I had my surgery April 10th and it was strange the instructions my doctor gave me. He said that I can have cream of wheat 2-3 days after I leave the hospital. What kind of diet is everyone on. My nutritionist said stage one liquid diet for 1 week and then pureed foods as advanced by my doc. But wouldn't cream of wheat be pureed food??? I'm so confused. I am drinking liquids eating sugar free jello, am so bloated in pain and seriously confused. Should I not listen to my doc and just stay on liquid for a week or should I start the pureed? :biggrin: Please anyone...help!!!!

I only had to stay on clear liquids while I was in the hospital. I went on full liquids as soon as I went home which included milk and shakes and yogurt. I also got to start adding in scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, and cream of wheat, but you need to talk to your doctor to make sure. Every program and every doctor is different as you will find out from reading on here. It is always best to check in with your doctor!Congratulations on your band and good luck! You are on your way to a new you:thumbup:

The directions I received state

1. After surgery day 1 & 2 clear liquids,

2. 2 days - 2 weeks full liquids protein supplements skin milk or 1% milk low fat or light yogurts without fruit nuts or seeds strained cream soup broth, water fruit juice (limit to 8oz per day) sugar free jello sugar free popsicles AVOID REGULAR AND DIET SODA AND ALCOHOLIC BEVGS, & chewing Gum and regular solid foods....

3. week 2-3-4 blended foods cut your food into very small pieces about the size of a nickel,

put into a blender or food processor add enough liquid to cover the blender blades

mix until there are no lumps

Hope this helps...

Edited April 13, 200818 yr by mstrina27

So new to this I hope I am replying correctly. Your diet sounds just like what the doctor told me. I just thought it was so soon to start even milk or yogurt (which will be difficult cause I don't like yogurt). I am going to call him tomorrow to make sure I definitlely heard him right. But he said cream of wheat, soft foods and to eat with my baby..lol cause she is eating stage 2 baby food. Funny huh??? Thank you I am so excited, but the bloating and pain is worse than my c-section. But I can't wait. Thank you so much for your reply!!!

I only had to stay on clear liquids while I was in the hospital. I went on full liquids as soon as I went home which included milk and shakes and yogurt. I also got to start adding in scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, and cream of wheat, but you need to talk to your doctor to make sure. Every program and every doctor is different as you will find out from reading on here. It is always best to check in with your doctor!Congratulations on your band and good luck! You are on your way to a new you:thumbup:

It seems so many medical professionals interpret "full liquid" diet differently - so it really depends on who you are asking.

Generally, the full liquid diet does include "cream of wheat". However, my nutritionist said I should only have anything that goes easily through a straw.

Here is an example of "full liquid" diet as followed by hospitals

Full Liquid Diet

I had my band on April 10th also. I had nothing the first day. The 2nd day I started my clear liquids....1 oz every 15 minutes. First day home-42 oz, second day-52 oz. and then 64 ozs every day for one full week. Can have protein shake (unjury is what I use) so I get my protein to help heal. Then week 2 I can add strained cream soups made with skim milk, vegetable juice, sugar free pudding and yogurt. Third week I start pureed foods. Every doctor is different. Good luck! I'm doing good. No pain meds. Got some bloating, but everyone seems to have it. Give it time....I'm going to!

-Dawn :-)

I also was banded April 10th. I was told to have clear liquids for 5 days. Then do full liquids, which includes things that will go through a straw...like V8 juice, drinkable yogurt, skim milk, and anything that is pureed to a completely smooth consistency (no lumps or bits of anything) and then THINNED enough to go throug a straw). BUt do not use a straw. To thin purees, add appropriate liquid--water, juice, non-fat milk or broth. Stay on this diet until day 14 after the surgery.

After the 14th day, go on soft/mushy foods until day 30. THis is any food you could eat if you didn't have any teeth. Take TINY bites (no bigger than a pea) and chew VERY well (15-20 times each bite) and eat very slowly and carefully.

Full liquids, as given to me by my doc include nonfat milk, drinkable yogurt as long as it has no chunks of fruit or anything, any full strength juice. Vegetable juices are preferred over fruit. Any of the low-cal protein drinks, any purees thinned to liuid consistency...pureed meats, canned or cooked veggies and fruits. Lofat ice cream, pudding with nonfat milk, low-cal smoothies. Thinned cream of wheat, thinned oatmeal or thin mashed potatoes with NO lumps, mashed/thinned cottage cheese. ANY chili or soup as long as it is blended to puree and smooth any noodles, meat or veggies in it. Smooth applesauce. Frozen juice bars, lof fat fudgesickles. Pureed and thinned refried beans with guacamole if you like. Meaty spaghetti sauce, pureed and thinned. Chicken with BBQ sauce or ketchup, meatloaf with ketchup, thinned and pureed.

Remember: all Full Liquids must be pureed and thinned enought to get through a straw.

I hope this helps you.

I actually progressed to pureed the morning after my surgery. They brought me oatmeal for breakfast on my breakfast tray. I was discharged that morning and have either cream of wheat or oatmeal daily for breakfast with no problems.

Thanks everyone..All your responses helped out so much. Its so weird how everyones diet is so different. It just seemed so soon to be eating oatmeal or cream of wheat. But I am going to go for it and thin it down completely.

Good luck to you all!!!

Dorissa

Yeah, it’s crazy how many different things you’ll here regarding what different doctors recommend. Like with mine it’s strictly clear liquids the first week with the exception of sugar free fat free Jell-O and slim fast.

