The day after my VSG it took me all day (8am to 9pm) to drink 20oz with little sips. The 2nd day it was easier and I drank 32oz with no discomfort. By the third day I was able to drink 64oz, all with little frequent sips. The water tends to flow through as the swelling subsides.

Hi! This is a question I had preop myself. Right after surgery I had a hard time with water (especially plain) so it was sip sip sip all day. Now I can drink a 16 oz water bottle in about 10 minutes depending on meal timing (if I'm already empty it doesn't stay in my tummy-if full it takes a little bit). I don't feel abnormal, I just know that I can't pound a 32 oz drink like I used to in the old days

I'm a gulper, especially when working out. It's be a tough adjustment for me to just sip but that's what you have to do at first, obviously. I'm about 4.5 months out right now and the water thing is starting to feel more normal. I can't down a 16oz bottle in one go like I used to but I can now take 3 big sips at a time. So maybe 2-3 ounces at once. I make them go down a little slower than before but I can still do that in the 5-6 second range. Then I have to wait maybe 30-60 seconds to do it again. It has been sufficient for taking water breaks at soccer halftimes, during race type events, or when I'm mowing the lawn and it's 100 degrees. I no longer have a problem staying hydrated without spending an hour focusing on drinking. It helps to also do some sipping during the day while you are at a desk, etc. Generally the good eating habits haven't been hard (though getting protein is), but drinking slow, getting enough liquid and not drinking during meals was a big adjustment. The combination of getting used to it and things getting easier over time makes it feel more normal fairly quickly though.

I am 3 weeks out and I agree with the straw statement. I drink double the water with a straw than without. It's a struggle but I see it gets better.

One of the things I did that helped (I'm also a gulper) is that if I catch myself taking a large sip, I just hold the water in my mouth and swallow it a little bit at a time over the next few seconds and it definitely helps. I sometimes forget when I'm at the park water fountain, though, and OUCH. I'm almost five months out and I still have to be very careful at portioning down sips.

At 10 months out I can drink 4-6 oz at a time (like, one glug glug glug while working out)--finishing a 20 oz bottle in around 30 minutes. Normally, I just sip normal amounts throughout the day and don't guzzle. That can leave me feeling a little nauseated if I'm not careful.

My job is outdoors much of the time and I'll forget that I can't chug a bottle of water anymore. A few times I've had to just spew it back out, it happens

One of my favorite recoveries was when I could finally gulp again. Sipping constantly for almost a year had been frustrating. Two years out now, and can drink whatever I want. But I tend not to drink more than a cup at a time.

I'm 1.5 years out and I can just about chug a bottle of water with no discomfort as long as it has been 45 minutes or more since I ate. I'd say I can get a 16 oz bottle down in 10 minutes if I really wanted to.