How much food

Good Morning All,<br />
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How much food do you eat at one meal?<br />
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Or maybe I should ask the question this way. At 3 months out how much solid food do you think is good at one meal.<br />
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I do have an appointment on 9/22/09 with my surgeon and nutrionist. <br />
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I ask because, I still have trouble eating solid foods. I will try them but since the mushies are easier, I just eat them but I'm slowly getting better with the solida. Welcome all feedback.

Good am,

Definitely make a list of foods you've tried and what the outcome has been and disucss these with the nutritionist when you have your appointment. At about 3 months or so I was eating very light meals (seafood, mushy type foods such as purees, soups, steamed veggies etc). I was at the point where I was focusing hardcore on getting in protein and liquids and one of the foods I know that was an issue was eggs. Keep in mind that things will settle differently at different times in your journey and what you may be able to handle today may not have the same outcome next week. If you are trying things your surgeon/nut have suggested and they are NOT working today, wait a week and try again. If the same outcome happens then leave it alone for a while. I know others will have some great tips to offer as well. We are all a work in progress.

All best!

I believe at 3 mths. I was eating about 1/4 cup per meal of food that was still mainly soft foods or solids with some sort small amout of gravy or liquid on it to help it go down easier. Non-fat, of course. Refried beans remained a staple in my diet for a long time, and a reliable source of protein as well as something that digests well. Solids seem to come along slowly and as Kat said, on a one at a time weekly basis. Good luck, Pam

Thank You for your feedback.

Kat you are so right about the eggs. I can not do eggs. I have tried them all sort of ways and they just wont work.

Pam you are right about the gravy, whenever I try meats I always us alittle gravy to keep it moist.

I mostly try to get in all my protein first and than try a little solids. But is good to hear that I'm too far of course. I thought something was wrong because I wasn't eating that much. I had spoken to my nutrionist about it before and she wasn't really concerned as long as I was getting my protein and fluids

Pam and Kat gave some great comments.   Moist items are important.  Gravy or stock to meats will help.     Add plain protien to your gravies (add after since high heat may effect the concentration.) if you are concerned about needing protein.   I do not love eggs currently so I add plain protein to my milk and hot cereal.    

I only eat natural meats.   I do not do lunch or pre package meats.  They are high in sodium.     Watch out for  fresh meat packages too, alot of food stores are adding liquid sodium.   High sodium could add to your issues.  

Watch butters.  I find that is my issue.   Milk I use Lactaid FF.      

Make sure you are chewing and eat slowly.    Nut suggest taking 20 minutes to eat.   That  is easier said then done.  I notice if I eat too fast I feel bloated for quite a while.  

If you are not getting in proper protein or vitamins your bloodwork will indicate issues.  Your dr and nut will guide you.     Not to worry, sure you are doing well.  Keep us update on how you appt goes. 

It is a bit harder for me to offer advice as I haven't really had that much of an issue with anything.  I did eat regular foods (lean meats, veggies, fruits) at 3 months out and just made sure it was tender & I chewed very well.  I also attempted to go 20-30 minutes at one meal.  I did do quite a few mushies (tuna, eggs, sweet potatoe, etc.) with my meats.  About 1/4 of a cup - 1/2 a cup denpending on the consistency of what you are eating sounds about normal.  Definite try to keep record of things you are trying until your next appt. and discuss with your nutritionist. 

GREAT questions!!!  Thanks for asking.

Trouble with solid foods...welcome to my world too, & I'm 2 years out!  I had a very informative chat with my Nut. last week.  Keeping in mind that each doctor has their own requirements/suggestions, one thing we have to be careful of, whether we are banders like me, or bypassers like most here, too much liquid added to meats then constitutues drinking with your meal, & not enough means ya can't get it down or it gets stuck.  Trying to find that happy medium seems to be the trick & the only way to do that is to experiment.  That's why journaling is such a handy, useful tool. 

Did you know that there is a technique to chewing?  Nobody ever told me HOW to chew, they just said chew it alot.  When I began to develop a near phobia about not eating certain foods because they kept getting stuck & making me throw up, I finally figured out that I wasn't chewing & swallowing the right way. It never occurred to me that we are all conditioned to swallow that same mouthful at nearly the same size as when it went in...lol.  So let's pretend  you're going to eat a bite of steak.  Here's what I do.  First, I keep all stuff like gravies, sauces, broth, etc, on the side in a small bowl.  I then take my bite & lightly dip it into the bowl, not to coat the entire bite on my fork, but just to add some moistness.  Then as I'm chewing & the  meat fiber begins to loosen away, I swallow the particles. Little by little the bulk of the bite breaks down & I can consume that whole bite without it getting stuck.  Voila!  A piece of steak consumed!  I won't profess that this works 100% of the time...more like 90%.

Eggs have been issue for me as well.  Forget fried egg...won't go down, no way, no how!  Scrambled was working ok if it was scrambled lightly, but even that, lately won't work.  One thing that has worked consistently for me is egg salad.  I boil an egg, run it through my little food grinder, then add JUST ENOUGH FF mayo to make it moist but not runny.  Oh, if you go to IHOP & order scrambled eggs, be sure to tell them NOT to add pancake batter to it...they do that to make the eggs appear fluffier than they really are! Talk about adding calories!!

I hope this helped a little.  Let us know how you're doing!