So I am sitting in my bed and my head hunger is whining about a cheeseburger. I am 7 days PO and a thought crossed my mind.

Do I crave the cheese burger's taste? Could I satisfy this craving bt chewing a burger and spitting it out?

Or

Do I crave the entire act of eating chewing and swallowing.

Has anyone ever tried the first method? Again just curious, its 1130 where I am and I am NOT getting out of my bed to test the theory.

Oh, I know this feeling!

It's really rough the first month. Food didn't bother me till the 5th day and was obsessed with looking at recipes.

I know if it was me, I would want to swallow that burger, so for me, I wouldn't have done it. Honestly, it probably would be really painful at this point. By the beginning of the 3rd week I was getting small amounts of protein.

I'm 3 months out and can eat about 3/4 cup at a time.

I wish you all the best!

Edited May 28, 20197 yr by gabybab

Oh, I know this feeling!
It's really rough the first month. food didn't bother me till the 5th day and was obsessed with looking at recipes.
I know if it was me, I would want to swallow that burger, so for me, I wouldn't have done it. Honestly, it probably would be really painful at this point. By the beginning of the 3rd week I was getting small amounts of Protein.
I'm 3 months out and can eat about 3/4 cup at a time.
I wish you all the best!

Hey Gabybab! Thanks for the insight it's really appreciated. I know I can make it, it's just sometimes your brain can really get to you lol! I like to feel full so I think just tasting the food wouldn't give me what I need either lol

1 minute ago, Peachgodd said:

Hey Gabybab! Thanks for the insight it's really appreciated. I know I can make it, it's just sometimes your brain can really get to you lol! I like to feel full so I think just tasting the food wouldn't give me what I need either lol

I understand. It's totally tough at first. I thought I made a big mistake at first, but know I've lost almost 60 lbs and can enjoy small amounts of good food. It's an adjustment, but I'm getting used to it and I'm motivated to do better.

Hang in there!

I have no advice, only empathy. I still struggle 9 months out. I just haven't been able to master this part of the journey. 94 lbs down though which I'm so grateful for. I keep logging my food, even the crap food I unfortunately take in at times which keeps me aware of the choices I'm making and how much it increases my calorie and carb intake. I just keep working on managing it the best I can. I'm not giving up. Best of luck to you.

I think a big part of it is the actual chewing sensation. We have our teeth to chew something on after all, LOL.

How long is your liquid/mushy phase? Mine was 4 weeks and it tremendously helped to know that after 4 weeks it would be over. Limited time periods are easier on the mind than "forever" or "never again".

What I also noticed was a craving for salty things (the protein drinks are usually either sweet or neutral in taste).

You have to distract yourself. Watch TV, do a puzzle, get up and do some exercise, anything to stop thinking about food.

Come read on this thread here about doing the head work. I just saw this article from Kristin Lloyd Moussa with 5 actions you can take to work through head hunger!

4 hours ago, summerset said:

I think a big part of it is the actual chewing sensation. We have our teeth to chew something on after all, LOL.

How long is your liquid/mushy phase? Mine was 4 weeks and it tremendously helped to know that after 4 weeks it would be over. Limited time periods are easier on the mind than "forever" or "never again".

What I also noticed was a craving for salty things (the Protein Drinks are usually either sweet or neutral in taste).

4-6 weeks

I'm SOOOO grateful that the actual hunger is gone or I dont think I would make it lol. I try to change it up from the protein shakes to the chicken broth to give me some variance. &it DEF helps that one day, one day soon I can have that burger. But of course a couple bites lol

8 hours ago, rs said:

I have no advice, only empathy. I still struggle 9 months out. I just haven't been able to master this part of the journey. 94 lbs down though which I'm so grateful for. I keep logging my food, even the crap food I unfortunately take in at times which keeps me aware of the choices I'm making and how much it increases my calorie and carb intake. I just keep working on managing it the best I can. I'm not giving up. Best of luck to you.

Thanks for the well wishes! &that's awesome about the weight loss! Keep it up

The head hunger is real! And not being able to eat anything chewable (other than my multi vitamin) is trying. I keep reminding myself that this is only a brief season in my life. Each mushy/liquidy meal I consume is one step closer to being able to eat a scrambled egg. And I'm sure by the time the soft food stage is done, I'll be having to remind myself that I'm only a few egg/cottage cheese meals away from something with real texture. Distraction is good, hope is better. And every morning when I take my meds, I am reminded why I'm doing this... I'm down 3 meds already and my blood sugars have been super steady in the normal zone. That motivates me.

37 minutes ago, MrsGamgee said:

The head hunger is real! And not being able to eat anything chewable (other than my multi vitamin) is trying. I keep reminding myself that this is only a brief season in my life. Each mushy/liquidy meal I consume is one step closer to being able to eat a scrambled egg. And I'm sure by the time the soft food stage is done, I'll be having to remind myself that I'm only a few egg/cottage cheese meals away from something with real texture. Distraction is good, hope is 7 better. And every morning when I take my meds, I am reminded why I'm doing this... I'm down 3 meds already and my blood sugars have been super steady in the normal zone. That motivates me.

Congrats! You just won the internet! Let's all go home now. ((hugs))

The head hunger is real! And not being able to eat anything chewable (other than my multi vitamin) is trying. I keep reminding myself that this is only a brief season in my life. Each mushy/liquidy meal I consume is one step closer to being able to eat a scrambled egg. And I'm sure by the time the soft food stage is done, I'll be having to remind myself that I'm only a few egg/cottage cheese meals away from something with real texture. Distraction is good, hope is better. And every morning when I take my meds, I am reminded why I'm doing this... I'm down 3 meds already and my blood sugars have been super steady in the normal zone. That motivates me.

Just taking it one day at a time is hugeeeeee! Thanks for the awesome perspective.

14 minutes ago, FluffyChix said:

Congrats! You just won the internet! Let's all go home now. ((hugs))

LOL... thanks Fluffy!

12 minutes ago, Peachgodd said:

Just taking it one day at a time is hugeeeeee! Thanks for the awesome perspective.

Hang in there... this is just the beginning of the road. You got this!