Search the Community

I would ask your doctor about whether they want you to add protein powder. As for yogurt Greek style has A LOT more protein. I buy low fat Chobani that have fruit and add splendra because it tends to be more sour than regular yogurt.

Just had surgery Monday. I was worried all morning, i had an afternoon surgery. But I talked to the anesthesiologist as mentioned above. We spoke until i was out. As far as diet I am trying to drink all my Water. It's hard. I am eating yogurt. Protein shakes. Etc now. After a couple of weeks if I went out to eat I'm sure I could find something Just imagined yourself one month down the road, two months etc. best of luck and keep. Us posted Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

Yes!!! I still didn’t have a BM. Surgery was Wednesday. I didn’t start a shake until today. And couldn’t finish the whole 8 oz of it. Had a few spoons of yogurt. How long did your BM take? I asked him what to take for gas and he told me simethicone. He didn’t even mention Gas X or suggest it.

After gastric bypass surgery, many people use yogurt. Generally the advise is to avoid yogurt with fruit on the bottom because the fruit generally has added sugar. Greek yogurt is better than normal yogurt because it has almost twice the protein content. So I would recommend that you select a yogurt with "no added sugar". Read the ingredient label for contents and avoid any yogurt with process sugar listed in the ingredients. Milk and milk products can contain natural sugars. So even though the yogurt may indicate 6 grams of sugar, if it is all derived from natural sugars contained in the dairy used to make the yogurt, that will not present a problem.

Hello, everyone! I was sleeved on 4/15 and have had much success. As of today, I am down approximately 70 lbs. It was the best thing I have done for myself in a long time. My energy level bounced back, my back pain is subsiding. I am going back to the person I once was. However, it seems we've hit a bump in the road. My kids have had a nasty virus/cold turned into upper respiratory track infection. I got the same thing. It appears mine settled into a bronchitis. My asthma acted up and I was given Augmentin for the infection. My surgeon encouraged me to ask my PCP for Levaquin as the augmentin would be too much for my stomach to handle.. So, I've been taking the Levaquin. However, for the pest few days it seems as if I have extreme difficulty in swallowing. It is almost like the feeling you have immediately after your operation. I have to take small bites and chew them super finely. I also have to take small sips as liquid is even bothering me. I called my surgeon who said that I probably have an irritated and inflamed esophageal tract from the post nasal drop and the antibiotics…and not to mention, I started eating salads this week. So, the sickness, the antibiotic, salad, etc….could be causing my system some grief. My surgeon recommended I take a few days and just have soft Proteins (yogurts, cottage cheese, Protein shakes, etc). My question is has anyone experienced this before? I was worried I had a leak, but there's no fever and no constant abdominal pain. I was also wondering if anyone has heard of esophageal stricture and what the symptoms were? It's hard to swallow and when I do it feels as if what I am eating gets stuck and has a very hard time going down> Anyone who has had this or something like it please respond and put my mind to eat. I see my surgeon on Thursday fora routine check up anyway and will bring this yo to her as well but wanted to see what you guys thought. Thank you so much!!!!!!

@@Shaunie I'm doing pretty good, still trying to figure this whole thing out. I definitely am overdoing it physically at times because we just moved into our dream house and I just want to unpack and make it my own, but I just don't want to cause problems with my incisions and new stomach. From what I gather, everyone has different post op eating instructions. Mine is to get in 56 ounces of Fluid and 30g Protein. I am really limited on my eating to broth, pureed Soup (non cream based) and yogurt. The yogurt...whoa, I feel it going down into my stomach, not a great feeling yet! How about you, how are you?

