I'm 3 weeks post op and I'm still trying to figure out how to chew more slowly. Does anyone have any tips on this matter? I'm in desperate need of advice this is the most frustrating for me.

how to chew more slowly. Does anyone have any tips

@@allliecortia

chew or eat more slowly

chewing?? just chew slowly until food is mush

you can only chew for so long before the food is gone/melted away

can't chew slower - before you know it the food is mush

eating slowly???

that is different

accomplish eating, taking longer to eat??

small bites

then put your silverware down for a minute

then pick it up after a minute or so eat again - slllllowly

hope this helps

three weeks out!!!

still around to talk about it!!!

you are a smart cookie

you realize you have a lot to learn being a newbie

its always good to ask for help with a prob (like the chewing)

good for you newbie for reaching out

i see the determination in your lovely eyes that you will be a success

good luck

kathy

Edited November 16, 201411 yr by proudgrammy

I haven't had surgery yet, but I wonder this myself. Right now I'm chewing 30-40 times before swallowing just to practice, but I wonder more "what does eating slow" mean? I can "read" it, but it's hard to imagine. Does it mean eat one tiny bite, stop, and then wait how long? 5 mins? 10 mins? 1 min? Best of luck to you Allliecortia! I know you will find the way.

So this is really weird. I take small bite and chew for a little bit and swallow. I don't chew food until it's mush. I don't like the texture when it gets like that. I have had no problems and no stalls and I am twelve weeks post op this coming Monday. My stricture is pretty tight. I can only eat about and ounce of food. Losing like crazy and no issues. I am not sure why they tell us to chew everything up to mush unless that is just for new sleevers. It's working for me.

My best advice? BABY SPOONS.

Seriously. I still use them from time to time. I bought a 20 pack of the little plastic gerber spoons that are dishwasher safe. I put some in my lunchbox, some in my cooler and the rest in the drawer. (I work from home, but I am in my car a lot, so if I am going to be gone all day, I pack a small cooler or my lunchbox to carry in the car.)

They keep by bites teeny because I suck at chewing to mush.

Also, walk a lap between bites. I get up, walk a lap around the living room and sit back down. It's a bit disruptive, and you can stop doing that once you learn how to pace yourself, but until then...

Thank you all for the advice..i went about my baby spoons and it helped take smaller bites. I know this is going to be work in progress. Another thing is I am having a hard time keeping anything other than mashed potatoes down...I'm definitely dreading the holidays

My rule is no more than 1/4 of the spoon can have food on it. I then chew until the food dissolves in my mouth. I put the spoon down after each bite. Every so often I just stop and take a few breaths before resuming. I practiced pre-op and I just make myself remember this. I had one bad experience in the hospital when I was sucking on ice chips. I put a larger piece in my mouth and vomited everything. I promised myself that would not happen again so I always take my time.

When I was in the phases where I needed to concentrate on eating slowly, I used the Eat Slower app on my phone. It's free and available for both iPhones and Androids. I set my bite interval to 45 seconds. Worked great for me.

I'm also having trouble too but baby spoons really help and if you go to the dollar store they're cheap .