I am scheduled for February 18th. I will be first in. Wow, this process takes forever.

If you like chocolate pudding, you can make a protein pudding with three scoops of chocolate protein powder in 250ml (1 cup) of 1% milk. Blend with a hand mixer or whisk. Makes 5 pouch sized (3oz) servings each with 18g of protein.

I'm having some difficulty.

I seem to be unable to help myself from eating too much. It's like I don't know when to stop until it's too late. I keep doing it, even though I know I'm going to feel terrible after. I've only managed to actually throw up once since surgery, and I'm almost a full month post-op.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to retrain my mind? Because it's frustrating and upsetting me. I'll be moving to solid diet at my one month, which is next Tuesday, and I think I'll really end up getting myself in trouble if I don't watch it then.

On 03/13/2019 at 11:03, ladykrisgraff said:

I'm having some difficulty.

I seem to be unable to help myself from eating too much. It's like I don't know when to stop until it's too late. I keep doing it, even though I know I'm going to feel terrible after. I've only managed to actually throw up once since surgery, and I'm almost a full month post-op.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to retrain my mind? Because it's frustrating and upsetting me. I'll be moving to solid diet at my one month, which is next Tuesday, and I think I'll really end up getting myself in trouble if I don't watch it then.

Okay so it would help us answer you better to know what you’re eating and when.
Post that and together we will help you work through it

Okay so I have a progress report to make.
For the last 3 weeks running I was getting so frustrated because the scale was inching sloooooooowly along and now I’m happy to report that I’m down 1.6 pounds since Monday.
I truly didn’t mean to get on the scale mid-week, but my ever-supportive and all around best husband in the whole world surprised me last night with a fancy new scale that does body measurements like Water, fat, bone, and muscle. It will even sync with a couple of my health apps.
So of course I set it up this morning first thing and weighed on the old scale before weighing on the new one.
Bad news: the new scale weighs me 1.2 pounds more than the old one did. Booooooooo
Good news: I lost 1.6 pounds!!! That’s almost as much as I had lost in the last 2 weeks COMBINED.
Fingers crossed that I’m moving back down and this 3 week almost-stall is done

Edit to add: it’s going to be hard to not get on it to make sure the drop wasn’t some kind of fluke, but I’m going to be strong and wait til Monday.  

3 hours ago, ladykrisgraff said:

I'm having some difficulty.

I seem to be unable to help myself from eating too much. It's like I don't know when to stop until it's too late. I keep doing it, even though I know I'm going to feel terrible after. I've only managed to actually throw up once since surgery, and I'm almost a full month post-op.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to retrain my mind? Because it's frustrating and upsetting me. I'll be moving to solid diet at my one month, which is next Tuesday, and I think I'll really end up getting myself in trouble if I don't watch it then.

Honestly I’m having the same problem. It’s probably the biggest issue I’m having other than not being able to eat my vitamins. Just last week I walked by and picked up some leftovers off my child’s plate and just ate them like I normally would prior to surgery. I did not throw up but I was in incredible discomfort. I didn’t even chew them thoroughly and I was only two weeks out at that point.

I’m thinking slowing down is the key. Sometimes I just blindly forget that I just had a surgical procedure that will limit the capacity I can eat. Also I found this online. It’s not that helpful for me because I am rushing through eating but as I have had pain I am becoming more aware and slowing down.

This list is to encourage thinking about how you feel while eating instead of mindlessly consuming an entire measured amount or focusing on cleaning your plate. Think about these levels as you eat and soon you will be able to stop right where you need to be.

