Question:
Is it possible for your stomach to expand?

I had my surgery done on February 6th of 2002. I got pregnant a year after that and have gained weight. I have not lost any weight in over a year and I am so depressed cause of that. I feel that I have failed myself. I was doing so good. I had lost 80lbs. I am also reading that doctors are now placing a rubber band around the new stomach to prevent it from expanding. I wish that was done to be from the very beginning. When I read up on that it upset me. But oh well.    — Lisa L. (posted on August 17, 2004)

August 17, 2004
Hi Lisa, There are many variables that can lead to weight gain, regardless of whether your pouch has expanded. I also had surgery in Feb 2002, no pregnancy, but I stopped losing after 8 month 50 lbs over what my goal really was and there I have stayed. Yet, I get reminders that my pouch is actually still functioning. Like if I eat too fast food will get stuck. If I eat mostly dense protein like a piece of steak or baked chicken and I do not drink or eat other foods that will push it through my pouch quickly, I will remain full. Ask yourself if you are eating correctly, dense protein first, are you following pouch rules? I think that we find ways to push our food through to eat more and we learn to eat more off what actually does go through more quickly and many times those things are higher in calories and have very little protein value. On the positive side of things, I think we can also shrink back down our pouches by trying to go carb free and sticking with mostly protein and then following the rules. Some folks even return to the liquid/pureed stage diet for a few days to retrain their pouches. Now that said, I need to follow my own advice. If you still think your pouch may be stretched the only way to know if it is funtioning properly is to get a scope, a good look at it to know for sure.
   — SARose61

August 17, 2004
After the first 6 months to a year, is when you really have to start "using" your tool. This is when the pouch rules really become important. The mature pouch allows you to eat much more than you could initially. Like the previous post said, stick to dense protein sources that stay in your pouch. Don't drink w/ meals. If you're actively trying to lose weight, eliminate ALL refined products with white sugar or white flour. Check out http://www.mehtabariatriccenter.com/pouch_rules_for_dummies.htm for the pouch rules and how to use your tool.
   — mom2jtx3

August 17, 2004
Lisa, you might try going back to your surgeon, or even your pcp, to have them order an upper GI series (w/barium test) so they can see how your pouch looks these days. It's possible your staples have come out, or if you were transsected (cut apart, not stapled), you might have a fistula that has reconnected your old stomach to the pouch, OR, you might have an enlarged stoma, meaning, the opening between your pouch and intestines is too big. Or something else, but the point is, you can have a simple test to see how big your pouch looks these days. If all that checks out, then the advice from the previous posters is good advice -- dense protein foods first, no drinking with meals, avoiding foods that "trigger" you to overeat (this would probably include processed white flour and sugars), and of course the ole exercise thing. In your shoes, though, I'd be curious and want to know how my pouch looks these days, so I'd know if I needed a surgical revision or just a some personal time in "pouch boot camp."
   — Suzy C.

August 17, 2004
Yes, it is possible to expand your pouch. This keeps getting drilled into the patient's heads at the support group for my surgeon's office. We are cautioned to not go over the 1/2 cup limit for a meal. We (thae patients in my surgeons group) are really supposed to take about 20 minutes, minimum to eat a meal and to stop even before that 1/2 cup if we are full because we can stretch the pouch with too much food. This goes for constantly grazing on foods also. Your stomach may not have emptied out from the last meal that you had and you could be putting too much volume into it with whatever you are munching on. It is also recommended not to have carbonated beverages because it can also expand the stomach pouch. Some doctors say it is ok to have diet soda, flat or unflat. Being PO I have tried soda and did not like how it felt in my pouch, it gave me an uncomfortable very full feeling. Hence, I stay away from soda (I am not supposed to have it anyways, surgeon says not to have it). I would recommend that you sit down with the diet plan that your surgeon gave you after you went back to eating regular foods PO and start over doing what you are supposed to do. This will include exercising and drinking your water. I think that you will again see the pounds start to come off. And congratulations on the new baby.
   — ChristineB

August 17, 2004
Not only is it possible- it's SUPPOSED to stretch a certain amount. You can't have a 2 ounce stomach forever. Please consider going back to your surgeon. You may have a malfunction of your surgery that can be fixed, or maybe you just need to get back on the bandwagon with a gastric bypass nutritionist. Either way- you should be looked at by your surgeon. GOod luck to you.
   — LMCLILLY

August 17, 2004
Lisa, your profile gives us no information in which to help you, hence the suggestions on checking out your pouch function and re-examining what you are eating. Please update it, doing so will help us to help you. However, before I would even have my surgeon check out my pouch, first examine why you have not lost any weight in a year. How many calories a day are you taking in? Are you regularly exercising (heart pumping) to expend some of these calories? Its still a calories game. Calories in = calories out. Exercise/boost that metabolism to burn those calories. Are you eating well? Good protein or junk food? Dense foods stay in the pouch longer. Drinking with or right after meals? The longer you go without drinking, the longer food stays in your pouch to keep you feeling full after eating. So answer all these questions first-if you are eating well, calories under control, getting regular exercise and not drinking with meals, then by all means get your surgeon to check out your pouch mechanics.
   — Cindy R.

August 18, 2004
Yes! It is totally possible to stretch your pouch out. I knew at 6 months and had it confirmed just a week ago. I started out with a 1-2oz pouch and now, just at 9 months out have a 4oz pouch. All the suggestions others have given, take them, please. Ask for an upper GI to make sure that your pouch isn't damaged. If it's not damaged and is stretched, the pouch rules will be a lifeline. My surgeon said that he could tighten the pouch up but he wasn't going to worry about it at this point since I'm still losing weight. If I start gaining, he will probably suggest the pouch tightening as the only option. Seriously, I'm glad I know what I have to work with and it's not hopeless. I just have to really watch the amount I'm eating and continue exercising. Good luck!
   — Edessa