Question:
Will I always have to chew so much?

I am 3 weeks post op (lap RNY) and supposed to be on pureed diet, but I can't do it so I just chew the hell out of everything I eat. My question is- will I always have to chew so much? My teeth/gums actually hurt from all the chewing. I know I will never be able to "gobble" my food, but will there be a point when I can chew something like chicken in only three or four chews? Man, I hope so.....    — karmiausnic (posted on October 11, 2002)

October 10, 2002
Yes it gets much easier. Cut your food into PENCIL ERASER sized bits early on. I am out over a year and dont usually even think about it and eat normal portions of food like thin folks do.
   — bob-haller

October 10, 2002
I also eat like a normal person at 11 months out. I certainly don't inhale my food or take huge bites, but I also don't have to cut up my food into teeny tiny pieces and chew the tar out of everything. I feel that I eat like a normal person.
   — Cheri M.

October 10, 2002
Karen, everyone is different. Some foods just take longer to chew. If it's fish, maybe 3 or 4 chews per bite is sufficient. If it's meat, 3 or 4 chews isn't enough for me. And bread, well, at 13 months post, I'm still not eating bread, it sits in my stomach like library paste and makes me feel yuck-o, so I don't eat it. Margie B
   — Marjorie B.

October 10, 2002
No you won't always have to chew so much. However now at times I "gobble" down my food... I'm ashamed to admit. I wish I could eat slower but it's been a habit since 1976 and I don't seem to have any power to stop it. We all should eat slower and chew better. Someday I may pay dearly for it by having to have surgery to get somethign out that I did'nt chew well. So it pays to be like a train and chew chew chew. lol
   — Danmark

October 10, 2002
It gets more normal. If I ever completely forget, I get a quick reminder. But chewing better than I did before is both more satisfying and prevents any hang ups. Chewing so that it is the focus of the meal usually passes with time, though.
   — vitalady

October 11, 2002
I've actually stopped eating bread, chicken and steak because I can't stand all of the chewing. By the time I swallow it I don't like the taste of it. Wierd...
   — Michael N.

October 11, 2002
I am 4 months post open rny. I feel I eat like a "normal (thin)" person does. I eat better foods, average amounts (1/2 - 3/4 cup), and I make meal times last longer with my smaller amounts. Remember, the point is to eat to live. I enjoy going out to eat now. Instead of worrying about the portion sizes that the restaurant has or if I will get enough to eat - I enjoy the atmosphere and good conversation, and I always bring home a doggy bag. 3 weeks is pretty early, but for me, at about 2 1/2 months, I noticed I was eating "normal."
   — Courtney S.

October 11, 2002
In the beginning you worry that if you don't pulverize every bite, it will get stuck..ever heard the one about the pea getting stuck? Scared me...I can remember eating a chunk of pineapple and it slipping down the gullet before I could chew it well. Thought for sure I would have to go to the hospital for a pineapple chunk. Nope. Now at 8 months post-op, I don't even think about when I chew. This will happen to you too.
   — Cindy R.

October 11, 2002
I'm three months out and in the beginnning I got so sick of chewing that food lost all appeal to me. Now, I am so used to chewing it well that I usually don't think about it, until I worry that something didn't get chewed well enough before it slipped down :>) Anything that I know will require more work, I take smaller bites of and the rest I eat "normal". I remember how gross my favorite foods tasted when I had to actually chew and taste them. Cottage cheese and cheeses in general tasted sour upon chewing more than a couple times, and processed meats? Forget about it. Blech! Still don't like most of those. Good luck!
   — [Deactivated Member]

October 12, 2002
My teeth hurt in the beginning from all the chewing too. I think I was using muscles I hadn't used before! The ache went away by about 6 or 8 weeks post-op.
   — M. B.

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