How easy is it to stretch your pouch?

I am 9 days post op and still in the liquid phase of my recovery. I went from struggling to get my liquids in everyday to consuming them fairly easily, so it has made me wonder just how easy is it to stretch your pouch? Can you stretch it just by drinking the required liquids? Oh and I am drinking them throughout the day not all at once.  

Think of your pouch as a funnel.  When you pour liquid in it comes out the bottom. You cannot stretch your pouch with liquids.

That's kind of what I thought but since it got so much easier to drink the water I wasn't sure! Thanks for your response!

I remember having the same worries.  This forum is a God send when you have questions or worries...never worry about asking...I am 9 months out of my RNY and have relied on the vets for answrs...You will do great and in a very short time you will see a big change!!!!

Thank you! You are right! This forum has been such a big help!

as for an explanation, it's probably because some swelling has gone down after the surgery.  Eating and drinking will get easier from now until you start dense protein.  Just wait until then and I bet you'll be surprised at how small your pouch feels when you start eating dense meat.

It's not easy to stretch your pouch, but it will be easier to eat more food the further you get out. I can eat 3000-4000 calories a day if I am not careful.

Learn good habits now.

I'm kind of curious to know how someone can stretch their pouch. If I eat one bite past my 2 ounce/1/4 cup limit, I'm in pain. Why would you eat more if it hurts?

I have noticed my body seems to have a schedule and I want to eat my meals on time or I start feeling tired and cranky. Is that what the new hunger feels like?

Some people just can't stop themselves from eating, even after surgery. I don't know why.

Our stomachs do gradually get a little bigger over the 12 to 18 months after surgery. There's nothing we can do to change that.

For RNYers, the real danger is stretching the stoma. It's that opening between the pouch and small intestine that we can make larger. Overeating a little now and then won't do it, but people that cram too much food in on a regular basis can widen that opening. Picture a funnel with a small opening compared to a funnel with a big opening.

They have come up with various procedures over the years to try and make the stoma smaller. The Rose procedure, Stomaphyx, the Apollo Overstitch. But they all have very poor results overall.

One more good reason for measuring your food and not overeating.