Hey Yall. Very very new to this but I need some help.

I had gastric sleeve surgery on May 10th. The liquid diet leading up to it, and afterwards was absolutely torture for me (I know it's really hard on everyone) but I could barely get broth down, especially post op. When I say that, I mean the idea of drinking more and more broth, no matter what kind or flavor, made me feel absolutely nauseous. And I literally gagged trying to get it down. Needless to say, I didn't get much broth down, but I tried to stay as consistent as I could with protein shakes, which also had a similar effect on me. So when today came around, I was so excited because finally I could slowly try to incorporate foods that didn't make me want to vomit when I thought about them. I started slow with just a yogurt for breakfast, taking tiny bites, with 2 minutes in between bites. That went down pretty well. For lunch, I tried an applesauce, repeating the same process as with the yogurt. Again, that went down fine. Throughout the day, I also timed taking my vitamins, so as not to push a bunch of pills down my throat at once, I was afraid of the effect it would have on my stomach. My plan for dinner was to have some tomato soup, and maybe even put in a little extra flavorless protein, because I hadn't gotten in as much protein as I should of during the day. But before I could make the soup, I started feeling disgusting. And the thought of eating anything else makes me feel nauseous. But I know if I go back to the clear liquid stage for a bit longer, I'm going to be struggling to get more broth down. I just don't know what to do. I feel like I'm completely undernourishing myself and it would be even worse if I went back to the clear liquid stage. I've talked to my nutritionist about it, and she only told me to try drinking other types of broth. Which I have. I've tried every kind you can think of. And she said if that doesn't work, to try to drink Gatorade zero to at least make sure I'm staying hydrated.

I have just reached a point of such regret. I feel like I'm just going to get sick before I can get better. I'm at a point where I would rather live my life the way it was, than to feel like this for months. I know it's too late for that, but man, never let anyone tell you this is the easy way out.

Edited May 18, 20242 yr by CarasGhost

Have you tried clear protein drinks? They have several brands out there. I liked the premiere protein fruit punch. I suggest trying a larger convenience store to see what they have so you can buy just one of things to try.

Protein water is really nice, or drinkable yogurts, Fairlife milk mixed with some decaf coffee, or something like sugar free pudding mix in a favorite flavor made with Fairlife milk. Blended cottage cheese if it's allowed (when you put it in the blender, you get rid of the chunks and it turns the consistency of a thick sour cream, so it might be okay). Oh, PB2 peanut butter powder mixed into plain yogurt is also good.

The only protein shake I can stand these days is Syntrax Nectar Natural in orange flavor. It reminds me of Tang, sort of, and it looks like orange juice, so I can pretend I'm having an orange juice instead of a shake. All the rest of them are going to be going in the trash soon because after surgery I lost my taste for them completely.

But basically, focus your energy on hydration. You're only a week out. If you are low on protein and barely eat anything, it'll sort itself out in the coming weeks. Try your best, but don't worry if you come up short. Your body can handle a few weeks of not getting much nutrition. If you have to choose, choose to hit your fluid goal first and don't force yourself to eat foods if you aren't feeling it.

And stop with the broth. Sounds like you don't like it, and it's not required for healing. After buying a ton of really expensive bone broth, I disliked it on its own and never had it at all during the liquid phase. Now I use it to make bean soup.

Have you tried cold herbal teas for hydration? Those helped me a lot. Like camomille and verbena tea cold with vanilla sugar free sweetener and ice.

Hydration and protein are absolutely key right now. I hate plain water, so I get the sugar free flavored water powders to add to them. I also love Propel electrolyte water (my favorite flavors are watermelon, mango, and pineapple peach), I drink protein gatorade zero, and I love the Premier and Fairlife protein shakes (not the chocolate, but I do like the other flavors). I hated the broth, too, but when I absolutely HAD to have it, I made sure it was bone broth versus regular broth, so I was getting more protein.