I eat protein about every 2-3 hours, usually breakfast is a protein shake, with fruit or a little peanut butte. I also started doing a fried egg on a 100 calorie wheat english muffin with a slice of cheese, that is around 19 gms of protein and very filling, I usually can't finish. Then around 10:30 I have a greek yogurt or apple with peanut butter. keep mixing things up or your body adapts to what you are eating. I average about 100-120 gms of protein a day, and in order to do that I have to eat 5 times a day

My Dr gave me a booklet with all the necessary info. They are a center of excellence and allow the following: - Phase one (first two weeks after surgery): 2% milk, low fat yogurt (no seeds or chunks), Protein supplement, Soups without lumps/chunks, tomato Soup w/added milk, non-fat milk powder, pureed soups (must strain through a sieve after blending), low-sodium vegetable juice, maximum 10oz per day 100% fruit juice diluted 1:1. Phase 2 (2-4 weeks after surgery) is pureed foods. Phase 3 (4-6 weeks after surgery) is soft foods. After 6 weeks, you can start to eat "normal" foods. They recommend introducing new foods one at a time to make sure you can tolerate.

Was sleeved on oct 28th. On my first week post op was down 14lbs. It was a struggle with shakes and vitamins and liquid. I finally can drink premier Protien vanilla and bariatrics chewable vitamins. The problem I'm having now is what to eat. It is 4 weeks today and I don't know what to eat. I have oatmeal, Greek yogurt, broth with a little pastina in it. But that's pretty much it. Anything solid than that feels like it's stuck it very uncomfortable Does anyone know where I can get recipes or other foods to try. Thank you

I loved my liquid phase. Here's a list of food I ate. For me having choices made all the difference. I also served myself from a tray and put yogurt in wine glasses. You do what makes you feel like a princess Liquid low fat or nonfat yogurt. strawberry was my favorite Ice pops sugarless I'm fruit flavored Creamy Soups. Tomato leek corn lobster bisque creamed potato. chicken broth when I got extra hungry. You have to watch the sodium Creamsicles Protein shakes Jello Fruit juices cut 50/50 juice and Water Hot tea Good luck !!!!

I was banded may 11th... I've been eating chobani vanilla yogurt and drinking carnation Breakfast essentials... I feel hungry every couple hours... Still trying to manage all my Protein and liquid I need for a day. Now I am trying to plan my soft solid meals( starts Friday!) Not sure what I can and can't have... Waiting for my cookbooks I ordered.. hopefully can get some great ideas

May 16th for me and I'm starving. I called the nutritionist yesterday she said I could add in a small amount of mash potatoes. A no fat/ light yogurt and creamy soup fat free no or reduced sodium.

I went to see my surgeon this morning for follow up. He was pleased with my progress. Down 14lbs since surgery. It's mostly Water weight - BUT this puts me 6 lbs down from the day BEFORE surgery, so either way, I'm happy. ) He released me to full liquids AND mushy foods as tolerated. He told me to go slow and make sure I get my Protein in every day. He asked me to follow up with my NUT in about a week to see if my diet needs any adjusting. She already told me pre-op that she could do it by email to save me some money,so yay! that. Today I had my first Protein shake, which I've learned is making me very, very gassy! My tummy doesn't hurt, but it's making all of these digestive noises! I'm home alone so I don't really care, but I hope this calms down before I'm drinking these things at work! Awkward! I also had some a scrambled egg, later a little (2 bites) of yogurt, and then a tiny piece of sharp cheddar cheese that my friend cut up to have with crackers. I just had the little bit of cheese, no cracker. It all went down just fine. I didn't feel any restriction, and I never got too full. I felt like I was taking nearly regular size bites. No weird digestion sounds like this shake is giving me! I wonder why the shake is doing that, but the food isn't? I would think my tummy would do better with the liquid... So other than the weight loss, my BP was good, so I'm staying off my meds. I have to follow up with him in a month, then 3 months, then 6 months, then 12 months, then every year after that. It seems a bit excessive. But I like him, so I'll do it. All in all, I feel much better. I still get some sharp pains in my belly button more than I'd like, but he said that's normal and should start to get better soon. I was able to go to a couple of stores after the appointment, do some shopping, then my dad suggested I try driving and he'd go with me in case I had any issues. I drove fine. I'm so happy to be mobile again! The doc asked me when he shook my hand as I was leaving, "So are you glad you did it?" I sure am. I thought it would be a LOT harder than this! :)

Why do some people have different diets than mine? i'm allowed full liquids as long as it fits through a straw. so i have pudding diluted with milk, yogurt diluted with milk, protien shakes etc. was only on clear liquids like the first day. i also want to know when you know for sure you are full in this stage?

