what does hunger feel like?

Aquaburry
Aquaburry Posts: 45
in Food and Nutrition
i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.' when I feel 'meh' i eat a snack, and when I am gut-hungry I eat a meal. is this normal? like WHY do I only feel hunger when it is intense? I am only hungry at like 10 AM and then for the rest of the day I am just 'meh.' even for dinner. even if I starve all day I won't be hungry at the end of the day. only 'meh.' and thus i eat when I am 'meh' and feel like it is wrong or something. I recently gained 10 lbs for being underweight so i think it is attributed to this, but I am uncertain. as consolation until I can ask my nutritionist/registered dietician Monday, i must ask you all:

Is it ok to just eat when you feel 'meh?'

Edit: AND THIS IS ALL WITHIN MY CALORIE GOALS SO THE SNACK DO !!!NOT!!! make me overeat my maintenance cals.

Replies

  • tabicatinthehat
    tabicatinthehat Posts: 329 Member
    i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.' when I feel 'meh' i eat a snack, and when I am gut-hungry I eat a meal. is this normal? like WHY do I only feel hunger when it is intense? I am only hungry at like 10 AM and then for the rest of the day I am just 'meh.' even for dinner. even if I starve all day I won't be hungry at the end of the day. only 'meh.' and thus i eat when I am 'meh' and feel like it is wrong or something. I recently gained 10 lbs for being underweight so i think it is attributed to this, but I am uncertain. as consolation until I can ask my nutritionist/registered dietician Monday, i must ask you all:

    Is it ok to just eat when you feel 'meh?'

    Edit: AND THIS IS ALL WITHIN MY CALORIE GOALS SO THE SNACK DO !!!NOT!!! make me overeat my maintenance cals.

    Like is it a sin?
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.'

    Unless you've gone 2 weeks without actually having any food, you have no idea what "gut-wrenching starvation" feels like.
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
    You mentioned it was within your calorie goals, so as long as that's the case, eat whenever you feel however. With that said, I think there are some benefits to having a regular eating schedule.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    You strike me as a person that doesn't care about food all that much. When you're really hungry you want to eat, and the rest of the time you're focused on other things. As long as you're eating enough and you eat when you're hungry rather than starving yourself, who cares about when you eat and how indifferent you feel about food or not?
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Is it ok to just eat when you feel 'meh?'

    For a lot of people that's probably the purpose of snacking, so they don't really ever feel hungry.

    Personally, I do usually feel hungry (not especially so, but like I could eat and would enjoy doing so) at meal times, and can definitely tell if I go much longer than usual without eating, especially if I've been active or done a workout in the meantime, but I don't really worry much about whether I'm hungry. I have set mealtimes that prevent me from being hungry outside of when I should be and I eat food that seems a reasonable size and calorie level for those meals and generally find that I am satisfied when finished. I don't force myself to eat if I really don't want it, but beyond that I don't try to suss out hunger levels since I think it's enormously influenced by external forces like habit and how the food looks and psychological stuff.

    Maybe someday I'll trust hunger more, but for now I like relying on good habits.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Since you have a history of an ED, you probably have a TON of practice ignoring hunger signals and virtually no practice at reading and responding to them appropriately. It's okay -- that's just a skill you haven't learned yet.

    Hunger exists on a continuum, so a 1 would be absolutely no hunger and 10 would be gut-wrenching starvation, for example. I'm guessing that "meh" is maybe a 3 or so? The way to learn how to read those signals is to really pay attention every time you feel "meh." For now, it's okay to eat when you feel that, because the eventual goal is to eat before you hit a 10. Once you can reliably feel a 3, try letting it go just a little bit longer -- to a 4 or a 5 -- but still definitely eat before you hit 10.
  • Aquaburry
    Aquaburry Posts: 45
    Since you have a history of an ED, you probably have a TON of practice ignoring hunger signals and virtually no practice at reading and responding to them appropriately. It's okay -- that's just a skill you haven't learned yet.

    Hunger exists on a continuum, so a 1 would be absolutely no hunger and 10 would be gut-wrenching starvation, for example. I'm guessing that "meh" is maybe a 3 or so? The way to learn how to read those signals is to really pay attention every time you feel "meh." For now, it's okay to eat when you feel that, because the eventual goal is to eat before you hit a 10. Once you can reliably feel a 3, try letting it go just a little bit longer -- to a 4 or a 5 -- but still definitely eat before you hit 10.

    i like this advice.
  • Aquaburry
    Aquaburry Posts: 45
    i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.'

    Unless you've gone 2 weeks without actually having any food, you have no idea what "gut-wrenching starvation" feels like.

