I have no restriction 2 1/2 weeks out, can eat normal portions. WHY?!

[Nomorethickchick 13]

@@CowgirlJane I don't know that I can eat 2 oz food and be satisfied when I can eat 5 now? How would I do that? I mean that's essentially starving myself if I am actually hungry and able to eat more? The lack of feeling of restriction is what is bothering me the most. I got this procedure spefically to feel restriction when I eat larger portions than I should. That enforced Portion Control is what I need. I was not a huge volume eater before the surgery, maybe that is why others lose more than me. I just need a reminder on portion size. Not a psychological reminder, a phyiscal reminder. That's why I got the restriction surgery.

[Nomorethickchick 13]

@@OutsideMatchInside it takes me about 20-30 minutes eating and chewing.

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

You don't have nerves there to feel hunger at 2.5 weeks which is why you are supposed to eat the amounts they recommend. You need to go see your Dr and talk about this.

How much you can eat varies a lot on the Water content of what you are eating and the density. I can have 6 oz of fish or 2oz of turkey.

The thing is at your stage, I measured my food and ONLY had what I was told to have. You are supposed to be letting your stomach rest and heal. Even if you are hungry.

Have you tried taking pepcid or something? Acid and hunger feel the same at this stage.

And you aren't supposed to eat to be full, you are supposed to eat to be satisfied.

Edited October 5, 2015 by OutsideMatchInside

[Nomorethickchick 13]

@@OutsideMatchInside My surgeon told me I just don't have any swelling. I looked at my stomach on the swallow test, I have a copy, it's not the shape of a banana. It's more like the shape of a banana with a melon at the bottom, which is the pouch. There are nerves. I can certainly feel when my stomach has had too much liquid. If I eat Soup or say last week when I ate Soup, I could feel that I couldn;t eat alot or eat quickly. Because mostly i had a gassy feeling. I no longer ahve that now I am on pureeds. And my hunger is real I think. I don't really notice any difference in my hunger feeling before/after surgery. Really. When I go in on the 8th I will see about the fill test they do and see what that shows.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

In the early weeks - I had all sorts of strange sensations. That "acidy feeling" felt more like a gnawing hunger, it was not in my throat or chest and it did not taste or feel like acid. I am not the only one - this is a common phenomena to have acid mimic feelings of hunger. Honestly, everything you have described falls in the range of what I have heard as normal. I did NOT feel the restriction/benefit of the sleeve until I was about 6-8 weeks out and on full solids etc. Everyone is different, but it is pretty normal to feel strange at the stage you are at and I know that I followed the guidelines to a "T" knowing that I was still healing and couldn't accurately tell how "full" my stomach was. It has only been 2 weeks.

The part that puzzles me more is the shape of your sleeve. My understanding is that there are "receptors" at the bottom and top of the stomach. One of the reasons that we eat Protein, literally first (I am talking once you are on full solids - not at 2 weeks out) is because that denser food satiates better due to the location of those receptors. I am not sure if the shape of the stomach impacts it, but I thought they were all more or less banana shaped. I am no medical expert, so maybe I am wrong - but I thought that was the standard sleeve stomach shape. I would be interested to hear what others know about this.

[Babbs 14,681]

@@Nomorethickchick

You really need to stop jumping to all these conclusions and just let yourself heal and worry about getting your fluids and Protein in right now. My god how in the world do you even know what's going on 2 weeks after surgery? And YES, you are swollen. Your stomach has been CUT OFF AND RE STAPLED back together. Unless you have magic healing powers, it's still swollen after 2 weeks.

And if there's a "pouch" as you say at the end of your sleeve, something is wrong. Is that what the doctor said? Because that's not supposed to be there....

FYI, I had no problem with fluids, either. I could drink quite a bit quite quickly with no problems. You need to be measuring out your portions, and not just eating and eating until you think you should feel full. You could do some damage to your sleeve.

The surgery is NOT about just restriction. Yes, the restriction helps, but cementing healthy eating habits and moving more is also a big equation, as restriction wanes naturally over time anyway. You will lose the first 6 months to a year because of the restriction, but you won't keep it off because of it. Many, many are living proof of that!

