SantaFeJennifer

AA was the answer for me…
12 years sober since I walked into the rooms. I am very grateful one day at a time! ?????

AA was the answer for me…
12 years sober since I walked into the rooms. I am very grateful one day at a time! ?????

Hi everyone My surgery date is 4/30 so close enough to join the May group ?
1. I am excited to start this journey! I do have anxiety as well because I had a procedure done years ago that didn't work well. I had a lap band done back in 2005 with NO SUCCESS. The band was nothing but a problem. It flipped twice and the port moved so all of the saline was removed, and it's just been hanging out with me ever since.
2. For my hospital bag, I plan on wearing the same comfy clothes home that I wore in. I'm bring my crocs, chapstick, a long phone charger, a couple protein shakes because I was told by my surgeon that their options were not the greatest, and a heating pad.
3. I am excited to finally get some of this weight off of me!! I have lost the 60lbs (and gained the same 60lbs) since 5th grade, I swear. My son is 14 and I'm excited to be able to finally ride amusement park rides with him.

We got this!!

So my surgery has been rescheduled, I am so glad that this is finally going to happen. Originally was set for March 12th, but had an issue with my kidney, everything is golden, and am now set for surgery on 05/02……
Benn reading posts from everyone, and got a lot of good info, so I don't feel so uninformed and alone on the journey.

I had gastric bypass surgery on Friday the 19th. Getting discharged soon.

4 oz curried salmon pâté (w/raisins and cranberries) and raw kale
Before and when restriction hit
VSG2017 HW 249 SW 238 CW 167

I had gastric bypass surgery on Friday the 19th. Getting discharged soon.

Im drinking protein water!
It doesn't feel too bad really. I'm finding that sitting upright helps a lot. My surgeon will be around a bit later this morning to have a chat about it all.

Since my surgery in 2017 I've lost my weight loss powers. I'm a mere mortal when it comes to weight loss. That being said I do the following:
1- Weekly weigh in and log it in 2- Stop eating at 7PM and start again at 7AM (I usually go to 9AM) 3- Eat the same thing every day. For me, Breakfast greek yogurt and hard boiled egg, cup of coffee Lunch, tuna fish, sardines or salmon from a can (no additives such as mayo) dinner broiled or baked seafood with a salad. I will also eat a costco protein bar if I need it. 4-Excercise, for me 3x at gym nothing too strenous just 30-45 on treadmill 5 degree incline with a brisk 3.5 mile speed walk
Very Very difficult to stay within 5-10 pounds of goal weight then try to get back down. Vigilance and sorry to say obsession are my keys. It's a struggle every day.

I want to also add that I’m 9 years out and while I am not an alcoholic (I can be around alcohol without the urge to drink), it scared me how quickly alcohol hit after surgery and how often one glass hit like 3 used to. I quit pretty much all alcohol about 1.5 years ago now and am loving the growing mocktail and Non-Alcoholic Beer scene. If you feel out of control, it is not your fault and you can get help.

ANY addiction can be a transfer addiction after a bariatric surgery messes with your food addiction. About a year after surgery, I noticed I liked to go gambling more. (not an insane amount, but instead of going maybe once every three months or so and taking $50, I was going maybe twice a month and taking $100. One month, I went once a week) I'm thrifty, so I noticed the casino losses in my budget right away and said....oh, hells no, this has to stop. So, I quit gambling entirely. Dodged the bullet on that one, thank goodness.
But....of course.... that void looked for another way to rear its head.
I started buying way too much **** on Ebay and Amazon. Late night purchases. Ugh. When I identified that issue....I quit, and promptly started hitting thrift stores and buying too much crap. Just kept swapping out one source of instant gratification for another....kinda like food.
Addiction is a real thing. And finding healthy ways to deal with that need for instant gratification (and the hidden **** that drives it) will always be something I deal with.
Very often when I hear people talk about regain... they will beligerantly insist that they don't have problems with food addiction or disordered eating. And I always think....oye. This ain't gonna end well for you.
Admitting you have a problem is the first step, imo. And I know that sounds cheesy...but it's true. You need to get your head around your blind spots and confront them. Understand the behavior so you can change the behavior.
I'm 4.5 years out, maintaining my weight loss (very proud of this)....but more aware than ever before how food addiction has impacted my life and my habits. Also, more aware of what drives my addictive behaviors.
Still workin on it, man it's hard! Parts get easier, parts get harder. Just gotta keep fighting the good fight:)

Thank you for sharing. Sadly I am in the same position and today is my 3rd day without alcohol and the withdrawals have been so bad that I needed medication from the doctor to get through it. My blood pressure raised at such high levels it was dangerous. All this is such a shock to me and before my bypass back in December 2017 I was never really interested in alcohol but over the last few years my drinking has increased so much so it had taken over my life…I seemed to look forward to the joy it gave me and the quick fix that food no longer could give me. I am hoping I can keep going and start to feel better soon. I hope to learn to live my life without alcohol and the extra weight gain from the late night snacks and start to enjoy eating healthy and to feel alive again! ??

