Starting to freak out a bit....

Hello fellow VSG-ers,

I am 18 days post-op now, and my nutritionist advanced me a few days ago to soft foods plus some fruit and veg, crackers and toast, cashews, and white fish or tuna. Hooray, I was so excited to have more options! But...

I feel like the kid who grew up on whole wheat spaghetti, then went to college and discovered unlimited fruity pebbles in the dining hall! I am eating with abandon, real food tastes so good to me, and I really don't feel much restriction. A whole scrambled egg - no problem. A side of Chipotle black beans and a little rice - tasted great. My head hunger has morphed into a beast, and I'm finding myself picking at my kids' sugary snacks. Not even 3 weeks out and I feel like a great big miserable failure.

Nutritionally, I am not having any problem meeting my protein goal of 60g and my hydration goal of 64oz.

Has anyone else gone through this? Does it get better? Do I need to do a complete re-set?

Thanks for your responses!

Wow ! Are you sure she didn't give you the six month plan by mistake? My plan was vastly different at three weeks out ! Rice, fruits, vegetables, crackers were not part of my plan. At all.

Please weigh and measure everything, and don't use your restriction to determine how much you eat. Your nerves have been cut and your stomach is recovering from major trauma. You may begin to feel your restriction around six months. Overfilling your stomach now could have disastrous, life threatening results.

Uh oh, thanks for your reply and for the warning. I guess maybe despite my nut's advice, I should back off and go back to soft foods and avoiding carbs. Maybe this rapid advancement works for others, but for me it's turning into a nightmare. I didn't get all the way here just to go backwards!

New plan - stick to the basics, do better at getting my protein in earlier in the day to keep the early-evening munchie-beast at bay, and hydrate like a mad woman.

BTW, is 1/2 cup yogurt or cottage cheese reasonable, or still too much? My stomach isn't cluing me in yet.

at three weeks post op, I could only eat one to one and a half ounces.  I couldn't feel full in my tummy, but my nose would start running when I was full. 

Carbohydrates cause serious cravings for me, so I'd suggest cutting down on the carbs and see if the cravings subside.  During weight loss I kept my carbs under 25 g per day.  Many people can tolerate more, but start low and see how it goes.

So I'd cut the bread, rice, beans, and all sweets for a few days and I bet the cravings will stop.

Best wishes,

Carol

weigh everything. It is super important as like others have said. your nerves wont tell you your full. You could injure yourself.

Your vagus nerve is cut, and you will not feel the typical "full" signal. It is critical you weigh and measure your food to avoid hurting yourself. You will feel the restriction when you hit dense protein, so don't sweat that. I strongly encourage you to drop your carbs, and I am not even a low-carb advocate! Your cravings are out of control, especially given you are freshly sleeved. Drop the carbs, drop the picking at the sugary snacks, drop the crappy eating choices ASAP. If you derail this early out and don't right the ship, your odds of making any signiicant loss let alone making it to goal are slim to none. I am not a doomed to fail type, but this type of behavior so early out is leading you down the wrong path entirely. You just put your body through hell to try to improve your health- now take advantage of that tool. Keep your carbs under 40 unless you have low blood sugar issues.

Thank you... I think everyone here is saying what I knew deep down but needed to hear from experienced sleevers. Doing better so far today, have not let wheat or sugar anywhere near me yet. If past experience dieting is any indicator, the cravings will settle if I can get away from carbs for a few days. 

Somehow I thought that it would be easier this early in the game. 

Head hunger and managing cravings are the hardest part for me too. Hang in there. You are at the exact spot I struggled the most, so I can totally relate. If you eat clean though, the cravigns drop significantly and it is so much easier to stay on plan if you are left with just the head hunger issues. 

Reading the posts above, you already know that the food party needs to stop. Some additional advice is to consider a few sessions with a therapist who specializes in disordered eating. There is a lot of emotional stuff coming out in your post  - eating with recklessness, the guilt, the feelings of failure, etc....

Again, I'll stress what everyone else has - only eat measured portions, stay away from all carbs at this point, do not allow sugar to pass your lips at this point in your journey. Everything you believe you want to eat will still be available when you have finished losing weight and are learning how to navigate maintenance. Give yourself a fighting chance to reach your goals and dreams. 

You might want to check out Overeaters Anonymous. Your inability to control your eating now - 3 weeks after having a life changing operation - will only continue to get worse the further out you are. I had to travel that hard road - never got to goal and then regained 90lbs. It took finding OA to turn my life and eating around.