Question:
Can your pouch go back to the original size by not over eating at all.

I have herd that pre-op if you dont over eat your stomach will shrink. Can you do that with your pouch too. Im 8 mo out and I think I have streched my pouch.Thank you very much!    — [Anonymous] (posted on June 26, 2001)

June 26, 2001
I don't have any first-hand experience to support this, but I have heard my surgeon address this subject in post-op support group meetings when others have asked the same question. His response to patients who feel that they are now "tolerating" much more food than they think they should, and their weight loss has slowed down or stopped is for them to return to a strict 3 meal/day plan with only "saucer-size" portions for 3 weeks....absolutely no in-between-meal snacks. He stated that at the end of that period, the pouch would have returned to its original size and they should again be experiencing that immediate "full" feeling much more quickly. Folks in the group who have followed those guidelines successfully returned to that "feel-full - no hunger" state and began to experience an increased weight loss again. I think that this just reinforces the knowledge that the surgery is a remarkable tool, but not a "miracle cure" and that the bottom line remains that maintaining successful weight loss still depends largely on our own abilities to stick with "the plan": 3 meals/day, no snacking, no overeating, lots of protein, lots of water, increased exercise, etc... Good luck!
   — Diana T.

June 28, 2001
Wow! I hope this is true. I have looked and looked for the answer to this question. Thank you for sharing. I know that preop if I didn't eat for a while, my stomach would "shrink". I hope the pouch will do and it will speed up my loss. I am a slow loser....62 lbs in 6 mos. I am going to give it a try. I can eat about 4 - 6 oz at a time now and would like to go back to 2 or 4 oz! I want to lose faster.
   — [Anonymous]