Head hasnt caught up with pouch!!!!!!!!

[everpositive]

Good morning people,

I'm feeling a bit blue and down. I shouldnt but am. I'm 4 lbs off losing 4 stone and of course that is fantastic but there are times when what I want to eat and can truly handle does frustrate me. Since my op early Jan, I've been happy to follow the guidance on how to do this right and have obviously been compliant or the weight loss would be so evident. My hubby, kids and I went out to a diner type place for dinner. I picked a canneloni which I had very little of indeed. I got the dreaded 'something is stuck' feeling in my oesophagus. Tried to do my usual discrete burping to see if it was an air bubble, coz sometimes it is and that sorts it right out, but no it all needed to come back out. Off I went to the ladies, did the deed, came back, smiled and chatted away but deep down felt gutted. Hubby sent the kids up with a bacon toastie this morning, crusts cut off, barely any spread on the toast. I managed one half. My mind hasnt really caught on to what my tummy can do has it????

 

[tendersage]

mine has not totally either i make meals and end up binning over half of ot as its too much i then do not feel like eating the same meal the next day ect....

not tried a bacon buttie yet, the work ones are foul

 

[Silversurfer]

This is something you'll get over as time goes by, at the moment your brains still programmed to eat food and not leave food, as kids we are taught not to leave whats put in front of us, slowly you'll learn to firstly not put the amount on your plate and secondly avoid sticky foods when you eat out.

Sadly there's not really an easy way other than trial and error, i can tell you different ways i manage to eat if i'm out, but you'll no doubt be different and able to tolerate different things to me ! so you have to go through your own learning curve. And remember, your mouth is literally bigger than your stomach at the moment, it will stretch slightly given time, this is meant to happen and you will eventually be able to fit a little more in, eating gets easier as your able to tollerate different foods and you'll learn how to eat out sensibly given time, dont worry there's light at the end of the tunnel !

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

its a hard thing to come to terms with, its sort of like a greiving process after the physical surgery has taken place, this comes because we have had many years with the chain of thought of having large quantities of food, and it takes the brain a long time to ajust and say good bye to the old life style most of us have lived for many years of our lives, its hard to change how we think, feel towards food but it comes in time, im 4 years post op today, im not a bypasser but a bander but ive been through all these ajustments emotionally, still 4 years on i put out to much on my portion, more so when i feel really hungry, you will come to terms with it, but it does take time to say goodbye to the old lifestyle you have lived with food for a long time in your life.

 

[ScottTatum]

Hi Claire. I can relate to what you're saying completly. Wanting to eat what you are used to eating is torture!

I've even had my tastes change from shortly after the surgery so I still have stuff in cupboards that I thought I would like and couldn't bear to have now. I even went through a phase of just the thought of eating making me feel sick.

Seem to be getting over it now, but there are still things I want to eat, and even thinking about them makes me so frustrated. Rice being the main one

 

[mandy-1975]

Hi Claire

I totally get where you are......see i now find, i can't satisfy my needs, I never seem to know what I want to eat!!!! then if i do want soemthing, i can't eat the amount my brain tells me and secondly it is never as good as I expect it to be....

It is a learning curve but you will get therexxxxxxxxx

 

[charliegirl]

I found the first month or two after surgery the hardest because I was use to eating things I loved and then did not enjoy them at all afterwards...ie chilli!! I loved chilli the hotter the better and it was one of the first things I ate after surgery. I think I spent so much more money shopping at that stage trying to find things I enjoyed that would sit right on my tum...I craved a lot of fish as my son will testify the freezer is still rather full of it lol..xxx

 

[Silversurfer]

Dont forget the guilty feeling when post op you do start to eat more, your head slowly gets used to not having much food when your doing the pre op and then for 4 weeks post op your eating very little, then as you slowly regain your appetite you go through this mind trip that your eating far to much lol when really compared to what you ate pre operation its very little.

 

[charliegirl]

Have to agree with this Richard, met Mintball the other day for lunch and we were both apprehensive about how much we could eat etc but when we chattered we realised we were ok....I do have to say though I dont feel the guilt I used to feel when eating because there is no way I can remotely eat as much as before...I still think "great whats for breakfast" and look forward to my next meal but get satisfied so much quicker it's cool....xx

 

[Silversurfer]

Have to agree with this Richard, met Mintball the other day for lunch and we were both apprehensive about how much we could eat etc but when we chattered we realised we were ok....I do have to say though I dont feel the guilt I used to feel when eating because there is no way I can remotely eat as much as before...I still think "great whats for breakfast" and look forward to my next meal but get satisfied so much quicker it's cool....xx

This is true Linda, but you have learn't that you actually have to eat to lose ! now you know that when you eat you keep your metabolism running and that in turn helps to burn fat, which means a lose, so your aware that cutting back or cutting your portion sizes is actually a bad thing, eat to restricting keeps you fuller for longer and over a day you find that your actually eating less because you dont need to graze !

 

[everpositive]

ta guys!!! Silversurfer you are so knowledgeable and reassuring with all your advice.

 

[Silversurfer]

ta guys!!! Silversurfer you are so knowledgeable and reassuring with all your advice.

