Question?

Since my surgery is a month away. What are some things I can start doing to prep for surgery and my new lifestyle? 

Hi

Here are some suggestions but not a requirement.

1.)  lose as much weight as possible. ( i wish I lost more before surgery)
2.)  Call bariactric Advantage and some of the other companies and let them
know your having surgery and that you want to try some of their protein and vitamin
samples
3.)  Apply for your disability pay
4.)  Purchase some thing for home, protein powders, vitamins ( chewable and liquid)
Gas X strip ( the kind that melt on your tongue or chewable)  Liquid Tylenol, lip ointment
for the hospital, little measuring shot glasses, baby spoons, baby plates ( walmart has some
cool small dishes)
5.)  Walk walk wal and start exercising now
6.)  Keep reaching out and reading everything on OH
7.)  Attend some of your bariactric support groups if they are available to you

I am sure others will chime in.....   yaaaaaaaaaay for one more month! Congrats!

Get all the crap out of your house if you haven't already. 

Sample a bunch of protein drinks and see which ones you like. There are a lot of difference in tastes.
Practice not drinking with meals.

Practice taking small bites and chewing until it's liquid in your mouth.

Sample vitamins and buy a supply of what your nut tells you to take (usually B12 sublingual, calcium citrate, a good chewable multi and iron)

Practice your strut because in a few months you will be using it a lot!

These are things that helped me tremendously:

1) Stop eating and drinking simultaneously, just don't bring a glass to the table. If out, order water, and when your meal arrives, move the glass to other end of the table.

2) Eat the meat portion first, greens next, and last carbs if any

3) Sit your utensil down in between bites

4) Start being mindful of portion size. Measuring is a key to my success. Learning that eyeballing sucks until you can really grasp portion sizes leads to overeating. If you can't measure, when out to eat, visuals to help with portion size; a matchbox is about 1 ounce, a deck of cards is 3oz.

5) Identify, recognize, accept, and start working on your own individualized food issues.

6) Eat slower, make your meal last 20 minutes, but no longer than 30 minutes. Lose the "clean your plate" mentality

7) Start reading food labels. Start learning to listen to your body and how different foods effect your mood, your energy level, etc etc.

8) Start doing some sort of physical activity

I am one who likes to be very prepared, so these suggestions are based on what I did.  I should mention that I thought I would be on clear liquids for two weeks post-op, but was released from the hospital 3 days post-op on full liquids.  I recommend you have stuff on hand for both phases so you don't have to worry about going out and getting anything for a while.

1.  VITAMINS & PROTEIN SHAKES- Order vitamin samples from different brands according to your doctor's recommendations (Celebrate, Bariatric Advantage, etc..) and protein shake samples (Vitalady is good) to have on hand post-op, but don't try them until after surgery because your tastes can/probably will change.

2.  LIQUID PROTEIN - Buy a few bottles of Isopure and different flavors of Crystal Light or another low calorie, no-sugar drink mix so you can mask the flavor if you don't like it.  Also, get a few different flavors of "New Whey" or similar brand of "protein shots".  They are around 40+ grams of protein for less than 4 ounces of liquid and were incredibly helpful to me the first days home.

3.  JELLO & SOUP - Stock up on SF jello and SF pudding as well as cream soups.  A day or so before surgery, you may want to buy some skim milk in case you go on full liquids sooner than you think.

4.  PROJECTS - Take care of any household organization or projects that you may want to have done in the next few months.  Most doctors recommend that you don't push, pull, or carry anything over 10 pounds (which is nothing) for around 6 weeks.  I found that cleaning out and organizing my closet pre-op has been very helpful.  I got rid of stuff and even found a few items that I can "shrink into" over the next few months.

5.  TIDY UP - Before you go into surgery, do all your laundry, housecleaning, etc...

1. Stop drinking carbonated beverages.
2. Get good walking/jogging shoes.
3. If you smoke, stop.

Excellent advice so far!!! I'll also add - mentally prepare. For example, you WILL hit a stall. Mentally prepare for this and know that it will pass! Also, mentally prepare for the tough food situations, such as eating out, parties, etc. You'll get past the initial liquids, mushies, etc and then you'll have to be mentally prepared for those tough situations. They will be fine... but mentally can be a struggle. Think positive!

You'll do great by listening to all the awesome advice here.