teacupnosaucer

I am similar. I don't have blackout compulsive binging, but if I have a bag of Oreos at hand I can and will eat the whole thing. The sleeve has definitely helped me to lose weight by limiting my portions in general, but more importantly I have to make a conscious choice not to bring those trigger foods into my house. Oreos and other bagged cookies can't come into my house. Other people can't buy potato chips for the same reason, etc. Ultimately I'd say post-sleeve that if I had a bag of Oreos here right now... I couldn't eat the whole thing the same way as I used to, but I could DEFINITELY polish off the bag by grazing over the course of a night at a slower pace. Calories are still the same no matter the pace though! So don't count on the sleeve alone to keep you from overeating unhealthy food.

Commit yourself to the changes. Be open to trying new things. Track your food and exercise, even (especially) when you're disappointed with yourself or embarrassed. Make small changes one at a time. Celebrate your accomplishments (and not just the scale ones!). Write lists of your goals, your achievements, etc, so you have them to look at when you need them. Surround yourself with people who help you do your best and support your healthy lifestyle

I feel this too. I've lost more than sixty pounds and have gone from a size 18-20 to a size 10-12 but I still think I look the exact same when I look in the mirror. I pick up clothes and think "there's no way this will fit" and then it does... easily. Part of my problem as well is that when I was at my largest, I didn't SEE myself as big as I was. Like I'd see a photo or catch myself in a mirror and be SHOCKED by my own body. It's a very weird sensation. I don't know when my brain and body will be in sync again.

As obvious as it sounds to say it... go and don't drink. If people are gonna be asses about it, you don't have to tell people you're not drinking, if you don't want. Order something virgin at the bar that looks vaguely alcoholic and sip it. I did that when I was newly pregnant but didn't want people asking questions LOL. Or, alternatively, be open that you're not drinking because you're looking after your health. People should respect that, and if they don't that's on them! You could say you don't want to drink your calories, or say your doctor needs you to be extra careful with your liver, or or or. People quit drinking for plenty of reasons! You don't have to avoid social situations just because you can't have alcohol, though. This is lifelong. Even if you do decide to start drinking alcohol again (which you absolutely can if you want, post sleeve, you just have to be conscious about how much you're drinking and follow your surgeon's directions on when it's safe to have a drink post-op), there will always be other situations where you will not be able to do things the way you used to, or participate the same as others do... eg going out to a restaurant you might have to order a noticeably smaller portion, or say no to the deep fried chicken wings everyone else is having on wing wednesday, etc. We just have to find our own way to participate in these rituals that allows us to maintain connections with people and be a part of social events without compromising our right and our responsibility to care for our bodies.

I'm not a "gym person" so haven't really made that step yet, but I did go from couch potato to getting more active, and honestly, it can be sooooooo intimidating, especially for someone who has been fat, who was teased in PE class, bullied by jocks, yadda yadda yadda... Every new activity I've tried, I've enlisted a friend. Swing dancing classes I found a girlfriend I knew was into vintage fashion. Swimming I go with my mom. Soccer, I go with my husband. Having someone go with you helps you feel less alone and awkward. The other thing I've found helped is just being honest with people about your emotions. Yes the world is full of meathead jerks and judgy types, but it is also filled with people who are kind and supportive and genuinely want to welcome newbies into their world. "I haven't played soccer since high school so I'm a little intimidated but I want to try my best!" earned me a lot of support and encouragement from the rest of the team. "This is my first time ever doing a dance class, I hope I can keep up!" had me commiserating with fellow newbie dancers and getting gentle guidance from more experienced dance partners. And honestly, the more you do it, the easier it gets. And I don't just mean "I've been to three dance classes now so I'm not as scared of going to my fourth dance class" but also "I've been to three dance classes now so when a friend of mine invites me to do a 5k with her I feel up to the challenge because I know I'm capable of trying new things." Overcoming my fears and insecurities has been even more rewarding to me than seeing the number on the scale go down, honestly. I feel like I am really living my life more fully than I did before. You can do this! The fear is real but the rewards are great!

A week out or so, yeah. It doesn't hurt or feel uncomfortable to do it, and it helps me pace my drinking, so I think I'm fine.

