siyah

Sweethot- My Doc said FOUR (ug!) weeks of the liquid/protein diet and then soft foods on week five. Soft- oatmeal, yogurt, thicker soups, cottage cheese,... I've got a guy who has a really good result rate on all levels so I am heeding his precautions. It's hard enough to go through this once, I can't imagine how aweful it would be to have to get it repeated or to have it removed after all this. After two weeks of soft foods, I can move to more chewable options beginning with fish, then some white meats and red meats are dead last. In addition, he said no milk (has milk-sugar) or sugar- ever. And to stay away from "white" foods: popcorn, pasta, potatoes,... as these are not going to help with wieght loss. Lastly, no carbonation, chewing gum because they expand the stomach and to watch foods like cream of wheat or rice that might not have absorbed all their liquids yet. They can expand the stomach, too. That's about it for my food plan. It's a matter of timing, planning and careful thought. Today I made more jello. (Yippee) I'll have the strongest nails on the block! I'll bring a red and green combo jello over for Christmas dinner so I can have dessert, too. I told my family I was off sugar, but not that I'm being banded in two days. Merry Christmas!

Want a great substitute for mashed potatoes?!?! My girlfriend made these and they are awesome! I made them for tomorrow because my surgeon sian I could have "real" Protein and plain veggies for dinner. Here goes: Take a whole caulliflower and a leek, chop them up into small pieces and boil them in chicken broth. Cook until soft, drain and blend. Season as you wish. They are light, fluffy and have an amazing flavor. Not much like cauliflower for those who don't like this veg. I could easily see this not just as a side dish but as a sub for casseroles or a base for a thick meat sauce. Peace to all this Christmas eve. (At least, it's still eve in my time zone!)

Carebear- We have the same band date! Why are they keeping you five days?

For the most part it sounds like everyone is doing really well. That makes me a little more at ease about the whole operation. I was told by the doctor and nurses that it's really important to take something for the pain beause it'll help with the healing process. They will have me on the self-monitoring drip with pain meds in the hospital and then other meds at home. On a scale of 1-10, I was told to keep the pain at a 4 or below because the higher it climbs, the longer it takes to come back down. Personally- I'd like it to be at the discomfort level, not pain. But we'll see. Today I am going to try to be dilligent about liquids only. Yesterday I had beef jerkey (sodium!) and the scale didn't move. I want to loose another two pounds by my surgery date. (27th). Peace all! Glad to be reading everyone's posts here.

For the last two nights i keep having vivid dreams of the surgery (12/27), scars, food and not sleeping. (Yes, I drempt of not sleeping.) But I woke up this morning, weighed in and had dropped from the liquid diet. Sheesh- if I had the will power I'd just stick with this!

It's great to hear so many of you doing well. I am really nervous right now and just keep wondering if it's worth it. I weigh over 300 pounds though, so my health is in jeopardy. Already my knees have been killing me for a year, and no other diets have worked for long. i guess it's just all the "what could happens" my surgeon went over yesterday. I cried all the way home. Thus far, my husband doesn't understand and therefor is not supportive, but my friends are being great. I'm hoping to receive more support from this site, too. And I'll go to the live support groups, too. I've been on liquids for 4 days with 6 to go. Gotta shrink that liver. I was told that I'd be on the same thing for a month afterwards, too. Today I missed chewing so I had egg whites. Jello just doesn't cut it as far as a good "chew". I have read people's messages about high-protein soups. Can someone help me here? Merry CHristmas!

Fruit has "sugar" and even apple sauce is a soft food so it's no to both. It's all liquid, no sugar, no fizz, no caffeine,... for ten days pre-op and then four weeks post-op. After that it's the soft foods. I had to drink the barium stuff for my upper GI test today and i asked about the calories- very few BTW, but sugar to flavor it. I'm calling that meal #1 today. Siyah

I am finding the evenings really hard. I had two olives last night "just because". Otherwise, I don't think I have lost even a pound. My body knows i am starving it and it's holding all the weight it can. Can anyone tell me how their weight loss went pre-op? Also- I saw that some people had to be re-banded. Anyone understand why it "breaks down"? Siyah