Question:
2 weeks post and I have two more questions.....
Hi all. Thank you for the wonderful responses to my previous questions! I have two more..... 1.) I am supposed to have lunch with a colleague next week and am trying to pick a resteraunt where I can actually EAT something! Anyone try rice this soon after.....I was thinking chinese... 2.) How do you fit all the vitamin supplements and medication pills in one day? I have a total of 7 per day! Thanks! — emilyfink (posted on June 26, 2002)
June 26, 2002
MMMMMMM Chinese. Nope lol you cant have it. I am still pre-op so i may
not have it all right, but...... I am Asian lol and rice swells in your
tummy after you eat it. So if you do go BE CAREFUL like maybe 1 tablespoon
is all you could probably eat. My surgeon recommends no rice or pasta that
close outta surgery because you are still learning the size of your pouch.
Good Luck ~Ang~
— angel_wls
June 26, 2002
Hi there :) I'm 3 weeks post-op and I wanted to do something
"normal" with my boyfriend after being laid up with cabin
fever...so we went restaurant hunting. I tried a mexican place b/c we can
have beans, and that worked out so-so. I find that a good diner is the best
idea, b/c they just have everything under the sun and they're good with
making things to order. I sipped on some soup and a few days ago had a nice
omelette. Good luck!
— Kelly C.
June 26, 2002
Hi, I am two weeks post op. Last week my best friend and I went to get our
nails done and afterward she wanted to go to lunch. We went to Wolfgang
Puck's. Luckily, they have a clam chowder. I had just started full
liquids so I just drank the soup and avoided all the gunk. It worked out
okay for me. Also with the supplements I take my b-12 in the am with my
multivitamin. I take two citrical at dinner and two at bedtime. I heard
that it was absorbed better that way.. who knows. I haven't had any
problem swallowing them whole. Hope this helps.
— gloria M.
June 26, 2002
Italian? Good soups or salads? You take 7 vites a day? I take LOTS of
vites per day. I eat when I take vites, I take vites when I eat. I break
them into 4 groups to space things out, and take one more calcium before
bed.
— vitalady
June 26, 2002
I had rice at 2 weeks post op. I ate about 2 TBSP with a nice soupy sauce
on top. It was great It sat well in my pouch with no problem. Just chew
well, take your time and don't go for a super wild sauce...if you like tofu
that works well also. Traci
— MsGlitterDiva
June 26, 2002
My dietician told me no rice ever, because (a) it swells in your stomach,
making you think you're more full than you really are and taking up space
that could be used by protein, and (b) because rice tends to clump together
in your stomach and could cause a blockage.
— Roxanne M.
June 26, 2002
No chinese so soon after surgery! Many people have bad bad reactions to
rice/pasta/bread, and that is the last thing you want to happen while you
are out eating. I know the several times pasta/bread have gotten stuck in
my pouch, the only relief was to lay down for 30 minutes - it can be
excruciating.
I would suggest going somewhere where you can order a bowl of soup. So
early after surgery, you should likely only be eating
liquids/semi-liquids...
Vitamins are easy. Carry them with you at all times, and take them when you
eat. it will soon become a major habit! I travel a lot for work, and my
vitamin organizer had fallen out of my suitcase on my bed and I didn't
realize it until I was long gone. I panicked, and ran to a local store to
get more vitamins - I can honestly say I've not missed a single vitamin in
7 months. Unlike pre-op, sometimes I have to remind myself to EAT in order
to take my vitamins! The vitamins I know I must have, the food is just to
keep my tummy from reacting to the vites.
— Tracie B.
June 26, 2002
I'm 7 weeks post op today and the only times I have dumped were when I ate
restaurant foods. I had no clue what they were putting in my foods and,
although I thought I was getting low-fat, I was indeed being pumped full.
I may as well had an IV filling me with the stuff. The only place I have
found that didn't make me sick was Chili's. They have a Fajita Pita made of
grilled chicken and lettuce in a pita. I told them to leave off the pita
and the lettuce. The chicken was a bit dry but NO FAT. It also had
fat-free ranch dressing and Pico de Galo, which I asked to have put on the
side. It also had a small bowl of black beans - tasted like they were in a
vinagrette. Pretty good stuff and I didn't dump. Most important to me.
Good Luck.
— Vicki H.
June 26, 2002
Rice bad!!! Very bad!!! Rice swell!!! Rice make you very sick!!!! Rice
bad!!! Bad Rice!!! Bad bad bad rice!!!
