1. Don't worry about the surgery, doctors have this procedure memorized so they can do it in their sleep. (hopefully they won't though) but it seems most everyone goes through an uneventful surgical period.

The biggest part of the surgery is after you get out of the hospital. The constant protein drinks, the crushing of pills and vitamins, the no solid food, and more yucky protein drinks.

If you look back at a few pages of this board, you'll see the protein drinks/powders is probably the biggest problem most people have with the surgery as just about everyone seems to complain about the protein stuff.

My suggestion is to start stocking up on Ensure and even though it's expensive, it's one of the most bearable protein drinks you can get.

I'm a month out of surgery. One of my doctors (not GBS doctor) looked at my surgical scars today and said they had all healed very nicely. Every once in a while a little pain from the big incision they make for the camera, but that's about it. Just remember it's a life changing event, and you won't eat what you consider real food for at least 6 months to a year after the surgery.

What kind of protein drinks are out there?? Besides ensure...

dietdirect.com has as Wonderslim puddings and shakes, which are really great. WalMart has a great Whey Protein PBnChoc and Vanilla.

As to anxiety re surgery, I highly recommend downloading the MP3 version of Successful Surgery. It was a godsend for me!

http://www.healthjourneys.com/product_detail.aspx?id=29

My program says no Ensure since the carbs are high. Each program has its own recommendations.

I like Unjury powder, but you can only buy it on line, I think.

Check out the Ensure High Protein supplements.

Each surgery practice is different, ask your doctor what they recommend.

My surgeon stresses protein from real food as opposed to shakes and processed powders...

@brooklyn, I was speaking of the protein supplements during the first couple of months after surgery. Of course after you can eat food then getting protein through natural sources such as chicken, tuna, tofu, beans, lentils, cheese,eggs, milk, etc is much better for your body. But in the beginning (the part that sux) those protein supplements are the part that make it rough.

You can get greek yogurt with about 15g of protein, but cost about $1.50 per container, you can get odwalla protein with 25g of protein for $2.79, or you can get the 6 pack of high protein Ensure with 15g of protein for $10.00. BeneProtein offers 15g of protein to any food or beverage with no taste or texture change and it's about $0.80 per packet. There's also protein shots that taste like rancid fruit punch that are only 3oz but have 25g of protein. Lot of protein but awful flavor. Most of the powder proteins foam up a lot when you blend them and gives you gas. Some of the flavored protein powders have too much sugar and some of them are simply awful. Many people speak of Unjury and another one but I have not tried any of those. (I mix beneprotein with 3oz of Oj twice a day that's 30g of protein, I drink one of those nasty protein shots, that's 25g of protein, a slice a cheese 8g of protein, and a small piece of a protein bar, about 8g of protein, 4 saltines a day, 4g of protein, That's 75g of protein and they recommend 60g of protein. Some days i substitute tofu and rice (25g of protein) for one of the Beneproteins. Or two eggs with a touch of skim milk which is 14g of protein. When you get to that stage mixing it up is good. During the first couple of weeks, it has to be liquid and that's the biggest part of regret in the entire surgery process.

Hey Barefoot, have you looked at the nutritional stats on ensure? For an 8 oz serving Of 250 calories you get 8 grams of protein And the first three ingredients are sugar of some sort.

In the beginning my calorie target was 500 to 600 per day... I would not invest half my days totals in a sugary drink that doesn't get me close to my protein goal...

I known this sounds aggressive but I urge us not to be penny wise and pound foolish with nutrition..

Good luck,
Brooklyn.

My Nut also says do not use ensure because of the sugar. I tried the Unjury when the Nut gave me a sample. It wasnt horrible, but I do not drink anything thick, so any of the protein shakes are going to be a challenge for me. She also gave me a packet of Baritric advantage and it was sooo thick I had to use a spoon. When I saw her 2 days ago, she gave me a sample of the clear, so maybe that one will be tolerable .

Welcome! Check out this what to know what to expect post.

http://www.dailystrength.org/c/Gastric_Bypass_Surgery/forum/12686399-newbies-know

There are thousands of protein choices out there. Everyone's taste is different both before amd after surgery. Almost every store takes returns. If they don't take returns hen go to a different store. Keep trying until you find protein you like. Before surgery I liked Nectar chocolate or cookies and cream. Now they are too sweet and I Iove Maxpro from Muscle Max