Vacation/Travel/Socializing after surgery

[momof3_angels 465]

Protein: If I am driving anywhere, I pack a cooler with all my Protein Shakes, Water, Vitamin water zeros etc. I also pack the small Protein Bars and any other foods that I like. If I travel by air, my plan is to bring electrolyte and Protein Powder packets to add to water that I will buy after I to through TSA. I will also pack nutritious Snacks for the plane and/or buy something at the airport (for bigger airports with more dining options). I will be doing a long haul flight in May. The airport I will be leaving from has lots of food options. I will buy food and bring it on the plane (again, after going through TSA). This way, I am not stuck with airline food that I may or may not be able to eat. For the Breakfast meal later in the flight I will probably bring high Protein granola something.

dinner Out: I do eat out with my family. I do NOT eat at buffets. Sometimes I buy something on the menu that is high protein and perhaps veggies, but I skip the carbs (unless they are something like Beans with protein too). If I order my own meal, it will be 2-4 meals for the day. Or, I tell my husband to order something that I can eat and I will take a little of his food. In the beginning it is really hard to find something other than Soup you can eat... but as time goes on you can eat more variety. I look at the kids menus too, but most of the time they are crap I shouldn't eat. Another option is to order a side dish only that meets your needs. It varies.

Cooking: I hate cooking, but I find I am cooking more than usual. I often cook something in bigger batches and eat it all week. I find a few things I LOVE to eat (that are healthy for me to eat)... and eat them more often.

Work luncheons... I have had 2 since surgery. The first was a Thanksgiving style meal. I put turkey and essentially a teaspoon of everything I wanted to taste on my plate. My plate was ridiculously empty (since it was a fullsize dinner plate), but I enjoyed the meal with my peers. I ate the turkey first, then the other stuff until I was a little full. Talked to everyone. Then ate a few more bites. It was fine. The second luncheon was mostly sandwiches and pastas and such as sides. There WAS a salad, but I couldn't digest lettuce yet. Since it was all food that I knew I really shouldn't eat... I chose to go home early that day. I just couldn't handle being around so much food that I couldn't eat that day... so I made the decision to avoid it. I could have just as easily gone out to get something I could eat and bring it back to the luncheon. Everyone would have understood. But I wasn't in the best place emotionally that day. For future luncheons, I will continue to find out what the menu is in advance, so I can make the best decision for me, on that day.