VSG Veterans - Any advice for me? My surgery date is 6/20 :)

Hi, I am just checking in to see if there is any pre-op advice any of you WLS veterans want to share with me.  I am excited, nervous, but yes, mostly excited....any suggestions on how to prepare for the big day, and what comes afterward? :)

Lol...If you ask 10 of us, you'll probably get 10 pieces of advice and some of it will be conflicting, but don't worry...you'll do great! My only advice would be to start making some changes now. Addicted to soda? Try weaning yourself off of them now.  Used to eating an unhealthy breakfast (or no breakfast at all?) Start drinking a protein shake in the morning instead. Doing these little things prior to the pre-op liquid diet really helped me feel like I wasn't going "cold turkey" right before surgery. After surgery, just remember slow and steady wins the race. You're not going to do everything perfectly, but you also will be doing much better than you've ever done before. If/when you make a mistake, forgive yourself and start over. You're going to love the fact that you decided to do this! Good luck!

Lol!  True :)  Thank you for that advice - I will absolutely do this!  

I'm not a vet, but I agree with previous post. Do as many of the changes as you can pre-op. And definitely get used to logging your food

It is also helpful to get a good exercise program going. Being in better shape helps with surgery. Also, muscle is what helps burn fat. We all lose some muscle in the early stages after surgery, so I tried to improve my muscle mass by strength training before surgery.   

The time also goes much faster when you have goals to work on!

You may want to order sample pack of protein powder to see if there are any you like.  Don't over buy like I did, over a year out and haven't got thru all of it yet.  I also had gas-X, a thermometer, and get ready to walk and sip after surgery.

I bought a ton of stuff pre-op and I haven't ended up using all of it.  Yet.  I hope to eventually!  I agree with the advice you've gotten so far.  I also recommend finding which vitamins you'll be taking so you're prepared for that.  Your NUT might have samples of vitamins for you to try.  

One of the things that I enjoyed doing pre-op was looking at menus for local restaurants.  That probably seems silly, but I found it really calming to look at menus and figure out what I'd be able to order in the future.  It was reaffirming in a way because it reminded me that I would still be able to eat post-op.  Does that make sense?  Maybe I'm just weird :P  

DO start preop lifestyle eating change ASAP. Too many people, in my opinion and seeing posts here are NOT prepared and thing life goes on with them shoving all kinds of food in their mouths....yes yes, you can eat just about anything that your tummy will agree with but please don't push the envelope. Take the time to really, truly analyze why you eat, the quantities, what drives you to keep eating (boredom, anxiety, depression and then the circle never ends...) and realize that you may not being sufficiently satisfied by what you're going to be 'eating' in the next 30 days BUT that it's temporary, and you WILL live. If it helps to think of starving children or people somewhere, think about it! You really only need water in big amounts and some protein to quick start your body into preop shape.

DO NOT over-purchase something that you like now because you may not like it one big after surgery.

DO learn to either write down all your intake of food and drink and carry it with you (it's like how shocked you are if you really write down each penny you spend and wonder when/where that went--same with food). There are some great phone apps and other online tools for it to calculate for you.

DO measure yourself top to bottom. Then put the list away. Bring it out in 6 months or whatever you want--compare for those days when you need a pick-me-up because the scale isn't helping or you're experiencing a stall. Along that line, DO take photos of yourself now. Hide them. Bring them out and do a side by side compare.

Instead of dwelling on food, learn to eat to live, not live to eat. Get familiar with herbs and spices, oils, flavors of things you really DO like now. Get a blender or smoothie maker. You can have decadent tasting fun with sugar free syrups, ice cubes, vanilla whey protein mix and almond milk. FILLING and perfect.

Get close and personal with water. Take a or bottle with you. Everywhere. Sip, sip, sip. You won't be able to chug anything for quite awhile. Have it be beside you in bed, first thing when you wake up, last thing at night. When you think you cannot possibly drink more... Drink more!! (most people don't drink enough water, and stopping our bad habits all cold turkey might be more than some people can handle [smoking, soda, carbs] so attacking one addiction at a time might be easier....)

Honest to God, this will work IF you play the game. Okay it's not a game. It's life. You choose to over eat what got you overweight in the first place. Now we're going to learn to eat correctly and reward ourselves with health and a slim body. (whenever I'm having a pity party I look at all the before/after photos of people on here)

The truth about most overeaters is we are either emotionally and/or unconsciously eating. A lot. Keeping busy in newfound or old favorite things will be easier to keep you away from the kitchen and grazing. Hopefully, your ghrelin will be removed and you will wake up not hungry for a very, very long time...like months.....I wish that for you.

The chance of you succeeding and meeting goal or more is in your own hands now. It truly WON'T kill you to not eat. It will most likely KILL you if you continue on this journey without the VSG tool. One way or the other. Surround yourself with confidence, knowledge, moral support, and excellent self-talk.

YOU. CAN. DO. THIS.

Take a pillow to surgery with you. It will help make you feel better holding it against your sorry abdomen on the way home.

Get GasX strips and keep them handy.

Get as many household chores out of the way as possible preop.

I personally wouldn't bother with the premade containers of broth. They just aren't substantial for me: I strained chicken noodle and vegetable beef and THAT was awesome.

You've got 60 days to prep for this. DO IT!!!! Baby steps, baby steps. Don't judge yourself. Don't compare yourself to others here, especially men because they lose more, faster.

Expect that some angst and possibly depression will hit you as A) your hormones begin to dump and B) your first stall at about 3 weeks out occurs.

Expect that people will treat you differently. Some are jealous. Some are knowitalls, some are fearful for you (as if being FAT is soooooo unfearing??), some just can't keep their mouths shut. Tell or don't tell, that is up to you. Personally, I screamed it from the rooftops because I wanted an extra accountability phase.

You just need to put things in order and get ready for the biggest ride of your life. ENJOY IT