I was going to call this Break On Through To The Other Side (thank you Doors). But I figured I'd get sick of it after a while. I'm going to use this space to keep track on the 2 week march toward surgery and then to keep track of the recovery and progress. That way I can keep it all together and if I just do one thread, it's all in one place without clogging up the Blog Area. I'm sure it's gonna be excruciatingly boring to everyone--me included! I'm a list and minutia kinda gal. I like tracking and counting--although I can be equally lax about crap. So I stop just short of OCD town (not that there's anything wrong with that).

My official 2 week liquid diet starts tomorrow. I decided to jump on it today because Sunday feels like a great place to start and because it's hard to do better than yesterday as my last food day before surgery. I'm a Texan, born and raised, and yesterday we had a fairwell to my ass and thighs via a Texas BBQ tour through Houston and Tomball. I ate so much brisket, sausage and ribs, I can honestly claim to be over it. Growing up in a BBQ family, slow smoked meats is almost in my blood. So it was only natural that I would choose that as the last rights.

I'm having RNY on February 20th and as I understand it, moist (fatty) brisket might not be my friend post surgery. Supposedly high fat foods (which moist brisket is) might cause a sort of "dumping" in the poop department. So I figure my future, once healed, might only include lean cuts of brisket and smoked meats. It's a choice I will readily make to lose weight and get my health back.

So the morning Day 1 hasn't been very difficult--a little hunger and growly tummy, but nothing that makes me feel anxiety. Protein drinks on board and this afternoon will shop for SF popsicles, SF jello and bone broth. I think I'll stick to packaged bone broth so I can get the actual nutritional information from a certified source. There's no real way for me to tell how many calories and carbs are in the bone broth I make here at home.

My Pre-Op Plan includes: 80-100g of protein; low fat; 60g carbs and somewhere around 1000cals per day.

4-5 Protein Drinks containing a minimum of 15g of protein per serving. They must be low fat and low sugar and can't contain over 4g of sugar per serving. I can have clear low sodium broths, sugar free drinks, sugar free jello and sugar free clear popsicles (no fudgsicles or ice cream based pops).

I will do this from now until February 20th.

I'm pretty sure I will be doing plenty of the following:

Edited February 4, 20188 yr by FluffyChix

2 Week Post-Op Check-up - 213.8 (-10.6lbs in 16days = 4.64lbs/week)

Hi y'all! It's been a little bit of a rough week. I'm still swallowing well, getting in plenty of fluids, but I underestimated the sheer volume of trains backed up on the track and in particular, underestimated the dreaded effects of my eternal nemesis fentanyl and anesthesia. And I did not keep very good track on my train schedule. Consequently, we had a severe blockage in Tunnel #9 on Track #2. That resulted in such severe cramping that all materials imported on new trains THIS side of the blockage were stranded on the track. And the result was mass, explosive exodus or projectile vomiting.

I ended up having to go to the emergency room where they thought I'd sprung a leak. A liter of D5W, a CT, and a barium swallow test showed no leak in sight, only fluid around the surgery and a high white count. So back on clear liquids until I saw my doc this morning. And I'm happy to say thanks for the giant economy sized bottle of MOM, colace out the wazoo, and a crap ton of water and glycerin suppositories, the blockage from Tunnel #9 is cleared (Oh DEAR GOD the humanity of it all! So very. Very. Very. Bad! Rosemary's Baby bad!) and they appear to be on schedule even though I'm still having pretty severe cramping and noisiness on the tracks that woke me from a sound sleep last night. And had me rushing to the train depot this morning! ROFLMAO!!! Good times!

She (my surgeon) basically told me, I have to stay on top of keeping my bowels clear and that I may have slow bowels, so will need to go slowly advancing foods--even things like soft cheeses are a no-no right now until the train schedule is running like clockwork. She said that everyone heals at different rates and can tolerate things on a different pace. So she said, KISS (keep it simple stupid). LOL. And so I will not be trying to be tricky with any recipes for a while. I also got sent back to my RD for a remedial course in post-op food progression and nutrition. LOL. Lucky for me I sparkleheart her! It's like, THROW ME IN THAT BRIARPATCH!!! She's a mother-confessor, psychologist and RD all rolled into one!

Ok, so that's the 2 week update. My bruises are finally starting to go down a little and I no longer look like I've been beaten with a baseball bat on my abdomen. Ok, yes I do. I still look like a beating victim. LOL. Ce la vie! I don't have to go see her for 2 more weeks, then I hope to get to go for 3 months!

Oh and praise the Sweet Baby Jesus! I'm back on a normal soft/puree diet--with the advice to KISS and go slowly progressing foods! Ha! Ya think? *snort*

Edited March 8, 20188 yr by FluffyChix

oh my goodness! I'm sure you were so scared! I am using your story for myself and I will stay on top of my train schedule! Thanks for sharing!

Just now, newself said:

oh my goodness! I'm sure you were so scared! I am using your story for myself and I will stay on top of my train schedule! Thanks for sharing!

Yes. I was pretty scared! I HATE throwing up and the pain was Exorcism cray! LOL. But when I couldn't keep an icechip down without shouting Ralph, I knew I couldn't di*k around and had to go see if I'd fu*ked up my surgeon's beautiful handiwork. TG I didn't!!!

Be a good conductor!!! Mind your schedules. Let this be a lesson for all!!!! Oh and don't eat cheese until you KNOW the trains are running on time!!! It will only make a bad thing worse!!

Went and listened to seminar today in Columbus. Will,this work out for me? Gosh i just don't know.

Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

18 Days Post-Op - 212.8lbs (9.6lb loss from SDW)

Ok, was gonna wait until 3 weeks to make my next post but yeah, the post op crazies (insecurities) are rearing their ugly head and callin' me "FREAK" in ginormous all caps YELLING!

Pooping continues to be filled with angst. I'm taking 17g of Miralax, 2 colace, 2 tsps of mag citrate daily, while blasting with 60ml of MOM every 3rd day. F me! WTF??????? So today is MOM day again. *le sigh*

So last night, I shocked and surprised myself by eating the biggest meal in my post surg history. Holy Fu*k! At 3 weeks my capacity per my RD sheets is supposed to be 1/4-1/2c and that should be closer to 1/4c. It's 1-2oz by weight for protein, up to 1/4c soft cooked veg or very soft canned fruit or applesauce, and whatever room is leftover a bite or two of starch.

So last night I made a bean and cheese omelet. I'm still off cheese, so I made yo-cheese from Greek yogurt and spiced it up and added a shake of "nooge" = nutritional yeast that sorta tastes like parmesan if you squint and cock your head a little bit. In my former life, I grew up eating bean, egg and cheese breakfast tacos!

I ATE the whole thing. Let me repeat! I ATE THE WHOLE THING! Am I yelling? Cuz I think I am! Here's the exact dinner:

Dinner Last Night - Black Bean and Egg Omelet

1 large brown egg, beaten

1 fl oz Fairlife FF Milk, beaten into egg

3 seconds EVOO spray

1/4 c FF Refried Black Beans with granulated garlic, ground cumin, and ground coriander

20g Greek yogurt

1/2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast

Nutritionals: 168 calories; 14g protein; 8g fat; 13g carbs; 5g fiber; 8g net carbs; 2g natural occurring sugars

I believe the ONLY way I'm going to get my bowel function back is by getting my food fiber back up and by moving a lot and staying well-hydrated (and healing more--let's not forget that). But how in God's name could I have comfortably eaten this entire meal when most people at my stage can't finish a single egg? Am I fu*king up my new gift by eating this quantity???

All minutia aside....you had...

An egg, 1/4 cup of beans, and little bit of yogurt.

Looks fine to me:)

Fluff, breathe, stop the 'chicken with the head cut off' anxiety!!! That amount of 'soft' food is fine.....

Just keep the train track cleared and 'A Train' singing down the line.

Thanks guys! You know, in a way it's reverse insecurity. So many of my Feb peeps are having issues swallowing water/liquids and getting their protein down--even to the point of not being able to get a whole egg down, and today I'm on board to get about 65g of protein and 625 cals in with only about 4-5fl oz of Pr. Protein. So I'm thinking, dayum! I don't want to pop a staple or something moronic like that -- just cuz I feel so great and can eat so much volume!

Just keep measuring and you'll be fine! I've found that some days I can eat what looks like a lot and other days only half that amount. Depends on the food too

Sent from my SM-G920V using BariatricPal mobile app

Yeah - looking back over my diet in my food plan, you are eating pretty much like I was - softer, but similar volume. So all is good, flower!

I am amazed by how many of us go through the “I can eat more than predicted” thoughts. I wonder if our surgeons know?! Maybe it isn’t us that have this wrong!! And maybe the prep talks are a little askew, so (combined with the anxieties that one or two of us but oh-no-never-me have) we all get a worrying surprise when we can eat 1/2 cup of mush three weeks out!

