Pre Op shopping list & Protein Powders

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

Someone asked for the list that Dr. Aceves sends out to his patients. It's posted in a thread in questions and answers, but I thought I'd put it here too:

Okay, this list is what Dr. Aceves' office sends out. Other doctors may have other suggestions.

Suggested items to bring to the hospital:

Some items you may want to consider taking to the hospital with you:

Pajamas, the nurses and doctors will be checking your incisions so you might be more comfortable in your own pajamas than the hospital gowns, however, hospital gowns are provided if you prefer.

Non skid slippers, thongs, or slip on shoes of some sort. The hospital floors are very clean and waxed, so you'll want non-skid. It will be sore to bend over so you won't want to tie shoe laces so slip on shoes are easier.

A favorite robe, many times it is comforting to have a favorite robe.

Computer - if you have a laptop you are welcome to bring it. The hospital and hotel are set up with wireless internet connection. Any of Dr. Aceves' staff can give you the password at the hospital. You do not need a password in the hotel.

Cell phone - Most cell phones work well in the hospital, if your phone does not work most of the staff will loan you their phone.

The electrical system is the same in Mexico as the US so you do not need a converter for your hair dryer, computer, or cell phone charger.

Shampoo - this is provided by the hospital but many prefer their own brands so they prefer to bring their own.

Book or other reading material. You will not likely feel like reading the day of surgery but you might the day after surgery.

Loose fitting clothing to wear coming home. You will likely feel a bit bloated after surgery so bring a sweat suit or something very loose fitting and comfortable for your ride home from the hospital.

I do not suggest bringing much cash with you. Unless you want to do a little shopping the day before your surgery there is no need for much cash. You will want to purchase dinner the night before surgery and $25.00 per person will cover that easily, less for most restaurants. If you want to have access to cash then credit cards are a safer alternative. You will not need to convert US dollars to pesos, you can use US dollars for your companion in the hospital cafeteria and all businesses around Mexicali if you choose to do a little shopping.

Good luck to you on your upcoming surgery!

Grocery list for post op diet:

Just as a suggestion you might want to do a bit of grocery shopping before you have surgery so that when you come home you will not need to go to the store, you will be able to rest and relax. Some ideas are:

broth, chicken, Beef, Vegetable, or they have new products out (new to me) that are Chinese Soup broths in a carton that you simply heat. It would give you a bit of variety.

Popsicles that are Water based, sugar free, and a variety of flavors.

Ramon Noodles. While the noodles are not acceptable during the clear phase of the post op diet there is a packet of dry broth mix that many seem to like, it has a bit more kick than regular broth, I am told.

Propel Water, you can purchase this as bottled water or you can purchase individual packets of this product and put it in water and mix. The reason this product is good is because many are used to a high carbohydrate diet and when your body is used to many carbs, especially white carbs such as flour, Pasta, rice, potatoes, sugar; your pancreas tends to put out a bit too much insulin because of the carb load. When you remove carbs from your diet it can potentially be a drastic change and your pancreas is still putting out a bit too much insulin during the post op diet. This can cause low blood sugar, your stomach might feel nauseated, you might begin to perspire, feel like you are trembling. This does not happen to everyone but it does seem to happen more to older folks or those used to very high white carb diets. Propel water has a very small amount of sugar in it. Just enough to bring your blood sugar up but not enough to cause large blood sugar spikes.

Sugar Free Gatorade, it is a new product that is low carb but it has some electrolytes that are beneficial during the post op stage.

Water, you need to get about 64oz of fluids in daily. Your broth and Popsicles count toward your 64oz of fluids daily. The key is to sip, sip, sip all day long. The first few days you may find that you cannot get your full 64oz of fluids in, try as hard as you can. You do not want to become dehydrated. If you enjoy tap water that is fine, if you don't then perhaps try bottled water and see if that goes down.

Crystal Lite, sugar free Hawaiian Punch, pretty much any sugar free water flavorings are fine during the post op diet.

Protein products, during days 1-5 you'll need a clear Protein product such as Isopure clear bottled protein liquid or powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury. You can find Isopure at General Nutrition Stores or a variety of Health food stores. Unjury must be ordered on line in advance of your surgery, /smallwww.unjury.com. They have an unflavored product that is nice because when you are done with clears it is versatile and you can add it to Jello, cooking, smoothies, etc. Please note, this is a whey protein product. All whey protein products have one issue in common and that is that they don't heat easily. If you add any whey protein product to a hot liquid it will clump. The key is to add it to a cold liquid and heat slowly, then it will not turn into lumps.

A good source of protein products after the clear liquid phase (you can use these with water instead of milk starting day #5, and with milk starting day #11) can be purchased reasonably at:

www.netrition.com

Some excellent products are:

Matrix 5.0 by Syntrax [Syntrax Matrix 5.0 Protein powder

The more popular flavors are chocolate and Cookies & Cream.

You can spice up the chocolate with Da Vinci Sugar Free Syrups:

Netrition's Da Vinci Prices

Another very popular protein product if you like Chocolate and Peanut Butter is Whey Gourmet, Choco/Peanut butter:

PVL Whey Gourmet

I suggest the above because you'll need to consume about 60-80gms of protein after surgery. During the post op diet this can be difficult to do. Adding protein supplements can make this much easier.

You'll want to track your protein intake in the beginning and a few free, on line sites you can do that are:

www.thedailyplate.com

www.sparkpeople.com

www.fitday.com

Just see which format you prefer of the above. The Daily Plate has a weight graph, daily you put your weight in and it is satisfying to see the numbers go down!

[Maddie 9]

Great list, the main thing I would add, is Chap stick. My lips were soooo dry after surgery.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I took gum too cause the first 24 hours there is nothing by mouth not even ice chips. The IV is supposed to take care of it all, but I was so thirsty. I chewed the gum and it helped but I got in trouble cause Dr. Campos was afraid I would swallow it. I knew I wouldn't and I promised him I would not swallow it.