I am having my surgery Aug 2nd and I'm not worried about anything but the no drinking 30 mins before a meal, with a meal, and 30 mins after a meal. I'm one who really needs some thing to wash my food down with and I'm afraid I won't be able to eat with out some thing to drink. Does any one else have this problem and anyone who might take a sip of even just water with there food and if so are you hungry quicker? Please help.

I worry about the same thing. I like to drink with a meal too!

Practice before hand. It's not easy. My Dietician has me stopping drinking 15/20 minutes before eating and then not drinking again 1 hour after. I swish my mouth and spit if I need moisture while eating but my biggest advice is start this process earlier rather than after your surgery. :-)

The reason we're not supposed to drink before eating is to actually leave room in our tiny stomach's for the little bit of food we get to eat. The main reason for not drinkingwhile eating is to prevent from washing the food through the stomach and intestines too quickly and not allowing our bodies to absorb the needed nutrients.

Having said that i do have to admit that I do take a sip of Water every now and then while I'm eating. I cant help it. And I figure a few small sips shouldn't really hurt. It's not like I'm downing a whole glass of something and flushing the food through.

I like to drink with a meal also. However, it is immediately after that I drink the most. B/C I eat so fast that drinking during the meal isn't really happening anyway.

I am having my surgery Aug 2nd and I'm not worried about anything but the no drinking 30 mins before a meal' date=' with a meal, and 30 mins after a meal. I'm one who really needs some thing to wash my food down with and I'm afraid I won't be able to eat with out some thing to drink. Does any one else have this problem and anyone who might take a sip of even just Water with there food and if so are you hungry quicker? Please help.[/quote']

I feel the same way. This is definitely going to be a huge challenge for me.

I find that this is one of my biggest challenges. Especially with timing the Vitamins (usually the trusty Protein shake, which I can choke down once again, is the answer) Sometimes I will take a teeny tiny sip if I feel I absolutely have to - but I have gotten in the habit of leaving my drink bottle in the other room because it is second nature to want to reach for it.

I eat Soup a lot so I can still drink - I wonder if that is cheating lol.

Practice before hand. It's not easy. My Dietician has me stopping drinking 15/20 minutes before eating and then not drinking again 1 hour after. I swish my mouth and spit if I need moisture while eating but my biggest advice is start this process earlier rather than after your surgery. :-)

I second this, practice before hand. While your on liquids it won't really matter, since everything will be liquids. Once you start purées, it's best to follow the no drinking 15 minutes before/1hour after rule. I didn't practice before hand and while it's been an adjustment, it's not been impossible to follow. Just make sure to stay pretty hydrated during your drinking times.

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It does take some adjusting.... ok a lot of adjusting. I am one who always drank a lot with my meals but I also ate a lot more at one time. I have forgotten and reached for my glass and taken a drink and it is not a pleasant experience. You will not want to do it after once or twice messing up. You are eating so little in one meal that you will not need to wash your food down. It just takes some practice and the best thing to do is not even have a drink near you while your eating. You will get used to it and now I stop drinking when I get hungry and wait for about 30-45 minutes then eat. After you eat you feel full so you know you cannot fit anything else in. At first it seemed like an eternity before I could drink but now its second nature. The whole thing is a process and a learning experience.

Everyone is different, but I haven't had a problem with it after surgery. I just don't keep my water bottle or anything near me to drink when I'm eating. It is harder if we go out to eat, but again I just don't keep a drink near me & then I don't have to worry about it.

wash my food down

Aug2ndsleever

I think that "most" people used to drink with their meal, mainly Water. I always drank with my meal, and it still seems weird not to drink w/food.

its just a habit that most people developed, drinking w/their meals. No rhyme or reason - we used to drink with our meals -

As sleevers, we no longer have that luxary to drink while you eat, or after for 45-60 minutes after you eat per your NUT

My NUT told me after about 15 minutes of my last drink, i could start to eat - when i was done - i had to wait 45-60 minutes after i finished my meal, to wait to drink.

I believe the reason for not drinking w/food, is you flush away the Protein that you have eaten if you drink too early

protein is always eaten 1rst, very important to eat alot of protein, after you have eaten, you don't want it to leave your system. - so thats why you can't drink for a bit after eating.

BTW - i do miss drinking my water while i eat

good luck

kathy

I'm one of those that did not have a problem adapting to this rule. But I barely drank with meals prior to surgery. Now in my sixth month, I admit to keeping a small glass of water with me to sip down vitamins and the Actigall mid-meal. At best I'm taking in one ounce over 1-2 pills. My doctor has no problem with it so long as in still getting my protein and veggies.

Glad to see it's not just me. I'm working on one thing at a time. So far limiting caffeine & diet coke. I went out to dinner alone last week and decided to try proper chewing. I'm glad I won't be eating alot because I will be at the table forever. It took quite a while to finish a portion of my small steak (granted it wasn't the most tender steak).

Afterwards I realized that I drank alot less as well-only one glass of soda. Maybe because I had the food in my mouth so much. When out to dinner i have had up to 6 glasses of diet coke while waiting for food and eating etc. You'd think I would have no room for food. However, I never drink that much at home. I think it's because I'm spending so much more time at the table than I wouuld at home.

Most people use liquids during meals to WASH the food down, there by making room for more food. The more liquid the contents of the stomach are the easier and sooner they will pass thru the pyloris. Post WLS you should not want to WASH food through, ideally it should stay in the stomach longer, keeping you satisfied with the smaller amount you have consumed longer. Drier foods are harder to swallow, that is the reason in NUT class they stressed eating moist food such as meals cooked in a crock pot or pressure cooker.

I guess my plan is a little different. I am allowed to drink right up until 5 minutes before eating and 30 mins after eating. I do take a few small sips during my meal, I can't go without it sometimes. By a "few" I mean 1 or 2.

It does take some time. Especially when you go out to eat and they automatically bring you water!