stacyrg2

I am about the same age as you (I'm 22) and here's my advice. I always make sure I drink Water before I eat- both before and after my surgery I found that sometimes I mistake hunger for thirst.
When I go out to eat I always ask for a box and put at least half in it straight away. This helps me from feeling like I'm 'wasting' so much food and the visual of the smaller portion helps me.
I've also found that sometimes when I get cravings I'm satisfied with only a few bites. So I've learned to get the healthier option and then either it will pass or I'll share with someone else or have a bite of their food. Honestly though, sometimes I get treats but only have a little bit- I get much more satisfied now that I've been sleeved. Also, I found that I am more likely to have cravings if I'm hungry. What I've done is eat my meal and then my cravings substantially go away. (Side note: I tend to have more intense cravings when I'm on my period, so you may experience that).
Drinking only Water wasn't hard for me because I had started that habit years ago. If it's hard for you and you need flavor I really like the brand "Hint" water. They have no calories and come in all sorts of good flavors but don't taste artificial.
For me the hardest change to make was alcohol. It doesn't seem like you're consuming as many calories as you are and it "hits" me much faster. So just monitor it if you can't completely cut it out. If I'm being realistic about myself I don't think I could cut it out completely- like I had some wine on Thanksgiving and Christmas- but just know that it's easier to over do it on alcohol than it is on food (at least in my opinion).
Finally, when you go through a stall don't necessarily restrict yourself more. If it's been 4-6 weeks of a stall and you haven't lost inches or pounds then reassess your eating.
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I eat deli meat all the time. Boars Head has a line of all natural meats that limit the additives. It's a lower calorie/high Protein food that completely works with my program
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So.....stop.
Just stop. Quit sabotaging your ability to gain results.
It's not too late to get realigned with the suggested methods your bariatric group instructed you on.
You use the term, "I can't ". I'm calling BS on this. You can, you simply choose not to.
You've had weight loss surgery.....altered your body in order to set yourself up for losing weight. It's not to late to make the mental adjustments needed to support this.
People the world over are flooding their gyms and diet centers this month in hopes of fulfilling their New Year's resolutions to lose weight. Be a joiner, lol. Follow along.....or better yet....lead the way. You've had a head start on them.....now leave them in the dust.
Or don't.
Your choice.
Keep doing as you've always done and be content with not getting the most from your surgery.
Or follow the rules and thrive with the benefits that will be forthcoming.

That's swimming. No SWIMMING for an hour post op.

Everyone knows that it isn't safe to eat taco's 45 minutes post op; you need to wait 1 hour.

Or you're not overly sensitive and looking to be offended when you ask for justification to eat tacos 45 minutes post op.

Wow. As a nurse, that makes me suspect some very unclear communication, either on the part of the surgeon/staff or on the part of what you understood.
My surgeon has one of the most liberal diet progression plans I've seen, and she knew from our conversations that she could give me the written lists and some general guidelines and I'd know what to do with them because I'm an RN.
She started me on full liquids - which on her plan includes Jello, pudding, and greek yogurt and a couple of other pudding consistency items - on day 2 after I kept Clear Liquids down fine on day 1 coming out from surgery. There was no negotiation on that for the first 2 weeks until my first checkup. Protein shakes, and the things on the full liquids list, period.
She entirely skips the puree phase, as she says it's not functionally much different from the soft/mushy foods phase if your teeth work well, and most people hate it and aren't compliant. So I had a list of soft foods that I could START introducing after my 2 week checkup. One food at a time, from the softest and moistest foods first working my way to firmer consistencies. One new food at a time, tested a couple of times before adding another new food. This was for no less than another 2 weeks.
At my 4 week checkup, she allowed me to start adding in "normal" foods, except for a list of problematic foods such as raw veggies and things with seeds or small hard particles. Those were allowed after 6 or 8 weeks, I forget. I didn't actually try any of them until well after 2 months. But again, it was adding ONE food at a time, trying it several times before adding another.
So if your surgeon really said just "try foods as tolerated" then s/he failed to clearly communicate what the goal of the progressive diet is, and what you're trying to accomplish. That sounds like you can try all the foods in each phase for a day or two and if nothing causes a problem, go on to the next and you're on solids in under a week. Even if that's what s/he *said*, it is very doubtful to me that is what s/he *meant*. Doctors are not the greatest at patient education, it's not generally in their training. A surgeon who is truly advocating progressing the diet that rapidly has very likely not been doing it long enough to lose a patient to a leak or abscess.

Thank you for posting your first-hand experience. I have had people in the past act like I'm being all dramatic when I say that people have died or landed in the ICU with a leak from disregarding their physician's post-op diet advancement instructions.
My surgeon kept saying, "remember, it's a little surgery on the outside, BIG surgery on the inside".
Once your suture line is healed, knock yourself out "cheating" on your diet plan. You'll only be sabotaging your success. Violate your surgeon's diet advancement instructions, and you're literally gambling with your life.

