Did anybody 'mourn' food post op?

joshuasmum you do make sense. This is what I was worried about and why I started this thread. Well I am now 10 days post op and recovering exceptionally well. I went back to work a 7 hour shift standing up the whole time and running around last night and was fine. I am very lucky.

So this stage of adaption is quite interesting. I am still on pureed foods. When I smell something delicious, I feel like I would like to eat it. Even if I wanted to I couldnt and later on (from my research) I could eat it but only a couple of bites. The fact that I can still have those couple of bites is one of the reasons I chose the sleeve over the band cause technically no food is 'off limits' with the sleeve. A couple of times lately I have eaten to the point of feeling very uncomfortable because my brain thinks that i want that whole bowl of soup. It is like cognitive behavioural therapy though and I have quickly learnt that the pain is not worth the gluttony.

I think that for any achievement to be made, there are some sacrifices along the way and even if we were on a 'traditional diet' we would miss out on stuff too. The difference is in the past we could break it but that's what got us into trouble! My mind is still adjusting to the small amount I can eat but I have no regrets so far. I know that I can eat whatever I like eventually and that it is worth sacrificing the big portions.

That is my opinion so far anyway :)

I am so glad I found this thread! I am still in the research stages of the sleeve, I have an appointment booked with a surgeon next Thursday for an initial consultation. Whilst I feel that everything about the sleeve just 'feels right', I just have this thought that keeps niggling at me - 'Will I mourn food'? I know that once I have it done and see the success I have with it I won't, but, I don't know I just can't explain it. I suppose like with anything that is a major decison you do overthink things. Oh God, I am rambling and not making any sense am I? I suppose in a nutshell, I am scared that I will get depressed about the amount of food that I can eat and regret the sleeve

For me there was a gap between my head saying "yummy food" and my new stomach saying "no, stop now". I literally put my fork down & stared at the plate, waiting to see if i could fit more in, willing it to be ok to take more.
Then after 2 or 3 minutes, i felt SO full that the food no longer looked appetising and i push the plate away.

Its taken 6 months but the gap between stomach saying "full" & brain saying "ok" is finally down to a few seconds or so, not a minute or two. I think the signals from the brain were delayed, and have now sped up.

In the past, "just one bit more" had no repercussions. Now they do. But it gets better!

Hello you guys

I am absolutely loving it that I have broken free from food and all those cravings I had.

I am nine months out and love the fact that food is no longer the centre of my universe. The crazy thing now is that I enjoy my food more and loving going out to eat and chatting away and not worrying about the menu.

I definitely do not mourn food post op, but think it's very important to substitute food for another hobby or good habit as you do have lots of time to spare as you are not eating all the time!

I have found seeing extra professional help for nutrition/mind really helped me understand why I was overeating and what different types of food meant to me. Once I got a grip on this, then it all made sense and I am a much happier (and lighter) person for it.

All the best for your journey :-)

PocketRocket

DB5Girl
Don't worry - this stage will pass.
It's not so unusual for some to not want to eat.
Make use of it, because I promise you, it won't last! LOL
I so wish I was back at that stage now...
But yes, it's always a good idea to talk to someone if you're finding it's very hard - after all, the food has been there for us all this time, and to have it wrenched away (literally) is hard to deal with.

I am Day 5 Post Op and I have been craving Pizza for 2 days.
Tomato Soup and a tiny piece of that 'plastic' cheese was as close as I was going to get. lol

Thank you for all your wonderful answers. Dbgirl I am worried about the way you are feeling. Have you seen a psychologist? For so many of us food has been our best friend and crutch so your feelings are absolutely understandable. Have you a passion in life? A hobby or an interest to take your mind off food being a form of 'entertainment'? It must be very hard when it is so uncomfortable to eat. Are you taking pain killers?

I find I eat much better quality food than before. But I do have to say that while I can eat anything, there have been times when something has tasted so good I wanted to be able to eat more of it - so if that counts as mourning, yes I do - sometimes. But it never lasts long and I am always glad that I have limits. I still don't trust that there isn't a fat person inside me attempting to escape.

I am not mourning at all. I think I am enjoying food more now after being sleeved because I am more conscious of what I am eating and making better choices. And now that I am over the soup stage and my food choices are widening it is a whole new adventure. I hope this experience continues.

Oh my head misses the food terribly, but not my waistline!
I do remember the worst times were when I was in hospital and they kept playing all these takeaway food adds! That big double patty kfc burger just came out and I felt so sad while I sipped on my water! The pizzas looked pretty good too! So yes, there have been some trying times!!

