Hello Everybody,

I have a question I hope you can help with.

I had RNY one month ago and I never fell full. I am measuring my food so I don't overeat. On the flip side I'm not really hungry.

I have read about nerves being severed and such, seems plausible. Also, when discussing my concerns with my surgeon he explained that some people have more scar tissue/swelling so not to be concerned.

So here is my question...when I do start feeling hungry again will I also start to feel full? I'm not looking for that "I need to unbutton my pants" type of full, just satisfied. Will that feeling come back?

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I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery. From my perspective you are talking about two different things: feeling full and hunger.

For me, whenever I eat too much, I feel pre-dumping triggers. These can vary by individual. They can include: sneezing, excessive mucous creation, hiccups,congestion, the instantaneous change in the way food taste (from good to bad). If I continue to eat once I hit this stage, the next spoon of food causes me to transition into full blown dumping. This is 4-6 hours of misery. Generally the only relief is to find a toilet and force myself to vomit the food out. The issue is not feeling full, it is the inability to consume a larger amount of food than my new stomach can hold. These syndromes for the most part happen after you transition from the full liquid/pureed food stage into the solid food stage. [The part of the anatomy that triggers the full feeling is at the top of your stomach. When your stomach was larger pre-surgery, you would have to eat a lot before you hit your trigger. But now that your stomach is small, it should take very little. And if you are meticulous about meeting the requirements of meal volume by measuring every meal, hopefully you will not exceed this amount and transition to dumping. Dumping is a learning tool, so become very aware of the pre-triggers that your body generates.]

After surgery, I completely lost my sensation of hunger. This sensation returned about a year after surgery, but it was not nearly as strong as pre-surgery. Before I had surgery, hunger was constantly, continually gnawing at my bones. When I ate a meal, I was already thinking about my next meal.

There is also a phenomena known as head hunger. This is when the body thinks it is hungry; but isn't. In other words, it is all in the head. Right after surgery, the body craves the sensation of chewing. So in the beginning when one is on the full liquid/pureed food stage, one is deprived of the sensation of chewing. For most of our lives we have chewed foods and they release digestive fluids in our stomach. It is a built-in process. Head hunger is also the sensation of lost memories of the tastes of our favorite foods. It might also be triggered by a break in the habit of eating.

I love to eat food. I mean really love to eat fine meals. After surgery, food almost became my mortal enemy. Food losts it's taste and flavor. It was totally bland. After several months, I discovered that mixing food groups together, such as in chili and Soups help to restore some of the flavor. Spices also helped. Now that I am 3 years post-op, some of the original flavor is starting to return.

Thank you for responding,

here's the thing I have never "dumped" before and I don't get any other type of sign that I'm done. I know on at least two occasions that I probably over did it and nothing. I could have kept eating and probably would've eaten my whole meal but I know my stomach is only so big so I did stop but is was way more food than I have eaten in the past few weeks, if that makes any sense.

I hear over and over again how people can only eat a few bites and they are stuffed, I'm just wondering if I will ever feel that again? Does sensation come back in the ol' gut or am I doomed to measure my food for eternity?

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Feeling full comes from overeating. It is not a matter of semantics or tomato-tomahto.

The ideal, whether as a result of surgery or the nature-or-nurture question rooted in childhood, is to feel satisfied. When I think of having another bite or two, then realize I'm satisfied with what I've eaten, I know I'm in the right place emotionally and bodily.

Another thing. When the quality of the food is high, I'm satisfied with less. If I'm eating something I like to begin with and it comes from the hands of a great cook using the highest-quality ingredients, I sooner reach satiety than I do if I'm not happy with the dish. I suspect that emotional junk comes into play some of the times..

Edited August 16, 201610 yr by WLSResources/ClothingExch

I usually just eat what I've weighed/measured for myself. The only time I feel "full" (although it's a different feeling from before) is when I'm starting to overdo it. I know if I keep eating after I get that feeling, I'm going to vomit.

btw my new "full" feeling is really more of an uncomfortable feeling. I can't really describe it any better than that. But it doesn't feel full like I felt full before surgery.

