Your Thoughts on this Please ..

Hey everyone .. I wanted to run something past you . I am 2 years and 3 months post op . I loss of 200 lbs . I am doing great but here is my delima . From the very begining , I have always had trouble eating meat .. beef to be exact . And some chicken and turkey products . I do eat slow .. chew .. etc .. but I still manage to get the sick - heavy feeling . I have been told that after this amount of time our pouches should have expanded . I do have a stalistic Band .. and had OPEN RNY ... the band was a ad on by my surgeon , he does these with the hopes that it prevents the pouch stoma from stretching . Do you all still experience this - at this point in the game .. or is it the norm . I normally dread dinner time as this is when I eat the denser meats - chicken - beef or turkey .. and I really am getting tired of yacking after dinner .. as this sets me back for the rest of the night ... and I must get in all my protein for the day . I have no problem with crackers .. or cheese .. soups or salads .. Your thoughts and insight is greatly appreciated . Hugs, Natalie

Natalie, do you have the same problem with ground meats or is it just solid portions that are giving you a problem? Becky

Hey, Nat, sweetie! Rich is now just over 2 years post-op and I'm just about 15 months post-op. We both once in a while will have issues with dense foods. I think Rich's issues are more chewing enough and stopping when full. For me, I end up resorting to papaya enzyme several times a week to help when things sit heavy and luckily it does help. Also, recently I've found that SF gum after eating helps - I think the extra saliva going into the pouch helping to breakdown the food. I've only thrown up twice since surgery so I've been lucky. I'd say there were many close calls that could have gone either way too. Rich has gotten sick many more times but not more than a few dozen times over the 2 years. As for pouch size, I had an EGD back in October-ish and my pouch was 3-4 cm which is 1.5 inches long. In June, I had another EGD and my pouch was 8 cm which is about 3 inches long so it has doubled in size over the months. I know it holds more because I can eat more than last year. I certainly don't eat quantities like I used to. I suspect your band might be tight and dense foods cause problems for you. I'll ask the same as the other person that replied... how would you do with pureed meats? Hugs, Kathy

Here is one for you .. I cooked spagetti last night using ground beef .. I did this as I was cooking for a sick friend and decided to keep the sauce and use it on our Spagetti squash ... I ground it up really good .. but I still got sick .. I think it is any type of meat to be honest ... but I am really going to take notice on my # of chews and the timing of it all .. I may need to really look at that again ., but is really getting to me . Thanks as always, Nat

I very rarely am able to eat meat of any kind. I try, though. I have better luck trying it cold. Like a chicken breast that has been in the fridge or something similar. i can eat almost anything else in the food line and eat I do. Many times what I am not supposed to eat.

Hi Natalie! You've had such great success! Congratulations! I'm over 3 years post open rny and I still, sometimes, have issues with meat products. I can almost never eat ground beef. I can have one or two bites of a hamburger patty but if I eat more than that, I will feel very sick. If it's ground steak, I'm okay. I very rarely WANTmeat - chicken, pork, beef, whatever. I have to make myself eat it, a couple of bites at a time. Sometimes, I do get the heavy feeling in my throat or chest. I try to chew extremely well. I also try to get protein from other products - like soybeans! I love them and can eat them non-stop. I can assure you that I do not get the recommended 60 g. of protein each day but I'm below goal, and very, very healthy, according to the two doctors I see regularly. I have no problems with pasta, breads, or the like. I can eat 3 or 4 slices of bread at a time (by themselves) and don't have any problems with it. I have always turned to pasta when I cannot eat meat and it's worked out okay for me. I haven't provided you any advice but just to let you know that you aren't the only one! Best of luck on this great journey! Paula

Nat: I too have trouble wit most meats. I have found that Deer meat goes down best for me. Beef just sits there and stays with me for hours. I can eat maybe 3 small slices but it feels like I've eaten a pound of it. Hamburgers grilled outside on my grill do not like me but any cheap burger from a fast food place goes down well. Strange because I swelled to 375 with the help of eating a Wendys double or large Mickie D's burger everyday for 6 or 7 years before WLS. Dave

My surgeon does the same procedure w/the silastic band. I have found that if I eat a bite of meat WITH something (a noodle, a veggie, in a salad or casserole) I do MUCH better. I was having the same problem even at a year out with not being able to keep down any type of "hunk" of meat and then I found this to work. Good luck - I know its hard planning meals with "meat avoidance" in mind. I hope you try it and it works for you.