Ruth Anne Benziger's Blog, page 10

My Bariatric Diet 10 weeks post-op VSG

The bariatric surgery process isn’t for the faint-hearted. There is sacrifice, permanent change to your body, and hard work. I’ve come to know that it is about changing your mindset and completely changing your relationship with food. Your eating changes-for the better-even if it is extremely hard to get out of bad habits.

I’ve heard people say that having a gastric sleeve or bypass is the “easy way out.” If you’ve spoken to someone who went through the process and had the surgery, will tell you that is the farthest thing from the truth. There is a ton of work that goes into the process of surgery and especially after.

I’m only ten weeks out and I have come to terms with the fact that my life has completely changed. During the pre-op stage, I changed the way I ate. I cut out all the foods that I knew I would not be able to have after. I started changing small things like oil, butter, and sugar-free condiments. I started to cut out unhealthy foods that I knew would have to go.

Was it easy? Hell no!

It isn’t easy giving up all the modern conveniences of fast food, microwave meals, and easy-to-prep foods that you throw together. For some of us, we are so used to eating that way, it can be a shock to change the way we eat. I went from microwaving frozen foods, having easily made boxes and packages, and started buying more produce. I started buying almond flour and using other ingredients to make things from scratch.

After surgery, I was on a liquid diet for about two weeks. It wasn’t as tough as I thought it would be. I then advanced to soft foods and for my unique medical needs, I’m still in that stage and will be until my six-month post-op appointment. I can pretty much eat anything as long as it is moist and soft. I struggle with some things but I have found many resources with recipes.

Pinterest, Facebook groups, and online blogs are my sources for finding really amazing recipes. I also love to go browse Youtube where I have found tons of other bariatric patients who give great advice and post videos on what they eat in a day, meal prepping, and just general meal recipes.

Here are a few of my favorite recipes and foods that I have been eating lately. Keep in mind that I’m on a soft food diet and that I am at about 2-3 oz. per meal.

My Recipes and Meals

Some of these are just Pinterest posts that I have changed to meet my bariatric needs. These are my favorites and right now, I have been just throwing stuff together. I want to keep recipes that I have started from scratch.

If you have recipes or know where I can follow them, please share. I have some people on TikTok too that really helps me. But I like to read the recipe and see all the ingredients rather than watching a short video on it. I’d love to learn more and see more recipes.

These are where I’m at right now. I finally feel like I can experiment and eat foods of all types. So, I’m looking forward to growing my kitchen skills.

If you are on a journey of getting or have already had surgery, follow along and I’d love to follow you.

Until next time,

Ruth

Blogmas is coming! Be featured on my blog!

Hi, bloggers.

December is right around the corner and I’m seeking bloggers who would like to guest post for blogmas. I think it’ll be awesome to have fellow writers and readers post topics that you love.

I did this last year and topics like these were used:

Celebrating the holidays in a year of lossTop ten Black holiday moviesBest recipes for the holidaysChristmas Traditions in our family

I’d love to see what kinds of topics you come up with.

You can also pick topics that pertain to:

HolidaysBest ofPoemShort storyListsRecipesetc…

I’d love for you to have creative freedom. So, if you’d like to write a post, please let me know.

If you are a writer with a website and book links, please include them in your post. I’d love to support other authors. If you are a writer with no links, leave your social media accounts for others to follow.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving (If you celebrate) and I look forward to December.

Best wishes

Ruth

Stuffed Bratwurst

IngredientsOriginal bratwursts (remove skins) Mozzarella string cheeseMozzarella cheese shreddedPasta sauce of choiceDirectionsRemove skins from bratwursts and slice open. Cut string cheese in half. Then cut in half again. Each bratwurst will have half a string cheese. Close the sausage around the cheese and place in a greased pan. Cover with pasta sauceTop with cheeseBake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until the cheese is melted and singed. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I found this recipe on TikTok and am not sure of the original creator.

10 Weeks Post-Op VSG

It feels like it has been a lot longer since I had surgery. I started my journey, as some of you know, in the early parts of May. It’s been tough to change eating habits. There have been days, weeks, and even months of frustration, agony, and down right wanting to give up.

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Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

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As many of us know, nothing ever worth getting comes with hard work and dedication. So, I bit my tongue and pulled up my boot straps when the tough times came. I’m happy that I did and satisfied with my progress.

Let’s backtrack a little for those who aren’t aware of where I’ve been. I started the bariatric program at Mountain View Regional Medical Center in Las Cruces, NM. I met with the nutritionist, Dr. Gomez. In meeting with her, she told me what to expect, provided me with numerous material aids and put me on the ketogenic diet.

Now, I’ve come to realize it was a waste of time. The diet wasn’t right for me for multiple reasons. It wasn’t great hormonally, it wasn’t great for my body type. I lost 36 pounds in eight months and then ended up gaining it and more back. I met with the surgeon, Dr. MacArthur. Due to my medical history (Crohn’s and having an ileostomy), she didn’t feel comfortable nor did she have experience.

I immediately stopped meeting with Dr. Gomez and their team. I started the bariatric poem at University of New Mexico Hospital with Dr. Bock. His team knew my circumstances and that I’d been in a previous program. So, I began my journey with them in July. Luckily, it took only a few short months and I had my surgery on September 14.

Day after surgery

Since then, I have lost a total of 43.2 pounds. Since May, I have lost a total of 72.2 pounds. I sometimes can’t see the results, but I feel it in my clothes and the way that I move. I have more energy, my clothes feel better, and I overall feel healthier than I have in years. I feel great.

