I went on a thread (not even sure which one) with post-op people posting who were three years post. Yikes! I started to get cold feet! (My surgery is a week from Friday). Apparently some people's appetites do come back and there were quiet a few who gained a lot back. They all seemed very aware that the work continues, it's not a free ride or a cure, etc., but if your appetite comes back then we're pretty much where we are before surgery: learning to ignore hunger and the urge to eat. If it were easy, we wouldn't be going under the knife. Also, good God, what the hell is dumping?? Sounds horrible!

I'm 1 year out and yes, my appetite came back. The difference is that if I forget my good habits now and choose to over eat, there WILL be immediate consequences. I thought I was past the "I over did it and had to barf" stage, (it's been months since I took one bite too many and got sick), but my "shock collar", (that's what I've named my sleeve), continues to do her job. I'm in maintenance now and still log every bite. I had some calories left at the end of yesterday and decided that after dinner I'd try a few tortilla chips with salsa. Not that this food is bad or good, (they were a higher Protein bean tortilla chip), but I WASN'T HUNGRY when I ate them. Spent the rest of the night puking because I over ate.

Unlike before surgery, THAT will not be happening again in the near future! Unlike before, I was up before the sun this morning on my bike for an hour because that's my habit now and I feel like crap when I don't exercise.

So, not, it's not a magic pill and yes, you CAN figure out that you can eat every few hours and graze on slider foods and gain weight, but for me, the reminder not to repeat the experience I had last night will stay with me for a while and the good habits I've developed over the past year will see me through the rare times I "forget" my boundaries!

bikrchk,

Thanks for your comment. Yes, those habits developed after surgery are something you must continue to do to find success in your weight loss journey. I find that exercising makes me sleep SO WELL and just makes my body run more efficiently.

I'm getting close to a year out and my appetite has come back but it's NOTHING like it used to be. I used to become a beotch from Hades when I was hungry before. Get the frack out of my way! Get me food now or I will hurt you!

Now, I get a twinge and say sometimes out loud--"I need to eat something." If I am bored, I can graze and fall back into habits pre-sleeve. I choose to keep myself as busy as possible so I can keep from sitting in front of the TV and mindlessly consuming food.

Blessings,

Kathleen

Edited September 16, 201411 yr by Katcloudshepherd

I'm 10 months out and I have an appetite. It's not the same as before surgery, but some days I feel strong hunger and some days I can graze all day long.

Here's how it's different than before surgery - when I feel hunger, true hunger, I eat a Protein filled meal. Breakfast is a Jimmy Dean turkey sausage pattie and a scrambled egg topped with some cheese. This keeps me satisfied for hours, especially if I wait 45 minute to drink anything. Prior to surgery, I'd be snacking in an hour or two. So I'm eating less than before at the meal and I'm not eating as soon after the meal...the sleeve is working.

On days that I graze, it's usually because I gave in to the carb monster. Maybe I ate part of a bagel for breakfast or I ate something else with a lot of carbs. For me, carbs are like a drug - once I give in, it affects me the entire day. If I identify it, I can usually break it with a shake and a lot of will power. If I don't identify it I will spend a lot of time in the kitchen grabbing a few bites here and there.

Early on, like the first 6 months, you need to change your tastes (cutting carbs), start moving your body, and change your lifestyle (getting Snacks out of the house, living the "protein first" rule, etc.). The sleeve helps you with that - it's simply a tool in your toolbox along with your will power, good choices, exercise routine, etc. Those are all tools you have in your toolbox that you need to use.

WLS is not a magic bullet - it is hard work, harder than I ever expected it to be. Every day I need to make a commitment to myself to life my life a certain way - I need to eat protein packed meals, I need to limit my carbs and I need to exercise. Those are the things I can control. Some days it's hard work, other days are easier. I wouldn't say I have a "dieters' mentality", this is just my new normal and how I live my life now.

I am only 3 weeks out but have watched my sister deal with her sleeve for the last 5 years. Yes she does eat foods that are not recommended but she takes responsibility for that and watches her weight and her diet a little closer. She states she hasn't ever vomited but the pain of overeating makes her think twice about that "last bite". She says she never has real hunger but she admits to head hunger and that is also hard to fight. She is active all day everyday and looks amazing but she never forgets where she was 5 years ago and how much work she did to get where she is.

I'm a year out and I'm very rarely actually hungry, but I do find that I have head hunger at times. Also, fortunately, whenever I do eat anything sugary or with a lot of fat, I'm almost instantly sick, so my sleeve does its job. Before I would do a really good job dieting and then spend a day binging and gain it all back. Now, I physically can't eat too much in one sitting because the puking is so miserable.

Also, my experience with dumping has been generally that I get very hot, my heart rate speeds up, my breathing rate gets faster, and my throat starts oozing goo and foam. I found that if I would lay down for 20 minutes and focus on breathing and relaxing, the hot flash feeling would go away and I was fine. If it got to the point where my mouth started the goo and froth stage, the only thing that makes it better is to just throw up and get it over with. The more you try to swallow it, the more that comes back up.

I was very nervous before I had the surgery as well, but I can honestly say it has been 100% a good thing. There are minor annoyances, but feeling confident and comfortable in my own skin again made it worth it.