5 minutes ago, Miss Topaz said:

Just keep measuring and you'll be fine! I've found that some days I can eat what looks like a lot and other days only half that amount. Depends on the food too

Sent from my SM-G920V using BariatricPal mobile app

Yes, I can totally get this! I think for me, eggs/omelets especially are gonna be my go-to for a "known" meal that will work. Cuz, I use 1fl oz of high protein milk, it adds to the protein count a bit while keeping the egg soft, rather than so dense. So it goes down very easy.

This morning I steamed some chopped fresh spinach, garlic, a mushroom and some of my turkey crumbles until they were fork tender. And used more of my garlic yo-cheese. I portioned it this time so that it's only 1/2 of the total omelet and will have the remainder for meal #3. So far, it's filling me up way more than last night's bean, egg, and yo-cheese. LOL.

1 minute ago, Biddynz said:

Yeah - looking back over my diet in my food plan, you are eating pretty much like I was - softer, but similar volume. So all is good, flower!

I am amazed by how many of us go through the “I can eat more than predicted” thoughts. I wonder if our surgeons know?! Maybe it isn’t us that have this wrong!! And maybe the prep talks are a little askew, so (combined with the anxieties that one or two of us but oh-no-never-me have) we all get a worrying surprise when we can eat 1/2 cup of mush three weeks out!

I seriously sparkleheart you!!! Ok, link me up again to your food plan please? I "need"! I NEED! I want! I WANT!!!

I'm so happy to hear that you are another one of the peeps who can eat this much!

So do you think eggs and beans are slider more of "sliders"?

It turns your crank and I think that it's cool.

Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

Well, @FluffyChix I am in New Zealand, and it seems more common here to have practically no food plan. They are much more relaxed here - but I suspect a quirk of NZ law might be a GREAT reason for this.

Here it is, my US buddies. We have full, universal tax-paid no-fault accident insurance - so if something goes wrong (with anything - surgery, a ladder, a car crash) every single NZer gets full medical care free on the state and (more importantly) in return no-one can sue anyone. We have no courts full of people suing each other. None.

So maybe our Doctors ar a little less nervous? Anyway- my food plan was this.

1. Start with mush until you can eat harder foods, then progress as you are able. Don’t drink when you eat, for now. I was on puréed chicken and beans before I left hospital.

2. Start with bites, then 1/4 cup, then 1/2 cup. Your max will be 1 cup but you might not get there.

3. Strictly 3 meals a day, no snacking. Protein first helps some people so feel free to give that a go, but don’t panic about 60g every single day because your liver will make you protein.

That is it. My meal plan.

My surgeon has a longitudinal study of 1700 patients going back, some nearly 20 years. The average calorie intake after 5 years is 900-1000. And he has a huge no-regain success rate too (but he does the no-stretch, double walled stomach with the silicone ring embedded - Fobi Pouch).

4 minutes ago, Biddynz said:

Well, @FluffyChix I am in New Zealand, and it seems more common here to have practically no food plan. They are much more relaxed here - but I suspect a quirk of NZ law might be a GREAT reason for this.

Here it is, my US buddies. We have full, universal tax-paid no-fault accident insurance - so if something goes wrong (with anything - surgery, a ladder, a car crash) every single NZer gets full medical care free on the state and (more importantly) in return no-one can sue anyone. We have no courts full of people suing each other. None.

So maybe our Doctors ar a little less nervous? Anyway- my food plan was this.

1. Start with mush until you can eat harder foods, then progress as you are able. Don’t drink when you eat, for now. I was on puréed chicken and Beans before I left hospital.

2. Start with bites, then 1/4 cup, then 1/2 cup. Your max will be 1 cup but you might not get there.

3. Strictly 3 meals a day, no snacking. Protein first helps some people so feel free to give that a go, but don’t panic about 60g every single day because your liver will make you protein.

That is it. My meal plan.

My surgeon has a longitudinal study of 1700 patients going back, some nearly 20 years. The average calorie intake after 5 years is 900-1000. And he has a huge no-regain success rate too (but he does the no-stretch, double walled stomach with the silicone ring embedded - Fobi Pouch).

Wow!!! That's amazing about the no tort law suits! And about your medical coverage! And holy cow on getting to eat solids so quickly!

Thanks for sharing your food plan! That's also incredible on the 5 years out at 900-1000cals with a high NO-Regain Success Rate! Aren't you glad? Do you also have the Fobi?

Are you watching Big Ward? I LOVE the doc on there!