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So, I was sleeved on august 13th 2012... I lost 20 lbs pre op, and 14lbs the first week post op. I have stuck to this new way of eating. I've completely changed my eating habits. I have yet to get in my full amount of water, or protein, but I think if I focused more on that, I may be able to.. It doesn't really cross my mind much that I am thirsty, or need to drink, drink, drink lol. I still get that hungry feeling, but there are times when it takes me hours to feel it. There are other times where I feel hungry an hour or two after eating. I am on soft/regular foods, and have been eating things like chicken, cottage cheese, scrambled egg substitute, lowfat string cheese, Greek yogurt, etc. after my first week, I hit a stall.. which I've read is normal bc you're body is adjusting. This lasted 2-3 weeks, until the other day when I noticed I was down another 2-3 lbs, and then another .5-1lb. I can take more than a "SIP" of water, I have had a popsicle with sugar, (I use sugar substitute now) nothing I've ate has made me sick, or throw up. I have not had ANY problems... is this normal? I know everyone's experience is different, and although I was a little worried if I was actually sleeved... I know I have to be bc I eat much less, I have lost weight (first week) I'm just wondering if im doing something wrong? has anyone else had an experience like this? any tips? :/

Staples: smoked salmon, shrimp, crab, salmon, sashimi, chicken thighs, chili, salad, cheese, eggs, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, zuchini, yellow squash, greek yogurt, kefir yogurt drink, vegie burgers, corn tortillas, tamales, gluten-free crackers, gluten-free Pasta Problem Foods: any type of bread or bun, flour tortillas, wheat pasta (pretty much anything made w/wheat), corn on the cob, chicken breast, red meat, any meat/chicken/fish that is overcooked, dry, or chewy, sausage (the casing sometimes is too chewy and gets stuck)

The only thing I can't eat even to this day (a year later) is brocolli... It gives me severe gastric distress (think contractions,labor pains..ya that's it).. Didnt have the slightest issue before surgery..very odd... basics for me are: Tuna, Cottage Cheese, Pinto beans,Guacamole, Sour Cream (pair the last 3 and yum-o!) yogurt, steak, chicken, hamburger, I shy away from bread and pasta only because it fills me up too soon and cant eat the good stuff, so i basically eat a Atkins type diet...So far so good!!! Good luck Ya'll

I am on my 6th day pre-op and was wondering how you guys know when you're hungry. For the first few days I didn't feel anything at all, so sipping was automatic. Yesterday I had some yogurt in the evening and that was okay. But this morning I felt this horrible feeling that felt like it was coming from the base of my stomach, like a twisting, knotting, want to throw up feeling. It was quasi-painful and made me double over. Is this how I'm going to know I'm hungry from now on? I'm assuming it's hunger because there is nothing else wrong with me and the feeling is going away as I eat my egg. Just curious on the thoughts of others. Thanks.

I'm 3 1/2 months post-op. Breakfast: 8 oz. unsweetened vanilla almond milk with 1 scoop Isopure Dutch chocolate. Mid-morning: 5 oz. Greek yogurt with 2 oz. berries. If I'm busy, I skip this and have a cup of coffee with 2% milk. Lunch: 2 - 3 oz. of left-over dinner. Dinner: 2 - 3 oz. Protein with a bit of veg. Dessert: 1 Atkins bar.

Tuba or salmon patties. I buy them Pre made in a pouch like regular tuna. High protein and low cal. That plus some salad or veggies keeps mr full about 5 hrs. And I have gone back to homemade protein smoothies in the morning. Fresh fruit. Ice. Greek yogurt. Lots of person and my fiber too since I add benefiber powder. I I get hungry and need a snack a handful of almonds or a 90cal fiber one bar tides me over.

Hi Sassy. Welcome to LBT. I've seen a few people say their surgeons keep them on liquids for up to four weeks post-op. I was on mushies starting at two weeks, but I think I could have managed with full liquids if I was allowed to use some of the great Protein shake recipes I've seen on this site. Are you allowed to add bananas, Greek yogurt and various other fruits to your shakes (if you're even drinking them)? There are some recipes that sound pretty filling. Also, I would rely heavily on blended black bean Soup (if you're allowed the consistency that can pass through a straw). I also read a Salsa pumpkin Soup recipe that sounded like it could be whipped up to whatever consistency you're allowed to have by adding more broth. I believe it contained corn, which I would leave out at your stage of healing. There's a whole nutrition and recipe forum here on LBT that might give you some ideas. Good luck, and hang in there!!

