A strange cause of nausea?

[theother_onefoot 122]

Today I was eating lunch with my parents at home. My dad prepared them some generous salads with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms and all of that, and since I don't care for any of that in my salads, I wasn't bothered. And at first the balsamic dressing mom had made smelled good, even while I was happy with my meatless spaghetti sauce with Protein powder in it (and no noodles of course).

But then as they were eating the smell of the dressing began to be too strong and sweet to me so I turned my face away, but then the sounds of them eating their salads...the scrape of the fork, the crunching and chewing and swallowing, all of it, just coupled with the sweet smell of the dressing and I just felt so nauseous I had to leave the table. Watching and listening to them eat their salads was just suddenly a horrific experience when it's never bothered me before. I want to think the initial sickeningly sweet dressing just made me hyper aware of the experience...

But I'm worried about it happening again. Has anyone else felt nauseous just from other people around them eating?

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[James Marusek 5,244]

Some people experience a change in the way things taste after surgery. Others seem to experience a change in the way things smell.

Chewing is a natural part of the digestive process. Many people report a strong desire to chew something solid especially while they are restricted to the liquid or blended stages.

[Folly 308]

Today I was eating lunch with my parents at home. My dad prepared them some generous salads with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms and all of that, and since I don't care for any of that in my salads, I wasn't bothered. And at first the balsamic dressing mom had made smelled good, even while I was happy with my meatless spaghetti sauce with Protein powder in it (and no noodles of course).

But then as they were eating the smell of the dressing began to be too strong and sweet to me so I turned my face away, but then the sounds of them eating their salads...the scrape of the fork, the crunching and chewing and swallowing, all of it, just coupled with the sweet smell of the dressing and I just felt so nauseous I had to leave the table. Watching and listening to them eat their salads was just suddenly a horrific experience when it's never bothered me before. I want to think the initial sickeningly sweet dressing just made me hyper aware of the experience...

But I'm worried about it happening again. Has anyone else felt nauseous just from other people around them eating?

I won't say food aversions are "normal" but they are common. For me it was because of an underlying emotional problem I was having. For many people, early on, it's just the physical trauma of surgery and the body reacting to the smell of food it doesn't want. Be kind to yourself and stay the course - it might be good to start thinking about getting some therapy with a professional who specializes in addiction and/or eating disorders after you've had a little more time to get your bearings.

*HUGS*

[Djmohr 6,965]

@@theother_onefoot

Oh I definately experienced this and yes the smell probably set you off. It does pass but it will take some time before that happens.

I am 11 months post op and there are still some smells and tastes that get to me but they are only a few. In the beginning it was pretty much anything that smelled or tasted sweet.

It would not make me vomit but I was definately sick to my stomach. I also noticed that even the sound of someone chewing made me want to gag.

[IncredibleShrinkingMan 437]

You guys should consider yourselves lucky. I have had absolutely no change in my taste buds. Walking past places that serve palatable stuff set off the same triggers in my head as they used to. If people are eating sexy food around me I just start wanting it more. Well, I guess there's no curing that, but I know if I started eating it I'd quickly need to stop, which is what I signed up for in the first place.

[theother_onefoot 122]

@@Djmohr -- you've kind of given me the closest to the same experience so far. I know we can risk being more sensitive to smells or tastes, and hopefully this isn't a straight up food aversion for me (though I have already enlisted a weekly therapist to see), but it actually was the sound and sight of my parents eating that made me feel so sick.

Maybe it's because I've been on mostly liquids for so long that I haven't had to do much of my own chewing, but just hearing them EAT was terrible. It isn't like they were intentionally scraping their forks or gnashing their teeth and smacking obnoxiously either, it was just their usual and mostly polite eating habits. But watching forkful after forkful of food go from bowl to mouth, regardless of it being salad and veggies, was making me physically ill.

I haven't had a meal with them again, but I'll have to see how it goes. Maybe it will get better since I can actually eat more things now.. Fingers crossed.

@ - I still smell fresh pizza and think, "oh my gosh, I want some of that!" but the truth is, I distinctly know that's just head hunger. Yes, it smells fantastic. But I'm not actually hungry. In fact, today there was a meeting where they brought in dozens of pizzas and they looked so good, but I was still trying to work on getting through my Protein shake and I knew I couldn't handle anything like that (this soon) even if I truly was hungry. So I enjoyed the smells like a savory candle but focused way more intently on the speakers presenting, haha