"Rice drove me nuts too—felt like I was excavating grains for days afterward, lol."
Haha, I totally relate to that rice struggle. When I had my wisdom teeth out, I thought I'd be clever and make myself some fried rice...big mistake. Tiny grains lodged everywhere, felt like an archaeological dig every time I rinsed. Not fun.
Mashed potatoes were definitely my go-to as well—cheap, filling, and easy to jazz up with some cheese or gravy if you get bored. Scrambled eggs were great too; they're soft enough not to hurt but still feel substantial enough to satisfy hunger. Smoothies were a lifesaver, though I got tired of the sweet stuff pretty quickly. Eventually started blending soups just to mix things up—tomato basil soup blended smooth was surprisingly comforting.
One thing that helped me budget-wise was oatmeal—sounds boring, I know, but hear me out. You can play around with flavors (cinnamon, peanut butter, bananas) and it's ridiculously cheap per serving. Plus, it's filling enough to keep hunger at bay longer than smoothies did for me.
Hang in there; it really does get better faster than you'd think. Before long he'll be back to crunchy snacks and pizza nights without even thinking twice about it. Until then...soft foods FTW.
Haha, rice is definitely the worst offender...but has anyone else struggled with pasta too? I figured mac and cheese would be safe, but those tiny elbow noodles managed to wedge themselves everywhere. How does something so soft cause so much trouble? Totally agree on oatmeal though—did you ever try overnight oats? Cold oats sounded weird to me at first, but they're actually pretty soothing when your mouth feels inflamed.
Pasta never gave me much trouble tbh...maybe it's the cheese sauce making things stickier for you? Rice though, 100% agree—tiny grains everywhere. Overnight oats sound decent, but have you tried smoothies instead? Way less hassle and zero chewing involved.
Smoothies are a lifesaver, for sure—no chewing and less risk of irritating sensitive gums. But careful with adding berries or seeds...those tiny bits can sneak into healing areas and cause trouble later. Pasta's usually okay, but yeah, cheese sauce can make things tricky. Personally, I found mashed potatoes or creamy soups perfect when my mouth was recovering. Bland maybe, but at least they don't turn your mouth into a minefield afterward.
When I had my wisdom teeth out, smoothies were my go-to as well, but yeah, learned the hard way about those sneaky strawberry seeds. One thing that really helped me was scrambled eggs—soft enough to slide down without chewing much, yet filling enough to feel like an actual meal. Also, oatmeal saved me from boredom; just make sure it's cooked super soft and skip any crunchy toppings. Bland gets old fast, but trust me, your mouth will thank you later...
