Pre op Diet - Help!

[Astairi 3]

Hi all,

I am having my gastric sleeve in 10 days, I have been on my pre op diet which is less than 1000 cal a day, no carbs, no refined sugar, and less than 60g carbs in other foods.
IM STRUGGLING.

So much so that I’ve had 5 slices of white bread today with butter.
It’s making me think I have binge eating disorder and I’m worried I won’t get my surgery because of my liver. Or my recovery will be bad.
Any stories welcome!!! Thank you :(

[Sleeve_Me_Alone 654]

First of all, please know that the struggle is completely normal and you are not alone. I think the vast majority of us have some amount of disordered eating habits, be it BED, emotional eating, food addiction, etc. That being said, the surgery will not cure the mental piece of this; it is only a physical tool to help you along the way. If you have not already, I highly suggest you seek out some counseling from someone who works in the eating disorder space. Getting yourself into the best possible shape mentally & emotionally is just a critical as the physical part. Also the Food Addiction Recovery Workbook by Carolyn Coker Ross (available on Amazon) is a great resource and first step to healing some of those habits.

As for the LRD, you haven't blown it. Any measure of success should be celebrated. Dust yourself off, start over again tomorrow, and do the best you can. If your liver does not sufficiently shrink then, yes, you may end up with an extra incision or two, and yes, it may make recovery a little more painful, but its not impossible and it won't set you back. You can do this!

[Astairi 3]

Thank you so much. You don’t realise how much I needed to read this.
I for sure will seek therapy from a specialist after surgery for sure.
thanks again.

[lizonaplane 1,605]

don't panic! The pre-op diet was hard. I found that it was easier for me if I kept busy and drank a lot of sugar free beverages. Maybe try some peppermint tea, or other herbal tea, either plain or with Splenda/Stevia? Also, make sure you have all the things you will need for the first week or so after surgery. Like, get some Protein Drinks, clean your home because it will be hard to bend/move for a time, do your laundry, pay your bills, etc.

Best of luck!

[Sunnyway 344]

The pre-op diet is difficult not only due to fewer calories, but because you are going through withdrawal from carbs. Every time you stray from the food plan, you with struggle more because withdrawal starts all over again.

Consider the possibility that you are a sugar/food addict. Trigger foods are often sugar, flour, rice, potatoes, bread, Pasta, processed foods. If you abstain from these things the food plan gets easier every day. If you doubt it, look at my pre-surgery losses in the chart below. I confess that I have strayed and the setbacks were painful, but I now know that this is what I must do for life.

Any of these books may be helpful.

[DaisyAndSunshine 301]

Pre-Op diet right now as I am on my liquid diet phase sounded like a dream 😂

Trust me first 3 days are worse during Pre-Op diet phase. But then you get hang on things.

I had my surgery postponed twice and I was on my Pre-Op both times (about 7 and 10 days respectively). So I kinda got hang of it and even lost weight doing so. Third time doing it for another 10 days wasn't as difficult but I was someone who had to have something *minor or small* snack to eat. So I would graze 2 or 3 chips or spicy snack almost daily (Don't go overboard ofc and if you're the kind who can't control beyond couple of chips, then don't take this advise). But for me this kept my sanity in the Pre-Op phase. I still lost weight and got the surgery meaning my liver had shrunk. At the same time overall I had lost about 25 pounds within 2 months so they would have made a difference too.

Point is 1 or 2 bites of unhealthy snack won't hurt as long as you don't slip through it.