Maisey

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

Yep. It's much harder to lose weight if you insist on everything being sugar-coated.

I'm a fan of Matthew Weiner, MD, and his website & videos. I've been following A Pound of Cure philosophy since I began going to my bariatric clinic. I've lost over 50 lbs pre-op.
I think his nutritional advice is better than my clinic's. For example, my clinic didn't want me to eat fruit! Can you imagine 8 months without fruit?
I'm not totally following his food plan, but am inching my way through the the stations. My vegan friend has shared some of her favorite recipes so many of my meals are animal protein-free. I've cut out sugar, flour, rice, potatoes, Pasta, and processed foods. I'm still dependent upon artificial sweeteners, but once I've graduated from Protein Drinks I'm going to work harder on that. My RNY to RNY revision is just three weeks away now!

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

So as not to hijack an existing thread, I thought I'd start a new one.
Since I began looking into bariatric surgery in 2019, I've done much research and reading. On the internet, I limited myself to sites that I knew were reputable and were evidence-based (i.e., mayo Clinic) rather than sites that were trying to sell surgery. Once I was accepted into my program, I watched videos suggested by the program (i.e., Dr. Matthew Weiner) and took to heart the information I was given from my program. I came into the program with a lot of pre-existing knowledge on nutrition and diet having grown up with a Type 1 diabetic father and myself a Type 2. Despite that knowledge base, I obviously wasn't applying it or I would not have been to the point where I was considering surgery. One of the hardest things I had to do throughout my surgery preparation appointments and meetings was to go in and actually listen. I accepted that my way wasn't working and if I was going to proceed with a body and life-altering surgery, I needed to adopt what I was being taught. As you can see in my stats, it's worked. But I know I'm not done learning, maintaining and working on making good decisions and healthy choices for the long-term.
In my classes, the dietician warned about social-media, weight-loss surgery groups. I admit that I move in and out of some groups. The overall lack of information and sharing of misinformation boggles my mind. It certainly proved that there are programs and doctors simply out to make money and there are patients willing to believe anything they are told without doing their own research or taking accountability for their own actions.
I was grateful to find this site and have a source of information rather than opinion. I was happy to hear from WLS veterans who have gone through the process and how they are successfully maintaining. I wanted to hear what those experiences were so that I can learn from them. I did not want them to sugar-coat the truth and I did not expect unmitigated "support." If my understanding or behavior was counterproductive, I wanted to hear that. I needed to hear that. I still do. There seems to be a misconception that in order to be supportive, someone needs to say your choices are ok. Being truthful with someone, does not always mean saying what and how you are doing things is ok.

You may be one of the unlucky ones whose hunger doesn't go away with surgery.
And I will say that your surgeon's idea that you must stay on 800 cal a day to lose weight flies in the face of scienc. Stand back, I'm going to use MATH!
If you were maintaining your (heavy) weight by eating, say, 3500 calories a day, then that's your maintenance for that weight. So now, if you are eating 800 calories, you are in a deficit of 2700 calories a day, which means you'd lose three quarters of a pound per day on average. If you're eating 1200 calories, you're in a deficit of 2300 calories a day, which means you'd lose two thirds of a pound per day on average.
Yes, different macros (protein, carbs, fat, alcohol) do work differently in your body, but ultimately your body is bound, like everyone's, to the calories in-calories out equation.
I suspect what happened to you is twofold:
1. You're in a lengthy stall (search up "three-week stall", it happens to almost all of us, it's incredibly frustrating, it's not always at 3 weeks, and it can last a month for some people). It's because your body has depleted its glycogen and is probably somewhat dehydrated (it's hard to drink enough right after surgery), and your Fluid balance is adjusting itself.
2. You're frustrated and not tracking what you eat. Unfortunately, this is something that has to be done. You can't fix your diet if you don't know what your diet is. And that means, at least for me, pre-prepping meals and weighing things out. I just pop a tray in the microwave a few times a day and have it all specced out. I use MyMacros+ for tracking. One of the big culprits is cooking oil/fat. How many people measure the oil they put in a pan to cook their, say, chicken breast? Nobody except bariatric patients—everyone else just sploops some oil in a pan until it looks right. I actually have a bar jigger on the counter so I can measure in 1/2 ounces and full ounces.
Track your food. Literally track your food. If you find you're not losing weight on 800 cal a day, spend a week eating 1000 cal a day to see if it'll shock your system. I am at about 1400-1500 cal a day a little short of three months post-op, because I work physical work and am very active (gym, running, hiking, etc.) and need the calories to be able to function. But I still track each and every day.
The surgery isn't bullshit. If it were possible to just severely restrict calories without it, nobody would get the surgery. But there are thousands of people here, myself included, who found success with the surgery that wouldn't have been possible without it.

@goodmanje, if you're just wanting to vent because you're angry and upset, that's fine. We've all been there at some time or other in our lives. But if you are interested in help with troubleshooting what's going on, you'll have to engage with us and provide more specific information. Like post an example of what you eat on an average day. And you have to be willing to change - for instance, you can't just say "I'm not a disciplined person". Losing weight requires discipline with or without surgery. There are lots of food tracking apps out there and you may not be able to figure this out without making use of one of them.

