7 Weeks Out and Constantly Starving!

[LumpySpacePrincess 594]

One of the reasons I chose the sleeve over the other options was because all the surgeons like to say "You won't be able to feel hungry after surgery. We remove that part of your stomach." Except, I'm always hungry. Like the kind of hungry where you feel like your stomach is being turned inside out. This goes on 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. I even feel hungry WHILE I'm eating! I talked to my surgeon and she just said "It happens to some people, and its normal." Um, what? What happened to no hunger? Sales pitch, I guess. (Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my surgeon. She did a fantastic job).

I knew hunger was going to return eventually, but this soon?? So frustrating! My carb content is pretty low (around 30g per day) my Protein intake is really good (80g per day average, all from solid food), and I get in all my recommended Water.

So what gives?? Some told me it was reflux that felt like hunger, so I doubled my Prilosec and the hunger has not gone away. It isn't head hunger; I have no appetite, its just the physical sensation in my gut. I'm actually pretty annoyed when I have to eat.

Grrr....

[Arts137 1,811]

hmmmm,

Maybe it's not hunger, since your head isn't hungry???

Try to increase dense Proteins a bit and see of 'saitiety' helps. You wanna make your stomach feel full. It helps me.

Keep us posted.

(I gurgle and bubble a lot, but I tell myself I am not hungry...)

[LumpySpacePrincess 594]

hmmmm,

Maybe it's not hunger, since your head isn't hungry???

Try to increase dense Proteins a bit and see of 'saitiety' helps. You wanna make your stomach feel full. It helps me.

Keep us posted.

(I gurgle and bubble a lot, but I tell myself I am not hungry...)

I thought this for awhile, too, but no it is really physical hunger. I'm eating 6 times per day, so I don't think I could fit in any more Protein than I'm already taking in, since my surgeon wants me to have those two veg servings and one fruit serving per day.

[McButterpants 2,846]

Maybe try a Pepcid or different antacid - Prilosec didn't do anything for me, but Pepcid helped. I was feeling something similar to yours, but not all the time.

[Mammecan 43]

Are you still losing weight?? I had surgery 8 weeks ago & have only lost 35 lbs..I would say you are doing quite well..when I get the hungry gurgles I have a Protein Shake & that works..I was told no fruits yet..(to much sugar)..and only carrots...Good Luck..

[PdxMan 4,292]

Would you say you are eating a balanced diet, nutritionally speaking?

Let's go back to Ye Ole track everything in MyFitnessPal (or the like). After a week, you can look at the summary of your nutritional breakdown. The Proteins, fats, carbs, Iron, Calcium, sodium, blah, blah, blah.

My surgeon told me my body would tell me when it was nutritionally deficient in something and that would be it's way of telling me it was hungry. It was my job to determine what I am short on and provide it. Let's put it this way ...

Your body needs to do some bone repair/healing/whatever, so it is going to need a little more Calcium. It gives you that craving for some milk or broccoli or whatever your body associates to a good dose of calcium. So, you get the feeling you are hungry. What do you do? Eat ham until you are stuffed. Well, yes. Ham has a little bit of calcium, but no where near what it is looking for, so, what does your body do? Sends out the signal, "Hey! I need some food, here!" and you respond by eating some chicken. Again, not meeting the needs your body needs, and now you feel like you are constantly hungry. You are eating the foods recommended, but for some reason, you are always hungry. Well, you also need to be eating a balanced diet.

Take a look at how well balanced your meals are at the end of the week and make adjustments. You will not realize a change overnight, but over time, your hunger will also be more balanced.

[LumpySpacePrincess 594]

Would you say you are eating a balanced diet, nutritionally speaking?

Let's go back to Ye Ole track everything in MyFitnessPal (or the like). After a week, you can look at the summary of your nutritional breakdown. The Proteins, fats, carbs, Iron, Calcium, sodium, blah, blah, blah.

My surgeon told me my body would tell me when it was nutritionally deficient in something and that would be it's way of telling me it was hungry. It was my job to determine what I am short on and provide it. Let's put it this way ...

Your body needs to do some bone repair/healing/whatever, so it is going to need a little more calcium. It gives you that craving for some milk or broccoli or whatever your body associates to a good dose of calcium. So, you get the feeling you are hungry. What do you do? Eat ham until you are stuffed. Well, yes. Ham has a little bit of calcium, but no where near what it is looking for, so, what does your body do? Sends out the signal, "Hey! I need some food, here!" and you respond by eating some chicken. Again, not meeting the needs your body needs, and now you feel like you are constantly hungry. You are eating the foods recommended, but for some reason, you are always hungry. Well, you also need to be eating a balanced diet.

Take a look at how well balanced your meals are at the end of the week and make adjustments. You will not realize a change overnight, but over time, your hunger will also be more balanced.

Thanks for the input. I don't know how many surgeons do this, but my surgeon requires I have blood drawn once a month to check Vitamin levels. My last post-op appointment (about two weeks ago) they told me I had no nutritional deficiencies, and my bloodwork was like someone who had never had surgery. I do track what I eat, but in terms of having my meals "balanced" I still have to stay within the guidelines of my program. Protein first, then veggies if I still have room, then anything else. In order to get all my Protein in from solid food (required in my program at this point. No shakes allowed), it often means I'm not eating enough veg to really get any nutritional benefit from it. I take my supplements and they seem to be working so far.

[PdxMan 4,292]

I hear what you are saying, but know the blood tests are not going to cover all of it. They are not going to be testing for magnesium, zinc or any of the other minerals. Shortages of these may still cause you body to feel nutritionally deficient. You can still follow your guidelines while eating a varied, balanced plan. Many people find what works for their new tummies and stick with it eating the same thing over and over.

Greek yogurt, tuna, cottage cheese ... over and over and over and ...

Yes, they are meeting their guidelines, getting their Protein in and they can tell their Dr they are compliant. All the while they say they are STARVING! All I am saying is try to find other foods that work for you which may offer more balance in the other nutritional categories. You may find you are not always hungry, as you state in your original post.

I can only speak for myself. Per my Dr's suggestion, I have always eaten a varied, balanced meal plan and can honestly say, two and a half years post surgery, that I have never been "hungry" like I was pre-op. No where near.

[mistysj 1,940]

Is Prilosec a proton pump inhibitor (PPI)? A PPI like nexium works in a totally different way from an antacid. Many of us need a PPI at least for the first 6 months, if not for life. Some of our stomachs make the same amount of acid as they needed when we had our full sized stomachs.