inittothinit

Tomorrow starts my pre op diet. the doc has allowed me 4 shakes and 2 bars for 12 days followed by 2 days clear liquid. I am looking for some ideas of how to space out the "meals" and also in what order. I was thinking of Breakfast lunch and dinner shakes with bars mid morning and mid afternoon. But that only leaves me with a shake after dinner until the next morning. Something tells me that a bar for a late evening snack will be more fulfilling and enjoyable than a shake. what plan did others follow? did you find it was unnecessary to space them out so evenly? is it ok to backload them a bit so I have more servings to enjoy later in the day? What about halving the bars?

wow, I just checked my paperwork and stage 4 is soft foods and I don't get there for a month post op. my jaw will be well rested after six weeks of no chewing.

I haven't had my surgery yet, but 2.5 weeks out and eating solid food sounds way too early. I wont be eating solids post op for a month or more ( I have to double check my schedule....it may be 5 weeks out) . I am sure the vets will chime in, but I have never seen solids "per surgeon" just 2.5 weeks post op

Dear Conscience, As you clearly recall, we went to the doctor yesterday and did our final pre-op appointment. We have our date on 2/24. You know that we bought all of the pre-op shakes. You also know the doc told us 14 days for pre op diet. Contrarily, the Assistant only provided us with 10 days worth of shakes and cluelessly pointed to 2/12 on her calendar and told us to start on that day. So, trusty old Conscience, should we call the doc to confirm that he really wanted a 14 day pre-op diet? Or should we just pretend that the assistant was correct and just follow a 12 day plan? I mean, c'mon...........who's going to know? But you know what the right thing to do is even if the 2 days doesn't make a difference physically.........you will also always know that we cheated 2 days before we even began this journey. But.......2 less days of dieting and 2 more days of eating would be enjoyable...... Hmmmmm Respectfully yours, Me

I have 2 days clear at the end so I need to make up 2 days worth. Can I use quest bars and some zero carb powder with skim milk?( not that I have ever had those items but they seem to get popular items around the forum)

This is what conflicts me:) What could I use to fill the other 2 days worth of food? He gave me opti fast 4 shake/2bar per day. I don't want to drive back to his office.....it's quite a way.

Good to hear it's going so well. I had my pre op visit yesterday before surgery on 2/24. They mentioned I should get some gasx for home. did you find any gas problems post op?

So how funny is this? I was reading the thread(from frozen CT) and was going to post a quippy reply along the lines of " yea ,yea but try to get a decent italian meal or restaurant in FL)" Then it hit me like a brick....... How much my life will change on 2/24..... The idea that food or a decent italian restaurant has been some weird barometer for me shows how much food and eating has become so central my life. . My life and lifestyle is going to change drastically and that food and eating shouldn't be such a focus for me. Eat to live , don't live to eat, right?

That's awesome, inspiring news!I hope to have the same success as you. I did it to improve my health I had high bp high cholesterol sleep apnea and high risk of heart disease. And used to take medication everything. Today everything is gone my bp is normal no sleep apnea no machine no medication

I can tell you firsthand that the feeling you get after fully quitting smoking is sublime. I don't even expect that my feeling after WLS and losing weight will feel as good as when I had finally quit smoking. I think it's possible to be a healthy overweight person but there is NO such thing as a healthy smoker. Your body and health will change so much after you quit. You will only then realize just how bad it was to be a smoker. Stay strong! As far as obsessed......I think there is a fine line between determined and obsessed ........I have definitely taken a step or two over said line since I started on my WL journey.

Good job! Down a hundy! Did you have any co-morbidities when you started? And if so, have any of them disappeared. (Apnea,BP,etc...) I have surgery in 2 weeks and my main reason for surgery is to improve health.

Do you have any co-morbidities? I have been told that although the bariatric surgeon is the doc that submits for the surgery, the PCP's letter of recommendation has a heavy influence on getting the approval.

So part of me wants to have a few "last suppers" before I start the liquid diet. It's weird because there is actually another, less overwhelming part of me that is saying "No"......and not for any altruistic reasons......just maybe feeling like I have come to grips and had "enough" with excess...... Any thoughts? Experiences?

