Very concerned... - ThinnerTimes

Olsbols · 08-04-2008, 04:46 PM

Hiya

I'm a little concerned and just wanted to ask a bit of advice.

I'm 18 days post-op, and have started to try and eat mash potato and soft foods.

I had a 300g portion of Quorn Shep' Pie this evening around 8:30 pm and felt so stuffed, I had to be sick - only about two tsp (if that) came up and the feeling of being very full went away after 45 mins or so.

By 10pm, I was able to drink a cup of juice and had a SF lolly.

I am not going to eat that much again, but I am just worried about damaging my pouch... surely I would have to do this a few times before it stretched, right?

I'm just paranoid that I have undone all the good work my surgeon did...

Can anyone please advise?

x

Phoenixfire · 08-04-2008, 05:22 PM

Hi Olsbols,
It's good to be concerned that you're overstuffing your pouch and that's just what it sounds like happened.

It can take some time to recognize the fact that you're full and that another bite will be more than your pouch can handle. As you realized with the amount you threw up. The advice I can give you is to eat slowly, chew a lot (I mean A LOT! - I even chew soup, it's just habit by now!) and then pay CLOSE attention to the sensations you get in your pouch as you eat. We all feel it a little different, but there IS a "lightbulb moment" that we are full. You will learn to recognize it and that's where you MUST stop. Now you know what happens when you don't stop at your "full" point.

It's not just trial and error, because the amount you could eat one day varies from day to day. Even if it's the same food. Weird, but true. Our volume of intake varies based on many many factors. But the KEY factor is to LEARN to RECOGNIZE your FULL feeling. You will feel it, but only if you eat slowly and be careful. In time you will just KNOW that if you have one more bite it will be too much. We have all had to learn that, you're not alone by any means.

I suggest experimenting by just stopping your eating BEFORE you get that "ding-ding" light bulb moment of being full. It will help you to gradually recognize and respect the limits of your tiny tummy. You'll learn what "full" feels like. Personally, when I was obese, I had very little familiarity with what it felt like to be full. Aside from pig-out days like Thanksgiving.

Overeating one time will not undo the work your surgeon did. BUT it will make it harder for your insides to heal if you don't stop doing it. That is critical. Remember that your insides are still healing!

It is up for debate if you can overstretch your pouch. But the lady in for surgery with me was going in to have her pouch reduced after having two babies within the four years after her first surgery. She said she gradually ate more and more and didn't keep her portions limited. Others have found the same to be true. Some say that the portion of the stomach that we have left is impossible to expand. I don't personally believe that, but I could be wrong. Wouldn't be the first time

I hope that something here and in the other responses you get will help you with this challenge. You're not alone, and I give you HUGE kudos for examining how to fix this situation. You sound like a smart cookie, and that will take you far in your weight loss success

Sue0609 · 08-04-2008, 05:23 PM

I had to use an online converter to find out what 300 grams is. It converts to over 10 ounces. That is WAY too much food at 18 days post-op. I am 8 weeks post-op and I couldn't eat even close to that and I am very food tolerant (I haven't thrown up since surgery). Right now you should be concentrating on soft proteins and only eating potato if you have room. I wouldn't eat something like sheperd's pie that has a mix of ingredients like that.

Also, I don't know about your surgeon's rules, but I wasn't allowed caffeinated coffee so soon after surgery. Caffeine really ramps up your system (bowels, etc.) and can cause distress after surgery. Or maybe you had decaf? I assumed regular since you didn't mention decaf.

I doubt you did any permanent damage. Every mistake is a lesson learned! Good luck.

Olsbols · 08-04-2008, 05:30 PM

Thanks for both of your quick replies...

I will be VERY careful from now on and as you so rightly suggested, I will stop before I get to that full feeling, thus hopefully curbing my tendancy to overdo it

As for the coffee... I never mentioned coffee!!! I had a small glass of sugar-free orange juice. It says on our diet sheet to have a glass upon waking, but I missed mine yesterday morning and thought I would have it tonight

Again, thanks for the advice... I will be a lot more careful from now on.

Just so hard to change my habit of eating first, thinking later

x

Sue0609 · 08-04-2008, 06:00 PM

What the ?! Sorry, my eyes are not operating properly, I apparently can't read the difference between coffee and juice.

Olsbols · 08-04-2008, 06:02 PM

Me too!!! I had to re-read my post twice just to confirm that it was juice I had typed!!!

Is this a common side-effect of a RNY?!!!

x

Baja Big Dog · 08-05-2008, 01:13 AM

Orange juice?

What did your surgeon tell you about Orange juice, and did he mention anything about the huge reaction your "raw" pouch can have with the extremely acidic levels?

Again, someone will argue the point, but orange juice should be a no-no!!

10 ozs? Holy crap, that is as lot!!!

JulieSh · 08-05-2008, 01:25 AM

Hi,

Well, although my surgeon was a complete poppet (I think somewhere along the way I have promised him some 'slutty mummy' photos!

) the nutritionist is a bit of a wishy-washy type... which meant that although I got a diet sheet, that's about ALL I got!

