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depends on your surgeon but mine would not allow anything by mouth until they did the leak test the next day.....so that night in the hospital until they did the leak test the next morning was tough! I don't think my mouth has ever been so dry!!! If your doctor does the the same, mouth wash helps....the hospital staff kept bringing me these little bottles ....lol I think I went through 4 bottles.....also brushing your teeth will help too. once I passed the leak test they brought me a tray of liquids.....I sipped on everything and it all seemed to go down fine and then they released me to go home........... Home was another story! It was like as soon as I got home EVERYTHING tasted terrible!....I couldn't take my pain meds, because it tasted too bad, gas x strips tasted terrible, my nausea medication were these little pills you had to let dissolve in your mouth....well those made me want to throw-up..I had to resort to using a suppository! .LOL.....even tooth paste was awful!.....it was very bad I couldn't drink near enough Fluid and no Protein at all............this lasted until day 5.....On day 6 it was like a miracle! I woke up and everything was back to normal. During this time I was in close communication with my nurse coordinator and she had me focus only on fluid for those days.....she told me to just sip as much as I could and to keep an eye on the color of my urine and to not let it get dark.....that was easier than trying to get in a certain number of ounces... But like I said day 6 everything was back to tasting normal and I was able to drink 64 ounces of fluid and close to all my protein....took me a couple of days to build that up. I didn't really start feeling good and more like myself until I was able to eat real food....pureed Soups, and yogurt....tuna salad........Real food makes all the difference in the world!!! Good luck with your surgery! Feel free to ask me any questions!

I have done eggs, both scrambled and over easy. The over easy went down better for me. I've done avocado. I just did tuna salad for the first time and it was just meh. I miss the crunch of onion and pickle. I did some pickle juice and onion salt instead with a ton of old bay. I've done flounder which was good. I'm having trouble with veggies so I just do V8. My mains are cottage cheese and Greek yogurt. I'm boring. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

My dermatologist told me that whey Protein frequently exacerbates acne in those who are prone to it, and can even cause breakouts in people who've previously had clear skin. Dairy products can also worsen hormonal acne in some people, so using milk as your base can compound the risk of a breakout. Fortunately, for me I can use milk, kefir, and yogurt in shakes without fearing an eruption on my face, but it's definitely something to be mindful about. This helps to explain some of the reasons for why whey protein can lead to acne: http://www.acneeinstein.com/whey-protein-acne/ I've had better luck with plant-based Protein Shakes rather than whey. I also loved GENEPRO. It's a Protein powder that has been heavily criticized on this forum for it's "too good to be true" claims about having 30 grams of protein for a small serving of easily dissolvable, tasteless and odorless powder, and for being so processed, but it's been fantastic for me. I used it for four months without experiencing any ill effects. I only stopped using it because I was getting adequate protein from food sources once I was fully healed. My husband is a physician, and a friend of his who is an oncologist told him that some of his patients going through chemotherapy have sores in their mouth that make eating difficult, so they have used Genepro as a supplement to add in more protein to their diet. He approves of it, which made me feel a bit more confident. It's definitely not an ideal food source, or something to make as a staple for your diet, but it can be useful as a supplement when your options are more limited. It can be added to broths, hot and cold drinks, and various foods. If you look on YouTube you can find videos by a bariatric surgeon named Dr. Matthew Weiner who advocates what he calls a "set point smoothie." It's made of high-protein, low-carb Greek yogurt (such as Fage), frozen fruit, and kale or spinach. It's a bit too much for immediately post-surgery, but a week or two down the road you should be ready for it. He encourages his patients to only consume protein powders in the first few months post-surgery when they cannot yet eat better, more natural sources of protein. Vitamins and supplements can also cause breakouts. I took Biotin a couple of years ago when I was regretting a hair cut and hoping for more rapid growth, and ended up with a war zone on my face because of it. I have PCOS and am very sensitive. Excessive B-12 also lead to painful breakouts. I do not take an additional B-12 supplement because of that, but do take a Multivitamin that has it in a smaller quantity. The vitamins I've responded to the best are Garden of Life's Vitamin Code Multi-Vitamin for Women, and Flintstones with Iron (one or the other, not both). As for topical treatments, my esthetician I see for monthly facials (and can recommend to you if you happen to live in LA) as well as my dermatologist recommended La Roche Posay's products, and specifically their Effaclar System. It's usually $29 for the set, which includes a face wash, clarifying solution, and treatment, but I spotted it at CVS earlier this week for $19. If you buy it, start off slowly because it can lead to peeling if you use it too often. I wash my face with the cleanser at night, and use the solution a couple of times a week. I put a very thin layer of the treatment on spots when needed. In the morning I either use Lush's Let the Good Times Roll, or simply rose Water. This routine has definitely helped my skin. My dermatologist told me to stay away from any anti-aging products because they are way too heavy for my skin. I turned 30 last year and freaked out about it, and went overboard on products. He said that water is my best anti-aging "product." It's true that any wrinkles I have go away once I've gotten properly hydrated. If you're older, that might not be the case, but regardless of age water can help to improve your skin's clarity and tone. You might also want to be careful about any laundry detergents, shampoos, conditioners, and toothpaste you use because fragrances and ingredients like Sodium Lauryl Sulfate can trigger acne in some people. I use Seventh Generation's fragrance-free detergent for sensitive skin, and no fabric softener (white vinegar works just as well, and doesn't cause your clothes to smell like you might think it would), and I change my pillowcases three times a week. I stick with SLS-free toothpaste that doesn't have whitening ingredients (Tom's has one), and SLS-free shampoo and conditioner (Loreal has a good line). Best wishes to you!

