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Glad to know I’m not the only one. I’ve been forcing myself to eat my protein instead of drinking it. Hasn’t been the greatest. Struggling to get enough hydration because of the food. But im working on it. And I will improve. I believe in myself 💪🏾

I love these ideas everyone. Thanks for the input. I got a new list of food to try for week 4 along with foods to avoid. Spinach is a go. But no fruit with seeds or skin. I will look into a good juicer but it may be more cost efficient for me to buy it organic no sugar at this time and just add a creamy or clear protein. I will update everyone soon.

What stage of food are you on? I loved a enchilada/bean dip during the pureed/soft phase, the ricotta bake and just made a chicken and cauliflower "mac" and cheese casserole. I made most of these without meat in the pureed phase and just added ground turkey when I moved to the soft food stage. I found egg white wraps and made a roll up with those for lunch with tuna or ham. and breakfast has been scramble eggs. Adding more variety to them the further I move in my stages.

I'm 51 and just got my surgery date last week - Sept 11th. I've lost just at 30 pounds pre-surgery so far. Getting excited that it is coming up, also a little nervous - feeling like I need to make sure I get a few last "solids" I like in before the months of liquid and puree. I feel like I am stagnating right before my surgery, I'm hoping that is not the case, as I have been having very little trouble motivating myself, so far. I think it's more nerves than anything. So far, I have chosen not to tell anyone outside of my household. I am planning to tell my in-laws in the next week. Not sure if I'll talk to anyone else about it before it's done.

Ms.sss you are my inspiration! I am 5'1'', 54 years old, and started at 230lbs. I had VSG on 4/12/2023. My current weight is 172.4. I agree with you on the eating, similar experiences with those foods as well. I hope i have as much success as you did at losing weight!

I just woke up thirsty and glugged down quite a bit of SF Raspberry tea and I'm over 4 months out from surgery. Even though liquids usually pass through your new stomach pouch fairly quickly, it can be painful, especially early on, to drink too fast. Even more so with food in your tummy. Sometimes I wait longer than 30 minutes to drink after eating something. Everyone's tolerance is a bit different but since hydration is crucial early on, I would say concentrate on getting your liquids in before anything else. I realized around 2 months I could drink instead of sip, and I was pretty relieved.

I know this may be a dumb question, but when will swallowing normally (not tiny sips) feel normal again? Any liquids are mostly fine, but I tried some stewed green beans and there was discomfort even with over chewing them. I’m 19 days post op and I’m struggling. But this is the decision I made, so I have no choice but to live with it. I’m taking my meds/vitamins and doing my best to get my protein and water in. Will swallowing ever feel normal again? Will I ever eat normally again? I’m still on soft foods but mainly sticking to protein shakes and broth. Thanks for taking the time to read and any info is appreciated. 🙂

I'm having a lot of the feels about things and I don't even have a date yet! I think that's normal. Navigating the changes with other humans around is hard. My partner is diabetic too and very, very emotionally attached to food. And while they are very supportive of my choices and willing to change things around a bit, I think there may be some rough spots because food is a control issue and a comfort issue for them. I've had so many problems with food over the years that I'm pretty detached about it now. But I'm still sure these upcoming changes will be hard on us all. I did manage to quit vaping by just packing it all away. Out of sight, out of mind actually works for me for most things. I tend to eat out of boredom or vape out of boredom so putting things away and substituting other habits has been effective. But having conversations with my head hunger is still pretty hard. I'm not looking forward to the liquid phases of this experience. LOL I've fasted on liquids for days before for other procedures and the first few days are always the hardest, but I have never had to sustain it for weeks! I bet most of us are afraid of screwing things up. I had this whole panic thing the other day about possibly having the DS and then a world catastrophe happening and me not being able to get my vitamins and me dying of malnourishment---when my brain panics it does so EPICALLY! I finally reassured myself I could stockpile vitamins for a year once I find what works, you know, kind of like preppers do? I could be a vitamin prepper! 😂😂😂

Usually during puree stage as long as they're smooth and a bit runny

Drool, food porn

Your body is likely still producing the same amount of stomach acid for your smaller tummy as it did for your much larger tummy. Plus you aren’t eating much & what you’re eating (shakes, then purées & small portions) doesn’t require as much acid to break it down as part of the digestive process. A PPI, as everyone has suggested, is your best bet until you’re eating more soIid food & larger portions & your body has adjusted to your new needs re acid. Over the counter antacids don’t really help as they may sooth the symptoms of excess acid (heart burn) not the cause. PPIs reduce the production of the acid. But do speak with your medical team.

