Always starving, never full

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So I am not new to weight loss, or MFP. In fact, I have lost decent amounts of weight in decent amounts of time.

But, since having my first kid in 2011, I never ever get that full feeling. Heck, I don't even get a satisfied feeling. I am always left hungry.

I have been on a Dr supervised diet since 2013, on and off, and this feeling only seems to get worse.

She recommended more protein, more fiber, and more water. I did this, and still to this day, and still, nothing.

No matter what I eat or drink, I feel it. And it's only worse when I exercise, obviously due to metabolism increase.

This leads me to believe that is is brain function or hormones that are whacky.

I recently moved and no longer see the same doctor. In fact, my last visit 2 weeks ago, put me on phentermine and recommended weight loss surgery - Which I am doing.

This discussion thread is not about your opinions on the weight loss pills or surgery, or for you to tell me to eat more protein, fiber, and drink more water. I've already heard that a billion times and as stated, it's not working for me.

This thread is for those who have struggled with this. How do you over come it? I am a stay at home mom so my mind isn't always occupied enough to keep it off of eating. My willpower is crap too, how can I improve that? I am an emotional eater, and for the most part, have that under control these days.

Thank you.
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Replies

  • Momjogger
    Momjogger Posts: 750 Member
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    Don't eat cereal, bread, pasta, muffins, granola bars, added sugar, nuts, hummus, peanut butter, nuts, etc. I'm not kidding. DON'T EAT THEM. It's not about eating more protein, it's about NOT eating trigger foods that activate your desire to eat and those foods that spike and drop your sugar levels. Try it. Eat eggs, protein, vegetables, fruit, Greek yogurt, etc.
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,771 Member
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    This leads me to believe that is is brain function or hormones that are whacky.

    I recently moved and no longer see the same doctor. In fact, my last visit 2 weeks ago, put me on phentermine and recommended weight loss surgery - Which I am doing.

    How is phentermine and weight loss surgery going to correct "whacky" brain function or hormones??
  • sakuya3834
    sakuya3834 Posts: 116 Member
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    This leads me to believe that is is brain function or hormones that are whacky.

    I recently moved and no longer see the same doctor. In fact, my last visit 2 weeks ago, put me on phentermine and recommended weight loss surgery - Which I am doing.

    How is phentermine and weight loss surgery going to correct "whacky" brain function or hormones??

    I agree. If it's something "off" I'd be worried about doing something so drastic as surgery as you may still be hungry and eventually gain the weight back... You need to fix the root of the problem. I would maybe at least try to get a few other opinions first..
  • rachehm
    rachehm Posts: 1 Member
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    check this out:
    http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2013/12/20/intermittent-fasting-weight-loss.aspx
    and other than that, the more raw veggies and fruits (especially organic) that you can eat, the better! chia seeds are a great way to add fiber without adding chemicals and junk. soak them for at least a few hours then add them to anything or just/eat drink them :)
    also check into Quest bars - high protein and fiber, might be a good compliment to the other things you're doing.
    Best wishes :)
  • pamelaamarshall
    pamelaamarshall Posts: 3 Member
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    I have this to an extent as well, but I am able to ignore it. I talked to my dad and he says he has it also, so it could very well be physiological. I have two ideas that have nothing to do with protein, water, fiber, etc, and are relatively inexpensive.

    I have read that a feeling of never being full even after a large meal could be due to acid reflux. The gnawing feeling you have is not actually hunger but too much acid. An easy step would be to take something like Zantac for a week and see if you are less hungry.

    Another thought is that you're lacking micro-nutrients. Do you take a multivitamin?

    I would love to hear if either suggestion worked.
  • mistress8956
    mistress8956 Posts: 265 Member
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    You body doesn't need to feel 'full' if your full then your over eating. Your body needs to be feed so your not hungry. Personally I could eat a whole large pizza or a quest bar and feel the same 'fullness' afterwords. It's mind over matter. Good luck on your journey
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
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    rachehm wrote: »
    check this out:
    http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2013/12/20/intermittent-fasting-weight-loss.aspx
    and other than that, the more raw veggies and fruits (especially organic) that you can eat, the better! chia seeds are a great way to add fiber without adding chemicals and junk. soak them for at least a few hours then add them to anything or just/eat drink them :)
    also check into Quest bars - high protein and fiber, might be a good compliment to the other things you're doing.
    Best wishes :)

    First post ever. Quotes Mercola.
    In.

  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Appears she's disappeared.
  • SaBh93
    SaBh93 Posts: 114 Member
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    Hey Jessie, I found that I'm never satisfied if I have something sweet (with sugar) in the morning. I find bread in the morning sets me up for disaster, too. It's just a matter for trial and error for me.

    Also, if I don't eat enough the day before, I eat everything in sight. So for that reason I do no fast as binging becomes the norm the next day.

    Wishing you the best of luck.
  • libbydoodle11
    libbydoodle11 Posts: 1,351 Member
    edited November 2014
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    So you think your hormones are whacky? Schedule an appointment with the doc to have blood work done.