Hungry
level 1 – weak, headache, confusion, slow movements, low blood sugar
level 2 – very uncomfortable, light headed, irritable, unable to concentrate
level 3 – uncomfortable hollow feeling, stomach rumbling
level 4 – slightly uncomfortable, just beginning to become aware of and feel hunger
level 5 – comfortable, you are satisfied but could eat a little more
level 6 – happily comfortable, satisfied. Many emit a signal, usually a hiccup, sniffle or sneeze at the back edge before moving to level 7
level 7 – full and feeling that you don’t really want another bite. This is just a little beyond where you want to be
level 8 – not wanting to swallow the chewed food in your mouth where you must spit it out, uncomfortable
level 9 – overfull, very uncomfortable, regret in having eaten too much, pouch pain, hoping to regurgitate for relief. Feeling this way normally initiated by foods that go down easily but swell such as rice, pasta, bread
level 10 – stomach pain, chills, regurgitating of food, followed by intense fatigue
Overfull

17 hours ago, Sheribear68 said:

Not sure how you feel about cottage cheese, but that’s my primary go-to when I know I need to eat, but don’t feel like messing around with food. It always goes down easy and I know I’m getting good nutrition.

Also, if you chew something enough times, it becomes purée. Plus, there is such great satisfaction from actually being able to chew something for the first time in weeks. What my doc told me is it was fine to eat solid Proteins on the purée stage as long as I didn’t put in a bite bigger than my pinkie finger nail and as long as I chewed at least 20 times before trying to swallow.

Thanks for the suggestion, Sheribear. I tried cottage cheese today and it was quite satisfying. I'm going to try sticking with purees for a little while and see how it goes.

10 minutes ago, Recidivist said:

Thanks for the suggestion, Sheribear. I tried cottage cheese today and it was quite satisfying. I'm going to try sticking with purees for a little while and see how it goes.

Are you feeling better overall?

On 03/13/2019 at 14:59, Recidivist said:

Thanks for the suggestion, Sheribear. I tried cottage cheese today and it was quite satisfying. I'm going to try sticking with purees for a little while and see how it goes.

So glad that worked better for you.

Lol, I feel as if my sleeve has regressed this week.
The last 2 mornings I could barely get down any breakfast at all despite feeling hungry. What I did manage to eat felt really heavy on my tummy and made me slightly nauseous. Then I struggled to drink water for about 2 hours after.
This morning instead of eating, I drank 6 ounces fairlife milk and did a ton better. Was able to drink some water within 15 minutes and didn’t feel weak and “hungry” anymore.

Think that’s what I’m going to do for the next week or so and then try solids again in the morning.
Wow, this really is a process

I was having the same problem with overeating so I am limiting myself to 3 tablespoons of WHATEVER I’m eating at any given time before I pause 15 mins and then I’ll have two tablespoons etc until my portion (3/4 cup or 1 cup) is gone . Seems to be working for me with soups and cottage cheese etc

I just ordered a food scale to help prevent over eating. My eyes are way bigger than my stomach. I felt so bad because I ate a bit to much. I am learning that when I start to burp a little that I should probably stop. Recidivist you should try ricotta bake. Its yummy. This last week I dropped 4.5 pounds. I think I will continue do protein drink each day.

Thanks, Marine. I know that everyone here loves the ricotta bak, so I probably should try it.

Today I seriously overate for the first time. I generally just eat my regular portion of it is, but today that was too much for some reason. I definitely should have stopped but I still don't seem to recognize what it feels like to be full and stop. Some of it came back up to my throat, and I was miserable for about an hour. Ah well, live and learn.

4 hours ago, Everythinganna said:

Honestly I’m having the same problem. It’s probably the biggest issue I’m having other than not being able to eat my Vitamins. Just last week I walked by and picked up some leftovers off my child’s plate and just ate them like I normally would prior to surgery. I did not throw up but I was in incredible discomfort. I didn’t even chew them thoroughly and I was only two weeks out at that point.

I’m thinking slowing down is the key. Sometimes I just blindly forget that I just had a surgical procedure that will limit the capacity I can eat. Also I found this online. It’s not that helpful for me because I am rushing through eating but as I have had pain I am becoming more aware and slowing down.

This list is to encourage thinking about how you feel while eating instead of mindlessly consuming an entire measured amount or focusing on cleaning your plate. Think about these levels as you eat and soon you will be able to stop right where you need to be.

