Sleeved on 11/30 lost 25p since surgery. My dr wants me to drink 64oz of fluids NOT including my shakes. I have 2 shakes a day 1 yougert for snack and 3oz of protein for dinner. I can only get up to 48oz of water a day and that's if I'm lucky. I feel like there is not enough time in the day to drink all that water. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips on how they get all their water in?

While I'm getting ready in the morning I get a glass of Water and drink it. This is every day and I get 12-15 oz of water extra by doing this. At the beginning I only had the water, now that I'm almost 5 months I add a tablespoon of chia seeds and 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed (this helps with any constipation) plus I get the Omega. But my point is to drink water as soon as you wake up and it will become a habit.

Edited January 6, 201610 yr by Rdsegobia

at 5 weeks out i was drinking 80 oz of fluid a day INCLUDING my smoothies. i kept fluid next to me at all times; from when i got up until about 8 pm, or i would be up all night. experiment with bigger sips, small mouthfuls and see how it feels. you almost need to have the mentality of a nurse pushing fluids on a feverish child. i am almost 6 months post op and routinely drink 96 oz a day. for me, this is enough and i will stay at this level. this helps with keeping things moving, too. congrats on your successes.

Thank you both for the awesome advice!! I never think to start my water as soon as I get up and while I'm getting ready, that's 90 minutes lost right there. And I'm going to try the bigger gulps, prior to surgery I was used to downing a 16oz bottle in minutes , now I'm so paranoid about just taking sips I haven't tried to just take more in. Thanks again !!

I agree with the above posters. Keep Water with you at all times and sip all day. You may also want to set short-term goals. For example 8 oz when you get up in the morning. Another 8 oz before 10 am, etc.

It does get easier, especially as you can take bigger sips and eventually just drink normally.

I don't think I really got enough Fluid until well after the first few months. It took me a while to learn to sip and not chug and the only way I could get any fluid in without feeling like I was swallowing rocks was with a straw. I used a straw for almost two years after surgery and I actually just noticed right now that the last few weeks I have been drinking directly out of a Water bottle again instead of using a straw. The only reason they tell you not to use a straw is because for some people it makes them feel a little gassy- for me, it eliminated the extra air I was swallowing when I drank without a straw so I could get a lot more fluid down without feeling like I had chugged a bottle of chunks.

The Water issue is gonna be my kryptonite. I just do not drink a lot of anything and when I do water would probably come in last. My body has probably been severely dehydrated for YEARS. It is gonna be a killer having to drink so much of it.

It will be hard at first, but I promise it gets easy. Who knows, you might even find out you like drinking a lot of water!

Thank you both for the awesome advice!! I never think to start my Water as soon as I get up and while I'm getting ready, that's 90 minutes lost right there. And I'm going to try the bigger gulps, prior to surgery I was used to downing a 16oz bottle in minutes , now I'm so paranoid about just taking sips I haven't tried to just take more in. Thanks again !!

another thing I do is take a bottle of water with me everywhere. Like some others I start my day with a glass of water while I am getting dressed. When I get ready to leave for work my bottle is almost empty so I refill it on the way out the door and sip on it my whole drive to work. By the time I walk in my office I have at least 30 ounces.

@@MIMISAN, have you tried adding in MIO or Crystal Light or any of the other enhancers? That's how I got started drinking more Water, I added in flavor to it until I could stand to drink it.

i am 5 months out and I can drink 64 or more ozs a day. I loose track because I love Ice cold Water so I will keep adding ice. I also cannot stand plain water anymore. I always have a bottle of crystal light in my purse at all times. Right after my surgery I had a bottle where I had to tip it for drink and I found I was taking gulps and it would hurt pretty bad. So I switched to my bottle with a straw and found I could drink alot more but smaller amounts at a time. So try changing the bottle you are using. I also have my water bottle with me at all times except when I am in bed.

I know one thing that was difficult to get used to was the timing of eating and waiting to drink. Eventually you get used to it.

It is difficult! Does your nut allow other calorie free drinks? I find that I'm able to get Vitamin Water Zero or Propel down a little quicker than water.

@lauriev Yes I have tried those additives and I usually just can't stand the taste of them, but one of my main problems is that I just don't drink a lot. Diet flavors usually really turn me off. I can drink Zero Sprite with lime juice but that isn't Water.