Santiago Draco

You can eat anything, really. The reason you should not eat breads and simple carbs (like sugar... donuts are a no no) are that they will essentially sabotage all your hard work and the surgery's benefits. The whole point of the surgery is to help us eat less but we also have to make lifestyle changes, as everyone knows. With a lower calorie diet we need to increase Protein to assure we have a healthy amount while eating less calories overall. If you add in carbs like donuts you are 1) not taking in protein and 2) taking in excessive amounts of calories.

I think it's reasonable to assume there's a big difference between the sleeve and the band in long term results without being a doctor or having decades of research. What I really mean is that I think it's obvious that the band WILL have long term issues just by knowing the basics of how it works. There's so many things that can go wrong and let's face it it's a large artificial object, operating under pressure, that is subject to movement and other issues. The sleeve on the other hand while a significant change is also a "set it and forget it" type of operation. Assuming it is done properly and there are no initial complications there's not much that can go wrong long term. I think that if there's ANY risk it's in long term changes to intake, which from everything I've read in the limited research we have is that long term nutritional issues are minor and much better than the Bypass. So I'm not too worried.

I think it's pretty simple. For some the band is compelling since it's fully reversible. For those who went with sleeve vs band it's simple as well. The band is risky, can move, has the port and is less effective. It's also not a permanent change. Going with the sleeve was an easy choice for me. Relatively little risk for high reward.

Not quite sure life is meant to be so... sterile. I don't drink but rarely myself but if I lived my life worrying about whether every thing I ever ate fit an ideal of nutritional value then I don't think it would be much of a life...

When doctors proscribe post surgery plans I think that there are a number of factors, much like what ISG said. First is what that doctor has personally experienced and what that tells them. Another is the profile of the patient. Is the patient one who shows a high level of resiliency and would be able to move to a more normal diet sooner? Are there medically complicating issues that dictate a certain diet for longer? It's certainly a science but not a one size fits all one and various approaches can yield positive results. In my case my doctor gave me a combination of specific instructions with some flexibility on my side to determine when I felt ready to progress to the next stage. I believe she felt that I had enough understanding of both the procedure and it's requirements to let me choose based on some baseline requirements (ie progressing from clear to full to soft foods). That said there were some clear minimum guidelines I have to follow. The research is growing but because GS is newer the amount of solid statistical data is lower hence less published works.

That is a pretty blanket statement. Doctors are people and some will care more than others. Suggesting that none care about their patients after surgery is a stereotype and I hear some bitterness there. Doctors aren't your best friend and they aren't going to see you unnecessarily. If the doctor isn't following a proper plan for post operative follow-ups then certainly there's an issue. However I know from past experience that there are plenty of doctors out there who do care, but that doesn't mean patients who abuse that care with a constant need for a doctors reinforcement or other things aren't going to push them away. I've had an amazing experience so far with every aspect of my surgery and expect plenty of others have as well. I urge people to research ahead of time, make good choices and know that if you don't have the best insurance or choose a doctor without good references then you should likely expect mixed results. No one should be led to believe that this is some kind of scam where gastric sleeve surgeons are some kind of money grubbing ambulance chasers. They are doing a job like anyone else. They spent years of hard work and money becoming surgeons in the first place and would expect that to pay off financially. Just like anyone would in that situation. I sincerley doubt that most doctors are suggesting weight loss surgery without the patient really needing it.

I've had the Atkins ones myself before and yes they taste good but compared to other bars they seem pretty... lacking to me. The Atkin bars are very low in Protein, compared to other bars while being high in calories. They also have tons of sucralose, the artificial sweetener (that's where the sugar glycols come from) which isn't healthy in large quantities. Other bars have Sucralose also but in lesser amounts. Comparatively they are not nearly as nutritious and I would think less healthy than other bars. The Atkin's Diet was all about low carb... while eating anything you want, fatty foods included, assuming you keep net carbs low. Our diets are about high nutrition and high protein while keeping calories low. Based on what I've learned about nutrition the two are not the same. Anyway just my perception of the Atkins products compared to the fairly broad selection of good high protein products that are also low in net carbs and high in nutrition.

I understand about the exercise. It gets tougher when you are working out a lot and consuming a lot of calories. If you do have a carb max you are shooting for it does become easier to hit it, so from that perspective, assuming you are eating a lot of bars plus other things... then sure I could see wanting to watch them closer. I do still think however that it's not that big of a deal if you are avoiding sugars and taking high Protein bars you are likely ok. Note that 50g of carbs is higher than the pre-surgery diet. The pre-surgery diet is 30 carbs max, 70g protein min, as a general guideline. So you really aren't on the same diet as pre-surgery. My point is you don't need to worry so much about whether or not these bars have as close to zero carbs as possible, even on a 50g carb diet. You referred to the bars people mentioned here with concerns about high carbs. That is why I commented. Most of these bars are not that high in carbs for a post surgery diet, even the "higher carb high protein ones. A bar with 26g of carbs (12g fiber, 2 sugar alcohol and 5 sugars) is effectively 12g. Pretty low for a Meal Replacement with 20-30g of protein. And that bar is on the higher carb end of those discussed. It's easy to get so caught up in this stuff that you laser focus on one thing, like trying to keep carbs to a minimum. Personally I'm primarily focused on high protein, high nutrition and watching calories. The rest follows.

