One Month Post-op

I am now 4 weeks post-op. Since I started this journey with the Optifast semi liquid diet on June 21st I have lost 42 pounds; 27 of those are since surgery itself. I measured myself today and have lost inches in various places. I have progressed with my eating as well. I am now up to a little more than a ¼ cup per meal. This seems like a long way from 1 Tablespoon when I started. It is a sure sign that the pouch is healing. On my 2 week checkup instructions the goal for the month is to make it to ¼ - ½ cup of food per meal and to go from 4-6 mini meals a day to 3-4 meals a day. I do occasionally feel hunger urges. I try to listen to them and decide if it because I need water or food. I always try the water 1st and if that doesn’t take care of it I eat. I am getting more protein (dry milk) in everything I eat. I am hitting the 60 grams of protein goal per day. I am fairly regular with getting in my 64 oz of liquids.

Today I had 3 meals. I usually have an egg for breakfast. I go to the YMCA and water exercise. I return home and have a protein drink of 29 grams. Today I tried something different for food. I pureed some chicken breast mom and dad had left over. I pureed some turkey pepperoni and put lite mayo and dry milk in with the chicken. It was very good. I ate about ¼ a cup of that for lunch. For supper I took what was left and put some dill weed and cheese seasoning in it to change the taste some. It was very good! I am finding I am using seasoning more than I ever thought about. I just experiment. I figure if it isn’t any good it’s just a small amount of food. So far I have not found anything I didn’t like or didn’t agree with my pouch. I guess I must be lucky!!

Yesterday I made a concoction. I went into the laundry room where we keep a lot of our canned goods. I took a can of chicken, a can of pinto beans and a can of cream of potato soup. I mixed all 3 together and pureed them. I made just one helping in case it was nasty. It is actually good. I pureed the rest of it and I call it PiCk Po (Pinto Beans, Chicken and Cream of Potato). It amazes me I can’t get mom and dad to try any of it. It isn’t really the most appetizing looking entrée. Tomorrow I will doctor it up to change the taste a little. I might put some white cheddar cheese seasoning in it. I have found popcorn seasoning to be very good and it has several flavors available.

Mom drained off some chicken broth from some chicken she cooked to make chicken and noodles. I’m not sure what I will do with it yet. I also have a can of cream of onion soup. I might use some hamburger and can of vegetables and make something with the soup. The soup will be used after I brown the hamburger like mom did last week with Lipton onion soup. I might also take some fish and use the cream of onion soup to bake that in. I could use the soup or chicken broth to make some mashed potatoes. I put dry milk in them so they have protein value and don’t count as null.

I had to find some smaller pants. I wore my old pants on Thursday and discovered as I walked down the hall at work that I was in fear of losing them. Friday I pulled out a pair of my smaller pants. They are more of twill than a stretch material. I found them uncomfortable in the fact they do not stretch. I tried removing everything from my pockets, but still felt confined. So I wore a pair of stretch material pants Saturday. I was much more comfortable. So I am down a size or so in pants. My shirts are too big, but the next size I go down to is just not quite right for my satisfaction. I will hope this week with the exercising in the water and the exercise ball exercises I want to start will allow me to get into and be comfortable in the size smaller shirts as well as the twill type pants. I have found some toning exercises for the exercise ball. I need to work on my abdomen and lower abdomen/hips. I can do this on Thursday and Friday when I don’t get in bed until 3am and don’t want to wake up by an alarm to go to the “Y”. I can do it at home. I also have some other exercises that use the wall that are good for toning. It is a routine I will need to get into.

Well, as this 1 month mark is here I feel I have adjusted well. I am reading my pouch better all the time. I still have to make myself drink the protein drink. I would assume this is because it is easier to eat. I get tired of being full from fluids. I know this will lessen as I get closer to regular food and can take in higher grams of protein (such as a hamburger with 21 grams). I know I will probably have to rely on protein drinks for the rest of my life to be able to get in enough protein, but at least it will be fewer in a day. If I use good intelligent choices of food and higher protein items I will have to rely less on the drinks. I am amazed that I haven’t missed the sweets and pastas and potatoes. I can still have them, but after I have my protein. Using the dry milk also makes eating them more possible because with the protein it changes them from a “carb deficit” to a “protein benefit”.

I still can say with confidence, I am not sorry I had the surgery!! Now that I am beyond the liquids only diet I have been more content with my decision. I was never sorry, but I am certainly more settled in the lifestyle.

Until the insight hits—have a great time with life.



Daily Thought:
Some people are like slinkies -
Not really good for anything
but they bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs.