What to drink after the surgery?

When we were having the courses to prepare ourselves for life after the surgery, the dietician told us that it is likely that for a while it will be a little difficult to drink plain water. It might feel as if it gets stuck above the stomach and then fall down as if it were a stone. I almost forgot about this, until it happened to me. 

I was at home from the hospital, recently after the surgery and I was trying to put some water inside. Oh wow! It felt as if I swallowed an ice cube, it got stuck in the middle of my chest and then it fell inside my stomach. It was a pretty nasty feeling. And also very surprising. It made me remember the dietician´s words right away. It was crystal clear. Water is out of my limits. At least for a while. 

Little did I know that it would be most likely forever. I kept trying to reintroduce the silly water regularly, most likely every month, but after a year it was almost obvious that it was not a good idea. It kept feeling the same. Same nasty and unpleasant. I couldn’t stand water. It was somewhat surprising. As silly as it seems, you must drink something. And if you can’t drink plain water, things are a little complicated. 

Ok, if I can’t drink plain water, I still can drink a flavored one, right? What seemed to be a pretty straightforward option became, again, complicated. You can’t put any sugar in it, your stomach is strongly against this one, so it has to be something without sugar. The thing is that artificial sweeteners are not the best option either, they are laxatives if you eat too much of them. 

I was going through the bariatric forums trying to find out what others drink/how they sorted out this problem. All sweeteners, so nope, sugary stuff, so nope, or things that are not available in my area. The situation seemed a little silly. Now what?

At the very beginning, I was drinking a sugar-free Aquarius. It was a little pricey but what could I do? I had to drink something and I was eating next to nothing, so it was absolutely ok to allocate money to drinking something like this. I never thought I would be so grateful to Coca-Cola. This was about the first two months. We have orange and lemon flavors available here, so I was switching between them and it was reasonably doable. 

What was helping me a lot to get in some liquids were ice cubes. It helped me immensely to have the drinks really cold, especially during summer, I appreciated it a lot. I could get down much more than if the drink was at ambient temperature. Maybe try this. First only a little, to check what your stomach would tell you about it, and if there are no complaints, go on. It may not be the best for you, but to me, it helped a lot. Just a suggestion.

I became tired of these two options pretty fast I needed something else. The new flavor was a must. So, thinking about it, I remembered that they gave me juice to drink in the hospital. Silly me… why didn’t I think about this earlier? Pretty obvious choice.

I looked up juices without added sugar, had them all in the fridge, and switched between them. I always put 1 part of juice and 5 parts of water. I was negotiating with my stomach like this. It was almost plain water, but not completely. And it worked. As time progressed, I was able to get to 1 part of juice and 10 parts of water. It still tasted a little like something, but the calories were minimal and my stomach accepted it perfectly fine. 

I am 2,5 years out now and I am still not able to drink any plain water. It still gets stuck. I keep trying it now and then, but it seems to me that I will need to have something in the water forever. Never mind, it is a small thing that is easily manageable. 

I have my great drinking bottle – easy to clean (ultra important) so that there are no bugs accumulated inside. I add a small piece of fruit, mint, or cucumber inside and it tastes great. You wouldn’t believe what 5 blueberries can do to your water. Nom! 

Now in summer, I have my drinks in bottles that keep it cold for 12 hours and it really works. I prepare it in the morning, add fruit and ice and I have great liquid till the evening. Ok, I always have 2 bottles, each of them 700 ml. It is almost 1,5 liters a day, plus some coffee and tea in between, so I easily get to 2 liters a day. It is not bad. 

I had to wait to have my beloved coffee for a whole year. My stomach was absolutely against that and it hurt me as if I was going to have a baby when I tried. It got much better now. So I am back to my 2 coffees a day, one in the morning to load software and one after lunch (ok, two hours after lunch) to survive the afternoon. 

My dentist is not very happy about my tea habit. I always liked teas and I never gave them up. I can have any. I never say no. Having a nice cuppa is always a good idea. Especially when you need a little rest during your work sessions. It is 15 minutes when you just close your eyes and listen to some calming music and you rise like a Phoenix from the ashes. I call it a mini-vacation 😀 It works miracles. It is just the dentist who keeps complaining every time she sees me. Well, not everybody can be happy all the time, right? But it is easy to clean, so no biggies 😀

What is not doing any good to me is anything with bubbles. So no Coke, Fanta, Sprite, or anything like that. It makes me so incredibly bloated… 5 months pregnant after a single can. I can’t burp for some reason, so all the gas stays inside… you remember the feeling after the surgery, right?

I tried a few times and it was a big no for me. I know that some people go back to this. But it is not for me. Thinking about it, I don’t want to put so many chemicals inside anymore. I was never a heavy coke drinker and now I really don’t miss it. When I do my monthly shopping, these are always in offer, but I am completely oblivious. Nevermore. Like the raven from E.A. Poe 🙂

Oh yes, drinking your liquids… who would have thought that it would be such a difficult thing to do? It looked so easy but turned out to be a little creative process, trying this and that, and let’s see if something sticks. I found my way out.

I always make sure that I have enough with me on the go, so it requires a little planning ahead, but still, it is nothing complicated. It is better to have my water bottle with my liquids prepared at home so that I know exactly what is inside. But when I run out, it is always possible to buy sugar-free Aquarius in a gas station or in a bar. They always have it. You can also order tea, I ask for double water so that I get in the fluids I need. 

It happens rarely that I need to buy something to drink outside. But in this case, I know my options, so it is very easy to restock on the go. What is not a good idea for me? Have a plastic bottle in your car for a month, in the heat and sun… you don’t want to drink what is inside. Yuck! Gas stations are everywhere, so it is my best bet. There must be something sugar-free in your area as well.