Things to increase appetite and (internal) stomach size?
 

I am on medications that reduce my appetite as a side-effect.
I am struggling just to eat 1 meal a day. Yesterday all I had to eat was 1 slice buttered whole grain bread, 4 lean turkey meatballs, 1/4 cup sauteed mushrooms, and 1/4 bag steamed mixed vegetables, and for dessert 2 pieces of chocolate (Ghiradelli Dark with Hazelnuts).
I have tried forcing myself to eat more, with bad effects.
I usually will have just half a sandwich for lunch IF I eat lunch that day, and the day before yesterday I thought,
"I need to eat more, so today I will have a WHOLE sandwich and 1/2 cup of pasta salad."
Well, after eating that I felt so full my stomach was in PAIN. I had to lay down to keep myself from involuntarily throwing up.
I've also tried eating 2 eggs for breakfast instead of just 1, and had that same "OMG I'M SOOOOOOOO FULL" feeling.
I have been forcing myself to eat even when I don't want to, and it's been making me feel physically ill on a daily basis.
I also smoke pot when I can get it, but it no longer gives me the munchies unless I smoke an entire $20 bag at once, and I can't afford more than a $20 bag a WEEK, let alone 3 of them in a day to make sure I can eat.
I am also taking multivitamins so I don't end up malnourished from lack of food, but I would rather be eating properly and NOT taking the multivitamin.
Also, I drink coffee and smoke cigarettes, which I know decreases your appetite, but i've been smoking and drinking coffee for years and I was able to not only eat, but to actually binge, eating up to a whole large pizza and a 14-piece bbq chicken meal IN ONE SITTING.

Does anyone know any natural ways to increase my appetite?
And any way to make my internal stomach larger without painful stretching from eating too much at once?

Try splitting your calories out every 2 or 3 hours. A little bit at a time. Maybe an apple with some pb or other nut butter. A piece of toast with an egg. A salad with protein.

Eat higher fat foods, like adding oil to your mayo or cheaper (fattier) ground beef, instead of lean ground turkey. And don't force yourself to eat. If yore not hungry, just go with it. Your appetite will even out eventually. Unless you're getting symptoms of hypoglycemia, don't bother forcing food.

And seriously? Smoking pot to intentionally get the munchies is about the most ridiculous thing I've heard. :?:

Save your brain cells and abstain - spend the money on quality food instead, since that has been an ongoing struggle for you. If food is difficult to obtain, drugs should certainly be lower on the list.

I'm with Arctic Mama on this one. Just make sure you're eating food that give you what you need nutritionally and allow your body to adjust. Definitely lay off the pot.

Lin

I would talk to the doctor who is prescribing these medications as I'm sure he/she has heard these concerns before. And the posters above have given good advice. Go for healthy high cal/fat foods spaced evenly throughout the day.

Thanks for the advice everyone.


Also, I smoke pot for more than the munchies, I use it for my anxiety and chronic pain, because pain pills don't work for me. Even morphine makes me violently ill while barely working. But for some reason pot helps my pain.

If you are concerned about getting the necessary calories your body needs, focus on quality not quantity. Eat things like avocado, coconut butter or olive oil, almond butter or other nut butter, goat or sheep yogurt. These things are very nutritious and loaded with quality calories.

allergic to avacado, hate coconut, olive oil i put on salads but thats about it, i haven't gotten to try my almond butter yet but i have some i should try it soon, and goat/sheep yoghurt sounds gross but i eat activia yoghurt.

With regards to the pot....could you use a vaporizer? It would be a whole bunch healthier. Just a thought.

can't afford one. plus mostly i just smoke "roaches".... my friend Lori smokes only joints and she gives me the ends that are too small to smoke, i unwrap them and put them in a pipe along with my tobacco

I agree with what they said above about spacing out your calories into really small portions and about adding high calorie oils etc

and there's nothing wrong, in my opinion, with using pot for whatever reasons (or for no reasons)....in my opinion a lot less people have been hurt or killed by pot than have by alcohol use :(

I'd taper down the cigarettes and the caffeine. Yeah, they were OK in the past, but given the new appetite issues right now, I'd cut down. They're still appetite suppressants.

I have been trying for a while, but I can't handle the withdrawal. I don't just headaches, I get migraines... which end me up in hospital.

i agree. i think pot should be legalized all over, it has so many medicinal properties... which is how i use it. i USED TO use it for fun but i have such a high tolerance now that i can barely get stoned, let alone high, and i need a lot. so i stopped trying to get high/stoned. i just take a few puffs here and there throughout the day, maybe smoke half a joint if i'm really anxious or can't sleep, but mostly it's just little puffs here and there.