I am a big water drinker and more than that... a complete chugger! I am three months out and still can't chug water the way I used to. Sometimes I forget I'm post-op and try to guzzle my water but my stomach quickly reminds me I'm not supposed to be doing that anymore! It's hard, but I still get lots of water in and enjoy it just as much. Just have to consciously remind myself to drink it slowly.

No, you are not stretching your stomach drinking water. Remember at two weeks out your stomach is healing. You will gradually be able to consume more and more as the swelling from your surgery goes down. Once you start eating solids, the restriction will kick in. Promise. For now, keep focusing on staying hydrated. You're doing a good job!

No, I'm sorry, it really won't. In fact, in our program people who binge eat are not approved for surgery whatsoever until they have their binge eating under control first. (I believe one woman in my support group said she needed to be six+ months free of a binging episode before being allowed to sign?) If you are a true compulsive overeater and binger, surgery will NOT fix those compulsions... and you could wind up badly hurting yourself! Of course, I'm talking about true compulsive overeating binging, which is a serious psychological issue and a genuine eating disorder not "I went to a pasta joint and ate SO MUCH BREADSTICKS AND THEN HAD SPAGHETTI!" which of course ain't great for you and often makes you feel like poop on a stick, but isn't the same thing as binge eating disorder either. In the second case surgery will definitely limit your appetite and portion sizes to a given extent. As for the sweets, nope, there's really no guarantee it's going to help with that. My first few weeks out I couldn't stand anything sweet whatsoever, but my sweet tooth is definitely back now! Some people experience dumping syndrome when they eat sweets, which can work as negative reinforcement, but it's not for all sweet foods and it often goes away the farther out from surgery you are. Surgery is an amazingly powerful and life-changing tool, but it has limits. There are some things the surgery can really help with, but other things we must work on and fix ourselves.

I drink a lot of iced herbal teas. I actually also just really like a glass of milk sometimes! I stay away from carbonated drinks because I don't trust myself to have just a little, and I know my Pepsi habit is part of what got me to needing surgery in the first place.

Before, 227lbs in a size 2X coat that was tight on me. 2.5 months post sleeve, finishing off a night of swing dancing in a size L dress in the mid 160s. The difference here isn't just the weight and size, but the fact that old me NEVER would have been doing weekly swing dancing lessons and going to social dances! I'm not only smaller, I have a genuinely better quality of life! Oh and the picture was taken by a new friend of mine who I met through a post-op support group! We do all kinds of activities together that don't revolve around food. I love it!

I know many of the high BMI patients through our program, in order to get down to a surgery-safe weight, will go on a medically supervised diet called optifast. They also are prescribed Saxenda injections. The goal of these programs isn't the "lifelong changes to diet and exercise" piece that they'll ultimately have to incorporate eventually, but straight up "lose as much weight as possible as fast as possible so you can get onto that surgery table safely and continue treatment". Maybe ask about either of those options? A high BMI puts you at high surgical risk, but it hardly seems a fair alternative to just say "welp either magically lose 90 pounds or don't bother" without any of the comprehensive support you need to HELP you lose those 90 lbs. You need this, you know you need this, you DESERVE this chance... now just to find you a program that is willing to help you get there in a safe and realistic way. Does your insurance cover exercise therapists or physio? With your pain levels I do NOT blame you for not exercising, and honestly wouldn't recommend you just jump out and "do it anyway" even if you thought you could. It sounds to me like having a professional guide you with appropriate movement that will not further injure your body would be the best bet. Some bariatric programs are literally just throw you into surgery sink or swim, but other programs are more holistic in their approach. I know ours hooks people up with classes, with a psychologist and therapy, a registered dietician, an exercise therapist, a social worker if need be... Surgery for many people really needs to be one aspect of care, not the be all and end all. It's just a matter of finding a clinic that provides that level of care.

