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I have one more day of Phase 2 . . . most days I have a protein shake (yuk) and protein water, about a half a container of yogurt (Oikos triple zero), and some cream soup. I may have slightly violated the plan by blending a non-cream soup, a beef vegetable one, but I was so thrilled to have something not sweet . . . Many people are happy with broth but I found I couldn't stand it. I also made some pudding with a couple scoops of protein powder added. I've made shakes with the powder and 1 percent milk, but today, on the advice of a friend, I bought some unsweetened coconut almond milk to try with the powder. Might be interesting? Oh, and also had an occasional popsicle or fudgesicle.

You can try responding to critics with facts--it's a very safe surgery, safer than gall-bladder removal. Long-term weight loss without surgery is only successful in a tiny minority of cases; most people put what they've lost back on, plus more. The fact that people feel guilty about this and we're treated as being somehow weak and self-indulgent is shameful. There are many reasons for people being overweight but few lasting solutions--except this one. And, ultimately, it's your body--you shouldn't have to defend your decision to do something smart for yourself. Best of luck!

I cannot even remember sleeping for 9 hours in a row and I dream of being able to do that. I think I'm sleeping a bit better but I have a long way to go. Still, I agree--this is a new life and it will be a better and healthier one! Congrats on your progress.

Not sure if that question was meant for me, but I've had the surgery and I've been losing about a pound a day since. Stay calm and keep to the plan . . . it will work.

I doubt red wine and ginger ale (regular or diet?) are the sole factors in your weight gain (though neither is a great idea, as you no doubt know). I'd suggest going back to MyFitnessPal or a similar app to log everything you eat and drink and see how the calories stack up.

I'm not sure if I was told that this time, but I've heard it before other surgeries. You're better off with lemon or maybe lime--just for that one day. After surgery it won't matter which flavor of jello you choose. Good luck!

I really had to look around the site for it, but here it is (hope it's okay I'm posting it--if not, please let me know and I'll take it down). I would urge others to check the site, though, because there are a ton of tasty sounding recipes there! ************************************************************** Simple Chicken Salad Prep Time 10 mins Total Time 10 mins Very popular chicken salad recipe. You'll wonder if this will be bland and tasteless with just few ingredients, but I promise you, it won't. Super flavorful and extremely easy. Course: Main Course, Salad Cuisine: American Dietary Consideration: High Fat, High Protein, Keto, Low Carb, Low Sugar Cooking Style: No Cook Ease of Cooking: Pour and Cook, Under 30 Mins Recipe Type: Chicken, Salads Servings: Ingredients 4 cups chicken breast 1/3 cup mayonnaise 1 cup celery thinly sliced 1/4 cup almonds sliced 1 teaspoon salt 1-2 teaspoons pepper Equipment Kitchenaid Stand Mixer or Cuisinart Food Processor US Customary - Metric Instructions Place cooked chicken meat in your Kitchenaid or other stand mixer. Use the paddle to shred the chicken. Do not skip this step! This is the key to why this salad is very creamy, moist, and just delicious. You can do this by pulsing in a food processor as well. This step is critical to finely shredding the chicken Mix in everything into the chicken, and eat. No really, it's that simple. Here's the link to the site I used: https://twosleevers.com/

I agree that's inappropriate, to say the least, but it was, presumably, one poster. And sure, there are others that will be negative or unnecessarily blunt or whatever. But there is a ton of useful information to be found here; I've found the suggestions about what to drink/eat for each stage helpful, for example. Or the advice to get some Gas-X before the surgery! very useful. I also found it inspiring to look at the before/after pictures in several threads. I still can't quite picture myself in one of the "after" pictures looking a normal weight . . . it's been a long, long time since that was true. Best of luck . . . I'm almost at the pureed stage and so sick of protein shakes I could scream. Oh, another tip: protein water. It's saved my sanity.

I don't know if you have to love your surgeon, but you should definitely trust him or her. I happen to love mine and think he's a genius. He has a great reputation--everyone I talked to praised him highly. Add me to that list--no pain post-op and here I am, two weeks later, and my incisions are barely noticeable.

I did it with great trust in my doctor and pretty calmly, knowing this was what I wanted and had prepared for. As someone noted, the surgery is the easy part--sticking to the plan afterwards is tough. And someone else chimed in that no, maintenance is that's tough. Basically, the first few weeks after surgery you'll get really, really sick of protein drinks. I'm sick of drinking sweet stuff and the highlight of my day is some pureed soup that isn't sweet. I'm also quite low on energy still but assume that will improve. Most important, I'm losing weight!!

You can read around the site and see some pictures, but what I've read is that it depends on several factors: how overweight you are to begin with (and your beginning weight is not that high compared with, say, mine!). Your age is a factor. And how much you exercise is a factor. I'm assuming I'll get the surgery that removes the excess skin from the "apron" at the bottom of the abdomen. I'd probably like a breast lift but will need to win the lottery for that.

