Question:
How do I get though Thanksgiving

It will soon be Thanksgiven, I will be almost three months by this time and I am wondering how and the hell I'm going to get though this. I want to eat...and eat a lot. I know I have lost a lot, 55 pounds two months post-op and still losing, thank God, but I want to eat all that good food I'll be cooking. Also I drink a lot of orange juice... is this good for me. I drink more orange juice than food. Thanks to all of you.    — blank first name B. (posted on November 7, 2001)

November 7, 2001
go to victoria bowens site and print out some good "sug. free" recepies. Do little things to help yourself to cheer yourself up. I'm having mine just before christmas!!! My kids are going to cook and i have looked up some recepies already...i dont think its going to be easy...but having something THERE AND READY FOR ME will help
   — Jackiis

November 7, 2001
In my opinion, the oj is a bad bet. Especially if you're drinking a lot of it. It sounds like you're getting your calories through juice instead of food. Orange juice is all sugar (natural sugar, but sugar). Sip a protein drink instead of the juice if you can. As for Thanksgiving.. well, it's not EASY, but you can live through it and actually enjoy it. I was about 5 months post op my first Thanksgiving. I just put a little spoonful of everything that interested me onto my plate. Then I just moved around my plate, nibbling bits of it all. There were a few things that I seemed to really enjoy, so I ended up eating the whole spoonful of those things. Others, I decided weren't worth the space. Go ahead a "taste" the food you are fixing. Just remember, you basically only get a taste or you won't have room for anything else! Good luck!
   — BethVBG

November 7, 2001
I looked at your profile to see when your surgery date was. I had surgery Aug. 31st last year so I know exactly what you are going through. Thanksgiving was pretty weird to be honest with you. I don't have to do all the cooking so it wasn't so bad. I think that would be pretty depressing to do all that work and not feel like you can enjoy it. My suggestion is to relax and enjoy the people you are with and think about how much you really do have to be thankful for. As far as the food goes start with the turkey (or whatever meat you will have) and then add a little bit of the side dishes to get the flavor of Thanksgiving dinner. If the turkey is dry add some gravy to make it easier to chew. My niece (I love her, but she cooks once a year!) overcooked the turkey last year so it was pretty dry. I also made a sugar free pumpkin pie. I thought my diabetic brother-in-law might join me but he doesn't follow his diet very well and ate two pieces of regular pie. I ended up throwing 9/10 of the pie away, but I didn't care because I wanted pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving and if that's what it took I was going to have it. Now, about the orange juice - my doctor warned us not to drink orange juice because it has so much sugar in it. He says there is more sugar per ounce in o.j. than there is in regular soda. I miss going out in the back yard and picking an orange and drinking fresh juice!
   — georgiacarol

November 7, 2001
I intend to GRAZE my way thru thanksgiving. I have NO interest in doing this more than a few times a year. But it should help to make the holiday more normal. I beleve it will help my wife Jen who will be getting surgery december 10. She will see there is good eating after surgery, and we can indulge a bit on holidays. I want a normal a life as possible, and nearly everyone overeats on holidays. On OJ. Avoid large quanties of juice, as they are mostly empty calories. Congrats on your loss, you doing great!
   — bob-haller

November 7, 2001
On the juice matter...it's okay to have a little, but not a lot. My nutritionist suggests only 8 oz. a day. You could split it with water for 16 oz. But beyond that, it really is too much sugar. As for the holiday, I agree with the other posters that you should put a little of everything you'd like to try on your plate, and do what you can. At about 3 1/2 months I tried turkey as "preparation" for Thanksgiving, because that is my favorite feast. Moist turkey was great, but the leftovers the next day were just entirely too dry. Gravy is a good idea. Another hint, if you like to make turkey soup, it's another great way to get protein. I always loved the turkey soup even more than the turkey! If you use the bone to make the soup, you get protein. Granted I leave the noodles (or most of them) behind and have maybe one little potato and the rest broth. But it is still tasty and a source of the ever important protein. Lastly, I've tried a pumpkin pie made with Splenda with a little Lite Whip Cream...fabulous! I just left most of the crust behind. Give it a try! Best wishes....and I hope you enjoy your holiday.
   — Tracy L.

November 8, 2001
I also drink alot of OJ. But I water it down ALOT. (I never did like strong juice). However as far as it having more sugar than pop, I don't think that is the case. I lived on regular pop all my life and can't stand it anymore because of the sugar yet oj does'nt bother me in the least. In fact I put lots of splenda in my oj to make it sweet... but then it would be sour as I make it so "watery" anyway. I figure we could drink worse things. ;) As far as Thanksgiving, someone said to graze. Now normally that would'nt be a good idea, but as long as you save the grazing for "very special" holidays/birthdays. DO NOT do it any other time. As for me, I can get through the restrictions of not eating much when I know I can eat what I want (within reason of course) for special occassions.
   — Danmark