I did a bad bad thing.

[natalie_christin 61]

Natalie' date=' please don't leave this forum or stop posting. While I'm not a doctor, I will say you probably did not harm your sleeve and are just .... Protein deficient. When I went home from the hospital, I was told to be sure to continue to drink my Protein shakes every day. I always have one in the morning with my pills. Yesterday I started taking my pills with Water and felt a little ill. I immediately went and got a Protein shake to take the rest and instantly felt better. I guess I needed to have that stomach coating for all those pills. Maybe that would help you. I always drink two a day even though I am on mushy foods and do have Soup n eggs n stuff like that. Congratulations on the Water though. I really have to work to get that in now that I'm eating and having to wait before and after eating. Sometimes I have to stay up just to finish drinking my 64 oz. How do u drink so much?[/quote']

I'm actually having to crush my pills – I don't know if that would help you? That of course be careful because you can't crush some of them. I should be taking more pills that I am but for right now, I'm just taking what I absolutely necessarily have to have. It sounds like coating your stomach helped you :-) there are times I have to just stop and it'll take my breath away and I'll try to slowly breathe I'll turn the AC Apraw high and better hope control the cleanliness and it takes a few minutes but I start to feel little better.

I don't know what it is about water – I never really drink sodas too much but, if you're not a water lover, try lemon in it? I used to have lemon and my water all the time and it seemed a lot easier to drink it. My stomach can't tolerate the lemon right now but I haven't lost my thirst LOL. The easiest way for me to drink a lot of water is to get a very large container – I have a Rubbermaid carafe that is 2 quarts and I just refill it with ice water all through the day. About it at the grocery store – I actually have several and I just use them, wash, then reuse them again. It's a lot easier to drink it that way for me then to refill small glasses over and over.

[natalie_christin 61]

Every post-op diet is different. I was told by my Nutritionist 'clear fluids only for the first week-two weeks. I'll be sending you a post operative diet book shortly'. This never arrived and I received it the morning after my surgery. Which' date=' when it did arrive, stated that in weeks 1-2, I could 'eat' (amongst the other usual suspects of fresh air and water): Creamed Soups, Yoghurt, Protein shakes. As it stood and on morning one, the hospital delivered me natural yoghurt and Jello (or jelly as we like to call it in the UK) for Breakfast. So much for clear fluids for 1-2 weeks then?! Anyway and that aside. Because I was legitimately provided these things on day one, I have continued along that path, whilst consuming bottles of clear Isopure Zero to get my Protein in. I find them rather boring to taste (we only get three flavours in the UK), but it's easy on the stomach and makes me feel like a good student for glugging my way through them. Pain meds are hideous and always require something to line the stomach first before ingestion to prevent all the usual nasties which can happen. How in gods name you were supposed to manage that on clear fluids and without any form of PPI or stomach lining protection, I don't know? As for eating the turkey? This is the way I see it. You're on your own and you haven't been guided particularly well. Although with reference to the pain meds on an empty stomach - you probably new this would be an issue pre-op and maybe should have asked some more probing questions for a definitive position? After all, most healthcare systems, irrespective of which nation it occurs in, couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery, so it falls to the patient to be annoyingly 'on top of it'. Which, after paying exorbitant amounts of money no one feels they should have to do, but however, they invariably end up doing, because the administrative coordination systems in these institutions are, for want of a better word, so crap, you need to end up effectively taking charge of your own healthcare. <minor rant over> So, you had a couple of slices of mashed up turkey in some broth and you chewed it like an obsessive?!?!??!! Did the world stop turning? No. Could you have hurt yourself? Yes. Will you do it again? Course not! (well, you might, if that's your food of choice in the mushie stage!). However, everyone can fully appreciate why you did it. Hell, if I'd had such a lack of medical clarity, cohesion and guidance in how I should approach things, I'd be making my own executive decisions, too! The way I see it; you spun the barrel in a Russian Roulette game of 'oh my god, I need protein, oh my god how am I going to get it? Maybe I should just eat some meat directly?' kind of thing. After one week of nothing but Clear liquids and a bucket load of pain meds - no person, however well 'schooled' would be making the most cogent of decisions. That aside, you were lucky, you didn't sweat out and black out and vomit and are not (hopefully) experiencing abdominal pain, heart palpitations and all the other nasties that can happen. You spun the barrel and nothing was thankfully in the chamber. Consider one of your 9 bariatric lives lost and carry on with renewed vigor and determination! You can do it! As for me and to illustrate we're all human; I strayed waaaaay off the path last night. I had four teaspoons of mashed potato drowned in baked bean juice so it was like, well, Soup. It tasted amazing and before I get a rollicking for the fact I'd eaten a carb in week one - I'd got permission from my bariatric nurse first - so there! <insert tongue poke out here> I often find that a lot of things on this site, particularly nuances, when posted in text, are lost in translation. This leaves the doors WIDE open to misinterpretation and people taking conversations off into completely different realms and tangents; making reference to things which aren't immediately relevant, you feel are not immediately warranted, or even on topic. Although it is annoying and you're left thinking 'WTF?!' Most of the time, it is well intentioned. Sift through the 'blah' (which is the majority of my posts) and look for the 'ahh - eureka!'. Either way and on this site, it's usually either the 'carrot' or the 'stick'. All valid, if you know how to detach your emotions and look at the information proffered critically and objectively. You'll be great and you'll do great. Put this behind you, grasp your own medical coordination by the balls and go get 'em, tiger! x[/quote']

