Tag: food

Surgery school done!

So, I survived surgery school. For those of you who don’t know, it’s an optional, pre-surgery casual group meeting with several nurses and hospital staff who go through what to expect after surgery and how best to prepare for surgery. I knew most if what they had to say but it was nice to go anyway because they gave out leaflets on ways to be more active along with some (not 100% relevant) dietary advice. I spoke to the nurse during the break and she said she’ll get the dietitian to give me a call later this week. Overall, this morning has been pretty good. Now, it’s off to work for the afternoon.

1 year Stomaversary!

So, today marks 1 year since getting my stoma. It’s had it’s ups and downs, but overall it’s been the best year I’ve had for a long time.

The biggest thing I’ve had to get used to is eating like a normal person again; although I am currently keeping to a (mostly) gluten-free and reduced dairy diet, I’m still learning what foods are good and what ones are still bad. Most of the bad ones consist of foods I couldn’t eat before (such as certain fruits and vegetables) but there are some new ones (like nuts and popcorn). Still, it beats living on instant noodles, plain crisps and gluten-free cereal.

Getting back to a normal sleep pattern hasn’t been hard at all; it seems I wasn’t sleeping anywhere near enough before so I’m able to sleep fine now. Other things like doing housework and being able to go out for the day are still a little bit difficult due to a lack of energy, but I have less concern about bathroom location now whenever I leave my flat.

Another thing I’ve had some trouble with is exercise; I was warned not to over stretch or lift anything heavier than a kettle for the first 6 weeks. Because I was practically bound to my room at the hospital for three weeks, my leg muscles had deteriorated quite a bit so I had to work up to walking longer distances slowly. This also meant I couldn’t exercise much at all. After a few months, my legs were almost back to their original size and strength and my stoma nurse said I was ready to start some gentle stomach exercises. She gave me a booklet that outlined ways to strengthen my abdominal muscles in order to avoid hernias. I had a bit of a false start due to some liver problems, but I started going to the gym not too long ago and it feels good to be able to get back into a routine again.

As for what to expect in the future, I’m seeing my surgeon tomorrow morning and, seeing as the issue with my liver isn’t what they thought it was, it looks like reversal is a strong possibility. I hope to get that ball rolling and have a date for the next surgery soon. For now, I’m happy to keep baggie for as long as I need to.

New(ish) diet

So, before having my stoma surgery, I was greatly restricted to what I could eat and even more so the weeks leading up to my surgery. I had to almost completely cut out fruit and vegetables, couldn’t handle most meats or carbs, and had to go gluten free in an effort to reduce my UC symptoms. This, unsurprising, didn’t work. Since my surgery, however, I have been able to eat some fruits and vegetables, more meats, carbs, dairy and gluten. That is until recently; I’ve found that I bloat after eating things such as bread, pizza and pasta, and I get mild stomach pains whenever I eat dairy. This has only really become a problem in the last couple of weeks so I’ve decided to try a gluten and dairy free diet for the next few months to see if this improves things.

Food!

I’ve been trying different foods recently. Not foods that I’ve never tried but foods that I haven’t eaten since having my stoma because I was advised against doing so for a while. Given it’s been nine months tomorrow since I had my surgery, I thought it was about time I started introducing more foods so the things I’ve found I can eat (but was advised not to) include beansprouts, soft carrots, green cabbage and sesame seeds. Bear in mind these are all in small amounts and I am no way saying that all ostomates will be ok with these foods. My point is that it’s ok to test what your body (and your stoma/s) can handle. Has anyone else found that they can eat something they were told not to? I’m actually really interested to know what other ostomates/IBD/IBS sufferers have been able to digest despite being to told to avoid it.

It might be too soon to really tell, but I tried cucumber (without the skin) this afternoon and, finger crossed, I haven’t had any negative side effects. 

I’ve been told to only have very soft, skinless/seedless fruit and veg for now as it digests easier in the small intestine. I haven’t been eating much fruit or veg since my surgery but I am starting to reintroduce them one by one into my diet again.

So far, bananas, potatoes and strawberries are on the ok list and I hope to add cucumber to that list too.

whatcanieat1:

Cut up some stale custard doughnuts, covered them in chocolate custard and cooked them in the oven for 20 mins at 180C. I haven’t tried it yet but I’m hoping it’s edible.

I let it chill in the fridge over night and it’s set perfectly! It tastes really good too. Definitely the best way to use up stale doughnuts, in my opinion.

My first day trip… sorta

So, I finally left the flat and went to a public place today for the first time in over a month! The only places I’ve been to since getting out of the hospital were back to the hospital to collect my meds and to my doctors to have stitches removed. It felt good to go outside and be somewhere that wasn’t medical, and where I could feel more normal.

I had a really nice Eggs Benedict (pouched eggs and bacon on an breakfast muffin) with tea, followed by a chocolate muffin. I am so happy to say that I could eat all that! A couple of months ago I wouldn’t have been able to eat any of it for fear of it causing me major pain and several dashes to the bathroom.

Although this whole stoma/surgery thing has been pretty scary and a bit of a steep learning curve (and still is), I am glad I had it done. I’m no longer in pain after eating, I don’t have to dash to the bathroom (making sure to take my phone because I know I’ll be in there for a long time), and I can eat most foods that I couldn’t before. There are, of course, some restrictions on what I can and can’t eat with my stoma, but nowhere near as many as before. 

It’s odd, but this surgery really has given me a new lease on life. I know I’m still recovering and need to take it slow to ensure I don’t overdo it, but I can feel myself improving, if only a little, each day.