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Here is my story. I spent years stuck at 210 (I am 5’2) and thousands of dollars on personal trainers, nutritionists etc. watched and recorded everything I ate to no avail and of coarse the only scale movement would be I ate a cookie and gained two pounds. Meanwhile I began collecting every co morbidity - sleep apnea, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes , sever scaring on my liver. After two seperate per ate unsuccessful medically supervised diets I was advised gastric bypass was my best bet. I lot 10 lbs in the lead up (5 days a week of boot camp and strength training and keto diet). I lost another 20 lbs on the per-op liquid diet. Had surgery on March 29th. Lost 5 lbs in the first two days and have had no movement since. Walking 3 times a day at 30 minutes each. Drinking 70 oz of water and at least 90 g of protein plus all of the supplements. I know there is a three week stall but I am on a 3 day stall (at the time when weight loss is suppose to be the easiest). This was my last hope and I am starting to feel hopeless.

Arabesque, that's the cheapest option offered on Bariatric Pal. I think my best bet might be to send them to a friend in the U.S. and have them send it via the U.S. post office. Since you're in Australia, where do you get your multi-vitamins--and what kind do you use?

My wife is coming up on 18 years out on her DS, but can't offer any real advice on the preop diet as we didn't have one. The best general advice on the shakes is to try several ahead of time (some manufacturers/retailers have sample packs of different varieties that you can get to try). Try both the RTD (ready to drink) and mixes as suits your needs, but there is more variety in the mixes. Generally, 100% whey isolate is preferred to the cheaper whey blends or concentrates as it is better absorbed (and also more expensive...) and is also better tolerated by those who are or develop lactose intolerance as the lactose is filtered out in the processing. But if a blend or concentrate fits your tastes better, one that you will drink is preferred over one that just sits on your shelf. An additional option is unflavored powder (though there is no such thing as one without taste...) and flavor it with one of the sugar free flavor syrups that are available. Also, when just to complicate things further, when/if you hit on one that you like, don't load up on too much of it, as your tastes may change post op (or they may not...) Good luck in getting through this - lots of changes in these next few weeks pre and post op, but things settle out over time.

Hello, all. I have been happily using soft-chew multi-vitamins from Bariatric Pal for the last four years. I live in Australia and shipping has always been expensive but manageable. I just placed an order for more vitamins and three types of protein snacks, and the cheapest shipping option was US$ 225! That is way more than usual--and more than I'm willing to pay. Can anyone recommend a comparable product that is available on Amazon? Thanks!

Im two weeks post op. Started thinking about surgery a few years ago, but actually acted on it in late January if this year. Wrapped up my pre-reqs in a single week and cleared with insurance in one day. After that, had a week of food funerals (fun times eating things I wouldn’t be able to for a while), then started my two week high protein low carb diet. It was tough, not gonna lie. I weaned myself off caffeine during the same two week period and BAM it was suddenly time for surgery. By this point, I’d lost about 6 or 7 lbs. Rolled into surgery at 6am on 3/13, started on time at 8am, only discomfort afterward was nausea from anesthesia. No vomiting; they took great care to relieve the nausea immediately and sent me home with medicine to help. First few days, I felt hungry. Dreamt of food. Realized it was just gas in my tummy causing a “hunger” feeling. The gas went away within a week and so did the faux hunger. I tried to go off pain meds too soon, and that sucked. When they do the surgery, they will go through the abdominal wall with the scopes. I had pretty strong abs (yay…) and the scope caused a bleed that healed very slowly. Caused me some pretty serious discomfort especially without the pain meds. Went back on the meds and rested for several days, all the while working to get all my protein and fluids in. Lost 9lbs the first week and then stalled three days into week two. The stall just broke today, one week after it began. Total of 16lbs lost since the start of the pre-op diet. I’m three days into week 3 and just started soft foods. If I had to choose one hard thing, it would be the emotional response I had post surgery. I realized “omg, I cannot eat those things…” the choice was no longer mine. I was scared at first, almost grieving. And then I felt light because the pressure of making the “right” decision was out of my hands. Yes, I could still make a bad choice… and when I made brownies for my daughter the other day I was tempted, but I don’t want to hurt my body or deal with the backlash from eating so much sugar after barely having any for the last month. I can just imagine the sugar rush and terrible feeling I would get… it would suck. Not to mention, with VSG (my procedure), the first six months are critical. You’ll lose the most weight if you can just get through with as much discipline as possible. I’m thankful for my family and therapist; they’ve all helped me find my way in the dark. I’m so glad I did this. Even as I just ate my first egg in weeks, I still wouldn’t change a thing. It’s like experiencing food again for the first time but with a coach in my body helping out 👌😊 Good luck to you with whatever you choose!

We had surgery on the same day!! My weight loss has been less than I hoped for the first week but getting my liquids, protein and walks in. I am not having any issues holding down liquids (and while I am not pushing it - I feel like I would not have issues handling more liquids)

Hi everybody. Just had VGS surgery last Monday (Happy Spring). Started my initial bariatric journey at 241 and when I got to the hospital i was 229. Down 14 pounds this morning and seeing my surgeon tomorrow for the post-op appointment. I've been able to tolerate all clear and thicker liquids thus far and looking forward to purees next week. Right now it seems I can only hold 4 to 4.5 oz at a time but water and clear protein supplements I'm able to drink 32 oz. in 3.5 hours. Is that ok? Will I not be able to hold 4 oz of pureed foods?

