This has been something I've struggled with for a while now.

I wake up in the morning and by 9:30am, I have 1/4 cup of Egg Beaters with a slice of chopped ham. A lot of the time, by 2pm or so, I'm not hungry, at all.

Like today for example. I ate at 9am, here it is almost 4:00pm and I haven't had anything else to eat. I'm not hungry at all. I've been drinking my water and I have had a 4oz Optisource Protein Drink (100 calories), so all in all, my intake has been about 165 calories today...

Not good I know, but I'm not sure what else to do. Sometimes I'll eat at the 4 hour mark, regardless, but then I stress out about my pouch expanding because if I'm not hungry, then there would still be food in my pouch, right?

My weight loss is good, I'm losing on average 3 pounds a week...

So, if you are not hungry, do you force yourself to eat anyways?

I wouldn't worry about stretching your pouch by eating after 4 hours. It is HIGHLY unlikely that you still have food in there after that amount of time, even if you aren't feeling hungry. It's not the physical presence of food that makes us feel satiated, it's the stimulation of the vagus nerve.

I usually eat about every 4 to 5 hours. Like someone else said, if they don't feed themselves at that time, they become ravenous. Getting too hungry can lead to first bite syndrome which can lead to being stuck and other unpleasant things. I'd rather eat a little.

Congrats on the 3lbs a week. I remember those days. My loss has slowed quite a bit now, but it's still coming off.

I am a little confused on the vagus nerve stimulation that I see some people writing about on here..... if it is about the vagus nerve (which is located in the head/neck) then why do we get the band on the stomach? VNS is used for a variety of things but I have not seen for weight loss thru the band anyway. Can someone please forward me the literature on this? Seems the VNS would be less intrusive than the lapband.. diet wise anyway. Thanks!

"There's one vagus nerve on each side of your body. Each nerve runs from your brainstem through your neck and down to your chest and abdomen. With vagus nerve stimulation, a device called a pulse generator is surgically implanted in your chest. A wire threaded under your skin connects the pulse generator to the left vagus nerve in your neck. The pulse generator sends out electrical signals along the vagus nerve to your brain. These signals affect mood centers of your brain, which may improve depression symptoms."

I am a little confused on the vagus nerve stimulation that I see some people writing about on here..... if it is about the vagus nerve (which is located in the head/neck) then why do we get the band on the stomach?

The vagus is also called the pneumogastric nerve since it innervates both the lungs and the stomach (as well as other parts of the body). According to the diagram shown to me, the vagus nerves run down through the opening of our stomach which is exactly where the band is placed.

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So interesting.. thanks for sharing.. I will speak to my doc for more info. They never mention this in any of the synposiums I attended.. awesome progress you've made!!

So interesting.. thanks for sharing.. I will speak to my doc for more info. They never mention this in any of the synposiums I attended.. awesome progress you've made!!

Thanks!

Oh and something you might find interesting. Gastric bypass patients still have to deal with the ghrelin hormone because their digestive system is rerouted but the stomach stays intact. It is not uncommon for a gastric bypass patient to end up getting a band.

I've been doing a lot of reading up on the vertical sleeve, which does remove the stomach, and have discovered that about a year or so after the stomach is removed, the body figures out how to start producing that ghrelin again...and it is not uncommon for a VS patient to get a band at some point.

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Jackie, if you`re anything like me, you will never feel hungry again, at least not physically. I`ve been banded since October, 09 and have never been hungry since. That, however, does not stop me from eating, especially junk food. What I`ve noticed is that I always eat a lot more than I intend if I go for a long time without eating. I sometimes forget to eat and end up wih the symptoms one used to get when I was in my starving mode prior to banding such as lethargy and slight dizzines.

My advice will be that you eat at a planned interval whether you`re hungry or not. I`m hardly able to eat Breakfast but I guess I sometimes make up fo that during the night. It` 5pm this side of the pond and I`ve just remembered to eat. Shameful and not advisable because that does not aid responsible weightloss and that`s why I`m forever in a stall.

Don`t wait until you`re hungry to eat, adopt a responsible attitude from the start if you can.

My nurses have told me to plan to eat 4 small meals and 2 small Snacks, trying to eat at least 70-80 grams of Protein. I am NOT currently following that and at a stall as well. I get my head wrapped around "something" to eat and that becomes my issue - not that I'm hungry. Are you eating the right amount of protein and eating protein first? Also, maybe set a timer on your phone or computer - an alarm to remind you, and keep small snacks like cheese sticks (not the fried ones!), or yogurts with you at work or wherever you are.

I also have found it hard to get my waters in when I eat the way they tell me to - especially if I'm stopping half an hour - an hour before and after I eat.

I eat, hungry or not. I generally eat pretty rote- shake for breakfast, mid morning snack of friuit and chesse, or nuts or beef jerkey, lean meat and a veggie for lunch, another sanck, more lean meat and veggie for dinner and a sanck before bed. Snacks have been key for me, they keep me from getting too hungry. When I am very hungry is when I make poor choices. I have consistenly lost weight since I started the program. I am currenly maintaining a 107 pounds loss. Hope this helps.