I'm new,just out of surgery, and feeling a little hungry?

Hi everyone, my surgery was on 6/21/04 had some internal swelling and could not eat anything until thursday.now I'm home and on clear liquids until tomorrow and eating just what they told me is leaving me feel hungry and tired is this normal? will it go away when I start the pureed foods? I don't want to overeat but I'm just not sure I'm getting enough. Can anyone help? Dawn

Hi Dawn, First off welcome and congratulations! I'm glad to hear you are following doctor's orders...yes the clear liquids are more than likely leaving you a bit sapped for energy. Any unforseen problems aside I would be willing to bet you will feel MUCH better when you start pureed food. It really makes a difference. Tomorrow when you start them my advice would be to stick with simple foods such as blended soup etc and make sure you measure your portions at first until you get pretty good at eyeballing it. I stayed with 2 oz servings during the 4 weeks of puree, some things if they were very runny I upped it to 3 oz. You also might want to look into getting some unflavored protein powder to add to your foods. It does change the consistance a bit but not too much, it's trial and error finding what you like. Elissa gave me a baby spoon to use and I put my food in a tiny dish, that also helped me with the portioning. I highly recommend using the baby spoon. Get as much fluid in as you can, that will help you with dehydration as well as your energy level. Also making sure you get all your vitamins will help alot too. I found it helpful along with the 2 - 3 oz portions to eat on a schedule, even now at 3 months out I still pretty much eat on a schedule. I don't feel hunger yet and have only felt the "full" sensation a few times, so I eat something small every 2-3 hours. Eating by the clock, measuring and variety were all keys to success for me during these early stages. Please continue to post and let us know how you're doing. You will find lots of wonderful, smart people here in all stages of WLS. Between all of us someone can usually give an answer to your question. Linda

Linda, Thank you for the advice, I do feel better today. Ithink I was just dehydrated because I was so so afraid of drinking too much so I did not even come close to what I was supposed to drink. No one told me about the stomache being numb before so the feelings I have all make sense now. Today I start pureed foods and I am starting the morning with a protien shake, it is going well! Thanks again! Dawn

Dawn, Welcome to the group!! Linda already covered the bases, so I won't repeat. My surgery was April 13. I've lost about 60 pounds. I do get that full feeling when I eat solid foods (like steak or chicken) but I have a vague "empty stomach" feeling most of the time. I eat every couple of ours, but have to be careful that I don't snack. Ken

Welcome, Dawn. Congrats on your surgery.

Hi Dawn, Welcome. Hope each day gets better & better. It is quite a roller coaster ride. Concentrate on proteins and liquids. Make sure you get plenty of both and you'll do fine. The weird feelings in your new tummy will settle soon so you can figure them out. ((HUGS)) Elissa