I started my journey in January 2022, between all the appointments and getting approved for insurance my surgery date was August 2, 2022. The 2-week liquid diet wasn't too difficult up until day 10 ish I started to get a little over it, especially on the day of my birthday. I drank a lot of protein shakes (fair-life chocolate is still my favorite to this day) and ate a lot of applesauce, berries, sugar-free pudding, and Panera soup broth along with V8 & grilled veggie kabobs. I lost about 13 lbs on the liquid diet but aside from weight loss, the main goal is to shrink your liver. Day of Surgery I was scheduled to be there at 7 am and surgery at 9 am. I didn't go back till about 2 pm. My hospital stay wasn't bad at all. I actually was able to get around just fine with very little pain the entire stay. Getting in liquids was quite difficult but when you have nothing else to do watching the clock and drinking your liquids wasn't really that bad in the grand scheme of things. I only stayed one night and was discharged by 11 am the next day. First week home I was completely drained, and starving. Especially those first couple of days. I basically stuck to everything I had on my liquid diet aside from the berries and veggies. I got around just fine with very little help from my daughter. I was down about another 10 lbs in the first 2 weeks. 3 months out I was "only" 30lbs down from my surgery weight. I was really disappointed at the time but now looking back Averaging 10 lbs a month is pretty healthy. By that time I was eating pretty normally in the sense I wasn't as restricted. Exercising regularly. Had taken a week's trip to Disney World and had my energy back. On the downside, I got sick often. Meat of any kind never sat well with me or anything tomato based. I would end up purging often. I also had a lot of issues with constipation. I became slightly reliant on ducolax (would take every other day to avoid being bound up). I was very reliant on protein shakes, water, and v8. I remember thinking at one point if I knew it would be that bad Idk if I would have gone through with the surgery because I was so miserable (but so glad I did). 6 months out I was 45.9 lbs down from my surgery weight. I was low on iron and high on copper (pretty abnormal about the copper and they think there was a possibility that was inaccurate). I was completely drained and was blaming it on the cold and the weather, not really thinking my Iron was a possibility for how I was feeling. I didn't talk to my doctors about it sooner and I wish I would have. I was still sick often. Meat of any kind still not sitting well with me or anything tomato based. The doctors were kind of unhelpful and just kept encouraging me to keep trying, which was kind of frustrating because I felt like I wasn't being heard for the first time. My issues with constipation weren't as often and was only taking ducolax about 1 or twice a week compared to the months before. I became a lot less reliant on liquids. 8 months out I'm 55lbs down from my surgery weight. 83 lbs down from my highest. I work out 5 times a week and my eating has been dang near spot on, with a few occasional indulgences. If I feel drained I know it's because I missed a few nights in a row of my iron. I can eat pretty normal without the sick feeling but it still happens every once in a while. Constipation is super rare I feel like I hit a lot more stalls than probably most. Eating and physical activity def. go hand in hand and It can be really frustrating. Consistency is your best friend. Between logging your meals, protein & water intake & some sort of physical activity you'll get where you want. I don't think you will ever be fully prepared for what's ahead of you after surgery. I did the research for months to prepare myself and feel like it still wasn't enough. I feel so much more confident now, Clothes fit great. No worries about fitting into booths at restaurants or seats on roller coasters or seat belts on airplanes. I love to put on clothes that once couldn't fit and now are way too big on me. It helps me remember how far I've come even if the scale is disappointing. The biggest compliment I love to get these days isn't how great I look, but how happy I look. I get being nervous, we were all in the same storm as you just different boats. But rolling into that surgery room was the best decision I could have made. I feel like I got my life back.

Hi Nancy! I’ve been drinking the OWYN brand shakes with 30g protein. Also, Miso broth with silken tofu, 9g of protein. Zero Powerades and watermelon mint tea for some sweet flavors. Bottles waters & my Barimelts 3X aday. I’m currently on day 10 of the preop diet and 15lbs down so far.

I’m just over 4 weeks post op. I’m not tracking either, but I’ve started getting into a rhythm. protein shake for breakfast cheese for snack lunch (varies - today was some corned beef hash) protein shake for afternoon snack dinner (today was like 1/2 a taco) and I might have a protein-y snack like these protein cookies by hold da sugar. my main goal is to get over 60 g of protein and a similar amount in oz of water. I can’t eat very much at a time but I am getting hungry frequently so I’m trying to listen to my body about that.

I cant believe that tomorrow I will be 5 weeks post op. Half the time when I eat a meal, when I'm half way through it, my stomach is like "I don't like thos anymore". I havent started tracking yet. To me it seems hard because If I don't eat all of it, how do I know what the calories are or the protein? I'm still not getting enough protein. Or fluid still. What is everyone doing at this point of their post op? I see the dietician April 5th. I'm hoping she can give me some meal options. I want to start meal prepping. What is everyone's favorite meals at the soft solid stage? Anybody experience foods that they used to like, no longer like now? There's a lot I don't like now.

