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Does your program require you to visit a therapist? Many have found success managing their craving as a result of seeing a therapist. They will support you as you work through what drives you to eat & help you develop strategies to manage the cravings. Ask for a recommendation from your medical team/surgeon to one who has experiences with bariatric patients.

This is my first time coming across this site! Date set for November 22nd (5 days!!) and starting to get nervous! And my willpower has not been great as far as my 7-day protien shake/liquid only diet. Today was my first really good day as far as that goes. Half of November is done with their surgeries🤗 Hope you're all doing great!! *also the orange cream Bariatric Advantage vitamins are the highlight of my day, lol!!

I had my sleeve surgery on 11/9 and purchased chewable bariatric advantage vitamins and calcium chews. The multivitamin is 2 per day. Can I take them both at the same time with breakfast and then the calcium chew at lunch, dinner, and bedtime? I’m going to switch to the one a day when I run out of these.

As everyone said, there are as many different eating plans as there are surgeons. My doctor's plan was lowish-carb (not keto low, but controlled). It emphasized protein first, then veggies and not pushing my restriction. He said if I did that calories would take care of themselves and it did work out that way. I tracked (and still do) everything I eat so that I am aware of how many calories I am taking in and what the macros are. I actually also eat about 6 mini-meals per day rather than 3 "big" meals. But if eating that way isn't working for you, try the more traditional 3 meals per day approach. Low-fat has never worked for me as it leaves me hungry, but your body might react well to it. Different bodies thrive on different approaches. At 6 weeks out, you are still very early in the process. Ask your bariatric program what they recommend and then adjust as needed to accommodate your body's needs.

I suspect you'll get many similar answers, but I'll go ahead and say it - follow your surgeons' plan. They should have given you some dietary guidelines to follow and its incredibly important to do so. They have their own programs for a reason, regardless of differences, and its best to follow as best you can. That being said, a general rule for bariatric patients is protein first. You need to be hitting your protein goal (set by your program) as consistently as possible using high quality proteins when possible (more whole foods, less supplements). Doing so leaves very little room for carbs or fat. It takes time, but that is the goal.

I was diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea when I had my sleep study required for surgery. The neurologist never called me so I asked by bariatric surgeon about it. She said that it most likely will go away by 6 months post op. She said it wasn't worth going through all the hassle of getting a CPAP machine and the various sleep studies required to have it calibrated for me for such a short time. If it does not go away by 6 mos post op, then she said I should look into CPAP.

Agree with this - the unjury chicken soup isn't terrible, but still tastes like protein powder. I'm in the same boat, over the protein. I've been using the Bariatric Advantage Creme flavor, it's less sweet. I mix 2 scoops with fage greek yogurt, 8 oz of water, and 2 tbsps of PB2. It's like 50 g of protein and tastes ok. Sent from my SM-N976V using BariatricPal mobile app

I think a lot of us had that same worry. I'm here to tell you that the eating habits DO change. Sometimes, if I'm out, I'll order food like The Before Times... and then after a few bites I'm all "yeah, not doing this". Tonight there was cake. I had a few bites and pushed the rest away. The old me would have et the whole dang thing and gone for seconds (and possibly thirds). The whole point of the surgery, really, is to give you a tool that makes it a bit easier to develop better habits. You know how when you start a diet pre-op, and the first week or few days you're ALL IN on the diet, and the weight starts to come off, and you feel like you can just DO this? Now imagine that for six months. Or a year. Because the weight will just come off. Especially for us—it is, unfairly, still easier and faster for male bariatric patients to lose than female (in general). By the time the weight loss slows down, the habits you need are ingrained.

Take it one day at a time. It will all work out. I have to meet with a dietitian once a month prior to surgery--going on 6 months now. I've not found their advice very helpful, but it does make me accountable to report in. I've seen a different person each month so I have NOT developed a clinical relationship with any one of them. They don't seem to have looked at my chart prior to visits and it really pisses me off. My case is an outlier but they forget that until I remind them--every fricking time. It's very frustrating, but it makes me more determined. I've done lots of reading about WLS and have gotten numerous bariatric cookbooks. I'm as ready as I ever will be. I encourage you to do your homework, too, by learning as much as you can throughout the process.

There are lots of recipes for home-made protein shakes online. There are also protein soup powders available from Bariatric Advantage and ProtiDiet. You can add unflavored protein powder to a variety of liquids. Think outside the box.

