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Ok, well I now have a bracelet around my stomach~ Boy, the first day I had such a hard time waking up all day. I went everywhere with my eyes closed. Then on day 2 I was having such a rough time with keeping myself with enough strength from nutrition. I just wanted to lay in bed. I felt hungry, but was too weak to want to eat all that much. Last night I started to perk up a little. Then about 4 AM I told my husband I was hungry and he got me some Yogurt. Thanks hon~:Banane56: This morning.. I have to say I see a big difference in energy. I took my chewable vitamine last night... Maybe that helped some too. The doc had to fix a hernia on me and said he took a boipsy of my liver while in there. It was aparently fatty, and he said that could cause liver failure. I guess I needed this surgery more than I even realized. Thats kinda scary to think about. This is all going to take some time for me. I am having a hard time with the liquid thing. I kinda feel gagy when I think of more liqids to eat.. but I am hungry...but it goes away after a couple tablespoons of soup broth. Oh man.. It is a tough place to be. I keep dreaming of a dish of cottage cheese I can have in a week and a half. Oh the wonderful texture of food again!:nanahump: Well, good luck to all you out there going through this right now. Im hanging in there.. you too!:wink2:

Mashed potatoes! Just chew them really really well... I ate mashed potatoes 5 days after surgery and did just fine. Or you could try watered down cream of wheat or oatmeal, and yogurt?

I'm so surprised they told you that. My doctor and dietitian have me on a liquid diet for two weeks after surgery. All I can have is sugar free Jello, popsicles, yogurt with no seeds, sugar free natural applesauce, Soup with no chunks of any kind or strained, broth, crystal light and slim fast. They told me that this liquid diet was required at first because of the swellling after surgery. It gives your stomach a chance to heal and prevents the pouch from stretching. They told me that any solid food early on could stretch the band or cause slippage of the band. The third week I can start a soft food diet. If you have any discomfort at all I would go to a liquid diet for a few days. Maybe ask your surgeon or dietitian to clarify what you can eat. I know that different offices have different rules and mine is the Realize band so maybe that makes a difference. Good luck with everything. Don't worry about failing. You are just beginning and it's a learning process. You may be feeling down due to decreased calories giving you a low energy level but you have to give yourself more time to recover.

whatever the timing, I certainly wouldnt call tuna and crackers a mushy food. Tuna can be quite dry and "sticky" in texture so unless its packed in oil or doused in mayonnaise (which kinda makes it a high fat food) thenn its going to be hard to eat. ON crackers, wow, surprised you managed to swallow it and keep it down. Mushy foods should be soft and moist. Especially so soon after surgery I'd really be focussing more on very thick soups, blended up things, pureed fruit and yogurt and staying away from stuff so solid for a week or so yet.

At 6 days post op you should only be on liquids (most likely clear ones), which will go straight through your sleeve. Once you get to mushies you should start feeling fuller for longer. I was permitted full liquids at 1 week (ie anything that you can suck through a straw), so yogurt drinks helped me. Maybe you can try some protein shakes and I remember things like cream of tomato really filling me up - obviously assuming you have the OK from your surgeon.

Good idea!! i happen to LOVE yogurt, i eat it everyday, and there are so many different varieties of Protein powder out there, so being able to mix different flavors into yogurt gives you a very high protein snack/meal with very little bulk. I will have to do that. Especially after surgery when i am on soft foods only and want to make sure i am getting all my protein in. Jillian :001_smile:

I had my surgery June of 2015 - so I'm in your range. I'm in maintenance and eat 1200-1400 kcal a day. I malabsorb Protein, so I make a double Protein shake every morning and sip on it all day. So that's like 200-300 calories right there, depending on what I put in it. Then I usually eat around 200 kcal for Breakfast, around 300 or so for lunch and dinner. I often have a snack in the evening, too - like yogurt. If I didn't do the protein shake, I'd probably have a couple of low-calorie Snacks during the day, like a hard-boiled egg or one of those Fit & Light Greek yogurts. I'm not a gym rat, but I try to get to the gym 2-3 times a week (mostly strength-training and/or Water aerobics). I also go to a yoga class 1-2x a week.

