I hear you. Today, I was wishing I could just eat without worrying I'd eat too much and it would come back up.

I'm 6 wks out, so I'm still struggling with 'normal'. Yesterday, I forgot to eat for HOURS and I got shaky and crabby. I know that there are times I feel hungry, regular, old-fashioned hungry, yet I cannot fall back on old, bad habits to feed it.

Right now, I'm thinking it's just a matter of getting used to the new way of doing things. I'm down 35 pounds or so and feel a lot better and I have to keep reminding myself, 'There was a reason you did this.'

Hang in there.

I think it's a little natural to go through sort of a mourning period for the way we used to eat. For me, life after surgery gave me a whole new normal, and normal now isn't the same as before. You have a fresh start, so maybe instead of wondering if you could have foods you liked before surgery, think of new and healthy and creative ways to eat. Also, you have probably heard this, but your tastes change after surgery and you might not even like pizza anymore, or it might not agree with you!

I had similar thoughts. I am 5 months out. I can eat whatever I choose, but 90% of the time, my choices are protein & veg. I feel better when I eat that way, and I know it is good for me. Every once in awhile i have pizza or popcorn. A few weeks ago my hubby made chocolate chip cookies for my daughter for her birthday and I had some, but then got back on track. For some people, there are "trigger" foods that they know will lead to overeating and they choose to always avoid them. I have not had that experience, but I am mindful of my habits. It seems to be working so far. Best of luck to you!

The answer is YES you will. but instead of eating the way we used to, the way that guided us to our problem, you will eat like a thinner person. You can have popcorn, pizza, really anything you want,,,BUT not as often as you used to. More like the days when these things were treats not staple foods. You will also make better choices. Pizza choices may not have the crust,,,tastes great still. Popcorn might be airpopped salted etc rather than lathered in butter. Yes you can eat again,,just consciously.

Thanks so much guys! That makes me feel so much better. And who knows, by the time I am able to start eating, I might not be craving these things as much

You may still have the cravings, until you have the items. You may find you have lost your taste for them or that your stomach does not like what you are craving. I can handle on a very limited type and amount of flour tortillas still, and Pizza... I still mourn pizza, but the crust does me in and the toppings by themselves, well they just aren't pizza. I'll have a piece every few months. A couple of bites and I get to enjoy the taste, but I fill VERY quickly still. I look at that kind of as the best of both worlds.

Be very, very careful if you find you do still have a taste for items. That leads to a downward spiral we have all trod before. Us this tool you have bought yourself well!

This sounds like a great idea! I like to use the low carb whole wheat tortillas. Going to have to try it with pizza toppings.

"Normal" for you or "Normal" for a healthy person your sex, age, ht and bone mass?? You can absolutely return to eating normal for you and 50% of WLS pts do that relying on the sleeve to save them, which it does not. You have to figure out what personality type you are. If you are the type that has huge binges if denied a food desire you will need to find a way to make it fit your lifestyle. If you are like me and pizza is a major trigger food you will avoid it and create a delicious replacement. I just finished eating a slice of my summer squash pizza crust. We always intend to put pizza toppings on it but it is so good by itself we just attack it when it comes out of the oven. If I ate just a few bites of normal pizza I would be back in my food prison craving high glycemic carbs when I am not hungry, and obsessing over food when I am not hungry...which is abnormal. I have had 38 yrs of humiliating obesity and worshipping food. I was actively killing myself with pizza, pasta, bread, rice, chips and fries. At 7 months I can eat anything. I choose not to. As a 5'5" sedentary 45 yr old woman my base maintenance calories are only 1450. Normal pizza would be a tough fit for me to pull off anyway. Besides I have 3 WLS friends who gained all their wt back. Monthly pizza became weekly pizza became daily pizza. We never actually get a day off from managing our intake. We have to make those same choices every day. When my thoughts turn to food desires I often remind myself that I would like to see grandchildren one day. Hope I didn't offend.

That is exactly my fear. I feel that I need to make the choice to stay away from my trigger foods. For me, I am worried that having a bite of pizza or a taste of chocolate candy is like giving a cigarette to someone trying to quit them. The likelihood of relapse is just too great to be worth it.

I have a friend who had gastric bypass and regained quite a bit. I asked her what happened, and she said, I ate a cracker. That was really all it took for her to go down a slippery slope. I make sure my choices are not going to send ME down a slippery slope. Eating the way I used to didn't serve me well and I don't want to repeat the same mistakes.

"Normal" for you or "Normal" for a healthy person your sex, age, ht and bone mass?? You can absolutely return to eating normal for you and 50% of WLS pts do that relying on the sleeve to save them, which it does not. You have to figure out what personality type you are. If you are the type that has huge binges if denied a food desire you will need to find a way to make it fit your lifestyle. If you are like me and pizza is a major trigger food you will avoid it and create a delicious replacement. I just finished eating a slice of my summer squash pizza crust. We always intend to put pizza toppings on it but it is so good by itself we just attack it when it comes out of the oven. If I ate just a few bites of normal pizza I would be back in my food prison craving high glycemic carbs when I am not hungry, and obsessing over food when I am not hungry...which is abnormal. I have had 38 yrs of humiliating obesity and worshipping food. I was actively killing myself with pizza, pasta, bread, rice, chips and fries. At 7 months I can eat anything. I choose not to. As a 5'5" sedentary 45 yr old woman my base maintenance calories are only 1450. Normal pizza would be a tough fit for me to pull off anyway. Besides I have 3 WLS friends who gained all their wt back. Monthly pizza became weekly pizza became daily pizza. We never actually get a day off from managing our intake. We have to make those same choices every day. When my thoughts turn to food desires I often remind myself that I would like to see grandchildren one day. Hope I didn't offend.

