Stef

You can get sample packs of the different protein powders that'll let you give them all a try before deciding on which route you want to go, and they're worth every penny. There are also pre-mixed shakes from several manufacturers that some people tolerate a lot better than the powders. Try everything you can get your hands on and find what works for you before your time runs out. It flies by quicker than you think.

The colder they are, the better they are. If I don't finish one before it warms up, it gets an almost slimy consistency and it's a little hard to choke down.

Pho broth has been one of the things keeping me sane through this liquid diet phase, you can definitely eat that.

Duct Tape. 1001 uses.

Outstanding! Keep kicking ass, J!

When you get to your seat try the seatbelt and see if it fits. If not, ask for an extender and they'll give you one. No muss, no fuss, no drama.

Sleeved 1/8 with no complications other than fighting to make sure I get all my fluids and meds in. One week until a follow-up with the doc and they advance the diet. I don't have a reliable scale so I'm not sure what I've dropped so far but I'll find out next week.

I wish that were true. Even in the blender bottle, I couldn't deal with the smell of the Nectar/Unjury drinks. Another vote here for the Premier Protein shakes.

One of the biggest post-surgery rules is "don't drink your calories". beverages pass right through the sleeve and if you're drinking a lot of calories, you're seriously sabotaging one of the biggest tools the sleeve provides for long term weight loss. In moderation it's not a problem, but if you go back to the same behaviors you had pre-surgery, it's only going to hurt you in the long term.

There's a Pho place right down the street from my house where I get quart containers of pho broth and it's been one of my favorite things to satisfy the clear liquid portion of my post-op diet. Chicken broth every day just wasn't doing it for me and the canned/carton beef broth I tried was kind of nasty. Go Pho!

If you got mixed messages from your doc, you should contact them for clarification. The clear liquid diet part of recovery sucks (I'm 13 days into mine, 10 days to go) but you can get through it.

Definitely try all the samples you can before surgery to see if they'll work for you and if you find you can't deal with the powders, there are other options. I tried all the different flavors from nectar and unjury and the whey scent was so overpowering that there were only three that didn't make me gag and nearly vomit, and those three still left me a little nauseated. There was absolutely NO WAY I was going to be able to drink 32oz every day. I went in to see my dietician to see if there were other options and she suggested that I try the Premier Protein shakes and I have been living on those post-op. They taste just like chocolate milk and are easy to get down.

I took two weeks off but I could have gone back to work (I'm a network engineer) three days after I was discharged from the hospital.

I like the Bariac Advantace calcium citrate "chewy bites". The raspberry and caramel are my favorites. I liked the lemon best before surgery but now there's something vaguely off-putting about them so I haven't been eating those.

Had my sleeve last week on 1/8. No complications and I feel great. The only discomfort I had was from the CO2 making my left shoulder ache but that has mostly subsided now since I've been out walking a bunch. I could have gone back to work today but I'm going to relax and enjoy the next week off.

My surgery time was bumped due to an emergency but I eventually got taken upstairs Tuesday a bit after noon. Came out with no complications and was out of recovery and into my own room around 4pm. Didn't have any serious pain, just general discomfort and only had a little oxy before going to bed. After rounds they discharged me a bit after 2pm Wednesday. Ran a couple of pharmacy errands with my friend on the way home from the hospital and settled in for some protein shakes and television before some more oxy and an early bedtime. Woke up a couple of times in the night but no real pain, just some twinges in some positions, particularly gas pains in my left shoulder which sucks because I'm usually a left-side sleeper. A glorious shower this morning and curling up in my recliner to do some reading and email answering and things are pretty good. I hope everyone else here has a nice uneventful surgery and a complication-free recovery!

You too. Packing up and getting ready to head to the hospital now. See you folks on the other side!

Tomorrow is game day! 8:30 check-in and 11:30 surgery. Just finished cleaning the house and picking up the last of my post-op preps. I wonder if I'll get any sleep tonight. Good luck to everyone else going in tomorrow or later in the month!

Thanks Iggy, I'll try and keep all of that in mind It's nice to see someone who dosen't equate coddling/enabling to support. Please feel free to smack me upside the head if I ever do something like ask "hey, I'm 3 days out of surgery, is it ok if I have pork chops and a vodka martini yet?" because I will definitely deserve it. Happy New Year!

Thankfully you said this because according to some self-appointed forum nazis, I heven't yet earned the right to an opinion on such matters. Maybe they should post the "Approved Forum Topic Posting Schedule" for all to see. It would certainly spare a lot of grief.

You're entirely correct. Unfortunately, that has absolutely nothing to do with this thread.

I'm not questioning anyone's intelligence. Please don't put words in my mouth.

Which brand of chocolate are you currently using? I've heard the Unjury chocolate tastes just like chocolate milk, but I haven't tried it myself.

Goodness, people certainly are taking this personally. Contrary to what someone inferred, I'm not trying to belittle anyone. I'm genuinely flabbergasted by the behavior I've seen and trying to comprehend why it happens so often. It's probably the engineer in me, always trying to solve problems. I understand the temptations people have, I have them myself. I was stuck at a stoplight in front of a KFC today and my mouth was watering because I smelled the Colonel's secret recipe of eleven herbs and spices. I swear, that chicken smelled like the most delicious thing on the planet. My pre-op diet is kicking my ass and I know for sure the post-op diet will be even worse as my surgeon has an extremely conservative post-op regimen. Cravings themselves are not the issue. I'm not criticizing anyone for having cravings or temptations, that would be incredibly hypocritical. I completely sympathize with folks who start threads looking for help because they're craving something. That's not what this is about. What I'm having difficulty understanding is this; why do people seek approval from what are basically complete strangers to violate their doctor's directives, when they know it's not in their best interest? It just doesn't make sense to me. Quite frankly, I'm shocked that people are getting out the torches and pitchforks over this. Perhaps instead of lashing out at me because I touched a nerve, we should figure out why this happens so often and see what can be done about it? That would be support, wouldn't it?

I've only been here for a couple of weeks but I am stunned by the number of posts where people ask if it's ok to ignore their post surgical dietary instructions because they really want to eat something they know they shouldn't. Is it really worth the chance of having complications to satisfy a craving? Do you want to be cut open again to deal with a leak, infection or some other complication? Are people really lacking that much basic common sense? It honestly boggles my mind to read so many posts like that.