Pre-Surgery Caffeine

[Susanne 32]

I am currently on my pre-op diet with 800-900 calories a day. One would think that's bad in and of itself but in addition they also took my caffeine. I am wondering what the problem with caffeine is? I admit, I have cheated and I had a very small cup of coffee in the morning, just to silence the blazing headache that I woke up with and to be able to be productive at work to finish up everything before I leave for 2 weeks. My plan was to stop today and have Saturday, Sunday, Monday without caffeine and that should work.

Now, can I cheat with the caffeine? Why is caffeine so bad before surgery? This is a nice no-calorie-treat for me.

In addition, I was wondering if I could have a couple of egg beaters this morning? I know one of the Breakfast supplement options was an omelet so eggs must be OK in general. It'll add 60 calories which I believe is OK (I got up early and walked 1.5 miles). Does it mess up my pre-op diet?

[TStew 25]

I'm also interested in any input people have for this question. I'm a tea drinker, no coffee.

I attended a WL seminar when I first started to consider surgery and I seem to remember the doctor saying it was a no-no for the bypass people but not for the bands (and most people were happy because they were interested in the band, as I was at the time). I don't remember what (if anything) he said about caffeine for the sleevers. (I don't think any were there.)

[lisabug 10]

I know my dr has instructed me no caffiene, no alcohol and no carbonated beverages for 3 months post op. They all can irritate the healing stomach. My dr recommended to cut out caffiene pre op so that we aren't dealing with withdrawal on top of everything else post op. Giving up caffiene is easier said than done.

[Tiffykins 673]

The thought that caffeine can be a diuretic is a concern immediately post-op. I could have coffee after 6 weeks post-op, and most of the teas I drank were the Celestial seasons herbal Decaf teas.

[Susanne 32]

Thanks all! I guess the most understandable point for me is that I can't have it after, so I should get used to it before!

I made it through the weekend without coffee. I believe this is the first time since I am maybe 7 years old that I hadn't had coffee 3 mornings in a row. I did have Decaf coffee and I know that that has some caffeine, but so does cocoa and chocolate so I don't worry!

I am freaking out a little about the dehydration so I went out and bought myself some low-cal beverages to help me drink post surgery, for example some coconut Water and some unsweetened almond milk.

I also asked about the eggbeaters and I just decided to have some in the morning and with dinner. I always feel there isn't much to eggbeaters and that they are clean eating. I had a first breakfast with just 2 eggbeaters and nothing else, and then started my supplement diary.

I was also very hungry at dinner time and I had my tiny microwave dish, so I made another two eggbeaters and mixed it in with the Pasta with Tomato sauce. Believe it or not, the little eggbeater pieces were almost like Pasta and it was awesome! That's a neat trick to add extra protein!

Surgery tomorrow!!!

Susanne

[disappearingme 0]

Susanne, thanks for the tip about the egg beaters in the sauce! I have three children who love spaghetti, and this will be a great alternative for me to eat while they can have all the cabs. Also, I cut out caffeine just recently and it was not easy! In the past when I've tried, I've gotten horrible headaches, the kind that make you want to go into a dark place with no light or sound and nothing but caffeine will take them away. So when my surgeon said no to the caffeine, I started doing research on the best way to cut it out. I'm a social work major, and part of my studies is on substance abuse (and yes, caffeine is a substance!) so I knew that it would take 72-78 hours to detox. I was drinking 2-3 cups of coffee a day and about 5 cups of soda and/or tea. Each day, I gradually cut down my drinking by one cup a day. Finally, when I got to one cup, I stopped. Over the next three days, I was incredibly sluggish and had some headaches. But, this time, the headaches weren't near as bad because I had weaned myself off gradually. Two Advil took care of them quickly. I have now been caffeine free for 9 days! I'm very proud of myself, this was a huge accomplishment for me. The sluggishness is gone now, and I feel normal, aside from the general fatigue of being obese. I wish you luck!

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,282]

The reason for the NO Caffeine pre operative is because you will not have it post op for awhile. You will already be sore and tired, etc. so the thinking is the last thing you want on top of that is caffeine withdrawals.

I can have coffee now (TG!!) but it really is best to kick it before surgery.

[TankGirl 0]

The reason for no caffeine or carbonated drinks is that these thinks promote the creation of ulcers. Imagine your now tiny little stomach with an ulcer in it....ouch. Now even worse imagine that you continue with bad habits and that ulcer gets so bad they have to remove part of your tiny stomach. Not much left there. I have read a few "horror" stories of post surgery patients who just couldn't kick the addiction....scary stuff.

I was a total caffeine addict....pot of coffee in the morning, diet pop all afternoon, and if we went out for drinks I would get vodka and red bull with a splash of cranberry. But I did it, I gave it all up for the surgery and for my health. Why keep the caffeine around? We know it's bad for us! I got the surgery so I could live longer!!

