diet help

I don't think there's any one food that gets all of us in trouble. Many (most?) J-pouchers eat an unrestricted diet. If you're having trouble, though, it's important to try to figure out if it's related to food (and to identify the culprit foods, if possible). This can also change over time - your profile says you're just a month or so from takedown, so it's best to stay flexible for a while.

What sort of pain are you having?

Since its a new pouch, i would be trying to get the good bugs in your intestines established first and foremost, so that usually means a lower sugar and carb diet, along with some good probiotics, such as home made 24 hour fermented yogurt. Personally, i am on a no sugar, no complex carb diet right now, but its pretty tough to follow completely. If your pain is cramping type pain, that is common with new pouches since it has to be stretched out over time to increase capacity. A lower residue diet helps, since it reduces the bulk coming thru, and therefore reducing some of the cramping. I believe they can prescribe medicines to help this also. Somebody else can give more info on them, as i have no experience with that.

I stayed away from fresh fruit and vegetables in the beginning, especially mushrooms! Good foods for me were; mashed potatoes, pasta, baked chicken, yogurt (Greek & regular), PlantFusion protein smoothies (I added frozen or fresh fruit and a banana plus spinach or carrots a few months out - into a pulverizing blender), grilled cheese sandwiches, cheese, sandwich sliced meats, pizza (lite on the meat and also on the red sauces), red pasta sauces may not agree to well so cheese and white sauces are a better go to on ready made cheese ravioli etc., marshmallows, rice krispie treats, chicken noodle soup, chicken & noodles, non-fiber bread, V-8 juice and I use NUUN electrolyte tabs. The marshmallows, rice krispie treats, noodles, bread and mashed potatoes thicken the stool. Some say rice does but I didn't have success with it thickening mine. V-8 juice and NUUN tabs are good to keep dehydrated. I also use VSL#3DS, the only prescription probiotics. My Internist prescribes it for me as I see her more often than my other doctors. It use to be difficult to get so an it's expensive. I checked with my insurance company and Walgreens to make sure it was covered and available before asking her to prescribe it. There are many other's out there but VSL#3DS is the only one I've seen in medical studies.

Everyone is different. The above are on the bland side except for red sauces and pizza so add them with caution. They say to add a new food at a time to see if it bothers you or not.

Are you using Metamucil, or something like it, to thicken your stool? My surgeon also had me using Imodium to slow down my system. I had a schedule to follow of how many of each and when to take them.

You are still in a rough stage and if the pain is awful call your doctor and discuss it. You might need an appointment and/or medication. It's going to get better.

Thanks for your help guys! My husband is absolutly amazing but he has no idea what I'm going through much like my family and friends. Its so nice to know the pain I'm feeling in normal because I was pretty sure I was dying lol. I truly appreciate all the advice and am so freatdul for you guys!

mrspollard,
If you are concerned about it (even though it may be way too early in your healing process to be worried) I would start an elimination diet. You start with 1 food for 24hrs, if you react well then add a 2nd one...etc. I started with chicken which always worked for me then added a simple fruit (banana) etc...by the end of the week I had 5 or 6 foods that worked well and I could live with that in the begining...every couple of weeks I would add another food and see how it worked...It was a safe and easy way to build up food groups...now of course I eat pretty much whatever I want except for really high fiber foods like mushrooms, corn, peas (I have a k pouch and need to eliminate through a narrow tube so stuff getting stuck is a major concern for me too)...try avoiding cheeses, dairy in general and milk specifically but yoghurt is ok and so are some ice creams...
Good luck
Sharon

Long term, you want to reduce carbs and sugars which fuel bacterial overgrowth in the pouch, and this situation in turn may cause or lead to chronic pouchitis. I have chronic pouchitis and it was suggested to me by my doctors that this was a result of chronic bacterial overgrowth. So I changed my diet a year ago and I have been doing a lot better since then and taking less antibiotics than I ever was previously in 18 years of dealing with chronic pouchitis.

If you are new to surgery, keep a food log to determine what is causing your pain. Is it gas pain? Gas pain can be reduced by reducing certain foods. Long term you should be able to enjoy an unrestricted diet.

Sue

Please see a new posting under the topic at "Fecal Transplant" under POUCHITIS, apparently it's been approved as treatment for pouchitis at Cleveland Clinic. If it works, this sounds like a miracle cure!