I started the program with UNMH at 305 lbs. I now weight 232.8 lbs. I am ten weeks post-op today.

I’m looking forward to losing more weight and learning what kind of foods that I can eat. I’m at a point where I can eat about 2-3 oz. of food at any given time. I am able to get in 64 oz. of water in daily. I also enjoy decaf coffee with sugar free creamer daily. My protein goal is 60-70 g. I’m able to do that just fine and I don’t need a protein supplement, for the most part.

I’m happy with where I’m at and I will continue to show you results, via pictures, and I’ll be making more posts about my journey. Of course, I will also be posting recipes and foods that I eat.

Until next time,

Ruth

Book Review: Year One: Chronicles of The One, Book 1 by Nora Roberts

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER (December 2017)

A stunning new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts—Year One is an epic of hope and horror, chaos and magick, and a journey that will unite a desperate group of people to fight the battle of their lives…

It began on New Year’s Eve.

The sickness came on suddenly, and spread quickly. The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed—and more than half of the world’s population was decimated.

Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magick rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river—or in the ones you know and love the most.

As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive.

In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain.

The end has come. The beginning comes next.

My Thoughts

I was sucked in from the start of this story. Roberts didn’t disappoint in giving us a gripping story of survival and harrowing experiences with the Doom. A sickness that wiped out a huge number of the population and forced groups of people to trust each other and gather together for protection and companionship. Ironic that we are in a pandemic and this screams similar to experiences in the beginning of the book.

We see people who were good and genuine die, those who turn dark because of the sickness, and magic change others. Many leave their homes, safety net, and all they know to venture out into the wilderness. They have to learn skills they never knew and use those they thought weren’t of much use.

We get magical elements to the story that keep the reader into it and braced for what comes next. In true Roberts fashion, we get excellent relationships with people. The connections people have and the connections that form. Up until the last moment of the story, I was pulled in and am moving on to reading, Of Blood and Bone next.

Lana and Max’s story drew me in and kept my attention most out of the many amazing characters Roberts created. The story continues and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

November

You know what I love about fall? The colors. The cold. The ever-winding down of the year.

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Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

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It’s the time of year to drink hot drinks, obsess about pumpkin-spice (for some), and to be thankful for what you have.

For me, it is a time of reflection. Of time to sit and think of what has happened this year. What I’m looking forward to is more time with family, a family wedding, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

To watch the joy on my kids faces when they rip into wrapping paper and get a gift that they have wanted all year long. They agonize over what they want all year. They tell family and get giddy when it finally falls in their hands.

What I look forward to is the joy and the warmth of being around those I love. To know that they are there to enjoy and to welcome the end of the year.

I’m blessed and have had a great year. It may have started off rocky, and there have sure been some hard time. You know what’s great about waking up each day? You get to start again. Make your mind up to be happy and to allow yourself every opportunity to make your day great.

What are you looking forward to this month?

I know there are several things in the next two weeks that get me excited. My honorary sister is getting married and she’s happy. That makes me happy to be a part of her special day and honor her on her day. Then, the next morning I get to wake up and spend the day with my church family. To put on a fall festival for our community and to have a great day of fellowship, laughter, and companionship.

Then, I get to spend a day watching the Thanksgiving day parade, watching people stuff their faces until they are full, and see the joy.

I hope you enjoy November and that you have things you are excited about.

Until next time,

Ruth

Disappointing News

This journey has been really tough and I’m starting to regret my decisions.

In May, I was put on a liquid diet for 6 weeks. Then, I was advanced to puree. Where I stayed from July to September when I had surgery.

Now, I should be able to advanced to a regular diet after being on puree for 2 weeks and on soft for 3 weeks.

My dietitian reported that I will have to stay on this soft foods diet until my hernia repair. That means I have to wait 6 months after surgery to get referred to a surgeon who specializes in hernia repair.

I’m beyond annoyed that I haven’t eaten a real meal since May and I’m still sitting here having to eat like a baby. As if this year hasn’t been hard enough.

I’m angry, I’m annoyed, and I’m started to regret having this surgery. I hate that I’m always sick or always having to compromise my life around my illnesses. It’s so tired, I’m over being sick and disabled.

Enough is enough.

Having the worst day and not feeling at all positive about this experience. All my excitement is gone.

Monday Weigh-in

Update on my weight. I started this year off with a high weight and was pretty sluggish and lazy. I came to a few realizations and got my butt in gear.

In May, I weighed 305 pounds and was miserable. I tried to hide it but I was pretty depressed and sick. I wasn’t putting in effort in my personal relationships and was just sort of being.

I decided to take my health seriously after finding out that I had a hernia and would need to lose weight to get it fixed. So, I started the Bariatric program with UNM.

My weight the day I had surgery was 277.

Today, I weighed in at 244.8.

I have officially lost 60.2 pounds since May.

I have lost a total of 31.2 pounds since surgery. My surgery was on September 14.

I’m proud of the journey I’m on and my hard work. I’m happy with my progress and I’m on the right track. I have God to thank for giving me the patience, endurance, and strength.

I hope you all have a great Monday!

Ruth

Spicy Protein Side

As a bariatric patient, I will no longer be able to eat tons of food. That doesn’t mean that you can’t make the best of your food. I eat mostly protein. This is an old recipe but would make a great choice now.

Ingredients

Spring Mix Pickle spearCucumberGreen bell pepperkidney beansHam squaresGrilled ChickenJalapenosHard boiled eggsYummy dinner I made some time ago.

Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

LettuceCabbageBlack olivesOnionsGrilled chickengreen peppersTomatoes

Mix well and enjoy!