 'deserve to be punished' by doing it the "hard way" over and over and over again. The end.

My bariatric doctor and surgeon have no pre-op diet, move you to food (anything but raw fruit and veg) including coffee three days post-op, and keep you in hospital a minimum of five days. I've never seen anything that varied as much as pre-op and post-op rules for various surgical practices around the world. I think it matters what you do inasmuch as you follow your doctor/surgeon's practices to indicate your compliance and increase your likelihood of success. All that said, I would NOT do this surgery as an outpatient. I couldn't even have gone home (10 mins from hospital) the first three days post-op if I'd wanted to. Urgh. Good luck!!

Congrats! Well done you!!!

I was in for six days, and had to get a wee bit stroppy to bust out then. No complications or anything, it's just impossible to check out of the Hotel California a swiss hospital, they think you should stay a week minimum for *anything*. Oy. But I was glad to be there the first four days, as I really did need the help and care. I have heard of places doing this sugery as an outpatient procedure, which blows. my. mind. Call me a wimp, but I needed to be waited on and cared for when I was violently ill for 72 hours.

Thanks, and same to you! If I'm honest, I didn't have high hopes at first, as I spent the first nearly 72 hours violently ill. But when I started to feel better, it was like boom, I suddenly felt SO much better. They are simply not at all keen on liquid diets here, so food it is. I haven't been overly adventurous with trying anything super daring, it's only been a few days. But my doctor says, if you can eat it and it stays down and doesn't cause any pain, then it works and you can eat it. The only verboten things are raw fruit and veg for four weeks after surgery. Or there may be other things off limits that I've been eating without knowing it. Guess I'll find out when I meet my nutritionist next week. But it's mostly been eggs and cottage cheese and yogurt and soup and very thin, very tender meat so far -- and things like cooked beets and carrots, they are easy to eat (and they taste so good...).

I was served a small piece of crustless bread for Breakfast one day in hospital, it went down fine for me. Of course, by now I'm discovering that everything goes down fine for me. So I have a sleeve of steel or something.