Any advice for these couple of weeks before surgery?
Hi,
I was wondering what advice you all would give before surgery. I am not really on any pre-op diet, as they did not want my BMI to get too low. I am to be on clear liqueds two days before surgery. I have thought of doing the liver reduction diet starting Wednesday, which would be two weeks out, I just feel like I should be doing something. I have given up Diet Coke and caffeine! I never thought I would be able to say I did that!
Anyway - any do's or don'ts are appreciated.
Thanks a lot!
Lynn
I was wondering what advice you all would give before surgery. I am not really on any pre-op diet, as they did not want my BMI to get too low. I am to be on clear liqueds two days before surgery. I have thought of doing the liver reduction diet starting Wednesday, which would be two weeks out, I just feel like I should be doing something. I have given up Diet Coke and caffeine! I never thought I would be able to say I did that!
Anyway - any do's or don'ts are appreciated.
Thanks a lot!
Lynn
giving up the diet coke and caffeine are major!
~~~~get a tape measure and measure "things'--upper arms/thighs/waist/hips/neck/bust
**youll be glad you did when your scale stops and you are sure you arent losing!
~~~~have someone take pics
~~~~get yourself right with your Higher power-know that you are doing this for you!
~~~~pack slippers and chapstick, hairbrush or comb
~~~~start a journal of your thoughts-no one else has to see it
dont stock up on lots of protein powders-tastes change after surgery!maybe a few sample size pouches...some decaf tea bags (its hard to drink cold right away for some)
relax...and breathe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
im sure others will chime in!!!!!!!!!!!
~~~~get a tape measure and measure "things'--upper arms/thighs/waist/hips/neck/bust
**youll be glad you did when your scale stops and you are sure you arent losing!
~~~~have someone take pics
~~~~get yourself right with your Higher power-know that you are doing this for you!
~~~~pack slippers and chapstick, hairbrush or comb
~~~~start a journal of your thoughts-no one else has to see it
dont stock up on lots of protein powders-tastes change after surgery!maybe a few sample size pouches...some decaf tea bags (its hard to drink cold right away for some)
relax...and breathe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
im sure others will chime in!!!!!!!!!!!
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.
- E. B. White
Get yourself a diary, take photo's naked and with clothes, measuring tape..measure all over record findings. Remember always you did NOT get overweight overnight. This is a journey to last for the rest of your life. The going will be slow, the weight will come off and if you are true to you it will never come back. Buy yourself small salad plates, pretty ones, never use a regular sized plate again. Get youself a pretty bunch of water container, remember you will be carrying these water bottle with you from room to room everywhere. Get a dish cleaner on a stick to help wipe your ass after surgery so you don't have to contort and hurt yourself to clean yourself. Lessoned learned after huge lap abd hernia repair....a god send and disposable. Organize your clothes by sizes now to see you through the weight loss process. I was a size 32 for years and spent a fortune on clothes and shoes. I wanted to be able to hand these good clothes up to someone else to use. I had no clothes in smaller sizes, so relied on friends hand me ups. Remind yourself everyday YOU ARE TAKING BACK YOUR LIFE. It will be slow, there will be stall, you will grieve for your loss of food..all normal. I watched Food TV for the month I was home from work after RNY...stupid but I did. I used FitDay to help me make sure I was getting enough food in the correct forms and amts after WLS. I needed to eat more protein I found 4 months out. I followed the instructions the doctors gave me. I asked questions. I came here. I went to support meetings. I involved my family. I discovered frozen shrimp, great protein not fat. But this was later on. I kept all my doctor appointments. I make myself first for once in my life. I realized that this was life changing and welcomed and embraced. I was true to me. I put my fork down between each bite of food. I chewed and chewed and chewed each small morsel. I felt the food and savored it. I did not drink with meals. BUT I SIPPED WATER ALL DAY OVER 70 OZ EVERDAY. I peed alot and was thankful for it, that meant the weight was leaving me. I realized that the fat was melting and HORMONES stored there for years were being released into my blood and tjhat is why I felt I was in menopause again. I worked hard on NOT weighing myself each day, but relied on my measuring tape to show me the new me.
Follow the rules, come to OFF everyday, ask questions, believe us, trust us, know we care. Good luck you asked, I answered. Monica
Follow the rules, come to OFF everyday, ask questions, believe us, trust us, know we care. Good luck you asked, I answered. Monica
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Start weaning yourself off of sugar, and once off of it, never go back to it again. It is addictive and hard to break, but not impossible.
Start a walking program, and stick to it. Walk everyday, and build up the time you walk so you will be comfortable walking post-op. If the hospital you have your surgery is like every other hospital, you will be walking starting the day you have your surgery. I was out of bed, walking four hours after coming up from post-op. They had me walking very four hours after that. It is to prevent blood clots, but also helps in healing. Start carrying water everywhere, and sipping it, because you will be doing this post-op as well.