I think you are smart to wait. I would get a few things to have at the ready, but don’t go crazy. Like with protein shakes, if you have the option of getting single ones or a 4 pack of different brands to see what you might tolerate after. Broth is good and mostly won’t go to waste. I mistakenly bought a case of Recovery Water and I can’t stand the taste. I would just say to just be sure to have your vitamins and calcium ready and the foods you can sort out later. I know every program is different and some people start vitamins at different times. I started the day after I came home from the hospital. I also wasn’t on a liquid diet after surgery, but went straight to puréed stage. So mostly cottage cheese, yogurt, puréed soups and the shakes. Best of luck!

I think you are smart to wait. I would get a few things to have at the ready, but don’t go crazy. Like with protein shakes, if you have the option of getting single ones or a 4 pack of different brands to see what you might tolerate after. Broth is good and mostly won’t go to waste. I mistakenly bought a case of Recovery Water and I can’t stand the taste. I would just say to just be sure to have your vitamins and calcium ready and the foods you can sort out later. I know every program is different and some people start vitamins at different times. I started the day after I came home from the hospital. I also wasn’t on a liquid diet after surgery, but went straight to puréed stage. So mostly cottage cheese, yogurt, puréed soups and the shakes. Best of luck!

So yeah, now I'm playing the waiting game and patiently awaiting surgery day. In the meantime, I am wondering what food aversions I will end up with. I know after having the gallbladder removal, there are already tons of foods I can't stand or just can't eat all together. So, for my recovery liquids, I decided to not go all out and buy a bunch of things and sit and wait. I suppose broth would be good to keep around and no sugary Jello mix. But beyond that I don't want to spend money on things I may not need or like after. Thinking might be best to wait to see what I can stand while in hospital. Then order or send my husband to get things? If anyone's reading, this...what do you recommend? Did you buy a bunch of things, or wait?

Reading about your post-surgery experience from 2 years ago is a reminder of the challenges you faced during that time. Adjusting to a new relationship with food after a gastric sleeve surgery can be quite a journey, and it's commendable that you reached out for support and shared your concerns. It's heartening to know that you were proactive in seeking help from a therapist. Sharing your feelings and experiences with a professional is a significant step towards healing and finding the right path for your recovery. Remember, recovery is a gradual process, and it's okay to have ups and downs along the way. Also, if you ever want to explore something new in terms of food experiences, have you considered trying korean corn dogs? It's a unique and delightful option that might bring a fresh perspective to your journey.

Oh this is another area where surgeons seem to differ substantially! It will also be influenced by what procedure you had and when OP. I was not told to restrict fruit in any way post op - food was only restricted by consistency/texture for the first 6 weeks. So I could have pureed any fruit at all if I had fancied it 2 weeks out (I didn't fancy it though - was too busy grubbing away at my lovely blended baby food-like dinners, LOL). After that I could eat as much of whatever fruit I liked, and I do. Usually 2 or 3 portions of berries a day as snacks. In fact I like to get those in early before I start my protein/'proper' meal eating. I think they have useful micro-nutrients - for the same reason I eat a small handful of seeds and same of raw nuts every day. And cheese - couldn't do a day without it (although the micronutrient thing may not apply, it's just THE best) 😂

there were/are times when i spend i good amount of time making something to eat for myself, or basically 1/2 a day preparing a multi-layered/multi-course meal for the fam, or painstakingly pour over a menu to choose something to order, and be all excited to eat it then...nah. and end up putting the food in the fridge and/or watch whomever's with me eat it. i have been known to take a bite out of something i thought would be delicious only spit it out in a napkin...because it wasn't. it all evens out though, with my hungry days.

i went through stages. 1st month: looking or thinking about food and eating made me sick. i was like REPULSED. month 2-3: didnt want to eat (but no longer REPULSED) though i forced myself to eat because i was getting weak. i had a very strong restriction so wasn't able to eat much anyway. month 4-7: there would be days that i wanted to eat and days that i didn't. i stopped forcing myself to eat on no-hungry days at this point and just ate when i wanted to because i started to develop this thing where i felt like eating was WORK and i didn't like that. my restriction was still doing its job though, so i still couldn't eat much anyway. month 7-12: struggled to up my calories to ease into maintenance and i think my not-wanting-to-eat phases during this time period had more to do with a mental block than anything else. i had a bit of a time when i had a challenge "allowing" myself to eat higher calorie foods and carbs, ha. fear of weight gain and all that. though in hindsight i needn't have worried, as my restriction kept me in check. 1 year and onwards: i still get the odd don't-want-to-eat or oops-i-forgot-to-eat days here and there. not as often and regluar as before, but they show up every once in a while. i don't sweat it, as i know there will be hungry days too. my restriction is still very much in play, even at 5 years out, and i have learned over the years what foods and what amounts i can consume before i hit my full mark. i was/am a regular food tracker so its second nature. i tend to only eat things that i really want because, why fill my valuable limited real estate with something meh? luckily the list of things i want does not comprise of just junk. while i do enjoy a bite of dessert and a bowl of chips, i love me a salad just as much. though personally, my fave kind of meal is when there are an abundance of different things to take a bite or two of (like hors d'ourves at a cocktail party, or a tasting menu, or dim sum/tapas/izakaya, or when i go to a restaurant with a large group and get to have a bit of everyone's meal!) anyway, i think i may have gone on a tangent there, lol. but yeah, you are not the only one that gets the food aversions, and while you will get differing advice on this topic, i would say go what works for you. if you are getting worsening physical symptoms from not eating, or if your labs are not coming back satisfactorily, of course, please speak to a medical professional. otherwise, if you are losing weight, AND suffer little to no angst, then in my non-medical opinion, you're golden.

