How to Cope with Dad's HORRIBLE Diet

MadPirateFox

Every diner I know of has toast. Order some toast, eat a slice with some butter and maybe some bacon. Claim you're too full to eat the rest.

lemurcat12

I like eggs and would be happy to have them -- when traveling I find breakfast the easiest meal to deal with by far -- but if OP doesn't like eggs and bacon, no reason to eat it. I do find the idea that eggs are not real food (see, e.g., rant about what OP will and will not eat) a bit odd, but it sounds like there's more to this whole thing than the food that OP finds frustrating and I get that.

mom22dogs

ZenZeta wrote: »

Just thought I'd revisit to see how many more tomatoes were thrown (smile).

Like I said, I now literally make my own sandwich and inhale it right before I pick him up for breakfast. I then order a fruit cup and only eat half of it because I can't stand grapefruit and I'm not going to bother asking them for a fruit cup without it, and I drink my $1.75 hot water that they don't refill. Oh well...

And honestly, spending the time with Dad is and always has been challenging, but none of his other 7 children bother to spend time with him, and I think it's cruel to let him rot away in some facility alone.

So for those that keep saying "Enjoy the time..." I do my best.

And for the record, I'm not a "fat snob" or anything else BUT I like to put healthy foods into my body most of the time. Trust, that when I want to have my fun, I do.

No, one meal won't derail my efforts, and when I plan to "cheat", I want it to be on FOOD I LIKE!!! My motto is, if they're going to be "bad" calories, I want them to be "good" bad calories

(Pizza from a local Italian Pizzeria - with REAL ingredients, Dessert from a Bakery instead of processed crap out of the grocery store, a burger that is actually ground beef and fries that come from a potato and not a brown paper bag of frozen nothingness). See what I mean?

And I work out every Saturday after taking Dad to the diner and before going to the second job I must work to help pay for his care giving expenses...

I'm sure I will miss lots of things, so no disrespect to those that had great relationships with their departed parents / loved ones...

As I said... caregiving is HARD.

So it sounds like it's more a situation of you resent him, or resent that you have to be the one to still spend time with him. I don't think it's necessarily the food you eat that's the issue. You are just resentful of the situation, and are "taking it out on" the food choices, because it sounds like you just don't enjoy doing it.

goldthistime

ZenZeta wrote: »

Just thought I'd revisit to see how many more tomatoes were thrown (smile).

Like I said, I now literally make my own sandwich and inhale it right before I pick him up for breakfast. I then order a fruit cup and only eat half of it because I can't stand grapefruit and I'm not going to bother asking them for a fruit cup without it, and I drink my $1.75 hot water that they don't refill. Oh well...

And honestly, spending the time with Dad is and always has been challenging, but none of his other 7 children bother to spend time with him, and I think it's cruel to let him rot away in some facility alone.

So for those that keep saying "Enjoy the time..." I do my best.

And for the record, I'm not a "fat snob" or anything else BUT I like to put healthy foods into my body most of the time. Trust, that when I want to have my fun, I do.

No, one meal won't derail my efforts, and when I plan to "cheat", I want it to be on FOOD I LIKE!!! My motto is, if they're going to be "bad" calories, I want them to be "good" bad calories

(Pizza from a local Italian Pizzeria - with REAL ingredients, Dessert from a Bakery instead of processed crap out of the grocery store, a burger that is actually ground beef and fries that come from a potato and not a brown paper bag of frozen nothingness). See what I mean?

And I work out every Saturday after taking Dad to the diner and before going to the second job I must work to help pay for his care giving expenses...

I'm sure I will miss lots of things, so no disrespect to those that had great relationships with their departed parents / loved ones...

As I said... caregiving is HARD.

Sounds like you've got it together. Kudos on finding a way to eat that works for you, for getting your workout in afterwards, and for continuing to get him out regularly, especially knowing that his other kids aren't. Bravo.

Now the busybody part. Do your siblings live anywhere close by? Could you invite them along or suggest that they take a turn the odd day? I know I would feel resentful about their lack of effort if I were you, but I would like to think I would be big enough to try to encourage more participation on their part, if only for my father's sake.

paperpudding

I'm glad you have found a solution that works for you OP and thanks for retruning to the thread to say so.

Not sure why people are still posting their solutions when you have done this but anyways...

and caregiving can be hard and carers are human - I really dont think responding to someone posting with "I'm struggling with such and such issue with my aged parent" with guilt inducing comments like "Well just be grateful he is here" are very helpful.

comptonelizabeth

Good luck, op