LOL – loved your post! And your attitude… :-) as far as the medical stuff goes – this was all stuff that I painstakingly thought was addressed and readdressed and addressed even again before I had the surgery and then I just discharged from the hospital and nothing… They really dropped the ball but luckily, I've got my primary doctor to fall back on and he's a great doctor and totally in my corner. It took a couple days of doctors appointments but I think I got it worked out. I just don't like not being able to take care of it and having no control to remedy the situation. I felt helpless and one of those hardheaded people that don't like feeling that way LOL. I don't ever let myself go there.

[natalie_christin 61]

I too have cheated a couples times. Only with small bites here and there' date=' once a breadstick, spaghettio rings my kids were eating, and tilipia. But I didn't eat over 3 bites with the baby spoon. I hateeeee the liquid diet....I guess I didn't realize how hard this would be. I feel somewhat deprived and depressed. I haven't weighed myself once because I don't even habe a scale...but my surgery was on 9/18 and I feel like I haven't eaten since then lol. Also having.trouble with all Vitamins and haven't started any Protein supplements yet. What about boost low cal high Protein? [/quote']

I know it's easier said than done but don't let yourself get depressed. scales can be good and bad. They can make you feel like you're not doing good enough or they can help keep you on a path. I've lost a good amount of weight and people are noticing even in this very short time. But i'm in this mindset that I won't let myself get excited about it because I guess I've had so many disappointments Healthwise and backtracks that I'm afraid to get excited about it because I don't want to jinx it. I know I'm the one that started the topic on cheating LOL but, be careful with the bites here and there because it's easy to let it add up. It's kind of like that analogy with a cook tasting all of their food. They've eaten the meal before they even sit down to serve it and then eat again. If you need some encouragement, you're welcome to send me a message :-) I guess I'm lucky, the diets really not bothering me other then my medical concerns. I'm sure it's going to be a lot tougher later on down the line when we get to the real food stage and not having all the stuff that we used to love having. But, it's one day at time.

[natalie_christin 61]

Nothing like making a hard situation even harder by not really having docs you are fond of. I can absolutely understand what a hard and personal decision surgery was. I felt the same. I was very lucky to get a great support system with my NUT and surgeon... and here. Soooo much information. Unjury' date=' BariWise and American Bariatrics all have a ton of products to help through all the stages. We have Whole Foods near me ( a good quality super market) that makes their own Soups, so much better and I would just strain out the liquid early on. Even Panera soups are a good and tasty option. I always try to get the most bang for my buck with what I consume. We take in so little, I like it to matter. One of my favorite things when I first had surgery was mixing my chocolate Protein powder with warm milk and a little sugar free peppermint Syrup. Hot peppermint cocoa. The warm liquid helped early on. You'll find a boat load of info and support from so many here, the Vets were and still are priceless to me. Where else could you go at 2 in the morning when you are stressing and get some tips from someone who went through the same thing. Good luck progressing your diet, it will get much easier as you can add things.[/quote']

Thanks for the info – I'll check it out. I love whole foods! But, part of my issues with food are monetary. I have my dad to take care of and we have little to no money. I've been sick since 2008 and am unable to work. I'd love to talk to a nutritionist more but I can't afford it. I only saw her once. So, I do the best with what I've got LOL. I bought submit soups from the whole foods but my doctor nixed them real quick – they were in the category with the Campbell's soups and have the same amount of carbs and everything but, he didn't like the carb amount… So I'm not sure why they have the Campbell's soups on the list? Who knows – I'll just stick to the Protein shakes and the broth – surprisingly the chicken broth has really made a difference for me. Before this I couldn't imagine just sipping Plain old chicken broth – but now it's the best thing for me if I'm not feeling good. I used to love adding herbs and spices but – my pallets change there too. Another problem that I find is when I'm out and unexpectedly that being out all day instead of a few short hours that I thought. You have to make restaurant choices. This place that I was crazy the other day – I saw my surgeon and I was going straight home after but plans changed and I ended up going out until 10 o'clock at night. My dad is a diabetic and I had to make sure he ate and I was in so much pain and had no choice but to eat and take pain meds – I did have to move ahead on the diet plan again but I moved onto the next stage where they said I could have eggs and tuna. So I ordered one egg – I even asked him not to use oil or butter or anything to cook it and asked for just a portion of plain tuna minus all the sandwich stuff. I barely got the egg down and that was it for me but you should've seen the waiters face when I asked if I could order it. They were not serving Breakfast anymore but I had to ask the manager and explains why I couldn't eat off the regular dinner menu LOL

