RE: Am I doing this wrong????

March 1, 2003

Well, Dawn, the first thing that made me sit up and take notice was that your

dietician says u should be eating a cup of something at each meal by 10 wks

out. Is your dietician educated in the physiology of the pouch? I don't think

I've EVER heard of anyone being advised to eat that much. Some people were

told ONE OUNCE at a time till they reached goal. Some were told only eat when

hungry and only just till not quite satisfied. My doc said 4 ounces, 6 times

a day, for the rest of your life. So I seriously question whether your

dietician has a handle on this at all.

What is it about the cottage cheese that makes you want to gag? Taste,

texture? Try mixing it with your favorite flavor of sugar-free jello powder

and mashing it up or pureeing in the blender to change taste and texture. Or

u can heap it on those little melba toasts, sprinkle with sugar substitute

and cinnamon and run it under the broiler or zap in micro till the cottage

cheese melts.

There are plenty of other ways to get more protein if u don't yet tolerate

meat or poultry well. First of all, be sure you chew, chew, chew your meats,

etc very well--at least 30 chomps, maybe even 50, per bite. Bites should be

cut up to about the size of an eraser on the end of a pencil. You can puree

in the blender with stock or bouillon or broth. U can buy babyfood meat in

the little glass jars and season them to taste with salt and spices. And

while not as hi in protein as fresh meats, there are all kinds of lunchmeats,

franks, wieners, deli meats, etc. Do u eat fish? Shellfish? Good sources of

protein, and they " stick to your ribs " even better than meat or poultry. They

are very high on the satiety index.

There are lots of other types of cheeses besides cottage cheese, both hard

(like cheddar) and soft (like cream cheese and brie) and everything

in-between. There's yogurt and peanut butter and all kinds of lentils and

beans (altho the latter are hi in carbs, which you should keep low). Get

yourself a protein counter (like those calorie counters in the old days) and

look thru it for things with the highest protein content.

And don't forget you can increase the number of your protein shakes at any

time. I myself do 4 shakes a day, total 120g of protein daily, and that way I

never worry if I'm getting enuf from my food. Till I did that, I was going

nuts trying to get it all in and still have a bit of veg's, fruit, whole

grains.

Like u, I am fond of nacho chips. I tell myself at least they're whole grain,

lol. Of course CORN is not the best whole grain 2b eating! The best way, the

ONLY way I can avoid eating stuff like that is to JUST NOT BUY IT. If u don't

have it, u can't eat it. And ditch those pretzel rods too. If you snack on

protein or up your protein shakes, you should be able to kick the cravings

for the carbs in a few days. Better now than later, bcuz the longer u wait

the harder it gets. And if u don't get new, better food choices into your

habit and kick the old lifestyle, you'll find u don't get to where u hope to

be.

How much water are you drinking? If you're drinking enuf, you probably

shouldn't even have time to eat snacks. Bcuz of the timing. It's eat, don't

drink for 2 hrs, then a liter of water minimum (and it often takes me a

couple hours to down that much) b4 I can eat anything again, then another 2

hrs wait and another liter of water. Before I know it, it's bedtime and often

I still haven't gotten in all the water I'm supposed to (I do 4 liters a

day--about 90-100 oz) and my rule for myself is NO FOOD till I've downed at

least a liter of water. And somewhere amidst all that, I'm also putting away

4 shakes.

Folding soapbox now and going to fix a shake.

