Skip to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.

BariatricPal

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.

Question about hunger post-op

Hello Everyone, it’s my first ever post!

I am a week out from VSG (4/23), and the thing I am most nervous about it being crazy hungry & not being able to eat. I cognitively understand that the huge reduction in ghrelin addresses a lot of that, but that fear is something I already struggle with (scared of being hungry with no access to food - side effect of growing up extremely poor I think).

Did any of you have that same fear? And if so, how did it actually go after surgery?

Thanks!

  • Replies 9
  • Views 2.2k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Featured Replies

I grew up pretty poor as well and completely understand that mindset. I am not quite post op yet, my surgery is on the 25th. I think from what I've learned is it is a lot of head hunger. I would keep a stocked freezer knowing that you have food accessible if you need it to put your mind at ease. Keeping protein balls (great ideas on Pinterest ) and string cheese available might help. They have great protein soups as well during the healing phase, and canned tuna during the soft food stage.

A week out from surgery I wanted to eat my leg off I was so freaking hungry.

Not "head hunger".... I had desperate "I'm starving to death" hunger....because essentially that's what you do right after surgery. You eat starvation levels of calories. And while some people don't experience a lot of hunger...a lot of people do. Ghrelin production be damned.

At about three weeks out, when I started eating about 1000 calories a day, the hunger went away and I felt human again.

Have not had problems with hunger since.

That is so scary. I'm 6 days in pre op liquid diet and not hungry at all. I'm scared of when the hunger does hit..

With luck, you'll be one of the folks who doesn't feel hungry at all:) Both reactions are pretty common.

I was really hungry the first week. At my one-week checkup, the doctor removed the liquid restrictions, said I could have as much liquid as I wanted and that helped. My intake went from 65 oz per day to over 100. But I didn't really get rid of the hunger until last week, so about 6 weeks out for me, which coincided with my transition to regular foods.

  • 3 weeks later...

I’m 5 days out and have basically no hunger, any minor pangs are easily satisfied!

I'm just under 7 months post op and have times of feeling hunger, but like Albus said, it is easily satisfied. The new norm has set in for me, and you too will get through it.

  • 2 months later...
On 4/16/2018 at 3:21 PM, Creekimp13 said:

With luck, you'll be one of the folks who doesn't feel hungry at all:) Both reactions are pretty common.

Hey girl?

I’m 2 1/2 years post op and have no hunger at all.It’s awesome and dangerous ?

I'm a year out and still rarely get physically hungry. I do, sometimes, struggle with head hunger at night while watching TV. I battle it by doing hobbies like tinkering and painting. As long as I'm focused on something I am never hungry.

Edited by JConforti

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Trending Products

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications

Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.