    Perhaps you can start recording your thoughts and feelings while you are consuming the food in a journal.

    You can do the surgery but you still may have to address the issues going on in your head. Consider seeing a therapist to help you deal with your emotional eating issues before and after your surgery.

    Also try pre planning all of your meals for each day and dividing them up into small snack sized portions and nibble or graze throughout the day. Maybe this will keep you side tracked so you are not looking for that full feeling.

    This is all I have. It is hard to tell from your post whether or not you are open to advice. You sound more like you may be defending your potential surgery while venting a little.
  • sharon_kay11
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    I have the same issue, and this week I decided to tackle it by paying more attention to a food's satiety -- how full a food makes you feel. The link below has a short summary of what satiety is, and that same website's food lookup will show you a food's satiety in a pyramid diagram. I really hope MyFitnessPal integrates this information one day.

    http://nutritiondata.self.com/topics/fullness-factor
  • mathandcats
    mathandcats Posts: 786 Member
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    How much fat are you eating? I know you mentioned you tried eating more protein and fiber, but fat can have a big impact on satiety as well. The other thing is... how much are you eating? It is possible you are just not eating enough.
  • Grace215lbs
    Grace215lbs Posts: 129 Member
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    JessieLMay wrote: »
    So I am not new to weight loss, or MFP. In fact, I have lost decent amounts of weight in decent amounts of time.

    But, since having my first kid in 2011, I never ever get that full feeling. Heck, I don't even get a satisfied feeling. I am always left hungry.

    I have been on a Dr supervised diet since 2013, on and off, and this feeling only seems to get worse.

    She recommended more protein, more fiber, and more water. I did this, and still to this day, and still, nothing.

    No matter what I eat or drink, I feel it. And it's only worse when I exercise, obviously due to metabolism increase.

    This leads me to believe that is is brain function or hormones that are whacky.

    I recently moved and no longer see the same doctor. In fact, my last visit 2 weeks ago, put me on phentermine and recommended weight loss surgery - Which I am doing.

    This discussion thread is not about your opinions on the weight loss pills or surgery, or for you to tell me to eat more protein, fiber, and drink more water. I've already heard that a billion times and as stated, it's not working for me.

    This thread is for those who have struggled with this. How do you over come it? I am a stay at home mom so my mind isn't always occupied enough to keep it off of eating. My willpower is crap too, how can I improve that? I am an emotional eater, and for the most part, have that under control these days.

    Thank you.

    How does surgery fix.. " leads me to believe that is is brain function or hormones that are whacky."

    What kind of surgery are you getting? As "My willpower is crap too" Would mean a big no. For most of them.

    I think being a stay at home mom contributes to you issue. I gained so much when i was! As you just keep eating, your brain makes you think your hungry but it just that the food is there. Maybe make sure you leave the house each day to get your mind on other things. Join a mommy meet and greet. They take their kids for group outings to parks, picnics, fun free events!

    This is a rough idea of the diet that made me lose 100lbs


    Breakfast: 2 eggs, bacon, toast, protein shake.

    Snack: Banana Large

    Lunch: Smoked Salmon salad or Chicken sandwich

    Snack: Apple, V8 juice, almonds

    Dinner: Roast turkey breast or corned beef, Sweet potato, broccoli, home made wedges.

    Snack: Carrots, Celery and peanut butter.

    I ate Between 1300 - 1900 calories each day. Weighed in once a month. Measured everything on a scale. Counted everything that went in my mouth. Even herbs. Never cheated, Made it my routen.

    If you can do this and you still gain weight. Then you have a hormonal issue which can only be fixed with medication.

    If you can't stick to it the issue is probably mental.

    In both cases you need to see a good medical profession.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    Sounds like you aren't ready for surgery. Talk to a new doctor.
  • KetoFairy
    KetoFairy Posts: 8 Member
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    I'd recommend watching this. This will explain to you why you are constantly hungry. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC1vMBRFiwE
  • hortensehildegarde
    hortensehildegarde Posts: 592 Member
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    I often find that never full feeling even though I know my stomach is stuffed when I eat too much sugar or simple carby things. May be mental, but that's how it works for me.

    When I can't feel satiated I eat more fat. More fat always fixes it. I can eat carby things like ice cream just fine just can't do things like lowfat cookies or bread and some candies and such. Basically if I don't eat quite a bit of fat I stay ravenous. (Also coupled with a good amount of protein, but if I eat just lowfat protein I still have the same issue).
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    You could work on reevaluating how you feel about "feeling full"

    I spent a lot of time telling myself that feeling "hungry" wasn't an issue, I've just eaten, I'm patently not starving so what's wrong with feeling hungry ...and after a while that kind of acceptance started to change the way I felt about bodily cues like "hunger"

    Hungry feeling isn't constant ...20 mins tops

    Accept it, analyse it, say its fine to feel like this and move on

    It becomes easier and easier and your mind stops doing the "oh that's hunger, I must now eat" equation ..it just ends up doing the "meh no biggie"

    And you learn to separate the "I don't feel full" from the "this is actual hunger" feeling

    It's emotional not physiological