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Graduate student and pre-op diet



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I am hoping to have my surgery on May 2nd. I received the typical pre-op instructions from my doctor which have a 3 days prior to surgery liquid only and laxatives diet requirement. I am a graduate student who has a 4 hour long final as well as research presentation on April 30th. I am wondering how others reacted to the change in nutrients. How was your concentration, energy level and memory during this time? Can you recommend certain liquids that will be better than others during this time? Thanks!

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Hi I am a grad student fulltime too and the pre-diet for the vertical sleeve was really hard, but you can push through it, if you can get ahead of your work then do it because your energy is also affected I tried to get some work done before I started and thank God everything worked out. Just plan and plan and stay ahead of your school work any reading you can do now will also help you. I read as much as I could because it was hard for me to concentrate when my belly wanted food and my head could not understand why, once you have the sleeve its a different game I felt so much better I moved slow but dint have the hunger pains..

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I am hoping to have my surgery on May 2nd. I received the typical pre-op instructions from my doctor which have a 3 days prior to surgery liquid only and laxatives diet requirement. I am a graduate student who has a 4 hour long final as well as research presentation on April 30th. I am wondering how others reacted to the change in nutrients. How was your concentration, energy level and memory during this time? Can you recommend certain liquids that will be better than others during this time? Thanks!

I was exactly in the same boat before my surgery. I am a grad student at Dartmouth and was finishing up my fall term just days before the surgery. My pre-op diet was 2 weeks before the surgery so it definitely cut into my final project, presentation and exam. I was pleasantly surprised how much energy I had after the first day or so. I thought I was going to feel fatigued but I really wasn't. The key is getting in plenty of Water. I also chewed gum like crazy while in class and on exam day. It just kept me going. One thing I would ask your doc is whether you can wait on the laxatives until day 2. I never had to take laxatives or do anything having to do with a bowel prep, so I was lucky in that regard. Good luck to you!!!

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Hey all you grad students, just wanted to say congratulations on your journey - academically and weight-loss wise. I finished up grad school in Dec 2012. I'm a mom of 2 so the sleeve really wasn't something I could fit onto my plate at the time but I seriously give you all props for taking on both! Both of these major life changes are going to feel great when you reap the rewards. :)

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Hi I am also a grad student. I am almost 5 weeks post op and in my next to last semester of school. It is really intense but soooo worth it. I think that people not going through the struggles of both at the same time don't get how hard it is!!

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    • 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.
      · 0 replies
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    • 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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    • KimBaxleyWilson

      Three months and four days ago... I was in Costa Rica having a life changing surgery! Yesterday we had a followup visit with Dr. Esmeral via video chat and this morning my middle number changed.  I'm down 47lbs and two pants sizes. I can wear a Large tshirt for the first time in like... 14 years! Woot!! Everything is going great. I have zero regrets. I went down to the riverwalk with a friend and walked 2 miles on Monday without even getting fatigued. And no more snoring or chugging pickle juice for crazy leg cramps! I need to go to the gym more... I'm making new shirts next week so that will motivate me. LOL But I'm also just not as TIRED all the time! I have a LONG way to go...but seeing the progress on the scales and in the mirror is a huge motivator!! Thank you all for cheering me on and supporting me!!
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    • bellaamey

      https://alluniqueguide.com/java-burn-coffee-reviews/
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