@@OutsideMatchInside, I agree with you completely! Protein bars are about as calorie dense as candy bars: about 200 calories in about 2 ounces. The difference, of course, is the protein rather than the sugar, so theoretically Protein Bars will keep you fuller for longer and not cause the blood sugar spikes or sugar cravings the way a candy bar might. Still, in the moment, they’re not always that satisfying! Like you said, you can get something a lot more filling for those 200 calories, like any 3-ounce serving of lean protein plus some veggies, yogurt and fruit, or even an entire turkey and veggie sandwich on low-calorie bread! To me, those are a lot more satisfying to chew, and they take longer, and you’re right – they’re cheaper. They’re also more nutritious since they have natural nutrients. Protein bars can give you a nice sweet alternative for protein. This can be especially good for when you’re a few weeks or months post-op and you’re focusing purely on protein. The sweet protein bar can be a nice change from tuna, turkey, eggs, cheese, and yogurt morning, noon, and night! And like you said, they’re definitely convenient! I enjoy protein bars as a way to satisfy an occasional craving if I think it’ll work. For example, if I really want chocolate and I think a chocolate protein bar will do the trick, I’ll choose it instead of a brownie.

Did not intend to scare you, sorry... My attention was just to alert you to the hidden sugars in yogurt.. Sounds like a good pick "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them" Einstein

@mich74... You may want to reconsider using dannon... Yogurt is very deceptive, many yogurts have tons of sugar.... "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them" Einstein

Just be careful. I LOVED liver cheese pre-op. Post-op it is a bit fatty for me. I don't specifically limit fatty foods but have found that foods with a higher fat content are not as appetizing as they once were and can make me a little woozie. Just go slow and see how well you handle it.If I recall, livercheese is by Oscar Mayer, right? Square piece with white fat around the edge? What I purchased is nothing like that. These are the ingredients: Ingredients: beef, beef liver, beef kidneys, beef heart, Water, sea salt, onion powder, white pepper, coriander, marjoram, all spice beefliverwurst12406.jpg With that being said, I absolutely plan on taking it slow, my new stomach may or may not like it. Was just excited to realize there is something else I can try during that stage that is healthy. Sent from my LG-H901 using the BariatricPal App That isn't a lot of protein. You may want to try to find things with a bigger protein punch. I lived on/live on Greek yogurt and cottage cheese.

I just found Dannon Oikos triple zero Greek yogurt and it has 22 G Protein per 8 oz. It will help me cut out a shake a day. I can't eat a whole cup in one sitting but spread out over the day is perfect or even adding to a smoothie! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I had really low energy until I started on soft foods like yogurt and cottage cheese. Once I started that I felt much better. You definitely could have thrush as the other poster mentioned. You need to get that treated right away or it will effect your oral intake abilities. They will give you a mouth rinse to swish and spit.

