Hi all! Well, I'm baaaaaaaaaaack!! Had my surgery yesteday (21 Apr)..spent the night (sleep apnea) and got home very early this morning.

Overall, the surgery went well; was hard to say goodbye to my husband as I walked towards the surgical room...but all was ok. It seems it took them a lot to wake me up but I don't think they were that worried since I was spending the night.

I am keeping on top of the demerol but I am feeling pain at my incisions and the left side of my neck is realllly sore.

The reason I'm sayin' "dang it" is because I don't understand my hunger. I followed (almost religiously) the 2 week pre-op diet (lost 16 lbs...which by the way the doctor said put my liver in excellent shape and made the sugery easier...ya...it wasn't for naught!)....anyways, I digress. I followed the diet and to be honest I didn't feel any big hunger pains....which is not what I expected to happen. BUT....when I woke up in recovery my first thought was: "omigawd, I'm absolutely incredibly FAMISHED" And, I've been famished ever since. WHAT IS UP WITH THAT???? My stomach has been growling at me since I woke up in recovery. I had IV drip all night...and today I'm drinking my clear fluids (Water, broth, apple juice, propel etc) but I'm SOOOOOOOOOO HUNGRY. And I have this week of clear fluids followed by two weeks of "solid fluids" before I can even move to mushies.

I guess I don't understand why I wasn't hungry before on such a restricted diet (the 2nd week yougurt is the ONLY thing I had for B, L D and snacks) but am so damn starving now. And, won't it get worse once my tummy is no longer swollen?

Don't bet me wrong....no regrets here...am very happy to be in bandland BUT I"m just confused/surprised about my hunger feelings.

I'm also afraid I might not recognize these signs of "gas pains"....not sure I ever experienced it before so not sure where to feel it. I have some meds (equivalent to gas X that y'all have recommended) but don't know whether to just take some or wait for the signs (but afraid I'll miss the signs).

Okay, 'nuff rambling. Sorry, I just wanted to say that I made it!!!! (& whine about my unexpected EXTREEEEME HUNGER.

Tks for listenin'!

Congratulations Yoda! you have my special band day. Can't wait till May 26 for my new date!

Hope you get to feeling better and have a speedy recovery...

You're all so great and have many words of wisdom.

Thankyou!!!

Thanks for bringing this up. I've been starving since the day after my surgery and it's not going away. I even went so far as to suck on some of my four year olds mac and cheese this afternoon (of course, I spit it all out). I day dream of cheeseburgers and spaghetti and bread. I hope this will eventually go away.........but for now it's VERY difficult to just get through the day. I go back to work tomorrow and I'm not looking forward to it. Hopefully, it will take my mind off the hunger pangs, though. Take care.

I was also starving after surgery and totally suprised I did so well on the liquid pre-op diet but post-op it became a struggle to obey the rules. I ended up calling my doctor and he let me move on faster then most. He felt as long as I wasn't vomiting then I could go to unclear Protein drinks and then to mushies early.

It's totally weird though the difference between the hunger pre-op vs post-op.

If you hungry folks are on Clear liquids, I would definately go after the Isopure drinks. I was only on clears for 48 hours, then allowed 'full liquids'. Keep in mind if you are hungry when you wake up from surgery, you didn't eat the night before (usually), then went however long that day, and I imagine there's not much in the way of calories in those IV drips. There's also not much in the way of calories in anything 'clear', lol. Maybe have some Jello? Not sugar free (unless you have issues with sugar), but just as a way to get SOME calories in.

Feel better!

I finally bought the Isopure today. It's nasty! But I had a bad headache and felt like my body needed something other than chicken broth and apple juice. It helped a little. I think I've made the decision to just move on to mushies and see how I feel. I can't take another day of liquid only diet!!!

I'm doing better...the hunger has subsided a LOT.

Congratulations on your band! I remember about 3-4 days out, all I could think was, OMG, what have I done. My DS came in with a plate of sushi, my mouth was watering, I was in a panic. Then I remembered this is only temporary, I will be able to eat again.

I think sometimes it was the desire to chew/crunch, more so than hunger. I used the s/f hard candy, sure helped, but s/f gives me gas from Hell, LOL.

Hang in there, it does get better, I promise!