Question:
Rice wouldn't go down!

Rice is on my 8 week pureed plan and I am 9 days post-op. We went to a Chinese restaurant today and the egg drop soup was fine but 4-5 flakes of rice immediately stuck in my esophagus (like tuna the other day!) and I ended up in the bathroom with diarrhea (as with the tuna). It sure was fun to pay for a meal I didn't eat...I haven't heard much on the rice issue, just bread. Whole wheat bread is fine for me, but this rice doesn't work! Help?!    — KristyKatt (posted on May 11, 2002)

May 11, 2002
Hi I cant believe rice would be on ANY post op diet....It is probably the worst thing we have to fight with not very many can do rice at all even way post op im 26 months post op can get away with rice once in blue moom but then just a few tspoons of it mixed with other foods,,Pasta is also another hard one for alot of people,,,I am sorry your dr. has this on his diet.. The only rice i could imagine would be easy would be baby rice cerial i hope this helps,,Rice is usually a no no for us you did not know and hopefully wont try it again very soon xoxoxox bbd
   — BBD

May 11, 2002
Rice is also on my body's "can't handle" list. It makes my tummy hurt a lot. It's all trial and error for everyone. Good Luck!
   — Angela B.

May 12, 2002
I too, can not do rice. It's too hard to chew those little pieces!
   — Cindee A.

May 12, 2002
Rice 'n chicken. Sigh. Almost 8 yrs, still cannot do them predictably. Some days, maybe. mostly not. It was suggested to me to try Basmati rice (yeah, right), and see if it would work. After recovering from sticker shock (it's in small boxes, not big bags), I gave it a shot. It has a very nice flavor, nice texture, looks "normal", and my body apparently does not recognize it as rice, cuz it goes right down as if it was FOOD! LOL!
   — vitalady

May 12, 2002
I had a hard time with rice in the beginning. Tried it twice and it all came back up. What happens is, it gets lodged in the stoma. Kind of like wet sand going through a narrow hole. It gets stuck. Now I am 6 months out and tried it again for the first time since the early days and it went down very well just like any other food. Some can never do certain pastas, breads or rice ever again. Some can do it later down the road. It is individual. When I was unable to eat it, I figured it was no biggie because it was just rice, I could live without it. But I tried it again out of curiosity because I was able to tolerate swallowing those big ol pills whereas in the beginning a half would get stuck.
   — Cheri M.

May 12, 2002
I have found that I don't really like the "feel" of rice and pasta in my mouth since surgery. I can't really explain it. I can chew it and it doesn't make me sick, just doesn't "feel" right in my mouth therefore I don't really have an interest in it. I don't sweat because I am still a serious carb lover and I figure why go there if it doesn't do anything for me. It's strange because pre-op I could have eaten my weight in pasta in rice. I can still eat my weight in chocolate so for that I have to use that lovely tool called "self control". Since surgery I have found that I actually do posses some self control-who would've thought.
   — jsuggs