I just have questions about different foods. I know I have seen posts on here about popcorn and peanuts and some people have no trouble with them (I am still afraid to try), but how about seafood, specifically clam strips. Also, I have not had salads, cucumbers, and stuff like this. I know people say as long as you chew well, you will be fine, but I am just curious how other people do with foods like this. I am really afraid of getting a blockage, especially for the summer! Thanks!

Hi Amy,

The terror of obstruction, especially if you've had some (or many, as in my case) was enough to keep me on soft foods for about six weeks, and then I gradually added back food with roughage. I ate only well-cooked veggies (nearly dead) for the first 10 months, and it was with timidity that I snatched several handsful of popcorn at the movie on Sunday, but it all works. I eat cucs, apples, and lots of other "tough" stuff now, but I do make sure pasta, for instance, is well-cooked rather than al dente or it comes through whole. Clam strips I can't speak to, but I've never had a problem with soft food, even if it's fried. At first I wouldn't touch anything with skin,but now I eat roasted potatoes fully dressed and love 'em. My advice is to try a small amount and see how you do. Add NOTHING else different for the week, and you'll know. Of course, nothing is conclusive, because if you eat something pretty binding, such as brown rice, with the clam strips, I suppose you could have a problem whereas you may be fine with the clam strips, cooked veggies, and some sourdough bread.

Best of luck - let us know how you're doing.

Barbara

Thank you! I have been eating more lately. Cherries and Strawberries are okay I have found. I will take your advice and just try one new thing at a time and see how thing go!
Amy

I LOOOOOVE new england clam strips! I've never had a problem with them

I'm 3 months post surgery, I've eaten all kinds of fruits and veggies and (knock on wood) have been fine.

I know what clams are but what ARE clam strips? We don't have them on this side of the Pond.

Shell

I think they are what we call here in th UK: crab sticks. which are made with processed white fish and flavorings. Chew them really well and you should be fine its just that your output will smell mighty fishy!

I used to be petrified of peanuts. You have to be consiously chewing those buggers to peanut butter if you want to be sure. Personally i think all nuts are irritants of ibd and I avoid them. They never get digested any way. Don't even get me started on mushrooms!

I heard Bill Cosby say a great thing after he recovered from a heart attack: "we spend too much time feeding our mouths, when really we should be feeding our bodies".

Dan and Shell,

Clam strips are fried clams minus the bellies.

What Dan describes is what we call fish sticks, a common favorite for young children.

They sound awful!

Do they go crispy when fried? In my experience that part of a clam/mussel can be very chewy so unless they went very crispy I probably wouldn't try them either.

Unlike Dan though I love any kind of seafood. Here in the Channel Islands we have a delicacy called ormers which are like a giant limpet (sea mollusc). They can also be a little tough if not cooked properly. Mmmm I'm drooling just thinking about them!

Ah well.... as we have just arrived in St Malo in France I think I shall have to order a fruits de mer for my dinner sometime in the next week!

Bon appetite

Shelll

Thank you all - It is good to know I can try them and hopefully everything will be fine - Not just yet though- I just got back from another surgery, my small intestines twisted around itself - I guess unusualy but if its going to happen, it'll happen to me.

Amy,

Don't feel bad; you're not the only one. Two weeks after my first surgery, I had to have a second operation -- my small intestine twisted arund behind the ileostomy; I think they called it a volvulus.

I hope you're doing well now.
Anjuli

volvulus, sounds like a baddie from a superhero comic.