Attention ! Australian Sleevers

[Kayargh 112]

My thoughts are with you and your family Kelli. I pray that all goes smoothly for her op on Monday xx

I know how hard it is to watch a child go through something like that- u feel so helpless. My daughter got viral meningitis from the chicken pox when she was 4 (chicken pox was not part of the vaccination schedule then) - we spent Xmas in hospital and I had to just watch as she lost all control of her body and shook and convulsed like she had severe Parkinson's. She has slight brain damage from the swelling on her brain, that is what they contribute to her autistic spectrum disorder. But to look at her she is now a very healthy happy 11year old.

[kelliv 659]

Surgery over and little C is in ICU and breathing on her own which is a huge relief. Thank you for your kind words of support.

[deb1405 20]

Surgery over and little C is in ICU and breathing on her own which is a huge relief. Thank you for your kind words of support.

Oh bless her and hope her recovery is full and successful! Best wishes to you and your family! :-) is she in RCH? If so she will be in the best of care!

[one_elle26 118]

Kelli, that is wonderful news!!!!!! She really is in good hands in our Royal Childrens' Hospital. may all of the angels watch over her and her loving family so that she can soon be cuddled and loved as every babe should be.

Best Wishes one_elle26

[ozeedonkee 145]

Hi all' date=' just wanted to say I have my date for July 5th 2013! Quite excited!

I'll be on 6 week pre-op Optifast with optional salad/optibars, then two-three days nil by mouth post op, after barium swallow i can try Clear liquids a week, liquids two weeks, puréed/soft two weeks, solids after that! Plus it's no smoking at least 8 weeks pre-op.

[/quote']

Great to hear you have a date But why the stretched out post-op liquids phase? Is that your dr's normal routine?

[ozeedonkee 145]

Surgery over and little C is in ICU and breathing on her own which is a huge relief. Thank you for your kind words of support.

Happy to hear babe's doing well!

We've been there too (only didn't do it so well)

[kelliv 659]

Hi all' date=' just wanted to say I have my date for July 5th 2013! Quite excited!

I'll be on 6 week pre-op Optifast with optional salad/optibars, then two-three days nil by mouth post op, after barium swallow i can try Clear Liquids a week, liquids two weeks, puréed/soft two weeks, solids after that! Plus it's no smoking at least 8 weeks pre-op.

Rather strict but I'm confident it can be achieved with willpower and family support.

The stress of final semester uni is getting me very down but when it's over I hope to have a good holidays and start a fresh 2013!

Hi all! Beth[/quote']

Hi Beth, congratulations on getting your op date. The drawn out intro back to solid food does sound like a long time. I found that the timings in reality were a bit different to what I was told originally which was six weeks. I was onto normal food at the end of 4 weeks. One week liquid, 2 weeks puree and one week soft food. Is this your docs usual regime or is it a plan for you in particular? Either way I know you will do well as you want this so much and you will feel brilliant. Good luck for the balance of your studies and happy holidays.

[sueoco 509]

I think each surgeon has their own regime. I was on the pre-op diet for 3 weeks (which ended up being near 4 weeks!). Post op was clear fluids for one day after lean test , 2 weeks of liquids, 2 weeks of puréed food, then on to normal food and just experimenting myself.

[puppyphat 397]

Wow, you guys had it easy. I wasn't allowed normal food until week 9. I had 4 days nil by mouth, 2 weeks liquids, 2 weeks purée with NO LUMPS, 4 weeks soft foods, then try normal food. Soft food was described as anything you could mash with a fork.

Every surgeon is different though. This just shows the varied approaches by different drs. Follow what your dr says, not what somebody else's dr recommended for them. If you ever have specific medical or diet questions, be sure to ask them first.

It's so good to have that date to now have something to count down too. I hope the time flies.

[Lissa_S 787]

I am about five weeks out since I started eating and drinking for myself and I am on soft foods now. Next week I should move to totally normal foods. I started having softer crackers (ritz) a few days ago with cheese and Tomato. Yum! They are going to be a life saver when i go back to work! I can only have 2 but they are yum. If i didn't need the Protein from the cheese I would probably axe it but weight loss isn't my problem at this stage, so I use it for the calories and Protein. I have such a small amount I don't think it really matters at this stage.

As you all know, my experience wasn't normal and I probably have moved through the stages a little faster than usual but I did so under the guidance of my NUT who has called me every week since I left hospital which has been great.

Saw my GP today and he has (grudgingly lol) cleared me to go back to work part time next week. I am quite excited as I really am looking forward to getting back to work. Hopefully it won't be too long before I am back full time.

Hope everyone else is going well. Congrats to those who now have surgery dates! I remember how exciting that was!

Cheers, Lila

[Aussiegirl 580]

Kelli, that is great to hear. I hope she continues to recover

Lila, so good to hear you are doing well. I am sure no one envies you your journey. How great is it to have cheese and crackers...it becomes the simple pleasures. They are still one of my favourite Snacks.

We are getting such a big group of aussies now, it is so good to see.

I am back home in Aus, recovering from the last minute back injury thanks to my new found love of zip lining...I love doing all these adventure things that previously my weight prevented me from doing.

I am moving into the maintenance phase now, after loosing 72kgs now I am ready to just maintain for a while. While potentially there is another 3-4kgs i could loose, I figure if they come off, it will be a by product rather than an effort.

I am noticing that I am able to eat even more now, and it feels like alot. Still comparisons to other people with normal stomachs it is smaller, but to me it feels like a lot. For example for lunch I just had 3/4 of a wholemeal chicken salad sandwich.

I am more aware of what I am putting in my mouth, as I can eat alot more of the bad foods now, for example cake, popcorn, chips. I have not been able to stomach chocolate too much since surgery and that seems to have stayed the same, but cake is still a weakness.

Good luck to everyone with their upcoming surgeries, look forward to hearing your journey.

[ozeedonkee 145]

Tomorrow is my big day. Super nervous!

[Kayargh 112]

Tomorrow is my big day. Super nervous!

GOOD LUCK!!! I'm sure everything will go smoothly. Let us know how you are doing when u can :-)

[aussie kelloff 79]

Tomorrow is my big day. Super nervous!

Good Luck for tomorrow.

[ozeedonkee 145]

Thank you! I had these nerves before each of my kids too - "omg! What have I done?!" lol.