2nd week same with thicker soups

3rd week still lots of liquids but cut all liquids with sugars and calories (ex: Gatorade, milk, juice…) and start on mushies

4th week same as 3rd but increase to more solid foods.

He is very adamant on never eating oatmeal because it is too sticky, but we are able to do maltomeal because is thin.

I varied from it like not the smartest person in the world because I was hungry so I did some thin mashed potatoes and pudding….BIG mistake for me, I was in so much pain this morning. It went down smooth and I took very small bites and waited in between them… but this morning when I woke I was so nauseous I thought I was going to throw up it was horrible I was in tears. I am sooooo sticking to this from this point forward.

I actually progressed to pureed the morning after my surgery. They brought me oatmeal for Breakfast on my breakfast tray. I was discharged that morning and have either cream of wheat or oatmeal daily for breakfast with no problems.

I was banded 3/10 and stayed with the soft, semi liquid food for about three weks when I tried solid food and have had no problems since except that I am not losing like I was prior to my surgery, I have lost 45 lbs from May '07 until today but only 11lbs since surgery, six of those in the first six days. I don't get adjusted till 5/9 and am disappointed that I became so hungry on the semi-liquid diet that I am now eating"real food" and not losing:sad:. Hang in there and good luck. Hope you feel better soon.

Banded Elliott Hospital, Manchester, NH 3/10/08

As you can see I have lots of questions..See I am the 1st patient my nutritionist on base (military wife) has seen that has had lapband surgery. She gave me info according to gastric patient's she has seen. So I am confused with how much liquid food I should be consuming. She has been learning as we go along to. My doc didn't tell me how much he just told me I can start on skim milk, cream of wheat etc...

I purchased some carnation instant breakfast (sugar free) and it says to make it with skim milk (8oz) do I drink the whole thing for breakfast. I think I could only cause I am sooooo hungry. Has anyone felt really hungry all the time??? I don't understand I thought the surgery was suppose to curb that alittle. I know it is just a tool in helping to lose weight but my stomach is constantly growling. Maybe I am not eating enough??? I got everyones different food suggestions..but how much do you eat???

Wow, I really feel lost with this.

:huh2:

I was starving a couple of days after surgery so I ate a few bites of cottage cheese, but I ate it really slow and chewed it like crazy! I was so hungry a week after surgery that when I went for my check up I asked if I could eat real food and she said sure so that night (I remember this vividly) I went and found the Schwan man and got the sliced beef and mashed potato dinner and made that and green beans for me and my family. I probably didn't even eat 1/2 a cup of it and like 3 green beans and I was full, but boy did it feel great. It took a while to eat and I took super small bites and chewed it a ton, but I never knew "real" food would be so delicious! When I was on soft food I put a little shredded cheese in my tomato soup to give it a little substance. I also took fat free refried beans and heated them, then mixed in sour cream, enchilada sauce and a little shredded cheese. It does wonders for a mexican food craving and a few bites into it you are stuffed. I don't know if you can eat it, but I ate it my first week. Hope it helps! Our program used to follow the diet for the gastric bypass, but they found too many people were too hungry so they changed it. Good luck and you can always ask me questions if you need to!!!

As you can see I have lots of questions..See I am the 1st patient my nutritionist on base (military wife) has seen that has had Lap Band surgery. She gave me info according to gastric patient's she has seen. So I am confused with how much liquid food I should be consuming. She has been learning as we go along to. My doc didn't tell me how much he just told me I can start on skim milk, cream of wheat etc...

I purchased some carnation instant breakfast (sugar free) and it says to make it with skim milk (8oz) do I drink the whole thing for breakfast. I think I could only cause I am sooooo hungry. Has anyone felt really hungry all the time??? I don't understand I thought the surgery was suppose to curb that alittle. I know it is just a tool in helping to lose weight but my stomach is constantly growling. Maybe I am not eating enough??? I got everyones different food suggestions..but how much do you eat???

Wow, I really feel lost with this.

This site is so informative, I was really getting worried that I had made a mistake with this surgery since all my info was also about gastric bypass as well, my DR. just started to do lap-band a few months before my surgery and I read all the books, like Before and After, which are all about gastric bypass, so I was very surprised when I could eat normal things like Soups and chicken, even steak, and not have them pureed. No one had told me that was possible but I knew I was HUNGRY and the cream of wheat was just not cutting it. I do get fuller sooner but can still eat more than the half a cup I was told I could hold. I still have to stop and think when I eat to slow down and chew, a real problem for me since I feel perfectly normal, like nothing had even happened to me. I did have one bad episode in a restaurant when my husband took me out to eat and a piece of meat was stuck and I had to throw-up alittle but felt better after that. I will say that my sugars have really dropped and have gone off one type of insulin already and am taking half the doseage of my Lantas than I was taking before banding, which was the main reason for banding in the first place, to get healthy. You will know when you have had enough to eat, that's about all I can say about that:wink2:.

i was banded on 4/7 and i am doing well except im starting to get hungry now,my first appt. is this thurs. hopefully he will let me introduce more food i had absolutely no pain i didn't even take any pain meds in the hospital although it was self administered and i have only taken a few tylenols since i have been home.my only problem is now iam getting hungry but can only have liquids,but iam determined and i will beat it,any advice will help

I would stay purely on liquids, stay away from everything else for a couple of weeks. You will not be sorry