SlowlybutSurely

Oh yes, that's true. I managed 1/2 cup of chilli yesterday and paid for it. Today, I could only manage about 1/4 cup. I think those are the amounts that we CAN have after 4 weeks but not necessarily WILL be able to consume AT 4/5/7,etc weeks.

You're going thru your "mourning food" phase. I think everyone goes through it, at least I know I did but I think I got thru it. I have to admit that it was a little easier for me because I live alone. I went to a superbowl party and wasn't really tempted to try my absolute favorite food...hot wings. Don't know how I did it but I did and you will too. The "good" thing about it is you're at a stage where you can't even if you tried and would soon stop eating that food because of the discomfort associated with eating it. You'll feel a lot better though at 4 weeks when you can at least taste "real" food. I made a pot of chilli yesterday and ate 1/2 cup yesterday and about 1/4 cup today. It was all I needed to satisfy my taste buds

A lot of people lose weight without the surgery BuT a lot of people don't. Only YOU will know whether or not you can do it without the surgery. I dieted for over 30 years so I knew that if I hadn't done it in 30 years, then I couldn't do it on my own. Even with the surgery, it's not automatic and some people lose and some don't. The surgery is simply a tool that allows you to control your eating portions WHILE WE LEARN new eating and lifestyle habits.

You said you are drinking your Water but you didn't mention your Protein intake? How is your daily protein intake as well as your carb intake? Those are the most important things to watch along with the fluids.

I think my biggest concern is I never know when I am eating too much OR too little because I'm usually preoccupied with counting grams of Protein and carbs. I'm one month post-op and have lost 19 lbs post-op (27 total) but have had 2 stalls already (one due to monthly cycle). I really don't want to be one of those people who go thru all this and don't lose anything which I have to admit is one of my greatest fears.

LnK, I hate to say that I LOL when I read your post but I did, I had surgery on 01/10 and I posted a similar post here about 2 weeks ago. I literally was "mourning food" and the comfort that it bought me even though I was primarily a drinker (sodas). I too thought it sucked to not be able to drink when I eat and I still find myself pouring a cup of juice with my meal but I'm learning to set it aside. I'm pretty much use to it now though and it hasn't even been a month. I'm not mourning food anymore and am actually getting use to this new lifestyle that I think will definitely bring me a scintilla of joy in the future. It helps to remind yourself of WHY you choose the surgery and how you felt before. I had to also make myself keep looking on the bright side (especially since I was self-pay) and eventually I just bought into it. I have no regrets now and just hope I can keep losing. Good luck on your journey and just know that with probably 80% of us, it's really hard at first.

Jess, I've done a LOT of research and from what I can tell, the rangers differ. For instance, I've seen the clear liquid diet ranging from one day to one week. With my doctor, it was one week, the full liquid was one week, then puree foods was one week and full food was at 4 weeks. i agree though about the amount of food but it's good to know that that amount is "safe" and still in the "losing" zone.

I ate a couple at the pureed stage by chewing them to a very fine state with no issues at all but since I couldn't have crackers or bread, I had to let the sardines go too. I do miss my sardines with club crackers!

That $3.99 EACH, not for the pack of 12.

I had surgery on Friday in Mexico, flew back home on Monday and went back to work on Tuesday but I don't really have a boss and work in an office alone so I really only worked a couple of hour and went home. I was sleeping quite a bit though which I think was a good thing. I'm also 4 weeks out (on Feb. 10th) and I'm blessed to feel as well as I do. I realized early on that the only times I felt really bad was when I didn't get in enough Protein and liquids. I too was having a very hard time with the liquids but know that juices count as liquids also. The only way I can even come close is to sip ALL day long. Always have your water/juice/protein shake bottle with you. I've been mixing up the Protein Shake with fruit, bananas, and I find 32 ounces gone before/around noon. After that I try to do one to two bottles of Water. I went thru a stage where I couldnt stand another protein shake but couldn't really eat meat so I just kept eating shrimp since it was easy to digest but playing around with the Protein shakes has helped a lot. I actually look forward to them everyday now. I hope you feel better soon and keep in mind that everyone is different so you have to find your niche to drinking and eating so you can feel better.