I was told by surgeon not to swallow pills whole until 3 months out. When I had one of my post op appointments he said go ahead and try swallowing the capsule that was beyond bitter. I was about 2 months out then. One night I did and got an excruciating pain below chest, radiating to stomach and back, just like a gallbladder attack, except I do not have a gallbladder. It lasted abut 2 hours. spoke with the on call doc, he said sounded like pills got stuck g back to crushing them. I am now almost 4 months out and have been swallowing my pills for about a month. last night, i got that excruciating pain again. This time lasted about an hour. I had not overeaten for Thanksgiving, was very proud of what and how much I ate. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced anything like this, pain, stuck pills, anything. I messaged my doc this AM, but do not even know if they are open today. So for today I am mostly doing liquids and very soft stuff like yogurt and cottage cheese.

HI! Congrats on your upcoming surgical date! I would stick with the milk but maybe start going to the lactose free kind. many of us find we are lactose intolerant after the bypass for some weird reason! I can still do my Greek yogurt and some cheese in small amounts but a shake full of milk...no way! lol I say stay with the milk because Protein is going to be so important in your life so soon. your adding about ten more grams to your shakes with your 8oz of milk, not to mention some key nutrients because milk is a REAL food and you will have to ease back into those slowly at first. Your body will always absorb and heal and just thrive better on real foods so, keep the milk going while you have to lean on the shakes! Also, don't be bummed about the slow loss before surgery, a lot of people don't see a huge loss pre bypass. Remember though, when they DO the bypass, you get a RE DO on your who metabolic system! We get a restart on our metabolism a real do over! So, don't worry about the scale, just know your liver is gettin ready to be read like tea leaves, so its gotta look its most firm and fit! lol That is really what the pre op is all about, the real new you will be here soon enough! It's not an easy thing, but the pay offs can be aw some, you'll see! Keep on talking on here, it helps! Any other questions let all of us know! GOOD LUCK!

Thanks! I was thinking about it more this afternoon and I might try adding some granola to my afternoon greek yogurt. It's the last thing I eat before I work out after work, so maybe the extra carbs before my workout will help? Since the yogurt itself goes down really easy now, I think I could probably handle a little granola with it without feeling overfull.

I've just decided that I'm not going to increase the intensity of my workouts until I can eat a little more. I added some granola to my afternoon greek yogurt (I work out after work), so hopefully that will be enough to let me keep up my current intensity level. I'd like to be able to add some carbs to dinner as well, maybe some veggies? But I don't have the room yet. I'm not willing to cut our any of my Protein to make room for carbs. So, until I can physically eat more food, I will just stick to 25 minutes of cardio and 20 minutes of strength training about 5 days a week.

I am 9 weeks out and have one fill of 3 ccs. I have dealt with acid reflux for years. It flares up from time to time. Prior to the band, I would eat things like red meat or chicken and I could feel it work its way through my digestive system until it eventually cleared. Severe indigestion. Now instead of passing, the indigestion is quite painful and I have to regurgitate. What I have found that I need to do, is take something soft or smooth, like yogurt, cottage cheese, skim milk, a protein drink to "soothe" the tract so that I cans wallow food. If I dont, I have a miseable eating day. A scrambled egg is impossible to get down, I sucked the juice out of a slice of grapefruit and thought I would die. Even swallowing when I brush upsets my stomach. Do the soothing technique and things are fine. Anyone else experience this or reflux? The staff at the doctor's office says that I am eating too fast and taking too big of bites. I think it is more serious than that. Any thoughts? Thanks!

Im 10 days post op and omg please tell me it gets better.. Im so sick of soups and yogurts.. I just want some chicken or tuna to eat.. I want flavors and i want to chew.. Ugh.. I always have a headache or heartburn pr this weird empty feeling.. I feel like it would get better once i can eat real foods... Ughhhhh please tell me it get better.. Bc it suckssss sooo bad right now.. I hate this feeling i have

