I am on my 2nd day of the Optifast diet. I can have 4 Optifast drinks, 2 bars and sugar free Jello and thats it! I am already sick of Jello, help! I wish I could have something as simple as a salad, or lean cuisine or something low fat- anything but Jello LOL! I know its going to be worth it in the end. I get banded on August 20th and I am so excited to start this new beginning. I am really missing my food, and just thinking of not going out to dinner this weekend has killed me. I actually think I am slightly depressed by this. Yesterday was hard, today was a bit easier. I am hoping it will only get better over the next 1o days!!!! Please tell me this gets easier and food becomes so much less of a priority!

Trying to stay positive

It will get better .... I did around day 3 or 4. I started seeing the scale go down and I lost 17 lbs on the preop diet. I would just tell you to prepare yourself that the band isn't the goal line. It will be a few weeks after that until you get "food" again. The weekends were worse for me than the weekends when I had more time to think about it. Good luck to you!

It was very difficult for me too. I would eat a string cheese stick when it got real bad. I did cheat and eat 1 meal a day probably 4 of the 14 days I had to do optifast. Goodluck and hang in there. I did loose 13 lbs on the optifast though.

Edited August 9, 200817 yr by lfoss

kgranite,

I feel your pain I'm on day three of my Optifast and counting down, only 11 more days, yeah! My surgery is scheduled for August 21 so mine is the day after you. I get three shakes per day plus 225 calories in "approved" veggies, pretty blah but I'm getting through it, day by day. Not to mention I'm on vacation so it's been even more difficult. Like last night I visited with a friend and we went for a drive, to DQ and I got watch her enjoy a yummy blizzard. Then today I was at my aunt's place and both she and my 19 year old cousin wanted me to stay for dinner, no thank you was my response. On top of this, I had to have one of my shakes during the visit (I put into a ziplocked baggie with my two packets of splenda) and since I'm not telling my family about the surgery, I made up some story that I'm doing a meal replacement thing with only veggies for the next week to kick start my weight loss before I start another healthy DIET. Tomorrow I'm off to the valley to pick high bush blueberries with my cousin and this will be the first time I will not eat a ton of berries in the field Of course what is a trip to the valley without.....a stop at the ice cream place on the way home? So I will pack up my skake and when we stop for lunch I will have a small salad (picking off the unacceptable veggies) then come home and freeze my berries for later when I can add them to protien shakes. It's kinda a bummer, but I know it's worth it and I'm keeping busy so my mind is off of food as much as possible. If you don't want your jello pass it this way :w00t: It would be a joy to add that to my day. Hang in and we will make it to day 14! I am actually looking forward to going back to work on Monday so I can keep REALLY busy and not so focussed on food. When you sit back and look at the situation it's amazing how much our lives revolve around food but I am finding it easier than I thought to focus on the conversations and not the fact that I'm not eating a blizzard too Keep us posted on your progress.

thanks LB4Life for sharing your story. It's nice to know that I am not the only one out there going through this! I am cranky today and a little short of patience but I guess thats to be expected. I wish I could have a salad!!!!! I wonder why each Dr's diet before surgery is so different. I have read posts that some people have to be on a low fat diet and thats it. UGH I am friggen starving, I hate this feeling!!!! Keep me updated on your progress and good luck!!!

I know what you mean about sharing our experiences and this site is wonderful because we are ALL going through the same thing or did at one point in time. The salads are not the greatest: lettuce, cucumber and brocoli with a few shots of salad spritzer dressing, oooh so exciting Missing the croutons, bacon, cheese and of course the thick delicious dressing! I am quite surprised that there are so many pre-op diets and some don't even have to follow one, lucky buggers Those that get to have lean cuisines or more "real" food that requires chewing, looks better than what we are having. Oh well, before we know it this will be a glimer in the past and soon we'll be enjoying water, broths and popcycles :w00t: I hear ya on the HUNGRY feeling, I have spaced out my day and am still hearing gurgling sounds from my tummy. I do this: shake for breakfast, lunch time have a salad/veggies then mid afternoon I have the second shake, then supper time more veggies then around 9pm have my last shake. Someone on this site said to save the last one closer to bedtime so you are not starving all night (like me who is definately a night snacker). The only way I find it tolerable is to mix the chocolate with two splenda packets and some ice in a blender, and for the vanilla (which is much worse than the chocolate, so if anyone has not purchased their Optifast yet, stay away from it and stick with chocolate) in the vanilla I add real vanilla extract and two splenda and three frozen strawberries.....although I think it would take half the bag to kill the flavor the manufacturer seems to think "vanilla" tastes like Keep plugging along and stay as busy as possible with other stuff and the time will go by quickly. Visit this site, read weight loss books and low carb cook books, clean out the cupboards and fridge to get ready, shop for post-op stuff, etc etc. Feel free to send me a message if you need any help or to keep update on your progress.

