I'm having trouble eating after 5 months?

HI My name is Tom

This is my 1st time on any forum... I had my VGS surgery on 5/11/2015 in Fremont CA. My surgeon was Dr Eric Hahn and he was wonderful! The surgery was a complete success!

I am 5'6" 54 years old and was 286 one year ago and have lost 100 pounds and loving it! I weigh 185 now and still loosing. Life is so much better!

But!

I am still having trouble eating after 5 months? Is this normal? I know my signs that I am full (I.E. a slight burp) means I'm good! Two more bites of food after that and I'm hurting. It doesn't last long. But I have to lay down and for about 5 - 10 minutes and I get to deal with it. I thought by now that sort of problem would not be so bothersome? It feels like someone has stuck a stick down my throat?

Meats are still hard to eat? Everything else goes down really easy now and my taste buds are working great! Food tastes so much better now? I don't know why but it does and I don't use near the salt I did before my VGS surgery. Which makes my Dr very happy! LOL

Anyway, I know time will fix anything that is happening, I just would like to hear if I'm on track or not?

It worries me sometimes.

Tom

Sounds like you're doing great, Tom. It's amazing how our tastes change after surgery, and how some food just doesn't agree with us.

Some things are silly - like pre-op I loved crispy chicken skin, now it turns my stomach. Meatloaf and meatballs were favorites - can't eat them now. But other food, I savor more than before. Because so little dense protein fills me up so fast, I try to take really small bites so it lasts longer. One bite too many.......foamies. Two bites too many......agony! I sit by the toilet bowl in severe pain, praying that I can puke it up, but it usually takes 20-30 minutes.

Meats can be hard to eat - that's why it's tiny bites, chew-chew-chew, eating slowly. I don't use salt anymore either. Before surgery, I could eat a 12 oz. steak, covered in salt. Now it's 3-4 oz. before cooking, with a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Salt shaker hasn't been on the table at all.

Congratulations on your loss. I still have a way to go....I got myself in trouble with carbs for a few months. I didn't gain weight, but I didn't lose either. But I've now detoxed from the carbs and the weight is dropping again - so I'm happy about that.

Mary

Hi Tom,

Sounds to me like you are on track. It is normal to feel that intense fullness when you overeat. And overeating can be just one or two bites. For some, like me, if I over do it the discomfort can last anywhere from 1 to 2 hours. Needless to say, I don't over eat very often.

What is happening physically is that you are filling your sleeve beyond capacity and exerting pressure on the esophageal sphincter, pushing it open with the extra food. For me that feels like a lump or something stuck in my throat. Others describe it as being stuck by something in the back of their throat and it won't go away.

If you're worried about the symptom or if it is happening every time you eat, I would call in and see if you can schedule an appointment with Dr. O'Brien. (I had my surgery in Fremont, too, with Dr. Dennen.) She is great and really takes issues for post surgical patients seriously.

Congrats on your weight loss so far!

Thank you both of you for the replies.

My thinking is: Why can I eat a whole banana or a big piece of white fish with no problems but 3 or 4 little bites of any red meat or pork and I am so full I can not eat another bite. I can even eat almost a whole fish o filet sandwich. Now thats alot of food these days

Now in a year from now I know this is not going to be a problem. It really is not now. I just wanted to know if I was on track and if it was a common problem that most of us have. It sounds like it is. And it sounds like I am! That makes me happy.

Ps I go for my 6 month one on one with Dr O'Brian next month. I am not concerned. I am very very very happy with my recovery.

I knew going into this as with most things in life it was not going to be a quick fix and I would be going threw some exciting changes and would just have to roll with the punches....

Thanks again Tom

I agree with Mary, sounds like you're doing good. We tend to forget that it does take time for our new stomachs to heal. At five months, I was very cautious about eating meats and making sure it was very lean. I also couldn't eat much and would stop when I had that feeling in my chest that my stomach had enough. Months from now, you're going to wish you had this restriction feeling again because it does go away and it does get much easier. By the way, I'm from Livermore. I want to invite you to our awesome WLS Support Group. We get alot of Kaiser patients from Fremont. Our next meeting is October 27, 5:15 PM, 5725 W.Las Positas Blvd., Pleasanton, CA, Conf. Room 240A. Great people and you'll love our nutritionist Valerie. We gather twice a month, 2nd and 4th Tuesday of every month. Jennifer (nutritionist) holds the first Tuesday and Valerie holds the 4th Tuesday meetings. Come join us!