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I'm amused by people who know exactly what four ounces looks like. Four ounces looks completely different depending upon the density of the food. Given this is a weight loss surgery forum I would be sceptical about that particular method, particularly when four ounces tells you nothing about the calorific (let alone the protein or sugar) content of what you're putting in your body.

Relax... chill... take lots of small naps... nothing is going to make you feel quite so nauseous as anxiety.

Doesn't sound weird at all. I feel much the same and asked my surgeon about it - he tells me it's perfectly normal and we're still taking in vastly reduced volumes. It feels wring because people here, completely understandably, are more likely to be looking for advice or sympathy for problems - and when you read nothing but that they sound like 'normal'. It's important to keep that perspective and try not to worry where you don't need to.

It's a good question - because the nature of an internet forum is going to distort what you see. Assume that you will always hear more from the people who had problems, There appear to be a wide spectrum of people but that's an illusion (this is the case for ALL self selecting forums on the net) the site is populated by people who have chosen to be here, subsequently they aren't representative (they may have had issues they want to air, a need to share, they may crave a sense of belonging... none of these things are wrong but is DOESN'T make them average). Plenty of people may find these forums don't suit them, feel the surgery was routine and subsequently doesn't merit talking about or simply want to move on from the surgery and get on with life (personally I think I'm falling into this camp already). So you won't hear their experiences in places like this. So, like any other self-selecting internet forum the contributors here are likely to be people who have something, rather than nothing, to report... so complications, issues, trauma and problems will ALWAYS be over-represented. That doesn't make it a bad thing, far from it those experiences are valuable, but it's not the same as this being representative. If you want to know about incidence of complications you need some kind of inclusive audit of ALL surgeries. In the UK we have the National Bariatric Surgery Register (NSBR). The report from 2014 (which covers a 3 year period) gives the following headline figures: 161 surgeons from 137 hospitals recorded 32,073 operations The observed in-hospital mortality rate after primary surgery was 0.07% overall The recorded surgical complication rate overall for primary operations was 2.9% It also states that those are comparable rates to other international data sources. All of which suggests they're worth taking notice of. What they don't include are the minor complications you hear about a lot on here, so nausea and the like. All I can say about that is that the people who have nothing to tell are probably not here and if they are here are probably not posting much - it's the way of the web. For me? No complications. Remarkably pain free and easy, despite the anxiety beforehand. And yes, I wish I'd done it years ago.

It sounds like you've got this eating thing nailed. With that calorific level you will lose weight - period. You may want to think about adding some dairy, in terms of nutritional balance, the vitamin D and calcium it gives are important.

So tired. Five days in and I have to admit I'm getting bored. Everything is just dandy as far as healing process goes. I took the dressings off of my incisions yesterday and they hardly tickle, to be honest I forget they're there. My stomach still feels a little inflated but it's not uncomfortable. I can drink (water, coffee, hot chocolate/cacao) and eat, (soup, yoghurt, purée, very smooth porridge) freely. That said I don't really want to. My appetite is minimal, which I'm relaxed about, and the only tastes (rather than foods) I do crave are savoury. Unsurprisingly I would be willing to sell my soul for a slice of hot buttered toast. I don't feel any great sensation of restriction in my stomach, my surgeon called to check-in yesterday and he tells me that's fine - it will come later with more solid food. That said I probably had too much soup too fast earlier and very quickly found myself belching. A couple of minutes later I'm fine. The thing I'm noticing most is pure and simple fatigue. Yesterday it was that aching twitchy tiredness then I had my first proper night's sleep. Today I still feel a bit limp and tired but it's qualitatively different, sleepiness rather than muscle ache.

I'm sleeping on my side and front at will. It's like a small victory. Like you Sammie1221 I got out of the house, sunlight's good for the soul. In the longer run I think I'll be giving the shakes a wide berth, they're foul and I'd rather put real food inside me. My surgeon and nutritionist aren't great fans of shakes as they're neither as sustainable or nutritious as better real food eating habits - personally the artificial sweetness just makes me spit.

I look forward to meat no end... but I'm a bit baffled by why people are so keen to breadcrumb it and fry it. That'll help your weight loss no end.

'Burning more than you put in' doesn't lead to starvation mode, it leads to weight, and specifically fat, loss. You'll be able to work out when your body's ready.

I'm heading for the hospital in the morning. I have to admit I'm incredibly nervous. Being postponed by two weeks has shaken me and I occasionally think the worst. That said if things go well, and of course the odds are they will, I feel fired up and ready. The pre-op diet has been brilliant. The postponement meant I've been on it for four weeks and I've lost 30-odd pounds. I started a couple of weeks early and have never deviated and hardly craved - I think my head's in the right place. That said the anxiety is exhausting - I want to get to sleep, get in there and move on to the next stage of my journey.

The leak test, with blue dye, is also conducted in surgery where they can immediately resolve any leaks (apparently I had one!).

And then it hit me. After a couple of days feeling full of beans my energy level just fell off a cliff. My surgeon said it was likely so I don't feel any enormous emotional upheaval but it really does feel different. I'm still pain free with no gastric issues I'm just physically tired all of a sudden. Taking it easy is, unsurprisingly, the obvious response. Instead of fighting it I'm napping, sipping and walking - no pressure. My first puréed meal was very welcome. I had made up a batch of beef ragu, puréed it and frozen it pre-op. It goes down well, little nibbles from the tip of a teaspoon of rich rich flavours and at least some texture. Feels good. I'm not very conscious of any particular sense of construction in my stomach, I assume I'm just sipping at a good pace and I haven't come up against it. Like most things I'm sure that that sense of capacity will come with time. All in all I couldn't ask for a more benevolent start to this journey. No complaints here.

