I'm still pre op until Monday. I'm on a 10 day liquid diet. Yesterday I pretty much gagged and cried while getting my protein shakes down. Today I've thrown both up. Sorry if that's tmi. Broth doesn't make me full and my unflavored protein isn't here yet. I live in a very rural small town.

What did you guys do when you were on your pre op diet? Advice would be so appreciated!

I didn't have a pre-op diet but it's not uncommon to experience difficulties with the milk-y shakes. Until your unflavored powder arrives, perhaps try watering them down so they aren't as thick. It may take longer to drink them, but hopefully it will help you keep them down.

I didn't have a problem with the pre-op liquids, because I had spent a lot of time finding liquid Protein sources I enjoyed. If you don't like what you have, try something different. If you're stuck with a fixed menu, try having them at different temperatures. I like ice cold Protein shakes more than room temp. Remember, with a blender, you can turn a Protein shake into a frozen smoothie -- just add ice to it and blend. You can also try adding sugar free flavoring -- I like using Torani Sugar Free syrups to change the flavor of things. Mio drops work well for that, too. Orange flavoring drops + vanilla protein shake + ice = blended creamsicle smoothie.

But in part, you may not *feel* full on the liquid diet. Liquids are going to go right through you, and even protein liquids won't give you a feeling of satiety the way solid foods will. You have to let go of that expectation. You're not going to die of not feeling full enough. Have a cup of hot tea. Have some blended ice with sugar free syrup -- it's like a snow cone, but gets you more fluids into your body.

However, it sounds like a lot of this is psychological for you -- the gagging and crying. If you convince yourself that you can't handle a short liquid diet, then that's exactly the negative experience you're going to have. Instead of that, focus on the positive aspects. Wow! It's a lot easier to multi task when you don't have to chew. *grin*

I'm crying because I'm throwing up. My shakes do make me full, I just can't seem to keep them down today. I wish so bad to cheat and have an egg or few ounces of chicken breast. But I know I can't. Even though other liver shrinking diets allow a lean meat.

Just having a rough day, thanks for the advice!

It sounds like it's a lot more psychological.

Look, we're not trying to be mean, but yes, there's clearly a big psychological component here. Look, you still haven't told us what brand or flavor of shakes you're using. That would help us. But again, stop focusing on trying to get it down. I promise you, if you sit down and say, "OMG, I have to choke down this shake, it's going to make me throw up," then you're going to do that. Instead, look, put on a TV show you like, put blend the shake up with some ice, and throw it in a cup, and get a spoon, and say to yourself, "I'm gonna eat this lame-ass Wendy's Frosty and watch the hell out of this episode of "How to Get Away with Murder" or "Duck Dynasty" or whatever you like. Take small bites, and don't worry about drinking. If it gets too warm, or you don't like it that way, put it in the freezer. If it's chocolate, add some coffee flavor to it.

Honestly, I'm gonna tell you something -- you have got to work on having the very useful skill of drinking stuff when you feel iffy about it. You will not *magically* be able to drink your liquid Protein after surgery, and you're going to be even more unhappy about barfing at that stage. (Though, I have to tell you, it's a lot *smaller* a barf when you do it post-surgically.) So, you need to up your mental game on this, because the very FIRST thing you're going to have to do after surgery is walk around, and drink cups of liquid when drinking liquid feels queasy making to you. Get some strategies! You can do it!

Try the protein drinks. Isopure no carb is the one I use. It's more on the Gatorade side. Some ppl don't like the smell so try putting it in a cup with a lid. Again, dilute it if you have to. You're going to have to lay around and find what works for you.

I am also going to recommend the Syntrax nectar flavors. You can either call them for a sample box, or one of the other Bariatric supply sites has an assortment. They're not milky. Like many people, I like the "Fuzzy Navel" flavor, which is kind of like Tang. You can dilute them to get in more Fluid, even. I tried a mess o flavors, and my favorite are the Fuzzy Navel, the Roadside Lemonade, and the Ice Tea with Lemon. I usually like my Premier Protein shakes just fine, but after surgery, I could not handle the milky thick thing at all, so the Nectar stuff saved me. :-) And if you order them, you can have them in two days. Oh, and I tell you what, that powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury chicken Soup isn't half bad, either. Salty, but a definite change from all the sweet flavors of shakes.

Edited November 19, 201510 yr by Trinn

In the mean time call you doctor or nutritionist. I don't know what stores are nearby but I would try buying some protein drinks like the special k protein waters. None of this does you any good if you can't keep it down. It's also better to find this out now rather than post op. So call the nutritionist.