You're going to be okay. You will wake up and feel like you just closed your eyes... and then on top of that you will likely be so high on painkillers you won't know the ceiling from the floor, let alone understand the passage of time LOL! also anaesthesia affects everyone differently, so there's really no predicting what it will be like coming out of it. no matter what happens, you will be in the hands of trained staff who have seen it allllll and will know just how to care for you in that vulnerable time. The first day and a half is a total blur for me. I drifted in and out of consciousness. Not sure what you mean by tube bag though! I had a drain in one of my incision sites (the worst), an IV for fluids and pain medication, but no catheter like some others have. I think overthinking is very normal when it comes to a major surgery

definitely track your food. it's very hard to see places to make changes or for people to give you advice without food tracking. just for example, many people think they are doing super well with their eating but it turns out that their "healthy protein bars" they're having as snacks add up to 500+ calories in a day, or that they're eating much more often than they should be and veering into grazing etc. food journalling will really help you see patterns and trends and understand your eating better. measuring your food is also a very good idea. over- AND under-estimating your portions is common and can lead to you having a distorted understanding of what you're truly eating. I will almost always eat about three times the recommended portion of nuts, just for example, if I don't take the time to actually measure the portion. with calorie dense foods like nuts that kind of mistake really adds up, and fast! there are lots of really great apps out there that make it relatively painless. you can even have them send you reminders if you forget to track, so you can get into the habit! my personal oopsie is almost always eating out. I'll think I've been doing really well, then look at my tracker and discover I've eaten out 6 times in two weeks or something similar. even a sleeved belly is no match for that much restaurant food LOL! as to how much protein you require, my RD came up with my number based on a formula that took into account my sex, height, weight etc. as a 5'3" woman I need significantly less protein than a 6'0" man, so it's hard for any of us to tell you what your protein goal should be. my recommendation is that you advocate for yourself and ask your dietician to give you a protein goal. even if they don't normally do it, they should be able to come up with one for you. protein is so important to your healing and retaining muscle mass! seems completely bizarre to me that you wouldn't have even a general idea of what to aim for.

Oh and other preparations I can recommend: an electric heating pad (so amazing for pain and gas post-op). That thing was a friggin' life saver! I also had one of those microwaveable rice bag things to put in the small of my back, which was hurting quite often too. High waisted leggings were the only pants I could wear. Anything that sat below my belly button and especially my jeans were incredibly uncomfortable. You may be quite swollen after surgery too, so something with a decent amount of stretch is a good idea. (I looked about 7 months pregnant after mine, oof! thank god for stretchy costco sweatpants!) I also recommend some kind of compression garment. Some people get actual post-surgical compression band things like people wear after a c-section, but I just had some nice compression athletic wear. I felt a lot more comfortable with the tightness against my belly holding me in. for the first week or so I felt like my organs were going to fall out every time I stood up and walked. (they most certainly did not do that, everything was COMPLETELY FINE.) the compression against my belly helped me feel a little more secure and comfortable.

I had a lot of those cartons of creamed soup post-op, which I often added milk and unflavored protein powder to. I also used a lot of protein powder (both unflavored and sugar-free flavored varieties) and smooth greek yogurt. I bought oatmeal but discovered I could only stand the unsweetened stuff immediately post op, the normal stuff was WAYYYYY too sweet for me to tolerate. High protein milk (Fairlife in the USA, Natrel in Canada) was a great way to get in some more protein and a hundred or so more calories a day, as well as upping my fluids when water was weirdly awful to drink. I think I had some unsweetened applesauce, but not often. Basically my rule for myself was if it wasn't a source of protein, I didn't eat it those first couple weeks. There was just so little room in my tummy or will to eat, I needed to make every single bite "count". I think the biggest surprise was how much sweetened stuff in general disgusted me and tasted bad though. Pudding cups, popsicles, protein shakes, oatmeal... I had absolutely zero interest in sweet things. I lived off of savoury for at least a week before introducing limited amounts of sweeter foods. (AKA going from plain oatmeal to plain oatmeal with half a teaspoon of raspberry jam VS the high protein maple brown sugar oatmeal I'd been suggested to buy). I know some surgeons include baby food in their post-op diet plans, but I can't imagine myself eating that post-op. If it's not specifically recommended for you, I would like to say it really isn't required. I was kind of emotional and crotchety after surgery and was even resentful of the pureed soups, so I can only imagine how crabby I'd have been to be eating food meant for a baby LOL. Your mileage may vary on that one. I think my biggest piece of advice from one planner to another though... is DON'T OVERBUY. I was totally like "oh yeah I'm gonna stock up on all this stuff and it'll be perfect!" and then things I stocked up on... I ended up not wanting to eat and not liking. Stuff like said high protein oatmeal which I had always enjoyed before suddenly tasted terrible and now I was stuck with four stupid boxes of the stuff. Buy enough for a few days so you're not stuck with stuff your new belly/tastebuds aren't digging. Yes it means you're a little less prepared for the post-surgery apocalypse, but there's always online shopping and grocery delivery if you don't have enough of something. Post bariatric surgery is the one time I'd actually advocate "better to need it and not have it than have it and not need it". Also, I really looked forward to grocery shopping post op because it was a great way to get out of the house and do some limited walking

