I am reading these forums and wonder if and when life gets back to" regular", do you eat with the rest of your family again, and if so, how much do you eat at a time etc. I saw a woman who was camping with us and had her surgery some years ago, she did not eat with us and did not want to ask why so now am asking you all if you are able to belly up to the table and eat or are you all having Protein drinks for a meal or two a day for years? What to expect?
When does life get back to 'REGULAR"?
- Thread starter Sandie
- Start date
Pat99
Member
Sandie-Maybe the woman that was camping just wasn't hungry. Once "we" complete the 4 phases of the meal plan we usually cut back on the protein drinks and use these only if we are having problems getting enough protein or as a handy quick meal.. No reason not to sit down with the family to have meals unless you aren't hungry or just can't eat what is being served due to high carbs, fat or sugar. You can't eat everything and anything you want after surgery and need to stay within the recommended guidelines which focus on protein then veggies while avoiding high carbs, fats and sugars. This is a life time commitment if you want to be successful. Regular family meals can easily be planned so that everyone can eat together. For example, make some stew and serve the potatos on the side. Make hamburgers using lean beef and eat yours without a bun or have 1/2 of a light bun or one slice of light bread. Make what you usually eat but use lean cuts of meat and serve the carbs on the side for the family members who can have them. There are flour substitutes available (Tova Carbquik baking mix and "flour" replacement) if you want to bake low-carb and high protein things. Available at netrition.com and hopefully soon at our American Bariatric store. They don't taste exactly the same as if made with flour but are very tasty. The down side is that it can be expensive but if you make if for only yourself and consider what you used to spend on food then it works out to about the same cost wise.
A few weeks ago a friend of mine came over to visit and have dinner and we ended up ordering pizza. I just ate the toppings and was perfectly fine with it, didn't miss the crust one bit. I have actually lost my craving for bread and pasta since having the surgery. There is a pasta made by Dreamfields that has only 5 grams of digestable carbs per serving. It tastes like regular white flour pasta because it's made with the same type of flour that regular pasta is made from (duram semolina). You can get it from our American Bariatric store, Kroger and just recently from Walmart
A few weeks ago a friend of mine came over to visit and have dinner and we ended up ordering pizza. I just ate the toppings and was perfectly fine with it, didn't miss the crust one bit. I have actually lost my craving for bread and pasta since having the surgery. There is a pasta made by Dreamfields that has only 5 grams of digestable carbs per serving. It tastes like regular white flour pasta because it's made with the same type of flour that regular pasta is made from (duram semolina). You can get it from our American Bariatric store, Kroger and just recently from Walmart
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TwoMas
Member
Hi Sandie. With few exceptions I have been able to sit down and eat with famill and/or friends at work or home. Like Pat said it helps to plan things out in advance or go to the type of restaraunt that serves quality foods that we can tolerate, ther are many like that, the one exception was when I was traveling with a frien of mine on business and he wanted to stop at a snadwitch place tha didn't have anything that wasn't between two slices of bread or deep fried, I could have just thrown away the bread and ate the inside of the sandwitch but at that point in time I played the stubborn victim and sat in the truck and ate some peanuts and cheese that I had in my lunch box feeling sorry for myself, I was still on that emotional rollercoaster thing at the time, I laugh at myself now LOL. There are times though I would get off schedule with others because I can eat 5 small meals a day simillar to snacks when others are sticking to 3 quares a day and our meals just never synked up, it happens. Tom
, I was still on that emotional rollercoaster thing at the time, I laugh at myself now LOL. There are times though I would get off schedule with others because I can eat 5 small meals a day simillar to snacks when others are sticking to 3 quares a day and our meals just never synked up, it happens. Tom
Qaterra
Member
Hi, Sandie,
You will find yourself redefining what "regular" is, for you. It is always your choice whether to eat with family. This is not another diet you're looking at, with an end point. There is no end point here. Bariatric surgery is a lifestyle change. Life, as in your whole life. Lifestyle, as in your entire "style" will change. And, as with anyone's style, you will allow it to fit in with the rest of your family, with the rest of society, as it suits you. Or as it may not suit you. The choice is yours. Scary, ain't it! And thrilling and exciting and wonderful, too.
The whole idea is you will no longer have a belly with which to "belly up to the table and eat." LOL You will be able to eat what is appropriate for you to eat with your family and friends or alone, as you see fit.
What do the people in your support group have to say about this? Your psychiatric counselor? Your surgeon and staff? Now is the time to ask all your questions. I am glad to see you asking them. It is imperative you do this with your eyes wide open and a realistic expectation of what to expect now and in the years to come.
