When I decided to pursue the gastric sleeve surgery, I was under a huge misconception about the effects of the surgery. It seemed so simple; reduce the size of my stomach by 75% so I would eat less, feel full after eating a small amount of food, and then lose weight. The end.

I hated the idea of what I thought of were 6 wasted months of doctor visits but now, after 5 months of visits, the surgery info class and meeting with the dietician, I'm seeing this surgery in a whole new way.

Here's what I think I now know, but please tell me if I'm wrong since I'm trying to manage my own expectations -

• I don't really care for meat, after several months of an Atkins diet a few years ago, and I've now learned about the importance of Protein. Prior to planning surgery, I didn't consider my body's nutritional needs and now I'm hyper-aware of what nutrients I've deprived my body of. I thought a cheese quesadilla was a meal...
• I thought caffeine was a food group and I drink coffee and tea from morning to night. I couldn't believe they were serious about giving it up and it has taken several months for me to come to grips with weaning myself off of caffeine. I know understand about the dehydration and tannins but once I'm down 100 pounds, I'm going to treat myself with some limited iced tea once in a while. Just a little bit.
• I imagined myself eating the same foods as I do now, but just less and now I see that what I eat is so important or I won't lose weight. Wow, not just less, but healthier and lower in fat, sugar and carbs. Still, not completely cutting off some foods, like with Atkins, just eating sensibly and balancing the yummy with the necessary.
• How much Water do I need to drink?! I'm starting to add water in and alternating it every other glass with iced tea right now. Prior to considering surgery I may have been skirting dehydration and Vitamin deficiencies. Scary to think about the road I was on.
• I started trying out Protein shakes since I knew I'd be drinking a lot of them so I wanted to find some favorites early on. What an eye-opening visit with the dietician when I shared that my favorite is Naked chocolate banana with 30 grams of protein. She was pretty nice when she pointed out huge amount of carbs and sugars in one drink and explained that was why it wasn't on her list of recommended post-surgery drinks. I was sad.
• I thought smoothies would be a great way to get nutrients but since I mix mine with pom juice and wasn't including kale, I was just basically giving myself a big, delicious sugar rush and not that many nutrients. Back to the drawing board there too.

I had a few days when I really felt like everything I did and thought was wrong and managing my diet would be a full time job. I was worried that I would fail immediately and it surprised me because I thought exercising regularly would be my biggest challenge. I've decided to plan my meals and Snacks weekly, focus on what I need to do each day instead of looking ahead and being overwhelmed, and coming back here for support.

My ultimate goal is shopping in the normal section of a store for something other than XL. Could I even hit Medium? How cool would that be and worth all of the protein powders, gallons of water and cups of broth to get there!

Sounds like you have been given some great insights and are READY!

You can have decaf tea and coffee...my biggest thing was getting rid of the Diet Coke...I was SOOO addicted...probably a 2 liter (easy) per day ... I find I don't miss it anymore.

The changes I have made because of this "tool" have all been positive. I have changed my way of thinking and eating... Protein first-always! The water/liquid intake is vital to everyone, surgery or not, the problem is most of us drink carbonated junk or coffee...

Love your breakdown, it really sounds like your head is in the right place for this! Congrats!!!

It really isn't that hard...I've been "maintaining" for awhile now... hopefully I'll break that soon and move on down

Congratulations on all you've learned!

You said you don't really care for meat -- so have you figured out what your Protein source will be? Maybe chicken, fish, eggs...?

I remember thinking that this was going to take me all day every day and I would constantly be either eating or drinking. I soon made it fun by trying new foods and recipes that complemented the sleeve.

If you are ready for the surgery and can prepare yourself in the food Water area. Then it will give you a chance to fix how you relate to food and why it is a comfort for you and change your attitude about food. the ups and downs of the emotional part can take a toll on you. Most nuts and doctors mention that part only briefly....

That is why it is called a journey. This is about creating a new you. A healthier and stronger and happier you. It will take work but if you are dedicated to it not only by what you eat but fixing how you think..You will surely be a loser.

Your doing great!

...also, when you have had the surgery you may qualify for Protein drinks, scar cream, and Vitamins thru InsureNutrition.com... I didn't qualify for the vitamins (you probably have to have a full gastric to get them)...but they sent me a months supply for free

Good luck, hope that helps

Thanks so much for the info and encouragement. While I don't eat red meat or eggs, I don't mind pork or some chicken. Up until now I don't eat much meat at all but now I'm adding some chicken meat to salads and having Albertsons order in fresh pacific fish that I like. I enjoy seafood so I'm sure that will be my go to Protein food, along with Peanut Butter and Protein drinks.

I will give up the caffeine before starting pre-surgery diet, since it isn't as important as my health. I'll miss it though.

I need to find the topic on this board that addresses what to order when we eat out since I travel a lot...

Thanks so much for the info and encouragement. While I don't eat red meat or eggs, I don't mind pork or some chicken. Up until now I don't eat much meat at all but now I'm adding some chicken meat to salads and having Albertsons order in fresh pacific fish that I like. I enjoy seafood so I'm sure that will be my go to Protein food, along with Peanut Butter and protein drinks.

I will give up the caffeine before starting pre-surgery diet, since it isn't as important as my health. I'll miss it though.

I need to find the topic on this board that addresses what to order when we eat out since I travel a lot...

I found that a good high sublingual dose of B12 (don't worry, it's Water soluble, so you can't overdose on it) is REALLY helpful in giving up caffeine. I take 5000mcg per day, and it gave me such a boost of non-jittery, non-headache-triggering energy, I was able to drop coffee completely.

If you like seafood, don't forget things like shrimp--nice dense protein source that fills you and sticks with you, and it's pretty easy to pack in a lunch bag to eat cold (like a shrimp cocktail type dish) or to heat up in a microwave. I like putting a few medium shrimp on a short skewer with some zucchini, red pepper, mushroom caps, and a squirt of lemon juice!

Mini-meatballs can be a lifesaver, too--if you don't care for ground beef, you can make them with turkey, or even buy a bag of frozen ones. I use those for a quick meal with a dollop of warmed marinara, or tzatziki sauce if I want to eat them with a cold dip (click here for an easy recipe).

One of the tricks that helps me when my family eats out at restaurants is to take a close look at the appetizer list. Avoiding deep fried stuff or too many over-processed carbs, there's still usually at least one hearty Soup, or a good skewer-type appetizer in almost any style of restaurant. I'm over 8 months out now, so I can tolerate most leafy salads, too. Between soup, salad and some sort of dense protein, I always leave with a big "doggie bag" of leftovers, and one dinner out usually means at least one or two more lunches later on! Once you're on the Losers' Bench and looking for some new recipe ideas (or you just can't STAND the idea of one more tuna-based lunch), there's always this site to try, too. In fact, some of Michelle's recipes are so good, I cook them in portions big enough for my whole family. They're really worth a try!

It sounds to me like you are really well-prepared, with your head on straight and your feet on the ground. You're going to do fantastically!

I was told that caffeine (a reasonable amount) is fine as long as you get your 64 ounces of water in every day. To me that's a great motivator to make sure you reach your water goal.

Caffeine is a dehydrator - since you need liquids to keep you hydrated- caffeine doesn't help:(