Carol A

---------------------------------

In a message dated 3/1/2003 8:23:21 PM Central Standard Time,

dawn@... writes:

> I am in need of some answers. I am 9 weeks out and my husband is

> worried that I am going to starve myself to death....I told him I am

> not but I would check to see if I am doing ok. I really don't think

> I am eating right. When I was first out of the hospital I ate a lot

> of low fat cottage cheese to get my protein in but now I can't

> hardly gag it down. I can't eat very much at a time and the paper

> the dietian gave me after surgery says I should be eating 1 cup at

> each meal by 10 weeks out....I am not any where near that. Am I

> doing something wrong. I have just this past week started getting

> 60g of protein by means of Designer Whey protein shakes, thats 2 a

> day. I know I am eating things I shouldn't like nacho chips...maybe

> 5 of them at a time with some nacho cheese dip and pretzel rods a

> few a day....these things go down very easy. When I try to eat meat,

> usally chicken or turkey I end up getting sick....I guess maybe I am

> eating to much or to fast or something. I just don't know what I

> should eat that is high in protein and goes down easy. Please don't

> yell at me...I just need some good advice on how to make changes to

> what I am doing.

>

March 1, 2003

Dawn, personally I think one cup at nine weeks out is a lot. Of course

it depends on which surgery you had. I was still doing 2 oz or 1/4 cup

at 6 months out. You would do better to fill your tummy with solid

protein and not nacho chips and pretzels. Have you tried boiling your

chicken. That way it will be moist and easier to eat. Can you eat eggs?

There are so many ways to prepare them, soft boiled, hard boiled,

pickled, in omelets, scrambled with LF cheddar cheese or cream cheese,

quiches, friattas, soufflés. You can make a wonderful " almost lasagna "

with cottage cheese or ricotta topped with a little spaghetti sauce and

mozzarella cheese & microwaved (this doesn't taste like cottage cheese),

you can put cottage cheese on a saucer, top with a bit of no sugar added

applesauce and cinnamon and it tastes like a Danish. How about Italian

beef cooked until it falls into shreds in the crockpot (season with 4

pepperochinni and use 1 1/2 cup of beef broth. Or lean pork loin in the

crockpot until it shreds - season with garlic and onion. I also make an

enchilada casserole with cooked lean ground beef mixed with enchilada

sauce and covered with LF cheddar cheese and I layer it with tortillas

and top with more cheese. I loved shrimp cocktail and broiled fish early

on. Keep drinking your protein shakes and let me know if you need more

ideas on what to eat!!

Amber/FL

Am I doing this wrong????

I am in need of some answers. I am 9 weeks out and my husband is

worried that I am going to starve myself to death....I told him I am

not but I would check to see if I am doing ok. I really don't think

I am eating right. When I was first out of the hospital I ate a lot

of low fat cottage cheese to get my protein in but now I can't

hardly gag it down. I can't eat very much at a time and the paper

the dietian gave me after surgery says I should be eating 1 cup at

each meal by 10 weeks out....I am not any where near that. Am I

doing something wrong. I have just this past week started getting

60g of protein by means of Designer Whey protein shakes, thats 2 a

day. I know I am eating things I shouldn't like nacho chips...maybe

5 of them at a time with some nacho cheese dip and pretzel rods a

few a day....these things go down very easy. When I try to eat meat,

usally chicken or turkey I end up getting sick....I guess maybe I am

eating to much or to fast or something. I just don't know what I

should eat that is high in protein and goes down easy. Please don't

yell at me...I just need some good advice on how to make changes to

what I am doing.

Thanks

Dawn Maycroft

Wytheville,VA

open RnY

12/19/02

312/255/140

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March 1, 2003

Dawn,

I am almost 12 weeks out and cannot eat more than 1/2 per meal and usually eat

4X per day. You are getting protein from your shakes so why not try to add some

veggies to your meals. If meat gags you, and it might not be appealing from

time to time, use eggs, cheese, tofu or other high protein food, or even peanut

butter. How about tuna salad? Chicken salad? Chilie? The carbs (specifically

nacho chips and pretzels) are meant to be a condiment not the source of

nutrition for a meal. If you want carbs, how about oatmeal, legumes or other

complex carb. I find that I do tire of foods very quickly and what I like today

will repulse me a day or two later. This is an ever changing process so you

might find that you are needing to discover new foods on a daily basis. How

about a small salad with chicken or salmon. Or grated cheese. Experiment and

discover what healthy foods you really are hungry for!

Rev. Pam in PA