Heya I was put on the same liquid stage as you too.. Anything that can fit up a thick straw. I stuck to Soups, Yogurt and Protein shakes. I have to do this for 3 weeks (finally finishing this Thursday yay!) After this stage its then Mushys...so anything that will "squish" through your fingers like weetbix, Tinned Fruit, Chunky soups etc... for 2 weeks. Then normal food. I dont eat until I feel full, I have maybe half a mug of Soup and then another 2 or 3 hours later some more if im feeling hungry. I didnt really get hungry until this week (3rd week) But I still take it easy and try not to have too much..Slippage scares the crappola out of me haha. Good Luck, Hope this helps.:thumbup:

hello everyone.. today i start 2 week pre-op diet.. 3 protein shakes, 1 small meal 3/4 oz of lean meat /fish and all the veggies i want.. I will most likely try some plain greek yogurt as well .. any one did this 2 week pre-op diet?...

Hey Meimei - I bought the GNC brand of whey Protein and mix it with my Greek yogurt (banana cream protein and vanilla yogurt) and it gives me 34g of protein right off the bat - 2.5 oz of tuna is 16g and cottage cheese is 12g for a half a cup - that's over 60g already - I usually have a glass of milk after my workout which gives me 8-10 more grams. As far as Water - I just keep my water bottle in my hand while I'm walking around the classroom so I'm constantly sipping and getting it in - it has been easier the last couple days. I'll admit I have been tired after school this week but I just don't let myself sit down until my workout is done - I was cleared for full exercise today yay!!! I did 30 min on the elliptical. Keep working at it you'll get there- everything hurts a little less each day - I would say I'm 95% back to feeling normal. Pm me if you want to buddy up :-) Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I'm glad to see that, cause I was just about to ask if you live with her and if not, you maybe should avoid her for a while (or just tell her to shut up, and that wouldn't be good LOL) ... I totally understand the Soup thing. For me, after a few days of Protein shakes, the most heavenly thing I ever ate in my life was tomato soup with a nice big plop of plain Green yogurt in the middle of it (makes an awesome substitute for sour cream). I'll still get a hankering for that once in awhile and it's just as yummy now as it was then...except now I'll also sprinkle some cheese on the top! :w00t:

I had my post-op Friday and he said that with the Hernia Repair that the nerves shoot up into my neck and shoulder and they will probably cause sharp pains, could be for as long as 6 weeks. I was sure that it was gas but he believes it's nerves more so than the gas. If I do too much the pain in my neck and shoulder really hurt. He did give me the best liquid pain medicine and it takes the edge off almost immediately - the only thing is I go to sleep. Over the last week I have ranged from STARVING to not being hungry at all... Doc said that liquids will not fill me up - they run right thru the band regardless of Protein or Water. That's why it's important to start with soft Proteins, I've had tuna, salmon, cottage cheese and yogurt, A SF Jello or SF pudding usually helps get me in between. I also had a little taco meat and guacamole (1/4 cup) last night, it was more than enough and I didn't feel hungry the rest of the day. My incision is a bit infected so I'm now on an antibiotic - 3 days in and it's a little better. I believe two weeks from now I'll be back to myself only less hungry and staying diligent to the diet. I will say that the major thought that has come into my head the most is - gosh could I only be strong enough to eat like this without putting my body thru all of this trauma! This is not for the faint hearted, that's for sure. Most proud, is I have three kids with HUGE buckets of Halloween candy in which every other year I've eaten probably half, especially anything chocolate - this year - not a piece LOL I get my first fill Dec. 2nd, until then I'm staying the course and eating only what is on the post-op diet list. Be well all!!!

I usually have the same breakfast every day. Cottage cheese and lite canned fruit, or yogurt and lite canned fruit. Why PB now? I am 11 weeks out. Is it common to PB so long after eating?

So I'm laying here in my hospital bed not able to sleep one bit so I figured I'd get on here.. I had surgery yesterday morning around 8:30am in NY I had a 9 day liquid diet where I lost about 10lbs. Surgery went great! I was so worried about a few things. One being that anesthesia always makes me throw up and my anesthesiologist assured me he'd do everything he possibly could so I wouldn't throw up esp bring stomach the odds were already against me and although I don't want to jinx myself to this very minute I have not gotten sick. Whenever I felt nauseous the nurses were right on top of it with zofran. Another thing I was scared of was having a drain tube left in that didn't happen either! I was also worried about needing a catheter but I have has no problem urinating on my own. One thing I was scared if was the Lovenox shot in my tummy even though the shot itself didn't hurt I had really intense burning afterwards whatever you do, don't rub it!!! Thank god I work at a hospital and my co workers made it clear not to rub it. The burning lasted at least 20mins and I have to start them back up this morning. I have not had any pain in my shoulders or chest from gas pains so far. They had me start swallowing my normal medications and that has seemed to leave quite a bit of discomfort each time. I normally have high blood pressure which sky rocketed while I was under and they hit under control until about 6pm tonight and it's been elevated and needed some meds. I also ended up with a terrible terrible migraine that they had to call my dr to get an order so I could take my Imitrex.i believe it as caused from taking Vicodin so the nurses got it switched to Percocet for me and dilaudid. My dr has been a,aging such great bedside manner and my 2 nurses I've had so fa have been wonderful. I was inky back in my room about an hour and started walking. I actually just did another lap around the hospital since I can't sleep. I have been able to have water and ice chips thank god bc my mouth throat are beyond dry. Today (Thursday) for lunch the dr will advance it to clear liquids crystal light jello etc and if I do ok for dinner I will be able to start on shakes and yogurt again. I'm just praying my new stomach tolerates it all ok and I will be able to go home Friday morning. All in all I believe the surgery for he has went very well and I'm not regretting it ow bit! Obviously everyone us different but I wanted to share my experience bc it helped me reading others experience from the surgery before giving mine. Sorry it's so long I wanted to explain it as best I could.

