Checkin In...

  Just checking in to let you all know I am doing ok, so far no physical or emotional problems.
I have severe depression already, so I dont think my surgery will have any effect on it. I have it under control tho, with some wonderful little blue pills  (xanax) along with a blue and white "happy" capsule (geodon). Maybe I wont have to have my doses adjusted next month. We will see tho. It took a long time to get me situated on the right meds, so I really hope they dont have to be changed.
  I did a little too much Monday, and paid for it yesterday with sore muscles from hell, lol. I wont be trying that again for a while.
  So far I have been getting in about 30 grams protein, and about 40 ounces of water. Today I am going to get those numbers up. I damn sure dont wanna be back in the hospital for dehydration again. That suxx.
  I am on my soft diet now and have been having some tuna salad, yogurts, and creamed soups. Does anyone know of anything else I could eat for a change up? I have some ff refried beans for today.
  I am going to start using The daily plate to journal my foods, I like it, it is user friendly. And I am going to log my excercise on there too. The site has a suggested 2000 calories stated for me lol, but I know something the site dont know---I cant eat that much hahaha.
I eat a half a banana and I am full. So I wont be looking at goal calories, I will keep my eyes on calories total for each day. 
Well... enough blabbin for now, I feel like I will get lost if I get any further in this post. I get sidetracked alot, and yah know what??  I love it!  
Huggz 
 

 Hugs to you too Linda.  Welcome back to the group, let me extend the warmest wishes for you as a member of the loser's bench.  You go ahead and babble all you want.  I do when I write.

You are right, you will not get in even half of the 2000 calories for daily plate.  I have been told to not count calories, just grams of protein and get at least 64 ounces of fluid a day.

Soft foods, you have a good list so far, do you like cottage cheese, eggs?  Add a scoop of protein powder to your yogurt for a good boost in protein without a lot of extra volume to eat.  Add dry powdered milk to the water if making hot cereal.

How is your shoulder doing these days?  All healed up?  Do not overdo on the exercise, get in as much as you can safely take.  So, so glad to have you back and posting.  Hugs

  Girl I tried some protein powder in some yogurt yesterday, and that was NASTY! I wasted a perfectly good container of raspberry yogurt. lol I think I will just play around with my different powders and add them to milk. Thats how I have been doing them. 
  I have a few different flavors and brands of protein powder, and I have a couple bottles of Isopure drinks, I havent tried the isopure yet, I am trying to convince my mind I will like them even tho my mind keeps saying  to them lol.
  Yes I like cottage cheese with crushed pineapple in it. And I like eggs about any way you can fix them.
  Not too long ago I found some recepies for doing different things with cottage cheese, and cant find them now. I am creative, I will come up with something.
  I am on soft foods til May 2nd, then I can start having ground meats, so I am thinking about getting some turkey sausage, and some good grade of ground beef and making patties up and freezing them for individual use.
  I got a treadmill the weekend before my surgery. My dad brought it to me from St. Louis. He had bought it for my step mom and she only used it a little while. It is better than the one I had picked out to buy from walmart. 
  My shoulder is still giving me fits, I am going to make me another ortho apt after I heal up some more. Maybe have another catscan or mri to find out whaat the problem is. I dont have any range of motion in it and that is really bothersome. lol
  As far as overdoing it, I have had enough of that. Lesson learned. No more shopping trips like Monday. Only one store and list per day lol. I am making out a walmart list for this coming weekend now, the list is short, but gradually growing. I have to have some roundup, and some flowers to plant out in the yard. And I will have my daughter to help me with doing the planting. 
  I have good intentions, I just hope she shows up to help and I dont have to ask mom. I hate hearing her *****  
  
 

Hey lady! It is great to hear from you. Sounds like you must be feeling pretty good to be out and about and overdoing it already...lol. Take it easy on yourself, Don't want to get any hernias!

It sounds to me like Spring fever took ahole of you. I know i have a good case of it. Our weather here is back and forth from very cool to warm, and we have been having terrible wind! Even on some of the warmer days, the eind is so strong and cool its hard to enjoy being out. Last week the wind was so strong, ti caused my grandkids wooden playset to collapse, and it was newer! Go figure... guess thats what I get for buying an overpriced kit at the home depot. Having the insurance company come out Thursday to inspect the roof to make sure there is no damage, and to see what they will cover on a new playset including assembly. Those deductables stink tho...lol.

