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"If you think you can or can't, you are right" |
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I have tried to list some of the foods I remember finding that satisfied me along the way. I suffered from massive head hunger, still do sometimes. But it is much better & does not control me like it used to. I went through a major withdrawal after surgery, a mourning if you will, and had to adjust to my new life with less food. The hand-to-mouth need was overpowering at times, so I "fed" my need, tasted the food & spit it back out. For things that I really wanted, like popcorn, I chewed up a whole bag, spit it in paper towels & in the trash. But I was happy afterwards, satisfied, having tasted the butter flavor, yet not actually eating anything. It worked for me. Doesn't mean it is meant for you. I hope this helps some. Note: Everyone's doctor recommends a different diet. This is not meant to tell you not to follow that. It's just that I feel a diet of more normal foods soon after surgery is the way to go. Many that I have known have done better on a "normal", high protein, low-fat, low/no sugar diet. I don't personally agree with "liquid" diets for 6 weeks. I have seen a trend of many having a higher rate of digestive/eating complications when kept on a liquid/soft food diet for an extended period of time. They seem to tend to suffer more from constant nausea & more limitations to types of food further out. Narrowing of the Stoma seems more common under those circumstances also. Just my observation & opinion though. The first couple months, anything that didn't chew down to almost nothing, didn't get swallowed. I spit it out. Later months, I tackled "hard to break down foods" such as lettuce & hamburger meat. If I cooked hamburger meat, it was the lowest fat, ground sirloin I could find... the fattier, the more gristle, making it harder to chew to nothing & digest. Yummy Foods: (Earlier Months)
Yummy Foods: (5-6 Months)
Water Intake/Liquids: I primarily stuck to water. But I do better with small ice to chew on. I buy 1-2 bags a week of "pebble" ice from the gas station down the road (hard to find, but possible) & I walk around with an isolated jug full of ice & water to drink/chew on all day. I fill it up a couple times a day. If I want something flavored to drink, which is rare, I make a gallon of sugar-free punch, which is one small "tub" of SF Tang & one packet of SF Kool-aid mix, Cherry Flavored. This is really yummy. I like Crystal Light, Red Raspberry flavor also every once in awhile. No-No Foods: (high in fat, can cause major dumping, etc.)
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