Hi!

I am about 2.5 weeks post op. I am currently on puree stage until 12/12, after which I move to soft foods.

My recovery has been surprisingly easy. I am getting my recommended protein (averaging 70g) and water in and I haven't found any food tolerance issues (so far). I have had zero issues with keeping things down.

My question is...

I am fresh off the liquids and just starting into anything of "substance". I started purees this past Monday. I am struggling with the boundary between "satisfied" and "too full". I have noticed that I either eat too fast or too much (haven't figured out which yet) and get the chest tightness/esophagus fullness, where it feels like food is sitting in my chest/throat. I know this means I have done something wrong and I am trying to correct it, but having a hard time finding my "stop" moment. I really want to get this figured out before starting soft foods. I also really don't want to cause any damage to my still healing stomach, but I feel like that "one bite" can be the one that is too much.

For example - this morning I had 1/2 a Fairlife Core Power (26g) protein shake. About an 90 mins later I had a hard boiled egg. That was about 45 mins ago and my chest feels tight.

So, how did you start to figure all this out? Is it normal in the beginning to struggle with finding the new limit? I am feeling a little overwhelmed at the moment. Liquids was so easy, I almost miss them. ?

Thanks!

Eat very, very slowly. Chew everything 20 times. Eat half what you think you want, wait a few minutes, eat more if you feel like you still can/should/want to. It's much easier to eat more because you're still hungry than it is to "un-eat" something and make yourself sick. I know it's hard at this stage but this is going to help a lot.

This was a learning process for me. Right now I feel my best when I eat 3oz of food exactly. Weighing my food & finding a comfortable number I can go to became essential to me. I eat 5x a day & like to wait a few hours between every shake/snack/meal bc it will also 'buid up' for me. Maybe space it out a bit more too! I wish u luck!

I had my surgery Oct 19. I bought twenty 1/2 cup containers. I measure everything before I eat it, even in restaurants. Just moved to 1/2 cup. I eat every 2 hours. I drink a protein drink 4 oz every 15 minutes. I have a large sippy cup, 14 oz that I drink 3 of each day. I bought 4 large ice cube trays at Walmsrt, 1/2 cup to freeze and put in ziplock bag, portion sized when I take out a cube for a meal. I browned #2 ground turkey taco seasoned and put 1/3 cup in each, topped with guacamole. Same with Italian, topped with marinara and 2 cooked cheese tortellini. Turkey chili.

Don’t worry, none of us worked it all out in he first few weeks. I’m 3.5yrs out & I still discover little idiosyncrasies about how my body reacts & responds. Satisfied or enough is the goal not full. I still ask myself do I need this next bite or just want it. The wanting leads to feeling full & feeling your restriction (that’s the tightness you feel in your chest). If you’re feeling the restriction at this stage, I would worry you are trying to eat way too much. Most don’t start to feel their restriction until well into soIid foods. And with all the nerve endings that were cut during the surgery, the signals you used to get that you were almost full aren’t getting through. When the hunger & full signals do come fully back they may be different.

Watch your portions. I was advised 1/4 to 1/3 cup of purées & soft food depending upon what it is & how liquidy it is. Keep your bites small. I used a teaspoon & only put food on the end (sort of dipping in the purée). Put your spoon down between bites & sit back from the table. Wait a couple of minutes before taking the next bite. It takes time for your body to recognise it’s had enough that’s why we’re advised to eat slowly. These things worked for me & you’ll have to work out how you can manage your eating.

Thanks everyone! I had been giving myself 1/4 cup servings of things because that was the recommendation from my surgeon. After some adjustments, I found last night that in reality I can only get about 1-1.5 Oz in before I am feeling finished. So, I think I might of been pushing myself too hard and I need to scale back my servings. I am going to experiment with that over the next few days and hopefully find what is working for me and what isn’t.

I also think my brain is still adjusting a bit too and I am starting to realize how little I really can tolerate. I can tell this is going to be a constant analyze and adjust process. I re-read my surgeons binder and realized their suggestions are maximums, not minimums and I was treating the suggestions like minimums. So, I will constantly be referring back to my binder as I adjust!

Thanks again everyone!