CyndieRI

Do they think you are going home today? Are you able to drink? Most people go home after 1 or 2 nights so hopefully today will be the day! I definitely felt better when I got home and could get some rest!! I was in 2 nights because I wasn’t able to drink the day after surgery. Good luck! Hope you make it home soon!!

The thing that is hard to understand before surgery is how easy it is to "eat around your surgery." Kind of like putting a lock on the kitchen door but then you figure out how to climb in through the window. The sleeve (or any other WLS) only works as well as you do. Once you're all healed up, you are perfectly capable of pounding down thousands of calories a day if you so choose.
One good method of avoiding regain is moderation. Some people can do that, but honestly, most of us can't. If we could, we wouldn't be here. I know from past experience, for example, that once I hit maintenance, I'll do better with 6 days on/1 day off. That will keep me pretty well in line. There's a thread on here about intermittent fasting. That's a great solution for some. The point is, the surgery isn't a one-and-done for most people. It is something we will have to work at forever. I hope this helps.

A lot of this will be explained when you see a nutritionist for the first time if you decide to start your WLS journey First, WLS is a tool, not magic. It's a way to get your weight off quickly and a way to learn better habits, i.e. moderation. (I think most of us wouldn't be here If we had a handle on that, including yours truly). Right after surgery your body isn't able to process food the same way. Eating comes in stages. liquids, pureed foods, soft foods and finally solids. When your body is resetting and you try to put in junk like pizza for example, your new tummy can't handle it and you may wind up having dumping syndrome (worth a Google). Eventually, sure you can eat that stuff again in moderation if you choose. Hoping in my case I just won't crave it eventually. This is such an investment of your time, energy and money...in the end it's hard but not worth it. Even though I whine about pizza, the thought eventually fades. Or i come on here and whine. Lol BTW...Carbonation, however is not our friend after surgery Gas HURTS. It also stretches out your stomach...no bueno! Hope that helps and wish you all the best!

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I agree, so many mind games! Thank you so much for the link! I'll be researching the alternatives big time!! Did your sense of smell heighten after surgery? I feel like mine did and I can smell what everyone is making fo dinner every night LOL...maybe I'm crazy!Thank you for your encouragement, its nice to come here and just let it out to the people who are going through the same stuggles!!! [emoji172]

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There's no denying it, this is hard. Especially the first couple of months where you really can't eat. When you're further out, know that you can have a bite of pizza. Lots of times knowing that you CAN is all that you need. It's all head games. Definitely feel free to take a walk or something when it really bothers you. Not forever, just while you're really struggling. That's not selfish, it's coping. It does get easier, I promise!
p.s. I love the Skinnytaste website. She remakes standard recipes in a healthier version and includes all the protein/calorie info. Very helpful.

Oh I can't wait!!!! You go girl!!! If you're ever in Vegas we can go shopping as a celebration and sip Protein shakes! LOL

Now you're talking girl....
(My Cacique went to Goodwill and yours will too!!!) (I'm going to take a picture in front of Lane Bryant cutting my card in half next time I'm near the mall)

LOL, i love this!!! Fabulous advice!!! Dang food...it's everywhere!!! hahaha! Will-power. I'm working on it. So far, so good. It may sound silly, but I haven't fit in Victoria's Secret for a very long time, I keep telling people I am just waiting for the day I can shop there. Nothing wrong with Cacique, but I wanna carry that pretty pink bag around the mall proudly!!!

Hang in there, I'd like to tell you that after awhile you won't mind the food fest others are partaking, but I'm not going to lie to you. These challenges will exist forever....sucks doesn't it.
But just make one decision at a time, 'I will not cave in to the pizza.' Get out a clothing catalog and picture yourself wearing one of the fabulous outfits - hell go to the computer and order something....lol Go put on lipstick (and perfume so you smell it and not pizza) - you won't feel like messing up your lipstick with food - tell the hubs not to pig out too much or he will be in a food coma and no nookie...lol (he'll leave the table for that lol)
See you aren't thinking about that food now are ya!!!

I messaged you

LOL, this made me laugh.