What are you eating right now? I didn't get to start eating more solid food until a month out, and -that- is when I started feeling full. I need to be very careful to eat slowly because the full feeling comes on quickly, and even one bite past that makes me feel uncomfortably full for several hours.

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I'm a month out and allowed all solid foods as long as it agrees with me. I have had no problems at all eating anything I've incorporated. Last night I had Boston Market. Quarter white chicken with steamed veggies and garlic dill new potatoes. I concentrated on the chicken but I did eat a bite or two of the sides. I didn't eat it all, obviously. But the only thing stopping me is the knowledge that my pouch is small.

I don't think I'm asking the correct question, I just would like to know from the people who didn't feel full or hungry if the feeling in their stomach ever came back.

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Feeling full comes from overeating. It is not a matter of semantics or tomato-tomahto.

The ideal, whether as a result of surgery or the nature-or-nurture question rooted in childhood, is to feel satisfied. When I think of having another bite or two, then realize I'm satisfied with what I've eaten, I know I'm in the right place emotionally and bodily.

Another thing. When the quality of the food is high, I'm satisfied with less. If I'm eating something I like to begin with and it comes from the hands of a great cook using the highest-quality ingredients, I sooner reach satiety than I do if I'm not happy with the dish. I suspect that emotional junk comes into play some of the times..

I don't feel anything is what I'm trying to explain, not hungry, not full, not satisfied. I stop because I know my pouch is only so big, that is the only thing that stops me.

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@@reeniemay

There is a huge difference between feeling satiated and feel stuffed. You never want to stuff yourself, afterall that is how we got here for the most part.

The goal of this surgery is to eat enough that you are not hungry or in the beginning, eat enough so that you are nourished.

Hunger came back for me around 4 months post op and I had RNY. It is a different hunger than before and these are all sensations that you will get used to.

For now, you don't need to stuff yourself to feel satisfied? Do you? If you do, I would recommend seeing your dietician and therapist right away so they can work with you to get past the feeling that you need to do that.

The whole goal is to eat enough to not be hungry. And I don't dump nor have I every dumped. In the beginning sticking to the plan of 1/4 of a cup of good quality Proteins and veggies is all you really need to do. Anything beyond that actually is not necessary. Once more of the swelling goes down around the 3 to 4 month mark, your dietician will likely have you increase your intake to as much as 1/2 cup of food and by a year as much as 1cup of food.

I am 2 years post op and still eat 1 cup to maybe 1 1/4 cup. I no longer measure because I know what that amount looks like. I pay close attention to what my stomach is telling me and I know not to ever exceed even by a spoonful because it can make you sick. Not dumping sick but belly ache need to vomit sick.

I have experienced it a few times when not paying attention to what I am eating.

The key is mindful eating.

Best of luck.

@@reeniemay

Lastly, just because you can eat more does not mean that you should. Same thing with the wrong foods, I can eat anything I want with the exception of eggs. I don't because I know that I will gain weight if I do and then what was the point of having my insides remodeled.

You just went through a lot to get your surgery, this is when you need to start training your head to help you achieve your goals. Trust me, it is much easier said that done as you are already experiencing.

Tell yourself this: just because I can, doesn't mean I should......it is a mantra that I used every day......every day that I didn't dump to lose half my body weight literally. They assume you will lose up to about 70% of your excess weight. You have to work really hard at the head thing to be successful and let me tell you it doesn't stop when you get to maintenance, in fact it becomes harder because now you are at a normal weight, healthy and happy and think I could have dessert every night or that was so good I could maybe have a little more.....these are the things that cause regain.

You asked the questions will the feelings every come back to know whether you are full. I say yes but you need to eat slowly to recognize them or you blow past them. I get hungry, I get full and yes, I have gotten stuffed but I try to avoid it like the plaque because being stuffed feels absolutely miserable.