People have this very misguided notion that "cheating" on their post-op food stages is like "cheating" on a diet. IT IS NOT! You have a staple line all along your stomach that needs to heal. food particles can become trapped in those staples which can cause abscesses, which can cause leaks, which can cause death!
Trying to eat solid foods days after WLS is like trying to run a marathon days after having a knee replacement. You need to allow time to heal!

I am sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing this important information that we need to follow the plans (especially the post recovery plans).
I am equally annoyed not only at the people who blatantly violate important rules to follow post-WLS that are designed to help a surgically altered intestine and/or stomach heal properly but the enablers with no medical/surgical experience who say that it is ok not to follow these critical steps, because they did not, think it is ok to not follow or know someone who did not follow.

So I just read yet another post about someone advancing their diet on their own too soon. This one from someone 4 days post op advancing to broccoli Soup. Probably won't kill them but it could. Then of course we get the irresponsible follow up poster saying that they too advanced their diet on their own way early and explored all kinds of foods and as long as their stomach tolerates it they see no problem with it.
Now I'm getting super frustrated, I had to put my two cents in. And perhaps I was harsh. But I watched someone die 4 years ago from doing just this.
My x mother in law had gastric sleeve surgery. At less than two weeks post op she started eating tidbits of foods she was not supposed to have, turkey, stuffing, ham, chicken in very small bites and yes chewed very well. All that didn't matter. She was fine at first. In fact showed no symptoms for days. Then she became extremely ill, with pain and fever. She had a leak which had to be repaired by surgery. After surgery she developed a serious infection and a fistula which led to the outside of her stomach. Everything she tried to drink seeped outside her stomach onto a large padded napkin that she held up to the opening of that fistula. They could not get the infection under control. They fought it for three months with the best antibiotics they had. Eventually she became septic, her organs began to fail and she passed away.
I am only 4 weeks post op VSG, you better believe I thought long and hard about having the same surgery that she had. But I can also say that I have followed my an to the T, with the exception of drinking coffee which I discussed with my surgeon beforehand.
When are people going to realize that following their diet is serious. And more so when are these idiots going to stop coming on and saying things like it's ok to explore foods early as long as you tolerate them!!!! My mother in law tolerated those foods just fine for damn near a week before she finally showed the signs of a serious leak.
Your prescribed diet plan after major stomach surgery is not just a guideline that they want you to follow so you can lose weight. It's a prescription that really can mean life or death, I've seen it with my own eyes.
Ugggggh sooooooo frustrated!!!!!!!

I log everything on MyFitnessPal. Focus on lean, unprocessed meat and green veggies. I keep my meals about 5 oz total (3 oz meat + 2 oz green veggies). This works really well for me -- much more satisfying and IMO healthier than doing something like all liquids. Good luck!

I've got no words...

Thank you for sharing, and I am so sorry for your loss.
This is why I posted my "rant" about not "cheating" post-op. It's not cheating, it's risking your life. (link in my signature). I'm a nurse, and I've seen the results of not following the doctor's instructions post-op. Not specifically from WLS, but from other abdominal surgeries. This is not the time to "trust your body". It is the time to follow your post-op instructions to the letter.
It's one thing if your doc says "sure, try some pudding if you feel like it" and you do. It's quite another to decide you're up for some sort of solid food when your doc has you on liquids still. You're risking a lot.

Exploring foods off your plan is very dangerous. Advancing your diet before your plan allows it can cause serious complications and even death. My mother in law explored foods early in her plan when she was not supposed to. She initially felt fine. For days even she was fine. Then she developed a serious leak. She had to have surgery to fix it. After surgery she developed a serious infection and a fistula that lead outside her stomach, she could not eat or drink anything without it coming out the front of her stomach. They could not contain the infection, they fought it for three months. Eventually she became septic, her organs shut down and she passed away. All because she could not adhere to her prescribed diet plan. The diet plan is given to you for your safety, it's not a suggestion, it's a prescription.
I thought long and hard about having the same surgery as she had but you better believe that I have followed my plan with the exception of drinking some coffee early which my surgeon said was fine. Please think twice before advancing your diet on your own. And for the poster that said I see no problem exploring foods early as long as you tolerate them. Educate yourself on post op complications surrounding not following your prescribed diet and then show a little responsibility about what you post. New people may read what you say and think it's ok, when it totally is not. I've seen with my own eyes what can happen. Just because you got lucky and were ok does not make it responsible to advocate that others play so dangerously with their lives.

@@pvechiola
I stand by my statement. You seem very uneducated about WLS.
I'm sorry, how far out from surgery are you? I'm 2.5 years out.
You seem nice.

Uh, weight loss surgery isn't just for old people, you know. Sometimes it's the best option, no matter what your age.
What a silly thing to say?

