Appreciation & "Eating For Recovery"

I expereinced some medical issues this last week, and needed some minor surgery.
Being a holistic health care practitioner, my slant is definitely towards "alternative medicine," but I have prided myself on being both knowledgeable and respectful of "western medicine."
After this experience my cognitive "respect" grew much deeper and transformed into a solid and genuine heart felt appreciation of western medicine and its "tools."

The surgery went smoothly, the Dr's and nurses were fantastic, the center was clean, the drugs did what they were supposed to, and my "problem" was handled.

The need for alternative treatments was loud and clear while recovering. With my knowledge of herbs and foods, I was able to speed recovery, ease the burden on my liver (from the drugs and anesthesia), aid with sleep, and help relax myself.
I'm sure I could have gotten more pills for those various symptoms, but I know they would have created other symptoms. So I took what drugs the Dr said were necessary, and I took care of the rest with food and herbs!
It is such a beautiful thing that we have a tremendous degree of influence over our bodies (for the positive or negative) based on what we decide to eat, and sometimes it makes the world of difference the amount we eat.
Good rules when recovering (some of these I learned the hard way :)):
1. The first meal post op should be small and light. I recommend staying away from animal products and nuts, as well as greasy foods.
2. Chew really well and make some nice, easy to digest grains. I choose quinoa and buckwheat.
3. Go for cooked rather than raw. It will be easier to break down cooked foods until your stomach "fire" gets back up to par.
4. Drink lots of pure water and hot herbal teas.
5. Stay away from sugar, especially ice cream :)! Sugar lowers immune function and drains energy from the body. It also feeds bacteria, yeasts, and molds inside your body.
6. Clear broth soup is great idea... so are steamed veggies.
7. REST! That is a hard one for me, but I gave in to it and slept more than I had since I was a teenager. My body is really thanking me.