In two days I will be given the green light to start introducing "soft" Proteins into my diet. While I am over the moon about not having to suck down broth and can actually put some substance passed my lips, I am freaked about taking on too much too soon.

I have read SEVERAL articles, journals, personal stories and all seem to differ slightly in how "soft proteins" are defined.

On my resource sheet my doctor describes soft Protein as flaky white fish, moist chicken, ground turkey, thin slice lunch meats but other information suggests those items must be pureed. As in blended to paste. Not only does that make my stomach turn but I don't think I could eat meat in paste form.

I'm also confused by why yogurt needs to be "plain" when many, many brands with many, many flavors have no "chunks" in them. Like the Oikos Triple Zero banana Cream. No chunks, no sugar, no fat and packs 12 grams of protein and if you add Protein powder could have a punch of 20 grams of protein. Why would that be an issue?

Has anyone had "thinned out" mashed potatoes, grits, cream of wheat and suffered horrible consequences?

Has anyone in the first month post-op used Almond Milk (unsweetened) to make Protein shakes? Were the results painful?

I think I am losing my mind in over thinking. I'm just so damn scared to eat something, get sick and feel wretched.

Please tell me this is all normal thinking. I'd hate to be losing my mind with my weight.

I was so excited to move to pureed foods after several weeks sucking down broth. I wanted some texture! All plans are different. I could have yogurt during the liquid phase. I wasn't limited to plain yogurt, but could have any yogurt I wanted as long as it was low fat and under 10 grams of sugar - oh and no chunks of fruit.

Are you going into pureed foods or "soft" foods? During the pureed stage, I pureed everything. Some of the things I pureed were chili, chicken breast and pot roast. When you are in the pureed stage, you can't eat with your eyes. I didn't thin the mashed potatoes and it only took 2 bites of cream of wheat for me to say no way...this is yuck.

I love the premier pre-made shakes, so I never had to deal with almond milk.

I'm in the soft foods stage now. I make chicken salad, taco salad (no chips), and manwhich. I also marinate chicken breasts, that I can grill. Oh...I also made bbq pork ribs in the crockpot that were absolutely delicious. I've made marinated grilled shrimp that is to die for. You do need to watch how much bbq sauce and marinade you use because of the sugar content. I think this stage is pretty fun. I look at pinterest and other recipe site trying to find recipes that will fit the soft food stage - and there are tons of them. I'm lucky too because I have a very supportive husband and he doesn't mind being the guinea pig with all of the new dishes that I'm feeding him.

You wouldn't think that I'm afraid to eat after all the foods I just described, but I am. I carefully weigh all of the foods I consume so I don't over eat. I even carry a pocket scale in my purse so I can weigh my food if we eat out. I'm terrified of stretching my pouch. I think this is completely normal.

So instead of fearing the unknown - PLAN for it! I'm sure your dietician will give you a list and guidelines for your next stage in eating. Believe me - you can eat delicious - yet very healthy food - and still be 100% compliant on your plan.

You need to become clear on whether you are on the "pureed" food stage or the "soft" food stage. They are different. Generally people go from liquid to pureed to soft foods, with typically two weeks at each stage (although it differs considerably by doctor).

If in doubt, I would assume pureed until you can ask you doctor or NUT, and get confirmation. Better safe than sorry.

In pureed, everything must be, well, pureed. All smooth. No chunks.

As far as Oikos Triple Zero Banana Cream, I just looked it up on MyFitnessPal food database, and it looks fine nutritionally (very similar to non-fat greek plain yogurt). Just make sure that there are no chunks in it.

I use Almond Milk with no problems. YMMV.

@@toasty I hate that there is a discrepancy among doctors when detailing post-op diet. Just like with pre-op dieting. Trying to filter through the information can be confusing, difficult and frustrating.

I have known several people who didn't have a pureed food phase. They were given the okay to have deli meats (lean), flaky fish and even shredded chicken breast at two weeks post-op. In fact a couple of the girls I follow on Youtube talk about their diets the first 2-4 weeks and they talked about having grilled chicken and sliced deli meat with soft cheese spread. Ugh, I am so confused!

On my sheet is specifically details that at days 8&9 I can have thinned cottage cheese, strained cream Soups, yogurt.

Then starting on day ten I begin my Bariatric SOFT Protein diet. Then that is all my diet can consist of for almost three weeks before starting the Bariatric Regular Diet. Which would add fruits, vegetables to the already soft protein diet.

Does any of this even make sense? Or am I just hungry?

My plan skips liquids (Save the one day in the hospital) and goes from two weeks of pureed to solids. Each plan is different.

I'm still months from surgery and I am scared to death about what I am supposed to eat and not, despite pretty clear instructions. It's the fear of the unknown for me.

@@Ashlegal I'm so sorry you are having such a hard time. In my case, I got a whole packet (about 15 pages) with details on what to eat in each phase, sample meal plans and recipes, when the phase begins and ends, when to start Vitamins and what kind, and leaves very little to guess upon. One whole page on different Protein supplements for various situations/tastes/conditions.

The best I could recommend is to contact your bariatric team, in particular your NUT, and ask questions of them. As you say (and I totally agree) everyone's different, so whatever advice you receive here about your nutrition plan might not be applicable in your situation.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

@@Ashlegal I completely understand where you're coming from. I just posted "Diet Stages - Day 1 and Beyond" where I included 7 pages with each stage listed from the book I was given at Mayo hospital. That's where my Bariatric team is and where I had my surgery. You may want to check it out and see if it might help you. Best of luck to you on your continued success!

I made turkey meatballs and put a spoonful of marinara sauce and blended it. After six weeks of no food it was amazing. I topped it with mozzarella cheese. I took it slow. The first few meals we very small. I chewed and spaced out my bites. If say I had about 3 tbsp my first meal.