Frustrated with eating!

[amandasc218 9]

I had gastric bypass on June 28....so a little over a month ago. I am on Phase 3 of the dieting. Phase 1 went well and phase 2 was ok. I had a hard time eating on Phase 2 but I tolerated it. Since starting phase 3 I have thrown up almost everyday. I started Phase 3 July 23rd. I get a very sharp pain in my side to the point I can't breath and I have to make myself get sick to feel any type of relief. I have tried canned chicken, grilled chicken tenderloins and still get sick. Everytime I try a new food I seem to get sick and then don't want to eat again. I have gotten sick on all kinds of food except seafood. My doctor is not too concerned with the little calories I am eating as long as I am drinking fluids. On an average I have got 250-300 in a day. I have the urge to eat but then I eat and get sick. Has anyone had this problem? And if so how long did it last? I am extremely frustrated and feeling overwhelmed with eating.

[Cervidae 2,389]

the vomiting and being unable to tolerate food is not normal. It's possible you have a stricture. From what I understand, if it is a stricture, it will feel much, much better immediately after being fixed. Hope you feel better soon! Get in there and see your doctor!

[amandasc218 9]

I had gastric bypass on June 28....so a little over a month ago. I am on Phase 3 of the dieting. Phase 1 went well and phase 2 was ok. I had a hard time eating on Phase 2 but I tolerated it. Since starting phase 3 I have thrown up almost everyday. I started Phase 3 July 23rd. I get a very sharp pain in my side to the point I can't breath and I have to make myself get sick to feel any type of relief. I have tried canned chicken, grilled chicken tenderloins and still get sick. Everytime I try a new food I seem to get sick and then don't want to eat again. I have gotten sick on all kinds of food except seafood. My doctor is not too concerned with the little calories I am eating as long as I am drinking fluids. On an average I have got 250-300 in a day. I have the urge to eat but then I eat and get sick. Has anyone had this problem? And if so how long did it last? I am extremely frustrated and feeling overwhelmed with eating.

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[James Marusek 5,244]

There is nothing that says you have to rush into the solid phase. Just take your time because solid food can be hard especially in the beginning.

So let us go over basics. The three most important elements after RNY gastric bypass surgery are to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. food is secondary because your body is converting your stored fat into the energy that drives your body. Thus you lose weight.

Weight loss is achieved after surgery through volume control. You begin at 2 ounces (1/4 cup) per meal and gradually over the next year and a half increase the volume to 1 cup per meal. With this minuscule amount of food, it is next to impossible to meet your Protein daily requirements by food alone, so therefore you need to rely on supplements such as Protein shakes.

For me I found that solid foods (such as steak) were hard to deal with after surgery. But softer foods (chili and soups) went down much easier. So this is what I relied on. I wrote a short article about my experience and included some recipes, if you would like to try them at the end of the article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

[Djmohr 6,965]

I am with James on this one, you may be advancing sooner than your tummy will allow. I struggled terribly on pureed stage. I would gag and puke and I (now) I believe it was more of an aversion to pureed meats, eggs and fish. I still 22 months later have an aversion to eggs because of the pureed stage.

I would still with Soups, cottage cheese, applesauce, cream of wheat, Protein shakes. Anything that will slip down vs. have to swallow.

For me it took some time before my pouch even appreciated meats of any kind. I could eat fish fairly easily but even shrink was difficult.

By 8 weeks post op, most if not all my swelling was down and then I was able to start eating ground beef, ground chicken, soft juicy chicken breast in a mushroom gravy, thinks like that.....another month down the road it got easier and easier.

But my suggestion would be to go back to creamy Proteins like cottage cheese, yogurt, refried Beans, unsweetened applesauce, and definately Protein Shakes at this stage. Premier Protein for me were the best because they had a whopping 30 grams of Protein and only 1 gram of sugar. I had to actually add lactose free milk to them in the beginning so it would take me almost a whole day to drink 1 shake.

Best of luck to you and I promise it really does get better, if for some reason you can't get even softer foods down like I suggested then there is more going on and you might have a stricture. I would check with your doctor if that becomes a problem.

Your tummy just needs a little longer to heal and honestly it will be better for you in the long run.

[healthier&happier4life 86]

I just had my bypass June 20th. I also had problems with solid foods. Turns out that I was eating bites that were too big and also eating too fast. (This is exactly what the vets on this site said.) I really have to focus on eating small bites, chewing alot, and taking a break between bites. Doing okay as long as I do these things.

[pammieanne 269]

I am 11 weeks today.

I can only eat maybe 1/2 ounce of dense meats... and I have to cut it up to the size of a pea, and chew that TO DEATH.

I don't have the room in my pouch that a lot of other people do, but I don't think I have a stricture... although I am going to bring it to my doctor's attention when I go in at the end of the month.

Yes, it's frustrating for me. Yes, I wish I could eat more...

But what I did this weekend made me realize it really is just the dense stuff. We were at a party. I nibbled on cashews for a while, and I broke down and hit the chip bowl (bad, bad, bad),,, BUT my point is that I ate a handful or two of chips, plus probably 25 cashews... and I wasn't full like I am on meats.< /p>

I will continue on with my Protein shakes, twice a day, until my pouch starts to accept solid, dense Protein better. Fish and seafood seems to work better, but I still can only eat VERY SMALL amounts of these. The difference is they don't sit as hard as the dense meat does.

