Hi All,
On day three of the pre-op diet. Just wondering, for those of you who are further down the road, what has been the most difficult part of this journey for you?
Steph

 WEEK ONE!!!  It was the worst week of the whole 6 weeks so far.  I could smell everything, eat nothing, felt like I was starving, in this weird pain I could not describe to anyone so they could understand.  I cried about everything.   I felt like I had ruined my life and was a freak compared to my friends and family.   I had byers remorse bad!  

I am great now.  Love my new life!

I did not have any trouble with eating or drinking post-op (no vomiting or getting anything "stuck", only dumped 3 times), so, hands down, the hardest part for me has been maintaining the weight loss beyond 2 years out. 

I also struggled quite a bit with getting my brain to catch up to my new body size once the weight was off.  There are still some days when i would swear my thighs are just as big as they always were (even though I can EASILY stand with BOTH legs in ONE leg of my pre-op jeans).

Lora

Um... I think I would have to say getting enough protein in the early days.  I had the hardest time finding protein shakes I could tolerate.  I eventually found some I liked, and of course by now I can get a lot of protein from food and I also use protein bars.  But I sure lost a LOT of hair early out when I wasn't getting my protein.

Current, I would say the two hardest things for me are 1) getting all my vitamins in, and 2) not being able to take NSAIDS.

I totally understand the importance of getting my vitamins, and my labs have always been pretty good, but in the beginning I hated the chewable vitamins.  Now that I don't often use chewables, it's easier, but it's still a chore to take them all.  Let's see, I take about eight most days, at different times.  And I just have this thing where I don't like taking pills.  I feel the same way about my meds.

As far as the NSAIDS thing goes, I have a compressed disc in my back and my back specialist says NSAIDS would really, really help.  Tylenol does nothing.  Vicodin and Flexoril together help a good bit, but also make me very, very sleepy.  Physical therapy did nothing.  Steroid injections helped a lot, but wore off after just a couple months (I was told they'd last much long than that).

I just had my surgery 3 weeks ago, and for me the hardest part was the pro-op liquid diet.  I think I now know what a heroin addict goes through when they quit cold turkey.

Not everyone goes through this as some postops can eat just about anything after awhile....but for me, I have had to totally alter what I eat. 

My pouch is very small and it is very senstitive to food as well as emotion.  I also dump.  I no longer eat for pleasure....which I have covinced myself is a good thing....but it has also required some attitude adjustment!   

I also am not a big fan of eating in front of others or in places where I don't know the people around me.  For some reason, my stomach just does tolerate food when there is a good deal of "energy"....such as people talking or alot of activity (such as my grandkids running around).   I often will postpone eating until I am alone becuase i will just feel like crap otherwise.

Thank you for posting this! I thought it might all just be in my head. I tend to feel sick or just unpleasant if I try and eat in front of people. At home, my diet is pretty lack-luster because of the limited food I can eat. Food is definitely not for pleasure anymore. It's been rough.

Granted, I have some health issues I'm working on too. I was just glad to see that someone else feels and has the same reactions to food as I do now.

Carla,

I also have not heard of anyone else with public eating issues and I do feel like a freak sometimes!    I am used to it now and it is not big deal postpone my eatingtummy ....but is was weird at first and not expected.

There have been a few hard parts for me. I REALLY miss not being able to just relax and eat what I want without thinking about chewing, timing of the last time I drank something. The comfort that I used to feel after coming home from a long day at work and eat - a sub, pizza, chips, etc. - while watching TV. Now I have to find ways to feel that comfort that does not involve food (or bad food) - it really is like losing your best friend!!  I still have days when I am sad and would give my left arm for a big piece of cake or a huge slice of pizza.

Also, in the beginning you can't eat, and it takes awhile to see the weight loss, so you begin to wonder if you are going through it all for nothing.  For me it took a solid 6 weeks to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Next Friday I will be cleared to eat regular foods, and I have the countdown going on!  

Lastly, two weeks post-op I started becoming lactose intolerant, and literally every day it got worse, so at this point I am completely DAIRY intolerant (including whey protein because whey is derived from milk) - so that puts a huge damper in what I can eat. That has caused unexpected difficulty, but I'll make it! :)

Everyone's journey is so unique - I wish you all the luck in the world!!!!

Right after surgery it was definitely getting enough protein and drinking enough liquids.  Now, it's taking all the vitamins.  It seems like I take them all day and never finish.