The surgery is not bullshit. You just weren’t/aren’t in the right frame of mind to lose weight right now. Like others have said, it is a tool. If you are not disciplined enough to use the tool you will not get the results you want. Don’t get mad at the surgery/process/surgeon……be mad with yourself.
I truly hope you can figure out how to use the this tool to get the results you want….it is not magic after all. You actually have to put in the work.

I guess this may be the case of some programs, that they oversell the success rate. It certainly wasn’t with mine. I went in with eyes wide open. My doc set a goal for me of 165 lbs, which was still overweight according to BMI. I’m maintaining at 140. Although I certainly haven’t been perfect, I followed the program they gave me the vast majority of the time. The longer I did that, the easier those new habits became. This is MAJOR surgery. I went in to it with the mindset that this was my last chance to turn my life around, and if I was going to do something so major by damn I was going to follow the advice of the team I was trusting to operate on me. For anyone struggling I’d advise you to schedule a visit with both your surgeon as well as the psychologist/psychiatrist and nutritionist who provided your clearance pre op.

It sure doesn't sound like you had realistic expectations of WLS, and I'm wondering how you were approved for it.
Instead of cursing your surgery, though, how about investing in some bariatric therapy to help you develop some new attitudes and strategies that will make you happier as you do the hard work we all need to do to lose weight?

I agree. WLS is not for everyone, perhaps not even for most.
I further agree that with or without surgery, losing weight is a matter of calories in vs. calories out.
WLS is not magic. It requires us to follow a well defined plan for the rest of our lives, lest we not lose enough or even gain the weight back. It requires commitment. It's not sold as easy, at least not to me.
How did you imagine all this would play out for you? Literally, what did you expect you needed to do and what the surgery would do?
Tek

I get that you are frustrated and perhaps angry.
Honestly, it's not too late for you, unless you give up. Your surgery is still there. It will make what you still need to do easier.
From what I see you have received good advice: Follow your plan to the letter, weigh your food, log your food, don't drink with meals. These things are what will get you losing weight.
These are also the things you refuse to do.
It seems you would rather quit and blame the surgery. As with all things, it's your life, it's your choice.
Good luck,
Tek

WLS is a tool. Like most tools, it makes the job easier but it doesn't do all the work. VSG is intended to restrict volume. It makes it harder to eat a large volume of food at one time.
Our post-op plans specify certain types and volumes of food.
In the early months when the restriction is new you (editorial you) often can't eat the amount of food for which your plan calls. For a period you can barely eat your full meal. During this period you are creating new habits: Healthier food choices, defined portions, new expectations, with the positive reinforcement of losing weight. If you haven't followed plan you will still lose weight for a short time, but having not changed habits, attitude, or outlook when the time comes when you can eat more you do.
Making these habit changes later, when the restriction has relaxed, can be nearly as difficult as doing it without surgery.
Good luck,
Tek

only about 5% of people are able to lose a significant amount of weight and keep it off. Unfortunately, I was not one of the 5%. I always gained back every pound of it. Surgery is the only thing that ever worked for me.

Because the surgery helps people better manage a very strict diet program so they can actually sticks to it. Some people lose their hunger for months, making it much easier to be satisfied at 800 calories. Even when hunger returns, a smaller stomach helps with Portion Control.

if you're eating 800 calories a day, you'd be losing weight. I know you said you hate logging, but it sounds like that's what you need to do, unfortunately...

With all kindness, your doctor knows what to do. They are they experts. Follow their plan to a T. That is how you’ll lose the weight. I followed EXACTLY what my doctor told me to do 99% of the time. I’m over two years out, down 146 lbs, and easily maintaining my loss. I did it by developing new habits guided by my physician and her team.

I agree with everything said above and when I try to sleep on my side I can’t keep my bony knees together. Have to use a pillow between my knees or put 1 leg in front of the other

Buying clothes ALL THE FREAKING TIME. I'm a new convert to Goodwill and Ross Dress For Less shopping because otherwise I'll blow my income on clothing.
I'm cold ALL THE FREAKING TIME.
And it hurts to sit on my bony @$$ now.

I just really needed someone to witness this tiny sandwich (which I’m stoked to be eating). 😹😹😹

I had my surgery yesterday November 23rd and it went well. I also had hernia repair at the same time. So far I am not in much pain just a little discomfort. The nurses were surprised at how well I was doing. I drank two bottles of Water. Took me several hours but I got and keep it down. No Nausea and i have I walked every our sometimes twice an hour to help with the gas. For now the gas discomfort is completely tolerable. The worst pain was my throat from the intubation, but still tolerable. I just made my first Bariatric Fusion shake today and so far so good. Just slipping on water in between. I know I will probably have some bad days, but I’m happy the start has been really good.

Can you describe your binging episode in detail? What food? How much? How long did you take? Did you drink during the episode? How much?
We can binge if we work at it and know how to do it. Some of us just happen on it by accident. It won't look like pre-op but it's possible.
There are ways to prevent thoughtlessly over eating, the same ones even non-ops use. Only put measured portions on your plate and put the rest away before you begin eating. Focus on eating when you are eating.
The surgery can do a lot of the work but in some situations it's still up to us.
ETA: Responding to your thread title, no, you have not ruined your tool. It takes a lot more than three or four binging episodes to affect your pouch. The thing to be careful of is, again, building a bad habit that eventually may.
Good luck,
Tek