[natalie_christin 61]

There are a lot of judgmental' date=' miserable people on this board. I say miserable not because I know them personally but because sometimes their posts seem to reek of unhelpful, almost shameful contempt for people who don't follow the same path they choose. It's sad.[/quote']

:-) I say we just all do the best we can help each other – that's all we can do. But, I think that one of the things that somebody else mentioned is a good idea, listen to the info or don't – take what you well. I should've never responded to what I did but, when you're in a lot of pain, recovering from surgery, and everything else that you're dealing with in life, sometimes your mind isn't your own.… LOL If somebody wants to be negative, judge mental, or mean – let them keep their energy. I don't need it… LOL I can use all the good, I can get

[NorCalGirl48 16]

Yes Sees candy and my surgery date is October 1, too close to my favorite holiday. Boo no Sees for me. I had a love affair with the double Carmels. Sniff sniff

[natalie_christin 61]

Sometimes the question asked is relevant to more than just the person asking. Sometimes the advice given does not fit the OP perfectly but may pertain to those who are reading but may not have asked. When I ask a question' date=' I take the advice that works for me and ignore the rest. I do appreciate (almost) all of the input because of the effort put into the reply, even if I don't agree with the content. Please remember, you cannot read tone over the internet. When I am in doubt, I tend to read other posts by the same person and determine if they are trying to be of help, or if they are simply trolling for drama. I rarely let my feeling get hurt by a stranger on the internet. My degrees in psychology and communications taught me better than that. Just my two cents. Take it or leave it! [/quote']

Very good rule of thumb. I honestly take that position with most things in life. I typically don't respond to stuff but I was somewhat broken down at the time I guess I should say. Sometimes things just hit you the wrong way and you shouldn't even respond but you do. It was a mistake.

[natalie_christin 61]

I am in Austin too' date=' surgery scheduled for November 18th. Really scared[/quote'] you can do it! But only do it if you're ready. The way I looked out it was, I was more afraid of what would happen if I didn't do it. Just take one data time and one step at a time.

On a sidenote I just have to say I miss Austin! I love it up there… It's where I would live if I could. But, San Antonio is home now :-)

[natalie_christin 61]

Yes Sees candy and my surgery date is October 1' date=' too close to my favorite holiday. Boo no Sees for me. I had a love affair with the double Carmels. Sniff sniff[/quote']

Lol.. I guess I'm lucky with Candy – I can always take it or leave it. I honestly can't remember the last time I had a piece of candy or candy bar of sorts. I'm the same way with bread. I know a lot of people have problems letting go of bread after having these types of surgeries… I'll have to say that I will miss Pasta and potatoes every once in a while.

[NorCalGirl48 16]

Natalie I have been trying to contact u but I keep getting an error message about the server. I'm ok, how r u?

[ChristineR 128]

I haven't read all of the answers so I'm sure it's been covered. You don't want anything rough in there when the staples are still fresh. It can get lodged between the staples and that would be bad. This phase will pass sooner than you think!

Good luck!

[joellaramsey 1]

I did the same thing but with KFC but my need was for flavor and chewing not hunger so I chewed and enjoyed the flavor and spit it all into a napkin. It was the best $5 I ever wasted now post op 2 weeks and the urge has subsided it must have been a mental thing

[natalie_christin 61]

I did the same thing but with KFC but my need was for flavor and chewing not hunger so I chewed and enjoyed the flavor and spit it all into a napkin. It was the best 5 I ever wasted now post op 2 weeks and the urge has subsided it must have been a mental thing

You made me laugh and smile – sometimes we have to do we have to do. I'm glad that you got what you needed out of it. Postop was a very hard time for me to navigate through – I don't or should I didn't feel like I had much support when it came from the doctors office. It was almost like I was rushed and I rushed out. I believe my doctor had really good intentions but they just started their new practice – they've been apart of two others in the past 10 years but it just seemed like it was a runaway train and I couldn't get where I should have been. I'm still finding my way but I think we will all be searching one way or another to find our way. Hopefully we can all work together here and help support one another :-)