Expert Tips & Tricks you need for Success

Bariatric Advice
& Support

Everything you need to know about living your best post-op bariatric surgery life.

Fortune cookies with a message slip reading Follow your plan! on a mint-green background.

Not the time for Chinese Food

They gave him very little education and the psychologist should have picked up on how non compliant he would be. I tried to talk him out of it but he was determined.

Neon FAQ sign on a brick wall with colorful doodles and a cartoon woman thinking beside it.

FAQ: How can I get 'all my protein from food' like my nutritionist requires?

I had my surgery in 2001 meaning I am far enough out of surgery where I should be able to get all my protein from food - and in theory I can. However, if I did not drink an Inspire protein drink in the morning or during the day, I would be eating all day long. It's just too much food, even for me.

Pop-art style graphic of a surprised woman with a speech bubble saying her weight loss has hit a wall.

What's YOUR Bariatric Category?

Relax, You're A Staller!  After surgery we all go through the same categories.

pring trees and blooming pink blossoms in a city park with tall skyscrapers in the background.8

Bariatric Low Blood Sugar is serious Business

Many of us who have had bariatric surgery have these episodes and either think we are the only ones and generally have no idea what is causing them. I knew this happened to others, but after so many years post op was confused as to why I was suddenly getting whacked like this.

Hearty tomato-based soup topped with grated cheese and fresh parsley in a white bowl.

Transitioning from Early Soft Stages to 'Real Food'

This is not a diet with a beginning and end - this is your whole new life!
Bowl of black bean soup topped with cilantro, salsa, and sour cream, with a spoon and napkin beside it.

Full Liquids - Your First Baby Steps with Food

The goal in this phase is to introduce a few calories into your diet and ready your surgically altered stomach and intestines for food. Doctors vary in their requirements for length of time in this food stage; some as little as a few days to as long as a month or even longer in cases. Stay with your surgeons prescribed timeline.

Neon FAQ sign on a brick wall with colorful doodles, beside an illustrated woman thinking.

FAQ: Is it okay for me to have wine?

Most doctors say okay for you to have wine IF you are at least one year post op.

Cylindrical slab of canned cranberry sauce standing upright beside an opened tin can.

Take Back Thanksgiving!

This year let's make Thanksgiving about the day and the people and not buy in to believing that our worth is tied to a bowl of brown sugar and marshmallow sweet potatoes that we *must* make.

People clinking filled champagne flutes together, with one person holding a bottle in the background.

Post-op Drinking. Should we? Tis the Season for Parties.

It is important that we have an open and honest discussion of holiday drinking so we not only know what to expect, but can handle ourselves like ladies and gentlemen and remain safe. 
Three wine glasses of different shapes, each partially filled with red wine, arranged side by side.

Gastric Bypass Surgery Causes Alcoholism! Really? Nope. It Grabs Attention Though.

Bariatric surgery doesn't necessarily cause alcoholism, the procedure just happens to be performed on a population that carries a lot of emotional baggage

Bariatric Recipes Advice, Rants & Support Podcast: Real Talk