Well I have had my 1st post op appointment last week. Everything has gone well. I have advanced to a regular high protein diet. I'm amazed at how little I'm able to actually eat. For dinner tonight I made half of a hamburger patty and was only able to eat a quarter of it. What surprises me is that I never seem to get hungry and have to remind myself I need to eat. I much prefer a protein shake to solid food although it takes me two hours to drink and 11 oz shake. At the most I have been able to get in maybe 50 grams of protein a day and almost 1 liter of water.
I knew my eating life would change I just was not truly prepared for how drastic it is. I eat less then 600 calories a day. I still am weak toward the end of the day and don't have a lot of energy. The doctor told me this would improve as my body adjusts to the low calories and activity levels. I'm really glad I still have a week and half before I go back to work. I think working will be a challenge for my endurance.
I was reflecting back to the things I wish I had known before surgery so I would have been more prepared.
1-That water was going to hurt so much even when warmed. Popsicles went down much better.
2-Taking pills with apple sauce instead of water.
3-Not to worry about anything but fluid for the first few days. They told me to have thinned protein shakes everyday but my stomach did not like those.
4-Gas-X to help the gas bubbles you get in your stomach. Those kept getting stuck and the gas-x helped dissolve them.
5-That the gas pains from the CO2 they used to fill your abdomen with during surgery would last 5-7 days after surgery. I was told it would only last a few days. However it really last longer and walking is the best thing and taking Tylenol even though you don't have abdominal pain helps also.
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