Hello everyone - Well, I had my banding procedure yesterday and now I am home. My doctor said the procedure went really well, and though I was terrified of the anesthesia, I made it through in one piece. So right now I am in some pain, more than I was in the hospital, but of course the drugs are better in the hospital. I imagine that this is what getting stabbed several times in the stomach feels like, but I cannot be sure. I have one incision that hurts way worse than the others. The area with the port does not hurt too badly yet, but we shall see. I just wanted to thank whoever suggested that I buy Gas-X thin strips and liquid tylenol - they have been life savers! I don't have so much of a problem with air in my shoulders or chest cavity, I myself am just kinda gassy. And the liquid tylenol provides just enough pain relief in between taking the narcotic pain reliever (I am on dilotid). I have had some issues with nausea, but mostly right after the procedure and this morning after the follow up upper gi test that I had done. My questions right now are: How long before I start to feel better? I know its only been a day but I am already getting antsy and am ready to leave my apartment. I walked outside some today, and my doctor wants me to get up to 2 miles per day (I went to the gym 4-5 times per week before the surgery). Like I said, I walked some today, but I was exhausted from walking around the block. Also, how does everyone handle the post-surgery diet? I am on a full liquid diet, where I can eat broth, creamy soups, yogurt, milk, etc. I have had some creamy sweet potato soup today, some hot tea and some water. I'm not really hungry and I was kinda just forcing myself to get some nourishment (the tea is for my throat which is so sore from the tube). I also had a protein drink just to make sure I was getting some protein. Does it become easier to eat during this liquid stage? I am on it for a week before I start with the mushy foods, and I just want to make sure that I am doing it right. I kinda feel as though I really need to succeed at this, so I think I"m putting some unnecessary pressure on myself. I feel as though this is somewhat of a last ditch effort for me to lose weight. I have been overweight all my life, and though I am only 27, I somewhat feel as though I am at my wits end. I really want to succeed at this. I'm sorry for my rambling post... I think it is partly the drug haze I am in and partly the stress I am putting on myself. The long road ahead is kinda daunting to me. So, I am open to anyone's suggestions.... hopefully some other people out there understand how I feel. Jenn:notagree

I live where it's colder in summer and I like a hot chocolate after dinner. Early out I made a mocha using Starbucks Via Decaf instant coffee, chocolate Protein powder and soy milk. You might try letting the coke go flat and then drinking some if you are really missing it. I got my sweet fix on with greek yogurt sweetened with splenda and the Protein Drinks. My fav was French vanilla. Also like the Lipton Diet Green Tea with Citrus. Lynda

Seems like I do a great job at work sticking to my healthy eating habits - greek yogurt for breakfast; P3, tuna or chicken salad for lunch; protein bar in the afternoon. Then I get home in the evening and the craving for sweets intensifies times ten! I'm sneaking handfuls of cereal, eating my daughter's granola bars, etc. I have the calories to spare usually but I need to spend them on healthier choices instead of pure sugar!

Protein vs. liquid Cuz it sure as heck can't be both. I got in a record amount of fluids today at the pool! I figured that was more important after spending an entire day in the sun. For the first time, I got down 40 oz of Water, but I had to force myself to eat 2oz of yogurt and 2 oz of creamed Soup and I am paying for it now. My youngest can't stop herself from giggling at the ferocious noises that are coming from my throat. Fortunately, before I drank all that, I got in one entire Protein shake so I got some protein in, but when I opened the second, it went back in the fridge after a few sips. Ugh... One day at a time, right? Still no complaints but it sure is weird having the FULL feeling up so high instead on in a thanksgiving tummy. I really wouldn't be unhappy staying this way IF I could figure out how to work out a belch faster. Ideas? (And if one more person goes to burp me like an infant, they will be gagging on their own teeth, for real!)

hang in there. I was sleeved on Oct. 20 2011 and have lost 100lbs. I was wearing size 20 and stretching those and weighed 260. Now I wear size 8-10 and weigh 160. First time in our marriage that I have weighed less than my husband. I love the way I look in the mirror now but still feel like I am the same size until someone stops me at work and comments on how great I look. Physically I feel GREAT. Nothing hurts anymore. Little things like being able to cross my legs now when I sit down feels good. I feel sick when I look back at pictures of me in the past and see how fat I looked. I just didn't realize how I looked and how it affected how I lived and worked. I feel so much younger now. I'm 53 but was feeling much older when I was heavy. What I found easiest to use is Total Lean Meal Replacement shakes from GNC. They come in bottles ready to drink so no mixing. Tastes like chocolate milk to me. I also like their unflavored Protein powder that I add to yogurt for a snack and to my luxury item (mocha frappe's from McDonalds). I also eat the weight watcher (Smart Ones) frozen meals for lunch and then some kind of meat for dinner. I take my multi Vitamin, vit. D, B complex, vit. B12 daily. I try to drink 1-2 of the shakes per day and I also fill in when hungry with South Beach Meal Bars or Snacks. You will eventually get to the point where you can have a bite or two of what you used to love along with the above and be satisfied. Be strong and have patience. It will get better and before long you will be where you want to be.

