I'm a week out from surgery and have started on pureed food. I'm trying to figure out when I'm getting full without getting too full. Today I think I overdid it and it wasn't comfy at all! I get discomfort right between my breasts... the first few days after surgery, I was really sore there, and liquids hurt going down. They found a hiatal hernia and fixed that during surgery, and I figured that repair was causing the pain. But it's kind of in the same place where I get uncomfortable when I think I'm full. With that said... I'm curious about what full feels like to others.

Thanks!!

I don't feel "full" in the same way I did pre-surgery. I feel sort of uncomfortable pressure in my chest. I know when I feel that that I need to stop eating or I'm going to be sorry...

Pressure in my esophagus and I get hiccups lol

I have noticed a hiccup/belch type of thing that will happen as I get near the end of my meal that I think means I'm getting full. I've often had only one bite left at the first hiccup, and I've eaten it without any kind of pain, but maybe that means that was just the right amount for me.

You may not feel full or feel full accurately for a while. You have to wait for your tummy & the nerves that were cut to be healed (around 8 weeks). It’s why sticking to the portions you were given vey important at this time & also the eat slowly. It takes at least 20 minutes for the full signal to get through (this is everyone not just us) so if you eat quickly you will have eaten way too much by the time the signal gets through.

You may feel some pressure or at worst the foamies if you eat too much now. Later you may develop the runny nose, hiccup, etc. signals. It will be a little while until you feel your restriction which is really the stop, stop, too much warning.

I only feel pressure if I’m full or something is sitting too heavily in my tummy. I also ask myself if I need the next bite or just want it because we should stop before we feel full. I also discovered my full signal can be really slow, up to an hour, so I usually take 30-45 mins to eat.

1 hour ago, Arabesque said:

You may not feel full or feel full accurately for a while. You have to wait for your tummy & the nerves that were cut to be healed (around 8 weeks). It’s why sticking to the portions you were given vey important at this time & also the eat slowly. It takes at least 20 minutes for the full signal to get through (this is everyone not just us) so if you eat quickly you will have eaten way too much by the time the signal gets through.

You may feel some pressure or at worst the foamies if you eat too much now. Later you may develop the runny nose, hiccup, etc. signals. It will be a little while until you feel your restriction which is really the stop, stop, too much warning.

I only feel pressure if I’m full or something is sitting too heavily in my tummy. I also ask myself if I need the next bite or just want it because we should stop before we feel full. I also discovered my full signal can be really slow, up to an hour, so I usually take 30-45 mins to eat.

Great information, thank you!

23 hours ago, catwoman7 said:

I don't feel "full" in the same way I did pre-surgery. I feel sort of uncomfortable pressure in my chest. I know when I feel that that I need to stop eating or I'm going to be sorry...

Same. I also get the hic ups sometimes.

They don't tell you its not a "normal" pre surgery full feeling, they should so we know what to expect. Then again most haven't gone through it who are dieticians/doctors. I just switched doctors (my old doctor decided to be inpatient only) and my new GP had bariatric surgery in 2019 (said she normally doesn't share personal info but figured it would be helpful) and she agreed, most of the bariatric journey isn't with practitioners who understand.

Please don't wait to get signals a week after surgery. There's little or no feedback from our stomachs because all the nerves have been cut. Takes weeks or months to heal and tell you anything, and even then, as the others have said, the feeling of fullness can be really delayed.

I am 28 months post sleeve and I have just learned to eyeball what volume and mix of foods my stomach can manage, and usually stop a bit before that for safety's sake. If I go beyond that I get a runny nose and sneeze (Vagus nerve stimulation). By then it's too late though.

You'll learn how to manage as you go along. Just stick to small volumes at the start. At your stage you shouldn't be too hungry so you're just eating for fuel - treasure this time, it passes all too quickly. ?

Stick strictly to the volumes you have been given. Weirdly I wasn't given any by my team so I asked for advice here and then stuck to THAT and it was very helpful.

Sorry duplicate

Edited March 2, 20242 yr by Spinoza

And another

Edited March 2, 20242 yr by Spinoza

I am 5 1/2 weeks post op and I think I am just beginning to get the sensation of being "full" back. It definitely feels different than before VSG; it's more of a pressure in the area where my chest and abdomen meet than a feeling of fullness where my larger stomach used to be. I also get hiccups. Weird, but common, so it seems.

I get a runny nose and hiccups. The problem is my doctors says by the time I get a runny nose I've eaten too much. I find it a real struggle to get the right balance

i get the pressure in my chest also. also i notice that my heart rate increases. weird.

19 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

i get the pressure in my chest also. also i notice that my heart rate increases. weird.

Same on heart rate! In fact I thought it was hypersensitivity to the few carbs I was having. My bariatric team had me wear a glucose meter for two weeks because of it. I wonder why the heart does this?

At second thought I felt maybe it was due to different stomach placement with in the thoracic cavity and I was just noticing it beating "as normal" and perhaps it always beats that fast, but my heart on average beats 68bpm. When I checked when full it raised to 90bpm.

I'm glad someone else experiences this as well!

1 hour ago, BlondePatriotInCDA said:

Same on heart rate! In fact I thought it was hypersensitivity to the few carbs I was having. My bariatric team had me wear a glucose meter for two weeks because of it. I wonder why the heart does this?

At second thought I felt maybe it was due to different stomach placement with in the thoracic cavity and I was just noticing it beating "as normal" and perhaps it always beats that fast, but my heart on average beats 68bpm. When I checked when full it raised to 90bpm.

I'm glad someone else experiences this as well!

i used to think it was mild dumping syndrome, but realized it was just me approaching fullness!

i had googled it way back when and while there are lots of reasons for it - and mostly all totally harmless - the common thread reason is that digestion requires blood to be sent to the stomach, which leads to the heart needing to pump a little harder to send it there. now why i never felt nor noticed it before, i dunno...lol

Edited March 15, 20242 yr by ms.sss

On 3/15/2024 at 1:28 PM, ms.sss said:

i used to think it was mild dumping syndrome, but realized it was just me approaching fullness!

i had googled it way back when and while there are lots of reasons for it - and mostly all totally harmless - the common thread reason is that digestion requires blood to be sent to the stomach, which leads to the heart needing to pump a little harder to send it there. now why i never felt nor noticed it before, i dunno...lol

I spoke to my doctor yesterday about this, after my magnesium was checked and an EKG she said she thinks its not more blood needing to be used for digestion, otherwise you would have always felt the increase in heart beats especially so with a larger stomach having needed more blood and it beginning with onset after surgery.

She's recommending a week long heart monitor, but thinks its directly related to bariatric surgery. She stated it could be due to the change in digestive tract possibly changing the stomachs location relative to the vagus nerves location coming into direct contact, but she's not positive hence the heart monitor. Let and me know if you're interested in the results and final DX. She did say she's never heard of a faster heart rate after eating unless a food sensitivity/allergy has started up after bariatric surgery.