Question:
What kind of foods should i pack my fridge with

to be ready for when i come home from the hospital? what am i allowed to eat or drink? and what is the best protien drink ( the yummyiest? )    — [Anonymous] (posted on June 8, 2001)

June 8, 2001
First off, every doctor is different. My doctor allowed me to have soft/puree the first three weeks.. then regular foods as tolerated. Some doctors require clear liquids. I can tell you that I packed my fridge with pudding, jello, ricotta cheese (part skim), Skim Plus milk, chicken salad, egg salad, and tuna salad, and yogurt (watch the sugar content). I also stocked my shelves with cream of wheat, oatmeal, pastina, soups (lots and lots)... I bought baby food but it was nasty. I dont like cottage cheese so I didnt get that. Also, according to my doctor anything can be eaten so long as you puree it.. just add some broth and throw it in the blender. I didnt like to eat like that so I basically stuck to egg, chicken and tuna salad and soup. I put the salads (not the egg) in the chopper to make it real soft. I also ate lots of mashed potatoes and I did try meatloaf at about 3-4 weeks out. Hope this helps!
   — Jeannet

June 8, 2001
I survived on soft-boiled or fried eggs, cheese, cottage cheese, soup, sugar-free frozen fruit and chocolate pops, sugar-free hot chocolate, jello, mashed potatoes and crystal lite.
   — Kristy J.

June 8, 2001
As previously stated each doctor is different in their post op eating program. I can tell you what I ate. I had cottage cheese, soups, tuna or chicken blended with light Miracle Whip, light yogurt and mashed potatoes. I also ate a lot of egg salad (I still do - it's one of my favorite foods). I have a mini food procesor that I used to puree food and often would throw in whatever my family was having for dinner. One night I even had a pureed chili dog (minus the bun) - it looked really gross, but after eating bland tasting food it tasted great! I prefer the protein drinks that are like koolaid instead of the shake kind.
   — georgiacarol

June 9, 2001
I just got back from a pre-op visit with my nutritionist. She has been attending the ASBS conference the other day and said that a bunch of them got together and have decided to start implementing a two-week protein period. She says that the first two weeks, we lose so fast that our lean muscle mass is affected. Also, since our insides are so swollen, it's hard to get enough protein in. Therefore, she's going to start recommending that patients spend two weeks on liquids taking 20g of protein supplements in every 3-4 hours with other fluids in between. She says that should help keep lean muscle mass up in the first two weeks and allow the pouch to heal some before we go to pureed foods. She recommended a chicken broth with 15g protein as well as any protein drinks that I might find appealing. Although she hasn't implemented this formally yet (the conference is still going on), she said I should go ahead and try it if I want and see how I do. I was going to stock my fridge with yogurt, applesauce, etc., but now I'm going to try this. The former plan was pureed and soft foods after surgery and she said I can always try those, but to start with the protein drinks and see how I do. (80g/day, 20g every 3-4 hours).
   — PT LawMom

December 20, 2002
stock very little, haha. I still have stuff from stocking my pantry that is sitting around 6 months later. To give you an idea, 1 box of suger free jello lasted me about 4 meals. 1 container of yogurt 2-3 meals. My meal plan was like this: clear liquids 1st week, anything you can see through, broth, sf jello, sugar free drinks: ie crystal light, sf popsicles, no sugar added juice (dilute with water 50/50) avoid caffine and carbonation. add full liquids week 2&3, milk(skim), sf pudding, sf protien drinks, sf yogurt, strained soup (no tomato). Week 3&4 add pureed foods, applesauce, mashed potato type consistency foods (anything you can stick in a blender or food processor keeping in mind low sugar, low fat. Week 5 add soft foods, oatmeal, canned no sugaradded or packed in its own juice fruit, toast, crackers(chew well), scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, well cooked soft vegetables, Week 6 begin adding regular foods (chew well) I drank Alba and Carnation (sugar free) instant breakfast. Don't waste your money looking for these drinks too much, You may get sick of them very fast (I did) I'm 6 months post op and have so far had very few side effects. Once I ate 1 bite to much and felt ill far about 2 hours That's abou the extent of it.
   — Candy J.