Friday, October 1, 2010

Food Do's and Don'ts!

Wednesday was my clinic day at Shands. My PFT scores were down a little bit but pretty much stayed the same. My Dr says my name has come up since my last call several times but nothing ever good enough to give me a ring. So I still wait....

While I was there I asked the coordinator if I could have a booklet of do's and don'ts for post tx. I got one when I first came to the center back in 1999 so I figured they had new/updated material since then and I was correct!

Just the other day or week or something I was reading one of Piper's FB statuses and it was all about her tx center not wanting her to use the subway (she lives in NYC) for the first year post tx so I wanted to know what my centers rules were.....especially for food!

I know no sushi (raw sushi) and I know no buffets/salad bars, for good reason...I mean I love me a good buffet but have you seen some of the people who go to buffets? Yeah THATS why I can't eat at buffets post tx! LOL

But does that mean if I go to say Outback for dinner and the waiter asks me soup or salad I forever and always have to choose soup? Cause that's what my center says! I mean part of the reason I love Olive Garden is because the salad is the bomb and Danny LOVES to eat at Jason's Deli (salads, sandwiches etc.) can I never go there with him again?

I mean I know if it came down to it and I had to choose living/breathing or a salad I would rather breath every time and something as stupid as eating a salad isnt that big of a deal but its not the only thing....

I like my meat cooked medium rare. My center says at least Medium...which I think I should be grateful for because I think I saw on another centers website they say well done and I would HATE that! The one thing I will miss the most is seared tuna....they say that is a definite no no. I think I should start eating it every week until I get my tx! :)

The booklet I have is kind of general too so I guess I am just worried about not doing everything exactly perfect.I know at first everyone is really strict and over time you learn more of what you can and can't do I just don't want to mess anything up and if that means no more seared tuna than thats what I gotta do!

On a side note, my mom and I are heading back to Gainesville today. They are having their 16th Anniversary of the lung transplant program. Shands also just received a MILLION dollars from the state of FL for lung tx research so there will be a Senator and State Rep there giving speeches about that.

Well, I need to pack my crap mom will be here in a couple hours! Have a great weekend everyone!


4 comments:

Jess said...

Have fun at the anniversary party, I was invited too but its just not good timing right now.

Anonymous said...

Have a fab weekend and eat a yummy steak:) much love xoxo

Piper said...

see, my center says no salad bars and definitely no salads from, say, mcdonalds. but they don't say no salad at all. salads from home are definitely fine after the first year. and salads from nice/clean restaurants are, as someone on my clinic staff said, "a matter of patient judgment." take that for what it's worth.

the food rules seem to vary place to place and sometimes even doctor to doctor. i think the number one thing to remember is that you are, to some extent, vulnerable. does this mean you can't eat out? definitely no. does it mean you shouldn't order food you enjoy or that you need to freak out if lettuce appears on your plate? nope. but it does mean that if the restaurant doesn't seem clean, or something is questionable, then better safe than sorry. personally i find the food restrictions bearable. i loved sushi pre-tx but i'll be fine with cooked california rolls or tempura shrimp. i like my meat medium rare, but honestly medium well isn't too bad, esp. with a nice sauce.

my advice is to be smart without driving yourself crazy on the rules. trust yourself to make smart judgments. when in doubt i normally refrain, but at the same time i know that i will eventually be able to eat almost anything i want (raw or undercooked proteins being the main exception - and grapefruit!). if i desperately want a salad away from home, i'll splurge for a nicer meal. and if i find myself at burger king, i'll be ordering something very well cooked ;)

Unknown said...

I'm with Piper on this one. My transplant center (UNC) is very strict in the first year for good reason. They want you to avoid things that will make you sick, especially during cold/flu season since every cold can trigger rejection (hence avoidance of crowded areas like subways and airplanes). I am still very cautious during the winter and I am almost 8 years post tx.

As for the food thing, I eat salad and fresh fruit all the time. But again, I didn't eat salad at all for the first 6 months post-tx. And I still avoid buffets and sushi but I did that pre-tx since I'm not a fan of either :) I have friends who now eat sushi (they are as far out from tx as I am) but they all refrained that first critical year. You will find that every center has different rules and even different med schedules. Be very careful the first year, see how your body responds to the new airbags (!) and then use common sense.

And no grapefruit. Ever. It messes up cyclosporin levels.
Jill