That is exactly my fear. I feel that I need to make the choice to stay away from my trigger foods. For me, I am worried that having a bite of pizza or a taste of chocolate candy is like giving a cigarette to someone trying to quit them. The likelihood of relapse is just too great to be worth it.

I have a friend who had gastric bypass and regained quite a bit. I asked her what happened, and she said, I ate a cracker. That was really all it took for her to go down a slippery slope. I make sure my choices are not going to send ME down a slippery slope. Eating the way I used to didn't serve me well and I don't want to repeat the same mistakes.

Agreed. I love crackers (for example) but it just doesn't seem worth the risk. I've made those mistakes pre-surgery, and I also don't want to repeat them.

I should also add that I don't particularly like many of the "normal" food items as much as pre-op. Some just don't sit well in my sleeve.

Pizza... meh. Bread... I really like toasted whole grain bread, but otherwise... doesn't sit well. Potatoes... meh. Pasta... I like the taste and a little is okay, but too much doesn't sit well. Rich desserts... make me dump. Popcorn... a-okay! Chips and crackers... okay but never one of my faves anyway. Cookies... one or two is good... more... see rich desserts. Soda... I'll have it if there's not an option to have iced tea, but doesn't sit well/don't like much anymore. Alcohol... buzzed really fast, then the buzz fades and I'm done (too sweet drinks... dumping again).

My sleeve has really allowed me to understand what "moderation" means in regards to carbs. Some is okay for me, but too much makes me feel like crap. I generally stick with protein and veggie-based meals, except for toasted whole grain bread, cookies and popcorn at the movies.

I'm 3 years out and maintain with logging and exercise. I'm an IIFYM/heavy lifting proponent much more than a post-sleever anymore.

Hello, I am three months post op and I do occasionally have "normal foods" just in very small portions.....for example instead of having three pieces of pizza I eat maybe one if I am lucky.... When we go out to dinner I split a meal with my son.... I do allow myself to have things but I make sure that if I am going to have it that it is in a 3oz portion and I also make sure I got all my protein I needed for that day as well.

That being said I try to limit anything not healthy that you eat... you need to think of your new stomach and prime realestate, you can only hold so much food so you really want to get as much bang for your buck as you can. I try to eat a protein and a veggie or fruit with every meal.

I really don't feel deprived and I am sure you will feel that way too soon enough. It gets better once you are not on liquids anymore. I am suprised a week out you are still on liquids. I was able to have purees at 3 days and soft foods at like a week out I think.

Take a look at my food diary; I eat everything I want but I weigh and measure everything, track all my exercise with a FitBit and make sure I get my protein in first. The sleeve is only a tool, you need to take advantage of the severe early capacity restrictions to develop some new positive habits.

Exercise - Weigh Food - Protein first - Log everything (EVERYTHING) into MFP.

Dont rush the beginning stages, enjoy this time when things are hard to get down and a few small teaspoons fills you up lol. Before you know it you may start to get the 'ole hankerings for less then nutritious foods and you will start to push the boundaries and testing things and be surprised and what food work and although it may not be pizza it may still not be good for you.

Im almost 2 years out and about a 10-12months out I started feeling a little more liberal with my eating and started with crunchy foods (crackers, pretzels) that escalated to chips, dry cereals, and cheezits. Without thinking about it I then started on sweets and tried chocolate, ice cream, candy, licorices, cookies, cakes, etc. I even went on a bender and had fast-food (not the good stuff - I mean like McD, Taco Bell, etc)

I am very, very luck that my over-all eating balanced and I didnt gain too much, and since then I lost those few extra pounds, but nonetheless it scares me to know that when they say the first year or so is the "honeymoon period" they mean it. The last year has been a struggle (especially since I have had A LOT of emotional turmoil) and I do admit that I monitor the scale hawk-like and there have been times when I indulged too much and got sick (puke, nauseous, headache, etc.) and I AM SOO HAPPY when that happens because it reminds me that I can not longer overindulge like that. Luckily I have been working with a therapist and its improved, but boy do I miss the early days when I had no appetite and even a sip of water filled me

So dont over-think it and dont worry, but enjoy the ride and work on fixing the eating habits and mindset now.

It's all about chioces. Even skinny people have the occasional piece of pizza or cookie (key word being occasional). It's what we choose to eat daily that's going to be the deciding factor on if we get the weight off and if we keep it off. My trigger foods are flavored chips and ice cream. I could never control myself with them and found that if I indulged with them, my eating was totally out of control and I was eating anything and everything. Ice cream was the worst, so I gave it up completely, haven't had any in over 3 years now and you know what? I don't miss it at all, which used to really surprise me. I will very occasionally have a hand full of flavored chips, but only if we are out and they are part of the variety of foods. They never come into my house anymore (the husband doesn't like them so that's easy).

Truth is, this surgery will not mean you "can't" eat something only that you can't eat the same amount at one time as prior to surgery. This sugery is a great tool and if you use the tool you will lose the weight. If you continue to use the tool, you will be able to keep it off. Figure out what your trigger foods are and when you do, thouse are the foods you will want to choose to limit or eliminate from your life. I meant what I said, I really don't miss the ice cream. And I don't feel deprived, because this is my choice for my helath.

Someone else said it best, but I will quote it. Nothing tastes as good as a normal weight feels.