I had chosen the LapBand for my weight loss surgery. You can Google it easily if you are not already familiar with it.
I joined an online support group for pre-op and post-op patients. I discussed all sorts of things with my new friends and began to some common threads in their post surgery lives.
I heard about vomiting, gas, indigestion, gastro esophageal reflux, problems with medicines, vitamins, liquids. I heard about friends returning to the hospital with gall bladder issues, pancreatic problems, malnutrition. I read about struggles to drink enough water and to eat enough protein. I quickly saw that the protein shake could solve many problems quickly but many new friends complained about the taste!
Maybe this was not for me?
I had six months to wait.
Hmmm. Is there a weight loss diet regimen that I could use to practice?
This is a suggested diet for post ops:
Week 1-2:
During this time, only thin liquids can be tolerated. It’s important to keep hydrated with lots of water. Other liquids recommended during this phase include: Clear broth or soup (with no vegetables or meat and not creamy) Skim milk Fruit juice No-sugar added popsicles
Week 3-4:
During this phase, you may start having slightly textured foods. Aim for the consistency of baby foods. Eat protein-rich foods first and then move on to fruits and vegetables. Foods may include: Pureed skinless fish or chicken, Mashed potatoes, Low-fat yogurt or pudding
Week 5:
You may now begin soft foods such as fish and ground turkey. Make it a habit to chew foods well. If you don’t, you may experience vomiting, stomach irritation and swelling. You could also have a stoma obstruction.
If solid foods cause nausea and vomiting, go back to the liquid diet. Then, slowly add soft foods and eventually transition to solid foods.
Solid Foods:
When you are able to eat solid foods without problems, you will need to pay close attention to your diet after lap band surgery. The gastric band system was designed to restrict solids, not liquids.
Liquids will pass through the upper stomach pouch quickly and will not make you feel full. Drinking liquids during or immediately after meals tends to flush food through the pouch and you will not get the prolonged feeling of satiety needed to help you eat less.
A lot of patients have difficulty with solid foods in the morning. If this is the case for you, open the gastric band by starting with a couple glasses of liquid before your first meal.
Too much food or big chunks of food can block the stomach pouch outlet. Avoid this by chewing your food thoroughly and eating small bits at a time. Remember, your new stoma opening is the size of a dime.
Eat only three meals a day and make sure these meals contain adequate nutrients. Your stomach can only hold about ¼ cup of food, or 2 ounces, at a time. Stop eating when hunger is gone or when you feel comfortable.

WAIT A SEC!!!!! 2 ounces of food 3 times a day?
I don't need surgery to lose weight on that!
I decided to try an "Act as if" Diet.
More on that next time.

Today we add liquids to our index cards.
Start tracking how much and what you drink each day.
Do you drink at least 64 ounces of water daily? I don't so I work very hard to drink as much as I can.


**I am not saying that weight loss surgery does not work- it is a great tool and needs to be treated as a tool.
(some data has been quoted from http://bmi.ucsd.edu/about-obesity/Pages/default.aspx but I didn't choose one site over another for any reason other than ease of viewing.)