Do you ever "forget" you had surgery?

[ShoppGirl 4,785]

26 minutes ago, lizonaplane said:

Actually, because I was dealing with a lot of hunger, my surgical center said it would be okay for me to eat plain, non-starchy veggies between meals, but because of my travel (and also my dental issues!) I have had a lot of trouble doing that.

It's been drilled into me so well not to graze, so I think I've just been eating a lot at meals (Not A LOT, just ... maybe 3 oz of meat, 3 oz of veg, but it still hurts, especially fruit and salad, which I love). I am going to try to slow down some more, see if that helps.

The other thing I'm struggling with is how nauseous I get from my Multivitamin. I would say about once a fortnight I will actually throw up. I've tried three different brands, and the best I've found is to take it with a heavy snack before bed. This week it's been low sugar trail mix, which I never ate before surgery, but seems to work well for me now.

Someone recently posted a thread on here saying “it was the iron” and that they got the Multivitamin with the 18mg of Iron and had no nausea. I wonder if you can take that and take another smaller dose of iron at a different time of day??

[lizonaplane 1,612]

29 minutes ago, ShoppGirl said:

Someone recently posted a thread on here saying “it was the iron” and that they got the Multivitamin with the 18mg of Iron and had no nausea. I wonder if you can take that and take another smaller dose of Iron at a different time of day??

I don't think it's the iron because I used to take iron before surgery on an empty stomach with no issues. But, I can try getting it without the iron, just for giggles... I've tried everything else.

[ShoppGirl 4,785]

1 minute ago, lizonaplane said:

I don't think it's the Iron because I used to take iron before surgery on an empty stomach with no issues. But, I can try getting it without the iron, just for giggles... I've tried everything else.

Yea because maybe your baby stomach post surgery doesn’t like it??

[Kia kaha 35]

I’m only one month post surgery, and I thought I was ‘doing well’ then eat too much 2 days ago and had what must have been dumping, such awful cramps etc (I won’t give you tmi but you can guess). So I have gone back to tiny amounts of purees again because my gut just feels sore and upset. So I guess that my ‘forgetting’ I have had the surgery has had horrible consequences.

Re. the getting hungry…I have that as well, but so much of it is ‘head hunger’, I want something sweet after dinner, that’s a habit, and ‘mouth hunger’ I crave crunchy, salty food. It’s not real hunger. My brain is saying ‘but you are eating so little, how can you possibly not be starving hungry’ but if I ignore those messages the ‘hunger’ passes (specially if I drink some liquid. A cup of tea, or a Miso Soup help my 4pm crash. Really, really listening to your body, stopping before you are full is the way to go. I haven’t really been doing that, and the consequences were grim! Anyway hope that helps….I’ve got to deal with this myself, so any ‘advice’ is just my thoughts…I’m not sure there is a magic answer!

[STLoser 1,099]

I'm almost 2 years post op now and I'm pretty sure surgery is still on my mind every day, but not the surgery itself, just the things I do now to support the surgery, like getting my Protein and Vitamins, etc.
I'm still losing, albeit VERY slowly now, but I had over 200 pounds to lose at the start, and that's part of why it's still on my mind every day. I still track my food, and probably always will, but I eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm no longer hungry but not full to the point of restriction.
I have overeaten on a few occasions and it's not comfortable, so I learned pretty early on not to do that and it's become second nature not to stuff myself anymore, which is an amazing thing to me because I pretty much always stuffed myself before surgery.
I feel like what I always imagined people who were never overweight must feel when they eat and it me it's a miracle.
Also, I don't have the raging kind of hunger I had before. I was someone who got hangry. I don't get that way now.
Anyway. I'm rambling, but yes, the fact that I had surgery is still always on my mind, but I welcome that because it keeps me on track. It's a new normal, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

[SleeverSk 635]

15 hours ago, Tony B - NJ said:

That is what I do. I eat and then eat a little something later to deal with the hunger. I find little Snacks that are sensible really help a lot between larger meals. And...of course...water first to make sure it is just not thirst.

I was going to suggest the same I find on the days I don't drink much I can eat all day and feel very hungry but the days I drink plenty I feel full faster and it lasts longer

[SleeverSk 635]

14 hours ago, lizonaplane said:

Actually, because I was dealing with a lot of hunger, my surgical center said it would be okay for me to eat plain, non-starchy veggies between meals, but because of my travel (and also my dental issues!) I have had a lot of trouble doing that.

