always hungry

I just posted this on the Sept group were they know me. I had a bypass 9/05.I have dropped to 168 and am 5'9". I can't seem to help it any more. I am always hungry. I will eat until full- way past the amount everyone else seems to be eating and then 20 minutes later I am hungry again. Believe it or not the more heavy protein I have the less I can eat and I seem starved shortly after... help I will have steak- 4oz or more_+ then vegetables + then salad. I don't drink with meals. I don't know....It just doesn't stay with me. donna

Do you chew well? Food doesn't seem to stay with me very long either and I know I don't chew very well so I am not getting in as much food as I should. When I feel hunger I tend to ignore the feeling and then it eventually goes away. You might be just feeling head hunger. I also find if I get busy the hunger will subside as well. I tend to eat every 2 1/2- 3hours throughout the day. Is your weight staying stable? If is is then I wouldn't worry about it too much. You can also call your nutritionist and/or surgeon. Good luck!

Yes, when eating my protein I do chew very well. I don't like the feeling when I swallow something to big. I actually get a ache in my stomach, so I am not sure if it is head hunger. -- though sometimes it is for sure. Especially that 8:00 at night when watching tv hunger. thanks for you support donna

You know, I think we believe we are eating alot food when the reality is we are not. I have to eat small meals all day long to stay satisfied. I literally eat ever 2-3 hours most days. It may be only a pickle or a piece of lunch meat, but I cannot eat enough in one stting to satisfy me for any length of time. Some days are different though. SOme days I can pack it in if I want. SOme days I can go for longer. I do not suffer though. I keep packets of low sugar oatmeal(120 calories) in my desk at work as well and some nuts and whole grain crackers. You are not alone. I hear some of us touting the no snacking policy. That does not work for me most days. I just always have stuff on hand that I know will get me through. That is why i eat a substatial breakfast. Those soft foods do nothing for me. Jell-o is a joke. Protein drinks are like drinking water. I cannot tell you how many times I have gone out to eat to come home and open that container and eat again.

I agree with you. I seem to do better eating every few hours. I am just afraid that I am setting myself up for grazing. Which it seems like I do. The soft foods are such a joke for me. I was doing yogurt in the morning but that wasn't holding at all, even when I added cereal to it. I am now having Kashi cereal. Pickles are another favorite of mine. I eat them like people eat carrots, just a pick food. thanks donna

Hi Donna. I agree w/Terri~we think we're eating alot when in reality it really isn't as much as we imagine. Do you track on sparkpeople, fitday or journal a food log?? Just asking b/c this really helped me when I could actually look at it in writing and see that my intake really wasn't what I thought it was. I took can be like a bottomless pit somedays and then other days I don't eat much at all~I guess this is how "normal" people are though, some hungry days and some not hungry days. You didn't mention what your carb intake is?? Wondering about that b/c although I'm not "carb sensitive", if I up my carbs too much it does make me HUNGRY all day!!!! I also do the 6 mini meals daily~there is no way I could just eat 3 meals and nothing else, LOL, I enjoy eating too much now!!!!!!!!! Here's a typical day for me: B~NSA CIB (I can't stomach real food first thing in the am) S~Cottage cheese or weight control oatmeal L~salad w/shaved deli chicken, cheese, croutons, ranch S~banana w/pg D~chicken breast or chili (this is the hardest meal for me b/c I never know what to eat) S~fiber one cereal w/skim milk (have to eat this daily due to constipation problems) 100oz of water Hope this helps! Tracy B 328/150 5'9"

Hi Tracy, I always like your posts. I am back on Fitday again. Can't say enough about how much it helps. After I did this I realized that I had grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds for another 200 cal +8g carb/7g protein Yesterday I had. am: 2 sm pieces of chocolate- don't usually do this they were sitting there(104 cal) Dunkins donuts large decaf Breakfast: Kashi crunch cereal 1 cup with 1/2 cup lowfat milk another cup coffee Lunch: 4 oz pork with 1 oz cheese, 1/2 cup applesauce, 1 1/2 cup salad (spray dressing) 1 1/2 cup fresh strawberries with splenda another cup coffee Dinner: 1 cup ground pork, peppers, onions and 2 cups pineapple snack: Whipped cream and 1/2 cup chocolate chips 1 cup popcorn grand total was 1448 cal, 132 carb, 109 protein

That doesn't look too bad for yesterday! So, were you hungry all day or not? I know what you mean about grabbing something and not really thinking about the fact that its another 200 or 300 calories added on to the daily count! Tracy B

Donna: I'm always hungry too, but I think it's too many carbs that does it. I am a terrible "carb addict" and unless I really go cold turkey, I just keep eating them. Sugary carbs are especially bad, and I can see that you might be doing the same thing with your carbs. Having said that, if you really feel you're able to eat "too" much, and that is really subjective for all of us, have you thought about having the "mechanics" of your surgery checked to make sure everything is still working properly? If your stomach is not transected and instead is stapled, a staple line disruption could possibly occur and cause you to be able to eat much more food than if your surgery was still intact. Of course, if you're transected (stomach completely separated and not just stapled) that would not be able to occur, I don't believe. Just a thought for you here. It never hurts to check things out with our surgery just to make sure it's all working the way it's supposed to. Good luck to you. Carlita

OMG! Bringing home most of my dinner from a restaurant then eating the rest of it when I get home! I totally do that all the time. Last time, though, I ordered filet mignon and couldn't fini**** at the restaurant and still didn't fini**** when I got home. I ate about 1/3 of it at the restaurant then announced that I was full. The guy sitting next to me looks at me like I'm crazy. He not only ate all his dinner, but some of another lady's as well. We are not eating nearly as much as "regular" people, we just think we are because we can eat more than we used to when our surgeries were fresh. But I feel hungry a lot of time too, and I know it's boredom. -=db=-