It's a walk in the park, hey? I felt a tremendous sense of relief and I think that was the best thing, the anxiety beforehand creeps up on you. Good luck, hope you're feeling as good as me!

So far? Frankly I'm amazed I have no pain, no nausea and, in fact, am having to remind myself I've had major surgery. I suspect I had an amazing clinical team in my corner.

I hate to admit that I had coffee before I was even discharged! I'm putting my, so far, pain and complication free recuperation to the healing properties of good coffee.

Day two begins at home... in our own bed. That's so much better and sleep is a complete blessing. I'm not sure if I should post a status report or run round the block waving streamers - I feel so good it's almost indecent. Anyway, here's where I'm at. I have no pain. None. I'm faint;y aware of the incision points but no more than if I had nicked myself shaving. I'm drinking as much as I like, I'm not swigging but I can sip constantly and have had a water, watered down fresh apple juice, a latte, some Complan (for those of you in the US it's a recovery drink) and some other hot drinks. I have to say I'm over the sweet stuff already and have some beef shin and oxtail in a slow cooker to make a soup for later - I can hardly wait. I'm burping heartily from time to time, which I take as a sign to slow down on the liquids but I'm comfortably meeting any targets so that's not a worry. I went out for a walk around the block this morning, just a little shy of half a mile according to Strava, and felt great, initially I felt a little stitch in my side but that was all. I'm aware of a kind of tightness but it doesn't really register as pain, it's more like the muscle ache you feel after returning to core work in the gym after a long time. It's really hard to put my finger on what the sensations I'm feeling are, there is a physical sense but it's not familiar. I'm going to try to pin it down in words as I go on. Subsequently I haven't taken any pain medication since I came home (though stocked up with liquid and soluble paracetamol). I found the self administered injection of Fragmin, the anti-clotting agent, relatively painless - this was an enormous and welcome surprise. My surgeon tells me that it's not unusual to feel euphoric after a day or two and that there's an inevitable crash in energy and mood. Well if that comes so be it, it's good to know so that it's easier to cope. I've read an awful lot about side effects and complications here, and that might be the nature of the beast where people comment about the negatives in the hope of help, however unless I'm a complete statistical outlier it can clearly be a lot easier than it seems.

Well, that wasn't too bad. It's a bit like being holed up in a hotel with jet lag. Time is measured out in sips of water and, thankfully, Earl Grey tea. Sleep was fitful and unconvincing. As I can't concentrate quite well enough to read more than a page of a book at a time I go for walks around the ward. After a pain free surgery day I feel a little more shaky today. There's an ache in my shoulder (my body dealing with the gas that was pumped into my stomach cavity, it's like a strain and easily bearable. The closest thing I have to pain is the feeling of cramp or constriction when I try to take deep breaths to my diaphragm. It's like a band that makes you wince when you get to the bottom of a big breath - and the importance of deep breathing has been impressed upon me. Walking was tentative to begin with, but I think that was mental rather than physical. I am now conscious of the operation site in my core and I'm subconsciously hunching over a little and my gait is shuffly rather than springy. Getting out into the fresh air is a restorative, a happy sign of normality. The only pain relief I've had is intravenous paracetamol - I'm happy to keep it like that.

I'm 24 hours post op and I went through terrible last minute anxiety. Once at the hospital the admissions sister and then the anaesthetist really did ease my mind. It's natural - we have a tremendous amount of emotion invested in this. My past 30 hours have been a reminder of how amazing care professionals are. When you come out one of the things you might feel, if you're like me, is an enormous sense of relief. The knots in my shoulders from the past two weeks have gone. You know you'll be in good hands and you wouldn't be human if you weren't a well of confused feelings right now - but trust me, you're hours away from a completely different and very welcome feeling.

This could get very wrong very quickly! As I'm wearing my post-op stockings I'm feeling a bit kinky.

Take two after mealtimes with water? No, wait... maybe not.

Thank you so much all for your thoughts and prayers. So, here's the score... I feel amazing, I came back to my room 3 or 4 hours ago and I feel fantastic. Oxygen's gently wafting up my nose and my legs are alternately popping and inflating in an oddly relaxing rhythm. I don't feel any pain worth mentioning, at the most I think you could say I'm 'aware' of where the incisions were made. I'm sat upright and about to take my first walk - I really can't wait to get on my feet. Given everything I've read I'm surprised how easy constant little sips of water are - I've probably (I can't see the record from here) got through 400ml so far). Best of all given the almost imperceptibly rising level of anxiety that's accompanied me these last weeks I just feel a tremendous sense of relaxation and wellbeing - I feel like ordering a club sandwich and a massage from room service... ooooops!

I would suggest never as they are a major cause of skin cancer, which is why they are banned in Australia.

Well, as it's getting so spicy in here I might as well weigh in with the things I've been thinking, but daren't say, since the start of the thread. I'm having my bypass in two days. Over the past six weeks I've been thinking seriously about what happens afterwards and how I need to reset not just my body but my relationship with food. What leaves me gobsmacked so often here is that I keep seeing threads that basically amount to 'when can I have the same old crap I used to eat and drink again'? Now call me perceptive but, assuming that surgery isn't a magic wand, isn't that exactly what put you in plus size pants the first time? There is a strong link between highly processed food and the incidence of obesity (in fact there is also a correlation between the consumption of artificial sweeteners like those found in 'diet' soft drinks and obesity). Highly processed foods and drinks just aren't that good for you and no one should know that better than people who have grown overweight to the point of major surgery by eating them. I'm fairly lucky, my diet is mainly fresh and whole foods, my problems have been portion sizes, but this process has made me conscious of how I want to put things in my body that are good for me and, if I'm restricted in terms of volume, how I want to make sure every ounce is full of nutrients.