How Much Time Between Bites

[Felicity3 5]

Hi all!

I am 4 days post-op sleeve surgery. Haven’t been able to reach my Protein or fluid goals yet due to nausea and pain around my sternum. I am eating sugar-free Jello, but finding it hurts. I think I’m eating too fast. How long do you recommend to wait between bites?

TIA!

[ms.sss 15,490]

First, I'm not sure, but Jello is not usually a culprit for chest pain? Have you contacted your doc with this info?

Second, regarding the timing of bites:

I got mine down to a science. I'm also pretty anal, so this may be too extra for you, LOL:

1. Take one bite
2. Wait 3 minutes (I used the timer on my watch).
3. Ask myself: Do you want another bite?
   1. If yes go to Step 1.
   2. If no, go to Step 2.
   3. If I have answered no to this question 3 times in a row, I'm done eating. Go to Step 4
4. Put your food away in the fridge and try again in an hour or 2.

Goes without saying, it took me a pretty long time to eat a meal in the early days. And I got used to cold/room temp food pretty quickly.

These days (2.5+ years out) I take 2-4 bites at a time and just wait a minute or so without the need for a timer. Sometimes I don't do this as well as other days and l'd pay the price either in uncomfortable chest pressure or barfs.

[Felicity3 5]

On 03/29/2021 at 20:49, ms.sss said:

First, I'm not sure, but Jello is not usually a culprit for chest pain? Have you contacted your doc with this info?

Second, regarding the timing of bites:

I got mine down to a science. I'm also pretty anal, so this may be too extra for you, LOL:

1. 
   Take one bite
   


2. 
   Wait 3 minutes (I used the timer on my watch).
   


3. 
   Ask myself: Do you want another bite?
   
   
   
   1. 
      If yes go to Step 1.
      
   
   
   2. 
      If no, go to Step 2.
      
   
   
   3. 
      If I have answered no to this question 3 times in a row, I'm done eating. Go to Step 4
      
   
   
   
   


4. 
   Put your food away in the fridge and try again in an hour or 2.
   

Goes without saying, it took me a pretty long time to eat a meal in the early days. And I got used to cold/room temp food pretty quickly.

These days (2.5+ years out) I take 2-4 bites at a time and just wait a minute or so without the need for a timer. Sometimes I don't do this as well as other days and l'd pay the price either in uncomfortable chest pressure or barfs.

I have the sternum pain even if it’s just liquids. My guess is that I’m not waiting long enough between sips.
I definitely wasn’t waiting that long between bites of Jello. I’m guessing it’s more difficult because I’m one of the rare few who feel genuinely hungry after surgery, so it’s harder to go slow.

Thanks for your input! If timing things down to the minute is what I have to do to be successful, I will absolutely start that.

[Jnfinney 526]

I had the same feeling in my sternum while drinking. My surgeon said I was taking too big of drinks, drinking too quickly, or both. Hope that helps.

[Arabesque 7,194]

I did & still do the same thing as @ms.sss. Though now I have a bite of Protein, wait 4-5 minutes before my next protein bite but will have a bite or two of vegetables in between. The asking do I really need the next bite as against just wanting it can be very helpful in reflecting on why you eat. Never be afraid to put your cutlery down & sit back or even to push your food away. I also ate using teaspoons or buffet forks so only small mouthfuls.

In those first couple of months I’d take 20-30minutes to eat 1/4 or 1/3 of a cup of food. Now it takes me about 30 - 40 minutes to eat a cup. But I take 60+ minutes to eat one of my giant salad bowls which are predominately lettuce.

If I eat to quickly, my restriction kicks almost straight away & there’s no way I can eat another bite for quite a while.

It does take a while to learn how your digestive system now works: all its signals, triggers, likes & dislikes. Then after you think you’ve worked it out it will change again especially in those first few months.

Give your medical team a call. Better to be safe than sorry.

Good luck.

Edited March 30, 2021 by Arabesque

[Felicity3 5]

Thank you everyone for your input! I started taking even smaller sips, which helped the sternum pain. And through some trial and error, I found my time between bites is best at 2 minutes. I think this will definitely help get my Protein and Fluid numbers up.

[lizonaplane 1,612]

This is so helpful! I'm trying to slow my eating down as I prepare for surgery but I think I am way off the mark. I am waiting like 20 seconds between bites so I see I have a long way to go. I just ordered some child-size silverware

[ShoppGirl 4,739]

I was going to say perhaps you are taking too big of bites. Maybe a baby spoon would be helpful??