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P.S. I agree with the others that I wouldn't start the liquid diet now. For one thing, you usually just do that for a week or two before your surgery. For another, it's pretty awful - I wouldn't do that until/unless I had to! And third, not all surgeons even require it - some just have you do a 24-hour fast before your surgery, which is kind of standard with other types of surgeries. Oh - and even the liquid diets, when required, can vary a lot. Some people are allowed to eat SOME food, like a sensible, low calorie dinner (but protein shakes the rest of the day). And some of us (me included) had to have just shakes plus no (or very low) calorie fluids the whole two weeks. So yea - I'd wait until the time comes.

that's a super fast lost! We started out at about the same weight, and it took me almost a year to lose 100 lbs (I lost 200 altogether, but it took me 20 months to lose the whole 200+ lbs)

Hi everyone, im new here… I came across your post and feel so relieved to read how good you feel now. I had surgery about 2 weeks ago. Everything went well. I felt like I had made the best choice…well… as long as I was on pain meds and not eating I should say. Because as soon as I got home it started with the buildup gasses which extremely uncomfortable and sometimes painful. I had a liquid diet and stuck to it religiously even though I could never keep up with the quantities. At best I had half of every tiny meal and only managed 3 out of the 6. I was starting to feel miserable. My stomach would gurgle and make horrible burping sound at the slightest sip of Water. Then came week 2, in which I am right now. This week it is minced food. So I can have cream cheese and blitzed vegetables (as long as it is smooth) mixed with a lot of Protein. I was happy for the change, but I have experienced dumping yesterday which lasted 2 hours and then today again TWICE in a row! To say that I absolutely afraid of food now is an understatement. I barely have 300cal a day. I feel “fine” but exhausted at the same time. I look at food videos and want to cry. I’m not hungry, just scared of what I’ve done. The gassy feeling is slightly better but I though dumping happened when eating fatty foods or sugary foods?? I haven’t done none of that and I experienced horrible pain. I don’t think I’ll be able to take it…. Its good to see that I’m not the only one in this. I’m devastated. Ive lost 13kg since doing the pre-op diet. (Around 26 pounds) I fear it might be too fast… but good to read that it can and will get better ❤️‍🩹

I was able to poop on the 15th,16th and 17th. No luck yesterday and so far today, nothing. I started my Colace that I was prescribed last night so hopefully that will help. I am getting my fluid in as well. I have found if I drink to fast or to much at once, my stomach will start to hurt.

Hi everyone, im new here… had to find a support group somehow even though I really didn’t think I needed one in the first place. I’m pretty strong and have had many medical issues in the past (breast cancer being one of them). I’m 44 now and living in Belgium. But no matter where you live things are pretty similar surgery wise. I had surgery about 2 weeks ago. Everything went well. Prior to it, I had this super strict diet which was not liquid but sugar free, fat free and carb free, to reduce the size of my liver. It was really hard and I lost 6kg (around 12 pounds I think). Surgery as I said went super smoothly and I felt like I had made the best choice…well… as long as I was on pain meds and not eating I should say. Because as soon as I got home it started with the buildup gasses which extremely uncomfortable and sometimes painful. I had a liquid diet and stuck to it religiously even though I could never keep up with the quantities. At best I had half of every tiny meal and only managed 3 out of the 6. I was starting to feel miserable. My stomach would gurgle and make horrible burping sound at the slightest sip of water. Then came week 2, in which I am right now. This week it is minced food. So I can have cream cheese and blitzed vegetables (as long as it is smooth) mixed with a lot of protein. I was happy for the change, but I have experienced dumping yesterday which lasted 2 hours and then today again TWICE in a row! To say that I absolutely afraid of food now is an understatement. I barely have 300cal a day. I feel “fine” but exhausted at the same time. I look at food videos and want to cry. I’m not hungry, just scared of what I’ve done. The gassy feeling is slightly better but I though dumping happened when eating fatty foods or sugary foods?? Ibanez done none of that I experienced horrible pain. I don’t think I’ll be able to take it…. That’s how I ended up here. I hope someone can help me in understanding what is going on and maybe tell me it is really going to get better? Drinking water is the worst. I barely have 1 glass a day. I can’t manage more… I’m devastated. Ive lost 13kg since doing the pre-op diet. (Around 26 pounds) I fear it might be too fast. Please help…