It has been 17 weeks since my sleeve surgery, and I still can only eat mash pototoes and yogurt comfortably. It is a so uncomfortable trying to eat many types of foods, because everything feels like it is sticking at the bottom of my esophagus and not making it to my stomach. It leaves me with a gaging feeling in my throat. I am hungry every hour, because of this feeling I don't eat enough the first time. I am always walking around to make my food digest. Has anyone else ever experienced this problem before?

I just ordered a sample pack of hot chocolate Proteins at mybariatricpantry.com Haven't gotten them yet so I can't say how they are, but if you have trouble with cold drinks, that's an option. There's also Unjury's chicken Soup Protein. Greek yogurt has a ton of protein, so you could try adding that in as a supplement. good luck to you!

I need to post new pics, though I guess I haven't because the weight loss has been pretty slow. I didn't lose anything for awhile and one week I gained back the weight I had lost the week before, but now I'm at 237 which I'm still pretty happy about because at least it's going in the right direction. I know I could be doing better. I've been eating small portions, but "regular" food instead of "diet" food. I just got really sick of yogurt and cottage cheese. Plus I think I was too tight for awhile and that made me eat whatever I could get down. I did have an "epidsode" today though. I've been able to eat pretty well, small portions but most foods. I've eaten steak several times but only a little bit. Well today, I was out of town for the day with my boyfriend and we didn't get a chance to eat so I was super super hungry by 6pm. I met up with my friends who don't know about my WLS and ordered a ribeye. I ate it way too fast and had to throw up. The worst part was that I thought I was going to throw up right at the table. I ran to the bathroom, but it was really crowded and no one likes hearing someone puke in a restaurant, so I went outside. It was really crowded out there too with people walking around, parking, etc. I just kept hoping it would go down, but no dice. I finally puked by my car. I still felt like I needed to puke more so I paid my tab and told my friends I got suddenly sick. They were really concerned and worried. Then I had to puke again by my car. I got home, barely, and puked a little more and then laid down and was okay. Stupid of me to eat steak fast. I was actually considering getting another fill on the 11th but now I know I should not. I just need to be patient and eat healthier. I'm just impatient because it's not falling off the way it was at first. However, I know that the slow weight loss is better for the skin situation. Other than that, things are going well. I have a couple of days off work so I'm enjoying them. I'll get the official weight loss at the doctor's appointment on Aug. 11th. I'm going to keep hitting the gym and crack down on the food choices until then and hope for a good weight loss.

My nutritionist said no Slimfast, Atkins, Boost, Ensure or Carnation Breakfast. One of the presurgery requirements for my surgeon's patients is to try at least two different Protein shakes before surgery to find out what you like. I have tried the EAS 100% whey Protein (chocolate flavor), shaken w/ ff milk. Tastes just like chocolate milk to me. I have tried the ON 100% Whey Protein (vanilla ice cream flavor). I have mixed it with ff ice cream and milk in a blender -- tastes just like a vanilla milkshake. And I have also tried the Designer Whey 100% Whey, strawberry Flavor. I mixed that in a blender w/ mixed berry ff, sf yogurt, some frozen berries and a little ff milk. It was very yummy and kept me full for several hours. The nutrtionist in my surgeons practice gave us this rule for selecting protein drinks: There should be no more than 10 calories for every gram of protein.

I am SO jealous! I wonder why every doctor is different, interesting. In any event, I am following my Dr's diet to the T. For weeks 1-2 liquid-soft pureed foods only. Weeks 2-4 soft foods/mushies, 5 weeks regular food. Problem is, I am HUNGRY! I've had a yogurt couple bites of popsicles, and a few bites of mashed potatoes, but am still hungry. I've been drinking my protein shakes almost constantly to get my 60grams of protein. I will look forward to the day when I can eat a piece of turkey and put away the shakes!:thumbup:

I take a laundry list of medicine each day so it was hard for me to accept that I would have to now crush all of my pills and take them every day. I tried this for a week or so after surgery but I had so many pills to take and some of them were capsules that just contained too much powder. I tried mixing them with pudding/applesauce/yogurt etc but I could still taste the extremely bad taste of the pills. Luckily a few of my meds are available in liquid form and I would suggest anyone to ask their pharmacy any of their meds are available in liquid form, I was surprised with which ones were available. So the question is now I have been taking mostly the liquid meds but the few smaller pills I have simply been taking. They are pretty small and I think they are probably fine but anyone else do this? Are they not going to get fully absorbed or something?

