I was nervous about that too, but it's all been okay. I didn't take them the morning of the surgery or the next day, but started up again the following day. My doctor knew they weren't chewable and that I had to swallow them whole and he was fine with that. Some of the really strict limitations, I think, apply more to the other bariatric surgeries. Not saying that it's okay to not follow the rules, but the sleeve doesn't seem to create some of the same issue with absorbing medications.