I had surgery on 3/23. All went well and I have had minimal pain unless I sneeze. The only real pain is from the big incision where they took my stomach out. It's been surprisingly easy to drink and eat. I was on clear liquids (phase 1) the next day (Friday) after my swallow test showed no leaks, but was on full liquids (phase 2) on Saturday so right now I'm existing on protein shakes, yogurt, pudding with protein powder, jello, popsickles and flavored water. Gotta stay on full liquids for 2 weeks, then 2.5 months of pureed/soft food (phase 3). I'll be able to eat real food for the first time on 6/24/23, the day I get married.

Thanks. All I see are protein powders. Would you mind sharing a link to the product you recommend?

Thanks! Which exact product? Is that the protein powder or something else?

Just had my first post-op dietician appointment. HELLO PUREE FOODS! OMG apple sauce and sugar free fat free pudding with plant milk and protein powder was AWESOME! TOTALLY AWESOME!

I start on Sunday My surgeon allows one meal a day of lean protein and veggies during this phase (until two days before) and I am VERY THANKFUL for this. Best of luck! Youve got this!

Hello All, A brief on my endoscopy sleeve gastroplasty journey. I had my ESG in REGO PARK by Dr.Batash. Dr. Batash is very charming and a great provider. When I first met him for my consult I was concerned about ulcer erosions I've had from previous stomach ulcers, as well as IBS and GERD. He was very informative and open to many questions. The ESG procedure is not covered by insurance, but Dr.Batash is not selling it to you. Which I truly appreciated. My procedure was 2 weeks ago. My biggest struggle is the after-procedure diet. Week 1 - Liquids, Week 2 Purees. I am a picky picky girl.. week 1 was ok, being that I was healing and my appetite was off a bit. I did have Gatorade Zero, Lipton Broth, Jello, and Water. The water felt harsh... so a friend said, to drink alkaline water. I'm on week 2, purees ... what a headache. I can't fathom blending chicken and sweet potatoes, or greens at that. I bought baby food, which 4 OZ was filling. I'll stick to my broth until I can actually chew something, and protein shake provided by the office as well. I did meet with the Wellness Coach provided for 1 year or is part of the package. Lots of info on portion size and what to eat. Only wish they could email me the conversation as opposed to me writing it down. I've tried to walk the 30 minutes daily. So if you have any tips on how to make this smoothy or want information from me... Just let me know.

It’s a brand called YoPro. I’m in Australia & don’t know if you have it. Annoyingly they don’t produce their yoghurt drink anymore. I like it better than Chobani which I found too sweet & was only 15g protein. But others have mentioned 20g protein yoghurts available in the US I just can’t recall the brands.

What was the yogurt brand you found you liked? I'm using chobani zero sugar. The protein part is the hardest but I'm hoping moving to purees I can get the smoothies and shakes in but made at home. As far as antacid it wasn't painful or anything just noticed uncontrollable hunger. I just worry I overdid it is all but if I did I bet I'd be in pain. So no discomfort so 🤷

Just go slowly. Better to eat a yoghurt over an hour or so than be too low with your protein. I often took an hour to eat (I still often take 30-45+ mins to eat a meal or snack including yoghurt). It’s so thin it does go through your quite tummy quickly (not as fast as a liquid if course). You could always eat it slowly over a whole day (like grazing) if that feels more comfortable than eating that volume in one go.

I gave up the disgusting shakes once I was on purées. Found a high protein yoghurt (20g) & yoghurt drink (25-30g - you can make your own drink by blending yoghurt & milk). So much more tolerable to eat/drink. Still eat the yoghurt a couple of times a week if I’m a bit low on protein. Oh yeah, forget your PPI/antacid & you know it.

If you can finish, you absolutely should for the nutrition. Hit that protein goal! You're eating so few calories it doesn't matter! That's my opinion anyway! I'm almost 6 weeks out from bypass.

I’m 2 weeks post op today and smack in the middle of the purées stage. Trying to get my protein is a struggle without shakes, but working on it. Tried an Oikos Triple Zero smooth yogurt today. They are 5.2oz. Is that too much at this stage? I ate about 4oz in 30 mins, feel fine. Do any of you finish the 5oz?

I'm still on full liquids, but I've been told to measure by volume. To figure protein, calories and carbs though, I'll have to weigh most foods. As time goes on, I'll adjust with the advice of my team.

Like Arabesque I was given volume to start. I got the little toddler totes by OXO in 2oz and 4oz sizes and cut up my meat as small as possible. At about 4months I was getting hungry and my dietitian said to weigh the food 4oz protein, which if I really cram chicken in there it works fine in the 4oz volume container. I prep most of my lunches in them. In the beginning I could only use the 2oz container. I started using them because I met a 25 year RNY person who kept the weight off the whole time and she used little kid Tupperware. I was soooo impressed I swore I would meal prep like her!