Lol - Thanks EP, though i really only know what i know by reading up about what i've had done, and going through most of it myself, sadly there's not really an easy way to learn how to re eat again after a bypass, you just have to do it and learn by the mistakes and revel in the triumphs.

I got really interested in how we burn fat through exercise and diet why we stop losing dispite eating less and working out harder, as i hit my own plateau a while back ! so i understand a bit about metabolism, so when you stall or hit a plateau i have a few simply techniques that have worked for me.

 

[tendersage]

the hardest part i find it i have to eat and do not feel hungery, not only that i know i do not eat enough so i have to find ways to increase it, i was never a dessert person and still am not, i have NOT DARED try the great cheeses out there, however i have discovered a specialist CHEESE emporium on Great Portland Street a few minutes walk when i am at work, i do believe i will go explore it next time i am on days.

Richard any suggestions on great cheeses that i could manage? i am not an Edam/emmental fan. I do enjoy a little blue cheese, be it mild in the form of brie or strong stilton

 

[Silversurfer]

I'm into strong goats cheese at the moment, i like the strong creamy variety rather than the chalky type, a really good speciality cheddar and of course a good mature stilton cant be beaten. There's a good cheese shop on Jermyn street near fortnums food department, they do stunning cheeses of course backed up with a variety of chutneys, and of course oyu can pop over to fortnums for other bits and pieces !
Failing that i normally get my cheese eithe rat my local shop (which i have to say is really excellent) or Borough market !

To be honest sage the only real advise i can give you is to try and buy what you like, experiment with tastes and see what grabs you on the day.

 

[Thaialina]

You're not the only one. I often pile food on my plate and only remember that I can't eat it when I get full or something gets stuck. You'll get there. It's trial and error and weirdly pouches seem to change their mind on what foods they like sometimes.

 

[tendersage]

ahhh richard all those exotic cheeses calling to me and i don't know where to start.....

I have to go see my dietitian tomorrow so no long sleep for me, will wander along to the cheese shop which also has chutneys, among other delicacies

 

[mintball]

Claire,

I'm similar to you i think. We went out for am 2 course meal for mothers day and i thought i had it in the bag. I ordered a starter of goats cheese and a main of a salad.

As I started eating, i thought i was fine and would be able to manage and i finished most of my starter and though my main was only a salad so i'd be fine. I ended up so stuffed once I'd eaten my starter that not only did i not touch my main at all....but i had to leave the table and go stand outside the restaurant cos the smell of everyone elses food was making me heave!!!!

I should have left half the starter and half the main but it looked such a small portion, my head thought my belly could cope!!

Oh well, hopefully lesson learned x x x

 

[phatgirl]

I have to agree that the pouch is a fickle master. Some days I can eat a good portion of a meal but others I am done within a few bites. The only time I feel sick (I have never vomitted since my sugery) is when I let myself get hungry & eat too fast. This has only happened a couple of times but I can keep it from happening again by making sure I eat at least 3 times per day. I rarely am hungry but when I accidently skip a meal while out I do get a bit hungry and shovel my food in. It is all about keeping a schedule I think, as long as I have something even a small snack, I never feel hungry which makes sure I don't make bad choices or try to eat too much.

We are all students of the pouch so we will all learn how to cope eventually!:wave_cry:

Nic

 

[charliegirl]

I am with Richard on the cheese front..I prefer a strong cheese as a smaller bit is more satisfying....in fact I have just had some yummy...lol...I find I eat more when I am working as my days are much longer. I also find the days I increase my protein intake I feel much better all round...What works for one does not necessarily work for others and I still really enjoy my food and look forward to my meals, sometimes it is hard to find something that my taste buds are actually craving so I put some thought into those meals to get satisfaction. Have spoken to the dietician and I am doing everything fine....which is reassuring to know lol...I do find though that having a soup for my dinner which initially fills me up does not maintain me for long so have to abvoid this on working days as we are now unable to top up on a piece of fruit etc at our desks. I solved this the other day by taking a small pot with some bits of chicken in to eat whilst brewing up for the room and it tided me over to my break time.....it is such a learning curve but one I am happy to take..xx

 

[everpositive]

Thats exactly how I've been feeling Mintball. Wanting to participate in normal food related activities which lets face it can be linked to special occasions. Mothers Day was a good example of this. I served up what was really just a Christmas dinner (except in March). My three kids, hubby and Mum all had a beautiful plate of turkey, roast ham, proper sausage stuffing, veg, roasties and gravy. I put out a smurf size amount on my specially bought fancy side/tea plate and felt soooooo sorry for myself. Yes I had a little taste of everything they had, but because I have to chew for so long and pause between bites, it all feels a bit of a chore and I dont really derive any real satisfaction from eating anymore. Conversely, before my op I only really took satisfaction from food. I guess another part of this tough patch is knowing how to soothe or treat myself in the obvious absence of shoving tasty but fatty/sugary foods down my gob!?!?!? :cry:

Dont get me wrong dropping almost 4 stones in less than 3 months is a great pay off but do feel bit p*ssed off. Never satisfied am I?