Nurse practitioner tells me when I eat to take bites no bigger than half the size of my thumbnail and chew, chew, chew my food very well.

I do take much smaller bites than what I used to and make sure to chew very well before swallowing, but half the size of my thumbnail? Just wondering if others have been told this and if you do it.

Yes, that's what I do.

lol! I've never heard that! I take small bites but I'm not sure they equal out to half my thumb nail!

You'll quickly learn what foods require more/less chewing. If you think of your sleeve as a thin tube, imagine which foods would be more likely to get stuck if they weren't chewed down to smaller bits. Mileage will vary from person-to-person of course.

I'm now on solids, but I've learned that softer foods like steamed broccoli I can swallow larger bits than, say, tofu which is more dense. I've also found that I can swallow larger chunks of chicken, but not turkey or tuna. I actually love having to eat more slowly. I'm savoring my food so much more than I ever did pre-op.

Best of luck to you!

I was never told what size bites to eat, but my 1st month, I can remember eating only 1/2 teaspoon full per bite. At that time, I was still learning how much my new sleeve would hold. And I didn't know how Frankensleeve was going to react to new foods as I transitioned to real food from full liquids.

I was told the size of my fingernail but I take slightly bigger bites than that. And I am still working on eating slowly. I have had several painful episodes of food getting stuck and I was too big of a dummy to figure it out for weeks. I thought it was the foods I was eating and couldn't understand how they sometimes were fine and other times made me sick. LOL Now I know and I'm using the eating slower app to help me out.

I was told the size of my fingernail but I take slightly bigger bites than that. And I am still working on eating slowly. I have had several painful episodes of food getting stuck and I was too big of a dummy to figure it out for weeks. I thought it was the foods I was eating and couldn't understand how they sometimes were fine and other times made me sick. LOL Now I know and I'm using the eating slower app to help me out.

@@lexie It's like having to learn how to eat and drink all over again. I get those painful episodes too and have to remember to take much smaller bites and chew slowly, bad habit I have to break from over 50 years.

@@Elode I look at my thumbnail and think it's funny too trying to teach myself to eat that small of a bite, but maybe if I did I wouldn't have any painful episodes to worry with.

Oh I hear ya! I knew eating small bites and slooooow was going to be my biggest issue...and it is.

I used a baby spoon my first month post op. Now I have graduated to a small but almost normal sized spoon. Baby steps!

Just like SuperDave, I've been using a baby spoon to train myself on the size of bites I should take. It's been working out well. I was having problems with things coming back up but then I realized it had nothing to do with the food I was eating but that I was eating too fast! I slowed it down and everything is fine now! Except that I still want to eat fast! I have a problem with self control LOL!

Pretty much the same... My go to guide says to keep bites the size of your pinky nail (aka little fingernail)