whine alert - food prep for family while on liquid diet sucks!

Yesterday I started my liver-reduction diet (yay, time is drawing near!).  I didn't really have any hunger pains or problems, but I had never given enough thought to how horribly hard is was going to be to prepare meals for everyone else...the smells, the familiar textures....ahhhhhhh!  I have a licensed daycare in my home, so I HAVE to prepare food for the kids 3-4 times/day, then my kids wanted spaghetti & meatballs for supper.  I finally had to leave the room & have my husband take over.  It was a struggle but I was successful!  I'm just not looking forward to 12 1/2 more days of that repeat, repeat, repeat process!  I've read about the emotional struggles, it's just hard to thoroughly understand them until you're walking in the shoes.  Eye on the prize....better health, better body, less pain, more energy in my very near future!

yes, it sucks big time! You will get another dose of this after surgery, when you are cooking dinner and can't taste the food. I realized just how much grazing I had been doing during food prep. But, it will get better. I had to break it down to my husband and beg for help with food prep so I didn't go crazy!

Interesting that you mentioned this - I was thinking that it was going to be hard to prep food when you cannot eat it. I think that I am going to prepare a bunch of meals & freeze them - so hubby can cook for himself & the kids when I am on liquids. Maybe you could have a prep day & make a bunch of food up during that time to lessen the anxiety of it all.

That sounds like a GREAT idea, wish I would have thought about it last week!  My mom is visiting for the weekend, I think I may wrangle her into helping prep some meals (at least a few) to use the next 12 days!

I banned my husband from eating in the house while I'm on liquids. I start my pre op diet on Monday and he is going to pick our son up from daycare and go to his moms to eat dinner then come home.

 I am dreading that part too.  My husband already knows that he will be in charge of all cooking during that time and for at least several months after surgery too.  Fortunately, he LIKES to cook, so he's ok with it.

This has been one of the hardest things for me, both before and after surgery.  My first weekend after surgery was my grandma's birthday (I made the cake) and we had KFC and school party for my daughter (I made brownies).  I wasn't even close to hungry but just the smells - it was almost torture!  It was a little easier after surgery since I was terrified of making myself sick.  Before surgery, all you can rely on is your own willpower and let's face it - none of us would probably be here if we had iron will!  Good luck, hang in there and it does get better!

I hear ya....but its easier after surgery.  I am the cook in my house and have prepared dinner every night since 3 days post op.  It's weird preparing meals for your family and don't have a plate for yourself....but I really didn't want it.

The hardest part was not "licking the spoons" or trying things to make sure they taste right.  I need to keep asking my wife if her dinner tastes ok...since I can't do that.

My parent came to visit a week after my surgery and being the cook that I am my family expected the big family meal I always prepared and I did it! It was sooooo hard to make all those wonderful southern dishes and not taste one of them!!!!!!!!!!  Liquids never tasted so bad as they did when my family was chowing down on all that yummy food but I made it through and now I can cook for them and eat my saucer full of food and they can stuff themselves and it doesnt bother me.

I shopped ahead of time and prepared quite a bit to minimize my time in the kitchen.  I just don't see the point in torturing myself when I am trying to change my life in such a big way already. 

I bought things ahead of time for the kids to make delimeat sandwiches, hot dogs, grilled cheese, frzn pizzas, whatever the heck my teens can whip up for themselves and the younger kids w/o my supervision.  I did make dinner one night but surprisingly I didn't want it  (pizza and salad).  I guess after several days of no solids my stomach was like, "I'll quit asking for it."  WEIRD feeling for me! ha ha

You can go to the frozen foods section and just buy frzn things for them to pop in the oven or microwave.   I just won't be making, or letting them make, my very favorite things, ya know, just to be kind to myself. ;)