TDWRoberts12

I was just going to suggest that. ( as it was to me ) Yes you can, as they said, not spicy , and low sodium. which everyone knows causes you to retain fluids. I am lucky I have never had an issue with that. I TOTALLY get the chewing, that is my biggest thing too.

I had19 teeth extracted 2 bone graphs and a bone removed from my pallet. last year (2022) on April 25th and was fitted dentures. The bottom plate has never allowed me to eat with them, and it took 9 months for my gums to heal before I could eat (chew- or gum) again .I lived for 9 months on Ramen noodles, rice and multi vitamins. So when it came time for my pre-Bariatric surgery "diet" it wasn't a big deal. Because I had just lived through a 9 month what I called "Denture Diet" My peak weight was 245, In Nov 2021 I was referred for Bariatric surgery. Due to the fact that I suffered from Insufficient veins in my calves, causing edema in my legs and feet. Spondylosis in my L 3-4-5, Osteoarthritis in my SI joint where the sacrum and sacroiliac meet at the pelvis and the anterior cart edge in my left knew was gone. I was fit for compression socks, heavy duty knee brace and at times I had to use a cane to get up and down and to catch myself if my knee buckled.( I fell getting out of bed, 3x in 6months) I developed hyperlipidemia, and was Pre-Diabetic. I couldn't stand for more than 10 mins , squat, bend, lift, ( making the bed, sweeping or vacuuming was torture.) or walk more than a block or shop for more than 30 mins. Because of Covid everything was severely backed up, once all of my pre-surgery testing and procedures were completed, it was Feb of this year( 2023 ) . I was cleared as a perfect candidate, but again -back log. At the time they said it may be June to sometime in August before the surgeon would available , and maybe longer to find a clear OR. It took so long to get scheduled there were a couple of procedures and test I had to repeat. On April 20 (23) they called me, there a was last minute cancellation for May 22, 2023, was that doable ? Oh heck yeah ! So on the 25th they had me starting my Pre-diet, All liquids except for Cottage cheese, At almost 3 weeks in, they were concerned my weight wasn't dropping as it should be ,and asked if was following the liquid diet, I was like what ?. NO .I wasn't told to. She said yeah on the 25th. Ok well this may mean we have to re-schedule. I was so upset. She said she was going to get ahold of my Case nurse to see what to do. A couple of hours later, I was like wait a minute. I called her and said I think there was a mis-communication. I have a copy of the diet, it didn't say Liquid . Just that I was suppose to start this diet on the 25th, and on the 20th right after she called I went and stocked up on EVERYTHING, and had the receipt to prove it. I asked when you said liquid did it include Cottage cheese. She said yes, Thank goodness. Yes I HAVE been on that diet since the 25th. I am very fortunate, I am a crazy fast healer,. I had all of this trepidation about healing right, and being able to get around ASAP. I am almost 60 and everything had been falling apart. My roommate is a very empathetic, compassionate , and a generous person, but what she is not, is a caregiver. So I was concerned about that. So I had my surgery on May 22, at 9 am. Woke up later in a hospital room, I had a horrible pain in my shoulder and it felt like someone kicked me in the gut. Tuesday morning I woke, still a little sore in the tummy ( like a pulled muscle) but other than that I was fine. At 3pm she came into discharge me, and told me to call my ride ( roommate) I ended up having to walk down to the nurse's station, because she said she would be right back to get my IV out ,but she didn't return, so I hunted her down. After I got it removed , she said she was going to go get a wheelchair. So I got out of bed, got dressed, gathered my things and sat on the bed and waited, and waited, my roommate called , I am here what's going on. I said she had to get a wheel chair. So I waited some more ,after like 30-45 minutes . Once again I walked down to the Nurse's Station hunting for her and pulled a "Karen", some guy showed up with my wheelchair, quickly. My roommate had been waiting in the Patient Pick-up zone for almost an hour and a half, she was fuming. I get home, go to bed, my roommate goes and picks up my pain meds it was liquid Tylenol and Liquid Gabapentin and Celebrex. When I took the liquids I almost threw up...WTH ? Out of curiosity, I looked up the ingredients. Freaking FAKE sweetener. I cannot tell you how many times I informed them I could NOT use any fake sweeter, because it gave me severe cramping stomach aches, vomiting, or IBS. Just two days before the surgery they tried to give me three Ensure to drink ,which I already knew had the fake sweetener, and said no can do, Keep them. And now my pain killers had them. I was like do you feel actual pain? Not really, just some tenderness. So I threw them out. The rest of the day I was up and around, doing things. And the next day it was like I never had the surgery. I live at a Studio Apartment complex with 16 units. My roommate is the on-site manager. So as I went back to my normal on the 4th day, ( with the weight lift, carry, push-pull restrictions), and the tenants were all like " I thought you were having surgery this week ?" I said " I did. On Monday." None of them could believe it. So that is my story. I am disappointed with my weight loss so far, ( it's been a month) as I have only lose 17lbs since the surgery. But I also considered, due to my 9 month "Denture Diet"( I lost 25 lbs,but once I was able to eat again I got back up, so, it may have changed the immediate weight loss factor. I have lost 45 lbs. So maybe that is why. So below is my pre-food, my favorite a plate FULL of (Foie de Veau Lyonnaise) Calf liver in onions. and my new diet. 4oz ( with a total of 2oz of food) containers with liver, mashed potatoes and broccoli.