I'm 2.5 months out. I swim 3x a week, go dancing, and then do the occasional walk. Hoping to incorporate some strength training as well but for now I'm happy with my routine!

I swim as a workout! I do 3km a week of laps. I'm two months out and lose an average of 3lb a week (with a surgery day BMI of 36). Swimming is great for me because it's very calming, it doesn't cause my body pain and I could do it at any weight, I don't feel like a sweaty overheated mess, and I'm able to measure my successes/growth. the best workout post surgery is the one you can enjoy and stick with. ANY form of exercise is going to be incredibly beneficial to your progress, overall health and quality of life, and your ability to maintain weight loss.

Suicidal thoughts and actions are surprisingly common post-surgery for a variety of reasons. (http://www.webmd.com/diet/obesity/news/20151007/suicide-risk-may-rise-for-some-after-weight-loss-surgery#1) What you are going through is common, but you don't/shouldn't have to suffer through it alone without support. PLEASE reach out for help, either to your clinic psychologist if you have one, or to a suicide hotline if you don't. Here's a list of numbers that includes many countries and states. http://www.yourlifecounts.org/need-help/crisis-lines

I got myself a new pandora charm for every 25 lbs lost!

My life has improved ten fold since surgery! I get to shop where I want, I joined a dance class and go to social dances where people actually ask me to dance with them (!!!), I joined a soccer team, I'm way better at swimming now and have better endurance, strangers are nicer to me now, I have a great new group of friends who are also surgery sisters and we are all committed to trying new things together and putting ourselves out there, I have less day-to-day pain and fatigue... My quality of life has improved in ways I couldn't have envisioned or predicted. I am SO HAPPY! The quality of my life used to be measured by what food I could eat and how much downtime I had. I thought I was doing okay... but this new normal has taught me what I was truly missing out on! So not only do I "still" enjoy life, I actually enjoy life MORE, and in ways I never thought possible!

I think seeking support is a very good first step. A psychologist or therapist, but a support group, too. It's proven that people who regularly attend support groups have greater long term success. Getting an accountability buddy might also help a lot. Other than that, maybe try coming up with some goals for yourself? One realistic, measurable goal at a time. "I will re-commit to my exercise routine at least three days a week for the next month" or "I will track my food for two weeks straight". I'm there with you. I haven't regained because I'm still in my honeymoon phase, but I have gotten less consistent about tracking because of a bunch of life stresses recently. my first goal is to get back to tracking on MFP consistently and building up my "days tracked in a row" again!

Yes and no... yes because I'd have loved to be living the lifestyle I have now earlier than this... No because in my 20s I don't think I would have been emotionally or mentally ready to make these big changes and commitments. I am in a VERY different place now at 31 than at 25. But if you're ready, you're ready! Don't wait for an arbitrary reason like age. It's the mindset that matters.

I joined my husband's work soccer team and am not afraid of being unable to keep up with everyone else! I'm not at my goal weight but I *know* I am way fitter than I was. I feel like I can participate and make new friends and not drag everyone else down or have them all wishing I wasn't there! It's not just my increased fitness level at this smaller size that's my NSV... it's the confidence to put myself out there!

I was getting increasingly depressed and isolated at the size I was, and my health was starting to deteriorate. But I think that singular ENOUGH IS ENOUGH moment was the day I took my daughter to the public health nurse for her one year checkup and shots, and she is in the 97th percentile for height and weight... and the nurse because of MY size assumed I wasn't feeding her properly and didn't know about portion control or basic nutrition. she acted like because I was fat I must give my baby chocolate milk and soda in her bottle and feed her mcdonalds three times a day! I was so humiliated that she would make those kinds of assumptions about my parenting.