My friend who had wls in November just shipped me all of her "leftovers" for my upcoming surgery. She swore by unflavored and chicken Soup flavored unjury, liquid Vitamins, gas-x strips, stool softener, sugar free drink mixes (crystal light and some Protein ones). She also swore by oikos triple zero Greek yogurt and the premier Protein shakes. I've been watching prices on those at SAMs and costco, and saw the EAS AdvantEdge shakes were on sale and cheaper but she said they had such a bad aftertaste she has to toss them. I also splurged on a yeti rambler to help get my Water in. I'm a chugger now which won't work post-op and the lid on the yeti slows me down quite a bit but still keeps my drink chilled while I nurse it. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Chia seeds are very fine not like tomato seeds... Hemp seeds are another good source of Protein and tasty in yogurt. "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them" Einstein

Pre op I bought beef and chicken broth, herbal teas, sugar free Jello, sugar free popsicles and Isopure for the clear liquid phase. For the full liquid phase I bought Premiere Protein shakes and lastly for the soft food phase I bought greek yogurt and cottage cheese. I kept it really simple not knowing what I would be able to tolerate. I ended up not even touching the herbal tea and SF jello. I did live on the Outshine brand of popsicles though and still do for sweet cravings.

Hey I have been lactose intolerant since I was 10 so that is about 36 years. My doctor warn me I might become lactose intolerant after surgery. I laughed and said I already am. Then asked if lactaid pills and lactaid milk were allowed. He said they are safe and I can continue to take them. Use chewables after surgery if you have issues swallowing pills. The caplets are crushable and don't taste bad either. I eat dairy at every meal. Yogurt and cheese are my protein stables. Fairlife milk is lactose free and has extra protein! Ask your doc about lactaid and enjoy your cheese. I just had a cheddar omelet and my next meal will Greek yogurt. Yummy!

That's wonderful you're doing so well weight loss wise! I don't know why eating would be a torture at almost three months out, so not sure what is happening to you other than you have to really start thinking about how to eat and planning your day out so you can eat enough and hit your food/water goals? Are you having specific issues like pain or difficulty swallowing or something? I was pretty much fine after the first month other than being sensitive to sugar (which was a good thing) and an intolerance for eggs until about 6 months out (just threw them up every time so stopped eating them until about 6 months out and it's good now). As time goes on, you will need to eat more, and you need to start eating real, whole foods. You need to be making your Protein and Water goals daily, and if you can't do it with the 3X daily meals, then you need to be adding in some snack times and getting in enough calories where your body isn't starving itself. You're still pretty early out, but at 600 calories daily, you're likely in a nutritional deficit that can't be healthy long term. Please do your best to start eating healthy Snacks (a cheese stick with a handful of almonds, a cup of low carb yogurt, some grapes and baby bel cheese wedges... ) There are tons of ideas on here and other bariatric recipe sites. Please discuss your difficulties and calorie intake with your doctor because this isn't healthy long term. And you will notice things like hair loss, exhaustion and muscle loss if you don't start eating a bit more and getting your protein and water in.

I am 9 days out. I'm feeling really good and not getting hungry. Smells and looking at food makes me mentally hungry but once I except that I get over it. What are you eating throughout the day? I start my day with either: green smoothie or Beetroot carrot apple juice or Yoghurt or Choice of two milk based smoothies - banana, milk, honey, pbutter, oats, almonds (soaked), Macca powder, cacao powder but of ice blended for a few mins. Or I what pbutter and honey for blueberries. lunch - home made Soup or yogurt or green smoothies dinner - same as above Water in between meals Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

You can use a banana or maybe some vanilla Greek yogurt or almond milk. My kids have smoothies with frozen berries, vanilla almond milk and a banana, and they seem sweet enough for their liking. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I feel great, and I'm back to normal daily activities. Like most, I'm exhausted but still moving on. The problem I have is that I like to cook. I have a family of five and continue to cook meals that I love. Today, chicken parm. Looked so good, so I took some of the sauce I made and mixed it with a little ricotta. Heavenly. But after the chicken came out I cut off a little piece and now Im suffering. Why do I keep testing the limits? Has anyone else cheated like this...yesterday I had a small serving of frozen yogurt. I've also had watermelon and cantaloupe. I haven't even been escalated to pureed foods yet. WTH is wrong with me. I need help. I need to stop these bad habits - Came so far to screw this up.