Good to hear! If you need the Peanut Butter taste, maybe PB2 will hold you over. I love it and added it a couple of days ago and my new tummy loves it and tolerates it well. It's powdered peanut butter, I know it sounds gross, but it really is amazing. Think of 'dehydrated' peanut butter and it comes in a couple of different flavors. It costs around 4 dollars a jar. I add it to Protein shakes, greek yogurt, etc.

grits, yogurt, sugar free pudding, sugar free popsicles, puree vegetable beef or chicken noodle soup in your blender. You can puree pretty much anything, like spud mama says -- it may not always look good, but it tastes the same.

2 weeks post ops and my team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

I'm 3 months out and have just started tolerating solids. I still get almost all my nutrition from yogurt and protein water. Try the protein water, it is easier than shakes, imho. Do check with your doctor. Mine wasn't worried at 6 weeks, but he did send me for additional testing at 11 weeks. But as @Pearldrop says, we're all different and some of us heal more slowly. And I agree with @shelly420, this is a great opportunity for weight loss if your protein intake improves. Hope all goes well.

Hi, I've not become intolerant to anything I wasn't already intolerant to. I did take it easy in the first weeks though. Yogurt is recommend because people tend to have less reaction to fermented products. FYI Greek yogurt has double the protein of standard yogurt (9g v 4.5g/100g). In your early days just yogurt or yogurt drink will be easier on you, as Greek yogurt is pretty heavy. Have you tried lactose free milk? I don't recall hearing of anyone becoming intolerant to eggs, so you should be OK with them Don't worry about protein too much at the beginning, just concentrate on getting your fluids. All the best for your op!

My favorite yogurt place has sugar free yogurt. That's on my plans for mothers day!

I have been eating Chobani greek yogurt for the last week since I read about it in a post. A 6 oz container has 14 grs of protein and it tastes good. HOWEVER....tonight I tried Pomegranate flavor, tasted good, but it has actual pomegranate seeds in it!!! I didn't realize it until I swallowed and felt them going down. Not sure if they would have gotten stuck because they are not that large but when you're not expecting them you never know ! lol.

We were told to put capsule contents in applesauce, but I also sprinkle the beads in a teaspoon of yogurt.

Most adults are lactose intollerant anyway we just don't realize it. Skin problems, gas, runny nose we dont' associate. Not many of us 30 year olds were meant to be still nursing (much less nursing from a cow) by design. Goat's milk is MUCH easier to tollerate as it is very close to human milk. If you can tollerate goat's milk you can tollerate goat's cheese and usually yogurt is easy on the body. Check out Coconut milk also for fluids. Beans are an excellent source of protien and you may consider adding either foul or fish into your diet. I was a veg head for years in my teens but added back in f&f because I was lacking in protien. You can also put some Peanut Butter in shakes or peanut flour. Where there's a will, there's a way.

It sounds like you're feeling better, but I also wanted to let you know that split pea Soup (cambells even) has a lot of Protein and is pretty low cal. I ate it alot post op. I eat the greek yogurt post fill now, also, if you're concerned about the thickness, add some milk and blend it together. Only a day and a half and just think of the boost in weight loss!!!

I had my surgery on 7/1, I am eating about 1/2 -3/4 of food a day. Plus getting between 60 and 80 grams of Protein per day. Here is what I usually eat. 1 greek yogurt/ 1/2 cream of cream of wheat 1 glass of V8 lunch egg drop Soup dinner 3oz of grilled grouper (mushy) 1 tomato slice (no skin just the center ( chewed until mushy consistency) pinch of feta cheese Last night I was starving so I had about 1/2 c of refried Beans with a pinch of cheese, 1 t of guacamole. My calories range between 600-800 per day. There is a list of mushy foods that really helped me at the grocery store. What I am worried about am I eating too much.. I feel no restriction at all, I am finally feeling what a lot of people on here are feeling. I eat when I am satisfied and not to full. I was so worried about everything and my doctor told me " stop worrying and live you life" So that is what I have been doing. I have stopped the Protein drinks (I know a bad idea, but I am still getting the protein I need daily.) My question is do you think I should be doing anything different? Or is there any suggestions? I still have had no bread, Pasta, crackers anything crunchy, no sweets, and no potatoes. Like I am not a schedule person. So like it is 5pm and I have eaten cream of wheat and a cheese stick. Of course Water. I have been only been eating when hungry. Thanks in advance!!

I've been constipated for 2 years! Drink lots of water, and try adding Benefibre (or any other such product) to your protien shakes. Also, believe it or not, bran cereal works wonders. I hate bran, so I sprinkle it on top of frozen yogurt.