GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY!!

I am 3 days post op today. Woke up early when my hubby got up for work and I feel soooo much better than the last couple days!

I am still sore and trying to adjust to eating and drinking. I am having a lot of problems getting too much air when I drink which makes it difficult to get the necessary amounts in. If anybody has some insight, it would be appreciated. I tried using a water bottle - no straw - at first to keep track of how much I was taking in but that seemed worse than a glass. Also, yesterday i tried mixing some protein powder with some orange crystal light (which didn't dissolve well at all) and when I drank it I was really close to getting sick! I am not getting even close to the amount of protein! I know it's only been 3 days but I just want to make sure I do my best to get what my body needs to recover.

GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE SURGERY SOON!!

Good morning,

When I was right out of surgery (and not used to protein shakes), I used ice and a blender (magic bullet). It just made it easier to get the protein in that way. I'd also just say that its important to get your fluid in. So if you can bare to add protein in every drink, don't. Its important that you get your fluid.

Good luck. As strange and magical as this time is, it'll only happen once. Try to have fun with it.

Lauren

Welcome to the loser's bench!  : )

--gina

 

Sounds like you are doing ok and each day will get better.

Fluids are what is important right now.  Protein can wait a little while.  I did best with room temp fluid.  Then I could do ok with warm but it took me quite a while to do cold.  So ..... warm herbal tea, decaf coffee, chicken broth.  Then Unjury chicken broth protein, vanilla protein in my decaf, vanilla protein in my chia tea.  Sip, aim for 1 oz every 15 minutes.  We left the hospital with 2 oz cups so we could keep track. 

This week just worry about fluids, the protein will get easier :)  Welcome to the loser's bench !

Yup, fluids, fluids, fluids.  Skip the protein for a few days and just focus on drinking....little sips and even little cups if that helps.  Some people like the tervis cups as it is hard to gulp with them.  SF popsickles count as 2 ounces so add some of those in.  I loved broth post surgery.  In a few days you can start back on protein....again 4 oz at a time.  Water was very hard on my pouch esp in am so may try decaf coffee or tea....that ALL counts towards your fluids.  Remember the pouch is swollen...it gets easier... really!!!

~~Jennifer

Thanks for all the great advice.  I had my husband pick up some decaf green tea and have made it hot in the am and it seems to go down much easier.  I also added SF popsicles and those are wonderful!  I laid off the protein powder and opted for bean soup blended up (small amount) and greek yogurt.  You're all right - focus on liquids! Feeling better everyday and am so excited to join the losers bench!!

Thanks for all the support! This site has answered so many questions and has really helped during this whole process. :)

I did well with a homemade chicken broth that was kicked up a bit.  We made chicken broth according to one of the basic recipes on the food network.   http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/chicken-stock -recipe/index.html .  Then to add flavor, my fiance sautéed onions, bell pepper, celery and mushrooms until tender and then pureed them with some of the chicken stock and then added that mixture to the stock.  He would then strain it and serve.  Since this makes a lot of stock, he would freeze it in cup size portions and I would have it a couple times a day.  It made a great broth and it also worked well to mix with items we had to puree. 

I also drank a ton of Crystal Light Lemonade right after the surgery, but since my taste buds were so sensitive, I had to add more water than recommended.

Additionally, I had trouble with most protein shakes and found that Isopure Zero Carb Ready to drinks worked better for me for a while.  They come in a ton of flavors but I've found the grape and mango peach are my favorite.  They are more like a protein water than a shake.  I like them served ice cold over crushed ice.  They are expensive but like that they are re-sealable.  They are cheaper online but I would recommend buying them individually locally first to make sure you like the flavors. 

You will think I'm crazy but I've  also found that drinking out of a large stemless wineglass is easiest to get things down. I have a couple of plastic ones that we bought for the beach last year that work great.  I'm thinking these glasses were designed for sipping so maybe it helps with the portion size or maybe I am just crazy!

One last note, don't throw out that protein powder.  At 3 months today, I can now tolerate those protein drinks I couldn't stand at one month and even two months out.  Good luck!!!