Your bariatric program should have this for you. Every surgeon is different.

I have had depression for a long time. Last year in lock down with all the bad news all the time almost broke me. Friends and family rallied round and helped me along. I realised I have bad days and they pass. Exercise and getting out of the house really work for me. Most people who come to bariatric surgery have dieted and failed many times. We have come to believe that even this will fail for us. I have read thousands of posts on this site and people say this over and over. What will we do when we fail at this fails too ? Looking deeper into their posts shows how much weight they did loose. This has helped me. I am 7 days from surgery and it cant come soon enough. I will get nervous as the day comes nearer but thats just surgery nerves. You are not locked into yours, you can walk at any point. If you are not ready you will know. Be kind to yourself, take some pressure off and just breathe.

Amazon. Just search on “straight outta bariatric surgery” and you’ll see a bunch of different designs!

As mentioned here and on your other post, every program is different. Follow yours. Read it now. And keep reading it. Follow it. Your experiences will be different from every other person's. Don't get caught up on the bariatric Facebook groups for advice. They are full of inaccurate information and sometimes downright scary, advice.

I second this. I stocked up way too much on stuff that I threw away. You may want to have a small assortment of allowed foods on hand, but just enough to sample to decide later if you want to have them again. And I know this is a site sponsored by a supplier of bariatric products and maybe even your doctor's office may recommend something specific, but you can find cheaper options that are probably just as good. Read labels and make sure you're following your nutritionist's recommendations. Wait until after your surgery to stock up on stuff you like. Costco and Walmart have lots of options that worked well for me. Costco's store brand Kirkland protein bars and multivitamins are just fine. I do buy Premier Protein branded shakes, but I get them by the case. Other advice: walk, walk, and walk some more. The more you move, the faster you will recover (within reason, of course). Avoid the urge to let people wait on you. The more you do for yourself, the better.

I'm 45, 6 feet tall, and started out at 396 my heaviest (was 366 at the start of the pre-op diet). I am very, very active. Outdoor work, sports, CrossFit. I did track my food and, like you, was on way more than 3,000 calories a day. Now, two months post-op, I am 94 pounds down from my heavy and 64 from the start of the pre-op diet. I eat more than most people—I take in between 1000 and 1400 calories a day, including up to 120 g of carbohydrates, which is unusual for bariatric patients. I am still in the fast-lose "honeymoon" period and am losing 3-5 pounds a week after the initial massive weight dump. And yet... I'm satisfied. Thriving, even. The only thing is the restricted amount means my strength isn't what it was—probably lost about 30% off my PR lifts. I don't really care, because now I can run, and jump, and my palms can touch the floor, and I'm off my meds. I do feel hunger when I haven't eaten in too long, but it's not the gnawing "feed me or I will make your life miserable" HANGRY feeling I would have had before. It's more like... "things are not right, please to be feeding me now." Here are a couple of typical days for me, all approved by my nutritionist: Meal 1: Fairlife Core Power protein shake Meal 2 (post-workout): Oatmeal with protein powder, a bit of maple syrup, blueberries, and raspberries Meal 3: Koussa (summer squash stuffed with ground meat and rice, braised in tomato sauce) Meal 4: Tuna salad on one of those little dense squares of European-style flat rye bread Meal 5: Collagen peptide protein and an apple ---- Meal 1: Fairlife Core Power protein shake Meal 2 (post-workout): Scrambled egg with a bit of cheese, spinach, and hot sauce Meal 3: Ground turkey with sugar-free Korean BBQ sauce, green beans, a bit of rice Meal 4: Skyr (Icelandic nonfat yoghurt) with raspberries Meal 5: Lentils with ham The biggest thing I had to teach myself was that it's okay to leave food on the plate, EVEN IF IT'S JUST ONE TINY BITE. Because the line between "I am full" and "debilitating nausea and acid reflux" is sometimes just that one single bite.

