Question:
do I eat or drink first upon waking?
I am one month post-op RNY. When I wake up in the morning, I am both starving and dying of thirst. If I eat first, I am dehydrated. If I drink first, then I eventually get stomach cramps and nausea from hunger. Then I'm prone to eat too fast and I throw up. I go through this struggle every day, trying to get in enough liquids AND food, but I fail every time. Any suggestions? I forgot to mention, my doctor said that I cannot have any liquids 30 minutes before meals, during meals, and after meals. — [Deactivated Member] (posted on September 9, 2004)
September 9, 2004
Hi, Janis! First, let me preface my answer by saying I am not an expert by
any stretch of the imagination! I'm 3 weeks post op.
I have the same feelings when I wake. In fact, it has been a struggle to
get in the full amount of liquids daily. Yesterday, I was hospitalized for
dehydration.
I have tried to solve the problem by having my protein shake for breakfast.
I serve it over crushed ice and it is cold, wet and satisfying.
Hope this helps!
— RMaze
September 9, 2004
I know what you mean. I am 5 months post and had the very same problem. I
started keeping a large glass of crystal lite on my bedside table. Wake up
a few times thru the night and drink enough each time to fix your thirst.
This will help tremendously with the thirst when you first get out of bed.
Try to take your last drink about 30 min before you get up then you should
be able to take your breakfast. I hope this helps you, it did a world of
good for me.
— Angel E.
September 9, 2004
I am 13 months post-op, and I still have that question every day, but what
I do that helps alot, is, about and hour before I go to bed I have a high
protein something, like a hardboiled egg or a piece of deli ham, and that
keeps me from being so hungry in the morning. I keep a bottle of water
beside my bed, and through out the night I take small sips, this helps
really alot. In the morning I always have a protein shake then acouple of
hours after I have my breakfast. The protein shake helps with the thirst
and helps me from getting hungry right away. Good luck at finding
something that works for you.
— cindy
September 9, 2004
I always drink a glass of water before I go to bed. Also, have a glass by
your bedside. You can drink water during the night also. You only have to
wait 1/2 hour before you eat, so why not have a glass of water when you
first get up, take your shower, etc and then you can eat. It take some
planning. Or have protein drink before you go to bed so your are not
hungry. Are you eating 6 small meals a day? Drinking your water? You are
at this stage where you are trying to change old eating habits. Look at
this as a new life style change. Throw out the old and bring in the new.
You have to plan ahead with this new stomach. Drinking water is very
important. Little sips all day long will keep you refreashed. Water,
Water, Water.
— Linda R.
September 9, 2004
I drink a protein shake every morning for breakfast. It solves both the
thirst and the hunger. 10/27/03 304/150/150
— Pupcake !.
September 10, 2004
I think the protien drink is a great solution! I love my Whey Fruity
(fruit punch flavor) mixed with Crystal Light Lemonade. I drink this every
morning - of course I am 9 months out. A SMALL protien drink for you. :-)
Another suggestion is sugar free Jello. It will both hydrate and fill the
tummy. Good Luck!
— MissKimberly
September 10, 2004
I have to take synthroid for thyroid and it has to be taken on an empty
stomach at least one hour before I eat so for me, it's water all the way
the coffee, then about 9:30 I have breakfast. I always have a high protein
snack just before I go to bed at night then drink water anytime I wake up
during the night so I don't really get hungry in the morning at all but do
eat about mid-morning because I hear all the time how important breakfast
is. I'd love to have a glass of carb-countdown chocolate milk first thing
but the medication says don't take with milk so I go with the water. I
would bet though at one month out, you are probably dehydrated in the
morning rather than starving for food. They can often feel the same to us.
In the words of my PCP, a hospice nurse, my surgeon, etc., you can live a
LONG time without food but you can only live about two weeks without liquid
so my philosophy is ALWAYS go for the liquid. It takes about two bites of
food to keep me going but it takes lots of liquid to keep my kidneys
functioning well, my skin and hair from drying out, keeping the headaches
at bay, etc. Some suggestions for liquids are V8 juice, protein enriched
milk, sugar free popsicles, crystal lite mixed with protein, (drink the
protein drinks slowly or you'll get nauseous) sugar free jello.
— scbabe
September 10, 2004
I got morning sickness all the time, but it will pass in another 2 weeks.
Do the water first.
— mrsmyranow
September 10, 2004
Hey Janis,
I start my protein shake each AM upon waking, I am one year out and this
works for me, it is a little more substinance than water so possibly will
hinder those hunger pangs until you can eat. Give it a try. I drink vanilla
Carb Solutions (WalMart pharmacy is where it can be found), choc. is
yucky... I jump start every day of my life with my protein shake.... God
Bless Ya, Donna
— Donna Y.