I did some research on the net though & during the first few weeks, I used a clean yoghurt pot to measure my foods! I knew that a yoghurt was cool for breakfast, & so when I started on semi-solids, I used that as a portion control.

Even now, if I have a sandwich, I find I can eat either:
One full half of the sandwich with the crusts, or
both halves of the sandwich but without the crusts! (So I'll never have hairs on my chest, or curly hair, but oh well!)

One of the first times we went out for tea after my op, I had a seafood chowder - but I had a slice of brown soda bread too - the drive home was terrible

I thought I was going to die right there - hubby couldn't drive cos he'd had a couple of guinesses & I fell in through the front door, stumbled up the stairs & didn't come down again for 4 hours! It's a good thing though, it teaches you to respect your new stomach!

Phoenixfire certainly said the right thing though - when you get used to your new pouch & you start eating 'normally' again, you sit there chewing & sometimes you'll be halfway through chewing that last mouthful & you'll suddenly realise that if you swallow it, you'll hurt....... keep some tissues on you at all times!

Also, if you eat out regularly as we do, have a quiet word with the staff - our local pub staff know what I've done now, & have even told the chef. I got so fed up with the waitress telling me in a dismayed voice that I didn't like it!!
I had a lovely surprise last night, as I'd commented on the fact that I can't eat steak out anymore! So we go down to the pub & the manager asks me could he serve me a surprise as the chef had planned a special meal for me?
I was a bit taken aback, but agreed (I usually have just a starter, or order a half-portion of irish stew & leave some)
On my plate was: 3 oz of perfectly cooked med/rare sirloin, colcannon, fresh peas, dark cabbage & a mild pepper sauce! OK, I still didn't eat it all, but what a treat for an Irish bank holiday!

The best tip I can give you for the first couple of months is: Take it slowly....
Introduce 'new' foods a bit at a time - and buy a couple of 'kiddy' size plates - it looks like the plate has a decent portion on it!

Think what would a 6 yr old eat? Then serve yourself that size portion (and you still won't eat it all!) My 4 yr old granddaughter eats more than me!
Mash up the spuds with milk not butter, don't eat potato skins on jacket spuds, avoid drinking at least half hour before & after meals, and be careful with cereals!!

Julie x

Olsbols · 08-05-2008, 11:48 AM

Thanks for taking so much time to write that reply, Julie... and thanks again to PF for the long reply

Our dieticians are brilliant and have told us all about when/how much to drink, what foods to avoid, month by month progress etc... I just tried too much too soon last night, hence I got a little scared.

I was still so worried at 2am this morning that I rang the ward and spoke to one of the Bariatric Nurses... she put my mind at rest and said that it was doubtful that I had damaged/stretched my pouch (she is nearly three months post-GB, so I she know's what it's like!)

She also told me that it sounds like I am doing really well and that I should just stick to the soups and puree food that I have been having. So, today I had half a weetabix with semi-skimmed milk for brekkie, a Dairylea Dunker for my snack, lunch was four dessert spoons of potato and swede/carrot mash with mushy peas and gravy, and my afternoon snack at 5pm was a Skinny Cow lolly

Feel fine, have learnt from my mistake yesterday and am so scared of undoing all the great work by Mr Somers that I am staying WELL away from Quorn for another week or two!!!

It says on our diet sheets that a glass of pure orange juice is allowed upon waking, but as we are all different, some may tolerate it better than others. The nurse on the ward cannot tolerate it, but I manage ok.

We're all different, we all have different tolerance levels and I keep this to the fore of my mind... I may tolerate toast and marmite, but another person may find that too much at the moment.

I was just really worried that I had damaged myself last night... but the panic is over and I am in good spirits today!!!

Thanks again for all your support... very much appreciated!

x

PS what are your thoughts on mushy sprouts and cabbage?!!

MiladyB · 08-05-2008, 01:43 PM

Phoenix gave you wonderful advice. She knows what she is talking about and certainly worth paying attention to. I'm glad to see that you have learned from your mistake. Don't beat yourself up though. It is a mistake many of us made expecially early out. I know I did.

In regards to stretching out your pouch. I know that in the past that was possible. 5 years ago, though, most surgeons changed the way that they make their pouch. They used to cut right across the top so they used both sides of your original stomach. They found that people stretched their pouch out. The left side of our stomachs have a greater ability to stretch in comparison to the right side. Now surgeons only use the right side to decrease the chance of significantly stretching our pouch. But that doesn't mean not to pay attention to how much we eat. We are able to stretch out that connection between our pouch and small intestines. It won't happen with one mistake but if we get in the habit of frequently over filling our pouch, it will more than likely happen.

Your pouch does get bigger though, over time. So don't freak if later you can eat more. Our pouch is made up of muscle and like any muscle, it will get a bit bigger when used.

Keep paying close attention to how your body feels when you eat. You will be able to discover that light bulb moment. I've more than once stopped eating mid-bite because all of a sudden I knew that if I swallowed one more bite I wouldn't be feeling very well.