i'm almost 5 yrs post op, but at the time of my surgery I was 5'2", 46 yrs old and 235 lbs. got to goal (127 lbs) around 7 months post op and somehow managed to stay below goal ever since (weighed 120 lbs this morning) i was one of the lucky/unlucky ones (depends who you ask) that had vice-like restriction the first 9-10 months. it loosened up more and more over the years, but not to the level of "normal" eaters...i still don't seem to eat us much as those around me. I hit my max volume for a sitting at about the equivalent of 1 cup of solid food. more if its salad, less if its dense protein or fluffy bread. you didn't ask, but I'll put this here anyway: i can drink as much liquids at whatever speed, so long as i have no food in my stomach....but once there is food in there, I need to wait AT LEAST 1/2 an hour to digest a bit before I drink, otherwise i'll barf.

Oh yeah, it’s common. I didn’t have an appetite for months. It probably came back before my hunger did but having no appetite or hunger helped me start to look at food differently: as a source of necessary nutrition. That whole eating to live not living to eat thinking became true for me. So even if I wasn’t really hungry or interested I eating I knew I had to eat something that was nutritionally dense. There were times I just ate the protein component of my meal. I also starting to eat to a routine which I continue to follow most of the time 4 years out. If it’s not a meal or snack time I don’t eat. Now, I’ll happily drop a snack if I’m not hungry because my meals are much larger & are more nutritionally balanced than they were when I was losing weight. My enjoyment of food hasn’t changed (still look forward to marks, dining out, eating socially). It’s more that there are foods I value more & enjoy eating more now & others I just don’t want to eat.

Food aversion are quite common so your so not the only one. I love vegetables & couldn't wait to have my first meal with my favourite vegetables. Nope they were awful. I found the only ones I could tolerate were cauliflower, green beans & cabbage. The oddest thing was smoked salmon. Before surgery I rarely had it as I found it too rich. After surgery it was fine & I often had it with cream cheese rolled around wedges of cucumber but a few weeks later it was a nope too rich for me again. So you can never tell what your tummy will or won’t like like fir the first couple of months. It’s a good opportunity to try foods you never enjoyed before. You may develop a real taste for them. Personally I embraced the aversion to sweet and never really introduced it back again. Don’t really miss it either.

Check with your team. Different plans have different requirements regarding fruit & also ask about portion size. Yes, juice is not encouraged - lot of the goodness of the whole fruit is not in the juice & it takes several pieces of fruit to make a cup of juice where you would only eat a single piece of fruit at a time. Vegetables should be okay if the taste doesn’t bother you. Just again check your allowed foods list first.

I'd been eyeing this product since Facebook and Instagram started sending me ads. It's low carb keto ramen with 6g carbs, 21g protein and 890 mg sodium and 18g fiber. I found they sell them individually at Whole Foods (because I am NOT buying a $35 pack knowing there's a huge risk me and my stomach don't like it for some reason). Planning to run out to buy a pack or two tonight just out of curiosity and eat half a pack or maybe a fourth just for a taste (and also because it's 300 calories for an entire pack) But before I do, I'm wondering if anyone has tried Immi ramen and if so how did you like it? Did it have a weird aftertaste like a lot of protein infused products (it all tastes like whey to me)? Since my surgery I've been really weird about textures now and I've seen a couple reviews complaining about texture of the noodles but I want to try this since it has a nice amount of protein and fiber and I have to do a bit of doctoring to shirataki noodles, moreso than what I feel like being bothered with some days lol

pretty common - and take full advantage of this "feature", because for almost all of us, hunger and appetite come roaring back sometime within the first year post-op. I know this may sound strange to you, but...I wish my hunger and appetite had never come back. It came back at five months post op. It was so much easier to lose weight when I was never hungry and didn't give a flip about food. So, I know it sounds weird to say, but enjoy it while it lasts!