summerseeker

My surgeon does not do protein shakes. I was told to drink milk, It does not matter which one they all have the same protein count. Skimmed, semi skimmed and full fat. 20 ounces of milk has almost 19 grams of protein. You could add Greek yogurt to that. Some have more protein than others, the one I eat is 200 grams and 16.6 grams of protein. Don't panic, you will work it out

I have never used these as to me they seem expensive. I have also never been one to use take away foods, mostly because when I had a family they were expensive. Money has been very tight early in my married life. We have always cooked from scratch. So my take on these foods is somewhat biased. I found that if I could make one meal for myself every week, bag it into tiny portions and freeze them. At the end of a few weeks I had quite a stock of deliciousness. You will be surprised at how tiny your meals will be. I put them into little zip lock bags and freeze them flat. At the moment I am into poke bowls, I prep 3 or 4 at one go and keep them covered in the fridge. Less washing up, cheap and delicious

I had staples. I cant say they hurt at all. They are not like paper staples

You are very wise and are doing all the right things. At our age we cant rush into exercise or anything for that matter. I took a while to get my stamina back. It took me 8 months to eat enough calories to exercise. Now I feel like a Spring [well winter] chicken. A new life start How good does it feel to weigh a hundred pounds less than before. I was on cloud nine for days

You will be fine, its not done any damage. You will know if they are stuck because liquid will not pass and you can feel them. Contact your team as to how to take them going forwards. BTW pain meds are vile when crushed.

I didn't have any gas pain so do not know how it feels. I am not sure but if you had it, it would be gone by now. If Gas x works then you have a different issue. Contact your team for advice, you may need a PPI.

Hello Ash and welcome

TBH I would want to be looking for a new team. I am shocked by how low your calorie count is. I am also shocked by how accepting your team is of this low calorie count. I know lots of people on this forum do not get to their goal weight, which is why I set mini goals. Many are heartbroken by this and go off the rails. Have they said your goal weight is attainable for you? You started at a lower weight than me and I understand that it is harder for lighter people to loose the weight. I did your ideal BMI on a NHS site [ Your USA one may differ] For you it says 120lbs to 159 lbs for a normal weight. So 150 should be attainable. But would I want to stick on 700 calories a day, no. It does not seem healthy I was told that I needed to be at about 1200 cals a day to loose now and to go up from there to find a maintenance point when I am happy with my weight. How can being on 700 calories for the rest of your life be good for you? If you are over that you gain? You must be starving. It seems totally wrong and very punishing. I wish I could hug you

Congratulations on your date and we were all nervous, its the unknown. The hospital staff will put you at ease. You will be so glad you had the courage to do this. Give your self time to get into the new normal. Sleep, sip, walk repeat

If I am lacking protein, I will make a strong expresso and add skimmed milk like a latte I suppose. Thankfully coffee has never been vetoed for me

You are eating all the right things, in fact you are doing amazing. You will drop eventually and I don't know why you haven't so far. You have paid for your teams expertise, make them work, tell them of your issues and get their input. We paid for 2 years aftercare so it would be crazy to give up before you have used it. Nag them please and find out what is going on

You are almost at the finishing line, you have this. Try and keep on track from here to Friday. If you do this you will be fine. It has happened to a few people that their livers were still too fatty to operate on. It kept me, almost on the straight and narrow. I would have hated to be woken from the anaesthetic to be told, sorry we couldn't do the procedure...

Yes same as @kcuster, just sending a hug. I hope you get things sorted quickly. Antibiotics and steroids are a combination I hate, my come down off them was worse than the reason I was put on them in the first place. I still am on 5 or 6 tiny meals a day because I cant eat a lot at once, I dont know if it help you but I will post a menu that my team said will help me with weight and energy, my calories were very low before before this Breakfast - protein yogurt and berries Mid morning - whole milk Lunch- A homemade soup with chicken, veg and lentils i.e. curried lentil Afternoon snack - nuts Dinner- Meat and vegetables or fish and salad etc Supper - Cheese and grapes This gives me 1000 to 1300 calories a day and between 60 and 85 grams of protein

Whoa there, The process works. You should be in such a calorie deficit that its impossible to think you can fail. Can you post your foods and drinks for yesterday [or any day] as an example. Which company did you use for your surgery? Were you self pay? I used Spire and my team are really great. I have a mobile number for the dietician and could ring anytime I needed. They really helped me in the early days. You need to talk to a team member today if possible. Dont give up yet,

Don't overthink it. You will be concentrating on getting your fluids and protein in. Walk around as much as you can to shift the gas pains. Sleep when you are not doing any of these things. Drinking different temperatures can help. Your second week is so much easier. Everyone gets nervous, we are human and are built to fear the unknown. The hospital staff will put you at ease. Good luck

I didnt know this, thanks for the incite and all your experience. It helps

Don't cut back on your calories unless your team told you to. You are so low that your body will be holding onto the nourishment to counteract the exercise you are doing. Trusting the process is a tough learning curve that we all have to learn. Hold your nerve, the stall will break

The pre op diet is a doozie isn't it. 99% of people really struggle with the limitations, its the ultimate cruelty for fat people. The thought of the surgery starting and having to end due to a fatty liver kept me on the straight and narrow for the most part. I did break twice in the 3 week of my torture, I ate 2 small packets of Jerky ! This caused me so much worry that it was not worth the cheat. I lost 15lbs. I was allowed caffeine [ thank the lord] any low carb vegetable, a quart of skimmed milk, 2 low fat yogurts, 2 items of fruit. Sugar free jelly and popsicles a day. It was winter so I ate lots of asian style vegetable broth and curried vegetables. I ran to the operating theatre, I was so over the diet.

I was allowed the tiny packets of super crispy melba toast at about 6 weeks after surgery. I was told it dissolves quickly. All carbs are still a bit on the heavy side for me. I eat the very occasional slice of super seeded wholemeal but its best toasted crisp. I tried some tiny bites of pitta with humous last week and it wedged in my tummy for hours. I felt awful and nauseous. Nothing was off limits as far as my team were concerned after about 10 weeks. You need to get answers from your team because they all have different ideas on how to go forwards

It is getting better for me now. I can have a few tiny sips with my food. I used to get a very uncomfortable full feeling, then I usually vomited the liquid up. I had to wait a lot longer than most to drink after eating. I had a tight restriction.

Try different temperatures of water and if you are allowed, add a small amount of sugar free squash/cordial to it really helped me. The more liquid that you can get into you the better you will feel.

I am an old fashioned big knicker girl. No bits of dental floss for me. I would never ever put my knickers to dry outside on the washing line. Now they are so tiny, they make me smile, still big knickers but tiny big knickers

Hello and good luck for an early date

My heating is cranked to the max, My uncomplaining hubby is sat in his boxers. I am freezing cold and I so hope it gets better but it may be the price I have to pay to not carry all that insulation.

Hi, You will be given a protein count to aim for. Mine is 60 grams a day. Every surgeon has a different regime so you will need to read his pamphlet/ book to find out. Just do what ever your own surgeon advises. If your shakes and drinks don't have enough protein, then you can add extra protein powder to your other foods and drinks. Its not something that you should over worry about early on, getting your liquids in is enough for the first few days. That can seem like a full time job in itself. Good luck