Conflicting advice

Pretty please no one take this wrong.  Someone posted their eating for the day and also said their surgeon said no supplementing with protein drinks.  People went on to suggest she drink protein drinks.  They also said be sure and follow your surgeon's directions.  It can be confusing.  I have also heard this type of things at casual get togethers and support groups.  Loris

You make a very good point!

I noticed that too.  I just always stick by the rule that I will follow my surgeons plan.  I love getting suggestions from others because people are so much more imaginative than me with food BUT I weed out that advice comparing it to my suggested plan.  :) BTW - I'm so glad that you used that photo for your avatar.  I meant to email you and tell you I thought that photo came out very nice of you from our Panera bread gathering!  :)

Loris, I absolutely *love* your new picture.  The conflicting advice came from a post that I made and I know that my doctor's nutrition plan is *way* different than most others' so I don't expect everyone to remember all of the details.  I know that the suggestions to use protein drinks and/or milk are no longer an option for me.  I really just appreciate all of the feedback and advice I get from other people and just discard things that won't work.    I have to say, what can be confusing and is *very* frustrating for me is that there are no national or international standards for pre and post-op weight loss surgery diet.  I look at my doctor's plan and parts of it make sense to me, other parts don't.  I feel the same way when I look at other doctor's plans.  I also own a copy of Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies and I was reading that yesterday when I was trying to figure out if I was eating too much/not eating too much...and in the book they break down the different post-op diet stages and for the stage that I am in they say on one page that I should expect to be eating 1/4 cup of food per sitting and on the next page they have a sample meal plan that food stage that literally says eating 2oz. meat with 1 cup mashed yam! I'm a very black and white person and when someone in authority tells me what to do I work hard to do it perfectly.  I absolutely *hate* that I can't get a straight, consistent answer from anyone about what is "right" in this situation.  I discussed it with my surgeon prior to my operation and he told me that everyone is different and everyone has to figure out what works for them in the end.  He even went so far as to say that there will come a time when the nutrition plan from their clinic probably won't make sense for me, but that I will "lose a lot of weight this year" and during that time will figure out what works and what doesn't.  How frustrating but probably true! I'm just feeling those normal (I'm sure) feelings of fear and worry that I'm going to fail at this too when I've put so much effort into it.  Bottom line, that I have to remember, is that I feel really good right now, the numbers are falling dramatically on my scale, I'm doing exercise and other things around the house that I haven't been able to do in a long time, and that as long as these things continue to happen I'm on the right track for me.  And I'm glad that I have all of you for support, and my surgeon, nutritionist, and a kick-butt therapist that I can't wait to see next week! Anyway, I've turned the topic of your thread.  Sorry, Loris.  You do have a good point in that we want to be careful not to add to the confusion that I'm sure we all go through on occasion.

I also posted about the protein drinks.  I really missed that part of the post.  I apologize for not reading the post carefully.  Having said that I really have a special place in my heart for those of us who have the high BMI.  I started out at 69 and I am sure that it was higher before I went for my consultation.  We have the toughest road to go down as we can lose 100 + lbs. and not be at goal and for some of us not even close to goal.  My intentions were good, so I hope that the poster will forgive me.   Jeanne

There is nothing to forgive.  Big hug.  If you read her post above you will see how much she appreciates the advice.  I love all you guys.  I tis nice to have a place to belong.  Loris

The only advice people can give is what's been successful for them.  Take it all with a grain of salt, use what you want and leave the rest. 

Yeah, the conflicting advice can be confusing.  For better or worse, my surgeon's guidelines were extremely vague in terms of long-term food choices.  The only "requirements" was an ongoing limitation of processed carbs, sweets, and high-fat foods.  Other than that, I was basically advised that I could eat pretty much anything as long as I monitored my portions.   Different surgeons have different experiences, different programs, different requirements.  While we make an agreement with ourselves and our surgeons to follow the surgeon's requirements, I also think it's okay to do our own research and make decisions that are right for us as individuals.  It's not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing.  In my opinion, as long as people are doing the research and making informed choices about what they put in their body, whether its "real" food or protein supplements, I think it's their personal choice.   Also, some people have a very difficult time meeting the minimum daily protein goals because they have very sensitive pouches that do not tolerate denser proteins.  If using liquid protein supplements helps them meet their daily protein goals, I think that's a valid choice for them, even if it's different than their surgeon's guidelines.  I'd encourage them to talk to their surgeon and make sure there's nothing medically wrong, and if that's true, then talk with the surgeon and nutritionist about the need for protein supplementation to meet daily goals.  Although they may not regularly advocate the use of ongoing supplementation for every patient, they may be open to it where a patient's nutritional needs cannot otherwise be adequately met.   Thanks for starting an interesting thread, Loris.  It really can be confusing about what to do, and it's good to have the discussion.  LOVE the new picture by the way - looking great!!! Kellie

You make some very, very good points.  I love the way we can discuss different points on this forum in such a supportive manner. Thanks for the compliment.  Loris