I ate my first Meal Post-Op. A 20g Protein Scramble

1 egg 6g

1oz Provolone cheese 7g

1oz Boar's Head chicken 7g

Feeling full is a different feeling than is was when I pigged out. I don't know how to tell when I am full and don't want to over do it. I was eating (mmm so good) and had that one bite that was kinda uncomfortable, like when I drink Water too fast, so I quit. I didn't want to stop because I didn't finish it all and I wanted to get all my protein, but I was afraid to keep going.

How do you know when to stop? How do you know when you are full?

The problem is, that at first you can't tell easily. Your stomach is swollen and somewhat numb. Initially, we just weighed/measured out 1/4 c of food, and when that was gone, we considered ourselves finished. Trial and error demonstrated that within a few weeks, I could comfortably hold 2 oz, and my husband could hold 4 oz. So then we started to serve ourselves that amount, and considered the meal over when either the food was all gone, or we had a tight, full feeling which starts to come on within a few weeks of starting soft/solids. Three months into it, we're still doing that.

You will also find that some foods sit "harder" than others initially. I had trouble with eggs, but not cheese. chicken, but not ground beef. You will find your own "easy" foods. The moister they are, the easier they go down. The more fat it has, the easier it goes down unfortunately.

STOP when you are uncomfortable. Do not force it. Go back to it within an hour or three and finish then. With your first meal, it's more for getting used to eating, not really for nourishment yet. You can always supplement with shakes for a bit longer.

Yep, just eat slowly and when you begin to feel a little uncomfortable then STOP, do not take another bite. Soon you will be able to know about how much you can eat and you will automatically stop before it is uncomfortable. And yes, it is hard when you just want one more bite not to take it but every time I have done that, I swear to myself that I will never do it again, just isnt worth it. Just take it slow. Now is when you are beginning new habits, do your best to put your best food forward.

The easy way is to do what GameGirl and Susie suggest.

The hard way is to overeat, get pain, nausea, the slimies and vomit. (and most of us do this at least once... I did and "never again" I say, never... that was three hours of NO FUN).

Your stomach is telling you that you are done...We are so used to ignoring the bodies hints that we have had enough to eat....

I eat a bite and then put my fork down...then when I am ready to eat another bite I pick up the fork and repeat this routine....1/2 way through though I stop for about 5 min. and allow my stomach to tell me if it has had enough....Most of the time I do not eat any more after the 1/2 way point.....Some people have true signs of when they are full like sneezing, or their nose runs...or they can't stop belching....

There is nothing wrong with leaving food on your plate...I have considered that a victory for me as I have finally broke the lesson taught of eat everything on your plate. People are dying in Africa you know because they have no food......

Eating is not an all day thing....3 meals 3 Snacks at first...I eat 3 meals now and 1 snack at night. The snack is usually 1/4 cup of nuts or fruit....

You will soon be able to tell exactly how your body and stomach are working for you...You just have to really start to listen to it...K

Thanks you everyone. It sounds like I did the correct thing. I didn't measure the food before I ate, next time, but I did stop when I first felt "uncomfortable". One thing about drinking after a meal, I did not want to drink for almost an hour. I was STUFFED!!!

It is obvious I am not going to be able to get all my Protein from eating so I will drink a shake or two a day for a while.

Thanks you everyone. It sounds like I did the correct thing. I didn't measure the food before I ate, next time, but I did stop when I first felt "uncomfortable". One thing about drinking after a meal, I did not want to drink for almost an hour. I was STUFFED!!!

It is obvious I am not going to be able to get all my Protein from eating so I will drink a shake or two a day for a while.

You know I asked about this, and many, many people are still drinking a shake even a year out. We're three months out and some days, we have to have two shakes before we get our 60-80 gms of protein in. We definitely need at least one daily.

On my blog, I have some savory protein Soup recipes (made with real meat and veg, not protein powder), and you may enjoy some of those instead of sweet shakes. But don't worry about it for at least 6 months, I'd say. Use the shakes if you need to.

blog is www.sleevers.wordpress.com and you can search for "full liquids" to get easy recipes for egg drop soup, hot and sour soup, shrimp bisque, lobster bisque, chicken and mushroom soup etc.

How do you know when to stop? How do you know when you are full?

I had to learn how much I could hold, the feeling of gradually getting full is gone for me. All I can tell you is to eat very slowly in the beginning. Take a bite, wait a minute, take a bite, wait a minute. I can go from okay to over full in just one bite and I get this pokey feeling at the bottom of my throat. :-P

That feeling , that it ur not going 2 feel full like B4 . Stop at that point. But eat ur protein 1st then veggie , carbs

Yes that's it pokey feeling!!