I have the same prob..really cannot eat uncooked veggies at al, anyore...some days (wks, mos) its just white bread, white rice, bananas, etc I've gained 40 lbs (Its been 20 yrs and I am also hypothyroid)

Yes, I struggle with feeling like I'm eating so unhealthy too.  I wish I could eat more fresh foods, but there's only so much I can tolerate.  l feel like I'm eating unhealthy carbs and comfort foods most of the time since they are easy to digest.  Fortunately, I've been able to find certain fruits and veggies that don't bother me and I've identified the ones that give me the most problems.  I definitely need to work on getting back to a balanced diet.  I had a "pass" for a few weeks since I had major abdominal surgery that required me to stay on a pretty soft diet, but it's time to get back to eating all the food groups again.

Having this problem big time right now. Didn't used to have it, pre-fistulas when my j-pouch was whole. I ate very healthy and exercised and was quite happy with things. The fistulas and treatments have changed all that and right now I'm eating such crap it's terrible. Eating better, however, results with sitting on the toilet for hours at a time so I can't do it.

 

Am hoping going to a perm ileo will solve these probs and allow a healthy diet again!

 

Gin

 

 

I had a lot of luck decreasing gas with a low FODMAPS diet. It goes through an elimination phase so you can figure out your biggest triggers, then once you figure those out it's not so restrictive. If I'm having major issues I can eliminate all high-FODMAP foods again until I'm back to normal.

In the first few years before my k pouch settled in for the long run (about 3 or 4 yrs) I juiced a lot...everything that I could not eat I drank.

Celery, spinach, all greens, herbs and aromates (garlic, onion...) went into the juicer including the good stuff like carrots and beets...it gave me the energy that I required and the vitamins that I would have otherwise never gotten.

Nowadays there are a lot of commercially made juices that are almost as good and you may well tollerate...some have an apple juice base that is not so bad for your pouch anyway.

Puréed veggies worked well too (blend them with a hand held blender)...Start with a mashed potato base and add a small percentage of another veggie like carrots...maybe 1 carrot for 10 potatoes and as time goes by add in more carrots or spinach or any other green veggie that you like....

Same with soups...Water based with cooked veggies and chicken or beef broth (home made and freeze into ice cubes for easy use) add potatoes and 1 or 2 other veggies at a time...over a space of months or years you will be able to add a larger variety of veggies and less and less starches...don't rush but train your pouch if possible.

At the same time add probiotics to your diet and cut out diary and you may see a change for the better.

Sharon

 

I am also having trouble losing weight. Since my first surgery, I have put on roughly 20 pounds and I am NOT happy about it!! I wanted to pose my question here, rather than risk offending someone who has the opposite problem. What is it about the surgery/j-pouch that causes people to lose weight? Somehow I bypassed that step of my new j-pouch, and I know it sounds bad, but I was actually hoping to lose at least a few pounds from the surgery.

Like others on this thread, I can't eat an excessive amount of roughage. In fact, if I even have one bite of a fruit or vegetable, I see blood in the toilet. My surgeon thinks that my pouch still needs time to heal (I am 4 months post-op). I am tired of gaining weight from only eating carbs...I miss fresh produce!

Has anyone had luck with smoothies, either fruit or "green?" This is different than juicing in that it keeps the pulp of the fruit or vegetable, but breaks it down into [potentially] more manageable pieces. I can have mango and peach smoothies, but I'd love to be able to add strawberries and apples and spinach and kale, and the list goes on...

Does anyone else see blood in the toilet when they attempt to eat healthier in order to lose weight? Or am I all alone?

I feel you pain, all.  I think that it is easier to put the weight o. When you are feeling well.  Case in point.  My genius son, Jeffrey! Lost 120 pounds in six-eight months.  He lost 30 pounds before his initial surgery because he was told to.  Then after the first surgery he lost another 30.  When the complications started, he kept losing but because he was sick, not because he was restricting calories.  After the third surgery, he was beginning to feel better and for th first time in 9 months felt good.  Well, some how he managed to gain 50 lbs in three months!  Even I can't do something like that and I gain weight watching the dead eat.  shortly, he will be having a forth surgery, to reconnect him to his j-pouch if it has healed and the doctors are having a fit!  So my question is this, how,does he go about losing this weight!  Won't listen to me!  And he refuse to exercise.  I guess it boils down to this.  If you feel well, you are going to eat, if you feel like crap, you don't eat and loss weight.  Pisses me off big time, nothing is easy!  And it never works out the way you want!  

I'm another that has gained too much weight since having a j-pouch. My BMI is far too high at 29,and until recently when I lost 12 lb ( through having surgery/radiotherapy/chemo for cervical cancer - not recommended!) my blood pressure was also high. Luckily it's settled since losing 12lb, but I can feel I'm gaining again now I'm eating again ( but have no scales at the moment .)
I  am considering trying the 5:2 diet. I have recently had some luck with eating filling veggies by using an electric tefal soup maker which you can set to make the soup very smooth. I seem to be tolerating that ok and can manage two good bowls of that a day without bunging my pouch up! That's filling and stood me picking at carbs ( I love bread!)

Luckily for me I can eat a moderate amount of fruit ( too much seems to cause gas due to ,I think the sugars.)
Incidentally, the hospital I attend ( St Marks- a renowned gastric hospital here in the UK) doesn't seem to worry about the weight gain and say its to be expected . Personally I think that is very short sighted . I had a cancerous tumour after years of colitis and being overweight is a factor in several different cancers. My GP is VERY keen for me to lose weight,although I know I look too thin at the recommended weight for my height which is at the most 10. St 5. My 'ideal ' weight where I look and feel healthy is actually 11 stone. Any less and I look drawn and scraggy! I am currently 12 stone 7 ( blushes).

I think that we are all stating the obvious here...sick people get skinny and healthy people get fat...or that is how it has been over the centuries...if you were thin you were considered sickly (duhh) so why are we so surprised that once we get well we put on weight.

Right now I find that I have 2 different dietary lives. My work life where all carbs, fibers and sugars are forbidden (sugars make me sleepy and I don't have a job where I can wink out and fibers force me to spend too much time where I do not have time to go...)

So I eat yoghurt and bananas on the days that I work (3-4 days/week) and then eat a light dinner...the nights before work I limit myself to proteins like grilled meats or fish/chicken and a steamed veggie (low residue diet)...it works for me (most of the time).

On my days off like today or weekends I eat salads, veggies, carbs and just about anything that I can get my little hands on. I have cut out my nuts, dried fruits and nut butters that were my staple last year (I put on about 6lbs eating them daily)...with the yoghurt etc I have lost a couple of lbs and feel better.

You will find your balance but do not expect to be 'good' all of the time...some days you just need to cheat and deal with the consequences later.

Sharon