Something that helped me that I did not do intentionally is deep breathing. Start doing deep breathing exercises multiple times a day. It will help you relax, which is a coping skill that helps me deal with feelings that come up. But it also will help you with the respiratory therapy, which they do post-op. Breath in through your nose, slowly. Then, blow it out slowly through your mouth, like you are blowing out a candle. Breath deeply, as that is what the respiratory therapists will have you doing. It also helps me to relax when I get a food craving and need a fix of something I am not supposed to eat, or drink.
The only other things would be to stock up on broth, sugar free pudding and jello mixes, and buy a blender if you don't already have one. I did not like the flavored protein drinks, but discovered AnyWhey protein powder, which is flavorless. I make my own protein shakes with the AnyWhey powder, milk, and Carnation Sugar Free Instant Breakfasts, or yogurt and berries. I get my AnyWhey powder at the hospital where I had my surgery, but I believe you can get it online. The other protein drink I do drink is Isopure, which is a clear fruit flavored drink loaded with protein. I love the Grape Frost flavored one, and did not like any other flavor. The Grape Frost flavor taste like grape Kool Aid.
I hope this helps.
Hugs,
Trish
Start a walking program, and stick to it. Walk everyday, and build up the time you walk so you will be comfortable walking post-op. If the hospital you have your surgery is like every other hospital, you will be walking starting the day you have your surgery. I was out of bed, walking four hours after coming up from post-op. They had me walking very four hours after that. It is to prevent blood clots, but also helps in healing. Start carrying water everywhere, and sipping it, because you will be doing this post-op as well.
Something that helped me that I did not do intentionally is deep breathing. Start doing deep breathing exercises multiple times a day. It will help you relax, which is a coping skill that helps me deal with feelings that come up. But it also will help you with the respiratory therapy, which they do post-op. Breath in through your nose, slowly. Then, blow it out slowly through your mouth, like you are blowing out a candle. Breath deeply, as that is what the respiratory therapists will have you doing. It also helps me to relax when I get a food craving and need a fix of something I am not supposed to eat, or drink.
The only other things would be to stock up on broth, sugar free pudding and jello mixes, and buy a blender if you don't already have one. I did not like the flavored protein drinks, but discovered AnyWhey protein powder, which is flavorless. I make my own protein shakes with the AnyWhey powder, milk, and Carnation Sugar Free Instant Breakfasts, or yogurt and berries. I get my AnyWhey powder at the hospital where I had my surgery, but I believe you can get it online. The other protein drink I do drink is Isopure, which is a clear fruit flavored drink loaded with protein. I love the Grape Frost flavored one, and did not like any other flavor. The Grape Frost flavor taste like grape Kool Aid.
I hope this helps.
Hugs,
Trish
Seek always to do some good, somewhere. Every man has to seek in his own way to realize his true worth. You must give some time to your fellow man. For remember, you don't live in a world all your own. Your brothers are here too.
Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer
Make yourself some homemade broths. For some of us, the liquid diet went on forever and I was so happy that I had frozen baggies of homemade chicken, beef, and vegetable broths. The ones from the store were just not as good. I also made them with onions so that they tasted richer. Like some of the others, get off of the caffiene now. Going through caffiene withdrawal after surgery is awful. And, find some good sugar free hard candies.
Take some slip on houseshoes, lip balm, lotion, and a slipoverthehead gown. When they got me up to walk, I was so thankful that I had the gown and the slippers.
Take some slip on houseshoes, lip balm, lotion, and a slipoverthehead gown. When they got me up to walk, I was so thankful that I had the gown and the slippers.
Nothing to add that isn't already covered, but wishing you luck on your homestretch journey into a healthier lifestyle and it appears you are already on your way. . . willingess to change is a big part of this journey, then comes the willlingness to stay the course and not revert back, as we have all done countless times. . . Best wishes. . .
Laureen
Laureen
My Mantra is that I do not determine my success by the number hanging in my closet, nor will I let the scale determine that success either. . . It is through trial and error I will continue to grow and succeed. . . Laureen
"Success is a journey, not a destination." Ben Sweetland
lynn; after i posted last night i realized you are having a sleeve procedure--i am NOT familiar with the after surgery stuff on that--so far all of us *****plied had RNY where we can dump on sugar and fats-and cannot eat much if anything immediately out from surgery-our pouches are super sensitive----
tho the wisdom is all the same....
btw i absolutely adore your tiger pic--the tiger is my absolute all time fave animal...i may steal your photo for something else!!!!!
tho the wisdom is all the same....
btw i absolutely adore your tiger pic--the tiger is my absolute all time fave animal...i may steal your photo for something else!!!!!
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.
- E. B. White
Good luck ... everyone said a lot that I would say. My doc put me on a 2-week pre-op diet to shrink the liver but you do what your doc wants.
Giving up caffeine was the toughest for me, especially cold turkey. I was a bear, my joints hurt from it (when don't my joints hurt?). I gave it up for two years post-op, too, then went back.
Giving up caffeine was the toughest for me, especially cold turkey. I was a bear, my joints hurt from it (when don't my joints hurt?). I gave it up for two years post-op, too, then went back.
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