Question:
3 months out and NO appitite!
I am 3 months out from RNY. I have lost 95 pounds and all of my labs are good. The problem I have is that I have NO appitite at all. The thought of food makes me not feel well. I went back to the hospital a month ago for dehydration and was tested for leaks and blockages and everthing is fine. Im pretty sure it is in my head. Any suggestions on how to get past this?? — Blonde_Sanchez (posted on December 19, 2007)
December 19, 2007
You have to force yourself to eat. Eat something for breakfast. I have
oatmeal every morning. Of your could alternate with eggs, oatmeal, cold
cereal, etc. Take your proteint drinks. If you were hospitalized for
dehydration, you are either not drinking enough fluids or you have a high
sodium intake, or both. Snack on high protein foods. I found dried peas
locally at a health food store--$1.35 per pound and 6 grams of protein per
1/4 cup. They're crunchy and satisfy that craving for crunch foods that
some patients get. It's not uncommon to have no appetite at this stage.
Eat protein, drink your protein drinks, and watever foods your doctor has
given the OK to eat.
— Dave Chambers
December 19, 2007
First of all enjoy it while you can as later you will probably get your
appetite back. Second you do have to force yourself to eat, but try small
portions. That's pretty much all you can eat anyway. Good luck, congrats
on the weight loss and God bless!
— crystalsno
December 19, 2007
Hey I WAS like that, I miss it:( Really didnt care if I ever ate, and once
went 3 days without eating anything.... only ate after 3 days for fear I
would get ill. unfortunately it doesnt last. Get your protein in takew your
vitamins and enjoy the ride
— bob-haller
December 19, 2007
Make a menu/meal plan as to what you are going to eat each day... pick
foods that are quick and easy to make. It's a lot easier for me to skip a
meal when if I go into the kitchen and can't find something appealing to
eat. But if I go in and my menu for the day says "tuna salad",
I'm a lot more likely to eat it.
Best wishes.
— mrsidknee
December 19, 2007
You're not alone I didn't have the feeling of hunger for 2 years. I had to
set an alarm and force myself to eat three times a day. Dinner wasn't to
big of a deal because I had to cook for my son, but the rest of the day I
didn't really care. I had my water bottle with me and drank water all day.
Now, 5 years out I still rarely get hungry so be thankful for the
weightloss and you're going to have to set an alarm and force yourself to
set aside the time to eat regardless. Your body does need the vitamins and
minerals. You're only 3 months out and 95 pounds is a lot of weight. I'm
guessing you were a heavy weight to begin with but that's still quite a
bit.
— EmtEeyore
December 19, 2007
I wish I had a better answer for you but I do not. I am one year post op
and everytime I go to the doctor I am told that I have to force myself to
eat. My labs are still good, and I am at goal already I had my surgery last
xmas. I did not want to stretch my pouch I guess, and even though I am
force feeding myself it is still hard to do. I was always a comfort eater
and if you would have told me a year ago that I would have to force myself
to eat I would have told you that you were nuts, but here we are in the
same boat. When I do eat though, it is always something high in protein
though, I started to lose my hair at at 6 months so I learned that lesson
real fast. I know this is hard to do, especially since most of us were
overweight our whole lives, but you really do have to force yourself. Start
out small and make small meals and snacks, that is what I am trying to do,
I do not want to loss anymore weight. So you are not alone. I know this did
not help but wanted you to know their are others out there with the same
problem. Happy Holidays and take care.
— noboat4u
December 19, 2007
I too had this problem. I am rarely hungry and my doctor told me that a lot
of times when they do this surgery it changes your head. I get hungry on
occaision but within a few minutes it is gone. I rarely get thirsty either.
— Brenda R.
December 19, 2007
Hi Laura, I am glad you are losing so well, but you are right, you have a
head issue to battle. You have to start eating stuff, even if you don't
want to. The danger here is running the exact opposite course as obesity,
and that is severe thinness. You don't say on your profile what your
beginning weight is or your BMI, but your weight loss has been huge,
especially if you were near the 255 range which is my guess on your
beginning weight. That puts you near 150 now at 3 months out. Your rapid
weight loss can begin to cause you problems physically that you don't want.
Please, I beg you, find foods you will eat, not necessarily desire to eat,
but eat small amounts often and just keep trying. You can get bone loss,
dehydration, b12 problems, iron problems, calcium problems. You don't want
or need that, but you need some nutrition along with a good vitamin
regiment to keep your body stable. It is worth the fight. At almost 4
years out, I still wait a long time to an appetite. Most times, I have
one, most times I don't, but I will eat because I know that I have to. You
do the same. Take care. Patricia P.
— Patricia P
December 19, 2007
One of the many "side effects" of surgery - loss of appetite. I
am just over 10 months and still - no appetite. Do I eat? Sure do, because
your body cannot go w/o food or water. Is it hard? Some days. If I am
really busy at work or on the weekend's when my normal routine is changed.
Do I have to force myself to eat....I wouldn't say "force" but I
have to remind myself to eat, yes. There are days when just the thought of
food grosses me out - but you work past it - you have to eat to keep
healthy. I am below my goal weight by several pounds, but I a taking this
ride as long as I can and as long as my body goes for it. I would suggest
the same for you. I know plenty of women who woke up from surgery hungry
and able to eat anything still. Count you blessings, eat, drink and take
your vitamins and all will work out. Good luck and welcome to the loser's
bench.
— jammerz
December 20, 2007
My RNY was on 10/22. I still don't have an appetite. I found for me the
best thing to do is set meal times and eat at that time every day. That
seems to work for me. I used to eat all of the time so this is definitely
a good change.
— t_roxus
December 21, 2007
I had no significant appitite for about 6 mo. after RNY. I often had to
tell myself, "It's been hours since I've eaten anything. I guess I'd
better go see what's in the pantry or fridge." Most often it was my
protein dring that I mixed up almost daily without fail. I had no problem
with dehydration because I DID get thirsty. I also had almost no encounters
with the dumping syndrome during the first 6 months. FEAR NOT Laura. your
appitite WILL eventually return. And when it does, avoidance of the dumping
syndrome should help you keep on track with your desire to eat too much (as
it does for me to this day [I'm almost 1-1/2 years past surgery]).
— [Deactivated Member]
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