Eating when you're not hungry?

[Smelly Melly 0]

Hi everyone. I am being sleeved on 23rd March in Australia. I have done a lot of research into the sleeve but there is still one thing that I am worried about...I eat when I'm not hungry. I eat because I am bored, tired, happy, sad, that time of month... I am worried that I will still be able to do this after I have my sleeve. I hope that when I am hungry I can eat something healthy and then there will be no room left for me to eat when I'm not hungry. I realise that I will have to find other coping mechanisms but I'm still afraid that I will be able to over eat. I guess I am a grazer. I will have to try very hard to stick to my three meals a day. How did you go with this? How did you break your connection with food? Is anyone still tempted to eat when they are not hungry? Don't get me wrong this is not something I intend on doing but it is the only thing that I cannot get my mind around. I'm really scared of failing. This is probably due to having an unsuccessful band. I have worked hard on being positive and getting myself in the right frame of mind. This is my only concern now. Any thoughts?? Thanks :001_unsure:

[Tiffykins 673]

It's really weird because I ate when I was bored, and was considered a volume eater pre-op. I ate just to eat, when I woke up I thought of 'hhmmmm what can I eat for lunch', at the end of lunch I was wondering 'hmmm what can I cook for dinner?'. food was constantly on my mind.

Now, my mind has honestly changed and it happened immediately post-op. food is just an afterthought now. A lot of veterans told me I wouldn't understand until I went through it. I'm still never hungry, I don't know why some feel true hunger and others don't, but I still have to remember to eat. I've been grazing/snacking more than I did during my losing stage because I'm trying to maintain so I have to snack to get in more calories.

My husband was deployed during my recovery and didn't come home until 4 months post-op. I had a lot of emotional stress that probably contributed to me being able to keep my mind off food. I came here a lot to talk with others, and I journaled, wrote my husband letters, and emails. Our communication was extremely limited, he would barely get to call home every 2-3 weeks, I was lucky to get an email weekly. I had to just focus on my health, and recovery.

I think what you're describing is head hunger, and honestly for some reason mine just went away. I actually have an issue with eating enough now. I have to force feed myself because I'm never physically hungry. I still have cravings or a desire to eat something, and because of where I'm at post-op, I can have those foods. It's just all in moderation now.

Will you have access to a psych or counselor that can help you work through the mental aspect of this journey? Even a local support group will probably help especially with finding another coping mechanism.

[SParkle 4]

Smelly Melly, Congrats on your date!! And Thanks for posting this, as its one of my concerns and worries. And Tiff - thanks for the response!

I certainly feel much more positive about this side of it all.

Kathy

[MINI-Me 196]

I am just about 6 weeks out ... I too was a grazer. I thought about food A LOT. In some ways, I still do on the losing phase. I think about how to get in my Protein, Water, etc.

It really is hard to understand, but I don't crave food at all. When I do, a bite or two does the trick. I do incorporate a few Snacks in my diet. String cheese in the afternoon is great - low calorie and add Protein.

I agree working with a nutritionist or pysch is important. If those aren't available, use an on-line tool like myfitnesspal.com - put everything that crosses your lips into the tool. It REALLY helps.

[2b4me 0]

One of my downfalls pre-op was to eat, a lot, right before I went to sleep. Sometimes I would also get up around 2.00 a.m. and eat again. And, these eats were carbohydrate laden.

6 weeks post-op, some nights, I find I still do this out of habit and because I saw that other VSG'ers were having late night dinners and Snacks so it seemed o.k. At first, I would have a bit of Jello or sf/ff yoghurt. Then, it seemed like I needed more and more. Now, I've stopped all that type of eating, completely.

To better prepare for this, I should have practised not having anything to eat after 7.00 p.m. for at least 2 weeks, pre-op, regardless of what other VSGers were doing or feeling. Know yourself to battle habit hunger.

One of the things that is troublesome about the very low carbohydrate "diet" is that one could be ingesting very much more artificial sweetener. Unfortunately, and depending on how much one has, or is not used to, these can also trigger cravings for sweets.

Regardless of whether or not it's true hunger or habit hunger, it can persist after surgery.

But...the idea is to research, research, research so that one is armed with as much information as possible so as to learn about this and other aspects of WLS -- find medical articles and interview professionals, do not just rely on websites.

Why? because the benefits from this surgery can be tremendous!:001_unsure:

Good luck with your research!

[Smelly Melly 0]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Tiffykins you are an asset to this site. You have put my mind at ease and helped me to see the light! My son has Asperger Syndrome. I have always been told that I am very proactive with his needs. Well I'm about to step it up a notch. I will shift my focus from food to helping others...hopefully. Today I enrolled myself in an Integration Aide course so I will be able to help other kids with special needs. I am the sort of person that is 'all or nothing' so I think this change in focus will serve as a good distraction for me. Thanks for the idea!! I will have support throughout my journey but from my banding experience support is not what I need. Distraction and a lifestyle change is what I need. Thanks for your support xx