Sane limit to post-op liquid diet? ASK A DIETICIAN

This is for "Ask a Dietician" message borad which I can't find... so posting on the main Nutrition Forum board.

Here Goes:

My Dr is having me go on the following:

2 weeks clear liquid
2 weeks think liquid
2 weeks soft food

I'm 6 days post-op and bored with what i can have. Can you all make suggestions. I'm limited since I live in India and don't have exotic things like frozen popscicles. I've read others who are recently post-op and practically on to solid foods... they say that they can blenderize anything. I'm not prepared to do that, but would like to know what are the sane limits to this diet.

What does a nutritionist have to say?

In addition to boredom.....
Problem is that I have limitations as i live in India... Was hoping that blending some veges in my broth might add the variation...

But, okay.. will live with this.

The other problems is meds... I'm taking tons of meds...
10 to be exact, two of which are antibiotics. There's nothing in my stomach but clear liquids to neutralize these... So, I'm getting acid indigestion all day. I'm pretty darn uncomfortable... The Dr here says i have to take them.

People have advised to take with skim milk blended with bread... I'm tempted, but it's not a clear liquid. What's a girl to do?

I know i'm obsessing to much about this. Advice would help...


Thanks,
Veronica

not a nutritionist ..but I offer this to you !!  Stick to liquids you can see through ,, try anding cucmber slice to water, stay away from citrus ! take a tagemt or some other type of acid reducer .. your body is healing ! and you dont want anything to interfere with it !  you can make broth out of anything - just strain it well , your body will not tolerate any type of fibre yet !  give it time  Rome was not built in a day !!  Do you have sugar free jello - if so just stay away from red colored  kind - in case you develope a bleed,  herbal tea is also good .. you only have a couple more days -- dont think about it so much - get busy walking and doing other things !! When you go to next phase - you can do cream soups and use blender .  you want to stay away from anything that tends to bloat or swell up !! it will cause discomfort in your new tummy !

You made a deal to follow your doctor's advice, so you have to do it! Clear liquids is anything that is clear, you can see through it, it does not have any solids floating in it.  I strongly suggest broths, strained of all vegetables or meat.  If you cook it yourself you are getting most of the benefits of the foods you boil down except the fiber.  I would think that your doctor has some type of protein supplement during this initial clear liquid phase - something you mix with water? I know milk is very tempting - but #1 it is not clear and #2 with the antibiotics you have been taking and the trauma your guts have been through, it is very unlikely that you will tolerate it well.  In fact, it may take some time before you do well on animal milk. You are only a few days away from being able to add a little cereal (usually thin cream of wheat or rice is acceptable).  Yogurt will be relatively well tolerated since the lactose has been broken down by the bacteria.  Since you are in India, you may want to buy your yogurt refrigerated for a while instead of using the kind made outside on the balcony (I know a little about India...) just to reduce the bad bacteria that you may not be able to fight off as easily as before. Be careful to avoid the sugar, sweet chutneys/pickles, and sweet syrups when you get to start with food - to avoid dumping I hope this helps!

I would also be intrested in knowing which Indian foods are okay for the soft stage of the diet. I love Indian food and have visited South India. Did they give you a list of what traditional Indian foods are okay at each stage?