You keep up the great work and be sure to sip sip sip, get in lots of little walks each day and get that protein. Rest when your body lets you know it needs it.

Welcome back!
Hugs!

linda, good to see you posting. you sound in good spirits, at least for you. ha ha  i am going to send you a protein powder that has no taste. you can put it in decaf tea,  water, milk, mashed potates, chili, etc, etc, etc.  i put it in (2-3 scoops) my fruit salad for breakfast, along with two big heaping teaspoons of benefiber.  then i put it in the freezer for 38 minutes to help get any lumps out. you might try doing this with whatever you put it in to get it to smooth out. this is a medical grade. whey isolate.  you can get it at a1supplements.com  along with many more things you might need at cheaper prices.  i like it because it adds no flavor to what you put it into.  protein is so important.  without enough, your body will start eating on your muscles and your heart is a muscle and is a prime target.  i have to have at least 60 grams a day but not more than 100 g.

like kathy said, water is real important.  don't drink tea or coffee with caffeine. use only decaf. it is more expensive, but caffeine is a diuretic and defeats the purpose of drinking fluids. i drink decaf tea all day until about 9 pm then i switch to water.  if i am out and abou****er is the deal in my thermos.

also like kathy said, calorie counting is something we don't need to do.  protein and fluids are the things to count.  fruit with a lot of sugar is not good. i don't know how bananas rate there.

you sound like u are really on your way.  take care my friend.  i care a whole hell of a lot about you.  vick

  Thank you so much Vick for all you have done for me, and all the protein you have and are sending. You are a blessing.
  Hopefully I will like this one and be able to order some for myself in May if I have the money left over. I am going to try and get me some new glasses, it is time. I havent had new ones in 2 years lol.
  As far as decaf coffee... no way! That would be defeating the purpose lol.
  I only have 2 cups a morning anyway, and I drink flavored water all the rest of the day. I have 2 32 oz gatorade bottles and I know if I drink them both or more, I am good on water. I quit sodas a couple months ago, and the caffine kinda goes with the nicotine in the morning. Yes I am smoking again, but not very many. It is a hard habit to break. A doctor told me that quitting cigaretts was harder than coming clean off any other drug. I am smoking about 5 a day, and keeping Tic Tacs everywhere I go in the house hahaha. I did stay quit for a while for my surgery tho. But living with my mother I gotta have my smokes.
  I am not counting calories really, the calories are automatically figured for you on Daily Plate. What I like is the food and drink journal, you put in how many ounces you had and it automatically calculates the protein, fats, carbs etc...
  I have never really been a fruit eater but I do like a banana every now and then, and some seedless grapes.
  Dr. Baker or the nut havent told me yet how much protein to get in a day, but they did put me on D vitamins, and told me to stop taking my vitamin c. I never thought a doctor would tell you not to take vit. c. But this journey is a whole new lifes lesson for me. Trial, error, tweak, twist and manipulate it all to do what yah gotta do to make it work. lol I hope you understood what I said... I am now questioning myself on that.

 Hi Linda,

Sounds like you are doing pretty good.  Glad to hear it.  The only thing I would add about the food is that chili was good to me early out... (stopped and got Wendy's chili a lot when I was out and about).  And I did find that adding the protein to things could be nasty.  Try just sprinkling a little in instead of trying a whole or 1/2 scoop.  Every little bit helps.  I did use Isopure water in the beginning too because it has 30 or 40g protein (can't remember right now cause I haven't gotten it in a while.)  You can get that at GNC and  I actually thought it was better if I added some SF crystal light or SF koolaid to it.  And of course the protein drinks.  When I didn't like any of them I found that the chocolate CVS brand mixed with a SF carnation instant breakfast and 8oz nonfat milk was kinda like a chocolate breakfast drink if you like those  (and it is 40g of protein).  

Wish you the best.  <<<<>>>>

Hi Linda. Great to hear that you are doing so well. Soft food stage does get boring pretty fast doesn't it?! I ate the things you listed, plus protein pudding (SF jello pudding made with protein shake for the milk), thin mashed potatoes with unflavored protein, and ricotta cheese with a little spaghetti sauce and a sprinkle of cheddar on it and heated just enough to melt the cheddar. The Wendy's chili was good for me too, but I had to puree it then.
I think you're doing great, cause it's hard to get all your fluids and proteins in those first 2-3 weeks. Keep up the good work and the weight will be falling off soon!