Question For Veteran Sleevers

[topgun 63]

I've been sleeved since 3/28/12 and I'm currently eating 1/3 - 1/2 cup size meals. At the end of a meal I am full, but it is an uncomfortable feeling of fullness and not the satisfying feeling of contentment I used to feel after a meal. I am not overeating and the discomfort I am experiencing is not really pain, it is just an achy feeling of fullness and not the same pleasant feeling as before. Am I making sense????? I know my capacity is going to increase eventually to about 1 - 1 1/2 cups which is fine with me. A 1 1/2 cup meal would be like gorging at an all-you-can-eat buffet, now! My question is will that old, satisfied feeling of contentment after enjoying a good meal ever return or is that a thing of the past and never to return? I hope this is a temporary thing...

Thanks for any insight you might be able to provide and I hope I was able to explain myself.

[lsereno 2,525]

I think you are overeating a little. Your surgery is very recent. If you have a nutritionist in your program, ask them. If not, try eating a little less at a time and eating more frequently or adding another Protein drink at the end of the day to get enough Protein in. You are less than one month out. Everyone's tummy recovers at a different rate. Some have more swelling than others.

You are right about capacity -it does increase a lot as the months go by, but thankfully nothing like pre-op size!

Lynda

[iegal 460]

Hi - congratulations on all you the weight you have lost so far.

Maybe you are still eating with your eyes rather than when your stomach tells you are full? Are you eating off of a small plate? Satiated is not equal to gorged no matter what your eyes tell you.

Yes, I can eat so much more than I could those first six months. Do I feel full? Yes. Am I satisfied? Yes. Do I want more? Sometimes but this is mental, not a physical hunger. I want to eat more because others are still eating - so I still need to practice to slow down so that my smaller portion lasts longer.

I think what you are experiencing is lack of mental satisfaction, not physical satisfaction after a meal.

Our surgeons operated on our stomachs, not our brains. Stick with the plan - things get better with time. Learn to embrace the new you and find something else that will give you that feeling of satiated.

Hugs. I love my sleeve with no regrets.

[BlackBerryJuice 349]

I do think you are overeating. You shouldn't have pain after eating otherwise. It can literally be a matter of a teaspoon of food. Even at 19 months out, one tablespoon can be the difference between satisfied and uncomfortably full.

[Queen of Crop 1,103]

I honestly can say that I don't have the same satisfaction after a meal as I did before being sleeved (I am 7 months post-op). But it's not to say that it's bad; and I feel I can eat almost anything (pasta and rice are not on the list yet). The things that go down really well and that I feel very satisfied with are pretzel thins, oranges and popcorn. Weird combination I realize. But I just know when I eat these things (small portions of course) I feel like a perfectly normal person.

I go by an acronym my husband came up with and that is OBTM......One Bite Too Many and I will feel uncomfortable.....and at this point I know where that is at each meal; thank god for the sleeve for reminding me; it was the OBTM that got me fat in the first place......

You'll figure it out, just give it time.....

[sarsar 824]

As others have said, this is probably mental for you right now. At first I had a hard time dealing with this because I wanted to feel satisfied and I didn't. I was mad about it and had to learn how to deal with those emotions.

Now when I eat I am very satisfied. Do I ever wish I could have a few more bites of something because it tastes so good? Yes, but I know that I can have a little more again whenever I want to and that makes me satisfied. This was a huge learning process for me and now it's a part of my life and I am fine with it in fact, I am happy with it!! I am happy with the fact that food no longer controls my life and that I can actually enjoy food.

There are so many other wonderful changes when you start losing weight and become thin that you learn that food is just not that important other than what you need to be healthy.

11 months out and there are some things that I can eat a lot of, like popcorn and goldfish crackers. I am careful and I have to limit myself but once in a while I have them and have as much of them as I want. With most foods, though, I still have a lot of restriction.

I love my sleeve and I love my life now with my sleeve, in time I believe you will too!

[MegInNOLA 531]

I understand exactly what you mean!! I had to learn how "full" felt post-op, and I had to learn that I couldn't/shouldn't eat "until I was full," but "until I wasn't hungry." That's the cool thing your sleeve brings to the party--and yes, it feels really different, and I felt both sad and upset at first that I wasn't able to get that same sense of satisfaction... but now, a year out, I DO feel satisfied after a meal, and I still can't eat very much volume-wise (small and non-stretchy sleeve, I guess!--thank GOODNESS!). I feel satisfied in a different way from before, but it's become my "new normal," and honestly, it's true satisfaction, just different satisfaction. I don't feel stuffed or "full" or sluggish or heavy after I eat. I feel energized and fueled and nourished and ready to tackle the rest of my day. I enjoy my food tremendously. I can smell and imagine the taste of food without having to rush right out and physically eat it--what freedom!!!! And when I do eat, food tastes great; I have learned to eat slowly and enjoy the experience, both for my own enjoyment and to keep from being finished with a meal 30 seconds in while others are just picking up their forks (LOL!).

Hang in there; you'll get to your 'new normal,' but it probably won't be like your pre-op normal--here's the important part--and that's okay--neither are you going to be like your pre-op normal. You'll be thinner, healthier, and on your way to being around a lot longer. HUGS!!

[topgun 63]

Thanks, everyone...what a forum!!!!