@@reeniemay

There is a huge difference between feeling satiated and feel stuffed. You never want to stuff yourself, afterall that is how we got here for the most part.

The goal of this surgery is to eat enough that you are not hungry or in the beginning, eat enough so that you are nourished.

Hunger came back for me around 4 months post op and I had RNY. It is a different hunger than before and these are all sensations that you will get used to.

For now, you don't need to stuff yourself to feel satisfied? Do you? If you do, I would recommend seeing your dietician and therapist right away so they can work with you to get past the feeling that you need to do that.

The whole goal is to eat enough to not be hungry. And I don't dump nor have I every dumped. In the beginning sticking to the plan of 1/4 of a cup of good quality Proteins and veggies is all you really need to do. Anything beyond that actually is not necessary. Once more of the swelling goes down around the 3 to 4 month mark, your dietician will likely have you increase your intake to as much as 1/2 cup of food and by a year as much as 1cup of food.

I am 2 years post op and still eat 1 cup to maybe 1 1/4 cup. I no longer measure because I know what that amount looks like. I pay close attention to what my stomach is telling me and I know not to ever exceed even by a spoonful because it can make you sick. Not dumping sick but belly ache need to vomit sick.

I have experienced it a few times when not paying attention to what I am eating.

The key is mindful eating.

Best of luck.

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Thank for responding,

As I said I'm really not looking for that gut busting need to do undo my pants feeling, just feeling in my stomach. My question was basically when did feeling come back. I probably didn't word it correctly.

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I'm 3 months post-op and stopped measuring my food because I thought I could do it in my head. I then started feeling pop-your-button-open full all the time. It sucked so I started measuring again.

The feeling you once felt pre-op, I think, will never come back the same. I dumped a few times before I found my own pace. You need to re-learn your body. The feeling "full" or "satisfied" is all a different kind of feeling that you need to learn all over again. It's all about nourishment with a tiny bit of pleasure. Your stomach is still there, it's just changed and you need to change with it.

As far as feeling hungry, to this day my stomach hasn't showed me it's ready for food. No sign at all. No noise. Nothing. Sometimes I forgot to eat. I hate to say that I had to force myself to have a meal. I find myself looking for protein mostly.

BUT, this passed weekend, I feel like I want to eat everything. Not because my stomach told me. I still don't have hunger pangs but I am eating because I want to eat, not because I have to. Is in my head and I think this is where I need to become more cautious because I have gained a pound since last Tuesday. Maybe it's because I wasn't eating enough to begin with, or maybe because I'm eating too much. I need to find my center again.

It's all about discovering yourself. At least that is what I've learned from my own experience.

It's like losing a finger... You'll have to learn to write differently. But you'll learn. [emoji3] [emoji106]

Thank you @! That was helpful, I'm trying to figure it out, looking for signs it's just not happening right now. Maybe too early. I'll keep measuring like I have been and hopefully one day I'll learn to know what signs I'm looking for. Again, thank you for responding.

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I completely understand what you are saying! I am almost a month out (on the 20th) and it is just such a different feeling to not have any feeling. Before surgery, when I ate something I could feel the difference in my stomach. Now, I feel nothing. I stick to my measured portions, but it's weird because I never feel hungry, satisfied, full, or anything. It will take some getting used to if this is the new norm.

I completely understand what you are saying! I am almost a month out (on the 20th) and it is just such a different feeling to not have any feeling. Before surgery, when I ate something I could feel the difference in my stomach. Now, I feel nothing. I stick to my measured portions, but it's weird because I never feel hungry, satisfied, full, or anything. It will take some getting used to if this is the new norm.

I knew I wasn't the only one lol!! But I keep hearing from people I know that they couldn't eat more than a bite or two and were "completely stuffed"

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Edited August 17, 201610 yr by reeniemay