Question:
Does your appetite get worse after surgery?

does your appetite get worse after surgery? and are you really hungry all the time? that is very scary to me. i just assumed because the pouch was smaller, you wouldnt be as hungry all the time. HELP!!!!!!!    — joyce B. (posted on July 6, 2000)

July 6, 2000
I had surgery 6/2/00, and my appetite has decreased dramatically. I have lost 55 pounds and looking forward to a new life. The only problems that I have would be when I smell food, then the cravings begin, and when I watch to much tv and see those commercials. I am not hungry but that emotional eating is a hard habit to break. You can do it, if I can.
   — Sandra V.

July 6, 2000
Hi. I am never hungry! I had an open RNY on 05-26-00 and literally have to remind myself to eat! I do admitt, that seeing someone eat one of my favorite foods or even TV commercials make me crave, I will get over all that eventually. If I stay clear of all the reminders of my past obession with food, I truly do not have a hunger. It is all in my mind. What also helped, is a low dose of an antidepressant called ZOLOFT which is helping me to keep the cravings under control....good luck! 50lbs gone forever!
   — Lisa N.

July 6, 2000
I am mentally hungry, never physically. I had RNY-Distal 4-17-00 and the mental hunger gets better all the time.
   — BECKY M.

July 6, 2000
My daughter had her lap RNY in January, and I had mine in March (have lost 110 lbs and 72 lbs, respectively). We have both commented on the fact that not once since the surgery have we ever felt hungry! We both have to remind ourselves during the day that it's time to eat something. Now, it is true that certain food or restaurant commercials will trigger a nostalgic memory or reminiscence of "days gone-by" and foods that we felt we surely couldn't survive without...however, those memories have never been strong enough to prompt a feeling of hunger or a desire to run out and make a purchase. I don't think that it will be the issue that you fear it will. Best of luck!!
   — Diana T.

July 6, 2000
I had open RNY on 5/9/00. I've lost 49 lbs. Very rarely am I "hungry". I do sometimes have head hunger but as long as I keep busy, it's not a problem. I have been eating meals for 3 years in my recliner in front of the T V, so when I sit down to watch T V is when I start having my head hunger. I won't tell you that I never get physical hunger because I do. I'll sometimes get busy and forget to eat when I'm supposed to. Then after about an hour I'll get that gnawing hungry feeling.
   — Tina H.

July 7, 2000
I have to say I am very satisfied when I eat just a few ounces. I take pleasure in my new stomach because now that I am not hungry all the time, I therefore have other new things on which to focus. I still enjoy really good foods but I am undoubtedly less hungry.
   — [Deactivated Member]

July 9, 2000
Hi. I can only speak for myself. Since the surgery, I have never been hungry. I have to remind myself to eat or I lose too much weight. This is very different for me. I have talked to other individuals who report that they are hungry. However, my experience with my eating disorder tells me that it is very difficult to differentiate emotional hunger from physical hunger when a person has an eating disorder. The first thing I had to stop was eating because of emotional hunger. My dodge or technique for dealing with this was to walk out and buy a rocking chair, load up CD player with favorite music and if I am upset and think about food, I sit and rock, listen to music for at least 1/2 hour before I decide to eat something. A therapist with experience in dealing with eating disorders can probably offer more ways to deal with this. Good Luck. Beth.
   — Elizabeth H.