Liquids - 1 week postop Question ??? Please help

[HealthyNinny]

I am almost one week post op and on all liquids. My question is:
I know to take small sips and I remember my doctor saying something
about waiting 5 min between sips to allow the liquid to go down, but I can't
find it in any of my instructions. Is this correct? My stomach is kinda crampy
and my Isopure protein drink doesn't go down so good. Yesterday I tried pudding,
jello and soup. If I continue to sip water and broth, do I have to wait five min between sips?
Also, I have 9 meds to get down in crushed form. It's very difficult with applesauce and still
tastes so very much metallic. Can someone comment on the easiest way to do this?

[CraftyKelly73]

That's how they start you off in the hospital. You should be able to drink a little faster now. Just pay attention to how you feel. Still take small sips, but once you feel it go down take another right away if you think you're ready. Start slowly and build it up. I am 5 months out and I can drink about 3-4 oz at once (sometimes). Every drink is not the same. I just go by feel. Good luck.

[jodiel]

All doctors are different. My nutritionist told me to drink one ounce of liquid every 15 minutes. When I was at your stage, it took me 15 mins to get that 1 oz down. The cramping could be still some trapped gas or you trying to drink too big of gulps at a time. I'm almost 5 weeks out and still get cramping if I drink too fast. As far as the crushed form of meds, I can't help ya with that one. All my meds were in liquid form or very small and I could swallow them. Are these huge pills that you can not swallow? 5 days out you should be able to swallow most pills. I never did wait 5 minutes between sips.

[HealthyNinny]

Can I cut my pills in half and swallow now or is it too soon?

[jodiel]

It depends on you and how you think you could handle it. But honestly, if they aren't huge pills, I would go ahead and try taking them whole. How many pills do you have to take? Maybe try taking one at a time, wait a few minutes and if all goes well, take another one.

[Fordlady]

I still have a hard time drinking liquids, and my mouth stays really dry. I hope there are some good suggestions on this topic.

[jodiel]

The drinking the one oz every 15 minutes works. It works well and really keeps you from getting dehydrated. When I do it sometimes I feel like I'm going to float away but it works. I set my timer on my iPhone for 15 minute intervals. I have a medicine cup and a bottle of whatever I'm drinking. This works really well at work when I get busy and forget to drink. When the timer goes off, I poor my one oz of liquid and drink it. I can drink it all at once or I can drink sips at a time. I like to drink sips at a time because I feel like if I drink it all at once, two things happen. One, I get thirsty again before the 15 minutes is up, and two, it hurts! Try it and see how it goes. I promise you will get all your liquids in for that day. Then you will learn how to drink all your liquids and you won't have to use the timer or the medicine cup. It can be aggravating at times and seem tedious but a great way to get your liquids in.