**Vitamin list for the healing stage of VSG at bottom!
So, after doing some more reading and youtubing, I now have proof that my “quick” move to regular foods is NOT unusual. I found a couple that both had the sleeve at the same time and their Dr cut them loose at 5 wks to eat “regular” foods. They did 2 weeks liquid, one week pureed, one week soft then onto regular food. JUST LIKE I DID. It’s all about what the Dr hands you on the little care sheet. The timelines are just suggestions, everyone is different. While I’m fine with the 5 wk timeline, someone else might be struggling and end up on the 8 wk timeline. You won’t know until you are doing it. I followed my body’s lead and when I wanted to try different foods, I did. Listen to your body!!
I’ve also been doing research on the no drinking while eating “rule” and that also depends on the person. The logic behind it is that the pouch fills up fast and you don’t want to have a liquid hogging space – which is sensible and has been my experience. Another theory is that too much fluid will “wash out” the foods too soon and you’ll not get the nutrition. That one I think is suspect, but perhaps?
What I DO NOT like is when the medical people – be it Dr, dietician, nurse or other caregiver – have hissy fits if you don’t follow *their* rules and threaten you with statements like “OH, if you drink water with meals, you’ll have trouble down the line!” Which is a total LIE (NOT told to me, but to the couple on youtube). Drinking with a meal will NOT harm the pouch, but it may not feel great to you, either. Once that puppy is healed, IT IS HEALED. It’s not going to pop open or anything! ALSO, drinking carbonated drinks will NOT stretch out the pouch. That is a myth. I drink carbonated water all the time before and now. I also drink beer, sake and wine without issue. I didn’t do these things during healing, but I do now and it’s fine – but not with meals.
So, again, when dealing with bariatric surgery (VSG in particular), do your research, but don’t be afraid to experiment and see what works best for YOU. The 5 wk timeline has worked fine for me (I’m almost at wk 6). Drinking with meals does NOT work for me (yet), but I don’t usually drink a lot while eating anyway. Drinking carbonated water is fine for me. As I always say: your mileage may vary.
For me, doing this procedure was precisely to NOT have to be on a diet ever again. I don’t intend to live my life counting calories, protein, carbs or anything else. I think 40 years of dieting is ENOUGH. I am very mindful of what I eat right now because I’m still adjusting and creating new habits, but I don’t intend to be keeping food logs at 6 months. I intend to live my life and still lose the weight, which is what I’m confident will happen. Here’s to NO DIETS.
To quote a guy on a forum: “I may be a renegade, but to me a normal person has some water with dinner…and my goal was to look, feel, and act like a normal person for the first time in my adult life. I am obviously not advocating that anyone follow in my footsteps; I just wanted to give a different perspective.” Yep, I feel ya, buddy, I feel ya. :)
**Addendum: I seem to have removed the list of vitamins I took at the beginning of my VSG journey! Here is the list that I took when I was healing:
Adult Gummies multivitamins (Kirkland from Costco): 4/day (double dose because gummies are low quality)
Pioneer Calcium/Magnesium, dark chocolate, 4 quarter sized tablets per serving
Quickdots Vit D3 and K2 chewables 1 tiny melt per serving
Quickdots Vit B12 (and folic acid) chewables, 1 small melt per svg
Once I was eating normally and taking capsules w/out issues, I added in some of the other things I take and you can see that list here.