I am March 20th - and super tempted to eat all those things I won’t be able to each after my two week fast begins

Hi Everyone: I back here reporting on my progress. My surgery was 10 AM yesterday (2/17) and it’s currently 5:37 AM and I’m in my hospital room for the over night stay. I can officially say I’m “post op” hahaha. I’m laying in bed typing this here because I got a little bored and then thought about all you wonderful peeps here and said let me go up date them. I feel so so; the gas from the surgery has been the most annoying part for me. Like real bad…. I remember waking up in recovery with all these medical professionals over me and simply whining and holding my stomach begging for some type of relief. They responded with meds for pain and gas relief. Still hurt badly. While waiting for my hospital bed/room; they helped me walked around the recovery unit. I am sure it helped but it did not feel like it at the moment haha. I completely lost track of time once I went in surgery at 10 AM. I was so surprised to finally see a clock once in my hospital room and it was 5:55 PM. I said sheesh that was a daaaaaay. Overnight was not so bad. I’m just laying in silence right now on this comfortable bed which has been amazing. I’ve been walking the unit doing 5 laps about every hr. The gas issues has subsided a lot but still present. Ice chips has been cool; I did sneak a sip or two of the water because I am so thirsty and hungry. Nurse told me I will “eat” for the swallow test later this morning. Surprised bloodwork at 1:30 am while I was fast sleep lol. Results: Nurse coming in hours later to add Magnesium IV bag. So I’m here now chilling waiting for the sun to rise. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Still hurting like noone's business. I feel like I can't even twist enough to wipe properly without shedding a tear. Please tell me the pain gets better fast... Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

Hi - everyone everything is going well. I lost 105 lbs and on March 16th I’ll be my one year gastric bypass anniversary. Initially I had a somewhat difficult time eating- went on omeprazole for gastritis issues-it seemed to work. November I went to ER to realize after extensive testing I had a gallbladder attack. In December I had my gallbladder removed. I am doing well now but I am scared because I am hungry at night. Nighttime has always been my downfall. I try to eat well during the day. I work PT 10-2PM M-F and I start the day off with a protein shake - drink water-iced coffee no sugar almond milk-water-snack on either nuts,cheese, yogurt or protein bar. I try to have lunch right when I get home. I have dinner around 6-6:30. I consume about 1200 calories and always exceed my protein levels 70-80. On top of that I get fatigued. I do walk or do elliptical and recently kettlebells. I work ironically in a school cafeteria and it’s a very busy job. I can’t be very mindful as it is very fast paced. Has anyone got the night time hunger?

I was NPO after midnight for my surgery. I would just avoid anything red closer to surgery. And the longer you can do the clear liquid fast the better for liver shrinkage it will be. But of course whatever your doctor says is their procedure. You'll do fine, I was nervous and anxious too but don't regret it one bit.

Best of luck - how is the liquid fast coming along

So, I am 5 weeks out of bypass revision. I feel great (a little stall, but I hear thats normal and I am not worried). I am happy. Just an observation, I dont get that full feeling as fast as I did like the original, the delayed fullness is weird. Me and the Dr. have talked about it and I understand why. I have had one hick up with overeating and that sh*t was painful for a good 45 mins. How are you managing this change if you are experiencing it at all?