At two weeks I was still on liquids (no way I could eat more than a couple tablespoons even at a month out). But I was sipping Protein shakes, juice, Gatorade, decaf tea, broth, cream soups, drinkable yogurt, etc non stop all day every day, taking my Vitamins and meeting Fluid and protein goals. I was working 8-10 hours/day at a physical, on my feet all day job and went home pretty tired every night. So a family reunion would have been a piece of cake. Hope you have just as easy if a recovery and Have fun! PS I don't suggest trying anything new, food wise, at the reunion. Would hate to have a bad reaction (from either end) in that setting.

Sounds good if I liked liverwurst. I'm having small hamburgers, mashed potatoes, dry Cereal yogurt, milk 60 cal fruit popsicles, can't tolerate the sugar free anymore. 1 shake per day, diet gatorade, egg, toast, cottage cheese, etc. When does the strong aftertaste go away. It is with most foods. taking 1 prilosec in am.

Yeah, it is going to stink. Thankfully I only have one week and can have yogurt etc. I start 7/11.

Well, for one thing, the cherries and wassa crackers and fruit and low fat yogurt (low fat = high carb) are only fueling your carb cravings. Go back to absolute strict protein/veggies only and see what happens to your cravings. When I find myself vearing off path, I'll even spend 3-5 days on the good ol prep liquid diet to clear the junk out of my system and get my head back in the game. Secondly, your next call should be to a therapist or counselor rather than your surgeon's office. Their help and the mental tools they can give you will be far more vital to your success than some preppy nurse's generic response. Long term WLS success is a direct result of changing behaviors, and your sleeve has really little to do with it. Find someone that can help you learn how to get through life without turning to food.

Sweets and high fat don't make every person sick after the surgery, and most of the time it is a short term effect for those that do get sick from them. I couldn't touch high sugar for about 6 months, but guess what? That effect wore off and I could eat anything now with no serious repercussions other than gaining weight. I know that, so I don't eat crap foods all the time. I do eat stuff like a cupcake or a cookie for special occasions, but I plan out my day so I know I have room in my calorie count and I eat healthy 90% of the time, so eating something "bad" occasionally doesn't derail my whole life. Relearning how to eat healthy during the honeymoon period is what the surgery is really all about. You have to throw out everything you used to do and establish good eating habits while the restriction takes care of the portion control. That is what everyone is supposed to learn how to do during the honeymoon phase after surgery. It is really sad that the doctors don't explain this part better to every single patient before they have the surgery. If you don't do this, then the weight loss will happen in the beginning just because you're not able to eat as much, but likely will slow down sooner, and also regain is very likely once your metabolism adjusts in a year or two and all you still eat is crummy foods. Anyway. You definitely need to try doing the 5 day reset. It will help remind you how your stomach feels and feel the restriction again, and should help you detox from the sweets/crap food cravings - eating high carb usually makes you crave more carbs - it is a vicious cycle. You made some mistakes, but the sleeve is still there, ready for you once you're ready to recommit to eating correctly. You lost the best time to make fast and easy changes, but if you put in the work, you can still make it happen. But you have to be willing to do the work. Start tracking every bite of food and sip of drink. Get your Protein and Water goals figured out, keep your carbs low (under 100 definitely but if you can push it down to 50 grams/day that would be even better), and get your calories for the day down to around a 500 calorie less than you burn in a day. Throw out all the junk food in your house. Tell friends and family to not tempt you with foods like that and don't go places where you'll feel weak until you get control of yourself. Think of it like being an alcoholic or trying to quit smoking. You don't go places where you'll feel tempted and you ask friends/family to be supportive of your struggle and not offer you things you shouldn't be having, and do your best to remove the temptations from your path. Exercise - find something you enjoy doing and then do it a minimum of 5 days a week. Even if it's just walking a 2 miles around your neighborhood after dinner, it's something if you're currently doing nothing. What seems to work best food wise is whole foods, that you cook yourself. If it comes in a box or frozen package, it probably isn't a very good choice. Learn to read labels REALLY well, and figure out things like net carbs, sodium levels, etc., and check out both here and bariatric recipe sites like http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/ Proteins should be the main part of each meal and every snack: things like fish, chicken, lean cuts of beef, cheese, yogurt, even Beans and lentils. Healthy vegetables - leafy greens, red peppers, squash, zucchini, avocados, broccoli, cauliflower... watch the ones that are high carb like corn and green peas as even healthy veggies can have high carbs sometimes and you need to be aware when you eat them. Should also be including healthy fats like coconut or olive oils and things like nuts or avocados have fat too, but it's a good fat (just watch the amounts and calories). Watch things like lunchmeat that are usually high sodium (again, read labels!) and be aware of times of day that you might be weak and have healthy Snacks on hand to prevent the quick stop at the drive thru or dropping by the office vending machine. MEASURE everything. You can't rely on eyeballing food amounts. Get a digital scale, and weigh your food so you get accurate calorie counts. It is way too easy to guess and over-estimate your food portions. And you might need to see a counselor that deals with eating disorders if you can't get control of your eating and get your head in the right space to succeed at this. Please don't take this as being mean, but worrying over what others did and comparing your lack of success while eating bad foods isn't helpful or realistic. But here's the thing. You aren't a failure unless you give up completely. Don't give up, and you will succeed.