— RebeccaP
June 26, 2002
NO CHINESE!!! I am 15 months post-op and still throw up if I eat Chinese
food. The rice/tofu will make you SOOO sick. If you want to be able to
eat something, I would strongly suggest something liquid, since that
doesn't stay in your pouch as long. Soup without chunks, perhaps? Or
maybe, if you're going to go for something solid, go for something soft.
KFC actually is a decent choice early post-op, since you can easily eat
some potatoes (which go right through the pouch!) and then fill up at the
end on a few bites of chicken.
— Terissa R.
June 27, 2002
One thing I had as an early post-op was egg drop soup. High in protein (and
Salt!!) but it worked. At two weeks out, I wouldn't be eating any rice or
chicken or anything. But I started eating Chinese at about four MONTHS out
and have absolutely no problem with it. (Except brocolli. Darn stuff gets
stuck in my pouch!!) The "No Rice" rule is not a blanket
certainty for everyone. My mother cannot eat rice as a post-op, but I have
no problem with it. Everyone tolerates different things.
— PT LawMom
June 27, 2002
hiya! at 2 weeks post op i would NOT go near rice or chinese food...at 12
months post op i will still not do chinese food - it is about the only food
to make me sick!
rice at your point of recovery is not a good idea since as everyone else
said, it swells plus you need to concentrate more on proteins since your
meal choices are limited. at 2 weeks post op i found places like dennys or
carrows or a soup/salad place much better choices...i did a little
scrambled egg or soup or mashed potatos with a little well-chewed
chicken...your pouch is in it's early healing stage and you must be careful
with what you put into it...eventually you'll probably be able to eat darn
near whatever you want (just smaller portions) but for now stay away from
rice, bread, pasta, RAW VEGGIES and RAW FRUIT (canned or cooked is
fine)...
good luck!
— jkb
June 27, 2002
I ate at a chinese restaurant at 2 weeks out--my dr still had me on a
liquid diet. So I ordered one of the soups with an extra empty bowl and
strained the sucker. It was good and pouch-safe! I also had tortilla soup
and chicken enchilada soup like that. (Obviously, I eat out A LOT! LOL) I
would definitely wait for the other stuff, but once you are comfortably on
solids try it slowly according to your own tolerances--I have never had a
problem with chinese food once I started eating real food--rice, cabbage,
broccoli, and all! (Just not the deep fried stuff.)<p>As for
vitamins, I take liquid b12, 500 mg calcium citrate, and my BCP (yeah, I
know it doesn't absorb well--I take it to make me a nicer person ;) in the
morning. At noon I take my multivit with iron. In mid afternoon I take
another 500 mg calcium citrate. If I forgot my stuff in the morning, I take
it before bed. Ta-da!
— ctyst
June 27, 2002
Wasn't Rebecca's answer cute! LOved it. I, too, had a really hard time with
rice, pasta, breads initially. The first time I ever got sick was due to
rice....I had maybe 2 tablespoons at a couple months post. I'm now over 2
years post & I can eat rice, pasta & breads with little problems. I
still am a bit careful, but you MAY find you will be able to add some of
those foods you can't eat now back in at a later time.
— Kathy W.
June 28, 2002
My first meal in a restaurant post-op was mashed potatoes with a little
gravy. But I hated that I got full so fast and had to watch everyone
continue eating! So .... now...I order very large brothy soups! My second
meal I ordered Won Ton Soup at a Chinese restaurant. I just got refills on
the broth and never ate the won ton until the end. That way I was just
taking in a lot of liquid and I wa fine. Now, I still follow the same
basic strategy whenever I eat out. Soup broth, wait, then (sometimes) a
small amount of food. Works for me!
— Kathy J.
June 28, 2002
Hi Emily! I had a BPD so my eating habits are a little bit different, my
first meal out was some baked fish that I chewed into oblivion! LOL Since
then (I'm three weeks out) I've been out to eat serveral times. I've taken
to ordering from the appetizer menu in most places. Of course if you are
on liquids soup will be your best bet. Just chew anything you select really
REALLY well, and be prepared to ask for a doggy bag! ******* On vitamins, I
take 7 a day as well, 2 ADEK chewables, 2 Xantac, 2 Niacin, 1 B12 and my
Calcium Citrate (which I actually disolve in water and drink). I bought a 7
day pill planner: Each morning before breakfast I mix up my calcium and use
it to swallow 1 Xantac, 1 Niacin, and my B12, I also chew on ADEK. The
rest I take just before dinner. It's just a matter of getting into the
habit and being organized.. at least from my limited experience. I keep
my pill box right by my favorite chair so I don't forget them. I hope this
helps you. ~Peace
— Joscelin
Click Here to Return