I honestly hate how much they push those food ads. I mean I know that it's not good food and that's part of it but most of my food cravings aren't for fast food, it's things like cheesy scrambled eggs and mashed potatoes with gravy or cheese sauce right now. Lol I think I just want cheese sauce honestly lol

I originally bought slim fast, and had to return, horrible after taste. With Premier I have tried and liked Vanilla Cake Batter, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Caramel. My sister loves the Latte one, but I haven't tried it yet. I found they tasted good and when I was tired, I heated the chocolate as hot cocoa and it was good, and fyi I do not even like chocolate lol.

I am one week post op and head hunger has been driving me crazy. Been watching a lot of TV and every time I see a commercial for fast food or something it makes me want to eat.

that's about where I was at that point. there are a lot of factors that influence your rate of weight loss, most of which you have little to no control over (age, gender, metabolic rate, what % of your body weight is muscle, starting BMI, how much you lost prior to surgery, etc). The only two things you DO have a lot of control over is how closely you stick to your program and your activity level. If you do well with those, you're good - and you WILL lose weight, whether fast or slow.

if you've been following your clinic's recommendations, then it's likely water retention from the IV fluids. That's basically salt water, and a lot of people retain that. There are some people on here who've even weighed 10 lbs more when they left the hospital than when they arrived! It can take a week or occasionally longer to work its way out of your system. stick to your plan and the weight will come off. Everyone is different due to different factors, many of which you have little to no control over (like age, gender, starting BMI, metabolic level, how much weight you lost prior to surgery, etc). The two things you DO have control over is how closely you stick to your plan and your activity level. If you do well with those, the weight will come off, whether fast or slow. also, the 20 lb loss you said you think you should have lost in the first two weeks - banish that thought. If you started out at 600+ lbs, then yes - maybe - but for us more "normal" WLS patients, losing 20 lbs in two weeks just doesn't happen. Most of us lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first MONTH. Yes of course you will find people who've lost more or less than that the first month, but they're outliers. You're probably doing just fine. Give it more time and remember to stick to your plan! I thought i was a terribly slow loser - and I WAS a bit behind others with similar statistics (starting weight, etc), but I ended up losing over 200 lbs.

I think I was pretty much exactly where you are at 3 months post op! My team went one step further and didn't give me ANY goals at all. Just food consistency phases. I learned how to eat and what to eat mainly by reading this forum. I think I still had to push myself to reach 800 calories a day - I remember at that stage often having to take a few spoons of nut butter or some cheese at bedtime just to hit the 800 some nights but I never wanted to eat any less than that. I was drinking alcohol at weekends by then too so my intake was well over 1000 on two days a week - that was by choice though. It may have slowed my weight loss a little but luckily it didn't stop me reaching goal. I mainly walked, but I walked *very* fast and did (still do) it several days a week. I have never adjusted my intake to make allowances for that - never felt the need. I was very conscious of squeezing every pound of loss that I could over the 'honeymoon period' when I wasn't hungry - with my own personal concession being a couple of glasses of wine on Fri and Sat night. Over the months my calories have kind of drifted upwards really - never planned. I can just eat a bit more before I get full, and I get properly hungry now which forces me to eat again at the most 3 hours later - at 3 months out I was pretty much eating by the clock to get 100 or so calories in every 2-3 hours. You had your surgery almost exactly a year after me and you started 4lbs heavier. I've just looked at my diary and this time last year I was...218lb exactly, same as you today. What are the chances? You are doing brilliantly. 😍

Oh no!!! I hope they cover it for you and let you know fast.

Hi All I was recently sleeves on 1/26/23. I was very excited and anxious for the procedure to jump start my progress. Fast fwd since surgery I have been having a hard time. When I graduated to semi soft foods It been rough. I haven't been able to keep anything down. It's been so bad that I was informed that it would be best that I go back to the previous stage of liquids only. I'm starting to feel down about getting the procedure. I been vomiting, having heart burn, discomfort trying to drink water, stomach pains, unsuccessful attempts to belch. I've been so frustrated trying to explain this to my Dr. She look at my like i'm crazy and it's hard telling someone the complications I'm having who have never experienced it. Have anyone else had this issue? Like water hurt when I drink it.. it's like so rough when trying to go down like i feel pain while it's traveling and when it finally settle. I'm going crazy please help. My Dr said she will order a upper GI so we will see. I feel like I may have dumping syndrome- although I haven't eaten anything sugary or with fat. I was told dumping syndrome mostly only occur with bypass patients. As in I shouldn't be having that issue but I feel like I do. If i try something as simple as yogurt it come right up like fast within a few minutes and I experience all the issues notes above. I be bent over trying to deal with the pain when this is happening. Any suggestions, tips or advice is welcomed.

