Week 4 Question!

Yesterday was four weeks since my VSG.  I am feeling pretty good and have lost about 37 pounds total.  My problem is that I am starving after about three hours of not eating, like my stomach is growling and I have to eat NOW!!  Others that I have talked to who have had the same surgery tell me this is not normal.  Has anyone else out there had this problem and if so, do you still have this issue?

Thank you!!!!!

It could very well not be physical hunger - although I'm sure it feels like it.  What I experienced, and many others did too, is once the stomach empties the acid starts churning up big time.  And excess acid absolutely mimics intense hunger pangs.  Your stomach right now is producing enough acid for the larger-sized stomach, it will take awhile for it to stop doing that. 

Here's a test to tell if it's acid:  when you start getting that "hungry" feeling, pop a couple Tums and chew them up.  If the "hungry" feeling goes away in a few minutes, you've got an acid problem, not a lack of food problem.  

If you're not on a PPI (Prilosec, Protonix) to address excess acid then tell your doctor you need one and get on it.  It makes a world of difference.  Excess acid is nothing to mess around with; it can create ulcers and bleeding in a tiny little tummy and that is a medical disaster for us post-VSGs peeps.  

I was going to say the same as Tracy.

What Tracy said.

Are you taking a PPI?  It reduces the formation of stomach acid which can mimic hunger pangs.  If you're not, call your surgeon's office and tell them what you're experiencing.  Most likely they'll write you a prescription.