How hard was it to get to get used to sip, sip, sip rather than gulp, gulp, gulp after surgery? Also how much of a struggle was it to get used to not drinking before and after meals?

I have not quite 3 weeks and as I plan to practice still finding myself not doing it regularly.

The sip sip sip was pretty easy to learn after surgery, because my sleeve forced me to comply. It was the only way I could drink.

The not drinking until 30 minutes after you eat was way more difficult for me. I look at the clock (literally) when I finish eating, so I know when I can start drinking fluids again. I don't mind not drinking while I eat (I never really did that before surgery), but would drink right after I ate.

It wasnt as hard as I thought it would be. I just kept reminding myself. After surgery I didnt want to put anything in my mouth, I wasnt hungry or thirsty. But I just kept reminding myself to sip, sip, sip and I did it. I used the timer on my phone to teach myself 30 mins before eating stop drinking and 30 minutes after eating. It took some relearning, some times I was counting down the minutes so i could sip something but usually I would get busy doing something and before I knew it was time to drink. Smart phones sure are handy things and always with me:) Hope that helps...

Right after surgery you're only going to be able to sip so you won't really miss gulping. I'm 6 weeks post op and although I can't drink the same AMOUNT I used to drink, I'm pretty much able to drink how I did before. Say before I would have taken 6 swallows on one breath I can now take 3. It's an improvement.

Not drinking with meals has been harder. The one time I decided to ignore that rule I got a case of the slimes.. Haven't done it since.

You will get used to the sipping in the beginning but as you progess you will be able to take more Fluid than just a sip. You will never be able to down a big glass of Water but it does get better. As for eating and drinking it defeats the purpose. The water makes the food that you are eating go through your sleeve much faster thus emptying your sleeve which can lead to hunger in some patients. I for one do not even take any fluid out when I am eating as it is a hard habit to break as you have done this for years in your life. I try to eat foods that are moist so that I do not feel the need to have something to drink to wash it down.

Hope this helps.

It wasn't hard switching to sip, sip, sip, but I will take l sip during a meal and then leave it. It hasn't been that hard yet. I am 3.5 months post op.

My doctor actually doesn't allow me to drink for 15 min before and 30 min after meals. That's been a very difficult change for me (in fact, I've forgotten a few times), after a lifetime of being told to load up on water at meals so that I'll eat less.

I am really going to miss gulping..hehe. I can kill a whole bottled water or Gatorade without taking a breath. My husband thinks it is hilarious. I usually do it at night when I take my ship load of meds though. When you have to swallow 15-20 pills, it seems like it takes that much to wash it all down good.

On the other hand, drinking while eating is not going to be a big problem for me. For some reason, mixing liquid with my food makes me throw up. I drink nothing or very little when I am eating. I usually just have something for those times when I get a little strangled swallowing; you know, to wash it on down.

Everyone a little different, I was drinking pretty good after getting out of hospital, more than sipping. This is not like bypass surgery, you still have a stomach the size of a medium to large banana. Just don't drink more than 30 minutes before eating, so you can eat, during meals so you don't fill up on liquids, and not to soon after to prevent washing the food through the system before minerals and vitamins absorbed since you are taking in so little after surgery and for next 4 to 6 weeks.

I was one of those that drank 2-3 glassfuls of water during a meal. Basically a "bite, bite, drink, bite bite, drink" kind of person. After surgery, learning to not do that has been a challenge. When I'm eating with someone, and I see them casually drinking tons of liquid during the meal, I sometimes miss it. I'm a lot better now. I occasionally take a sip if something is really spicy or feels stuck. Now, I just watch the clock for 30 minutes after I'm done eating so I can finally take a drink!