I am nearly 5 months out from surgery. My recovery has gone very well. I had some (expected and tolerable) discomfort upon eating during the first few weeks after surgery. Once I healed, I have had no pain from eating (unless I made poor choices in quantity or quality of foods). In the past few weeks I have had a new pain arise after taking the first few bites of a previously tolerated meal. It feels like a transient cramp or rebellion by my stomach to the presence of the incoming food. It passes in a few minutes and I can continue with my meal, usually without any additional pain. I happened to run into my surgeon and was able to ask him about it. He said it is likely that the peristalsis in my stomach is returning; that the pain is my stomach sensing the presence of food and squeezing on it, more like in my pre-surgical days. Has anyone else had this pattern of recovery? If so, was the return of your peristalsis also the return of your appetite? I am concerned that the end of my honeymoon period (translation-for me that has meant that I have had nearly no appetite) is coming soon. Boo hoo if I am right as I have only lost 55 of the ~130 pounds I was hoping to lose. I know there are lots of folks who have continued to lose for at least the first year after surgery. I hope to be one of them. If my honeymoon period is about over and my future weight loss will require new skills and effort on my part, I'd rather know about it and be prepared. Hey vets, help me out!

Well, the initial Honeymoon, as I see it, is the period of time where you don't really have a choice as to whether you comply with the guidelines. This is the time when I adopted new eating habits: taking smaller bites, chewing thoroughly, putting the utensil down after each bite, evaluating how I felt and not drinking around mealtimes. At first, it was difficult, but I did not want to push things too hard, so I adopted.

So then, did the Honeymoon end?

That, I believe, is by choice. Whether a person takes these new habits into their sleeved life once they regain the ability to eat any and all foods (for me it was at 6 months) will impact their long term success. This is where the rubber meets the pavement. Ill be honest with you, I am almost two and half years out and I am still in my honeymoon because I don't have to abuse foods the way I used to. If I gain a few pounds, I rigorously follow the guidelines and voila! I lose the weight. It is up to me to understand why I abused food previously and what is driving me to try to abuse food now. I still have the demons on my shoulder, but the sleeve helps me to ignore them.

The Honeymoon ends when you decide not to use your new tool as designed. It truly is up to you. But the good news is, you can get it back any time you are willing to do the work.

Edited December 6, 201312 yr by PdxMan

I wonder if you are hydrated enough? Peristalsis requires Fluid to work the food down into your gut, this fluid is mucous I think but I wonder if that contributes to your discomfort.

As for the honeymoon, PDXman nailed it for me. The choice is yours here.