Jennifer

Well, I cannot speak from a pre-op diet standpoint as I am just entering the process of getting banded.

But eight years ago, I did an Optifast diet for six months - 4 months of which I only drank optifast.

The first two or three days are really tough - you will feel hunger like you have not felt before. But it gets better. I suggest mixing the vanilla shakes (the dry mix kind) with different flavored drinks like no calorie orange soda or sugar free Kool-aid. Add some ice and it makes a more filling shake.

Thank god I found this thread. Im getting banded by Dr. Veninga and he requires 2 weeks of Optifast on the pre op diet. My problem: I can't find the damn thing anywhere. Any help???

Thanx Bunches

Thank god I found this thread. Im getting banded by Dr. Veninga and he requires 2 weeks of Optifast on the pre op diet. My problem: I can't find the damn thing anywhere. Any help???

Thanx Bunches

what are you looking for, the optifast drinks themselves? I got them at my doctors office.

Thank god I found this thread. Im getting banded by Dr. Veninga and he requires 2 weeks of Optifast on the pre op diet. My problem: I can't find the damn thing anywhere. Any help???

Thanx Bunches

I just googled it and you can get them on ebay, good prices too. I paid 220 bucks for 24 bars and 48 drinks. Hope this helps!

Kim,

I was just banded on Friday by Dr. Ehrlicand he told me that I could have things such as carrot sticks and celery sticks during my pre-op diet to help curb the natural craving of chewing/ crunching on something. Hope this helps!

I'm using Medifast it is the same as Optifast and a little cheaper. Go to Medifast1.com

Oh man....I'm on Optifast for 6 weeks and get the surgery on Oct. 8th. I just started it yesterday and have already discovered that vanilla is evil. I don't have any of these bars people are talking about, I'm just all shakes for 6 weeks. No fruit or anything. Only non calorie items....:w00t:

Oh man....I'm on Optifast for 6 weeks and get the surgery on Oct. 8th. I just started it yesterday and have already discovered that vanilla is evil. I don't have any of these bars people are talking about, I'm just all shakes for 6 weeks. No fruit or anything. Only non calorie items....:cool2:

Hey Birchmoon,

Trust me I feel your pain. I just got banded on the 20th and haven't eaten "real" food for 3-4 weeks now. Good news though, I lost 24lbs already!!! Trust me you can do it. Just stay focused and know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I avoided food at all costs. Didn't go to the grocery store, didn't make the kids dinner...didn't put myself in front of food for a while. That really helped me, because as soon as I saw it, or smelled it I REALLY wanted it- heck I still do!!!

I just started my all liquids post op diet and that consists of all clear liquids, sugar free popsicles, sugar free jello (which I am SICK of) soup broth, yogurt (light and fit 60 calories) carnation instant breakfast, and of course protein drinks. I was thrilled to get to this stage believe it or not. The yogurt is the closest thing to food that I have had in a while, so it really fills me. I know I felt like it was going to take forever but just know that you will have such SUCCESS with it. I am so thrilled that I have lost 24lbs already, that it has really motivated me! Hang in there, and know that we are all here to talk to when times get rough- we have all been there and know EXACTLY what your going through.

I have to say I really liked the french vanilla optifast drink, I actually preferred it over the chocolate. After the 3rd or 4th day anything seems to taste good lol. Also after a few days the hunger went away and I was actually "satisfied" after a drink. It will get better, trust me! Good luck with everything and keep us all updated! :w00t:

Optifast is an odd thing...I have to struggle to get 5 shakes in every day because i feel pretty darn full afterward for a while. Plus I'm drinking a lot of water, at least half a gallon a day. With all that liquid, I feel like I'm gonna explode. My stomach isn't growling like it did yesterday, and I'm not physically hungry.....I'm mentally hungry. I WANT to eat just because it's food and it's good, not because I need to. The emotional attachment is going to be the most difficult thing to get rid of it. But I'm looking forward to stepping on that scale and seeing a number less than 200 for the first time in 10 years!