Pete-TheTimeIsNow

Will it hurt your sleeve, or have any other adverse effect if I drink 1 oz of water every 5 minutes, instead of the (recommended) 15 minutes? Thanks!

I had mine last week. The story goes like this .. Arrived 3 hours before surgery time. Placed in pre-op room. Nurse setup the IV, measure vitals, etc. A couple of operating room nurses came to introduce themselves, asking for full medical history (I didn't mind overcommunicating the info) Doctor and nurse from anesthesia team came to introduce themselves. Again, full medical history. Asked to open mouth, and bend my neck around (test flexibility, I guess), Said everything looked good. Surgeon came over, talked for a bit. I reminded him of a couple of 'concerns' I had (just me overcommunicating). They pulled me to the op room. Injected the sedative through the IV, and lights off.. Woke up ~ 2 - 2.5 hours later in the recovery room. With a nurse checking my vitals. I would wake up, and go back out on and off. No pain whatsoever. Took me to my room, more testing, questions, etc. Put me on Tylenol IV. Injected some prophylactic blood thinner, and anti-nausea meds (Zofran, I think), an I went back to sleep. About 2-3 hours post-op, did a round of walking around the hallway (with my wife's help)

Varies Dr. to Dr. I was given tylenol while at the hospital, with morphene on request (limited by time, qty). Dr. sent me home with just Tylenol (disolve packs). He mentioned that he prefer to steer away from narcotics (Percocet, etc), because they tend to slow down digestion, increase constipation. I was fine with just Tylenol.

@Lifestyle Changer, I replied to your comment in the other thread. But now that I see your surgery was 4 hours, my comment about the spirometer, may be more relevant, In any case, check with your surgeon.

Check with your medical team about the cough. It never hurts (pun intended ) This may not be related, but.. did they give you a spirometer to take home, or indicated breathing excercises? On every generaral anesthesia surgery, there is often some minor lung collapsing. In the case of laparasopic (keyhole) surgery, this is usually very minor. My surgeon gave me one post-op, and told me to do the breathing excercises every day. On the first day, while doing the excercise, and reaching my limit, I would cough. Went away on day 2.

While you are on IV, there is no risk of dehydration. I just drank water to help with the gas pain. So, on Day 0 (surgery), I drank maybe 4 - 5 oz of water. On Day 1, I drank a bit more, around 10 oz or so. (I would walk up with pain, have 1 oz, burp :), and walk for 15 mins, if still in pain do this 1-2 more times. I would walk up every 1-2 hours during the night, fun!) On Day 2, I drank between 10-20 oz. However, I didn't have Hiatal Hernia repair, I've read that if you get that, it's a bit more painful to swallow water at the beginning. And, yes, gas pains are a beast. Hope this helps.

Gas pain lasted 2-3 days for me. It gets less and less progressively. IF you can sip water. 1 oz of water (in 2 small sips, spaced) did wonders to get the gas out. As far as pain meds, I was on Tylennol, but this would not do much for the pain. However, you can ask for morphene, At my hospital (FL), the NP is allowed to give you at up to 3 doses without consulting with the Dr.

I went through this. Some days, I'd realize I had only 2 protein shakes.. Or reach the night, with just breakfast. However, I kinda paced/forced myself to always have at least 3-4 protein shakes, to ensure I got enough protein. No point in going into the surgery with your body weaker than it has to, IMHO.

I asked if putting the turkey + gravy in the blender qualified as liquid diet, got a resounding no..

Just say that you went to the gym Mon-Fri, and ate only on the weekends..

I found the Fairlife to be way too sweet. I preferred the vanilla shakes from Prermier Protein, but those are still a bit sweet. If you can (and want to) have cafeine, the Latte from Premier Protein is not sweet, and you can warm it and have it hot. But for total non-sweet you need to do what @vikingbeast said above. You can even add Isopure to those soups from Panera. You can also make (or buy premade) chicken broth, make it salty, and add Isopure.

Yes. If the pain moves around is gas bubbles moving around. While standing/sitting up, try taking a sip of water, wait for it go down,and the gas should go up .. and out.. Also walk as much as possible, this helps with gas absorption, and getting your digestive system working again. And Chewable Gas-X also helped me.

