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Hello everyone!my name is Tracey my surgery date is the 25th of this month....I am way to excited but nervous as well!i was wondering If anyone could give me some advice as to what I should have stocked up in my cabinets for when I come home...i read everything doctors gave me and I should be ok but I'm just nervous..this might seem like a stupid question but I feel like im forgetting things or that I'm not as prepared as I could be!maybe just some tips or something?!thanks a bunch!

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I was much like you, wanting to be prepared for coming home from the surgery. Unfortunately, I stocked up with a full stomach and still have SF Jello, broths, and other things in my cabinet from 4-5 months ago. It's good to have a few things on hand (Angie's list is good), but you'll be able to get up and out in the first week. So if you need anything, you can go to the store. Or have a friend or family member go for you.

It's common that taste buds can change a little after surgery, especially in the first week. So whatever you buy, buy in small quantities.

  • chicken, beef, and/or veggie broth. I like the Trader Joes stuff in the "box" so you can pour what you need and refrigerate the rest. Don't worry too much about low-sodium since you won't be getting much from the liquid diet, the regular version can actually help with low electrolytes.
  • Ready-made Protein shakes and/or powders. Now is a good time to see what you like, but again - go in small qty's as some people find they like one shake pre-op and then don't like it post-op. Some brands like unjury and Syntrax nectar make sample packs to try different flavors. I highly recommend the Unjury chicken Soup, you can make with broth. I have some now from Healthwise that are Tomato and beef, got them from my doctor's office e-store.
  • SF popsicles
  • Chewable or liquid Vitamins and Calcium, perhaps a sublingual B12 - careful of gummies and the "sweeter" chewables for hidden carbohydrates!
  • Measuring cup for liquids

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Popsicles!!! Sugare free but they have some tropical flavors that are pretty good! chicken broth and I found that I liked the special K pink lemonade and it has Protein in it!

Good luck!!!!

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Isopure clear drinks. You can find them at Vitamin Shoppe and GNC. They have 40 grams of Protein per bottle. I would also suggest protein bullets. You can find these at the same places as Isopure. In the beginning it is so important to get protein in, and the bullets and Isopure can be a good place to start. The little bullets are about 2 or 3 ounces and have between 30-40 grams of protein.

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Congratulations on your surgery date! This is a very exciting time for you and we are all here to support you in your success! I agree with the list of foods above and would also add sugar free popcicles and werthers caramel candy. As for Protein Shakes, I really like Premier Protein chocolate - it sort of tastes like chocolate milk. During your soft/pureed foods stage, I recommend getting some food from www.blossomfoods.com. They make 5 oz containers of frozen pureed foods that have a good amount of Protein and only 150 - 180 calories. They are the perfect size for your smaller stomach. Even though I can eat anything I want, I still eat the shakes and blossom foods because they are easy and convenient. Later as you graduate to solid foods, Zone Perfect makes a pretty good Protein Bar in strawberry. I write a lot about my journey and emotions in my blog so please feel free to stop by and read it. You will realize that the feelings you are having are normal and we all go through them. In a nutshell here is what happens:

  1. You are excited about the surgery
  2. You are scared and worried
  3. You think you shouldn't have the surgery because you know you can lose all this weight all by yourself even though you haven't done it yet
  4. A day or two before surgery you are anxious and worried about complications and things going wrong
  5. After surgery you are in pain and can't eat much at all and you wonder if you made the wrong decision
  6. You discover that the pain from the surgery is nothing compared to the gas pain (who knew?)
  7. The pain gets better each day and you feel better than the day before each day.
  8. A month after surgery you have lost some weight and are excited about your new life
  9. Then the stall hits and lasts a while and you wonder if you will ever lose another pound
  10. Once you get over your stall you are relieved

Sorry to ramble on but I know that the one thing that got me through the surgery was knowing what to expect and knowing how I was going to feel before I felt it

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      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
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