Surgery set for Jan 12th in KC....Accepting any words of wisdom, helpful tips and suggestions regarding pre-op prep or post-op recovery....anything will help in being prepared mentally and physically! Thanks in advance!

I wish I had known not to stress so much! I'm over two months out and it's like it never happens (except for the restriction) just embrace the change and work with Your body on its time!

I wish I had known it could be this great! Every diet plan is hard. This is no different. It's hard but it's so great. I wish I had known I could feel this healthy and this beautiful.

I wish I had known that the two days in the hospital would go by without me being very aware (in a drugged state) and I really didn't need a book or i-pod.

Most of the things I wish I knew had nothing to do with the actual removal of my stomach like:

- How hard it would be to eat slower

- That my nose would be dry and bleed from all the oxygen.

- How painful it would be to breath deeply/cough the first few days after surgery. Using that incentive spirometer hurts!!! But it does help!

-That I would be allergic to the antibiotic they gave me in the hospital! AHH! Breaking out in terrible itchy rashy hivey things all over my body in the middle of the night is not fun! Especially when it takes the nurses thirty minutes to get to my room! What the hell!!

- That my IV would go bad and two and a half weeks post-op my vein has still not recovered

Of course, these are all very minor when you think about the worst that could have happened! I was mostly unprepared for being in the hospital because I've never stayed in the hospital before. I would still do it all over again. I'm 19 days post-op and I've lost 25 pound since surgery and 60 pounds overall! Don't stress! You'll do great!

There was a huge thread full of tips not too long ago. Try doing a search.

My biggest advice is to relax. Not everyone has pain or bad gas. I'm a firm believer in positive thinking. Just hope for the best.

Surgery set for Jan 12th in KC....Accepting any words of wisdom, helpful tips and suggestions regarding pre-op prep or post-op recovery....anything will help in being prepared mentally and physically! Thanks in advance!

I have no words of wisdom my surgery is on the 15th in KC, I really have not found anybody else is this area. And I looked at your profile my birthday is a day after yours, I was born like six years before you ????. I start preop diet on the 3rd.

I read and reread all I could. I prepared for the worse. I had no drastic exceptions. I was out only one week from my jobs. I was very fortunate. What I was not prepared for was the mood swings, which once I asked, many experienced the same. Nothing drastic just outbursts in crying, stuff like that. I had read so much nothing on that. I had surgery 12 weeks ago. My start weight was 219, day of surgery 202 and present weight 169. Went from a size 22 to 16 so far. There are stalls, but then it catches up. I have been very lucky, and just take one day at a time.

I haven't experienced any mood swings or crying . I wonder if the fact that I did that when I went through menopause made a difference.

Could be

One guy said he was afraid to go to sleep with his wife lol

Mine were not bad just took me by surprise

Don't stock up on shakes, Protein powder, Soup, etc. right before surgery as your taste buds may change after. I also threw away a lot if food because my pre op eyes were much bigger than my post op tummy.

You'll be fine to leave your house and shop a day or two after you get home. Until then, Gatorade, Popsicles, chicken broth, will do you.

I totally agree with @lipsticklady. I pre purchased many Protein shake powders, Soups etc and found that I

1) found most foods way to sweet to eat

2) the change in amt of food you can eat weeks afterwards is drastic and a lot of food went to waste.

So yes, best to wait till post op and pick up small amounts of liquid then soft foods to begin.

Off point - I used to think it was my kids who ate so much and wanted the carb laden foods etc in the house, but it turns out it was ME. I am slowly convincing myself that they are needed in the house at all. Even though I do not eat them any more I have still been buying them in smaller quantities and I continually through out food to this day. My eyes are truly bigger than my stomach. (She says with a huge smile)

For some reason I got diarrhea the day of surgery (before I even had surgery) and it continued for 7 days. DO NOT TRUST A fart. Thankfully I bought a 10 pack of granny panties to wear while recovering. I ended up throwing 4 pairs away the first two days.

I wish I had known it was totally normal to NOT have a problem drinking fluids post op and also it is normal to feel little to no restriction with liquids. I thought my surgery wasn't done correctly.

I was also quite emotional the first week post-op. I cried a few times over very very minor disputes or issues. Kind of like a 3 year old having a pity party.

My sense of smell was like a bloodhound for the first month post-op. I felt like I had a superpower. However after a cold and sinus infection I'm finally back to regular smelling powers.

Everything tastes awful the first couple of weeks (including water). That was a surprise to me.

I was the exact opposite. I loved Water more than ever before. What did get old real fast was the sweetness of the Protein shakes.

Agree with don't stock up on anything. Your tastes are likely to change. Have enough to get you through the first week or two post op. After that you'll be well enough to shop for what sounds good, (probably nothing will sound good for a while btw).

Stay off the scale until your first post op appointment, then weigh no more or less than once per week. Don't let yourself get focused on the scale moving. You. Will. Stall. If you're only weighing once per week, it'll not be as noticeable. Besides, if the scale going down is your main motivation, what will keep you motivated to maintain the changes you worked so hard for when you hit goal?

When you "don't feel like"... whatever. Exercising, getting your Protein, taking your supplements, put your big girl panties on and remember you are an adult that made a decision to do the best thing for your health. Make a commitment to your own after care. Protein, getting enough calories, Vitamins, etc., these are PRESCRIPTIONS for you now. You wouldn't let your kid skip their medicine because they don't feel like taking it or don't like the way it tastes. Don't allow yourself to do that either.

Be kind to yourself. If you follow your team's instructions, you'll do fine. Set SMART goals around behaviors you can absolutely control. (Google SMART goals if you're unfamiliar) I will exercise x minutes per day x times per week. I will get x grams of protein. Not I will lose x # of pounds this week or be a size xx by some date. This is not really in your control, but your behaviors are.