Seasoned sleevers ??

[trimarie1083 7]

When does that fullness feeling go away ?? I'm 1 and a half months out and my body is still very aware of letting me know when I shouldn't eat something . I don't want that feeling to fade (of course it will ) but does anyone have a specific measure of time that your appetite starts to return ???

[BostonGary 106]

I'm at 9 months and I still have the feeling of being full and not being able to eat too much. I love it. I love the idea of being able to Portion Control and not being able to overeat. I hope this feeling never goes away. I'm down 100 lbs.

[trimarie1083 7]

I'm at 9 months and I still have the feeling of being full and not being able to eat too much. I love it. I love the idea of being able to Portion Control and not being able to overeat. I hope this feeling never goes away. I'm down 100 lbs.

Congrats to you !! Hope it lasts as well for me

[Stephanie 73]

I am 6 years out. The feeling of fullness will depend on if you gradually over eat a little here and there causing your stomach to stretch again. The hunger part that was cut away with your surgery does come back. Different times for different people. Generally the first 6-12 months you are without hunger. This is called the "Honeymoon Period" and does not last. The hunger hormone does come back so take advantage of it being absent while you can.

[BostonGary 106]

13 hours ago, Stephanie said:

I am 6 years out. The feeling of fullness will depend on if you gradually over eat a little here and there causing your stomach to stretch again. The hunger part that was cut away with your surgery does come back. Different times for different people. Generally the first 6-12 months you are without hunger. This is called the "Honeymoon Period" and does not last. The hunger hormone does come back so take advantage of it being absent while you can.

The question I have is if you start feeling full, stop eating. Will you eventually "stretch" out the sleeve. I wasn't aware you could do that but actually what would happen is that you would no longer have that feeling (you get used to it), overeat and it's not that you've stretched you sleeve (which I thought wasn't possible), you're just able to eat more food as you're not bothered by the feeling of being full. Lastly, I do think the idea of Ghrelin (the hormone that makes you feel hungry) does return -- but when does that start growing back? Or is that another per individual thing?

So I guess I'm saying / asking two things:

1. Can you really "eat yourself out of your sleeve" and stretch it?

2. When does the Ghrelin start to re-appear and create more hunger?

[Stephanie 73]

Yes, you can "eat yourself out of your sleeve" Your stomach is still the same as before, they just made it smaller and if you over eat it will stretch just like it did before you were sleeved. You will continue to have a feeling of fullness but as your eat more that feeling takes longer to achieve. So if right now you can eat a half cup of food at a sitting , in 6 months you may be able to eat a whole cup of food before you have that feeling. Now if you are following your food plan of calories, carbs etc you will be ok but if you think a bit of pizza and a bite of cake will not harm you, you are wrong. You may not gain any weight but what you have done is tell your brain, "It's ok " . The next time you will eat the whole piece and pretty soon you will be adding a beer, eating the Pasta etc. At that point you will stretch your stomach and be eating over the calories and carbs and start gaining. You may not feel hungry but you will have "head hunger" and that can be worse I think. Just follow your plan don't stray . We are like alcoholics who are on the wagon , one drink can put them back on the path of over drinking . Food effects us the same way, we can flip back to our old way of thinking and cheating. This is why so many of us gain weight after a few years.

[BostonGary 106]

This is where I think I disagree, not about the idea of eating too much and stretching your sleeve (which is certainly plausible), but about the idea that certain food types and what you eat will cause you to gain your weight back.

I for some people who have food issues and are food addicts, food's that trigger unhealthy reactions is something I think you're being specific about. But not everybody who has weight problems are those type of people. I think your example of pizza, beer and Pasta is not at all accurate. So yes, I think you can overeat and eat yourself out of your sleeve, but no... I disagree that the types of food is a gating factor to falling off course.

Overweight people have many different reasons they are overweight. It's not a black and weight absolute for all VSG people that all patients have food issues that are analogous to an "alcoholic" -- that's just overly simplifying the issues. It's also painting a broad brush towards people who have a genetic disposition of being overweight or people who don't have a relationship with food that can cause them to overeat. It's just not that simple.

I think it's always about calories in and calories out. If you eat pizza or drink a beer, and you continue to do that, of course you're going to gain weight and go back to being heavy or fail at the outcome. You can't do that every day of your life and all the time -- but that ALSO goes for people who don't have a VSG. It's just common sense. You have to balance your intake based on your diet and the calories you consume and understand those calories have an impact on your weight -- every day.. The worst thing a person can do decide that they are overweight SOLELY because of the types of food they eat. People fail on diets because they make their lives a compromise and stop eating the things they like in favor of things that they don't like -- "denial diets" don't work because they don't change eating habits. Changing habits and changing your attitude about portions will help you maintain or allow you to lose weight. If you figure out that you can have things you like but in moderation and within the size of the portions that limit them to being acceptable, you'll be fine.

The reality is, for the most part, 400 calories of pizza is no different than the 400 calories of Soup or salad, but the thing you have to understand is that one piece of pizza at 400 calories is not going to be as healthy for you and needs to be treated as such. You need to change your habits around food so that maybe having half of piece and some salad to make up that 400 calories is the better option. And if you want the wine or beer, that's fine, but maybe you need to consider that the only drink you have during the course of the week and you might need to hit the gym or get more active to offset some empty calories that you've allows yourself to have. You can just consume calories over and increase those daily calories and expect to lose weight -- you'll gain weight and the problem with things like pizza is that for 400 calories you get maybe ONE slice, if you can even eat that much (after having VSG), you're not going to be satisfied and it's not as good for you.

Blaming the types of food you eat for gaining back weight is not the way to go. Counting calories and getting Protein and respecting your body (and your mind) to tell you when you've eaten enough is the right way to go. For people with VSG, learning what a PROPER portion size is for whatever you're eating is the key. People that push their sleeve and eat until their overly full will continue to be challenged. My strategy has been to always put protein first, and eat until I feel that my stomach is telling me I'm done. After a while, I know that about 8-10 ounces of food total is going to be enough -- if that's a life measurement that I can live with for the rest of my life, even if that feeling goes away, I'm 100% fine with that.

I know that in the past I could probably have eaten three times that amount and that's why I gained weight, I know now where my limits are and how to maintain them moving forward even long after the "tools" of a VSG are no longer able to help.

[Stephanie 73]

I think you are reading too much into my reply. It was meant as an example not a rule of thumb. My own experience is what I based it on but I am only 6 years out so am not an expert. I DO know you CAN stretch your stomach back to what it was before VSG , I do know that going back to old habits can cause weight gain, I do know that some foods can trigger old habits and I do know that some types of food trigger a body response to crave more of that type of food. the easiest way to continue to lose weight is to stay on the program given to you by your DR and not stray. If your Dr says pizza, beer and Pasta is ok then go for it.