Trusting the process, putting the worry behind

Hello OH friends,

I started off with a rocky start and thanks to all of your prayers and positive energy, my healing has been quite good (so far) and I am very grateful. I am on full fluids and some purees and everything has been easy sailing, no nausea, no dumping, no pain at all.

Just when you think I would be so happy to have some smooth sailings, I am finding it difficult to trust the process. I think I assumed my healing would be delayed, but I think the extended time in the hospital with only water actually helped my pouch heal on its own. In the back of my head I am a bit worried that something is not quite right with my pouch, like perhaps they didn't make it small enough because they were in an emergency medical situation. This is based on me being able to ingest 1/2 cup with no issues at all, while I read about others feeling so full after a few mouthfuls. 

So, I would love some reassurance that some people end up with no nausea, very little pain and a blessed ability to ingest their planned food with very little issue :) Perhaps, this is my process and the post op is part of my smooth water.

Thanks so much.

-Joanne

Hi Joanne,

I'm SO glad you're doing better!  I, too, have worried that they didn't make my pouch small enough because I have been able to eat the full liquids and am now the pureed foods with no troubles at all.  Sometimes I almost wish I had more trouble eating because I've been tending to want to eat too much.  I've been told that since I'm still eating liquids and pureed foods, they go down easier and that I will feel the "full" feeling once I start eating real foods.  I'm glad you're on smooth sailing now! 

~ Karen 

Thanks Karen. My trust in the process has been a bit shaken with my complications, but I am trying to put my doubt behind me and just focus on moving forward. 

It will take roughly 4 months for your pouch to heal. That is why you're on soft foods until month 3 or 4.

The people who fill "full" after a few bites, most likely have inflammation in the stoma. The "full" feeling you and so many others wonder about not having is actually a good thing.

The bottom line is to always eat to your plan's certain specs. That is the proper application of this tool.

I'm sorry I can not guarantee that all will go completely smoothly for you. But you're at the right place for all of the proper info to help you TRY and make it as smooth as you can for yourself.

I wish you good luck in this journey.

I find the more worried I am about stuff like that, the more it wrecks havoc on my emotional serenity and the more I eat. I wish I had the answer but for me - I choose to spend my time focusing on living in gratitude rather than worry. It's taken me time to trust the process but I've accomplished it now - years after surgery. What helped me is looking at the habits and tips from the successful vets and putting my trust in what worked for The majority of them...I studied and researched all thr habits of successful maintainers and modeled my own plan after those. 

Lets assume that you had a bigger pouch? So what? Nothing you can really do so why worry? Follow whatever plan you decide carries the biggest chance of success and go with it. The old saying of just because you can eat more doesn't mean you should. You might have to work harder at your WL by perhaps focusing even More on dense protein and filling veggies but it's all worth it. 

But while I didn't have RNY I had no issues with post op recovery. You probably have less swelling than others. Liquids and purées don't stay in your stomach long anyways so it's not a good gauge of your overall capacity. Wait till you start eating dense meat. 

After all this rambling - my point is - don't be like me and take years to trust the process. Make the process your goal and not the actual WL and you will be much happier and the process will be easier. At the end of the day all you can control is what, why, how much you eat and not the number on the scale. 

Trust the process. I'm one who's not been plagued by neaseau, vomiting, diarrhea, or constipation to any degree. I had a few stuck episodes early on, but I wrote that off to learning what worked and didn't. I do feel like I can take in quiet a bit, but I varies a lot depending on what I'm eating. Remember, even an 1/2 cup plus in comparison to how much we used to eat. Because your adapting so well, be diligent in weighing and measuring. 

Just trust the process,ladies,it will work for you if you stick with your doctor's plan and measure your food. Feeling full needs to be a thing of the past. If you feel full now,you have probably eaten too much. I never had any problems eating the amount my doctor suggested or drinking liquids. I am 31/2 years out and still to this day measure every bite that goes in my mouth when I am at home. I know if I don't I will probably eat more than my 1 cup of food per meal. I don't worry if I feel full unless I feel full before I finish my portion of measured food. I eat what is measured and stop. I went from 272 to 122 and am working every day to stay there. It is hard work but if I can do it you can too!

I could easily eat a 1/2 cup of yogurt once I was a few weeks out, and felt like I could eat anything. Then I started solids and it wasn't so easy.

Trust the process.

You know, purees are basically "slider" foods -- they go through your pouch very quickly.  Think of your pouch like a funnel -- liquids drain very quickly, soft foods a bit slower and solids most slowly.  That's why as you heal and get further out, the vets stress how important it is to eat DENSE protein.  You will feel full longest that way. 

Additionally, as others have stated, your nerves are still healing.

I understand your feelings.  We are all victims of so many failed attempts by the time we undergo surgery, that we are afraid to believe that this time can and will be different.  I was sure that I was going to be the one person that surgery didn't work for -- and indeed, I was able to drink like a champ from the start -- and rarely had any issues with any foods as they were added back in.  I was and still am, careful to WEIGH AND MEASURE everything -- but deep inside, I was still sure that I would be the one person that it didn't work for.  B**** your stage, I would have measured out 1/4 of soft foods such as yogurt -- but I am certain that I could have easily eaten more.  IMHO, 1/2 cup is a bit much as that is what I eat now at two years out...

It all worked out.  Follow what you are supposed to do -- and it will work for you, too.