Will I hurt my new stomach if I move on to soft foods too fast?

Hi Everyone!  I had my surgery Friday, Febr. 19th and I am doing GREAT!  I am technically on the full liquid stage but I find I can eat things like Cream of Wheat, Grits, Cottage Cheese, etc.  The other day my daughter made stuffed peppers and they looked and smelled SO good that I took some and blended them to pureed state and ate them with no difficulties.  I'd like to try soft cooked eggs, mashed potatoes and other pureed foods.  Am I hurting my stomach and my progress by rushing things?  Thanks for your advice!  ~ Karen  :)

I think you need to stick to your doctors plan and not cause yourself potential issues. They have certain stages for a reason and going outside of that is dangerous territory. Also- what were the peppers stuffed with? If some type of breading I would steer clear for that reason alone.

Thanks for your reply, SuperShopper!  I'm sure you're right.  I'm just impatient.  LOL.  Oh, and the peppers were stuffed with hamburger.

I would be very, very careful about what you put in your pouch right now. The nerves were cut when the surgery was done, so you won't be able to feel much in there.  

My doctor progresses us pretty quickly. I was only on full liquid for a week, then went to pureed, soft after about 2 weeks and then by about a month out I was eating regularly.  

If I were you I would stick to what your surgeon said.  I pushed a little further than I should of at 14 days post op and ended up in the ER with horrible pain in my pouch.  I thought "soft food" consisted of turkey meatballs mashed up.  I thought I had damaged my pouch.  CT scan showed no damage, but it was irritated so I had to go back to liquids for a while.  

If you have trouble, call your surgeon or your dietitian.  The plan is there for a reason, and there may be something that your surgeon does differently than mine to keep you on full liquids longer than I had. 

Also, I would avoid mashed potatoes like the plague.  It's basically pure carbs and will not help in your weight loss.  

Thanks so much for your advice, Deanna!  I'll think of you having to go to ER whenever I'm tempted to push the limits!

My clinic progresses us quite quickly. I had 2 weeks of liquids/soft foods and then was told to cautiously move forward with soft foods as I wanted to- still avoiding fruits, vegetables, dry/thick cuts of meat, etc.

Thanks, Sarafer!

You may not cause yourself physical issues. But this is a really, really bad sign.

We see people who push limits right from the start. They begin new foods they aren't supposed to, then start eating a little more than they should, and more often than they should, start drinking while eating, etc.

They all lose for a while, because for 6 months the surgery is doing all the work. Then your capacity increases, and you get tired of concentrating on food so much. You miss your comfort foods. It gets really, really hard. They stop losing for a few months, and then start gaining.

You're probably angry reading this, and think "What the heck does he know?" But I've seen this happen a lot. Stop now. Stick to your plan as if your life depended on it. Weigh and measure your food, every bite. You can do this, but I'm begging you to alter this behavior now.

Thank you very much, Grim Traveller, Boy Hag!  I value your advice a LOT!  You are very wise and look at how much weight you have lost!  I will be more compliant from here on out, I promise!

you are headed in a dangerous direction! Don't take this tool for granted this early out. Cream of Wheat and grits should not be part of your diet ever again. They are simple carbs which your body doesn't need at all. You get nothing from them other than slowed weight loss and future gain. 

I think you need to follow your surgeon's timeline so you don't hurt yourself or anger your pouch, but even when you CAN eat some foods, you need to eat protein-forward. Eat to live, stop living to eat! that's what got us here in the first place, and unless you break that habit and mindset, you will not be successful long-term! 

You mentioned that the stuffed peppers smelled SO GOOD. Donuts smell SO GOOD, too! and cake, and french fries, and oh man.... FRUIT... smells delicious! but that doesn't mean we should eat it. Not that the peppers were bad for you later on down the road, but my point is, you need to be planning your meals and snacks and logging everything you eat/drink, and if it's not part of your plan for the day, it at least needs to fit into your NUT's guidelines. If not, tough cookies!