Do they not give you a number you can call or someone you can email or something to ask questions? Every program is different. My full liquids included things like yogurt.

I will second the motion on this being very very tasty. I use it in milk, coffee, and yogurt. It is really good. I have bought several sample packs, but I like it so well I think I will soon purchase the big container of it.

I really don't like meat or eggs. I never have. After being being sleeved I dislike meat even more. That being said I don't know how to get my protein in. Cottage Cheese and Yogurt are tolerable, but boy that gets boring. I have refried nonfat beans almost everyday, and protein shakes. I am almost 4 weeks out & starting "real" food. Any suggestions? Have any of you tried quinoa after being sleeved?

Quest Protein bars... I bet I could eat three in a row.. though I don't. Cottage cheese/yogurt Corn chips...... oddly if I use the corn chips to scoop up the cottage cheese it turns these two sliders into a really filling combination. 7 tortilla chips and half a cup of cottage cheese is now one of my favorite filling meals!

I am going to be banded on August 12th 2008! I been trying to get approved since Janury 10th when I first met with the Surgen Dr. Castro in Staten Island NY. He has the best track record I can find any where in NY so I know he will take care of me. I'm so nervous and scared out of my mind right now. I'm afraid that I gained weight in the last two weeks since I got my surgery date. I am supposed to be on the special diet where you practically starve yourself and since I got my date I have not been following it very well at all.. I replaced most of my snacks with either fruit or low calorie yogurt but I have been eating larger portions than I was before I got the date. My boyfriend says he thinks I'm eating ok but then again he didn't think I ate a lot to begin with, if that's the case how did I get to the point of surgery right?! I should have bough a scale to keep track of myself... Deff gotta put that on my TO - DO - LIST! My sister had the gastric bypass 3 years ago and she was over 400 lbs at the time of surgery, she is currently only 120 lbs and has skin hanging all over. I think she looks scary looking and terrible. She also has vitamin problems and can't keep any food down. She has her good days but they are few and very far between. That's why I chose the lap band:thumbup: Much less risk of all of those things and more. Also I dont want to be a bag of bones the way my sister is now. I like a lil meat on me... hopefully in the right places! If anyone is in the Brooklyn NY area E-mail me, Things like this are easier if you have a friend going through it with you. much love to everyone out there who is going for the band! -Jinx

I'm at goal and had to go have 1/2 cc removed from my band today. Not because I keep losing weight, but because I can't eat solids......started about 6 weeks ago. It reached a point where I could only eat oatmeal, yogurt, and Soup........Asked my doc about it and he said that after removing the 1/2 cc, if it continues, I might have to have an x-ray because my band may have slipped!!! I asked how that was possible......I don't throw up......did I do something? The answer is NO! As you lose weight, your stomach gets smaller and smaller. The band is only stitched on the front of the stomach - can't get to the back of it to stitch. So the band can fall or slip at an angle - high in the front and low in the back, as you stomach gets smaller and smaller, which doesn't allow for a proper opening. So - if you do have a band slippage - it most likely isn't your fault.......well - it is because you've lost so much weight!! LOL One other thing - I'm self paid, but if I'm having stomach problems - he can go in to "look" around and fix the problem - and insurance pays!

My nutritionist wanted me to aim for 100g a day right away, but I didn't realistically get there probably until I was on solid foods. It's pretty easy to get 100 grams if you do a couple bars or shakes a day and make sure you are doing protein first with every snack or meal. I would say, once I was on solids, my day looked something like this: Breakfast: Bar or shake (~20 grams) Morning Snack: String cheese (8 grams) Lunch: about 3 oz. of meat, usually leftover from a previous dinner (16-20 grams) Afternoon Snack: Greek Yogurt (12 grams) Dinner: about 3 oz. of meat (16-20 grams) Evening Snack: Bar or Shake (~20 grams) Now I can usually get closer to 4-5 ounces of meat in at once and I can get some carbs in, like I put kashi Cereal or granola into my yogurt. I also haven't been doing the string cheese in the morning lately and just get another Protein Bar in somewhere during the day.