Appetite

I understand why I have lost my saliva and my taste but does anyone know why I dont get hungry ? I have to force myself to eat just to try to not lose anymore weight.

Comments

  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    It's A Good Thing...

    Hard to say, for me it was kind of like, "What's the Point", LOL...

    Most of the time I was not feeling the best anyways, was full of crap, throat sore, so much water I was springing leaks left and right, LOL...

    More than likely it's a body self defense mechanism as you can't handle it any ways.

    Now I times I would, depending on how many Food Channel Shows I DVR'd through the day, LOL...sitting drooling my imaginary drool.

    JG

  • katenorwood
    katenorwood Member Posts: 1,912
    keep trying !

    peggylulu,

    Hello !  There isn't just one reason, it's many.  Just keep trying what looks and sounds good to you.  I ended up splitting my meals up into small, many times a day.  Still lost around 40lbs.  I added supplements (and I know there exspensive) to my diet.  Some days thats all I could handle.  Wishing you the best !   Katie

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375
    Skiffin16 said:

    It's A Good Thing...

    Hard to say, for me it was kind of like, "What's the Point", LOL...

    Most of the time I was not feeling the best anyways, was full of crap, throat sore, so much water I was springing leaks left and right, LOL...

    More than likely it's a body self defense mechanism as you can't handle it any ways.

    Now I times I would, depending on how many Food Channel Shows I DVR'd through the day, LOL...sitting drooling my imaginary drool.

    JG

    Jg

    I know , it's like i'd just rather not eat , I have lost almost 60 pounds and the weight lose has slowed way down to a pound every week or two and I could stand to lose another 30 , but now my hair is coming out much more than usual and I'm thinking that's because I don't eat much protien.

    Yeah , I never thought I would miss drooling on my pillow ! lol

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375

    keep trying !

    peggylulu,

    Hello !  There isn't just one reason, it's many.  Just keep trying what looks and sounds good to you.  I ended up splitting my meals up into small, many times a day.  Still lost around 40lbs.  I added supplements (and I know there exspensive) to my diet.  Some days thats all I could handle.  Wishing you the best !   Katie

    Katie

    My post disapeared !!!!!

    Katie I will keep trying , it's just that I don't even think about eating sometimes. It's so different for me because I have been trying to lose weight for 50 years ! What do you use to supplement protien ?

    Thanks Katie , I hope you're having a good day!

    Peggy 

     

  • fishmanpa
    fishmanpa Member Posts: 1,227 Member
    peggylulu said:

    Katie

    My post disapeared !!!!!

    Katie I will keep trying , it's just that I don't even think about eating sometimes. It's so different for me because I have been trying to lose weight for 50 years ! What do you use to supplement protien ?

    Thanks Katie , I hope you're having a good day!

    Peggy 

     

    Protein Supplements

    Hi Peggy,

    I've already stocked up on protein supps. I spoke with my Team and they're perfectly fine with a whey protein supplement. There are many on the market and they're easy to digest. I like vanilla (like I'm gonna taste it anyway!). A Smoothie consists of ice, whole milk, a serving of whey protein, glutamine, flax seed oil (good fat) and a piece of fruit like a banana or strawberries to add carbs (again, like I'm gonna taste it). 

    I drank them after my tonsillectomy and they were easy to swallow and the cold soothed my throat. We'll see how that goes once I start rads... Definitely speak with your docs but mine we're cool with the recipe.

    "T"

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375
    fishmanpa said:

    Protein Supplements

    Hi Peggy,

    I've already stocked up on protein supps. I spoke with my Team and they're perfectly fine with a whey protein supplement. There are many on the market and they're easy to digest. I like vanilla (like I'm gonna taste it anyway!). A Smoothie consists of ice, whole milk, a serving of whey protein, glutamine, flax seed oil (good fat) and a piece of fruit like a banana or strawberries to add carbs (again, like I'm gonna taste it). 

    I drank them after my tonsillectomy and they were easy to swallow and the cold soothed my throat. We'll see how that goes once I start rads... Definitely speak with your docs but mine we're cool with the recipe.

    "T"

    Protein Supplements

    Thanks T , I guess I really need to get those ingredients and try them .  I know I'm not doing enough . I guess I will need to buy a Blender. I had one and gave it away a few months ago because I never used it ! Lol I have a food processor but I don't think that it will work for smoothies. I was wondering if the protien powder would taste bad but like you said "like I'm going to taste it !"

    btw when I had my tx my doctor told me nothing hot or cold, everything had to be room temperture so I would have to make whatever and wait for it to warm up or cool down !! I just started being able to have a cold dring or hot soup about a month ago. 

