Help??
I dont seem to have any problems with any kind of food, I was for a while constantly feeling hungry but I have since started drinking alot more water and also focusing on my proteins, and not drinking before during or after a meal. This seems to have helped alot with the feeling of hunger. Im worried that the stomach pouch has stretched only because if I eat even after feeling satisfied, nothing happens anymore, nor if I eat to fast. I dont get sick. And lately, not sure if this is associated or not but I wake up in the morning so sick to my stomach, I will start gagging but I am completely unable to vomit and I get extreme indigestion??? This has been about a week or so. I am not sure if this is normal. Also, as far as food goes, I eat alot of chicken, vegetables (peppers, beans etc), but I also will eat something stupid occasionally, like pasta which I have a hard time staying away from. I seem to eat about 6 oz or so each meal maybe a little more. Alot less then before the surgery but a decent amount more since.
Laura -
The swelling of our pouches after surgery literally takes about 3 months to completely go away. Then suddenly we're able to eat a bit more than we used to because there's more room in the pouch. It's fully healed and is working like it should right now.
6oz at a time is about normal at this point. Of course that amount will vary depending on what you're eating. I can do about 8oz of soup but only about 3oz of dense protein like beef or chicken.
It's good that you have stopped drinking with your meals. That is the #1 sabotage of this surgery. By drinking with your meal (or directly afterward) you are just washing all the food from your pouch and making it empty again. So hunger will creep in very soon afterward. But by waterloading between meals, you're better able to keep your hunger at bay and not think about food all the time.
During surgery the nerves in our stomach were cut so that's why we don't feel hunger or fullness at the beginning. It takes those nerves anywhere from 3 months to 18 months to repair themselves and start working again. So it's not unusual to start feeling hunger around the 5-6 month mark. I've noticed a slight feeling of hunger creeping back in. That's why the first few months after surgery are so important -- to help us established good eating habits and change the way we think about food, so that when we start feeling hunger again we have good control over those feelings. So if you haven't already mastered your relationship with food, now is the time to really work hard to get a grasp on it.
As for the morning sickness. It's very common. I've had that since the beginning. It's caused in part from mucus that drains into our pouch through the night and coats the lining --- then when we get up in the morning we have that yucky feeling. Especially right now when the pollen count is high and allergies and sinus problems seem to be running wild - we're producing more mucus than normal.
The best thing that works for me is a hot beverage. Either tea or making my protein hoto cocoa in the morning settles my stomach and prepared me for the day. I literally can not eat solid food first thing in the morning -- I must start my day with liquid or soft food. Then I'm perfectly fine to eat whatever I need to the rest of the day.
I really doubt if you've stretched your pouch this early after surgery. But you can avoid doing that by sticking to the good eating habits that we were taught. Measure your food if you must. Eat on a schedule so you're not having unplanned snacking. Don't drink with your meals. Don't push the boundries and don't eat beyond your known limit.
These first 12 to 18 months are the most important for us. This is our window of opportunity to see success. After that it gets very hard to lose the weight we need to - so use this time wisely.
Pam
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