Hello everyone I am new to posting but I have been reading all of your post for about one month. I was banded on March 14 and I'm four days post op. I am on clear liquid diet for 2 weeks.... when i say clear i mean clear...only Water, sugar free Jello and popsicles, and beef or chicken broth. The dietician instructed on stopping liquids 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after ....drinking more liquids....I understand this concept after actually eating... but now what i'm doing is having either popsicle or chicken broth at meal times and water in between. I am VERY hungry i feel my stomach growling all the time and have been really sad although my husband is extremely supportive and trying to cheer me up. I know why I had the surgery and I know I will be glad, but right now I'm hungry and weak. The pain is not bad... I've had much worse. I have 10 more days of clears and then i can start on soft Protein. I am a home health nurse and I had planned on going to work Monday, but I am very tired and drained and wondering how long any of you stayed off work and if you went back to work on clears how did you do.

I have also read alot of you were able to start on pureeds after 48 hours, but I paid 13800 out of pocket and I go by the book and also I want the band to work for me.

I lost 18 pounds before surgery and have not weighed again. I'm thinking I might weight until all this liquid crap is over and hopefully see a big accomplishment. Well thank you for taking time to read me vent, but if anyone would know how i feel and help me get throught this tough time it would be all of you.

I was also banded on the 14th . I was on clear liquids for 3 days , then full liquids until the 21sts. Today is the first day I had any hunger at all. My stomach was hurting really bad, not rumbling , but hurting. I figured out that I was probably hungry , sure enough. I just remind myself how much all this is worth it.

I also gained weight from all the swelling and fluids that they pumped into me during surgery . As of this morning I am back down to were I started the day of surgery. So if you weigh yourself don't be alarmed, like I was.:omg: Also because of the drastic change in diet my blood pressure bottomed out. So my pcp took me off my blood pressure pills for know. I was feeling so dizzy and faint every time I got up. My BP turned out to be 90/60. So Monitor everything.

My surgeon instructed me to eat anything that moved through a straw. That included creamy soups. They saved my life. YOu just can't eat the meat or other items you may find in them. Cream of broccoli goes down great and will not hurt your band. Good luck.

I was very emotional in the first days after surgery also. I think it was a mixture of the being starving!! and the pain meds. I'm almost two weeks post op now and not any more emotional than usual.

Hang in there. It'll get better.