Learning Curve

Well it has been a full 3 weeks since my surgery and there has been some things I have learned and some things I am still learning.

Things I have learnt are:

-Don’t gulp.  The thirst gets the better of be and I gulp water.  Well that doesn’t sit at all in the tiny tummy and it refuses to take it in.  I learnt that on Saturday.

-I never realised that I would miss macaroni.  I am not on soft food yet but I really miss mac n’ cheese.  I think once I get onto soft foods I will over boil the macaroni and enjoy it then.

-I don’t dread going out to eat.  I thought that I would have an issue eating with my little spoon but I am getting to the point I might not ever go back to a regular spoon LOL 

Things I have yet to learn:

-When to stop eating.  I eat my 1/3 of a cup of food and then go back to the kitchen.  I didn’t get the side effect of vomiting if my tummy I full.  Perhaps it is that I am still on fluids and purees or the nerves in my stomach are still recovering.  This is scaring me to death since I have lost weight but now I am in a stall.  I don’t want to go through all of this just to lose a few pounds.

-Listen to my body more than my head.  I have been acting like I haven’t had the surgery.  I bent over this morning to boot my boots on and my leg was at my chest. Next thing I know I am grabbing the Tiny Tummy in pain.  The DH mentioned that I should be sitting down to put them on.

-Also I need to start listen to the Tiny Tummy more.  I know for the here and now, that the pain after 3 hours means I am hungry, but the feeling while I eat are being ignored unless there is something screaming at me. I have asked on the OH board about this, and I am told that I should be eating more so as long as I am feeling okay with the 1/3 of a cup of "food" then I should keep going.

 

-I need to be patient with my weight loss.  If we chart how we lost weight it would look like stairs.  We would have a drop in weight then level off until the body decides to drop more.  I have seen comparisons with real people complaining that they aren't losing weight like they have seen on a show called "My 600 pound life"  the issue with this is, this is a one hour show but documents 7 years of their lives.  I am not sure if they miss the little note at the beginning stating that it is over 7 years or not.  I will take what I can get and after a year I should have lost 85% or more of my total weight loss.  So I just might have to convince the DH to go to a fancy dress party for New Years next year LOL   

 

- I need to stop relying on mashed potatoes.  I am finding that I am eating roughly the same in protein as I am in spuds.  They should be a last resort and eaten sparingly.  I think that I will need to have a "self talk" with myself at each meal.

 

So I also had my first full turkey dinner on Saturday.  I was in charge of compiling the meal and cooking the potatoes, the turkey, the stuffing and the peas.  I was lucky enough to have the DH help out so that made it all go smoother.

 

I took out my 1/3 cup measuring cup and filled it with pureed turkey and gravy.  Then I looked at what was left on the table and decided to take the tiniest amount of stuffing on my little spoon, 3 peas and a 'my spoon' size of mashed potatoes.  I passed on the baked sweet potato & apple, the cranberries :( and the baked cauliflower, and the baked carrots with butter and Parmesan. I realised that I might have been pushing the envelope but I did have a thought about it all just before I ate it.  I should have not filled up my measuring cup with the turkey and gravy but left room for the little stuff that was on my plate.  It was all I could do to get the turkey puree in.  I need to remind myself that I only need bites of food to equal the 1/3 cup not a portion of the meal.

 

The DH also brought to my attention while we were cleaning the kitchen that I subconsciously put turkey into my mouth and was chewing away.  Once he mentioned it I ended up just spitting it into a paper towel and tossed it out.

 

I guess this surgery causes a lot more thinking and self awareness than I thought!