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How to get over being head hungry



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Someone tell me this will pass.. i am 4 days pos op and i know im not hungry, though i am still getting used to new feelings.... but my head is telling me to eat ... is this normal? is this even a real thing? i feel like i am constantly hungry and i desperately need it to stop!!!!!

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Yes it's head hunger. More of a mental thing than anything else. Like most things mental, once you relearn new eating habits you will learn how to manage it better.

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Very normal. In my early days post-op, every single food commercial made me "hungry" even though I knew actually attempting to eat any of those things would be horrible. It definitely takes some time for your brain to catch on that you can't eat the way you used to. For me it was really a good 3-4 months before I really accepted it.

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I'm only 6 weeks out from surgery but I have the same head - hunger. Oddly, eating sugar free Jello (only 10 calories) seem to help. I'm told it disappears in a few months.

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. I'm told it disappears in a few months.

I only wish. I'm two years out and I fight head hunger almost every day. The first 6-8 months were actually the easiest.

It basically comes down to breaking old habits and building new ones. Finding something to distract you when the head hunger strikes. Developing coping strategies that don't involve food. I drink Water when I want to snack. I clean. I go for a hike. I take a pottery class. I groom the horses. I play with my dog. You just gotta find what works for you. The surgery was the easy part. Our heads are tougher to fix.

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Just being able to recognize that it is head hunger and not real hunger is a good thing. I experienced head hunger more in the beginning but now, six months later, I still get it from time to time. It really is annoying but I agree it helps to turn your attention to some activity that does not involve food.< /p>

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It will get much easier once your body starts to wean itself off the foods you were eating and you get used to eating differently.

Head hunger will always likely be an issue but not like the first week. For me it comes and goes occasionally, especially if I'm doing something that triggers me to want to eat like watching tv, playing video games or working on the computer. I have to be careful about triggers and avoid them. Otherwise head hunger galore.

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Thank you. .. I am struggling with wanting to eat but knowing 1. I can't and 2. I'm not actually hungry. .. day 5 post op and I am looking forward to it getting easier. .

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
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    • KimBaxleyWilson

      Three months and four days ago... I was in Costa Rica having a life changing surgery! Yesterday we had a followup visit with Dr. Esmeral via video chat and this morning my middle number changed.  I'm down 47lbs and two pants sizes. I can wear a Large tshirt for the first time in like... 14 years! Woot!! Everything is going great. I have zero regrets. I went down to the riverwalk with a friend and walked 2 miles on Monday without even getting fatigued. And no more snoring or chugging pickle juice for crazy leg cramps! I need to go to the gym more... I'm making new shirts next week so that will motivate me. LOL But I'm also just not as TIRED all the time! I have a LONG way to go...but seeing the progress on the scales and in the mirror is a huge motivator!! Thank you all for cheering me on and supporting me!!
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    • bellaamey

      https://alluniqueguide.com/java-burn-coffee-reviews/
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