My biggest problem is feeling hungry. I enjoy food and drink and as such think about them alot. I would very much like to be one of 'those people' who don't think about food too much and sometimes forget to eat. Will a sleeve gastrectomy affect my appetite and destroy Ghrelin enough to help me with this?

Sleeve removes the part of the stomach that produces the hunger hormone Ghrelin.

it does for most people (not all - but most). I had bypass - hunger comes back from most bypassers sometime during the first year post-op - I'm not 100% sure about sleevers.

That's a hard one yes it reduces your hunger to start with, does it stop you thinking about food? no it doesn't I find I am thinking about food so much more. It has reduced a bit now 7 months out. But oh gee I remember thoughts of food and what to eat driving me crazy ?. In saying that though I always hard trouble deciding what I wanted to eat unless I craved something. You will feel "not hungry" faster after eating and I say not hungry because personally I haven't experienced that "oh my God I ate to much" full feeling since surgery. I have discovered that if I don't drink enough when I do eat I get an empty pit feeling my surgery buddy experienced the same but once I worked out it was thirst not hunger I sorted it out by having a small drink 10 minutes before eating. Everyone is different this has been my experiences. My best advice is to find something you can fully emerse yourself in that will take your mind off food it will help you in the early days.

My hunger is not as strong now as it was pre-sleeve. I love food, and before surgery I would eat huge portions, eating past satiation. Now, after a small portion, I feel quite full and can’t possibly eat another bite.

At almost 10 months out I feel myself feeling hunger again like I used to before surgery. Maybe in part too because I NEVER had one issue after surgery when it came to eating and drinking. I did both just fine with no gagging, no sick feeling, etc. I also knew when to stop and never pushed my limits. I just think now that I'm naturally able to eat more since I am this far out, the hunger feeling is like it was before when it comes to it being time to eat and whatnot.

Having said that, I also notice that if I have a good meal full of lots of protein I tend to stay full and satisfied MUCH longer and sometimes don't even feel hungry come my next meal. This is especially true at breakfast. I'll eat an egg and two pieces of turkey sausage, or two eggs and one piece of turkey sausage and I sometimes am not even hungry come lunch. And most times I don't even fully finish that breakfast. So yeah, pay attention to protein.

I am almost a year out and I honestly don’t feel hunger yet. But I am pretty good about my routine and making sure I eat throughout the day, so maybe that’s why?

Yes, the surgery does remove a lot of the area that produces the hunger hormone ghrelin. While the stomach is the primary producer it’s not the only place a hunger hormone is produced (small intestine, pancreas & brain too). For many, the surgery dues reduce appetite & hunger but it is temporary. It’s almost like the other areas compensate & start to produce more of the hormone to compensate because feeling hunger is important because our bodies do need food to function.

The temporary loss of hunger does help our weight loss but equally as important is that it helps us to discern the difference between head hunger (cravings &/or emotionally driven hunger) and real hunger. Real hunger feels different. You’ll learn your cues for real hunger & how it feels for you. I feel restless & like something is wrong and when I realise I’m hungry I don’t crave a specific food or food type like sweet, carby or salty.

Food is still a consideration every day & I do tend to eat to routine to ensure I get my protein in & the other nutrients in I need & that is the difference. I eat not as a comfort, to stop boredom, to satisfy a craving, etc. I eat to consume what my body needs to function. I still enjoy food & want to eat yummy tasty things but the yummy tasty foods are healthier & more nutritionally dense.

The sweet spot is the first six months you don't have too much of an appetite. That gives you time to deal with head hunger and eating from boredom, stress, etc. After 6 months you'll regain your appetite but hopefully by then will have learned coping skills and alternate strategies to keep from eating.