Vomiting and GERD -- I haven't had any
Pro's and con's -- first time in my life I am at a normal weight, which means my life has changed entirely. No real cons except (1) it's major surgery, so that does mean a period of pain and tiredness after as you recover; and (2) some people find themselves unable to tolerate certain types of food after. I can't/don't eat bread anymore or anything carbonated.
Advice -- you have to be ready and want to build an entirely new relationship with food. Food will no longer be your comfort, your entertainment, your stress relief, your way of celebrating holidays or family. That doesn't mean you can't enjoy it though. You have to be willing to work hard at weight loss and weight maintenance for the rest of your life (I'm deadly serious about that). You have to be willing to accept the possibility that you radically change the kind of food you eat for the rest of your life. Don't kid yourself into thinking this surgery means you eat three bites of pancakes for Breakfast, one mini-cheeseburger for lunch, a Snickers fun bar for a snack, and a twinkie for dinner with a side of a couple french fries. Doesn't work like that. If you are like most of us, those types of foods are either entirely or very largely excised from our lives completely if we want to be successful in losing weight and keeping the weight off.
Small portions for the first month? I didn't have any "portions" for the first month. My plan called for liquids for the first month post-op.
After that I was allowed to move to pureed high Protein foods for four weeks. Portion size there was 1.5 ounces weighed or 3 tablespoons measured. This was more than enough, believe me.
After that I moved to soft foods for four months and my mandated size for each of my three daily meals was 3 ounces. I could rarely eat that much though.
I am now 3.5 years post op and can eat about 5 ounces per meal, depending on what is in the meal. I still focus on high protein, low carb eating in order to maintain my weight loss (over 200 lbs).
I don't know that there are stats or averages for weight loss in the first month. The first month post-op, your body does some insane things trying to recover from the trauma of surgery. Healing and getting used to a new way of relating to food should be your focus in the first month post op, not how fast you are losing. All that said, I would think anywhere from 8 - 25 lbs is a reasonable expectation for first month loss for someone your size. Focus on the lower end of that and if you lose more, let yourself be surprised and happy. Good luck in your decision!

A few pounds is normal fluctuation. You are going to hit some pauses along the way, which could be anything from hormones or stress making your body temporarily insane to Constipation. Generally the preop diet is about shrinking your liver, not about weight loss -- though weight loss is often a nice side benefit -- so keep in mind that you are doing this for a safe and successful surgery, not trying to hit some arbitrary weight loss goal.
I had a two week pre-op diet. The first week I lost 12 lbs. The second week, I went up a couple pounds in the first few days, despite doing everything correctly and eating the same way I had the first week. By the end of that week I was down 2 lbs from where I started the week, but losing 2 lbs in a week is a big difference from losing 12 lbs! But our bodies are not calculators or machines and don't always behave the way we expect. Keep following your program religiously and everything will be okay in the end. Good luck!

It took me 15 months to lose a total of 92 pounds before the weight loss just stopped.
Now at almost 2.5 years out, do you think it matters one sh*t how long it took me to lose it? All that matters now is I keep off what I lost!
And @@Djmohr is right. Just wait until you're at goal, but you gain a few pounds. I gained almost 6 last spring, and it took me 4 months to lose it. Yes, four.

It's the same banana-headed fantasy over and over. @@Travelher, when I saw your topic in the list, I expected that I was clicking in to pop you on the nose. What a thrill to see what you were about.
Lately, when I do respond to those who gleaned from the surgery practices only what suited their fantasies, I ask (not necessarily in this order and not necessarily all three):
- Where they got their ideas;
- Why is becoming slim overnight now an emergency after building and maintaining obesity for years; and
- When did they ever before lose as rapidly as they have been since surgery...even though their current rate of weight loss is so pathetic?
I also recommend that they adjust their goals to losing weight, period.
One of my own goals is to stop responding to them at all. They keep fantasizing and I keep spinning my wheels. Why do I do this to myself?
@@Djmohr -- I hope it all tasted good enough. My impression is that you're a good cook, so that's my hope.

How ever many time your insurance and the surgon requires.

Appetite ebbs and flows. If you feel you are truly hungry, then eat when you feel you need to eat. Honestly, I hit goal and am still maintaining over a year later by eating on a schedule and every few hours. That has just worked for me. Your body may just need more food. I know when I exercise a bit more I am more hungry. Ravenous, even! Just learn to read your body and know the difference between true hunger and just wanting to eat for the sake of eating

I'm much farther out than that, but I use a decent amount of butter when I cook my eggs. The butter helps keep the eggs moist. I don't have a problem adding fat. Your body needs fat to function. I use butter, full fat cheese, etc all with my dietitian's blessing. This is just another point of view, but just wanted to share that I don't fear fat
Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I eat deli meat all the time. Boars Head has a line of all natural meats that limit the additives. It's a lower calorie/high Protein food that completely works with my program
Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App