I had my sleeve 2 days ago.. this was my experience.. • How did your tummy feel after the surgery?  > Not really. I only felt the stiches, if I touched/pressed on them, or if I bent down too much. I had my surgery at 3 PM, around 7 PM my wife helped me walk a bit on the hallway. By 11 PM I was walking by myself doing laps . The one thing I did feel is the gas pain, that was somewhat uncomfortable, 2 days post, it's almost all gone. • Did you have to have a drain? > No drain. Incisions are super tiny. • How long did you have to be on clear fluids after the surgery? > 4 days on clear liquids (Water, crystal Light, Gatorade Zero, Broth) Then 3 days on Clear Protein liquids (Gatorade Zero Protein, Protein Water, etc) Then on to regular liquid diet (Protein Shakes, Broth, liquified soupds, etc) HOWEVER, every surgeon has their own playbook, you'll have to follow yours. • Did you prefer cold, room temperature, or warm fluids? > I am drinking cold water (with and without Crystal Light) and gold Gatorade Zero. Bt the warm Chicken Broth is super welcome. • Sipping. > I use a 1 oz medicine cup. Drank it in 2 sips on the first day, now I can just gulp it. Was told to drink 1 oz every 15 mins. Now I am going wild, and reduced that to 10 mins.. LOL • Drinking for the first 24 hours? > You can drink right after you are out of surgery, and sober enough. You don't need to drink, since the IV keeps you hydrated. But, 1 oz of water did wonders for the gas issue. I would wake with pain, drink 1 oz, and walk around, go to sleep, rinse and repeat. Having said that the day after surgery, I had the leak test X-Ray, and I couldn't drink anything after 12 AM that day. • How did you sleep in the first week? > Using a recliner. It's easier to get on/off.. Anyways, congrats on taking this step, you'll do great!

I am doing good with recovery. Gas pain almost gone. Thanks! The no food after midnight was based on an old study I think from the '50s. But since 1999 they determined that there is no risk of aspiration (with entubation, etc).. but some surgeons still go by the old guidelines. 6 AM? Ouch, I had to be at the hospital 3 hours before surgery time.

Lucky You! Each surgeon follows different guidelines. My surgery was at 3 PM, So I had to be without food/water since midnight. Your surgeon is following the newer studies that say that it is better to drink clear liquids up to 2 hours prior to reduce incidence of nausea post op. Anyways, congrats, and best of luck tomorrow!

Same here gas pain much less, but still present after day 2. Hope you feel better.

The liver shrinks by lack of sugar/fats. The protein is to help you keep your muscle mass.. If you lose muscle (alongside fat), then your metabolic rate decreases, and you lose less and less weight. Another goal of the liquid diet is to get your body (and you) prepared for what comes after surgery (clear liquids, full liquids, puree, etc).. Try switching the shakes you are drinking. At first I liked the Peanut Butter from Permier Protein, but after 2 days I couldn't stand it. End up with plain Vanilla. Tried the oens from Fairlife.. too sweet for me.. Search in the forums, there are lots of ideas on how to deal with this (add whey protein to broth, etc), depends on what your diet allows.

It is common to have doubts. Make a list of reasons/fears why you shouldn't take the leap, and another one of the reasons why you should. I made these lists, the one with fears was mainly that, fear of the unknown, fear of complications, etc. This forum helped me tremendously to put a lot of those at rest. Now, my list of why I should take a leap.. well that one was pages and pages long.. So, I took the leap!

I had my sleeve 2 days ago.. and I lost 4 lbs. They pumped me with ~5-6 litters of fluid while I was there. 1.5L during surgery, and 4L while I stayed overnight. However, I did go to the bathroom every 1-2 hours when I would wake with gas pain However, I've read here in the forum that it is very common to gain weight after surgery. Don't worry about it, it comes off in 1-2 days.

My surgeon said that I could have 1 cup of (regular) coffee/day during the liquid diet, but none after surgery (until after recovery). I used to have 6 cups of coffee / day.. Over the course of 4 days I tapered off, and removed it completely, no headaches or withdrawal. My wife stopped cold turkey, and had head splitting headaches for 2 days.

I am one week into the liquid diet. My dr. allows: protein shakes, greek yougurt (sugar free, fat free), soup (chicken, non-starchy vegetables), but the soup has to be liquified (no solids / chunks).. sugar free popsicles, pudding / jello. Natural apple sauce and vegetable juice. I am doing between 600-800 cals/day. You should definitely talk to your medical team and ask them what else you can eat.

What do you consider starting weight? Weight at start of Liquid Diet (or any other pre-op diet)? Weight at day of surgery? Weight before you started losing weight? In my case, I reached my high weight (... panicked ) ,and started dieting.. lost 35 lbs.. then while still on my diet, decided to get the surgery. Started liquid diet a week ago, and have lost 12 lbs since then.. Not sure what you all use as your starting weight. Thanks!

I think I'll do this, Thanks all for the feedback!

Thanks for all replies! I will take mine. I've been using mine for years every night. I am one of those that had apnea before gaining weight.. not hopeful that mine will go away after surgery .

Perfect! Thanks!