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My surgery is in exactly 30 days..... any suggestions for people who have already had the surgery? Anything you would have done differently?

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  • merobles827
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    Sorry I am not post-op, I am pre-op, mine is in 34 days and I have been wondering the same thing.
  • garber6th
    garber6th Posts: 1,894 Member
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    Start doing the things now that you will have to do after your surgery - practice sipping water all day, walk as much as possible, start tracking what you eat, try a few different protein drinks and powders to see what you like, prepare your environment too - make sure you will have everything you need for when you are home recuperation. also, be aware of the phases of eating your surgeon has planned for you. Know as much as you can about post-surgery and what you have to do before you even have the surgery.
  • DJRonnieLINY
    DJRonnieLINY Posts: 475 Member
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    I would have started to log all my food into MFP pre-op if I had known about the app. The best habit I have developed (besides exercise)!!
  • dward59
    dward59 Posts: 731 Member
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    Disclaimer, this is my view only. Others may have different views and suggestions; I'd be surprised if they didn't. The one truism is that this is a purely personal road you walk. Everyone has different truths for their experience.

    Start walking now. You will have to walk after surgery, in fact they will pull you out of bed to walk the halls several times a day. Plus it will get you ahead of the game for the rest of your life.

    Don't empty your pantry or buy special tools you don't already have or haven't been thinking of buying anyway. The nutritionist we had was so LapBand oriented that she told us things that weren't true for Sleevers. We emptied our pantry, much to our College attending daughter's joy and benefit, only to discover that once back on real food, we would be able to eat almost anything we had before. Adding to this, we purchased a food processor that we used exactly twice during the pureed food period.

    To go with that, do NOT stock up on anything. You will find that some tastes change. You don't want to get stuck with $100 worth of protein powder or protein drinks that you can't stand.

    Do, check out the Blog called TheWorldAccordingtoEggface. This amazing lady has a lot of recipes for the various stages of recovery from surgery and for life beyond.

    Take preSurgery photos and/or measurements. Believe me, as you lose so rapidly you will love to have that baseline to help judge the changes. I can't tell you how many people, including myself who wish we had done this.

    Find as many local support groups as you can. If you haven't already started attending at least one, make sure you do. Get all the support you can. Talking to others who have had surgery is a great thing. You can get great ideas at these meetings to help you use this tool to it's fullest potential.

    Good luck to both of you.
  • chiwookc
    chiwookc Posts: 5
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    dward59...loved the info! thank you even thought it wasnt directed to me :)
  • knitnpurlgurl
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    :-) You will be getting your surgery about the time I am going home from the hospital :-)
  • knitnpurlgurl
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    Thank you for the information Dward! And thanks to everyone else for the suggestions as well. I am going to go check out that blog now... also I am thinking about starting a blog too...
  • Ksh1055
    Ksh1055 Posts: 248 Member
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    I agree with Garber5th. About a month out I began eating 3 main small meals with a mid-morning, mid-afternoon and evening snack (always with protein first). The hardest thing for me was "no drinking" with meals/snacks. When I had to go on special products pre-surgery for a week, my body was already becoming accustomed to the smaller meals and I didn't have any problem with hunger. Began some walking and attended mandatory pre-op group sessions.

    I also began logging into MFP daily so I could track my intake and for accountability. This gives me motivation and also will have a daily record of food and exercise.
  • knitnpurlgurl
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    Thanks. :-) I am going to try the smaller meals....my worry is feeling hungry but hopefully that wont be as big of an issue if I start now :-)
  • Mangopickle
    Mangopickle Posts: 1,509 Member
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    Sip,sip,sip,walk,walk,walk,go to support group,go to support group, don't stock up on much cause your tastes change, get Kryptonite foods out of the house, don't reintroduce Kryptonite foods back into your life, if you think you can keep the foods that made you fat, you can't so let them go. Deal with your problems don't medicate with food, you are not hungry, it is all in your head. Log everything , measure everything, follow your diet packet. Protein and vitamins are going to be hard to get in you just have to keep working at it. The better you do the less hair you will lose. Sleeved 11/20/13, down 64#, open diary so feel free to look at what I eat. Best thing I ever did for myself,but it is not magic. I no longer eat wheat, rice or potato. I stopped all my meds except reflux. Good luck!
  • mcastgirlnc
    mcastgirlnc Posts: 23 Member
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    Everyone has added amazing suggestions so I don't have much to add. I would just say be patient with yourself, your body will adjust and go through changes. Don't expect to lose a lot of weight the first few weeks just in case it doesn't happen (as was my case). Give your body time to heal and don't rush into another phase of your plan, your stomach will thank you for it :)
  • kayc6670
    kayc6670 Posts: 13
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    My surgery was 2/3/14, and i feel great now! Take one day at a time. I log everything in MFP and I measure everything, because it is too easy to guess too much food. So i measure 2oz protien and 2 oz of carbohydrate and how ever long it takes me to get it down at least i know how much I'm supposed to eat mentally. I drink Unjury protien shake for mid-morning snack and a Quest Bar for afternoon snack before I go to the gym. The first week after surgery was the hardest because you wont feel like drinking anything, but make yourself or youll have more issues, like my kidneys starting hurting and i was getting very dizzy. Good luck and after you get past that "what the hell did i just do?" phase you'll be fine and its amazing to actually feel full.
  • knitnpurlgurl
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    Thank you :-) all great suggestions
  • dsagel
    dsagel Posts: 14 Member
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    You have heard this in prior posts but the hardest thing for me was not drinking with my meals. I should have practiced that long before my surgery!!