I have lost my ability to cook!

[MGM 140]

I was sleeved 8/22/2012 and have lost 80 pounds since 8/1/2012. I was a very decent cook before my surgery. It's been almost 8 months, and my cooking sucks! It's like since I don't enjoy eating anymore, I no longer have creativity. I think my family may be getting tired of sautéed chicken breast, vegetables and potatoes. The only thing I can still cook is chicken and andouille gumbo, cause I didn't eat it before either, so the taste isn't a factor. I don't know what to do! I'm not even interested in relearning how to cook. And my nest has gotten more empty too. Only 1 full time child left, and it's 50/50 whether he eats at home! I'm a horrible wife and mother!

[Iniysa 157]

Your not a horrible mother! LOL! Have the others cook some. They might find it a challenge themselves and not mind your little cooking problem so much. OR better yet, they may find they can cook to their own tastes and like it!

As for it being a gamble whether your last 'still at home' child will be there for dinner or not, I think that's normal. My mom is a professorial chef and it was a toss up whether my brothers would be home or not. I was always home, I was the introvert that liked being at home.

Good luck!

[Afrodite82 148]

Thank goodness your worth as wife and mother does not actually hinge solely upon your cooking skill or lack thereof.

[gmanbat 5,889]

If you could modify your thinking and feeling you might be able to solve your problem.

You said you don't enoy eating any more.

Is it because everything tastes bad or that you can't consume very much of it?

I don't cook a whole lot but when I do I am very concerned with the taste because that is basically all I get out of it. I don't get to stuff for extended periods but I can eat slowly and savor great tasting food. I think I love food more now than before. It's because I concentrate on flavors more than quantity and because I know I am not making myself fat and unhealthy with it.

I think of gormet competitions that I've seen. The meals are little bitty portions that I used to laugh at. Now they would be about right for me.

Make some killer meals that twang your buds! Just eat a "gormet portion".

[MGM 140]

Thanks y'all. My family is pretty finicky, so if I make something I love, they hate it...if I make something they love, I don't like it. I only eat maybe one serving of gluten a week, so I cook around anything with gluten in it. I don't know what to say 'gman' it's like the only thing that 'tastes good'/'worth eating' is the bad stuff. ie: rice Pasta baked goods, I'm not a huge meat person. Beef twice a month is good with me. chicken or shrimp everyday would be great! I do like the deer Jerky my father in law makes, but...can't expect the family to live off that, so yeah, I'm still trying to figure it out. I have gotten to where I will only eat pasta if its worth it...my favorite dish from Copeland's, which we don't go there that often. I'm not really enjoying anything, if I think about it. I'm fine eating my Greek yogurt for lunch, 2-3 ounces of salmon with vegs for dinner, cottage cheese or something for more Protein. Chex gluten free dry Cereal or some kind of nuts/seeds for work out carbs...oh, and it's not the quantity or lack thereof that bothers me. food really isn't all that great anymore. I eat because I'm hungry or I know I need a certain nutrient, that's all.

[kscdvm 78]

There are several good cookbooks I got at the library for eating after weight loss surgery. Have your family go through one and pick out some recipes that you might want to try. I have found that I really like ground turkey now and can't really stomach much beef. We almost always have some chili on hand made with turkey that is an easy dinner to heat up just the right portion for those that show up for dinner. (My kids are in a lot of sports).