Anyone else over a year out having trouble getting enough calories in? (x-post)

"normal people" usually do feel hungry when their bodies need more food.  Your stomach is not "normal" anymore though.  In addition to the surgery cutting nerves that tell you when you're hungry (and yeah, those usually heal and people feel hungry again, often before a whole year goes by, but there are some people that say they don't feel hungry for several years after surgery), I think many of us are not "normal" with regard to how we interpret hunger signals, either.  I guess "healthy" might be a better word than  normal, but when we were eating enough food to make us get so big we needed surgery, I doubt our stomachs were telling us we were so hungry we had to eat that much.  So I think many of us aren't real good at listening to our bodies to tell us when and how much to eat.

But regardless of all that, eating so few calories for a really long period of time won't be good for you.  Calories are energy.  In order for your heart to beat, it needs energy.  All your organs need energy.

I don't believe weight regain is inevitable, though it does seem to be fairly common.  Small amounts, I mean.  But whether it's inevitable or not, trying to live on 500 calories for the rest of your life just won't work.  I think maybe we are so used to eating as much as we possibly can that we think the only other way to eat is to eat nothing.  There's a middle ground.  The more I talk to other post ops about all the head work we have to do with this surgery, the more I see other people struggling to find that middle ground.  That's a huge issue for me, too.  But I think we gotta learn that things are not always black or white, and they aren't supposed to be.  We need to get comfortable with grays.

Why only 2 meals a day? Most surgeons recommend 3 meals and a snack if we're active enough to need one. Maybe adding in another meal would boost your caloric intake for the day.
At a year out eating a sandwich isn't a big deal - the bread is for most of us but higher fiber content breads is a better deal - wheat vs white, whole grain is better than bleached white flour, etc. Try 3 well proportioned meals a day. You may find you're not skimping on calories and you can get your necessary protein and vitamins in.
Jen 10 yrs post op

 I count the protein coffee as a meal.  =]  It has 26 - 52 grams of protein (depending on whether I use one or two scoops of protein powder).  
  The sandwich only seemed like a big deal to me at the time because I ate almost the entire thing.  I still can't eat that much and was dumb enough not to stop until I was over full.  

 Yeah, that doesnt seem very much quantity or frequency. At almost 6months I'm averaging more like 800/daily and getting up to 1000cal isn't much of a stretch. Plus if you're having any kind of activity in your life, you really need to be consuming more calories.  Do those dairy products not agree with you or is it a choice to not eat cheese/yogurt/milk? You can always do dairy-alternatives or lactose pills if they don't sit well with you, and would be a healthy way to increase calories.

 I was lactose intolerant when I was a child, so I guess I just never developed a taste for those foods.  I do like yogurt.. a lot, actually.  I'll try adding in some of that.  

I also didn't feel like eating since surgery and at about 4 months out my NUT said to try eating every 3 hours 200-300 calories.  I have three small meals a day and 3 snacks.  I eat when the clock says to  not my stomach.  6 am, 9am, 12 pm, etc.  I'm at about 200 calories a meal so that puts me at 1200 for the day.  I am a revision and over 50 so my doctor said I could expect to lose about 75 lbs, but I am still loosing.  Good luck
Mary

 Eating according to the clock is a great idea!  I can set the alarm on my phone to remind me.  Thank you so much for the idea!

 If you like pork rinds, get guerrero brand (best tasting) they come on a yellow rectangular styrofaom plate that is shrink wrapped. a 1/2 oz has 80 cal, 0 carbs, and 7 gm of protein. I eat these for a snack, they mush down into nothing when you chew them.  Theyre also know as chicharrons or tender cracklins.   I agree with everyone else add some snacks and another meal.  my NUT recommends  6 small meals/snacks a day. 

Why are you only "eating" 2 times per day?  I  know you are counting your coffee as meals since they have protein in them but you can't live on coffee alone.  The most healthy way to eat is to eat 5 to 6 small meals per day, every 2 to 3 hours.  This decreases hungers, maintains a constant blood sugar by avoiding spikes and dips, and it increases your metabolism.  If you do this, you can still have your 2 cups of coffee and eat 3 to 4 times per day - they dont' have to be big meals but food 3 or 4 times per day.  If you continue the way you are, you are going to be malnurished.

I am in a similar boat but mine was due to complications - I lost too much weight after having multiple sugeries and being hospitalized for along time.  So, then I got malnurished and was put on IV tube feeds directly into my remnant stomach for 2 months.  When that was finally removed, I had to just eat massive amounts of food to maintain my food and ultimately gain some weight back.  I have finally gained about 15 pounds and now I still have to eat alot more than before just to maintain and not lose what I have gained.

You might try to eat regular eggs with bacon and a half an english muffin for breakfast.

2 cheese sticks and a half an apple for a snack or if you can't tolerate the apple, have SF applesauce, maybe some greek yogurt.

4 ounces of salmon or chicken, vegetable, salad with dressing and a small potato.

turkey wrap with cucumber salad.

if you still need calories - try having a small bag of microwave popcorn for a snack at night.

My pouch simply doesn't hold that much food.  There is NO way I could fit eggs, bacon and an english muffin (although it sounds yummy).   I make 2 egg whites with a slice or two of thin sliced ham sliced up and cooked in and I can eat maybe 3/4.  

In pre-op eating terms: I can fit 5 pizza rolls.  A sixth one makes me sick.  I can eat 1/2 of a McDouble (with no bun) and 2 or 3 french fries.  I don't eat these things often, but it's a unit of measure that a lot of my "normal" friends understand.  =]  

So, not only am I never hungry, but when I do think to eat, I can't fit much.  

I agree, though, that I need more calories.  I haven't tracked all of my food today, but I think I had a much better day.  =]  Thank you for your kind advice!!  I  my OH family!