Can't stop thinking about food..:(

DJHolloway

Hi All,

I am about a week post op my gastric sleeve operation. All went well and have managed to lose 15kg/30lb through the op and the liquid diet beforehand.

My trouble is I can't stop thinking about food! I am on the liquid diet still and about to move to puree food but thinking about food/recipes/cooking is dominating my mind every minute....not healthy and its driving me crazy.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Many thanks,
DJH

teachren

Ya...that's a tricky one and I wish I had some sure fire advice for you...but no such luck.

I was a huge foodie and loved to cook.( well...still do) During my early months out last summer I chanelled my efforts into modifying recipes to fit my plan. Then I batch froze them in small portions for when I could eat them. That way I was still satifsying my urge but doing it in a "healthy" way by planning for my success. I did feel quite empowered by it and ended up with a nice stash of recipes I plugged into the recipe section on MFP.

I focused on soups first...I pureed the heck out of ground lean chicken and made a taco soup that was more like ground chicken smoothie but it tasted great at that point and was chock full of protein! I also rekindled my love of spices and herbs. I still play around with them to add some pizazz to my food.

I feel for you...but rest assured you'll be back into cooking flavourful yet healthy food in no time. You just won't eat a lot of it!

I would challenge yourself to stay away from the protein bars and ready made food. If you like to cook...you can find ways to modify standard meals to fit your new lifestyle.

That's how I got through it! :-) Good luck!

bikrchk

Check out http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/. She has a million recipes for all stages. You'll be on purees soon and will have a few more options for variety. Get creative with the help of her site. Learn how to make stuff you enjoy that will help you meet your goals.

authorwriter

I gotta admit, I'm thinking about food, too. I have a bad back and standing for any length of time is difficult for me and most chairs are not comfortable for me to sit on for very long. That means I'm kinda dependent on my family making stuff for me. I've been looking longingly at Eggface's frozen protein ice cream, but no way I'll be able to make a recipe for myself in my current condition. And so far, no family member is willing to make it for me.

So I'd really like better food, but haven't figured out a way to get it yet. Last evening, it had me pretty depressed - prob all those hormones getting released from my fat doing their thing.

relentless2121

I am about a week post op my gastric sleeve operation. All went well and have managed to lose 15kg/30lb through the op and the liquid diet beforehand.

Welcome back DJ.
Great to hear you are a week post op and lost 30 lbs.
It's nice to see you back on the site.

asia1967

D.J. Glad your surgery went well. Congrats for the 30lbs, no small feat. If it is any consolation I went through the same thing you are. I thought about the food I wanted. I thought about the food I couldn't eat at this phase. I thought about the food I was going to eat in the next phase. I thought about what I was going to cook. I thought about....... you get the point. It is all consuming for the first little while, measuring your food, weighing you food, preparing food, shopping for food. (I sometimes wondered if I didn't spend more time now dealing with food that I did before surgery, because it sure seems that way!!!!):grumble:

However this will pass, slowly just like the gas in your abdomen, but it will pass. This is all new to you now, new eating habits, new stomach (sort of to speak) I just though of mine as a new born baby, I didn't expect the baby to know everything and no everything right. I just feed it like I would a baby, a little bit a little at a time until you stomach and hopefully in time you mind get use to all the NEW EVERYTHING. Hope some of this makes sense. Good luck, you can do this, your not alone, everyone is in your corner!!

relentless2121

D.J. Glad your surgery went well. Congrats for the 30lbs, no small feat. If it is any consolation I went through the same thing you are. I thought about the food I wanted. I thought about the food I couldn't eat at this phase. I thought about the food I was going to eat in the next phase. I thought about what I was going to cook. I thought about....... you get the point. It is all consuming for the first little while, measuring your food, weighing you food, preparing food, shopping for food. (I sometimes wondered if I didn't spend more time now dealing with food that I did before surgery, because it sure seems that way!!!!):grumble:

However this will pass, slowly just like the gas in your abdomen, but it will pass. This is all new to you now, new eating habits, new stomach (sort of to speak) I just though of mine as a new born baby, I didn't expect the baby to know everything and no everything right. I just feed it like I would a baby, a little bit a little at a time until you stomach and hopefully in time you mind get use to all the NEW EVERYTHING. Hope some of this makes sense. Good luck, you can do this, your not alone, everyone is in your corner!!

relentless2121

Oops... I was trying to quote a few sentences of Asia's post. I also wanted to add how much I love the support and encouragement given by the members on this forum. (I wish I knew how to delete the quote as my intention was to add the last few lines of Asia's post. Well... you know what I mean. lol.

pawoodhull

3 years out here and I still spend a lot of my day focused on food. It's all about planning what I'm eating for the day that gets my protein goal in without going over on calories. Or what am I going to have in the house for 3 meals a day that meets my needs and can also feed the husband. It's a good thing he's on board with it all and likes to cook. And then on the weekends I get to cook and I enjoy making soups and things like that for myself, modified to have more protein, less sodium and fat. I guess I've gotten used to it though, because I no longer stress about it.

Good advice to stay away from the preprocessed stuff as much as possible. I'm usually able to do that for lunch and dinner, it's harder for me at breakfast though. That's usually yogurt, protein shakes, or, as we get closer to grocery day, protein bars.

In the beginning it's hard to think of much else, but it's gets easier. This way of life is your new normal, give yourself time. You will adjust.

Pat

BringingSherriBack

Maybe your are just needing something savory. I know when I was on my liquids both pre-op and post-op I enjoyed warm beef or veggie broth and hot tea. I was more like having something real than other cold or room temp liquids.