Day 7: Soft Food

I read a study this morning that said 63% saw some improvement or no change in GERD after VSG but then that means that 37% got worse. However, there's also positive research out the about VSG combined with a Rosetti procedure resolving GERD? So that's interesting.

Seems like GERD and sleeve gastrectomy is a conflicted issue from articles accessible via PubMed.

Thank you! I'll look into that!

Well, and I try to caution myself. All studies have different control conditions, of course, and every individual is different. I didn't have trouble with breakfast today, so I'll roll forward with the positive for now.

You are so smart to be so cautious. I commend you on your approach. I'm so glad it is all working (mostly) well for you. Yay!

Gotta love that laughing cow. 35 cals and a bunch of flavors and it is great spread or melted with eggs. Yum

I didn't think of melting It! Yum.

it sounds like you are moving along fine. As you noted, many people here are on very different programs and progressions, so it's hard to always get a good comparison with what you are going through, though it can still be a good reference. Our program had us on the soft and purees in the hospital, so what is on your menu is not unreasonable for the sleeve, though individual tolerances can vary so, some on the same program may progress at different rates. Our basic rule was to test new foods one at a time for tolerance, and if something doesn't go well, back up to things you do know, and try that one again in a week or two. I'm not big on scrambled eggs, though we did have them served up in the hospital; I did softer boiled eggs later in the first week after discharge and they went well, though I never really had a problem with anything. I generally looked at new foods as an experiment - something new to try in between meals of known staples (protein drinks, soups, etc.) so that it wasn't a big deal if something didn't work.

On the subject of pre-existing GERD and its resolution or exacerbation, the jury is still very much out - clearly some benefit while others don't, like many things in life. Hopefully all will resolve and you can get off of the medications. However, there can be aspects of the disease that don't show symptomatically, so even if heartburn is controlled, there can still be other things going on that are not readily apparent. With your history, it might be a good idea to have an endoscopy done in a couple years to see if anything undesirable is happening in your new stomach, particularly if you are still having some signs of reflux, whether controlled by medication or not. My gastroenterologist can site cases of his that developed things like Barrett's esophagus without any reflux symptoms - something to catch early rather than later.

This is not something to panic over, but possibly consider that one might be at somewhat higher risk than the general population, and such would warrant extra precaution. Further, such risks may well be lower after attaining a more normal weight, but can still be higher than the "normal" population.

Soft foods at 7 days! I'm so jealous. I'm on day 7 and have another week of liquids, then two weeks of purees. My surgeon's very conservative, I guess.

Well, every surgeon seems to have their own plan! Someome I know mentioned having "mushies" in the hospital on day 3 and I've seen people post that they were on clear liquids for 10 days.

My surgeon's plan is clear liquids for two days, protein shakes added day 3, soft foods on day 7, and he sees me on the 14th day to assess and give me a new plan based on how I'm doing. So... I don't really know what's next until after tomorrow.

It's hard, but I would follow his or her plan closely for the best results. You could always call and ask if you could incorporate yogurt or cottage cheese just so that you can have some texture. There's a drinkable yogurt, Oikos Triple Zero...its pretty damn good.

I got the Jell-O go-ahead today, so that'll help I think. Looking forward to yogurt/applesauce/mashed potatoes next week.

Every surgeon's plan is different. Follow YOUR surgeon's plan. My surgeon had a very lax plan... modified liquid diet for 2 weeks, then straight to soft foods. She said if your teeth are good, she doesn't see much benefit in grinding up your food. LOL. It did mean that I had to learn to chew VERY well and eat VERY slowly.

That being said, you may find that certain foods or even entire phases aren't sitting well with your sleeve. I couldn't tolerate eggs when I was allowed them. My surgeon said that was very common, many people have to postpone eggs until after they're tolerating moist chicken and the like.

Start off with any new food just having a bite or two at a meal, and a few bites at the next meal. Don't try to have an entire meal of the new food. And don't throw several new foods at your sleeve at once, if one causes a problem you won't know which it was.

Sometimes people find an entire phase to be problematic, then they just go back to the last phase that worked well for a few more days to a week and then try it again.

Good luck!!