Cara-Lea

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Please look into eating disorders treatment. You cannot cure an eating disorder by just forcing yourself to eat. You will simply traumatize yourself further by trying to force yourself into something you aren't able to handle. I have been there, and proper treatment is essential for your long term health.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

Hello fellow sleevers. I have been on this site very little in the past couple of years but have logged in today to respond to a question. Since I'm here, I feel obligated to tell you all the things I've learned after 5 years.
1. The people that told me my approach to living life with the sleeve was all wrong and that I would fail, gain weight in a few years, stretch my sleeve, and regret my actions are mostly gone now. I have seen a couple of them around but the most are long gone. Do not pay much attention to the know-it-alls. They know no more than anyone else and are just as likely to fail.
2. Obviously you want to follow your Dr's instructions but don't get too hung up on strict rules and diets. If you make reasonable decisions and balance your good and bad food choices, your sleeve will do most of the work for you. I have eaten anything I wanted since day one. I try to pay attention to protein etc., but I do not deny myself anything. You have the sleeve for a reason. Let it do it's job. Don't force it to hold more than it can and do not deny yourself the things that make you happy. Balance - just do it.
3. WLS is much more than losing weight. It is getting to the bottom of the issues that cause us to compensate with food in the first place. Pay more attention to your mental well being than the numbers on the scale. Your long term success depends on it.
4. Know that even after you reach your goal weight you will still be the same person with the same insecurities. Being thin changes nothing. If you did it for health reasons then hopefully those will no longer be an issue, but the person you are and how you feel inside doesn't change from losing weight. That has to change on the inside. No way around it.
5. Know that once you have made the necessary changes inside and out there will be some people that don't relate to you the same or just plain don't like you anymore. Also know that what they think is completely irrelevant . Physical and mental changes for the better intimidate those with small minds. Don't give them a second thought.
Thanks for reading.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal.
What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death.
Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal.
What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death.
Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal.
What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death.
Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely.
I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be.
One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer.
Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube.
I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation.
I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind.

The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself.
I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely.
I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be.
One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer.
Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube.
I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation.
I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind.

The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself.
I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely.
I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be.
One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer.
Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube.
I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation.
I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind.

The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself.
I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely.
I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be.
One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer.
Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube.
I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation.
I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind.

The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself.
I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely.
I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be.
One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer.
Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube.
I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation.
I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind.

The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself.
I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

Sorry for the delay in answering.. been a busy week. I think that this actually deserves it's own post, so if anyone else is interested they can see it too... so i am about to write it.

Sorry for the delay in answering.. been a busy week. I think that this actually deserves it's own post, so if anyone else is interested they can see it too... so i am about to write it.

My plan is to follow my weekly meal plan to the letter and to continue to use meditation to get control of the mental hunger. I also journal if I need to. I've been through this before with my eating disorder recovery, so while it is hard, I have techniques to work through it. I just wanted BrookeR to know she isn't alone.

It is still a struggle for me too. Today I have been absolutely at war with my mental hunger. I've been wanting sweet stuff all day. I'm pretty sure there is some hormonal impact for me.. but only a few weeks out from surgery, it is REALLY hard.

It is still a struggle for me too. Today I have been absolutely at war with my mental hunger. I've been wanting sweet stuff all day. I'm pretty sure there is some hormonal impact for me.. but only a few weeks out from surgery, it is REALLY hard.

It is still a struggle for me too. Today I have been absolutely at war with my mental hunger. I've been wanting sweet stuff all day. I'm pretty sure there is some hormonal impact for me.. but only a few weeks out from surgery, it is REALLY hard.

I am just starting week 4 of my post-op foods. I am in the "soft foods" portion of my plan. I can eat eggs, soft cheeses, nut butters (as long as they are smooth), oatmeal (as long as it is on the wet side), ground beef and pork, poultry, fish (all meats must be moist), soft cooked veggies (none of the stringy ones), saltines, melba toast , couscous, quinoa, yogourt, and some fruit.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal.
What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death.
Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal.
What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death.
Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.