Remember this is a POST surgery discussion. High Protein is the primary goal, however "low carbs" (as in an Atkins style diet) is not required. You do not need bars that have no carbs. The low carb/high protein diet is a PRE surgery requirement to shrink the liver. That said the goal after surgery is to maintain a good diet that is high in nutrition and provides a minimum amount of protein. The reason for avoiding sugary and "sugary foods" is that they are going to be high calorie and will sabotage your weigh loss. So focus on bars that are high protein but "low" in sugars and carbs for caloric intake and balanced diet reasons, not because you are trying to have a no carb diet (unless that is your thing). And ultimately if you have concerns or questions ask your dietitian.

Get out of bed! I was sleeved on the 29th and I feel great. I made sure to get up and around. I was walking by myself in the hospital the day of surgery. Not a huge amount but enough. Make sure to take your pain meds on schedule and not too much. But the big problem is not moving around. If you are just laying in bed you are going to have these issues. You took a huge step doing this surgery and it required strength, show it now and get active. Of course always be safe and follow your doctors advice (which I'm sure was to get up and around).

He said he knew what vitamins he would be taking, and roughly when. You don't even know. To be frank, this isn't a good sign. Don't just rely on the next piece of information from your doctor. Do your research! You are already here on a great site for info, you are asking questions, that's good. But it's obvious you have not researching the surgery plan itself thoroughly. I would suggest doing so now. Think of this as a kick in the but to get your reading done. Go read the Gastric Sleeve Diet Plans (do a search on google). There are lots and they all cover good general outlines of food and supplements. Now you MIGHT just be confused about when to take vitamins but your doctor should have supplied you with much more info than "take these liquids for 8 weeks and I'll tell you what to do next after your visit". If that is all the doctor did then the doctor needs to get his act together and inform his patients better.

You won't, normally, be proscribed a liquid vitamin, usually those are part of your diet plan. Did you get a pre-post op nutrition plan? You should see there discussions about options. You will likely want to get on your Vitamins soon, but be sure to stick with the liquid diet as your doctor instructed and move to the "full liquid" diet when instructed. In any case what I did was the following (taking now, Saturday): Kirkland gummies Multivitamin Kirkland Calcium chewables Next week, probably Monday i plan to start taking Premier Protein bottled drink to be sure to get my protein. Going to check with my doctor first. I also use drink supplements, EmergenC, Ecoboost and will in a couple of weeks ZipFizz. I am not taking the zipfizz now as it has some caffeine. These drinks give a good amount of vitamins in addition to your Water intake. I run them more diluted than called for (so one package to lets say 40oz luqid instead of 20) for now.

I really like the Premier Protein bars you can get at Costco.

I stayed in the hospital two nights. Came home and slept in bed the first night and felt amazingly better the following morning (and through the night). I think that sitting in a back slightly upright position isn't great for allowing things to settle in. If you can I would recommend sleeping in bed on your side or back. Be sure to take your pain meds and nausea pills as scheduled as well, they serve an important purpose! I had not passed gas in the hospital or the rest of the day I returned home. I was concerned. After sleeping a good night (but setting alarms for pain meds etc, and urinating) when I got up around 7 I had a nice satisfying fart I went in for surgery on Wednesday of this week btw, today now being Saturday.

Water retention and to be honest unrealistic expectations. Why are you expecting extreme weight loss right out of surgery? Sure you will drop a lot but you are on a high hydration diet, probably not very active yet and really 1 lb a day or so is quite a bit.

First visit with doctor on June 9th. Surgery approved July 14th. Surgery tomorrow morning the 29th of July Would have been faster but there were issues finding a nutritionist. I expect I lost about 2 weeks. Certainly no big deal!

Am I reading this correctly? These insurance programs (Novamar I guess in particular) require you to go to Mexico to see a doctor? I certainly hope not. Why would you have to travel to Mexico for a complication? Some can be life threatening! I have my own insurance but just something I'd point out for others who need it. I wouldn't ever buy insurance that doesn't cover services in the US for post surgery complications.

I'm with BCBS of MA, PPO Elite plan, and it's been great. My total turn around for the approval/prep/surgery is a total of 45 days or so. I was approved 1 day after submission of the application. Very happy it's been this easy and quick. Of course I have all of the qualifiers (pre-hypertension, diabetes type II (borderline) and sleep apnea. So, going in for surgery this coming Wednesday! Can't wait!

Probably not a great idea to be discussing insurance fraud here in the forums

Hmm. A balloon isn't your stomach nor is a sealed balloon representative of your digestive track after surgery Not sure how "sciencey" this is. In any case I'm asking myself some of the same questions as the OP as I get ready for my surgery. My question is more around soda Water as I love using my Soda Stream to make it. I never drink "sodas" themselves anymore but I do like soda water with something like a zipfizz or emergenC added in for Vitamins and flavor.