I struggle, too, with people making unhealthy eating choices around me. I know that a lot of the struggle is mental and when I'm in a good mindset (I suffer from mental illness) I can generally post-pone eating in an ugly manner (e.g. food I shouldn't eat, or make good choices when I order out.) It helps having a support group (like this) when you are about to make a bad choice.
I try to remember the reasons why I am doing this surgery. Not only for health reasons, but because I want to feel good about myself. Some of us may unconsciously want to self-sabotage that progress because we don't think we're deserving of . . . well, feeling GOOD about ourselves. But it's okay. You have every right to access self confidence and make yourself feel good about how you look and what you've done.
I want food to mean something, just not some garbage that I shoved into my mouth. I will not deny that food is a very socially oriented activity and while they are definitely alternatives, I feel that successful WLS is embracing how to compromise the new lifestyle (if you know what I mean.)
Anyway, I feel like I'm rambling. Work is a stressful time for me concerning food (especially with my mental illness) but I'm trying to find forgiveness in myself so I can move on and make better choices the next time around.

Fluffy - I'm already pretty bitter.... 👹

Late to this thread ... but adding anyway ...
I do a lot of travel and entertainment for work. So that is several nights a week usually that absolutely revolves around food and alcohol. It's my job, so I can't avoid it, or change the focus.
Additionally, spending time with friends usually revolves around food and/or alcohol as well. Happy Hour, wine tasting get together, cocktails at X's house, etc.
Maybe because I'm older, but it hasn't really been that hard. At first I was hyper focused on losing the weight so it was an easy decision to make to have Water. When you're only eating 500 cals or less a day, then a 100 cals for a light beer is a lot, and not worth it. As I've gotten near goal, I have relaxed a bit. I'll have a glass or two of wine, or cocktail, or beer. But it is much more so in moderation. I'm mindful that drinking like I used to would add 1000's of cals a week to my diet, many 1000's some weeks. There is no way I'm going to sabotage all my hard work in that way.
So it really comes down to the fact that losing and keeping the weight off is much more important to me than drinking alcohol in excess.

Seeing my vagina so when I'm shaving I don't shave my nails. I've done that so many times. It's not so bad when I have acrylics on but man does it hurt when I don't have them done.

Start slow and that way you know what your new tummy will like. I have a better time with crock pot turkey breast than oven roasted because it's juicier. Steamed veggies go down pretty good. Make sure you take small bites and chew chew chew. That is something I forget constantly and I take my huge bites and want to swallow whole as if I'm afraid it will be taken. I've realized that the longer I take to eat my meal, the better it goes down and I get full with less food.

I was sleeved on 10/10. I still go out. I just drink Water now. All my friends know I had surgery so it hadn’t been an issue. I would rather go out and have water than miss out on the fun!

I think therapy will be super helpful for you, and I'm going to talk from my experiences with MY therapist.
I understand what you're saying about missing the way you used to eat. From what I've worked through with my therapist, it's the ability to control what goes into my mouth. If I was having a bad day, if my abusive parents went off on me, I could gain control of my life again by eating an entire large pizza. If I was tired, if I felt like I wasn't going anywhere in life, I could eat an entire Pasta bread bowl and cheese sticks. I could eat one, two three cheeseburgers because I wanted to, I was in control of how much I ate and went. That feeling of being full, of tasting that food over and over again, was what calmed me down.
Unfortunately, like more instant forms of self-harm, it's an unhealthy coping skill. You haven't gained any control by eating two large Double Double meals with milkshakes. All you've done is postponed your time to deal with it.
having surgery and having to be "forced" into a new way of eating takes this control away. You can't do what you used to do, so you feel like you're out of control.
You are worth so much more than gorging yourself on food. You are worth working through your feelings. You deserve so much more than what your brain may be telling you, and I'm so proud of you. ❤️

Hi, friends. I am 12 weeks post-op tomorrow. I am still miserable. I semi-regret this surgery. I miss food so much. I miss gorging myself. I miss the way food made me feel. I hate being scared of food. I hate always thinking of food and worrying about it. I hate this life I am now forced into. Yes, I have lost 45lb since surgery. 55lb since pre-op diet. However, food made me happy. Now I am unhappy. I think I am going to go to a therapist because this feeling is not getting better over time.

