Eating

BIGvet69

I am about 8 weeks post surgery. Does eating get easier?

Srinipartha

yea it does

but you need to be careful not to over eat. Rmember you have a reduced stomach now - although you may crave to eat more, do not. Be careful and listen to your body always

jamesdavis

yes it does get easier. if you do over eat you might experience back or spinal pressure or pain.

Barryclevine

It gets easier over time. You have to discipline yourself to not overeat. Small snacks all day is better and of course do not eat several hours before going to bed. You will learn what foods you tolerate more than others. I find its a long learning experience. please reach out if you want to talk further. I call my life now, "The new normal"

lisagwinnt

A dr just told me last year that for us folks, fiber isnt your friend. (Why dont they teach us about this stuff in the hospital like they train diabetics for their new life changes?) Without the normal contractions from parastalsis (that nerve grts cut with the surgery), fiber just becomes glue in your tract instead of being forced thru like silly putty picking up stuff from the lining. We should be on a low residue diet. Google it. More dairy. And eat less pauffy foods…foods with extra air in them. Like honeydew can give ya vits and hydration without you ingesting the excess air from watermelon. Also lettuce...like iceberg, isnt good. Spinach is better, not pauffy and it has a lot of magnesium, which is good for nausea and reflux. When you eat airy foods if theres anything stuck in the downward journey, that air will bloat in your chest pouch and make ya feel like youre having a heart attack til you belch. Also, if your nausea produces a lot of phlegm that you throw up, that phlegm traps the air and makes your pouch smaller, causing pressure and pain when you consume something. Its like it bounces off a membrane of phlegm and sometimes it will feel like your drowning or being gassed by whatever you last ate or drank because the entrance to your pouch is very close to the entrance to your right lung. I take a mucinex every day since dairy produces phlegm and i would throw up a lot of phlegm before doing low residue). Other than that, like they said, eat small meals. And if you can, take a brisk walk afterwards. Keep a journal. Some find they have less nausea bouts if they eat every 2 hours instead of every 3 hrs. Others find sleeping at an angle greater than 45 degrees helps decrease eating and nausea issues throughout the day long term. The journal will help you see what foods you best tolerate, the best time intervals at which to eat and what other factors like activity after eating or improving the sleep angle to increase the efficiency of your new gravity fed digestive tract And if you do sleep somehow to one side…make it sleeping on or toward your left because your pouch empies to the tract to the left. The quicker and cleaner food moves from your pouch to your tract, the less nausea , pain and discomfort youll have. Sadly, its a lifestyle change a nd everyones system adjusts to or tolerates life without our normal center in ways unique to our new biology. Gone are the days of big meals or eating kicked back in a recliner in front of the tv. Upright is key!

BIGvet69

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1722815#Comment_1722815

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1722815#Comment_1722815

Thank you for that info. I did have some occasional pain in the center of my back.

BIGvet69

I refer to my new experience, my new normal. Lately, I’m struggling with over eating at night. During the day, I forget about food. Probably helps that I never feel like food isn’t moving through to the small intestine at anything faster than a snails pace.

Barryclevine

BIGvet69, you are so right, over eating at night has always been an issue for me too. Eating too late is also a huge issue. I’m now eating much smaller dinners and doing my best to go out and walk after dinner which helps. I also take “garden of life” organic digest chewable enzymes after every meal. Get on Amazon. It helps a ton. Wishing all of us esophageal survivors only the best. I hope this helps everyone.

BIGvet69

Thank you, your response is very much appreciated. Thank you for helping make sense of some the things I’m experiencing. I’m going to pay even more attention to what I’m consuming. I have a dietitian, through the VA. At this point I feel very much on my own. It would be great if the medical community would give us more information/ guidance. Really appreciate you and the folks who have commented. Thank you

Srinipartha

Great points over the last 3 discussions and I can very easily relate to the issues and solutions stated. Thank you for sharing and let us continue to do this to benefit our peers - I learned a lot after getting diagnosed reading through these forums.

Im 18 months post surgery and learning every day. Eat less eat often - ie snacking thro the day is the new norm. Overeating will make you feel heavy around the chest and you may get a feeling of choking. Starting to feel heavy is a sign that you should stop.

At any cost donot eat anything solid after 6 pm if your bed time is 10 pm. Leave at least 4 hours without anything before sleeping. Walk for 15 mins min after your last meal and drink at least 250 ml of water.

Sleep inclined preferably above 60 deg angle. Prefer a couch than a bed. Take a lot of veggies and avoid spices at any cost.

It is a habitual change as you are born again and your anatomy is different from a normal person. You listen to your body than to anyone else around you and learn your way.

PatthePlumber

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1722348#Comment_1722348

my husband is also eight weeks post surgery. He is very careful. Tonight he had chicken noodle soup and 1/2 of a grilled cheese sandwich. You have to remember that you have to chew everything. Experiment… It’s the only way you’ll know what you can eat. Good luck to you kiddo.