[Mandala27 14]

I was sleeved on 9/15. On 9/29, after I met with my NUT, I was told I could eat ground meats, canned shicken, and canned tuna. The most at each meal is 4 ounces. The first 4 days I could not get in more than 2 ounces per meal, so then I had to make up with Protein drink. Today I managed to eat 4 ounces for lunch and dinner each, and I feel stuffed for hours. I am really missing veggies.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

The acid feeling post op is very different then the typical heart burn acid. Often there is no burning sensation, but rather a sensation that often feels similar to hunger. The way your body feels at 2 weeks is honestly very different than it will feel at 6 weeks, 3mths and so on. Even a year out my body feels and reacts much differently than those early days. This is the part where we have to remind ourselves that this is a tool and not a magic wand. If you nut is recommending 2 or 4 ounces at a time, then try really hard to just eat that and stop. Give your body a chance to adjust to all the new changes. Try really hard no to compare your progress and weight loss to others. If you follow the program, the weight loss will happen.

[kranky813 477]

The only thing I can really tell you is that I started feeling restriction once I started solid food. I still chew it up really well but once I get to about 4tbsp I know I need to stop. I didn't feel restriction on any of the liquids or pureeds.

I will also tell you that I can guzzle liquids like no tomorrow. I found out by accident. I took about 5oz at once because I was really thirsty and once I swallowed the "oh crap" moment hit me. It passed right through. Although I will NEVER do that again just for fear of damaging my sleeve (7 weeks post op).

So many people have given so much good advice so instead of repeating it I will just say be very careful.

[Daisee68 2,493]

Try not to panic. You should be on an acid reflux med daily regardless. That is pretty standard protocol (I think). I had bypass but I had the same hunger feelings and Zantac took care of it. Once you get past pureeds and start chewing more dense Protein, you will see the difference in the restriction. In the meantime, yes, you need to stick with the small limited portions. If you think you are hungry in between and the acid reflux med doesn't take that away, then have a sugar free popsicle or some warm broth. I still have to do that 4 months out occasionally. Don't test your sleeve. As others have said, the nerves are still healing and they will prevent you from feeling the that tightness. Be patient. You will be able to look back at this post in 4 weeks and realize what we are all saying.

[Kikiboy 11]

I am 4 wks out and the most I can eat is 3oz. before I am full. I eat very, very slowly. You need to recognize the feeling of being full. Eat very slow and you will feel full. Don't test yourself. Stick to the program.. Good luck. I was sleeved on 9/14. SW was 234 at the hospital. Today I weighed in at 215

Edited October 6, 2015 by Kikiboy

[KarenLoh 128]

I share your fear and concern. I am two months post-op and have been experiencing the same hunger and ability to eat more than I hoped since the beginning. I have tried to limit myself to 4-5 ounces but now, at two months, I can eat 8 ounces without difficulty. I take Omeprazole every day and it doesn't seem to help with the hunger/acid feeling at all. I am pleased to be eating 1,100 calories a day instead of 3,000 but I had hoped to be more restricted than I am and to be eating fewer calories than that.

I am trying hard to stay on program, eating at least 100 grams of Protein a day and not eating "bad stuff" (sugar, carbs, etc.) I'm down 47 pounds including pre-op, so that 25 since surgery. Not as much as I had hoped and slowing. It does worry me quite a bit. I have always felt like my stomach was too big post-op.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

@@KarenLoh - Have you spoken with your doctor about this? At 3 mths I had to increase my omeprazole from 20 mgs to 40 and it made a world of difference. I would try increasing or changing PPI's.

[JamieLogical 8,708]

@@KarenLoh - Have you spoken with your doctor about this? At 3 mths I had to increase my omeprazole from 20 mgs to 40 and it made a world of difference. I would try increasing or changing PPI's.

I had to do the exact same thing around my 2 month mark. 20mg just wasn't doing it for me, so I've been taking 40mg/day ever since (20 in the morning and 20 before bed).

@@KarenLoh It's fantastic that you are already getting in 100 grams of Protein per day at two months. I pushed really hard to reach the 100 gram mark ASAP too and I think it benefited me in MANY ways. I only had hair loss for about a month and a half and it never got so bad that anyone else noticed. And I lost significant amounts of fat and actually put on muscle, whereas a lot of people lose significant amounts of muscle while losing weight. I don't think your loss is all that slow. I lost under 15 pounds my first month and only 8 my second month and about 6 per month for a while after that and I made it to goal and I'm happily maintaining. This isn't a race. The rate of loss slows down, for sure, but as long as you stick to the plan, you WILL lose the weight.

[KarenLoh 128]

Thanks, JamieLogical. That makes me feel a lot better.

I am already taking 40mg of the Omeprazole but I take it all at once around 11:30am to get me through the afternoon hungries. Maybe I should take it one in the AM and one around 5pm? I was hungry just now and had a high-Protein greek yogurt and feel better. Should be able to have a really light supper now and go to bed early. :-)