    I hope everything goes perfect for you tomorrow and the rest of your journey.

    peggy

  • hwt
    hwt Member Posts: 2,328 Member
    peggylulu said:

    Protein Supplements

    Thanks T , I guess I really need to get those ingredients and try them .  I know I'm not doing enough . I guess I will need to buy a Blender. I had one and gave it away a few months ago because I never used it ! Lol I have a food processor but I don't think that it will work for smoothies. I was wondering if the protien powder would taste bad but like you said "like I'm going to taste it !"

    btw when I had my tx my doctor told me nothing hot or cold, everything had to be room temperture so I would have to make whatever and wait for it to warm up or cool down !! I just started being able to have a cold dring or hot soup about a month ago. 

    I hope everything goes perfect for you tomorrow and the rest of your journey.

    peggy

    Too much trouble

    I lost 60 pounds also and my husband stays on me about not wanting to eat. I ate half a bowl of soup the other night and he said I was just being lazy. I think he is right, it's not that i am full, it's just so darn much touble to eat. I had an apple fritter yesterday and it took well over an hour to eat it with a knife & fork and in little bites. I just spent 3 days in the hospital with a kidney stone and they held drink and food because they kept thinking they were going to take it. I had a fluid drip those 3 days and actually gained 5 pounds. 

  • phrannie51
    phrannie51 Member Posts: 4,716
    When I finished treatment

    I was starving....at least in my head....but one bite, or two bites and I was done....not just because I couldn't taste it, or because of the spit....that's all my body was wanting.  I just wasn't hungry after those bites.  I can't tell you how many wonderful little concoctoins I whipped up for myself, that I ended up giving to hubby.  I'm already 8 months out of rads and 6 out of chemo....and still don't have a big appetite....it's taken all these months to gain back 8 lbs.

    I've been on a home made vegetable beef soup binge for the last 3 weeks.....it goes down easy, has meat in it that is chewable, lots of veggies, and a hearty broth to wash it all down.  I think I've even starting to taste if past the first couple of bites, too...LOL.  Also, I don't have to dream up something I can comfortably eat....just put a cup of it in the microwave and heat it up.  No fuss no muss.... Maybe eat by the timer....when it goes off it time to feed your body something good for you.  That way at least you're getting what you need, regardless of if you "want" to eat or not.

      

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375
    hwt said:

    Too much trouble

    I lost 60 pounds also and my husband stays on me about not wanting to eat. I ate half a bowl of soup the other night and he said I was just being lazy. I think he is right, it's not that i am full, it's just so darn much touble to eat. I had an apple fritter yesterday and it took well over an hour to eat it with a knife & fork and in little bites. I just spent 3 days in the hospital with a kidney stone and they held drink and food because they kept thinking they were going to take it. I had a fluid drip those 3 days and actually gained 5 pounds. 

    TMT

    No I don't think your lazy . We just don't want it to begin with and we get tiredbecause it takes so long to eat. I also get full on a lot less food . I think our stomach shrinks or just feels full sooner (Is that a word ) lol because we haven't eaten "normal" in so long. I used to eat a lot of sweets and Ice Cream and now sweets taste worse than anything . Maybe that's a good thing . I really don't want or need to gain my 60 back.

     

     

     

  • CivilMatt
    CivilMatt Member Posts: 4,722 Member
    I was not hungry

    Peggy,

     

    I did  not get hungry during the entire 10 months I was on smoothies.  My Dad asked me numerous times ‘aren’t you hungry”, but I wasn’t.  I almost always got enough calories in my protein drinks, but I was satisfied.  Mind you I lost 43 pounds over the past year and I use to (pre-cancer) get hungry and over eat.  Granted during those 10 months I pretty much despised all foods so there wasn’t the enticement of food flavor to make me hungry.  I think as long as I did not crave food my mind was happy with the drinks.

     

    Best,

     

    Matt

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375

    When I finished treatment

    I was starving....at least in my head....but one bite, or two bites and I was done....not just because I couldn't taste it, or because of the spit....that's all my body was wanting.  I just wasn't hungry after those bites.  I can't tell you how many wonderful little concoctoins I whipped up for myself, that I ended up giving to hubby.  I'm already 8 months out of rads and 6 out of chemo....and still don't have a big appetite....it's taken all these months to gain back 8 lbs.

    I've been on a home made vegetable beef soup binge for the last 3 weeks.....it goes down easy, has meat in it that is chewable, lots of veggies, and a hearty broth to wash it all down.  I think I've even starting to taste if past the first couple of bites, too...LOL.  Also, I don't have to dream up something I can comfortably eat....just put a cup of it in the microwave and heat it up.  No fuss no muss.... Maybe eat by the timer....when it goes off it time to feed your body something good for you.  That way at least you're getting what you need, regardless of if you "want" to eat or not.