style="margin:0;padding:0;background-color:#d8dde8;color:#5a5a5a;font:normal 13px helvetica, arial, sans-serif;position:relative;"> Hey BariatricPal Members! Time sure flies, and it’s hard to believe it’s “Back to School” season already! I hope you have been meeting your summer goals – but not to worry if you haven’t. We have plenty of ideas for closing out the summer on a strong note. Here’s the run-down of this newsletter. Back to School Time: Packing a WLS Lunch Member Spotlight in the Newsletter: Meet catwoman7! Back to the Grind after Summer Vacation Enjoy the newsletter, then do something good for yourself – whether it’s stocking up on local produce, scheduling that first surgeon consult, or taking an after dinner walk. Then login to the BariatricPal forums and join the conversations! Can’t wait to see you there. Sincerely, Alex Brecher Founder, BariatricPal Back to School Time: Packing a WLS Lunch Sending your kids back to school probably means getting back in the habit of packing a lunch. Their lunches are probably pretty regular: maybe you send them off with a sandwich, a piece of fruit, and a few snacks to get them through the day. Whether you have children or not, there’s a parallel to a children’s sack lunch after getting weight loss surgery. You probably take a more active role in your own meals, and that can include packing your lunch way more often than depending on a restaurant or vending machine to supply it for you. If you don’t know the first thing about putting together a healthy lunch or you’re having trouble coming up with easy, portable lunch ideas, here’s a little bit of help. Protein Is the Centerpiece Gourmet meal or sack lunch, protein is the essential component of any meal after weight loss surgery. Pair it with veggies, fruit, or a little starch for a nutrient-packed meal. You have all kinds of options for a brown bag lunch. Here are few ideas. Fat-free tuna salad on whole-grain crackers or cucumber slices. All-natural turkey breast and low-fat cheese slices rolled in lettuce leaves. Greek yogurt or cottage cheese with berries or sliced melon or peaches. Greek salad with low-fat feta, grilled chicken breast, romaine lettuce, olives, and tomatoes. Don’t Forget the Snacks You may not be eating much food right at lunchtime, but you may need some additional snacks to keep you going through the morning and afternoon. Think protein, fiber, and portion-controlled as you pack your lunch. What about…? String cheese/cheese sticks. Almonds or other nuts. Cherry tomatoes and carrot sticks. Grapes and tangerines (clementines). All-natural jerky: beef, turkey, fish, or soy. Protein bars or shakes (and if you’re looking for some great-tasting ones, check out the selection at The BariatricPal Store. Use coupon code BPNLAUG2016 to get 10% off of your first purchase!). Invest in Some Containers A brown bag works okay, but you might want to bump it up a notch. A reusable lunch bag isn’t just better for the environment. It can also keep your food insulated. Add a few small containers with tight-fitting lids to your collection, and you’ll be ready to take leftovers, salads with a separate container of salad dressing, and dips such as peanut butter or hummus. Insure Nutrition We are always thrilled to welcome a new newsletter sponsor into the BariatricPal family, and this month, Insure Nutrition is giving us the pleasure of doing just that. Our latest sponsor, Insure Nutrition, is an online company that specializes in getting health insurance coverage for nutritional supplements. Its Post-Bariatric Surgery Nutrition products includes Premier Protein shakes in chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors and OptiSource High Protein drinks in caramel and strawberry flavors. Checking if you are eligible is easy. Insure Nutrition encourages you to use its online form to find out if you qualify. Our sponsors help make BariatricPal newsletters and other services possible. We encourage you show your thanks by considering them first for your bariatric needs. Unjury and Opurity BariatricPal is proud and excited to announce two new sponsors for our newsletters. The new sponsors are Unjury, a supplier of wonderful tasting, highest quality protein supplements, and Opurity (from the makers of UNJURY), highest purity vitamin supplements for bariatric surgery patients. Their support lets us keep BariatricPal newsletters coming to you each month. Unjury was founded by a master’s degree dietitian who has been helping patients since 1974. It is committed your health. You know the importance of getting enough protein after weight loss surgery, but you also know that meeting your protein goals can be challenging. Unjury makes your task not just easier but actually enjoyable. Product flavors include Chocolate Splendor, Chocolate Classic, Vanilla, Strawberry Sorbet, Chicken Soup Flavor, and Unflavored. These ready-to-use protein powders come in single-serve and multi-serve containers, and contain high-quality whey protein to keep you full and nourished. Launched in 2007, Opurity is dedicated to using the purest ingredients in its supplements. Opurity Bariatric Multivitamins have two unique big advantages: First, each multivitamin requires only one tablet per day*. Second, Opurity is so dedicated to quality that it is unique in using no ingredients from China. Choose from chewable orange-berry multivitamins for gastric bypass and gastric sleeve patients or for lap-band patients.Opurity also sells chewable calcium, vitamin D and folic acid/vitamin B-12 chewables. All supplements come with a 100% satisfaction guaranteed. They return policy is: “Yes you can return it.” Support from Unjury and Opurity helps us continue to bring you the services you enjoy on BariatricPal, so please support these two brands! When looking for your bariatric surgery supplements, first visit Unjury.com and Opurity.com. Purchasing from these companies helps support BariatricPal. Thanks to Unjury and Opurity for your generous sponsorship, and thanks to BariatricPal members who support our partnership! *You still need calcium and sublingual B-12. Member Spotlight in the Newsletter – Meet Catwoman7! We’re delighted to put this month’s spotlight on catwoman7. She’s a RNY gastric bypass patient who has lost well over half of her body weight. She started at 373 lbs. and is down over 200 lbs.! Catwoman7 had been thinking about surgery for 10 years. She had planned to wait until she turned 65 so Medicare would cover it, but realized she may not make it to 65 if she didn’t lose some weight! So, she changed her health insurance policy to a more expensive one which covered the surgery and got surgery done at age 55. Her surgeon recommended RNY or VSG. Since she already had gastroesophageal reflux (GERD), she opted for RNY gastric bypass. It turned out to be a good choice – besides the remarkable weight loss, she hasn’t had an episode of reflux since surgery! Catwoman7 says life has changed a lot since surgery. She no longer sticks out in a crowd. People don’t stare at her anymore, and men who are looking at her aren’t just looking at her weight! She doesn’t have to worry about fitting into things anymore: she won’t get kicked off planes, she doesn’t need an extension belt, booths aren’t an issue anymore, she can wear regular-sized clothes, and she can use a standard scale. Life is a lot more comfortable all around. Exercise is easier, she sweats less, and she can do every pose in yoga class. She can cross her legs, paint her toenails, and tie her shoes. Her arthritic joints ache less. She doesn’t have to fear meeting new people or getting her photo taken anymore. There were some challenges along the way. The food restrictions were tough. Also, catwoman7 didn’t feel completely “normal” in the initial post-op stages, although that passed and now she feels great! Now, her biggest challenge is hunger, which returned around 6 months post-op. She is aware of it, and is careful not to snack more than she should or to let bad habits creep in and cause regain! Catwoman7 started out using BariatricPal for information and advice. She continues to visit it every day to keep her focus. She says it’s like a support group. Her advice to others is to stick to the plan. Remember, “you have given yourself an incredible gift – don’t blow it!” The weight will come off with patience. Thanks, catwoman7, for being in our member spotlight and sharing your story and advice. If YOU can think of someone you’d like to see in the spotlight, let Alex Brecher know. Send a PM with the subject line “Member Spotlight.” You can select yourself, too! We want to hear your story! Back to the Grind after Summer Vacation The summer can feel a little different than the rest of the year. Even if you don’t have a long vacation or get the chance to leave town for a while, the summer months can feel a little slower and more relaxed than other times of the year. When you also consider the heat that can zap energy and weaken willpower, it may not be much of a surprise if the scale isn’t showing quite what you’d like. It’s not yet panic time, though! Getting back on track can be as simple as taking small steps. Here are just a few ways to get back to the basics – the same tried and true basics that successful weight loss surgery patients everywhere depend on. Hit your numbers. Get your 65 or more grams of protein per day to fight hunger and stay nourished, and stick to your recommended calorie limit – often 1,200 per day in the post-op period and 1,400 or more per day while losing weight or maintaining. Hydrate. Boost metabolism, fight hunger, and increase energy by drinking plenty of water all day (except at meals, of course!). Keep a full water bottle at your side to remind you to sip, sip, sip. Get moving. If the heat is still too much for you to safely and comfortably exercise outdoors, consider your indoor options. Larger gyms and smaller workout studios can be cool, comfortable places to get in some cardio and weights, and explore options for fun group fitness classes. Watch your portions. Portions can creep up if you let your guard down, and just a little bit of awareness about portion sizes can get the pounds to start coming off again. That’s about it for this newsletter – I hope it was useful to you. Thanks for all of your support for BariatricPal, and see you on the boards! · Unsubscribe from all BariatricPal E-Mail.

