Protien Problems

I need some help! I'm two months post-op - on "normal" diet stage - no restrictions except the lifelong ones (no alcohol, etc). I can NOT eat meat very well. For instance - tuna - even pureed, one tiny bite (think smaller than a pencil eraser) causes me to immediately to start heaving and vomiting until the offender comes up. Shrimp and turkey is the same way. Even stuff that is made WITH tuna - I take a bite of the tuna and up it comes.  Chicken - same stunt. The only thing that has worked so far has been really small hamburger which I don't have problems with. I always make sure my food is super moist. I can eat a 1/4 of a small warm deli ham, cheese sandwich but I try to eat even one bite of the exact same thing but with TURKEY - I better have the trash can near by.

What is up with this?  I don't have any problems with juices (so sugar isn't the issue) but my only post-op problems have been with protein. Whether they are shakes or meat if I eat hardly any of them I just start gagging and vomiting. This can't be normal?  My surgeon said (yeah, get ready, I wanted to totally freak out when he told me this too!) "eat more pasta and get your protein from soft, low-fat cheeses if you can't eat the meat or the shakes"  There's no freaking way I can eat enough food to get all my darn protein in...grr...

The only protein I'm getting right now are from eggs, cheese, hamburger (rarely, can't eat much) and tiny bites of ham.  I am what most consider a "lightweight" - I was BMI 35 and had surgery because of my hypertension, sleep apnea and severe family history of serious obesity related problems, both of my problems are both already gone now.  I've lost 29 pounds so far (most while I was still in the hospital during my extended stay) so I would say my loss is within "normal" range of what can be expected.

Anyone have any similar tales?  This is super frustrating! I just feel that I'm not doing something I should be by not getting enough protein in... Any advice, thoughts, similar experiences  would be appreciated.  Thanks all!

Some meats are hard as hell to eat early out-- for me, it was chicken that just wouldn't stay down, although turkey would. Go figure! It's about how the density of any particular meat moves through the pouch and stoma. My suggestion would be to chop things finely and add moisture: chopped deli turkey, flaked canned tuna--- add fat free gravy or fat free mayo. Toss chili in a blender. If scrambled eggs go down okay, add a little low fat cheese or ham. Take your time and take it easy!

With protein shakes, you should be okay for a little while. The worst thing you can do is assume that these problems you are having are going to last forever and NEVER try the offending foods again. If I were you, I'd wait a month or so and try tuna or chicken, etc again.  If you still have problems, wait another month and try it again. Are you having trouble with ALL beef EXCEPT ground beef?  You can do a lot with just beef until you do stop having problems with the rest.  Even ground beef can be made into a variety of things (meatballs, bbq, etc).   Don't fret!  It gets better and better.   The first time I tried an egg, I threw it right back up.  (This really worried me because I have always loved eggs.)  I tried it again later and had no trouble.  I eat them 3 or 4 times a week now. 

I keep trying them every couple weeks in high hopes. I always cut them up in tiny tiny pieces and then chew them super well. Protein shakes are not OK though - they make me gag and I vomit them right back up as well. I even have problems w/ milk although I take my latase pills with it (it's not the same type problems as lactose intolorance, I know since I've had to take pills w/ milk for a long time now. But yes, I'm pretty much having problems with ALL meat except hamburger and deli ham - no matter how moist I make the meat. I have tried tuna w/ mayo that was so soft i could sma**** with a spoon - but even that came back up. I really don't think it's the size or anything as its full liquid when it comes back up (I know, total TMI, but hey...)...I'm just baffled with it all. I definately hope you are right though! Hopefully it will get better soon...

I haven't had the surgery yet but if i was going through the same thing, i would call my surgeon because there might be something wrong that they need to fix. that would be my suggestion.