Hungry?? Is it possible!

Good morning all, so I had my surgery last friday and everything has gone really smoothly.  I've had no trouble with getting my liquids and I am up and moving.  But, yesterday I started having a feeling like hunger.  I must be going crazy because I really feel like I am having hunger pains.  Has anyone else experienced this so early on?  I am having this paranoid feeling like maybe I didn't get everything thing done correctly during the surgery. 

You could be 'head hungry' or even thirsty. I had 'head' hungers for a while after surgery. You just have to identify if you are really hungry or if food just sounds good to you.

Good luck!

Try drinking. I don't think you're really hungry and also, I always confuse any pain in my stomach with hunger and have a terrible urge to eat. I had that problem pre surgery when I had an ulcer and eating something soothed it.
This will pass - you really aren't hungry.
Hugs,
Lana

Well, I felt hungry after I got home from surgery. But was unable to conquer that because I couldnt hold anything down. Everyone says you are not hungry this and that. But you can be. Its not always head hunger. But I encourage you to drink warm tea to kill that hunger! Good luck!

I am totally with you!  I had my surgery monday April 4th and I have had no problems with anything so far, other than some light pain here and there.  I found myself feeling hungry today!!! I was so worried because I havent been at ALL so far, but today all of the sudden...  I am drinking much faster than when I came home, and feeling no stomach pain (just slightly full).  I am wondering also if this is normal? 

 It's just such a weird feeling.  I'm just trying not to worry too much and being thankful that my recovery has gone so smoothly.  I too am able to drink at a decent rate.  I'm not pushing and thing but have not problems drinking.  I was a big water drinker before surgery so I am grateful for being able to drink easily.

 Mine post op since Mar 29 has gone smoothly, too. When I have "that feeling" I usually try to ask myself if I need water or protein. Most of the time it is one or the other. I went from a full feeling to feeling more and pains. Each kind of ache and pain changed daily until today most are pretty mild. I hope yours continues to go smoothly like mine!

I had horrible hunger the day after surgery and for about 3 days afterward.  I think it was the last hurrah of my remnant stomach throwing a major tantrum.  Things settled down after that and while I do get hungry, it's nothing like that horrid hunger I had right after surgery.

HUNGER is a mechanism that a THIN person responds to, eats a sufficient quantity of food, and quits. (we're not talking celebrations and stuff where overeating is common, just average everyday mechanism of eating)

HUNGER is a mechanism that we, as obese individuals, don't have properly. our HUNGEr and our FULL mechanisms are BROKEN that is one of the KEYS to why we got obese in the first place.

See, we respond to a variety of cues that we are convinced is hunger. And for us, it IS. But that is the wonderful BEAUTY of this surgery.

Our nerves are cut, and  the ability of the stomach to transmit thin-person hunger signals to our brains is compromised. So right now it is NOT telling you you are hungry. You're practically starving, we all know that, because you aren't eating much, but your brain is NOT getting the "thin person" signal that you NEED to learn to understand and heed. That comes later in the process. Right now the "fat person" signals, the broken signals will still be transmitted in great abundance. THAT is what you are feeling. People say head hunger, and I am guessing that this is highly infuriating because you KNOW what you are feeling is the same hunger signals for before, so it's easy to say "don't tell ME this isn't hunger, I know what hunger feels like".... which is true. Your REAL HUNGER you are feeling is awesome though because right now every time you feel hungry, you can learn to recognize and IGNORE your broken hunger feelings. every one of them is FALSE.....

Some times we, as fat people, ate when our body was thirsty. We ate when bored. We ate when emotional, or when watching our favorite show at a specific time. We might have gone for a snack in response to particular advertisements. We might have eaten on a schedule. Your body REMEMBERS your old behaviors, as does your mind, and you aren't following the plan and it's trying to TELL YOU TO EAT in the way it always has, but it has nearly always given you false signals. If you only ate as often and as much as a thin person, you likely would not be obese.

SO..... step one, every time you get hungry, drink something. That takes care of the need to hydrate in case that is the signal, and is a good idea always. Step two, if your stomach  is growling this is NORMAL and if you're like me, your stomach (old one) will growl incessantly for months.... it wants to be fed, it's purpose is to be fed, and it NEVER WILL.. it's been cut off, so it will grumble for a while before it settles down into a lifelong sulk. Step three, if your hunger is attached to a specific food..... if you are "hungry for XYZ" something specific, this is a craving, and this is a good thing to recognize, but cravings aren't hunger, they're cravings.

The more you are able to figure out WHY you are hungry, WHAT the "bad" signal is, the greater your long term success.

I sympathize with you, because docs and other people seem to imply that hunger will be absent after this surgery...... but it's only the thin-person-real-stomach-induced-hunger that is absent..... all the psychological and habit-oriented hunger remains

In three, six, or even nine months your nerves might be repaired, and at that time you'll begin to recognize hunger (and fullness) and start to learn how much different these signals are for you now comparing to preop. (I never got my hunger back, but I did get my "full" back)

 Nice posting! I must try to save this...