Hey all! I'm 8 days post surgery now, and just looked at some test results for the part of my stomach sent to the lab. Looks like I have chronic inflammation. I'm wondering if that accounts for how much I need to burp after I drink anything. Of course I'll ask my surgeon at my follow up about it too, but in the mean time. . . Has anyone found any sorts of drinks particularly soothing? So far plain, unsweetened yogurt seems to be the least irritating thing. Thank you!

After an appointment today I stopped at Trader Joe's to pick up groceries. One of the miracles of my surgery is that I can now do my own shopping. I had gotten so immobile pre-op that I had to have someone else buy my groceries. Trader Joe's is so smart. They put their flowers and plants right by the front door. I bought with abandon: cut tulips, cut iris, a succulent, and a pot of hyacinths. It occurred to me that pre-op, most of my cart would have been full of pre-packaged foods and starches. Today, it was full of flowers, fresh berries, yogurt, and other healthy, fresh whole foods. One of my favorite poems: How do you feed your soul at the grocery store?

What is it in the yogurt that you are allergic to? Generally people that are allergic to yogurt would also have issues with other dairy foods such as cottage cheese. I can't see a problem with substituting yogurt with cottage cheese except that initially the texture could cause problems, yogurt is more liquidy. You could just leave the yogurt out and eat the other foods on your list. Light olive oil is not light in fat. It would be better to eat your salad with no dressing.