Asking for a bariatric diet in the hospital... LOL

[vikingbeast 987]

So I ended up back in the hospital last night... nothing to do with my bariatric surgery. A 🤬spider bit me and caused a huge flare of cellulitis. (I'm home now and now just on oral antibiotics rather than "nuke it from orbit, it's the only way to be sure" IV antibiotics.)

But while I was there I mentioned I was on a liquid diet due to bariatric surgery. I should have been more specific... a tray showed up with sugary Jell-O, clear broth (which I did drink), and regular ol' apple juice.

My dismay must have been obvious because My Super Awesome Nurse frowned a bit and said, "Didn't you say you were on liquids because of BARIATRIC surgery?" loud enough for the nutrition person to hear.

"Yes," I said, "I need a bariatric diet."

And lo, they brought forth stuff I could eat... cream of rice, more broth, diet juice, Protein Shake, yoghurt, sugar-free pudding, sugar-free Jell-O. The Breakfast tray was more than I could have eaten all day... and then three hours later another tray appeared!

When I was discharged, My Super Awesome Nurse said, "That stuff is just going to get thrown out... put it in your bookbag and take it with you!"

It makes me wonder what that hospital expects their immediately post-op patients to be able to consume! But hey, I've got food for two days now.

Now I just need to get rid of all the Fluid they pumped into me.

Edited October 1, 2021 by vikingbeast

[Smanky 747]

Thank god for your Super Awesome Nurse!

While my WLS hospital experience was fine (I suspect because they were a private hospital), my two previous surgeries were a different story. For some reason, even in 2015, "vegan" seems utterly beyond public hospital kitchens. The worst was my knee surgery stay (5 days), where they just... didn't feed me. And I was only vegetarian at the time, the easy option. If it wasn't for my partner and friends bringing me in food to eat, they'd have just let me starve. With my 2015 gallbladder op, they managed to find a small soy milk for me, then just shrugged. Luckily, that stay was only overnight.

So brava getting the right stuff thanks to the nurse AND getting a takeaway stash!

But ugh... sorry you're having such a rough time with the cellulitis. That was a rude-ass spider.

[Arabesque 7,256]

I had a similar experience earlier this year. Specified no Pasta, rice or bread & high Protein on my admissions form & wrote I had a sleeve gastrectomy beside it. First meal was sandwiches, second was a vegetable pasta bake. When I pointed out my diet requirements & restrictions of the sleeve for me they said they thought I was just being difficult. (Not in those exact ways but it was what they meant.)

Yes, some people can eat bread, pasta & rice in time but I can’t. They sit very heavily in my tummy & reduce what I can eat. So, yes some of my request could be perceived as a personal choice but it is also a physical thing for me too. If I said I had a gluten or lactose intolerance they would have happily modified the meals without an issue. Once I explained everything they were fine & my subsequent meals were great.

With the numbers of people undergoing bariatric surgeries now, you would think there would be a wider understanding of the requirements & limitations within the medical fraternity. Maybe I’m expecting too much. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Hope you have no post spider bite issues.

[Smanky 747]

11 minutes ago, Arabesque said:

When I pointed out my diet requirements & restrictions of the sleeve for me they said they thought I was just being difficult. (Not in those exact ways but it was what they meant.)

With the numbers of people undergoing bariatric surgeries now, you would think there would be a wider understanding of the requirements & limitations within the medical fraternity. Maybe I’m expecting too much. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I think the above is key. I worked 10 years in hospitality, most of it in the kitchen as a cook, and have done film catering where it was a bingo card of dietary requirements and it's not difficult to feed people. Yes, it's can be a pain in the arse and some kitchens are vocal about that, but that's the job. With bariatric requirements in a hospital, it's definitely not asking too much. It's just down to planning and having some meals that are easy to alter.

I sometimes wish I could march into the local public hospital kitchen and sort out their "difficult" or "annoying" dietary offerings. But then I remember how I never want to work in hospitality again...

[BigSue 1,373]

When I was in the hospital for my gastric bypass surgery, the first meal tray they brought me had a bowl of fruit cocktail! Apparently, they were out of sugar-free Jello, and they decided that fruit cocktail was the best substitution they had. When the nurse came in and saw it, she gasped and said, "You didn't eat any of that, did you?" and went to give the food service people a talking-to.