I didn't use this facility in MX, I used another facility in Tijuana and although they are different from the U.S., it really was a pretty good experience. Very nice hotel, medical facility (mall) was very small but clean and decent. Overall, it was a good experience but I have to admit that I did wonder what would have happened had there been any real complications.

I was sleeved 1/10/2014 and I STILL am not getting but about 32 and only about 12 to 16 oz are Water, which according to Dr. Oz, all liquids count and even liquids in food contains water so I'm really not stressing over the total amount. Not saying anyone else should use this philosophy but I do. With that said, I'm still working on increasing my total liquid intake without increasing calories and carbs.

From what I hear, they're basically trying to determine if you are mentally and realistically ready and willing to cope with the lifestyle changes

Twelve days post op and this is the first real horrible day I've had. This is the second day that I haven't been able to eat anything, including drinking Water and of course that means that I'm so weak that I couldn't go to work today. Even the thought of another Protein shake makes me gag so I decided to eat a little oatmeal. After 2nd swallow, I vomited profusely which was surprising considering I thought nothing was inside to come up. I felt a little better afterwards though and am thinking that the problem was severe acid reflux and the upchuck removed some of the acid that was making me sick. I don't know how I'm going to get in my protein because even the smell of the powder makes me qweezy. It's been a horrible last two days. Praying things get better soon.

How are you meeting your Protein requirements? Protein powder? I find it hard to meet my protein grams daily but it's almost impossible to meet my liquids daily. As a result, I'm 2-weeks (almost 3) post-op and completely stalled in losing weight my entire 2nd week. Needless to say that I'm rather bummed right now. Cabingirl, do you know if I can change my calorie intake in myfitnesspal to reflect the bariatric diet? It asked me certain questions and then decided what my daily calorie intake should be and I can't change it, therefore, I don't find it very useful.

No, PLEASE don't eat whatever your sleeve allows. That's defeats the whole point of losing the weight. At some point we will be able to tolerate chips, Cookies and sodas but that don't mean we should eat them or else why have the surgery. Pasta is carbs and you definitely want to watch/count those BUT occasionally it probably won't hurt. The surgery is a tool ONLY that allows us to make better eating decision by removing those hunger pains that so often lead us to making that "fast food" run, etc., and by severely limiting out intake ability but we have to still consider EVERYTHING that we put in our mouths MAYBE EVEN MORESO THAN BEFORE THE SURGERY! Again, I knew someone that realized that she could eat gummy worms and she ate and ate and ate them and only lost 40 total pounds and then gained back over 50 and it hasn't even been 2 years yet.

I turned 49 back on October. I decided to have the weight loss surgery (Jan 2014) because I had been overweight since high school and I figured if I hadn't lost it in 30 years, I refuse to turn 50 this year at 200+ pounds but I also knew that I wouldn't be losing it without some major intervention. Just a couple of months ago, I finally tipped the scale at 300+ and that was the straw that damn near broke my back (heart). I didn't have any co-morbidities other than really bad knees but I just needed to change because my physical being was beginning to affect my mental and emotional well-being and that was completely unacceptable. My insurance don't cover bariatric services so I had to do the Mexico route and self-pay but I'm hoping it will be one of the best investments I've made in myself other than my education.

I started off getting my Protein shakes in and then one day, I couldn't stand the thought of another Protein shake so almost a week ago, I started eating boiled shrimp to get my Protein and have had nothing but energy since. Hopefully I can add chicken breast and other meats in a few days. You're lightyears ahead of me though because my problem is that I can't get my fluids in. It helps that it doesn't have to be Water but most other fluids have carbs which is a no-no.

Megabob, most of us Newbies will not be cleared for that type of exercising until after 6 weeks. The most we can do early on is a little brisk walking. I have a total gym and a spin bike and I although I use the spin bike, I have to keep in mind that I just had major surgery less than 3 weeks ago.