Not morn as such but food doesn't comfort me any more. Am five weeks post op and working out what I can eat in terms of soft foods is proving a bit of a mindful. Eating is uncomfortable. Can eat only a few small mouthfuls. It puts me off eating. Eating these days is fraught and frankly dull. I am rarely hungry and often the only reason to eat is because I know I should and that I need the nutrients. Have been increasingly down, possibly in part because food isn't fun any more and I can't distract myself with it any more. But also tastes have changes. I rarely want anything sweet now, despite that most sweet foods go down easier. Am sure it's different for everyone though.

Yeah, I don't mourn food as such as I really do eat just about anything I want! I do get frustrated about the small amount of food I can eat but as I posted somewhere else just a few moments ago, the reason I had a miserable teen and adult life due to being overweight was because I just had very little self-control. I'm guessing like most overweight people, dieting was like "two steps forward and three steps backwards" ... a bloody life of frustration!

So, even though, for example last night we went to our favourite restaurant and I barely ate what a child could eat at the end of the day that is a good thing ... 37 kilos have gone and slowly still going.

I have to change a life time of thinking of "I must eat that mountain of food" to "accepting a little bit will do me".

Strangely I never mourn food.
Mind you I eat anything now at nearly 2 years.

I dont mourn food as such I guess I just get a bit frustrated sometimes when ive gone to the effort of cooking, preparing or buying a yummy meal and then getting full after 4 forkfuls of it. Darn it.

And sometimes Ill see a burger or something and think 'god how i would love to eat that' and then work out the cost of it, and having about a bite of it, and go 'well its not worth it really'. So it gets a bit frustrating I guess.

But.

In saying this, the burger 'want' is why i needed the sleeve in the first place!!!!

So no regrets here - just some frustrations every now and then I guess xoxoxoxo

I know this is about post op, but I am mourning food on day 4 of opti... especially since my fav show is Master chef....

he he.

Oki doky Joy .... I loooooove your southern drawlin' tummy ...

I wonder what others think their tummy sounds like... I think mine's like a mother in law ... all nag and whinge ...... nags when it's empty and whinges when it's too full....

sassysmum

oh my god...oki doki joy...u have just succinctly described my experiences sometimes with a really nice meal...and boy does the stomach give me pain...(love the southern drawl...LOL)

For me there's a time lag between being full (stomach cramping) yet still feeling hungry. My brain says "surely one more bite... It tastes goooood" while my stomach yells back "If you do honey chile, Im going to give you a world if pain!"

Yes my tummy has a Deep South accent

After a minute or two of mexican stand off where the food and I stare each other down, my brain kicks in, I push the plate away, and cant face another mouthful.

The time lag might be because no matter how much I chew & put my fork down in between each bite, i still wolf food down too fast.

I have noticed also that I appreciate taste of food more...am still having trouble slowing down with eating...so get full really quickly
and feel a bit sickly at times after this...old habits are hard to stop

HI,
I don't think I've mourned food, but what I do have is a greater respect for the food I eat. That's new, so instead of hoovering through whatever I was eating, mindless, I focus and enjoy every last chew, it also satisfies the mouth hunger.
That has been a major shift.... and a good one.
sassysmum

I didn't mourn food, but I did miss the 'taste' of things in the first few months after surgery. Being full after 3 or 4 mouthfuls means you don't get the same sustained "mouthfeel" of delicious food - and I missed that.

Having said that, I don't at all miss it now 6 months out. I guess I have gotten used to the idea and I think that not being hungry assists this.

Donna

Thanks Sleevers. It sounds to me that most people who replied have a feeling of loss when considering their past culinary indulgences. This, however is the sacrifice we make in order to be healthy and otherwise happy wouldn't you agree? Maybe once the emotional craving for food subsides we may be able to address our issues in a more positive way - I sincerely hope so

I wish I could eat a roast lamb dinner, with mint sauce with gravy, roast sweet potato, potatoes and peas.

Other than that, I'm good.

I have tried to eat a bit of the above mentioned Sunday roast, but after three mouthfuls, I'm done. I hope one day to be able to eat a bread and butter plate of roast! It was my favourite.

Somedays I mourn the idea of food. I think " I will never again be able to eat a Quarter pounder!" or an ad will come on tv & I will think "looks great but why bother if I can't eat it all"!

I would say I feel more upset at the thought of wasting food still.

Z

Hi, I'm 6 days post op'. I have no hunger pangs at all. I bought my kids a packet of chips each after school today and usually I would pick at their packets, but today I wasn't even tempted. I think that eating was a bit of a habit. Looking back at it, I was probably never really hungry, just bored or some other emotion.

In saying all of that, I am looking forward to the pureed phase where I can have some mashed potato & pumpkin & gravy. I'm interested to see how it goes down and how much I can have out of the 1/2 cup.

Good luck for your sleeve at the end of the month.