It's been drilled into me so well not to graze, so I think I've just been eating a lot at meals (Not A LOT, just ... maybe 3 oz of meat, 3 oz of veg, but it still hurts, especially fruit and salad, which I love). I am going to try to slow down some more, see if that helps.

The other thing I'm struggling with is how nauseous I get from my Multivitamin. I would say about once a fortnight I will actually throw up. I've tried three different brands, and the best I've found is to take it with a heavy snack before bed. This week it's been low sugar trail mix, which I never ate before surgery, but seems to work well for me now.

I gave up my Multivitamins once I started eating normally all my bloods come back fine and I feel much better for it.

[lizonaplane 1,612]

27 minutes ago, SleeverSk said:

I gave up my Multivitamins once I started eating normally all my bloods come back fine and I feel much better for it.

I'm going to ask my surgery center. I still can't eat a ton of produce, and I'm not eating enough Iron. I already don't take the extra Calcium because I get plenty from the ridiculous amount of cheese and milk I eat.

[oldandtired 238]

15 hours ago, lizonaplane said:

Actually, because I was dealing with a lot of hunger, my surgical center said it would be okay for me to eat plain, non-starchy veggies between meals, but because of my travel (and also my dental issues!) I have had a lot of trouble doing that.

It's been drilled into me so well not to graze, so I think I've just been eating a lot at meals (Not A LOT, just ... maybe 3 oz of meat, 3 oz of veg, but it still hurts, especially fruit and salad, which I love). I am going to try to slow down some more, see if that helps.

The other thing I'm struggling with is how nauseous I get from my Multivitamin. I would say about once a fortnight I will actually throw up. I've tried three different brands, and the best I've found is to take it with a heavy snack before bed. This week it's been low sugar trail mix, which I never ate before surgery, but seems to work well for me now.

Might be just the way your Vitamin is formulated. Try another brand? LOL my doc said Flintstones twice a day, and that's what I do..for now...

[lizonaplane 1,612]

32 minutes ago, oldandtired said:

Might be just the way your Vitamin is formulated. Try another brand? LOL my doc said Flintstones twice a day, and that's what I do..for now...

Yeah, I've tried three different brands. They said I could take the Flinstones, but I only find the chewables, and I want a pill

[lizonaplane 1,612]

2 hours ago, SleeverSk said:

I was going to suggest the same I find on the days I don't drink much I can eat all day and feel very hungry but the days I drink plenty I feel full faster and it lasts longer

I drink so much, and yes it helps a LOT, and I recommend it too. I find drinking milky tea and coffee is great. I start off my day with a large hot tea and a large iced coffee and often I'm not hungry till 11. It's the hours from 11-6 that I'm hungry pretty much the whole time. And I have to eat, so I have to stop drinking sometimes.

[DaisyAndSunshine 303]

My hunger came back right after 1 month post-Op. So I do get hungry too, may be not as often as you, but every few hours I get hungry and I make sure to eat around there. At times, I don't make it to the food either cuz of my schedule or other reasons but I tolerate it fine.

I have done intermittent fasting in the past and being hungry doesn't bother me much that I have to have to eat it.

Yeh it may be bothersome and may intensify your cravings, but may be try eating to your schedule only and the amount you're allowed per your routine. Rest of the time, ignore your hunger signals by distracting yourself.

Hope your surgical center and you find your way through.

[BigSue 1,372]

I’m almost 2 years post op and I still kind of feel like my life revolves around my surgery. Not my surgery per se, but everything related to maintaining my weight loss. I spend so much time and energy preparing and eating food. I think so much about what I should eat and constantly have to decide how to “spend” my calories. I constantly analyze whether I’m hungry or full or head hungry. I spend so much time working out. I have to remember to take all my supplements at the right times (since some of them interfere with each other and/or my thyroid medication). It is exhausting! And I often wonder how sustainable this is.

On the upside, though, I try to remember that being morbidity obese was also exhausting! I was constantly worrying about people judging my weight, whether I could fit into chairs or spaces, arriving everywhere early to make sure I wouldn’t have to squeeze between people, hiding what and how much I ate because people were judging (actually, I still hate being watched while I eat, still feel judged, even though I’m eating quite healthy), sweating all the time, etc. So either way, my life revolved around my weight, and on the balance, this side of it is better. But yeah, for me, every day still feels like a struggle.

[Esi 179]

A pharmacist suggested that I take a Multivitamin without Iron, then take a slow-release iron separately. This worked wonders.