I found myself feeling "hungry" during my first two weeks post op too. Looking back I'm fairly certain that was due to two main reasons: 1) gas bubbles gurgling through my system mimicked the rumbling of an empty tummy and 2) lack of food diversity. My plan did allow cream of wheat (very thin and supplemented with protein powder), yogurt and pudding during the full liquids phase. It helped to alternate protein shakes with something like Greek yogurt that has more substance. Are you meeting your protein goals everyday? When you feel hungry you should be reaching for a ready made shake or a cup of broth or even a v-8 if you need some diversity in your diet. Please reach out to your NUT or program for help.

Hello Everyone, I just had my MGB surgery on May 18th (about 2 weeks ago). I have been overweight for nearly 10 years, and though I have had some successes with diets along the way, all those ultimately failed and I regained everything back and a little more. I am a short guy so just looking purely at the weight, it may not look like I was that bad, but I surely felt really bad. At my highest I weighed 196 lbs (day of the surgery) with a 35 BMI and 38% body fat. The doctors stated I was morbidly obese, though they admitted I was one of the smallest size patients they had ever had. After the surgery the surgeon told me that my intra-abdominal fat was one of the worst he had ever seen. Though he admitted I was his first foreign patient, and the main reason could be that Chinese diet which although can also cause obesity due to excessive eating, is a lot healthier that what *we* foreigners eat. I did my surgery at a NCKU Hospital here in Taiwan (a national university hospital), which is also supposedly one of the top in the country. The great thing about Taiwan is that their National Health Insurance covers even temporary foreign workers, irrespective of the work they do. That was very helpful as the NHI covered majority of my cost. Weight loss surgery here is only covered by National Insurance if the doctor deems it necessary for you, which is either if you have BMI of over 40 or 35 with co-morbidities, which in my case was Diabetes, so I qualified for it. Most of the information I researched prior to the surgery came from English forums such as this one, so I had a good idea of how everything was supposed to be if I were to do it in US, but had little information of it would be done in Taiwan, since I didn't have any reference. I was surprised to find that some things were very different than I thought. I found that the time from the first visit to the date of the surgery was much longer compared to many of the cases I read online. Although I wanted to get the surgery as early as possible, they insisted I had to follow their process, (and it wasn't even due to the surgeon being too busy). I spent nearly 7 months doing a wide variety of tests. At one point I was going to the hospital once every week just to do a different type of test. (Tests are also covered by Insurance so it wasn't a money-making scheme or anything) I can't remember what all those tests were but I guess they tested nearly everything prior to the surgery. When I asked surgeon about these tests, he basically said : We want to find out if there's anything wrong with your body that is causing you to be overweight. We want to find out all the health problems you have (even the hidden ones) that may have been directly or indirectly caused by you being overweight. I would strongly recommend that everyone follow what their own doctors/surgeons tell them. Every forum I read mentioned about the pre-op diet so I was surprised to hear that there was no pre-op diet here. They doctor said that there was nothing I needed to do before the surgery, and just live a normal life. I had my last cheese Burger at 10:00 pm, the night before the surgery. After 12:00 am that night I wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything. I had my surgery next morning at 7:00 am and it lasted for 3 to 4 hours. For the whole 7 months prior to the surgery I had always wanted to get the Gastric sleeve surgery, because the thought of my intestines being rewired scared me. It wasn't a week before the surgery that I decided to change to Gastric Bypass, only to find there