Is It True?

[peacequeen 434]

Can the sleeve be stretched out?

[Mr_Worm 129]

I heard yes..but never back to original size. Plus in order for you to streatch it you'd have to continuously eat to the point of pain over and over

[dominique 34]

After what it took to get over the pain to be at this point (sleeved 12/19/11) I could NEVER go through that stomach pain again. I mean, eating is a vital function to live. I don't want to mess with that again by overeating again, and again and again... My sleeve is no longer mad at me and I want to keep it that way!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

Stretch it out compared to what?

Yes, it does stretch over time. But it stretches as much as it's going to, and then it can't stretch anymore.

At one point, I could only eat about 4 bites of steack. Now I can eat a piece about the size of my palm, which is the same amount I could eat at about one year out.

[peacequeen 434]

I wasn't asking in a plan to stretch my stomach out on purpose. I've just heard yes and no,,was wondering what is the truth. I'm still trying to learn what my stomach can hold,,sometimes I feel full and worry that I might stretch it. I'm having a hard time feeling when to stop so I'm measuring out an amount and eat that. Sometimes I leave the table full,,sometimes still hungry. I'm aware that it will stretch a little as swelling and healing takes place but didn't know if over time it stretched out significantly due to normal eating and drinking.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

Okay, well I am sure you have been told this, but maybe others have not. The sleeved stomach is made from the most muscular part of the stomach- the least stretchiest part. The part of the stomach that is removed is the stretchiest part of the stomach.

You're doing the right thing by measuring your food. In the beginning, if you eat until you're full at the table, you'll be in trouble in about a half an hour. It really is true that it takes our stomachs 20 min for our brain to tell us that it's full. That's why it's important to measure food in the beginning. It takes awhile to learn the right amount without measuring.

I remember one time, I kept eating fish because it was so good. I ate until I felt full.After I was all done eating and I had left the table about 20 min later, I was so full I was afraid I was going to busrt my sleeve. It was painful.

So to answer your question, yes, it does stretch out a normal amount with eating over time. You really don't have to worry about stretching it due to over eating. If you over ate that much, you'd be in a lot of pain. Plus you would get the slimes and probably throw up. That's one other thing. If you over eat, it's going to come back up before it will stretch the sleeve.

You're still very new. You'll be able to eat more at 6 months than you can now, and you'll be able to eat more than that at one year. I am almost 3 years now, and I can only eat slightly more now than I could at i year.

Feel free to ask anything if this does not answer what you were wondering!!

[clk 3,519]

Yes, you got great info from OregonDaisy. It does stretch, but not in any way like the pouch in a bypass patient can stretch.

I'm 19 months out and have more restriction than some folks here, based upon what I've read.

I can eat (in one sitting):

1 hardboiled egg or 1 scrambled egg with 2 Tbs. cheese

2-3 oz. dense Protein, 2-3 bites of veg., 2-3 bites of carb/starch (but only if that's ALL I eat for the meal)

1/2 a meat sandwich/cheeseburger (with only a bottom bun)

1/2 a grilled cheese sandwich and 1/2 cup of Soup (if it's a liquid/cream soup)

1 cookie

2-3 cups of popcorn

So as you see, my sleeve has stretched enough that I'm eating more than four ounces of Protein shake at a meal. However, I'd have to concentrate really hard on eating to gain a serious amount of weight.

If your main concern is being able to maintain the smaller portions in the long run, then you really don't have that much to worry about with the sleeve.

That said, if you make poor food choices long term or overeat regularly you can and will gain weight. Learning how to eat responsibly and healthily is a must, especially with a restriction-only procedure like the sleeve.

~Cheri

[peacequeen 434]

Thank you Oregondaisy and clk..this is why I asked and you gave the perfect answers. It makes alot of sense. I'm working so hard to do this right. My biggest issue is slowing down when eating..I need to focus and pay attention to what I'm doing more. Thanks you guys!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

You're welcome. I'm glad this helped. Eating slow is definitely a learing process!!