Im currently 6 days post op and I can eat normal food already! Is there anyone else out there the same? Today, for example, I had toast for breakfast, soup for lunch and a baked potato for tea! I know I could risk my band slipping but I feel as if I don't eat myself to a 'full' state this should be ok.? I am not scheduled for my first until 13 September.

I am scheduled for surgery for Sept, but in my handy dandy patient manual, I am not allowed to even try to eat normally for 31 days........liquids, then food that is liquid at room temp, week on mushies, then very soft. What were your dr's instructions??

My instructions were the same but my appetite has returned with a vengeance! Of course now that I have eaten a little 'normal food' it's the only thing that will satisfy me. I guess it also doesnt help that I feel zero pain from surgery last week. In fact half the time I forget I've actually had surgery! Are you nervous about surgery? The wait between deciding to have a band and actually getting it seemed so long!

I don't think I would be willing to risk not following the instructions based on the fact that I am doing this to save my life. I am also paying out of my pocket for this, so I have to be serious otherwise I am throwing $16K out the window. If it were not for my crazy work schedule, I could have done this last month, but the timing wasn't right. I am good with my Sept date. I am more nervous about the 2 week optifast than anything, but i have to do what I have to do.

if u eatnormal foods band can slip follow the rules

I wish Dr's would educate their patients more on the WHY of the liquid diet instead of letting patient's think "well, if I can eat it, I should." It is not for torture, We all could have eaten after surgery!

The point of the liquid diet is to stop your stomach from churning, which it does if it gets any soft/mushy/solid foods. The band is sutured to the stomach, and by eating and allowing the stomach to churn, you risk popping one or more of the sutures holding the band in place until the proper scar tissue can form.

This can lead to issues down the road, such as slips, because the band was not allowed the necessary time to get properly settled on the stomach.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the post so far. I don't want anyone to think that I'm being deliberately careless with my band. I chose to have it for many health reasons. It does seem that I haven't been very well educated on nutrition etc regarding all this. I was not even aware I even had sutures inside. All I was told was to have liquids for one week then mushy for the second then back to normal food after that until my first fill. Can some of you list some of the drinks/foods that are ok at this stage?

How do you all manage the hunger?

Thanks in advance

P.Sin no way did I intend to insult anyone by my uneducated state!!! X

From what my surgeon has given me ( and everyone is different) post surgery

Day 1 - Clear Liquids only

Days 2-13 - full liquids - they should all pour out of a spoon at room temp (pudding, milk, low fat cream Soups, yogurt - no chunks), fudgesicles, smoothies - all low fat/sugar free

Days 14-21 - above plus pureed and soft, blenderized food. consistancy of baby food

Days 21-30 above, plus soft/moist diet, bananas, applesauce, canned fruit, ground meats, well cooked veggies, crackers, cooked Cereal, sugar free/low fat,

This is just brief and an outline from my surgeon keeping in mind that at most stages need to get in 79 g of Protein and recommended Water intake..........I have a mandatory nutritional councelling session prior to surgery, should find out more.

I get my band on Thursday. Thanks for listing all the helpful suggestions. I am really nervous about screwing this up. I have had the education and the paperwork at this point is overwhelming, I am shuffling through them to try to find all the right answers to all of the questions in my mind. I have been on a 4-1 protien meal replacement for the last 8 days...2 more to go and on the clear/full liquid diet...The above recommendations are correct from my surgeon as well...any good web sites or reciepes for pureed foods? Or smoothies? Simple easy? And who is taking calcium afterwards any suggestions on which to buy for supplements??

I get my band on Thursday. Thanks for listing all the helpful suggestions. I am really nervous about screwing this up. I have had the education and the paperwork at this point is overwhelming, I am shuffling through them to try to find all the right answers to all of the questions in my mind. I have been on a 4-1 protien meal replacement for the last 8 days...2 more to go and on the clear/full liquid diet...The above recommendations are correct from my surgeon as well...any good web sites or reciepes for pureed foods? Or smoothies? Simple easy? And who is taking calcium afterwards any suggestions on which to buy for supplements??

I was told that Centrum Chewables were okay for multi-vitamins. I also take Biotin and Vit D/Iron for my low levels. I did try to OPurity band specific multi the first three months after surgery, but it was just too sweet. When I ran out, I got the Centrum. I think I will try another band specific multi next.

For the other food stages after liquids, I kind of stuck with soups. I did not like the idea of pureeing meats, so I also drank my Protein shakes. On mushy stage, I had meat salads- chicken, egg, tuna, as well as anything that was not too hard- cottage cheese, etc.

I would recommend a Ninja Pulse as a kitchen appliance- it can do so many things and also comes with a few smoothie travel cups.

Follow your surgeon's instructions. Eating regular food now can cause complications. Feeling hungry now is uncomfortable but it's not going to kill you. I promise, you will survive it. Also, you're going to have to revise your idea of what "full" feels like, because you should never again eat until you feel your pre-op idea of "full".

Once you're allowed to eat regular food, you should eat only until your physical hunger goes away. Not one mouthful more.