I'm less than 3 weeks out and I haven't hit my Fluid intake not even one time (except for when I was hospitalized and had the IV). I have to stay away from juices because of the carbs but I can't even get down one 8 oz glass of Water but this was also my major problem BEFORE surgery....and no, all those little flavored water tricks don't help. Consequently, my weight loss stalled during week 2. Right now I'm resorting to almond milk just to get in some liquid which I really like but I've got to do something and quick about my liquid intake. Wish I could just hook up an IV at home and get it over with...LOL. I was also completely sick of Protein powder shakes so I put them to the side for a while and am getting my protein with boiled shrimp. It seemed to have jump started my weight loss again. It's hard but I'm determined to try by finding alternatives that work for me.

Is the Nutritionalist one that specializes with Bariatric patients? It doesn't sound like it. As far as the starvation mode, after surgery, how can you tell if you starving when you're never really hungry? I literally have to remember to eat a little something every 3 or so hours and even them I'm doing good to remember around the fourth or fifth hour.

LOL....trust me when I say that that's a REALLY GOOD thing. For the first 2 weeks after my surgery, I wanted to burp and couldn't and I felt AWFUL. Now I'm burping which is the true way to spell R-E-L-I-E-F! I purchased some chewable X-TRA strength Gas-X and I chew 2 to 3 each morning BEFORE I put anything in my mouth and now even my burps have slacked up.

SleevinIT, no, I don't have any recipies for preparing any type of fish since I normally don't care for fish, with the exception of some shellfish like crablegs. I haven't been getting in my Protein because I'm SOOOOO sick of Protein shake so I've been eating steamed or boiled shrimp or boiled eggs instead. They at least give me a break from Protein powder. And yes, the girl I know sabotaged her whole weight loss with bags and bags of gummy worms but when you think about it, they are FILLED with carbs which is nothing but empty sugar even though they are fat-free. My food journal right now really only consist of me keeping track of my carbs and protein intake. When I'm able to take in more food, I'll keep track of calories and fat as well.

I know the feeling about having that temporary regret and wishing that I had tried harder before the surgery but I also know that that is temporary. What I'm concentrating on right now is making sure I don't go thru this in vain and doing the right thing NOW to lose the weight and that includes completely leaving junk food alone...for now at least. When you're at a stage where you can only eat a few ounces a day, JUNK FOOD shouldn't be a factor in that equation. PROTEIN and Water....and watch the carbs and sugars because they can surely sabotage your weight loss, even with the surgery. I started keeping a food journal just so I could better watch my intake of carbs (with juices & all) but it will really come in handy once I'm more than 2 weeks post-op and able to eat more. I've never like fish but I'm actually looking forward to a tilapia dinner. Also, whenever I think about eating junk or NOT eating the way I'm suppose to, I think about this girl that I know that sabotaged her whole weight loss after the sleeve by constantly eating gummy worms. She found out that she could eat them without pain, etc., and she ate them all the time because she had always had a sweet tooth. She lost a total of 45 pounds and then gained all it back PLUS more all within ONE YEAR! I REFUSE TO LET THAT HAPPEN TO ME! I didn't even know it was possible but it was.

I'm curious as to if anyone else has experienced this......I'm 2 weeks post op with 10 days pre-op diet and I'm going thru some serious mourning for food. Now mind you,I hadn't been a big fast food person for at least the last 15 or so years BUT I'm badly mourning food right now. I miss my bowls of corn flakes w/whole milk as the staple of my whole "not cooking dinner" mode. I'm mourning never being able to have a five-guys burger again, although I only had them about 2 to 3 times a year anyway. I'm missing Subway's meatball subs, hot wings, eating sherbet ice cream right out of the box while watching a movie. I'm even missing pizza toppings (didn't eat the bread part of pizza). I'm even craving a Krispy Kreme doughnut which I NEVER ate because they're too sweet. I don't regret the sleeve at all because I didn't have any real medical issues (no co-morbidities) other than morbid obesity and I was trying to be proactive in not developing any but this bland diet is killing me to the point that I just don't even want to bother with any food of any kind which is definitely not healthy and I keep thinking I'll end up ill anyway from malnourishment. I'm just curious as to whether anyone else went through a food-mourning period and how they handled it? I'm assuming that it will just go away with time.