I know I am looking forward to making these changes. I hope you are, too.
You will find yourself redefining what "regular" is, for you. It is always your choice whether to eat with family. This is not another diet you're looking at, with an end point. There is no end point here. Bariatric surgery is a lifestyle change. Life, as in your whole life. Lifestyle, as in your entire "style" will change. And, as with anyone's style, you will allow it to fit in with the rest of your family, with the rest of society, as it suits you. Or as it may not suit you. The choice is yours. Scary, ain't it! And thrilling and exciting and wonderful, too.
The whole idea is you will no longer have a belly with which to "belly up to the table and eat." LOL You will be able to eat what is appropriate for you to eat with your family and friends or alone, as you see fit.
What do the people in your support group have to say about this? Your psychiatric counselor? Your surgeon and staff? Now is the time to ask all your questions. I am glad to see you asking them. It is imperative you do this with your eyes wide open and a realistic expectation of what to expect now and in the years to come.
I know I am looking forward to making these changes. I hope you are, too.
Hi Sandie,
I can only speak for myself and need to remember I only have a lapband but many changes have occurred and therefore my definition of "regular" has changed. One thing is not drinking during my meals and that is hard for me and very hard for family to understand. I still get invited to their house to eat especially for things like birthdays and what I do is ask what the celebrant is having for their birthday dinner and if they are having something I cannot tolerate I simply bring what I can have or if they choose fried chicken for example I ask for a piece of baked chicken. They are very cooperative. I really don't eat much bread now and I don't expect that to change. I do pasta in small amounts but no rice. By asking ahead of time I can usually bring something I can tolerate. I expect that my "regular" won't change much. My Granddaughter wanted ribs last night and I love them but knew after one bite that I was not going to tolerate them so will have to try again later. I ate the chicken instead. I always sit with the family. Among the members several have been on special diets and have brought their own food so no one even thinks it is strange. The biggest problem I have noticed is that it takes me longer to eat so I just tell them to go ahead with their cake or dessert and I finish my meal at my own pace. The nutritionist at my bariatric center gave us a handout telling us what we can eat from many fast food restaurants which include the protein grams and carb content but the overall advice is to avoid fast food restaurants. I still do not tolerate hamburgers, but rather than endure the pain I just avoid them. Most restaurants have grilled chicken or fish so no one really knows that I am on a special diet. We were also told that when we could get our protein from food to cut back on protein drinks. So, what I do is have one for breakfast or as a bedtime snack to complete my protein for the day. I am starting to miss sodas (seven months out) but so far have not had one. Only miss beer when I get hot in the summertime. It is a new "regular" and I think you will experience the same thing. Good luck on your journey. Sometimes it is a lot of trial and error and it is easy to sabotage yourself so my advice for what it is worth is to follow the recommendations of your surgical center, physician, and nutritionist.
I can only speak for myself and need to remember I only have a lapband but many changes have occurred and therefore my definition of "regular" has changed. One thing is not drinking during my meals and that is hard for me and very hard for family to understand. I still get invited to their house to eat especially for things like birthdays and what I do is ask what the celebrant is having for their birthday dinner and if they are having something I cannot tolerate I simply bring what I can have or if they choose fried chicken for example I ask for a piece of baked chicken. They are very cooperative. I really don't eat much bread now and I don't expect that to change. I do pasta in small amounts but no rice. By asking ahead of time I can usually bring something I can tolerate. I expect that my "regular" won't change much. My Granddaughter wanted ribs last night and I love them but knew after one bite that I was not going to tolerate them so will have to try again later. I ate the chicken instead. I always sit with the family. Among the members several have been on special diets and have brought their own food so no one even thinks it is strange. The biggest problem I have noticed is that it takes me longer to eat so I just tell them to go ahead with their cake or dessert and I finish my meal at my own pace. The nutritionist at my bariatric center gave us a handout telling us what we can eat from many fast food restaurants which include the protein grams and carb content but the overall advice is to avoid fast food restaurants. I still do not tolerate hamburgers, but rather than endure the pain I just avoid them. Most restaurants have grilled chicken or fish so no one really knows that I am on a special diet. We were also told that when we could get our protein from food to cut back on protein drinks. So, what I do is have one for breakfast or as a bedtime snack to complete my protein for the day. I am starting to miss sodas (seven months out) but so far have not had one. Only miss beer when I get hot in the summertime. It is a new "regular" and I think you will experience the same thing. Good luck on your journey. Sometimes it is a lot of trial and error and it is easy to sabotage yourself so my advice for what it is worth is to follow the recommendations of your surgical center, physician, and nutritionist.