Urgh, Ok so i'm still in the full liquid stage BUT yesterday I had some plain grilled chicken because I needed to eat and was out..IDK what to do because I feel soo hungry and today I had about 12 oz of egg drop soup. I'm currently taking in anywhere from 400-650 calories, and getting in about 75 g of protein in, obviously in shake form. I don't know what to do because I'm actually hungry. Any suggestions?

It's pretty normal to feel "hunger" during full liquids and this fades in most cases by the time you reach purees.

It's important to do a few things early on.

First and foremost, you really need to follow your surgeon's plan and I'm pretty sure chicken isn't on it. The post op diets exist to help our sleeves heal and you definitely don't want to risk a complication. I know you're not trying to eat a large portion and you didn't mention feeling discomfort, but curbing this behavior as much as possible is probably the best thing you can do right now.

Secondly, as you progress on this journey, learning the difference between actual, physical hunger and head hunger or the emotional desire to eat is critical. The reason for this is that your capacity is going to increase eventually. And not addressing the desire to eat will haunt you later because grazing is fully possible with a sleeve. You can't eat a box of Cookies in one sitting, but nothing will stop you from eating one an hour later on!

If you're not on a PPI yet (think Nexium or Prilosec) I urge you to contact your doc and get a prescription or to pick up an OTC box and take one daily. All that acid in a newly sleeved stomach (or even a vet stomach, like mine) feels exactly like a rumbling, hungry stomach. Make sure you don't have an easy solution that you're overlooking.

This is the most challenging part (physically) of the process, in my opinion. If you take nothing else from what I say, just take heart that it passes more quickly than you think and you'll soon be frustrated that you can't eat more than a few bites of soft foods!

Other than the things I mentioned, I think you're on the right track with already tracking your intake and pushing shakes.

Good work, swift healing, and try to stay positive.

~Cheri

Oh, and there's nothing wrong with egg drop soup, BTW - it's a yummy way to eat a bit of Protein on liquids, in my opinion. Even better if you spice it up a bit for variety!

Thanks..I do take Prilosec..I have been since the beginning..I haven't really felt hungry up until tonight...I was hungry..I'm 3 days away from being 3 weeks post op and my doc said I could go to soft foods when I was 3 weeks out...i'm trying to go 4 though

Thanks..I do take Prilosec..I have been since the beginning..I haven't really felt hungry up until tonight...I was hungry..I'm 3 days away from being 3 weeks post op and my doc said I could go to soft foods when I was 3 weeks out...i'm trying to go 4 though

Have you asked your doc if you could try the soft foods sooner? My doc said that I should use the steps as a guide and move at my own pace. You might already be ready for soft foods or even some solids. I started eating soft foods by the end of my first week and did great! I was worried, but he said if I could and felt fine, that was good and just take it slow. I just couldn't eat anymore soup!

Do you have baby mm-mm's in your grocery store> I'm canadian and actually have not checked out if you can actually eat them as a precursor to other foods. They are rice husk crackers kind of but they totally melt in your mouth. Its for little babies just starting to get teeth. They can't choke because of the quick disintegration so I think it'd be the same, but you could crunch it a few times if you really need to hear that crunch and feel you are eating something more substantial. I'm guessing it just kinda foams down the throat. They have baby and toddler versions. I picked Strawberry for those days my head hunger is messing with me. Best of all, gluten free and has vitamins and minerals added. Hope that helps!

I'm thinking of moving on to soft foods..I kept down chicken n was fine...I'll go a few more days with full liquid, but I don't think I'll make this whole week, n whts a few days neway...thanks everyone