Currently I'm on, "Champion Nutrition - Pure Whey Protein Stack," Chocolate or Cookies and Cream. With a rounded scoop they have about 30g of Protein. I'm hungry about every 2-3 hours. So, if I have 4 to 6 shakes a day.. that's 120 to 180 grams of Protein! Is that too much? I'm drinking 64oz of Crystal Light/Water, jello, popsicles and V8 but they don't seem to curb my appetite. I don't like to be hungry! The headaches are a killer too. I go for walks and try to ignore it, but seriously - should I be this hungry? If so, shouldn't my doctor move me to the mushie stage? :rolleyes2: How is everyone else getting through this stage?

Edited June 13, 200818 yr by Seattlelight

Wow, four weeks of liquids post-op.

I only had to do two weeks post-op then mushy foods but I did had two weeks of liquids before my surgery.

I was drinking Opti-Fast pre-mixed Protein drinks.

I found that crystal light makes me hungry so I stop drinking it.

My doctor allow us to have during the "High Protein liquid Diet" phrase:

Water

No fat added clear broth

sugar free Jell-o

Crystal Light

Fruit2O

Diet Snapple

Propel Fitness Water

Sugar Free Kool-Aid

Decaf coffee

Herbal Tea

Skim or 1% milk

Vegetable juice (i.e. V8)

Tomato Soup (w/ skim milk)

Low fat strained cream soup

Light drinkable yogurt (i.e. Dannon light-n-fit smoothie)

Limit fruit juice to 8 oz / day

I started take B-complex Vitamins with my regular vitamins and meds after post-op to help me with energy.

I hope this helps!

Edited June 13, 200818 yr by bxlisa

Are you sure it is hunger you are feeling? When I was in the liquid only phase I felt very weak and was detoxing from foods. I have stopped eating all things with artificial sweetners (aspertame, slenda, sucralose) because not only are they not good for you, but they can cause you to feel hungry & headachey. This was the most difficult part of the banding experience for me. Just try to remember that having liquids only is for healing. You want to make sure you are doing the right thing for your body. Perhaps you should contact your doctor for advise on the protein.

Maybe you should call your doctor or the bariatric coordinator, and run it by them.

Thanks for the advice! Someone said the liquid stage is called, "Bandster Hell." I can sure attest to that! But this is it.. my 6th and final week! I did call the doctor last week, and he said not to have more than 4 a day. Or 90g of Protein. Oh well, at this point I feel like a survivor! If I can do this.. I can do anything!!

One last thing, I took your advise and stopped drinking Crystal Light. Guess what happened... No more headaches, and I'm not as hungry!! Weird, huh? Now I'm drinking "G2," a low calorie fruit punch by Gatorade which also has electrolyte's in it. I like it much better and with no side effects!! Thanks again! :biggrin2:

Aspartame has been know to produces headaches, body aches, bloating, and gas. CNN had a report about how artificial sweeteners may actually cause the body to not metabolize foods correctly.

Crystal Light is synthetic - made in a chemistry lab. They are artificial. The body is not designed to process or digest synthetics. Its like eating plastic. Can we digest plastic? These ingredients are known to cause addictions, allergies, and some researchers have even claimed ... weight gain. Just because something is low in calories doesn't mean its necessarily good for you.

If you don't know what an ingredient is, research it first before taking it in.

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For the record, here are the ingredients in the ready-to-drink raspberry ice flavor of Crystal Light:

Ingredients: Water, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, CITRIC ACID, MALIC ACID, SUCRALOSE AND ACESULFAME POTASSIUM (SWEETENERS), RED 40, SODIUM BENZOATE, POTASSIUM SORBATE, AND Calcium DISODIUM EDTA (PRESERVATIVES).

Now, here's that same flavor in the powder mix version:

Ingredients: MALTODEXTRIN (FROM CORN), CITRIC AND MALIC ACIDS (PROVIDES TARTNESS), RASPBERRY juice SOLIDS, ASPARTAME (SWEETENER), RED 40, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, CALCIUM PHOSPHATE (PREVENTS CAKING), ACESULFAME POTASSIUM (SWEETENER), BLUE 1.

Drink safe!!

It's true aspartame and all artificial sweetners are some bad stuff and can have many side effects in addition to hindering weight loss. Please be careful of SUCRALOSE as it is also has those same side effects. Although it is marketed as "natural" because it is made from natural sugar-it's molecular structure has been altered and it is just as dangerous to your body as the artificial sweetners. Look for natural sweetners like stevia and even though the calories maybe a bit higher-the natural sugar has no affect on blood sugar levels and doesn't harm your body!