Howdy y'all.

So I'm a new bandster, having joined the club on July 1st.

My first 2 days were hard. I was dying of thirst, but could not drink more than 2-3 cups of Water per day. I could have a Lima Bean sized sip every 3 minutes or so. Worst cotton-mouth of my life! I was waking up constantly throughout the night because I was so parched, only to be able to get that tiny sip in before passing out again.

Day 3 is when things started turning around for me. I was finally feeling hydrated and able to stomach some broth.

Day 4... I'm actually feeling hungry!

Today, at day 5... easily able to drink my 8 cups of water, getting my Protein shake in and some liquid Soups.

Here's where things get interesting...

When I get hungry, I go from 0 to famished in zero second flat. After 2 teaspoons of Soup (yes, TEASPOONS!!!) my hunger is gone, but I'm not full. I wait a few minutes and take another 2 teaspoons... and so on and so on over the next 20 minutes or so. Then just as intensely as my hunger started, the feeling of 'OMG, I've eaten waaaaaay too much' hits me.

At no point during my 2 teaspoon routine did I even get the inkling that I was starting to get full.

What I've learned is that I need resting periods during my meals. Eat slowly, taking small breaks between bites/sips, but then stopping for at least 10 minutes halfway to 3/4 of the way through my meal to give my body enough time to tell me that it's full.

In hindsight, this is a prime example of how I got fat in the first place. It was always a race to the bottom of the bowl only to realize 15 minutes afterward that I was sickeningly full.

So to all the newbies that come after me... don't assume that just because you're eating slowly you'll know when you're full! You may not know how full you really are until you're done eating!

I too have found eating slowly and taking breaks helps a lot. Right after being banded I would eat right through the full stage and end up being sick. Sounds like you are doing well, keep up the good work.

How ironic! I just finished eating lunch and was trying to focus on chewing everything very well before swallowing. I was curious to see if I'd still eat all of my food or not. I did (a little disappointed even though everything is measured out). I'm pre-op. This is good info. Thanks,