During the first year post surgery, I ate so little that eating at a restaurant was ridiculous. A few bites of soup or what have you, and that was it. The wait-people were constantly asking me if everything was okay. I sort of expected it then.
I am almost four years post op now, and the surgery I had (duodenal switch) allows for more "room" after time, and the ability to eat what they consider a small-normal meal (malabsorption keeps us from regaining). I really am very happy with the amount I am able to eat. It does seem like a small-normal meal until I get to a restaurant. Without going on a major rant about how incredibly MUCH food the restaurant industry considers a serving, I am just sort of annoyed by wasting so much food (often I am out of town, and am not going directly back to an area with refrigeration), and also annoyed by my usual plan which is simply to order a bowl of soup. I get tired of soup!
When I am with my mother, we split an entree, which works well (she had WLS about 30 years ago), although I generally then am inhibited by her food preferences. When I am with my boyfriend, I tend to order soup and have a few bites of his entree. When I go out with my children, I let all three of them order, and just ask for an extra plate for myself and ask them to share with me. I don't want to be rude to them, but restaurant portions really are so huge that they don't need the whole thing, and it seems stupid to order something I will never eat.
Is anyone else annoyed by this? Have better suggestions for dealing with it?
Thanks,
Dawna
