The feeling of fullness is different with VSG/DS

[Clematis]

For the past 2.5 weeks since surgery, especially since I was allowed "full" liquids (protein drinks made with milk, or yogurt, or melon), I have often been desperate to burp but no burp followed. I thought I may have been swallowing air -- the protein drinks when mixed with almond milk and a stick blender get frothy. It was very uncomfortable at times.

Yesterday I had cream soup for the first time and then later had about 1/4 c of watermelon which I ate by shaving slivers off with my lower teeth and chewing thoroughly. I battled the "gotta burp" for nearly an hour which progressed to great pain -- I couldn't even swallow my own saliva. I opened my mouth over the toilet to spit and without effort, up came the melon. (I was astonished. I have never vomited without warning.) Instantly, I was better. It was then that it occurred to me that the usual feeling of fullness I had known my entire life might now be replaced with this "I need to burp" feeling. It also occurred to me that it will be a long time before I eat watermelon again

I share this in case someone else with a new sleeve is wondering why they feel like they have to burp... but can't. Net net: you may have eaten/drank too much.

 

[bearmom]

When I first had my DS, my sleeve was swollen for a long time, like months. I'd forgotten that feeling. Our tastes and things we tolerate can be so particular in that early post op phase, but it helped me to eat ice chips and lots of sf popsicles. I think the constant cool helped the swelling. I hope you get past this quickly, and sorry watermelon is ruined for you

 

[Munchkin]

This too will change. Give it time!

 

[Clematis]

Really? You mean I'll get back to normal feeling of fullness? I thought maybe they cut away the nerves that used to feel that when they cut away part of the stomach. BTW the doc said the swelling is gone in 7-10 days. (I'm not saying this is true; I'm just reporting what he said.) The first week and a half all I could get down was a 1/4 teaspoon but now I can take a normal swallow.

Curiously, when taking a PPI there is no vomit smell so upchucking is marginally less gross. Although I guess absolutely nothing gets in any way digested until it hits the common channel.

 

[DSRIGGS]

Tell your Dr he isn't living with this and you are. I belch all the time while eating. It feels to me like it is clearing room.

I have vomited a handful of times and it was almost instantaneous after I ate something that was either too much or just didn't agree with me. That was early on.

Btw one way many if us know to stop eating is your nose starting to run. Not everybody gets that but I still get it at over 2 years out.


And oh my, yes things will be much different in 3 months and then different again another 3-6 months down the line. You are nowhere near your new longer term normal soon don't despair.

 

[Clematis]

your nose starting to run

YES my nose was running during all this... but not before it was too late. (But when I could only eat a few bites of melon, there couldn't have been much lead time.)

 

[DSRIGGS]

This early on it can be that quick so eat very slow and watch for that sign.

The other thing I will say is that melon or any fruit would have made me sick at your stage and that melon takes up the space of protein that your body needs....

 

[Jo777]

It took me nearly 6mo before I felt like I was not so swollen/tight.. At least the first three months for sure I was as my stomach one day would be fine but over do something and the next day, full in three bites.. 7-10 days, yeah.. no way The first several months- 2-3oz meals would take me 30mins to eat, I had to go slow and learned I heard/felt a small "gurgle" when I was a bite away from full, also the nose running thing.

It will get back to a normal feeling, it may take a few months though. I feel full now when I eat, not quite the same pat-the-belly type full, but full regardless.. but, overeating still catches me once in a while, no pain- just burping, and "omg why did I eat those last bites" type of regret.

 

[BebeZed]

Interesting about the nose running thing... I've not had that. I *do* have the gurgle though.
It's weird... some days I am ravenous and feel like I'm eating constantly, and other days I can't seem to get much down at all. I know it all evens out and I'm careful with getting my proteins on the "tiny tummy" days but sheeesh... it's weird.

 

[southernlady]

Btw one way many if us know to stop eating is your nose starting to run. Not everybody gets that but I still get it at over 2 years out.

Full or ate too fast signals:
Hiccups
Nose running
Sneezing (this one is mine and not just a gentle sneeze but full blown and about 8 in a row!

 

[more2adore]

I wish I got any of those signs, heh. Like @DSRIGGS I do belch throughout and it feels like it clears more room when that happens! I experienced the "not being able to burp" thing early out, too, but it happens only very rarely these days. When it does happen, I hate it, but, at least for me, it's not an "I ate too much" thing typically, but I do stop eating due to the discomfort. However, usually I AM able to belch about 5 minutes later (or less) and then able to continue eating. I probably would just stop eating at that point except I have a minimum amount of calories I have to get in per day or my weight stalls, so I can't always stop eating when I want to (yeah, learning GREAT habits from that bit! Oh well.)

 

[Clematis]

I have a minimum amount of calories I have to get in per day or my weight stalls

This is very interesting. How many calories do you need to eat to keep your weight loss from stalling?

 

[more2adore]

If I drop below 1000 calories per day, it stalls. I stay between 1000-1200. But my weight is way higher than yours, which has a lot to do with it. Your caloric needs won't be the same as mine.

 

[windyridge4mom]

I am a month out and the DS is sooooo different than the lap band! I eat super slow and am very careful with portions but some things just stop. And then I'm done and - in some cases - feeling like food is stuck for hours. Sometimes I finally throw it back up. It's a learning curve I suppose but I'm being very careful with soft foods and proteins and still have issues with that stuck feeling.

 

[Clematis]

Today I am allowed soft foods which includes egg. This morning at 6:15 am I took 2 ibuprofen for my back and a Centrum. At 7:30 am I scrambled an egg and with a seafood fork ate a baby bite about half the size of my pinky nail, chewed it well, smooshed it against the roof of my mouth until it was as pulverized as possible and swallowed. Over the next 10 minutes I had 2-3 more of these itty bitty bites... and then the feeling of wanting to burp started so I stopped. I had consumed less than a teaspoon in that 10 minutes -- less than half the volume of the pills I had taken more than an hour earlier. The fullness and then pain kept growing as time went on. By 8:30 I was desperate to vomit and tried sticking my fingers down my throat without result. (If I was any good at purging I wouldn't be this fat.) I had to leave for a 9 am chiropractors appointment and had him put a wastebasket next to me in case I blew. The drive home involved constant spitting of saliva into a grocery bag, coupled with heated negotiations with god about letting me reach my toilet before i puked. Thankfully I made it in my house and upchucked every last drop of the egg which appeared to have multiplied exponentially in my stomach in the more than 2 hours since I had eaten it. No sign of the ibuprofen and Centrum so I assume they passed. Bizarre that my tummy tolerates those pills but can't handle a few flecks of soft egg.

I don't know what I'm learning if it is already too late by the time I feel like I have to burp aka "full." I guess I'll have to learn by visual volume, maybe I can't tolerate more than a half teaspoon of solids. (I can eat a 5 oz tub of yogurt in 15 minutes but that is essentially liquid.)

Since no one except my husband knows that I've had the surgery, I was hoping I could eat a few bites of xmas dinner. (The family bought my excuse for not eating on T-day but won't again for xmas.) But I have my doubts that I'll be able to eat solid food by then.

Some good news: I was stomach-growling hungry the first two weeks but that stopped over the weekend. No hunger.