I hear you on the protein shakes--I've been trying to be creative in making sure I get enough each day. I drink protein water, killing two birds with one stone, as it were. And I also struggle to get enough water in. I have some yogurt--like, half of one a day. I also made some sugar-free pudding and added two scoops of protein powder, so that's a little different. But I totally agree with the advice that you attack your food addiction with the therapist. The surgery won't help in the long run if you can't tame that beast as well. Best of luck!

I'll second that suggestion: ask your surgeon!

There's also the whole thing with muscle weighing more than fat, so it could be that you're building some muscle with your exercise. I'm not sure I totally understand this but goodness knows I've heard it many times. More to the point, I've also read that you should basically track your weight by month rather than by week once you get going--there will be stalls as well as possible gains followed by a loss. Good luck . . .

Thanks--I do love the statistics. The first link didn't work for me because I'm not a member of the site, but the second said that the sleeve was recommended, barring other factors. I basically think my surgeon is a genius, so I'm good overall with the decision. Time will tell, of course. My major issue at the moment, other than hating protein shakes, is lack of energy. But I'm assuming that, too, will improve eventually.

I seem to have had the "wrong" surgery according to much of the advice here . . . I had the sleeve even though I was above 300 pounds and have both diabetes and GERD. I don't think I was misinformed, but perhaps: I was told diabetes disappeared for 84 percent of patients who had the sleeve. I'm about two weeks post-op and I've reduced my daily insulin dose by a half (and I was taking a lot, 120 units a day). My numbers have been very good. I'm not obsessed with my goal weight--I'd like to be under 200 pounds, I'd like my knee pain to go away, and then, it would be great if my BMI would be normal (so, I would then meet my goal weight). I hope my diabetes disappears. But it's far too soon to tell how any of this will work out--for the moment, I'm good with what's going on. Just want to be consuming protein other than from shakes, basically . . .

I had a few food "funerals" before my pre-op diet--not binge-ing, just things I knew I wouldn't be eating post-op, like fettucine Alfredo, steak with a baked potato, a hamburger with a bun. I don't regret them now--I did my two weeks' pre-op diet pretty religiously and since the surgery I've been drinking so many freaking protein shakes I could scream. But I follow the rules pretty darned closely and I'm seeing progress, so no worries. I will, however, celebrate when I move to pureed foods (next week) and real food (at the end of the month). I'm just sick of so much of what I consume being sweet. Ugh.

Check to see if they gave you a list--I was given detailed paperwork on post-op diet phases. Probably, however, you can have yogurt and cream soups and sugar-free pudding. And oh, so many protein shakes . . .

I'm almost two weeks post-op and went grocery (well, protein drink, mostly) shopping today. I thought I would keel over in the store. So weak . . . one possibility that occurred to me was that my blood pressure was too low--I've been on meds for high BP for years, but my BP at doctors' visits since this journey started have all been quite low. I'm wondering if I should cut back on my meds and if anyone else has had experience with this that they'd share. Thanks!!

It occurs to me that I have yet another way to keep track of what I'm doing, at least for now. I'm diabetic, so I'm testing my blood sugar twice a day. Talk about an *immediate* way to know whether you've eaten correctly . . . There may be an age as well as a lifestyle aspect to my answer . . . I'm very close to retirement age. I'm told I look about ten years younger than I am, but I don't know if that will continue once my nice wrinkle-less skin isn't supported by fat any longer . . . I do like attractive clothes--but when I think of tailored things, I think of suits, which have never, ever looked good on me or felt comfortable--not when I was 136 and not when I was 380. And I hope I have some 100-pound pants--I'm totally broke at the moment. Couldn't afford a pair of used pants from the Salvation Army.

There's a lot of individual difference in taste--one thing I didn't really realize was that I don't like broth. Didn't before surgery, don't after. I want some non-sweet options, but that's not going to be it. I'll use what I have in the crockpot eventually when I get to have real food!!

I'm beginning to hate them, too, but I suppose Premier is the best I've tried. The vanilla is too sweet, and the banana is pretty sweet, too, but I can deal with the chocolate and the strawberries and cream. Barely. I'm trying to find other ways to deal with this--getting some protein from yogurt, from high-protein soup (I'm actually using some Medifast packets a friend gave me--I'm just happy it's not sweet). Last night I made instant pudding with two scoops of protein powder--not terrible. But, you know, sweet. Among my favorite options is Atkins LIFT protein drink (and counts toward my water, so bonus there). But my desire to get past this stage to things like eggs and cottage cheese is enormous.

I'm not supposed to have coffee for a year post-surgery. Out of all the rules, this is the one I'm pretty sure I'm going to break . . . but it's only a week and a half post-op, and I want coffee now! I'll probably resist, but . . . how long before y'all had regular coffee again?

I'm counting from my highest weight--coincidentally, the weight I was the first time I saw the surgeon--to now. I lost it all--I'm taking credit for it!

LOL, I know the feeling of having to explain that I was being sarcastic--seems weird to many and completely normal to me.