I have been an insomniac for many years, guess what....I fall asleep faster, sleep better, and sleep longer since giving it up. Who doesn't need more sleep? For this reason alone it was worth it.

[Susanne 32]

Yeah, that pretty much sounds all like me!

I believe weening myself off was a good thing.

@Tankgirl, I was already down a LOT from my past caffeine trips which included 1-2 trips to the "latte store", morning coffee, energy drinks and what not. In the recent past I had 2 cups in the morning, 1 in the afternoon and a caffeinated diet pop after work.

Going the first 4 days down to one and then quit worked well.

But I believe I'll be more like LilMiss and get back on at least some coffee though maybe a reduced amount.

@Lisa, try the Eggbeaters and tell me how you like them. You can even make them looking like irregular "artisan" Pasta. In the Tomato sauce it was awesome - like slightly overcooked Pasta but it past as pasta nontheless :-)

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,282]

Yeah, that pretty much sounds all like me!

I believe weening myself off was a good thing.

@Tankgirl, I was already down a LOT from my past caffeine trips which included 1-2 trips to the "latte store", morning coffee, energy drinks and what not. In the recent past I had 2 cups in the morning, 1 in the afternoon and a caffeinated diet pop after work.

Going the first 4 days down to one and then quit worked well.

But I believe I'll be more like LilMiss and get back on at least some coffee though maybe a reduced amount.

@Lisa, try the Eggbeaters and tell me how you like them. You can even make them looking like irregular "artisan" Pasta. In the Tomato sauce it was awesome - like slightly overcooked Pasta but it past as pasta nontheless :-)

Yes, I do not drink hardly as much coffee as I did pre-surgery. I actually have not drank it so much after my band surgery so I'm kind of used to it. However, I do drink it for my morning push.

This is actually the first time I've heard of Dr.'s not wanting us to drink coffee due to ulcers in this thread. I was personally never advised of this, not with my band and not with my sleeve. I was only told this so I wouldn't have to deal with awful headaches while recovering from surgery at the same time. I would imagine they wouldn't want us taking NSAIDS either for the same reason, though I've been told all is ok with this once I'm past 30 days.

There is so much differing information out there. I would only suggest anyone talking to your personal Dr. and following his/her advice before just taking someone's word for it on the internet.

All the best!

[Filosophia Scandinavia 1]

Really interesting - I haven't heard anything from my surgeon about avoiding coffee.< /p>

Bu..t I will avoid it the last 2 weeks before operation, just to prevent headaches, when I am already miserable..

Today i found some good caffeine-free coffee...

Well

Will ask him about it.

[Dawn 16]

I am starting my two week diet today and today was day one of no caffinee! ICK! LOL I am a soda drinker though so now I must not only give up the caffinee but also the "bubbles"! LOL I do LOVE hot tea so I've been drinking a lot more of that lately and also the water! Plus my "diet" is a Protein Shake for breakfast and dinner and a low fat lunch (sandwhich and 100 cal bag of chips) and a healthy snack (fruit-veggies).

[mmcclure 3]

It's amazing how every doctor seems to be different. I thought I had to give up caffeine 2 weeks before surgery, but after 2 days of no coffee, I called and they told me that it is okay for me to have it. It does seem smart to stop before surgery though, if only to prevent the headaches.

Now if I could just stop the people where I work from either coming in sick or bringing their sick kids to work with them, I would be a very happy camper. I will be unbelievably angry if I have to postpone my surgery because I get sick, especially since I don't know if they could fit me in by the end of the year and I am not picking this insurance up again for next year. Why do people go to work when they are sick or take their kids with them? I'm talking about professors and or department chairs who have tons and tons of sick time accumulated!

Surgery in 8 days!

Marilee

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,282]

It's amazing how every doctor seems to be different. I thought I had to give up caffeine 2 weeks before surgery, but after 2 days of no coffee, I called and they told me that it is okay for me to have it. It does seem smart to stop before surgery though, if only to prevent the headaches.

Now if I could just stop the people where I work from either coming in sick or bringing their sick kids to work with them, I would be a very happy camper. I will be unbelievably angry if I have to postpone my surgery because I get sick, especially since I don't know if they could fit me in by the end of the year and I am not picking this insurance up again for next year. Why do people go to work when they are sick or take their kids with them? I'm talking about professors and or department chairs who have tons and tons of sick time accumulated!

Surgery in 8 days!

Marilee

LOL! I actually have a co-worker who does this EVERY TIME his kids are sick (which is all the time!). It's super annoying, especially when you have to work in a small, poorly ventilated room that stays quite warm most of the time. Glad I got my flu shot this year! Now I just need to keep my fingers crossed. It is really inconsiderate to the other people around you, so if I ever have any little ones I'll remember this and NOT do it to my co-workers.

You're right though, its best you don't get sick since you are waiting for your surgery. Good luck!