I literally just snorted out my Water. 🤣

Well 3 days into my livershrink diet and i had to go to my pcp doctor to get refills on meds and they weighed me i was 382lbs 3 days ago now im at 374lbs somethings working and i think im starting to get a rythem going here!!!!
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Also, do not depend on the malabsorptive aspect of RNY to allow you to eat crappy foods and "get away" with not absorbing all the calories. Why? Cuz depending on your doc, you may get a shorter bypass, or a longer one--you won't really know for sure. Nor will you know how MUCH malabsorption it actually causes. Studies are showing that it is less than previously thought. Also when the gut regrows microvilli, they become super-powered and scrubbing nutrients and energy from the stuff we eat. So there's that too. The surgery operates on the gut, not your brain...so cravings still exist. And they go whackamole on you to make sure you know they are still there post surgery -- regardless of type.
Bottom line, if I hadn't "worked my tool" to lose all my weight to 1st goal, my tool wouldn't have worked regardless of tool type (RNY or VSG) and the surgery would not have "magically" gotten me to that 1st Goal line without herculean efforts. I had to work. Let me repeat. It was W-O-R-K. It wasn't magic bean surgery that allowed me to keep all my unbalanced habits and relationships with food--just cuz I had an RNY and separated an egg size portion of stomach and rerouted some intestines.
I "can" eat way more food on any given day, easily 2000+ cals if I don't watch it. And that's POST RNY at 8.5months. But I know that I lose best in a caloric window of between 600-800 average cals per day. I KNOW I lose best at about 60-70g Protein, 30g net carbs or less, 35-39g of fat or less per day with no cheats and no booze/wine/beer. LOL.
Everyday is hard work. But everyday is also joy and pride. I can do things I haven't been able to do in 40 years! I got my life back thanks to this surgery. I think you can experience that success and joy with either surgery. But it is a mindset. And it takes fixing your diet, your exercise, your thoughts, your habits, your relationships with food and with people. It takes you, a support group, your RD, your doc, your doc's staff, maybe a trainer/gym, maybe a psychologist for success--not just one surgery over the other.
Honestly the only thing in my mind to determine which surgery you have would be the state of your esophagus and tums and intestines. If you have GERD, honestly, I'd go right to RNY. I did and didn't want to roll the dice on a second surgery that will be more difficult, have more chance of potential risk, and may be harder the 2nd time around. But that was just me...

This is false information. If you are under the assumption that bypass surgery will “stop” you from eating “bad habit” foods, you are mistaken. This is is simply not the case for many of us. If you are referring to processed foods and foods high in sugars as “bad habit” foods it is absolutely possible to eat these foods after bypass surgery.
There is no guarantee that you will get dumping after bypass surgery, and the amount of patients that do is only estimated at 30 percent or so, and this decreases with the length of time post surgery. This is why you see lots of posts about regain after ANY weight loss surgery type.
No surgery will prevent you from eating what you want, the onus is on YOU to change your diet, not to try to rely on a potential undesirable consequence to change your behavior.

Oh no! Don’t be discouraged!! I’m not too far ahead of you (sleeved on 10/10) but the first 2 weeks are definitely the hardest!! When TV commercials come on for food, I hit mute and look away (or change the channel when my husband isn’t home - lol). It’s easier to just not look!! I know I was craving spicy food so once I was cleared for scrambled eggs, I made some and put some hot sauce on! Yummm! It definitely hit the spot!! I’m sure some more veteran sleevers can help more than I can - but that’s what helped me. And also, I’m REALLY sick of being so overweight! I need to do this for my health! Good luck!!

I’m a finance director. I had surgery on 10/10/18 and I go back to work this Thursday. That will be 4 weeks off. I could have gone back sooner but my surgeon recommended 4 weeks and my employer is paying me so I followed my doctor’s advice. I am looking forward to going back to work but I’m worried about being tired!

I think most people would agree that they had some anxiety before surgery! I know I sure did! And having an actual date makes it that much more tangible! I agree with the last comment - breathe and remember why you wanted to do this! Good luck!!