Never feeling full

March 11 will be 5 years since my RNY. I went from 265 to 190 the first 6 or so months, then have stayed at 190-200 for the past 4 1/2 years.

For the past week or two, I do not feel full. I don't feel anything, actually. No matter what, or how much, I eat... I feel like I never put anything in my mouth. Anyone have any experience with this?

I've tried to see doctors about it, but my PCM will not treat me, and when they referred me to a RNY doctor, they said they cannot treat me, they only treat people who are wanting the surgery. So I have not seen a doctor for about 2 1/2 - 3 years. My PCM will do my yearly blood work, but... He has no idea what he's looking for. I'm moving to another state in 2 weeks, so hopefully I'll be able to find help there.

In the mean time... any advice on never feeling like I ate/feeling full??

I'm ten years post-op, and rarely if ever feel either satiation or hunger.  This is, I am sure, the isolation of the vagus nerve when my pouch was made.  

If you're concerned about overeating, jus****ch for your HLA (High Level Alarm) and when it happens, quit eating.  My HLA is a case of the sniffles, others belch, still others hiccup.  I'm sure you've noticed something like one of those symptoms happening in your post-op life.

For myself, I only feel hunger when I'm seriously overdue to eat.  Then it's "the trembles" and a very jittery feeling.  When these things happen, I MUST eat, so I ensure that I get protein first, and then I'm good.

Most surgeons have no idea how WLS patients have to live post-op;  I sometimes wonder how they can look at themselves in the mirror.

This site is one of your best sources of info;  I'm sure there are folks here that can guide you to other WLS sites with good info, too.  I've also found sciencedaily dot com to be a good site for research and information.  Just remember:  just because it's on the Internet doesn't make it TRUE.  

Good luck!

Bariatric surgeons don't only treat people wanting surgery.  They also treat post op patients.  If for some reason you can't find a bariatric surgeon, see an gastroenterologist.  They can do a scope to see if your stoma or pouch have stretched or if something is wrong there.

I'd find another bariatric surgeon, hopefully your move will allow you to do that. I can understand some practices not wanting to take on a post-op only case, since they are inheriting what ever good/bad work a prior surgeon had done-- but I don't think it's impossible to find someone who will follow you post-op. Maybe attending information session can get you the ear of staff to see if they'll accept you as a patient? 

Regarding how you feel-- if I'm reading this right you are never hungry and never full?? To me that means you are satisfied-- so i guess I don't see the problem. You don't say if you are still following a protein forward diet, or if you are exercising. Those are huge factors in weather or not the scale will move. Are you snacking a lot? Drinking with meals? Tracking what you eat, weighing/measuring food? Revisit the basics if you haven't already. 

I don't worry about whether I feel full or not. I eat my measured food if I can and stop. Food is fuel for my body and that is all now. As long as you are getting good levels of protein and your blood work looks good that is all that is needed. Feeling full is what kept me obese and miserable my whole life and I don't intend to go back there!

The most important thing that I learned is that carbs slide down and do not cause fullness.  Imagine two glasses of water.  In one there is an piece of steak, in the other some cookies.  The cookies will quickly melt down to slush. That slush will not cause a feeling of fullness.  When you eat dense protein you will feel full fairly rapidly.

If that does not help, then you may have a stretched out stoma and will need to find a doctor who can test for that.

I usually never feel hungry, but I've always kinda gotten that "don't eat that next bite" feeling, or known when I've had one bite too many. But the past few weeks, no matter what I eat, I don't feel like I had a single bite. I know not to eat more than I should, I'm just used to that feeling, I guess.