No appetite at all

Hi everyone, Well it is the really the same thing I have struggled with for almost six months.  I don't really want to eat at all.  Even drinking water is a chore and upsets my stomach. I have forced myself to eat a cup of yogurt every morning, and a cup of cottage cheese for lunch, and a cup of soup for dinner most nights.  I know I am not getting enough protein in. I am so tired of eating these three things that I choose not to eat.  The yogurt makes my stomach rumble and I get queasy.  The cottage cheese makes my stomach rumble and I get queasy.  Animal protein like chicken, beef, tuna, pork make me queasy enough to have to lie down most nights.  I DO NOT have a stricture because I CAN eat and keep things down.  I just get so nauseous after I eat them that it is not worth the effort.  Sometimes I just eat pretzels or saltines because a few salty bites soothes my stomach.   My energy levels suck.  I am exhausted all of the time.  I try to get at least 64 ounces of some kind of fluid in but even that makes my stomach rumble.  I am six months out on the 17th of November. I have no nutritionist.  I am going through antacids and my prescription for nausea (phenargen) every day.  I am lactose intolerant, lactaid made me sick too and I cannot handle whey protein either. How much damage would it do to just stop eating for a few days altogether and see if my appetite comes back?

I am not a dietician (obviously) but hope u don't mind me chiming in!  You may be somewhat lactose intolerant if the yogurt and cottage cheese is making you feel ick after eating them.  You might try lactaid tablets and see if they help or switch to soy products!  Does milk do this to you also?  It did for me (but not with yogurt or cheese, weird eh?) so I switched to soy and problem solved.. I am just now getting regular milk back into my diet with maybe just some gas but overall ok and better than before.  You said meat bothered you also.. and that your energy levels are down.. Are you able to get in enough protein?  If not this is probably why you are so weak.. can you do supplements until you can try to get meat down better?  You really need the protein - it is your everything right now as a postop!   Have you tried putting your meats in a crock pot or eating them from canned?  This makes them very moist, easier on the pouch or try a touch of FF gravy to help things along? I would not suggest you "stop" eating.. your body will turn onto is own muscle if it isn't getting the required amounts of protein it needs.. not good.  Try some shakes for now or even some protein bars and see if this helps at all, you need a minimum of 60 grams.  I personally have always shot for 90-100 grams a day and my energy level has been extremely high since 6 weeks out.  Also make sure you are getting in a b12 supplement from a sublingual or injectable form and taking iron if your doc has prescribed with Vit C to aid absoprtion. I am a nurse not a nut but I got concerned when I read your post and hope you don't mind my two cents.  *hugs* and good luck!

Hi Melissa, I appreciate your feedback.  As for lactaid, it made me sick too.  That plus the "sweet" taste to it was really hard for me to swallow.   I am not getting in the protein.  Yesterday I think I got in 30 grams if that.  I just ate a cup of plain, fat free yogurt for breakfast.  I feel lousy.  I have a few protein "bullets" but they seem sickly sweet to me and I have been postponing using them.  Funny isn't it since I always felt I was born with the world's worst sweet tooth! I have not tried protein bars.  As I said, NOTHING really appeals to me right now.  I am just so tired of feeling this sick to my stomach all of the time.   I don't really want to be back where I was pre-surgery--a cast-iron stomach where I could and DID eat everything!  But I would like to look forward to SOMETHING or at least have a desire to eat.  Right now sugar-free popsicles are the only thing that don't actually make me ill.  That and salty snacks like 4-5 crackers or a handful of pretzels--I think the salt somehow soothes my stomach. Thank you for caring.  I am not sure what I will do.  I am trying to force at least one meal a day down: usually yogurt.  I ate some pot roast last night--maybe 3 ounces but then I was sick for the next 4 hours until I took my RX for nausea.  That allowed me to sleep.   I cannot do the shakes--they make me sick too.  I take a B-100 complex capsule (mixed with water) but it hurts my stomach so I have not taken any this week at all.  I have been able to get my vitamin, my calcium citrate capsules, my zinc and my biotin in every day. 

Thank you for your advice.  I know everything I SHOULD be doing but right now I just feel too lousy to try.  I am sick of being sick if you know what I mean. 

Please let your surgeon and nut know your struggles, you are really not getting in the protein and your body will pay for it dearly I am afraid.. I have seen in my nursing practice.. I don't want you to end up that way.. since you know what you need to do but physically just cannot for the stated reasons you need to let them know hun.. good luck to you in the rest of your journey *hugs*

Hello-- SPeaking from my own personal experiences, I have yet to truly have an appetite since my RNY Gastric Bypass in February 2004.  There are times I 'forget' to eat due to just not being hungry, on very rare occasions I feel my stomach grumble or gurgle a bit, but that's rare.  I can tolerate most foods, with the exception of tuna and honey.  I would encourage you to keep trying different things that may sit better with your stomach.  As a way to increase your protein in things like yogurt, you may want to consider trying an unflavored protein powder which can be mixed in.  I use 'unjury' and have found it to be the easiest to mix into most substances.  It gives 20 grams of protein per scoop, with 80 calories. Increasing your protein should greatly help with your exhaustion. Make sure you're taking all recommended vitamins also! Take care Michelle

Hi Michelle, It's nice to know I'm not alone in this.  Due to budget constraints I have not tried Unjury.  I will see what I can find at Vitamin World next month when they have buy one-get one sale.  Or at Walmart.  Is the Unjury whey protein?  Because I do not tolerate whey protein very well.  It makes me sick too. I have finally paid off my surgery as of this week.  Maybe I can now afford to look at alternative sources of protein.  All I have to do is find ONE that doesn't make me sick!

Hello-- SPeaking from my own personal experiences, I have yet to truly have an appetite since my RNY Gastric Bypass in February 2004.  There are times I 'forget' to eat due to just not being hungry, on very rare occasions I feel my stomach grumble or gurgle a bit, but that's rare.  I can tolerate most foods, with the exception of tuna and honey.  I would encourage you to keep trying different things that may sit better with your stomach.  As a way to increase your protein in things like yogurt, you may want to consider trying an unflavored protein powder which can be mixed in.  I use 'unjury' and have found it to be the easiest to mix into most substances.  It gives 20 grams of protein per scoop, with 80 calories. Increasing your protein should greatly help with your exhaustion. Make sure you're taking all recommended vitamins also! Take care Michelle

Hello-- SPeaking from my own personal experiences, I have yet to truly have an appetite since my RNY Gastric Bypass in February 2004.  There are times I 'forget' to eat due to just not being hungry, on very rare occasions I feel my stomach grumble or gurgle a bit, but that's rare.  I can tolerate most foods, with the exception of tuna and honey.  I would encourage you to keep trying different things that may sit better with your stomach.  As a way to increase your protein in things like yogurt, you may want to consider trying an unflavored protein powder which can be mixed in.  I use 'unjury' and have found it to be the easiest to mix into most substances.  It gives 20 grams of protein per scoop, with 80 calories. Increasing your protein should greatly help with your exhaustion. Make sure you're taking all recommended vitamins also! Take care Michelle