      

    P

    I guess at first I thought I was hungry because I remembered what it used to taste like . Oh yeah I threw away so much food I felt guilty but now food taste a little better and I know what I can and can't eat so I'm not having to throw near as much away. Thanks Phrannie the timer is a good Idea and I will try that . I have made beef soup also but couldn't get the meat down.

    Peggy

  • peggylulu
    peggylulu Member Posts: 375
    CivilMatt said:

    I was not hungry

    Peggy,

     

    I did  not get hungry during the entire 10 months I was on smoothies.  My Dad asked me numerous times ‘aren’t you hungry”, but I wasn’t.  I almost always got enough calories in my protein drinks, but I was satisfied.  Mind you I lost 43 pounds over the past year and I use to (pre-cancer) get hungry and over eat.  Granted during those 10 months I pretty much despised all foods so there wasn’t the enticement of food flavor to make me hungry.  I think as long as I did not crave food my mind was happy with the drinks.

     

    Best,

     

    Matt

    Not Hungry

    I think you just hit the nail on the head Matt ! We don't get hungry because we know it's not going to taste good anyway ! I guess in a way it's a good thing that we aren't hungry !

  • NJShore
    NJShore Member Posts: 429 Member
    Appetite..

    I think taste has everything to do with appetite. First we smell, then we taste. We not only use those senses for enjoying food, but protecting our bodies from foods gone bad. Ever bite into something that you think you should have tossed out yesterday? Kind of makes sense that the body might just be saying, no.. This might not be right, I can't tell, so I am going to reduce the risk..

    i also think that smell and taste get our body in motion to digest food. Without taste, the trigger is not triggered... Hence, it's hard to eat if your bodily fluids aren't supporting the process.

    I am so impressed with the success people have made with getting it in.. It's so important.

    Kari

  • Dr.Ed
    Dr.Ed Member Posts: 22
    peggylulu said:

    Not Hungry

    I think you just hit the nail on the head Matt ! We don't get hungry because we know it's not going to taste good anyway ! I guess in a way it's a good thing that we aren't hungry !

    i'm 8 months out

    and just every once in a while feel hungry or thirsty, so I have a set amount I have to drink every day and anything else is"gravy" so to speak. I have also prepared things and wound up giving most of it to someone else (or my dog). i've actually had moments of craving an old food I used to love and it's almost always disappointing when I try it and its dry as chalk or to spicy or too grainy or just is no longer attractive once it's actually in my mouth. But I'm committed to keep trying things because every once in a while I can tolerate and enjoy them. I bought a Ninja with the attachments that are just large enough to hold a shake so its easy to manage and only clean one thing. I'm drinking about 5 shakes a day. I use ensure and Serious Mass (also vanilla) and I've gained about 12 pounds in the last couple of months transforming me from a POW-like body to just a plain very skinny man. I could go all day not eating if I based it on hunger so I basically eat, mostly drink, because I know I need to. Ed

  • Ingrid K
    Ingrid K Member Posts: 813
    NJShore said:

    Appetite..

    I think taste has everything to do with appetite. First we smell, then we taste. We not only use those senses for enjoying food, but protecting our bodies from foods gone bad. Ever bite into something that you think you should have tossed out yesterday? Kind of makes sense that the body might just be saying, no.. This might not be right, I can't tell, so I am going to reduce the risk..

    i also think that smell and taste get our body in motion to digest food. Without taste, the trigger is not triggered... Hence, it's hard to eat if your bodily fluids aren't supporting the process.

    I am so impressed with the success people have made with getting it in.. It's so important.

    Kari

    smell and taste go hand in hand

    Kari is absolutely right about the smell and taste thing going together.  When I was first eating semi-solid food again and complaining of the lack of or crappy taste, my rads doc would tell me to hold my nose and try and eat anyways.  My sense of smell got so good while I was going thru treatment I once told Phrannie that I could give my golden retriever a run for his money...sniffer-wise.

    If it weren't for my husband gently naggin me to eat on a regular basis, I could easily have gone all day without anything at all.  Part of it surely was the amount of effort you have to put into it, but don't give up !!   Even though our sense of smell increases, it doesn't trigger any saliva....so swallowing is harder at a time when we really need nutrition the most. 

    As far as wasting food, that is par for the course.   You have to keep trying different foods--some days they work some days they don't.  Since I hated to throw things out, hubby gained quite a bit of the weight that I had lost by eating all the mistakes.

    Don't give up...it does get better !

     

     

  • Grandmax4
    Grandmax4 Member Posts: 723
    my problem

    is the exact oppisite,after going 1 full year on a soft diet, when I finally was able to swallow anything....it started! I've gained back the 42 pounds I lost and more...I keep thinking I have to diet, but it hasn't happened yet....yikes!!