CALLING ALL LONG TIME POST-OPS

I have a question for all the long time post ops, was or is there one food that you really miss having and will probally never ever have again. I cant help but think that Hagen Dos ice cream will never be there for me again! We have had a very long term committed relationship for many many many years, and I dont think that I can handle being apart forever!

I'm not a long time post op, but from reading others profiles and experiences I have determined that for some people there will be foods they can't have anymore, but they find out from experience. Others are able to have everything in moderation. I figure that I will find that I can have most everything in moderation as time goes on, but I will be cautious when introducing certain things back into my diet. Certainly I won't be doing ice cream for awhile though. But there are some great low-carb and even lower fat ice creams that can kick a craving to the curb if things get that intense. Don't sweat it though - at first you will just need to focus on liquids and soft foods, so don't get too far ahead of yourself. Dina

It's funny...the little things you think of. When driving home the other day from IL we stopped at the McD drive-thru and my Mom got an apple pie.. Mmmmm it smelled so good, and normally I would have been right there having one with her. Last night on tv there was a campfire scene with roasting marshmallows...another of my favorites. I'm sure there will be lots of food that I'll miss, but I won't miss this extra hundred pounds I'm carrying around. At 8 days post-op I'm down 14 pounds and I'm looking forward to dropping the next 14 lbs, then the next 14 lbs., etc. Onward with the journey! Karen

Sue -- At the very most, we're only 2 weeks post-op here on this board. You may want to check your state board, or perhaps older date boards...or even the main board. None of us here are considered "long time post-ops". Maybe Haagen Das will come out with a WLS friendly ice cream, like made with Splenda or something. So many others are, maybe they will, too. If not, you may want to try the Atkins Endulge line. I had one of their fudgesicles last nite for the first time (bought 'em for my Mom who was s'posta stay here with me post-op...). I'm gonna tell ya, it was YUMMY!! But I'm not an ice cream person, or even a sweet person for that matter, so I don't intend on blowing my carbs/sugars on that kind of stuff. But look around - more products are hitting the shelves every week. Personally, after being re-plumbed to this extent, and especially after seeing my sister 'dump', I have NO intention of "going there" - NOT a pretty sight (I think everyone should see a post-op "dump" -- it'll put GREAT FEAR into your heart...sure worked for me...). Kimmer Queen of the Niners, Instigator to All Marchers, High Priestess of Giggles

My best friend is 13 mo post op. We had my last meal together, where she advised me to have pasta, because it will be a long time before I blow an entire meal on carbs again. I am 10 days post op - sick sick sick of protein shakes and protein bars and chicken and fish and cheese and eggs - I would KILL for the crunchy salty taste of Tostitos - but I am proud for resisting. I'm consoling myself that, as others have suggested, most of this stuff may come back in moderation, and I'm trying to stay strong right now. You will do fine. I'm sick of what I'm eating, but I'm not really physically HUNGRY much these days. Once in a while. The first night I was home from the hospital I dreamt of danish. The second night I dreamt of an all you can eat buffet, like at a company event, and then an all you can eat desert buffet that was twice as big. Since then things have calmed down.

Have you tried refried beans recipes? Some of what makes us nuts is the bland taste range of the post-surgery foods. Joy has a recipe where you mix refried beans with V8 Hot and Spicy, and stir in some approved cheese (I use a Kraft lactose-free product that tastes just like cheddar). This has helped me (somewhat) avoid insanity. I can see that tasty things like refried beans and maybe some spiced up tofu will help a lot in the future. Nicely spiced is a good trick to fool your body. Gano

Hi Sue, You may find after surgery that your taste has changed. According to my reading, many patients report that sweet things taste TOO sweet and that they don't enjoy them, never mind whether or not they dump. I think probably we March post-ops are too new to really terribly miss anything just yet, we're still working on just feeling better. Unfortunately I've already found that I don't dump and can have just about anything, in tiny portions. Good luck, Eve This isn't an endorsement, but I definitely let myself enjoy all my meals leading up to surgery!

Sue, Blue Bunny has a no added sugar, no fat fudgescicle that doesn't make me dump and takes away the urge to eat sweets. I never was much of a sweets eater, but now that I can't have them, they look better than they ever did. Blue Bunny does the trick for me. I'm starting to get creative with foods. Tonight, I'll be grilling shrimp and scallops with lemon and garlic. Refried beans are one of my favs. I've also been making omelets. I'm only 10 days out so don't have too many answers, but this is what has worked for me so far. Connie