10 weeks and I'm still struggling with appetite

[mamoosbabes 1]

How many struggle with eating after gastric bypass surgery? I've followed all the instructions (ie chewing well, waiting between bites, etc), but can't hardly stand the taste of most foods I eat. I've particularly had problems with Protein Shakes, Protein Water and protein powders. Some days I feel like I don't even want to eat. I'm concerned because I never reach the amount of protein and water recommended. Will this ever end? Good news is I've lost 48 lbs since November 23, 2022.

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[catwoman7 11,163]

yes - hunger comes back for almost all of us sometime during the first year. Mine came roaring back at five months out. I know it sounds weird, but enjoy it while it lasts. Although I was weirded out by it at first, I soon found it very liberating to never be hungry. By the end I wish it had never ended - it was so much easier to lose weight when I was never hungry and didn't give a flip about food!

p.s. are you still supposed to drink Protein Shakes? The RD at my clinic said we could give them up once we were able to get all of our Protein requirements in from food.

[bypass24jan2023 14]

I’m 10 days in now and have never felt hunger of course but the love of food smell has returned which is interesting as is the want to eat something tasty. I haven’t had nausea since operating day thankfully. Speak to your surgeon etc, I think sometimes forcing it (in moderation) is the way through but do that under advice.

[St77 87]

I'm nearly 9 months out and still struggle with appetite. It's a good day if I get 1/2 cup of food in for the entire day. And the worst part, not eating enough is aggravating my chronic Constipation.

[Arabesque 6,998]

The temporary change to your taste buds & for some more sensitive sense of smell can make finding something you can tolerate eating difficult. I remember being excited about being able to eat vegetables again in soft food but my favourites were awful. Took me a few tries to work out which ones I could eat.

At 10 weeks I would expect you are on solid foods. I focussed on ensuring I was eating all my Protein first at each meal & only a small amount of vegetable if I was able & usually only for dinner. I very happily never had another Protein Shake once I was on purée - they were disgusting. And like @catwoman7 I didn’t have to continue with them either. I supplemented my protein intake with a high protein yoghurt & yoghurt drink.

Water can almost be too heavy too drink at first. Don’t be afraid to try other liquids & not just plain water. I’d have a large mug of green tea, a yoghurt drink & flattened sparkling water (left the bottle open - I seemed to tolerate the mineral taste better) as well as plain water. Some find warm drinks easier to drink than cold too.

Hunger & appetite do return. When is individual but between 6-12 months is pretty common. I found it a helpful time to change my relationship with food. I started to eat to a routine because I knew I needed to eat to get in the nutrients my body needed to function not because I wanted to eat or wanted to eat a particular food, taste or texture (head hunger).

[summerseeker 2,040]

I am one of the lucky ones, I don't have any hunger 27 days out of 28. I find if I eat 4 or 5 small meals a day works well. That way I can get all my necessary food groups in. Pasta, bread, and potatoes are off my menu, no tolerance of them yet. It has taken me almost a year to master this as I was on really low calories for a long time due to severe restriction and nausea. I can manage to get in 1000 to 1300 calories a day this way and all my Protein requirements

Breakfast will be a protein yogurt

Mid morning a small glass of milk

lunch is usually homemade Soup, veg, lentil, mushroom, Thai style or Pho

Mid afternoon - a piece of fruit and a small piece of cheese

Evening meal - meat and salad or vegetables

On my hungry day, I don't let my calories get above 1500 by eating lower calorie foods than on other days