Hi Bariatric Pals,

I'm coming up on my one-year-surgiversary (11/22) and I'm already feeling hungry all the time. I wasn't expecting to feel hungry this soon after surgery. I was under the impression I wouldn't feel hungry for YEARS after surgery, but here I am feeling hungry all the time less than a year post-op. It's concerning to me because I haven't lost any weight in the last month and a half and I feel just as hungry as I used to feel before surgery.

How do I manage my hunger properly? I know I don't drink enough water and I could probably track my food a bit more. I have been indulging in bad food lately, too. I try to drink protein shakes but I just don't like them. I prefer savory food. Should I start from the beginning and try to just eat 800 cals? Should I go back to the very low calorie diet I had to do for a month before surgery? I've called my nutritionist and asked her for advice but she hasn't really said anything beyond "make sure you're eating enough protein and eating small meals throughout the day." I've even asked her if I should follow the "reset" diet and she doesn't seem to have any preference one way or the other.

I eat a small meal or snack with a lot of protein every 2 hours and I get full fast - it still doesn't take much for me to feel full, thank goodness. I just get hungry more often, especially at night before bed. Any advice?

SALAD.

Edited November 5, 20187 yr by GreenTealael

22 minutes ago, GreenTealael said:

SALAD.

like a small 2 ounce salad with chicken or what?

I can eat more salad than other things, and I think that’s okay. Most of us did not become obese by eating salads. I would just be careful with the high calorie dressing.

Hunger seems individual. I get hungry too. I myself do not drink a lot of protein shakes, I prefer to get my nutrients mostly from food. If protein shakes do not help you feel full it seems pointless to drink them in my opinion.

You say you are indulging in “bad food”. If you are referring to slider type food, these foods will not help your hunger so stop eating them. They can easily contribute to weight gain post surgery.

It sounds like you know what you need to do already. Drink more water, track intake, stick to a diet high in protein and vegetables....you can do it!

16 minutes ago, KimTriesRNY said:

I can eat more salad than other things, and I think that’s okay. Most of us did not become obese by eating salads. I would just be careful with the high calorie dressing.

Hunger seems individual. I get hungry too. I myself do not drink a lot of Protein Shakes, I prefer to get my nutrients mostly from food. If Protein shakes do not help you feel full it seems pointless to drink them in my opinion.

You say you are indulging in “bad food”. If you are referring to slider type food, these foods will not help your hunger so stop eating them. They can easily contribute to weight gain post surgery.

It sounds like you know what you need to do already. Drink more Water, track intake, stick to a diet high in protein and vegetables....you can do it!

Thank you! What is slider type food?

Try drinking flavored water, maybe it's head hunger that you are experiencing...It's good that you reached out for help because you have come so far. You asked should you start over from the beginning, I think that's a good idea just don't have shakes since you don't like them and you said you still have restriction so that is GREAT!! You will get back on track. Write down reasons why you chose to have the surgery and keep it near you as a reminder.

I wish you all the best!

Thanks everyone for the advice! I'm eating a 220 calorie Nourish Bowl (veggies) right now and I just put some sugar-free Welch's flavoring in my water. I sincerely appreciate your support!

Agree drink more water. Nestle splash mandarin orange flavor is the only water I drink anymore. Something about regular water doesn’t seem appealing like it did before.

I'm only a pretty new sleever (1 month) and wouldn't usually comment, except that you said you're eating a Nourish bowl and just added flavoring to your water. I wanted to check: you're still keeping your eating and your drinking separated by half an hour, right? My understanding is that that rule is kind of a forever thing, not something we can really ever stop doing.

Anyway, you've come really far in a year, and I know you'll figure this out and get it handled!

2 hours ago, bogglesauce said:

like a small 2 ounce salad with chicken or what?

As much salad as you want to try, no or very little dressing, animal proteins optional. At 1 year out I'm sure you are getting enough protein or are addressing that issue. The salad is basically tons of bulking fiber with very little calories, good in every way including filling up if you're hungry but can't afford more calories

Girl I am just 6 days post op and feel exactly as hungry as I did last week, pre-op.

On 11/5/2018 at 1:27 PM, bogglesauce said:

Thank you! What is slider type food?

https://www.bariatriccookery.com/slider-food

Question: are the protein chips and snacks we order from BP count as "slider foods"?

Sent from my moto g(6) play using BariatricPal mobile app

1 hour ago, Hrsnjs said:

Question: are the Protein chips and Snacks we order from BP count as "slider foods"?

Sent from my moto g(6) play using BariatricPal mobile app

They could be if overeaten. Even healthy foods can be over consumed.

Here are some snacks Intakt Snacks Cheese Lover from BP vs Lays Classic. The BP snacks are less carbs overall and more protein but the package (2 servings) is the same as one small bag of chips 28g, as for calories the chips are 10 calories less than the whole Intakt Bag. Not saying I recommend the Lays over the Intakt snack. I suggest you food log everything you consume. Logging holds me accountable for my food intake and I can review what is working and what I need to take out, and I log everything from a bite of cheesecake to my protein shakes and salads including dressing and condiments. I have been logging for over a year now and am 8 months out of surgery today.

Good luck.

I heard on other blogs that this happens to some people . They say initially they were never hungry like for months and months and then boom one day they just woke up starving .... just stay on track ....keep up with your protein and water intake . Are u still having your protein shake daily ????plus 2 snacks and 3 meals u got this and congrats on the one year surgiversary

On 11/7/2018 at 7:39 PM, Hrsnjs said:

Question: are the Protein chips and Snacks we order from BP count as "slider foods"?

"Slider foods" are an individual thing. It seems like not even the definition of what a "slider food" actually is, is the same for different people.

Sometimes it seems that people call a food a slider food if it's high in calories and/or high in carbs. Sometimes a slider is defined as a food that enables you to eat quite a few calories while not eating much volume. Others define a slider food as something they can eat a rather high volume of and/or has a relatively high calorie content. Others define two or all of the above as "sliders" and I'm sure there are still more definitions around.

In the end you need to test if a certain food is a "slider" for you or not.

Edited November 11, 20187 yr by summerset