I'm 2.5 years post-op from gastric bypass. I think weight loss surgery can help make major changes to your relationship with food and eating, but it takes a lot of time and work to undo the habits and mindset you've developed throughout your life up to this point. I had read that a lot of people experience changes in their tastes after surgery, and I hoped that would be the case for me but was not optimistic. I mentioned this hope to the psychiatrist during my psych eval for the surgery, and he kind of laughed at this idea and told me not to count on it. I've always been a picky eater with a long list of vegetables and cuisines that I wouldn't eat. Some people say that after surgery, food tastes different (e.g., anything sweet tastes too sweet), but that was not my experience, so I figured I wasn't one of the lucky ones whose tastes would change. Well, fast-forward to now and my tastes have changed... sort of. It's hard to explain because foods taste the same now as they did before surgery, but my likes and dislikes have changed a lot. I used to hate seafood and now I love it. I eat all kinds of vegetables that I used to hate. I'm not sure if my tastes have changed or I just have more of an open mind, or maybe having to go through the pre-op liquid diet and post-op stages made me appreciate real food more when I reintroduced it. Either way, I'm eating healthy foods every day and loving them. Before surgery, I loved watching cooking shows like Top Chef and Great British Baking Show. For the first several months after surgery, I couldn't bear to watch cooking shows. I hated even seeing food commercials on TV. It just made me sad and angry to see foods that I could no longer eat. But eventually, I got to a point where I could see food and cooking without the emotional attachment. I can watch Great British Baking Show and appreciate the cakes and cookies they make without being sad that I can't eat them. Once I got to the point of reintroducing solid food, I put a lot of effort into recreating "bariatric-friendly" versions of foods I used to eat -- especially pizza. Pizza was my kryptonite, and before surgery, I could not get enough pizza. I could have eaten pizza every day and never gotten tired of it. After surgery, I tried chicken crust pizza, and making pizza with low-carb tortilla for the crust, topped with sugar-free marinara, low fat mozzarella, and turkey pepperoni. But I also started trying healthy recipes that I found on Pinterest, and eventually, I stopped craving pizza. I haven't had anything resembling pizza (even a healthy version) in well over a year and I don't care. If you put two plates in front of me, one with a slice of pizza and one with grilled salmon and roasted vegetables, I would go straight for the salmon and not even be tempted by the pizza. This is just wild to me because three years ago, I wouldn't have eaten salmon if it were the only food available, and I never could have passed up a slice of pizza. Sometimes I feel like I'm having an out-of-body experience because before surgery, I couldn't imagine being the health nut with a refrigerator full of fresh produce and no junk food in the house, eating grilled fish and cauliflower rice and salad with fat-free dressing, but here I am. I am constantly finding new, healthy, delicious recipes. Every single day, I eat healthy food and think, "Holy crap, this is delicious!" I honestly enjoy food more now than I did when I was eating whatever I wanted with wild abandon. It took me a long time to get here, and I can't promise that you or anyone else will have the same experiences after weight loss surgery, but my relationship with food has changed more than I could have imagined.