Talk with your doctor, of course, but you are still pretty newly out and your pouch is still healing. Try things like tuna, egg salad, cottage cheese... things that are softer and easier to pass.

[amandasc218 9]

Thanks for the advice! It is crazy cause foods like Soup, cottage cheese, eggs, canned chicken, anything with yellow cheese all make me sick. I can eat Cereal, yogurt, Protein shakes, applesauce, canned fruit, mashed potatoes, crab meat, shrimp and white rice with no problem. It gets to the point when I eat certain foods or try a new food that the pain is so intense I have to make myself get sick to feel any relief. I think I'm going to lean back on Phase 2 and still have the foods that I know work in phase 3 until I see my doctor August 11th.

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[amandasc218 9]

I am with James on this one, you may be advancing sooner than your tummy will allow. I struggled terribly on pureed stage. I would gag and puke and I (now) I believe it was more of an aversion to pureed meats, eggs and fish. I still 22 months later have an aversion to eggs because of the pureed stage.

I would still with Soups, cottage cheese, applesauce, cream of wheat, Protein shakes. Anything that will slip down vs. have to swallow.

For me it took some time before my pouch even appreciated meats of any kind. I could eat fish fairly easily but even shrink was difficult.

By 8 weeks post op, most if not all my swelling was down and then I was able to start eating ground beef, ground chicken, soft juicy chicken breast in a mushroom gravy, thinks like that.....another month down the road it got easier and easier.

But my suggestion would be to go back to creamy Proteins like cottage cheese, yogurt, refried Beans, unsweetened applesauce, and definately Protein Shakes at this stage. Premier Protein for me were the best because they had a whopping 30 grams of Protein and only 1 gram of sugar. I had to actually add lactose free milk to them in the beginning so it would take me almost a whole day to drink 1 shake.

Best of luck to you and I promise it really does get better, if for some reason you can't get even softer foods down like I suggested then there is more going on and you might have a stricture. I would check with your doctor if that becomes a problem.

Your tummy just needs a little longer to heal and honestly it will be better for you in the long run.

I totally get all of that but the foods you mentioned make me sick. That is why I'm so frustrated because those soft foods are even making me sick. I had chicken noodle Soup the other day and got so sick from it. Cottage cheese does the same thing. It gets to the point when I eat certain foods that are new that the pain is so intense I have to make myself get sick to feel any relief. I think I'm going to lean back on Phase 2 and still have the foods that I know work in phase 3 until I see my doctor August 11th.

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[Djmohr 6,965]

@@amandasc218

That is a good strategy to go back to the last phase until you see your doctor. You might have a lactose intolerance which is usually temporary.

If cottage cheese is bothering you and feels heaving that is likely. I use a 1% cottage cheese so it doesn't have as much fat. The fat could cause you to feel sick as well.

Your best bet is definately to take it slower and see your doctor to rule out a stricture.

[DeletedMember 715]

I had some similar issues to what you are describing. I'm no doctor, but it almost seems like it's possibly lactose intolerance combined with a bit of a stricture.

I do not have any lactose intolerance issues, but I have been struggling with a stricture. I would vomit for weeks if I ate any chicken, fish, pork, etc. I was able to eat shrimp and scallops, but that was about it for "meat".

I pretty much lived on cottage cheese and string cheese for months. At probably about 3.5 months it just got better - much, much better. I am almost 4.5 months out and I can now eat up to about 2 oz of chicken or port. It needs to be moist and I need to chew it like crazy, but it goes down pretty well.

As always, I'd talk to your surgeon. Mine told me he thought my best course of action was just to ride the stricture out and see if it would resolve on its own (it did). He said if it got worse, or didn't go away, he would do a balloon dilation and fix it. He was also completely unconcerned that I was only getting about 300-350 calories a day. I was able to get in all my fluids and Protein (primarily through Protein drinks).

[amandasc218 9]

I just had a scope done on 7/28 and everything looked normal. Would the stricture show up on that? Also I can only eat about 2 tablespoons of anything at a time and be full....which seems like not enough. A lot of the Protein shakes make me sick too. I really appreciate the advice and I also appreciate you telling me you went through that too.

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[DeletedMember 715]

I would assume they would look for a stricture while doing the endoscopy. They definitely should be able to see it since that is how they do the balloon dilation.

What does your doctor say about your issues. I understand he's not concerned with the calorie intake, but did he try and explain why he thinks your having these issues?

In the meantime, as long as you are getting your fluids and Protein in try and just make the best of it. The good news, if you're like me, is that your losing a lot of weight!

It was annoying at times eating the same things over and over, but I just figured "hey, I'm not hungry, and I'm losing weight really fast, I should just embrace this period". Looking back, it was just another tool to get me where I was going.

I am able to get in 800-1000 calories now.

I'm sure whatever is going can will either resolve itself, or can be fixed. In the interim just avoid the foods that make you sick and eat what doesn't. And get your fluids and Protein in. You're going to do great.