My pre op diet starts on 12/23/13. We always have a big dinner for Christmas and New Years. How am I going to cope with broth only???????

Enjoy other activities with your family besides eating.

You can do it! I am not gonna lie it will be very difficult. This whole thing is way more about what is going on in your head than what is going in your mouth. You are strong! Think abouk what you CAN do. Spend time listening to stories about your family history that you have never heard before, maybe help the elderly people in your family that you did not make time for in the past. Take care of the little kids so there parents can relax. Tell a few more stories yourself, you can talk more with less food in your mouth. Take some games to play. Make sure to take lots of whatever liquids you can have, whather it is your protien shakes or crystal light or jello to share or whatever. Have fun, it is all about perspective. I am speaking from experience I had suregery right thanksgiving and my birthday!

Donegon and Broncho are right.

Just do it, even if so, so, so very hard. Celebrate your hard work, with things other than food!

My pre op diet starts on 12/23/13. We always have a big dinner for Christmas and New Years. How am I going to cope with broth only???????

you just do......you stay busy, use your free items and remember why you wanted this surgery to begin with..to lose weight and get healthy.

xmas/new years is another day and it will come every year...so what you are not (eating this year) you will be able to next year and be looking damn fine doing it..food does not control you, you control YOU..

hang in there....

I start my pre op diet the same day Dec. 23 and I am also concerned about how I am going to do.

Sacrifice: to surrender or give up, or permit injury or disadvantage to, for the sake of something else.

One thing you'll find about this journey - it's a series of gives and takes. Another thing you will find out about this journey - you are stronger than you know.

I was two weeks post-op at Thanksgiving - I knew I wasn't ready to be around a bunch of people eating food and I didn't want a lot of questions about why I wasn't eating (not everyone at the get together knew I had surgery). So, I went to the party before dinner and had a great time visiting with my family, then I went home right before dinner was served. I went home and had a protein shake. It sucked, but I'm still alive to tell the story.

You'll do just fine with your broth as long as you have the right frame of mind - you have this great opportunity ahead of you. Not everyone is given this chance to change their lives. It is truly an opportunity for your life - something that eating for 30 minutes cannot overshadow.

You'll do just fine - just stick to your plan and enjoy your time with friend and family.

My husband and I both being sleeved, me Nov. 18, and him Dec. 2, we had our first Thanksgiving alone and LOL we survived.

The holidays are the hardest, but missing food on one holiday is just a step in your journey. There is SF apple cider in the grocery stores. It will be worth it now to eat. Be thankful! Count your blessings!

I start my pre op diet the same day Dec. 23 and I am also concerned about how I am going to do.

dont worry about you will do it...you just do......

you are stronger mentally than you give yourself credit for..

When I was pre-op, I skipped a couple of events I thought I couldn't handle. I made modifications with a couple of fairly immediate post-op things (brought my own Soup, etc.) I learned that if I didn't make a big deal of it, people hardly noticed. I'm 7 weeks out now and have had quite a few things come up (holiday parties, etc…) including a luncheon and a party tonight. I'm also trying to get a workout in at 5:30.

So, the thing is, just a couple of months ago I would have had a couple of glasses of wine at the luncheon, bemoaned my bad choices, skipped the workout, and gone on to the party. And felt bad physically and mentally about what I had done. Yes, today will take a little more planning…but it will be so worth it because this is what I am choosing for my new life.

I'm nowhere near done but I am starting to look and feel better than I have in years. I can already tell that I look more "normal" and less "fat" although I still have 50 pounds to lose. So, I figure I can still have fun at these two events. Let's face it. It's really more about seeing people I love than it is about drinking wine and eating too much. But obviously for years the two things took equal billing. It's a mind shift, and maybe it's not easy but it is worth it.

This surgery is not easy to obtain, and pre-op is something you can do.

Lots of encouragement here... I've been thinking the same thing! I start my pre op liquids the same day on the 13th. First thing when I told my fam...oohh NO gumbo for you!!! But I can do it! I've been working hard for months to get this surgery! I will be praying for you and hope you will be praying for me in return... Just think of the real reason for the season... Celebrating the birth of Jesus...not food...

Oops I meant the 23rd too!!!

You can do it! I am not gonna lie it will be very difficult. This whole thing is way more about what is going on in your head than what is going in your mouth. You are strong! Think abouk what you CAN do. Spend time listening to stories about your family history that you have never heard before, maybe help the elderly people in your family that you did not make time for in the past. Take care of the little kids so there parents can relax. Tell a few more stories yourself, you can talk more with less food in your mouth. Take some games to play. Make sure to take lots of whatever liquids you can have, whather it is your protien shakes or crystal light or jello to share or whatever. Have fun, it is all about perspective. I am speaking from experience I had suregery right thanksgiving and my birthday!

Thank you for the advise and encouragement

you just do......you stay busy, use your free items and remember why you wanted this surgery to begin with..to lose weight and get healthy. xmas/new years is another day and it will come every year...so what you are not (eating this year) you will be able to next year and be looking damn fine doing it..food does not control you, you control YOU.. hang in there....

Thank you so much. You all are right. I'm going to hang in there just fine. I may leave a little early. Just because I have not told anyone beside my husband about the surgery. I don't want them to ask me a million question about why I'm not eating. My family is very judge mental. That's why I decided not to tell them about the surgery.

I start my pre op diet the same day Dec. 23 and I am also concerned about how I am going to do.

We are going to wear this site out for support. We will make it through together.

Sacrifice: to surrender or give up, or permit injury or disadvantage to, for the sake of something else. One thing you'll find about this journey - it's a series of gives and takes. Another thing you will find out about this journey - you are stronger than you know. I was two weeks post-op at Thanksgiving - I knew I wasn't ready to be around a bunch of people eating food and I didn't want a lot of questions about why I wasn't eating (not everyone at the get together knew I had surgery). So, I went to the party before dinner and had a great time visiting with my family, then I went home right before dinner was served. I went home and had a protein shake. It sucked, but I'm still alive to tell the story. You'll do just fine with your broth as long as you have the right frame of mind - you have this great opportunity ahead of you. Not everyone is given this chance to change their lives. It is truly an opportunity for your life - something that eating for 30 minutes cannot overshadow. You'll do just fine - just stick to your plan and enjoy your time with friend and family.

Thank you so much. I might just do that. Because I can hear all of the questions now.