8 Week Post-Op - Food Struggles

[Jen637 0]

Hi friends!

This is my first time posting/asking a question. I am 8 weeks post VSG surgery and I'm struggling with food. I know this isn't a new story and everyone struggles in some way. I find myself struggling to force myself to eat. I don't feel hunger (that I know of) yet I feel nauseous when I *do* eat and nauseous when I *do not* eat. I think my sense of smell is heightened as well so any cooking that I have to do or even opening up the refrigerator is causing a nauseous sensation as well. Has anyone experienced this? What did you do to overcome this? Thankfully I'm still losing but I know the loss won't continue if I can't get my metabolism kick started. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[The Greater Fool 1,950]

Welcome to the forums.

You need to eat to plan, whether you want to or not. You are developing new, healthy habits. So, eat to plan.

Second obligatory thing: Talk to your Doc. Doc may be able to help with nausea.

Now is the part of the post where I share my possibly useless personal experience...

When I don't eat I get nauseous. When I get nauseous, I don't want to eat. It's a downward spiral that does not end well. Solution: Eat.

Smell is still a big thing for me, particularly when I am nauseous. Smells that I don't give a second thought to can get me from zero to wretching very quickly. Solution: Kill whoever is the cause of the odor. It may seem severe, but really, which is worse? Wretching or murder? Really, it's a no brainer.

Your early experiences seem close to what I recall of mine. Maybe you'll get the rest of what I have. Now, when I am pondering "what will I eat?" I do a mental image of the food I want to eat. If my stomach says no (a slight lurch and nausea), then it's a no. No lurch means the meal will likely work fine. I've tried to ignore my stomach and it never ends well, so I listen.

I credit this with much of my long term success, so if you are like me in this regard, listen.

Now is the encouraging part of the post...

Follow your plan consistently and you will succeed. It seems you are mindful of what you are doing which will serve you for years to come.

Now is the signoff...

Good luck,

Tek

[Arabesque 6,470]

First, congrats on your surgery & welcome.

It’s not uncommon for your sense of smell to become sensitive to certain odours just like your taste changes & you become more sensitive to how certain things taste or even textures. Foods you always enjoyed may become repulsive. These first months are a big learning curve of what your tummy can tolerate & what it won’t. But it does improve. Just give it time. As Tek said listen to your body.

I still have days when I’m just not hungry so I get how you feel. Like Tek, I eat to routine too - what I eat & when I eat. It’s the only way I can keep up my calories to maintain & meet my Protein goals. On not hungry days I don’t quite eat as much but I make sure I get in three meals.

Have you spoken to your medical team about your nausea & struggles?

My nausea & occasional vomiting came from my Multivitamins. I’d had this issue with them before so it wasn’t unexpected. Having too much of certain Vitamins can cause the nausea so it may be worth asking your medical team about that too. There are Patches you can use instead of tablets. After I reached goal, I spoke with my surgeon & gave them up & no more nausea. My bloods have come back well in the acceptable ranges in the 10 months since.

Good luck.

[Lillimint 48]

Hi @Jen637! I had a terrible time post-op with my sense of smell. I was so sensitive to any smell and it played a huge part in my nausea and vomiting. It felt like I was being assaulted with information overload to my brain. The good news is that at 3 months after surgery it is completely back to normal. The first week was the worst, but it slowly eased up each week. I might have been back to normal by week 5 or so? But no vomiting by the end of week 1, definitely bearable by week 2-3. It was so horrible and distracting in the beginning! My sense of taste seems to be fine now, too. Good luck, and I hope this passes for you quickly!

[Jen637 0]

On 10/25/2020 at 12:58 PM, The Greater Fool said:

Welcome to the forums.

You need to eat to plan, whether you want to or not. You are developing new, healthy habits. So, eat to plan.

Second obligatory thing: Talk to your Doc. Doc may be able to help with nausea.

Now is the part of the post where I share my possibly useless personal experience...

When I don't eat I get nauseous. When I get nauseous, I don't want to eat. It's a downward spiral that does not end well. Solution: Eat.

Smell is still a big thing for me, particularly when I am nauseous. Smells that I don't give a second thought to can get me from zero to wretching very quickly. Solution: Kill whoever is the cause of the odor. It may seem severe, but really, which is worse? Wretching or murder? Really, it's a no brainer.

Your early experiences seem close to what I recall of mine. Maybe you'll get the rest of what I have. Now, when I am pondering "what will I eat?" I do a mental image of the food I want to eat. If my stomach says no (a slight lurch and nausea), then it's a no. No lurch means the meal will likely work fine. I've tried to ignore my stomach and it never ends well, so I listen.

I credit this with much of my long term success, so if you are like me in this regard, listen.

Now is the encouraging part of the post...

Follow your plan consistently and you will succeed. It seems you are mindful of what you are doing which will serve you for years to come.

Now is the signoff...

Good luck,

Tek

Tek,

Thank you for the very thoughtful response! Murder is a definite possibility. Anything to avoid this sensory overload. 🤣

I *have* spoken to my team. Their response was similar. They are pushing me to increase liquid intake as well as food intake. At this point, they would like me between 800 and 1000 calories a day. That just doesn't seem possible with the way I'm feeling. I am also on 20mg of Omeprazole daily. I find it a little hard to get my point across because they do not feel what I am feeling.

I guess this is where I take the wonderful advice to "eat to plan." That may involve me holding my breath when I open the fridge but I refuse to fail with this wonderful tool I've been given.

Edited October 26, 2020 by Jen637