Stomach Stretching?

I am just 3 weeks Post Op, and of course I can't eat the way I used to, but instead of sticking to the liquid diet/pureed foods (got bored and sick of that!), I have eaten regualr foods, but just bites here and there and LOTS of chewing. I have thrown up before when my pouch couldn't handle it, but now I think I have gotten used to the discomfort rather than throw up all the time. Am I stretching my stomach because I can tolerate the sick/full feeling?

Be careful about getting used to that sick/full feeling. The nerves in your stomach/pouch were severed during surgery and they have to heal. That icky uncomfortable sick/full feeling means that you are full. If you consistantly continue to take another bite after you start feeling that uncomfortable feeling than I believe that YES you may be stretching your pouch. It will take months (for me it was almost 7 months) before I was satisfied with the little bit of food I was eating. It's frustrating to be eating such a tiny amount and still feel hungry. It took me months and months before my head caught up with the size of my pouch. This is a journey and a long one. Be careful not to sabatoge your work. Good luck. Melody

I'm still not able to eat like a regular person, but I seem to be able to hold more than the recommended 1 oz for this first 6 weeks. I am worried because for the first couple weeks, I took that other bite and it just came up on it's own. Now, sometimes I feel like things are stuck, and I can't make myself throw-up, I've tried. Then I worry THAT's causing harm to my pouch, ring, etc. I do see my surgeon next Monday, so this will definetly be a question on my list for him! Does anyone here know what I'm talking about?

Sometimes I feel like something is "stuck" and I can't make myself throw up either. I think it's because I didn't chew something well enough. The feeling eventually went away but I think the longest I felt it was for a whole day. Remember to chew, chew, chew. Ask you surgeon about your concerns when you see him. Melody

I am so glad you asked this question. While I am not a mormon, I have many friends who are, I go to a different church, I was browsing through. I to felt I was eating too much and was freaking out on my first visit at my one week checkup. I asked the doc about it, and he said not to worry, that in the early months you cannot stretch your pouch, however, if you eat more than you should, it can stretch out more than it should...but it will stretch over months regardless if we eat food or not. In other words, our pouches will stretch whether we want them to or not, even if we never ate a mouthful of food. LOL I am now 6weeks post op, and a trick I did was to measure my food and then after an hour or more if I was still hungry, to get something small to eat with a lot of protein in it. I am down 40lbs now, so perhaps that is a key?? Tonight I made a boo boo and did not eat enough little meals throughout the day, and ate a bigger one at dinner, however still not a lot. I had about 8 boiled shrimp and a salad, which is all water and when chewed well, it compresses to very little food. Then I had a Skin a bear by Klondike, they are sugar free and 1 gm of sugar alcohol eskimo pies and are so satisfying if you need something sinful tasting. Good luck, and hope everything is going okay for you now. God Bless, Deb

Thank you for your message! Yes, I am doing better. I am now about 3 months out and I have lost 73 lbs. It's so cool, except that I don't fit into my clothes any more! Which is, I guess, a good thing I am pretty sure that my stomach remains small, cuz I still get full after only about 3 or 4 bites, depending on the food. It's still kind of a mind-trip, and so occasionally, I have to fight the feeling of shoveling comfort foods into my mouth. This surgery really works in that area, though! I only have to eat a little too much once, and then up it comes, or I get sick, and it never happens again-- at least with the same foods. I get a little rebellious at times, so I tend to pu**** a little. Not too rebellious, I keep remembering what a HUGE waist it would be to try and eat more and then gain the weight back again. I will NEVER go back there again. I hope everything is working out for you as well, and speaking of "working out" I would probably lose more if I did that. Need to get goin on that! Take care, CJ