September 10, 2004
I would drink water first or a protein drink. If you drink a nice cool
glass of water or crystal light, get ready for work you should be able to
eat shortly after that. Best of both worlds.
— Linda R.
September 10, 2004
Janis...I am definitely NOT an expert about any of this, but I have some
experience. This is going to be a long answer so feel free to stop reading
now if you want. I am 8 1/2 months post op and have lost 108 pounds. I
still have trouble getting in all my fluids, although I can get almost all
my protein in. I have started drinking protein shakes, Advantage brand by
Atkins (I find it at Walmart in the pharmacy section close to the vitamins
and supplements). It's 11 oz in one can and they have vanilla, strawberry,
two types of chocolate (one sort of light and one a little darker) and cafe
au lait (I hate coffee so I haven't tried that one). I really like the
vanilla and the lighter chocolate (chocolate delight) best. I didn't care
for strawberry and the darker chocolate is good, but I just like the other
one better. There are 4 cans per case and they used to cost $7.86, but I
got them on sale for $5.70 two weeks in a row and now they cost about $6.39
or somewhere around that. They have 170 calories, 9 g fat, total carbs 5 g
(dietary fiber carbs 4 g, and sugar carbs 1 g), and 20 g protein.
All that to say this...the protein drinks count as liquids also, so don't
worry about not getting liquid in first thing. My dietician told me to
count the protein drink as my fluids too. As I said, each can has 11 oz
and I cannot drink an entire one in one sitting. I split it up and drink
half and about an hour or two later I'll drink the other half. If I drink
this too quickly or try to drink it all over a period of about 30 minutes,
I get really sick to my stomach, sometimes with nausea and vomiting and
sometimes I have stomach cramping and diarrhea along with the N&V.
Being so close to post op, it's going to take time for you to build up to
your full amount of liquids and protein each day. I have found also if I
go to Contours and work out first thing in the AM (I go at 8, I get up at
6) before I eat, I can get at least 24 oz of water in during my exercise
routine. Then, after getting home, I try to get in a shake or protein bar
after an hour or so. I have to split the bars in half also or I get
deathly sick. I love the Advant Edge by EAS carb control nutrition bars
and my favorite is the chocolate peanut butter crunch. It has 240
calories, 8 g fat, 6 g fiber carbs, 1 g sugar, "other carbs" 18 g
for a total of 25 g (my dietician told me the "other carbs" may
be sugar alcohols and that could be why I get sick if I eat too much at
once) and 20 g of protein.
So, I hope this helps you somewhat. I've tried the protein powders and
after spending 40 dollars for one container and 30 dollars for another and
pitching them in the trash, these premixed ones work best for me. I always
eat meat, such as chicken (pulverized to look like sawdust because I can't
tolerate meat unless it processed or ground), ground turkey breast (white
meat only) and ground beef. I add non-fat mayo and hot dog relish to my
chicken along with a piece of celery or non fat mayo and sliced grapes to
my chicken for variation on chicken "salad". I add spaghetti
sauce and picante sauce along with diced onion and green pepper (very small
amounts of all this added stuff) to my ground turkey and ground beef or a
small amount of Manwich sauce for my variations for this. This has been
hardest for me. Not everyone has trouble with meat, I just happen to be
one of them and I get full very quickly so I don't ever have veggies unless
they're mixed in in small amounts. I do eat grapes as a snack in the
evening most days and that helps me out. I choose not to eat bread, pasta,
rice, and potatoes. These don't have enough protein to counter balance the
amount of carbs and calories to be worth it for me to eat them.
Occasionally I have peanut butter and crackers...only a couple at a time or
I get too full and feel sick.
Hope this helps. Good luck and God bless.
— Katherine F.
September 11, 2004
When I first wake up, I take my vitamin C and Iron and drink my protein
shake at the same time. I'm 3 years out and have been doing this from day
7 (which is when our surgeon has us start our vits and proteins after
surgery). Also since you are only 1 month post op, please drink very
slowly (an ounce at a time if you can). The only stipluation my surgeon
has is no drinking liquids for 1 hours AFTER eating, but we can drink up to
the time that food enters our mouth. (as well as another crucial one is no
sugar and no milk).
— trtorrey
September 11, 2004
I do a protein shake first thing in the morning . . . Nectar's Fuzzy Navel
. . . from Vitalady.com. </p>
And you can drink up until the first bite of food . . . water (any liquid)
doesn't stay in pouch, it flows right thru . . . no reason to wait after
drinking before you eat.
— RWH G.
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