Full disclosure: I still eat fast as well, but like you know my limits. This has worked for me and though I'd love to slow down, I'm just too old of a dog to learn this new trick.

im going to be a semi-dissenter here, based, of course, on MY personal experience. disclaimer, disclaimer, etc., etc., and all that. I did not follow my teams plan. Instead, i went with what my body could handle and the results it produced (i.e.. i went less calories than recommended; i went less carbs than recommended; i went against the recommended macro distribution; i drank coffee, carbonated liquids, did not have breakfast; did not eat set meals but grazed throughout my eating window; all actions that were contrary to what was told to me by my NUT). I also told my NUT everything i was doing. in short, if something worked (and had no undesirable effects), i continued doing it, if it didn't, i stopped. i realize this is not an approach that would work for everyone, but it did for ME. I paid more attention to what worked in my favour vs. what other people told me worked for THEM, or what they thought i should be doing. i'll say it now, and i'll say it again: there is no one size fits all approach for everyone, no matter what stage u are in (in my humble opinion). as for the topic of willpower: i would say, for ME, it was more about conditioning (and still is). the surgery gave me the awesome gift of immediate (and sometimes aggressive) feedback when i ate too much, or too fast, or ingested too much sugar. All of which are things that got me to obesity in the first place. The unpleasant physical symptoms of doing any of the above due to the surgery has effectively Pavlov'ed me out of being fat. Which i am immensely grateful for. I am 4+ years out of surgery and have maintained below goal weight ever since i reached it at 7 months post op....all thanks to my absolute distaste for feeling overly full and dumping. well, that and my desire to wear bikinis, lol. In short, do what works for you, use your team for guidance, and if something isn't working, stop doing it. AND if you struggle to do the above, a good therapist would go a long way to help (which, granted is hard to find). Good Luck! ❤️

I’m struggling right now too. I’m not regretting but wishing there was a fast forward. Like you I take adderall for adhd and had similar eating pattern before starting this process with not eating much during the day but then a huge meal in evening -often a take away when the adderall wears off. I’m having a bit of the opposite problem. I’m finding food really unappealing right now. Just looking at a piece of meat (especially grilled chicken and Turkey meatballs)or smelling it is enough to turn me off. I’m struggling to tolerate vegetables, I’m still experiencing nausea semi regularly. Worse than all of those things I have really low energy. I may be 60lbs lighter than I was 6 months ago when I had my first consultation with my surgeon but I the tiredness I feel 10 weeks out from surgery is as if I was still dragging that weight around. I try to be very active and truly enjoy excercise esp swimming and weightlifting which I do in the mornings but by 4pm the exhaustion strikes and by 6p it’s like the thought of getting out of bed let alone preparing dinner feels like a gargantuan task. I’m exceeding my Protein and hydration targets and feel like I’m following all the rules, the weight loss feels controlled and stable, but I now seem to dread eating and am dreaming of the days I’ll see my pre surgery energy level. So even know I remain positive about the outlook overall in future, real time feelings in the present moment are like you somewhat miserable. And you know what, I think it’s okay to feel that way and not pretend everything is great. The reality is change comes from struggle and rewriting a lifetime of psychologically treating food as a comfort or enemy, or indulgence rather than what it truly is - the fuel for our bodies - at least for me probably requires this misery to reset. Wishing you some comfort to cravings. One food joy I was able to find was creating a Greek yogurt topping bar, having previously never liked Greek yogurt this now is a bright spot in my food day. I hope can find at least one comfort like me. Early on I did also have mental craving for egg rolls and other normal foods so I think what you experiencing is probably normal - since you mentioned Chinese I’m linking to a recipe that satisfied that craving for me. You should be able to have it as soon as you are allowed veg. https://stylishcravings.com/low-carb-easy-make-egg-roll-bowl/ Again hoping you find comfort soon and if you ever need to vent feel free to message me.

Some more traditional fast breaker compared to soup. Rye bread, partly toasted. Also tried the Food for Future tuna salad. Not bad. It looks and tastes like "the real stuff". Didn't hit the spot though. I put most of it away in the fridge. That's one bread with slices of the Camembert I bought yesterday. I tried a new brand and it tastes fine. Bummer that they don't have any blue cheeze right now. I'm craving some gorgonzola like sauce.