2/24/14 ........ so full of nervous excitement..... the last couple of weeks have actually been worse on the nerves because I didn't have the date and approval. Now that the date is in stone................ GAME ON!!!

Congrats on the hundy down!! What a transformation inspiration for pre op sleevers like myself.

Thanks for the heads up! Sounds like that would have been 3 bucks wasted. Maybe that's why they need the celebrity endorsements and cash infusion from the sharks.

Good luck, Buck! Just stay Jersey strong!

Shark tank! We need to get the protein water combined with the cookie dough!

Please accept my condolences. Your story and advice to us serves as a reminder to me to try to put all of life in perspective as I embark on my weight loss journey. I send you good vibes and thank you for your thoughts.

So, for the last 3 weeks, I have been plowing through all of the pre-op checklist and appointments. I have completed the "required" items and the patient advocate has told me that we are waiting for the approval for VSG. One of the "needed" items from the doc was/is an abdominal ultrasound. I'd told the doc that I had been in the hospital a few summers ago and all sorts of tests were run and that I am pretty sure that the ultrasound was done already. The advocate called me today and said that I need another scan done as there was inflammation on my gallbladder during the test from when I was hospitalized. I was hospitalized for an intestinal issue and no one ever mentioned that there was any inflammation. I have done some research today and I understand the relationship of gallbladder/stones and weight loss, but I am wondering if it's possible that I have been living with some sort of gallbladder issue and not realized it. I will admit that from time to time I have had some intermittent pain in the right upper area just below the ribcage, but always just thought that it was normal based on my eating habits and size. so my questions are this: Is it possible that I have had some sort of gallbladder/stone issue for a couple of years without having had a "major" attack? And is it common (or encouraged_) to have the GB removed during the VSG? Also, is there any chance that this GB issue is going to delay my surgery?

"Well, I guess it's Hello World huh?" (a thinly veiled reference to one of my favorite pastimes) OK, so I have been lurking at the BP site for a little while now since deciding on WLS. I have been looking for the most opportune spot to jump in the forum pool and looking at another thread concerning hiding WLS from friends and family struck pretty close to home for me...... The subject of keeping the WLS private has probably been something I have thought about the most since my decision. I, too, am also considering keeping it a secret but wonder how I will feel about deceiving people I am close to in my life. I have had some minor stomach issues in the past that required hospitalization so my "alibi" is already in place but still not sure how I want to proceed. I am concerned with the stigma that is associated with electing to have surgery. I generally have the physical make up of the big, burly tough guy but I realize that my long term health is what I need to deal with at this point in my life. I don't subscribe to any of the stigmas associated with having the surgery but I am not naive enough to think they aren't there. Are there any guys out there who have dealt with this dilemma? Or maybe just any thoughts or feedback?

Lots of good replies on this thread. Thanks for that. I think after reading these posts, I will definately be "taking a right" Lindafromflorida made a good point that of the 3 people she did tell, the WLS dominates the conversation when they talk. I don't want my WLS to be the topic du jour every time I am around the people whom I have shared the details with.

thanks for all the replies. Hi Five, Truck......I am sure you know what I am trying to convey about big and burly.....it's real cool to be the big bad ass guy in the room, but big and bad doesn't age well......all our skinny, healthy buddies will be our pall bearers at a much too young age for us if we don't drastically change our weight. that's my main impetus for WLS....getting to a healthy weight that extends my life expectancy My job is such that I will go a month or more in between contacts with clients...I know there will be questions and I don't know that I need or want to explain the whole process I am headed for. Maybe just a simple "diet and exercise" will be enough of an answer to suffice them. I guess that's not really a lie or deception......just a partial answer As far as people closer in my life........I am still struggling with who to tell......

Thanks for the responses. I am looking for any feedback on this, not just from the guys. I should have written the post clearer. One of my concerns is that my job is such that there is a fair amount of time between contact with people I deal with. So with as much time between contacts,, my appearance(hopefully) will be pretty drastic to them. Undoubtedly, there will be questions asked and I am not sure how I will be dealing with it.