    I've been almost so underweight that I could feel my stomach gurgle with my hand due to the lack of flesh. I've been so empty inside that before that I was satiated by two egg whites and a half a strawberry for breakfast. You think I don't know what it feels like to starve? I hope you get chronic five-alarm diarrhea.
  • LoneWolfRunner
    LoneWolfRunner Posts: 1,160 Member
    I smell bridges on fire...
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    Try eating your meals at scheduled intervals. This is what I do, because my hunger cues are all wonky.

    Like you, I never really get hungry.

    My issue is from past dealings with an eating disorder, if that makes any difference in the relevancy of this post.
  • christinablow2014
    christinablow2014 Posts: 11
    i didn't know what hunger felt like until i was on metformin for fertility issues. it's hard to explain to most people because, well, most people feel hungry, kinda hungry, etc, but i went from nothing to STARVING. when i eat a diabetic diet (i am not diabetic, by the way), i can feel hunger. the more i focus on protein, the more i can FEEL hunger.

    i wish i could explain what it feels like to you, but "you'll know it when you see it"

    have you told your doctor about this?
  • Aquaburry
    Aquaburry Posts: 45
    I smell bridges on fire...

    ? :huh:
  • Aquaburry
    Aquaburry Posts: 45
    i didn't know what hunger felt like until i was on metformin for fertility issues. it's hard to explain to most people because, well, most people feel hungry, kinda hungry, etc, but i went from nothing to STARVING. when i eat a diabetic diet (i am not diabetic, by the way), i can feel hunger. the more i focus on protein, the more i can FEEL hunger.

    i wish i could explain what it feels like to you, but "you'll know it when you see it"

    have you told your doctor about this?

    yeah my doctor said it would go away after a while but it doesn't really help me right now, ya know?
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.'

    Unless you've gone 2 weeks without actually having any food, you have no idea what "gut-wrenching starvation" feels like.

    I've been almost so underweight that I could feel my stomach gurgle with my hand due to the lack of flesh. I've been so empty inside that before that I was satiated by two egg whites and a half a strawberry for breakfast. You think I don't know what it feels like to starve? I hope you get chronic five-alarm diarrhea.

    seriously- no personal attacks.

    secondly- I can feel my stomach gurgle- and I'm fairly meaty on my mid section. It as nothing to do with how skinny you are.

    Secondly I'm satisfied with my coffee for breakfast- so again- that's totally irrelevant information in terms of what it means.

    I suspect- you truly do not know what gut wrenching hunger is. And that's okay- but let's not be mellow dramatic about it.

    Many people often don't realize their are hungry until they are REALLY hungry- when I'm busy I never notice that I'm hungry till it's to late and I'm light headed or ravenous-flip side- at work where I'm tied to my desk or when I'm bored- I'm hungry constantly. Like actual stomach acid not feeling well hungry- it is what it is.

    Ultimately if you can function fine through the day- eat when you want to eat and when you need to.
    If this issue is causing you to not function to the best of your abilities- then set a timer- and eat snacks when the timer goes off.
    Don't over think it.... it's just food.

    Lastly- if you aren't seeing a therapist you should be.
  • Aquaburry
    Aquaburry Posts: 45
    i can't feel anything between gut-wrenching starvation and 'meh.'

    Unless you've gone 2 weeks without actually having any food, you have no idea what "gut-wrenching starvation" feels like.

    I've been almost so underweight that I could feel my stomach gurgle with my hand due to the lack of flesh. I've been so empty inside that before that I was satiated by two egg whites and a half a strawberry for breakfast. You think I don't know what it feels like to starve? I hope you get chronic five-alarm diarrhea.

    seriously- no personal attacks.

    secondly- I can feel my stomach gurgle- and I'm fairly meaty on my mid section. It as nothing to do with how skinny you are.

    Secondly I'm satisfied with my coffee for breakfast- so again- that's totally irrelevant information in terms of what it means.

    I suspect- you truly do not know what gut wrenching hunger is. And that's okay- but let's not be mellow dramatic about it.

    Many people often don't realize their are hungry until they are REALLY hungry- when I'm busy I never notice that I'm hungry till it's to late and I'm light headed or ravenous-flip side- at work where I'm tied to my desk or when I'm bored- I'm hungry constantly. Like actual stomach acid not feeling well hungry- it is what it is.

    Ultimately if you can function fine through the day- eat when you want to eat and when you need to.
    If this issue is causing you to not function to the best of your abilities- then set a timer- and eat snacks when the timer goes off.
    Don't over think it.... it's just food.

    Lastly- if you aren't seeing a therapist you should be.

    sorry i think it is completely justified to be a bit angry with someone who says you don't know what 'gut-wrentching hunger is if you've been anorexic before. i could have fifty people on my side in .2 seconds from any anorexic or post-anorexic community out there...dont think for a second you people can assume we don't know what gut-wrenching hunger is because we aren't completely without food for two weeks. hanging on by a thread is pretty bad.

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