It's been 2008 since I had a very successful surgery. Seriously, I swam in SF Sharkfest from Alcatraz to SF 2 yrs in a row. As I've gotten older, I have learned a few things I'd like to pass on to those who might not know this. Someone who has had bariatric surgery can only drink 5 oz of alcohol (wine/beer) and then they are legally drunk (trust me, you look act like you have had way too many drinks--slurred speech, staggering, falling down) and if you were to blow into a breathalyzer, you would get a reading indicating you are inebriated. Although I hadn't had anything to drink in about 30 yrs, during a few social dinners at our house, I had a small glass of wine and then my husband wanted to know just how much I had had to drink. When I say, "Not even one glass of wine," I was in such bad shape that he didn't believe me. He was furious and told me I wasn't to have any more drinks for the night. This also happened at my son's who was just livid with me and told me to go to a spare bedroom for the rest of the night. And, truly, I felt super drunk. At some point, I did some research and learned that because of how small my stomach pouch is and the way liquids are absorbed, I really shouldn't even have a sip of alcohol. Just thought I'd pass that on. Also, I originally lost 137 lbs to get to my goal weight. I maintained it for several years because I was working out regularly. A few yrs ago I started to put some weight back on, mostly because I wasn't exercising as much, I was alone ALL the time because of Covid because my husband was in contact with Covid infected people at the hospital he worked at 5 shifts a week for 1 yr and 9 months until his last day was Nov. 1. My diet wasn't as healthy and we were sleeping in different bedrooms on separate floors because he was so afraid he would test positive and give it to me. All last year, from July through May 29th when I had left hip replacement, I swam in a local lake for 1 hr each session...2x-4x a week with water getting down to 40 degrees. That kept me sane. Both of us have had our Covid vaccination shots and booster shots and I'm back in swimming in the cold water. If you have gained weight during the pandemic, just go through every day thankful and get back on the post-surgery diet your doctor put you on. (Currently, mine is 1200 cal, unless I burn over 900 swimming and only then do I get to add on 300). Even though I was afraid I had "stretched" my stomach pouch (I'll be 68 yrs old in a few weeks), I had an endoscopy and colonoscopy a month ago and the gastroenterologist said everything looks perfect.

I would eat the Bariatric Advantage calcium chews as candy if that wasn’t such a terrible idea. It’s like a starburst laffy taffy. 💖

Immediately post surgery you may eat only 300-500 calories, but your intake will increase as you transition to soft and pureed foods and finally to "real" food. Yes, you will feel satisfied by this minimal intake. Enjoy the restriction and weight loss because it won't last forever. Learn to recognize when your pouch is full and STOP immediately. You also need to learn how to prepare and cook food appropriate for your new body. There are lots of bariatric recipes online and bariatric cookbooks are available on Amazon and elsewhere.

My program refers to the entire 2-week thing as a "liquid diet," but part of the plan is a protein bar every day plus either a banana or 8oz of low-fat milk (for potassium). It becomes strictly liquid-only 2 days before surgery, though. For me, that will happen on Saturday. I love bananas, so that was an easy choice at first, but right now I'm desperate for any variety so I'll be switching to 1% milk this week. And they only provided 12 protein bars to begin with (smart bariatric center!), so I won't have to remember to stop eating them. I have my pre-op nutritionist appointment tomorrow morning, and Wednesday morning is the pre-op with my surgeon. I have a feeling this week will go by really fast!!

If you don't already know how to cook, now is the time to learn. In order to eat differently for the rest of your life, you need to know how to choose, prep, and prepare appropriate meals. There are lots of supportive books about WLS and bariatric cooking. Here are a few that I've obtained:

Scheduled for a mini gastric bypass this Friday, the 19th. Trying today to get a list together of everything I need as far as new foods and drinks so I can have it all in house by then. Confusing with so many different sites/people saying different things or mentioning different products. I would really appreciate any help or sites that kind of lay it out in simple terms. I've been given a lot of paperwork from the doctor and hospital and met with the hospital's bariatric person. Just ordered disposable medicine cups and case of Ensure Max Protein (suggested by Dr.'s PA) Also bought a bag of Bariatric Advantage Calcium Chews and Bariatric Fusion Multivitamins from them to start out on but will source out equivalent products that may be less expensive during my week off next week. Any tips or things to watch out for are welcome. Thanks in advance!

Scheduled for a mini gastric bypass this Friday, the 19th. Trying today to get a list together of everything I need as far as new foods and drinks so I can have it all in house by then. Confusing with so many different sites saying different things or mentioning different products. I'm a single man and have to handle this alone and would really appreciate any help or sites that kind of lay it out in simple terms. I've been given alot of paprerwork from the doctor and hospital and met with the hospital's bariatric person. Guess how I feel afterwards will dictate what I drink the 1st few days or week, but still unsure of how often and what is allowed or suggested as a whole. Thanks in advance

My surgery date is 12/2 with Dr. Perez and Renew Bariatrics in Tj, Mexico! So nervous and excited!!