Not a big drinker

Hello friends.  I've never been much of a drinker.  Of any liquid (I don't drink alcohol at all).  Before surgery I would drink maybe 2 cans of diet soda a day, and possibly a little iced tea, but mostly not.  Since surgery, I'm getting my 64 oz. of fluid, and it's pure torture to me.  I feel like I'm drowning!  It's not the pouch, I just don't really like drinking, never have. O, I haven't had any soda or caffeine since June, so no worries there.  

I know the fluids are important for the weight loss, but my question is, once I am at maintenance, is there any reason I can't cut back on the fluids?  Does the malabsorption mean I need more fluids than I did pre-surgery, or are the fluid guidelines just for overall health and to aid in weight loss?  

Thanks for your help.  

Gurgle gurgle.  

I don't know if this is true or not -- but my NUT advised that I will increase my risk for kidney stones and gall stones without enough water support.  

Wow, ok that makes sense.  My nut didn't mention that.  She only said it's healthy and helps with weight loss.

That's what I was told too,Kathryn. 

Thanks.

You might be too close to surgery now, but once you are out a ways you can eat lots more and I imagine if you were eating a lot of fluid heavy foods (fruits/veggies...) that could potentially meet your fluid needs.  It seems unusual though, is there a specific reason you don't like to drink.  Two cans of soda a day only get you 24 oz which is not much, pre op or post op. 

I don't really know why.  I've just never been a thirsty girl!  I also don't gulp, so sipping on my morning soda would take me all morning to drink.  Same with the afternoon.  That's a good point about fluid heavy foods.  I did always eat a lot of fruit pre surgery, so it may be I was getting enough fluids that way.

I struggle with my fluid in take as well. My nut told me to "do the best that I can". Meaning it is just nut realastic for me to think that I am going to reach my fluid goal each day.

i am doing well with all my other goals and I don't feel like I am hampering my weight loss by not meaning that one goal everyday.

It's still hard at 1 month post-op.  It does get easier.  I just have a general dislike of drinking a lot.  My nut told me the same thing post-op when I couldn't meet fluid or protein requirements.  Just do the best you can and it gets easier.

This is my OPINION based on research and experience, but many will probably disagree. Immediately post-op dehydration is a BIG concern and it makes sense to push fluids any time you can. Further out though, I don't see the problem with drinking according to your body's needs. Thirst is actually a delicate and accurate mechanism for when you need fluids (no, you are not already dehydrated by the time you feel thirsty, what on earth kind of sense does that make). First of all it's inherently nonsensical that people of all activity levels and in all climates and of all weights and sizes should need 64 oz a day. The doctor who first proposed the "eight cups a day" recommendation meant eight cups of FLUID a day, including the large quantity of water you get in food. This is obviously small post-op and will always be smaller even far from surgery, but very significant. 

Anytime someone gives a very general guideline like "64 oz a day for everyone" and can't cite good research behind it other than banal mutterings of "good for overall health" and "helps in weight loss," I raise an eyebrow. Most days I do get in somewhere around 48-64 oz if I add it all up, but that's because I want to. That's drinking when I'm thirsty or when I feel like it. When I spend 8 hours working at the barn on a hot day, I can drink enormous amounts of water but again, when my body tells me to. I've never once gotten dehydrated or had trouble with the heat if I drink when I'm thirsty. 

As far as kidney stones go, the most important factor is to avoid calcium carbonate, which can help form kidney stones. Calcium citrate does not have this problem. I don't have a gallbladder (haven't since I was a teenager, taken out for non-stone reasons) so I'm not clear on that front, but my understanding is that just about everyone has gallbladder stones at a certain age and cholesterol is a driving force behind gallstone formation. I don't think water is going to help on that one, but I don't know that for a fact. Most people with gallstones are asymptomatic. People after gastric bypass tend to have more gallstones and problems with gallstones for a variety of reasons, some of which are poorly understood.