Scolded By My Doctor....

So, yesterday was my 2 week post surgical appointment. And I got scolded, big time, for not eating 50 grams of protein daily. I am just not that hungry!! And, when I do develop hunger, I try hard to make the right food choices (cheese, yogurt, beans). But, after a few bites, I feel nauseous. I have tried practically every protein shake on the market and cannot find any of them palatable. They are vile! How can anyone expect a person to drink them?!? I just don't know what to do. I called my nutritionist yesterday and I still haven't heard back from her. The doctor sent me home with strict instructions to eat/drink 50 grams of protein each day. I just don't see this as a reasonable goal - so, what am I supposed to do? Anyone have any advice/suggestions/comments? I'm totally not trying to be a difficult patient, I just don't know how to move beyond this protein hurdle!

My shakes are not bad. I use 4 oz of soy milk plus 4 oz of Ensure then unflavored protein powder. My nutritionist tells us to add unflavored protein powder to anything. Unjury is the best. I added some to chicken broth and I didn't notice. Beneprotein is good too.

Jodi, Iwas just like you post-op. I hated the protein shakes - couldn't take it. I did find the clear liquid protein drinks okay. Special K has one now and there's another brnad I'm forgetting. I had the same frame of mind.... eat good choices, high in protein when hungry. It worked great for melost good numbers my first weeks. I did start to lose my hair around month three from low protein - so watch for that! Just think "High protein" when it's time to eat!

I bought some 100% Whey Protein, vanilla, 2lb. container, EAS manufactured, at Walmart for under $20.00. I have had the shakes that you are talking about and this one is really good. I mix it with 8oz. of skim milk and some ice cubes in the blender. It is loaded with 23grams of protein plus all kinds of other good stuff. I stay full with these shakes and I sometimes will add a banana to the mix, yummy! Give it a try!

I found that I like the whey protein from GNC and its on sale right now and I mix it with milk and no****er. I also found the special K drink packs to put in my water and they have 5 grams of protein. I am three weeks out and have a hard time gettin git all in also. Get you a hand blender to mix the protein powder well, that helps also. Thanks and good luck. Let me know if this helps. Caron

Hi, Jodi. I have tried and rather like IDS New-Whey Liquid Protein (our center calls them "shots" or "shooters"). They are only 2.9 oz., and although I can't drink them "straight," with a small amount of water they're palatable. Best of all you can buy either the 42 gram one or 25 gram one. That gets a good amount of protein in with little trouble. And I would agree with others who warn you about hair loss. I'm only 3 weeks out and just not hungry 97% of the time. You do have to make yourself eat or drink enough protein. Very quickly you will start to lose muscle mass. My surgeon and nutritionist insist that we get a minimum of 75 grams of protein a day. They pushed me quite hard to get that number up to at least 90 grams, though. I asked if it were possible to get too much protein. The nutritionist said that it would probably take getting 200+ grams of protein a day to become too much. LOL.

I can really see how every surgeon or surgical team has a different approach. I only drink the protein shakes because it helps me. My doctor said do not worry about the protein these first four weeks. I will see him next Wednesday, and will need to get my protein in from then on and those vitamins. It will be a struggle. I am only four weeks out today. I did not eat until the Saturday following, and very little for quite a long time. I drank as much as I could tolerate. I finally measured a bowl that I had assumed was 3 ounces and found that it was only two ounces. I am not going back to revise all my food listings in my daily planner. I know I should' I am quite bored at home but have three large totes of pictures to look through and possibly start storing better. I do not have the skills of scrapbooking, and wish I did. I could figure it out as I often did for the week long arts and crafts that I taught at the Christian Camp for 15 years. I would work and work on each project. I had from elementary to high school age campers who enjoyed the crafts. I just found two pictures that show some of the crafts that I may post. I have many many camp pictures, but these show the crafts best. I hope that I do not get scolded as my surgeon seems like one who is so compassionate but firm. I keep a log of everything. Oh, I had the Nectar Ice Tea protein two days ago and though it looked cloudy because I had to shake it in the bottle I started to like it. It was a sample package that I bought. I have these little brick cartons that I purchased by the case and find them sweet...almost sickly sweet for my tastes. I have many differen****er soluble protein powders that I will be using more as the days go along. I tried the shots of protein and feel if I need to I can hold my nose and chug or rather sip sip sip them. I am enjoying skim milk with two scoops of Designer Whey Chocolate right now. I put in a lot of milk. I will have had 32 ounces by one pm total fluids for the early part of the day. My products came from online and a friend. He and his wife have the same surgical team. He gave me Isopure bottle and I drank one and only just tolerated it. I have read that at different times we may tolerate something that we did not. I am waiting on the second bottle. Trader Joe's had a cheap Designer Whey in Vanilla when I was first drinking protein shakes. I am now into the chocolate and will soon be out. I do not plan on buying any more protein powders. You would not believe the incredible amount that I have. Linda