was no Gastric Bypass offered there. It turned out majority of the national hospitals only offered Mini-Gastric Bypass instead, so I had to go with that, despite having little information on it. The surgeon told me that Mini-Gastric Bypass was easier, had a short surgery time, quicker recovery and higher weight loss in the first 12 months compared to Gastric Bypass. He also said that there was a 60 to 90% chance that my Diabetes would go in total remission with MGB compared to less than 40% chance with a sleeve. He referred me to some many local researches that were performed by the university as well as the local Bariatric association in Taiwan. In my personal research I also found Taiwan was one of the best in Asia when it comes to Bariatric surgeries, so I just trusted my doctor and everything he said. I stayed 5 days in the hospital. The first couple of days were really rough but everything started to get better quickly after day 3. Walking helped a lot. I left on day 5, and was back to full-time work on Day 7 already (though I don't recommend it). As far as Diet is concerned, the nutritionist and doctor told me I could eat normal food but with certain restrictions. This is unlike what I read about many other people having to go through the soft food stage for a few weeks to a month. I was told the following : I could eat pork, chicken, beef, as long as it was lean cut, and cooked to be soft. She told me not to eat any fried or deep fried meat, but I could grill it, steam it, or cook it in very light oil. I was recommended me to eat more fish than other types of meat. I was told about the types of fish/sea food that I could eat and ones I couldn't. Shrimp was recommended as well. I was told I could eat Yogurt (low-fat and sugar-free recommended) eggs (boiled or scrambled), potatoes or sweet potatoes (bakes, mashed/boiled or cooked in very little oil). I was told I could eat more or less any kind of fruit I wanted, but to avoid fruits with very high-Fiber during the first few weeks (e.g. Pineapple). Now two weeks later, I can eat most fruits already. They said no sweets, or any kind of artificial/processed food. As long as the food was natural I could eat whatever I want but I had to chew everything 20 times and eat very slowly, and small portions. The only food I was told not to eat (ever or at least 1 year) was Rice, Noodles, Spaghetti, and Bread. So basically no starchy food. Instead they recommended that I eat any kind of vegetables (boiled or cooked). Though they said RAW vegetables could be a little difficult during the first couple of weeks. To keep hydrated I was recommended to drink lots of Water and low-fat milk. I think the requirement was something like 1500 ml of liquids per day at least. To avoid muscle wasting I was recommended to get at least 6 servings of Protein each day with at least 60% of them coming from natural food instead of supplements. The nutritionist said that I could eat 6 boiled eggs a day, I wouldn’t need to eat protein. I was also told to take daily Multi-Vitamins and Calcium Citrate. So far, since the surgery I have been eating normally more or less, except that I am eating much healthier foods than I used to. Even without the pre-op diet, I lost 15 lbs within 6 days from the date of the surgery. Since then I have only lost an additional 2 lbs in the following week. I couldn’t find any local forums or groups to share about my surgery so I am doing it here. I hope this info is helpful. If you have any questions about my surgery I would be happy to answer. Last but not least, I am very happy with my decision, and I think it’s a brave choice, given all the risks involved. I read an interesting saying in one bariatric articles about people who do these surgeries, which said, “I will live forever, or die trying!” This is indeed the case; in order to live longer and better lives, we take these extreme measures. This is not something to be ashamed but something to be proud of.

I started out adding my meds to my yogurt but it made me not like my yogurt so now I grind the meds and open the capsules and put them in my mouth and swallow with flavored water. It's much easier for me and I am hoping to like yogurt again in the near future haha. Sent from my SM-N910P using the BariatricPal App