Hungry
level 1 – weak, headache, confusion, slow movements, low blood sugar
level 2 – very uncomfortable, light headed, irritable, unable to concentrate
level 3 – uncomfortable hollow feeling, stomach rumbling
level 4 – slightly uncomfortable, just beginning to become aware of and feel hunger
level 5 – comfortable, you are satisfied but could eat a little more
level 6 – happily comfortable, satisfied. Many emit a signal, usually a hiccup, sniffle or sneeze at the back edge before moving to level 7
level 7 – full and feeling that you don’t really want another bite. This is just a little beyond where you want to be
level 8 – not wanting to swallow the chewed food in your mouth where you must spit it out, uncomfortable
level 9 – overfull, very uncomfortable, regret in having eaten too much, pouch pain, hoping to regurgitate for relief. Feeling this way normally initiated by foods that go down easily but swell such as rice, Pasta, bread
level 10 – stomach pain, chills, regurgitating of food, followed by intense fatigue
Overfull

Thanks for posting this Everythinganna--

I just moved from purees to solid food tonight and had my first "meal." We have a family favorite, a green bean casserole, and my husband made it for dinner. It has green beans, chicken, cheddar cheese, cream of chicken soup, chicken broth, and saltine crackers in it. It is delicious and I figured since it contained beans and cheese, it was a good protein option. I ate about a half a cup and am STUFFED. It tasted so good that I wanted to eat more, but I just couldn't and I found myself to be very frustrated. I hated been so stuffed so fast, but I guess that is what this is all about--eating less. I also have a sharp pain/discomfort in my tummy so I know I ate over my limit. I am finding that waiting to drink water for 30 minutes after a meal is HARD. I have zero room for it, though. If you are a member of the "clean plate club" like me (that's how many of us grew up, right?) I am guessing you get how frustrating this is. I think I hit a level 7 and need to strive for level 5. I'll try for that tomorrow as I'm bringing leftover casserole to work tomorrow for lunch.

I totally get the frustration. I’ve been feeling a lot of that lately and a side helping of regret. Chicken is an absolute NO NO for me it never goes down easy

I'm having some difficulty.
I seem to be unable to help myself from eating too much. It's like I don't know when to stop until it's too late. I keep doing it, even though I know I'm going to feel terrible after. I've only managed to actually throw up once since surgery, and I'm almost a full month post-op.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to retrain my mind? Because it's frustrating and upsetting me. I'll be moving to solid diet at my one month, which is next Tuesday, and I think I'll really end up getting myself in trouble if I don't watch it then. [emoji20]

I'm working through the same thing. Old habits die hard. I would suggest measuring out what you're eating first. Start with a quarter cup and see if you're still hungry or just 'head hungry.' I read you can tell if you're still hungry if you will drink a protein shake to satisfy your hunger versus head hunger where you usually want something specific.

I have also gotten into the habit of pushing my plate away after each bite (it helps me slow down, which is my biggest issue right now).

One thing I’ve been regressing on this week is I think I’m probably eating too many veggies too fast.
Weirdly enough, one of my favorite all-time things is salad.
Cobb salad, Greek salad, Asian salad, wedge salad... I love them all.
My husband has always said that I should’ve probably published a salad cookbook because I could have that as the main course for dinner every night and it wouldn’t get boring.
And my salads have a minimum of 10-12 ingredients.
Lol, in my fave Cobb that I used to make, I had TWO different kinds of bacon and 3 types of cheeses before I would even start with the rest of the stuff.
Sigh..... I miss salad.

That being said, I miss it so much that I’ve been sneaking salad into my dinner meal and my protein levels are suffering. I also had part of an avocado yesterday, which I think breaks the record for the longest time I’ve ever gone without avocado.

I’m so scared that I’m going to overstretch my sleeve, but I’m seriously having veg cravings.
I’ve gone over my journal and I’ve taken vitamins every day and I’m eating clean as far as limiting sugars and I’ve had zero artificial sugars because any kind of artificial sweetener cranks up my food cravings into overdrive.

It’s weird..... I could care less about eating any carbs, but I’m obsessing over vegetables, which I can’t really eat because I don’t have the space.
Anyone else going through this right now?