Hi Jodi I am just a little over 1 yr. post op, had my surgery 01/19/2007. IMHO, for your doctor to scold you over the protein this early out is just ridiculous...it is nearly impossible to get all of your protein and fluids early out, it takes time to build up to the required amounts. Take a deep breath, it'll be ok. I have some suggestions for you. Can you drink milk, meaning not lactose intolerant? If so, let me suggest Calorie Countdown milk, it saved me the first couple of months after surgery. I've never been a milk drinker, but this milk is good...I still drink the chocolate milk every night before bed. Yes, you can drink chocolate milk! Calorie Countdown chocolate milk is lower in fat, calories, and sugar than the others, even FF (which is nasty by itself). You'll get 8g protein per 8 oz and the milk will count toward your fluids for the day. Do you like pudding? I make my own protein pudding. I take 8oz. FF milk, 1/2 packet jello instant pudding mix (any flavor, love banana cream), and 1 scoop vanilla protein powder...I use the Body Fortress 100% Whey Protein from Wal-Mart, one large container will last a long time. Blend it all together and pour into a cup...I use a large coffee cup...then put it in the fridge to set and get cold, doesn't take long. You won't be able to taste the protein in it...it might form a little bit of foam on top after setting, just skim that off with a spoon if it bothers you. It will make about a cup, I know you can't eat this much yet so you could pour it out into any container and just eat a tablespoon at a time, or whatever amount you can eat at this point. If you eat the whole container in a day (keep it in the fridge, it will be fine) then you will have eaten 32g of protein...23g from the powder and 9g from the milk. One other product that really helped me early on was the Slim Fast Low Carb shakes, I still drink them every now and then when I'm pressed for time. The chocolate shake is really good, keep it in the fridge...20g protein per can, which is 11 oz...you don't have to drink the whole thing at one time, you can sip on it throughout the day. It is high in fat, 9g, but only 1.5g of that is saturated, the rest is good fats and you don't need to be counting fat grams at this stage anyway...it has 4g of fiber which you need for good bowel functions (don't get me started on that!). If you're getting nauseous after a few bites you may be eating too fast or taking too big of a bite. If you're eating beans already, make sure you mash them really good first. Some foods just won't sit well no matter what we do, if that is the case just avoid them for a while and try them again in a couple of weeks or so. I know you're probably not feeling a lot of hunger so try to put yourself on some kind of eating/drinking schedule until it becomes routine...trial and error until you find something that works. I know it can be overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be difficult. It takes time to find the foods/drinks that you like...once you do, stick with it for a while. I tend to change things up about every 3-4 months. Hang in there, it does get easier. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer what I can. Take care, Denise

I hate the milky type protein drinks. I found one called Raspberry Passion by Proti15. It tastes just like kool-aid and has 15 grams of protein

I can't drink the protein, either. I just can't. I'm just over three weeks out, on the soft diet. I drink a glass of milk/day. I'm going to try hard to increase that, but I really can't stand the taste. I picked up some soy milk, and then some skim milk, to determine what tastes best. I try to eat higher protein foods, like tuna salad (mix it 1/2 and 1/2 with Fage yogurt and mayo/miracle whip), string cheese wrapped with a slice of chicken/turkey breast, refried beans and cheese on a cracker dipped in Fage yogurt, hummus, pea soup. Oooh, I make a smoothie that's really good - milk, banana, Fage yogurt and a dab of low-sugar jam (you could even leave the jam out). I haven't been able to get more than 40-50 gr. of protein/day, and my NUT wants 60 grams. But it's hard to eat still, so I'm working on it. Good luck, it's definitely tough, especially when I can't stand the thought of eating!