I share this story in hopes that it may help someone to never pick up a drink after VSG or to at least be hyper-vigilant about the dangers of drinking post weight loss surgery.
I was sleeved in August of 2015 @ 310 lbs. Quickly lost most of the weight needed and began running 5k. Not really setting the world on fire, but it was really good for me. Prior to surgery, I had always enjoyed drinking with friends. Typical guy stuff - couple beers @ a football game or watching the game on Sunday, meeting for drinks after work, etc. Never an issue or problem. Never anything that i had to have.
My doctor warned me against alcohol, sodas, and transfer addictions, but I thought "never me". WOW, was I wrong. I remember the first couple times I had a beer after the surgery (I waited 6 months), it was very fizzy and uncomfortable. I convinced myself that it would get easier, and unfortunately it did. Next came the rum and coke zero. Wow, that tastes great, and I get a buzz very quickly.
That fast buzz turned into getting very drunk, very quickly. Our new bodies absorb the alcohol in 1/2 the time that a normal internal system would. Over the last couple yeaars there have been many episodes of drinking way to much, blacking out, and not remembering what happened. I have had to apologize for my behavior more than once after a night of drinking. I even started drinking every day. I would make a drink as soon as I got home each day. 1 turns into 2 or 3. Just like lays potato chips you can not have just 1. Alcohol consumed my every thought. When can I have a drink? How can I make sure I can get a drink? It amazed me how I was able to justify that if creamer was good in my morning coffee, how great would Rumchatta be (it's damn good, by the way).
I am living proof that transfer addiction is a real thing. I am now in counseling for my alcohol addiction.
Transfer addiction is definitely a real thing. Prior to VSG surgery I was over 300 pounds because I had an addiction to food, and all the wrong kinds of food. My new addiction is alcohol and it's best friend is food addiction. what goes with beer = chicken wings, or nuts and pretzels, what goes with a margarita = tacos, etc.
Alcohol also makes it impossible to lose weight. So if you are really dedicated to clean eating but you drink, your weight may stay the same, but it surely will not go down. I have packed on 60 lbs of the 120 that I lost. And, I am slowly changing behaviors to get back to where I want to be.
It is a journey,, but I am worth it. I will overcome.
Addiction is sacrificing everything for that one thing !
Recovery is sacrificing that 1 thing to have everything !

Lets connect!!! Congrats!

Congrats!!!! Lets keep in contact! Lets dooooooo this!!!!!!!

Best of luck to @Mama20ne! Very exciting ?????

My surgery date is April 19th... I am pretty nervous, but confident that this is the right move for me.

Thank you all for the well wishes, very excited but oh so nervous!!

My surgery date is April 19th... I am pretty nervous, but confident that this is the right move for me.

That is amazing! You look great! Thank you for sharing as it gives all of us confidence that we can do this and maintain the weight loss!!! Thank you!

I was 275 in 2012. I had the sleeve in August 2012. I was down to 200 pounds by December. I have worked hard to keep it off. I am 63 and, as of today, am 190. I have kept it off for 11 years.

The first pic is 2012 before surgery. the next pic is recent.

Hi, I had a gastric band many years ago which I had removed in December 2023. I have just had a mini gastric bypass. 4 days in and recovery is going well. No pain meds as I have not needed them since leaving hospital. Am now officially sick of all the little protein rich soups I made and froze before surgery! Am making a Thai soup broth, to jazz things up a bit.

I had my RNY procedure last January at 52. So far so good. 2 days in the hospital, I managed my pain at home with Tylenol instead of the hydrocodone I was given. No complications, I did have a bout of dumping when eating peanut butter for the first time post-surgery. I can tolerate it now.
I lost a total of 85 pounds. I had a 3-week stall last March. I am off CPAP. My A1C is at 5.5 and I am feeling great. I love my new body. I am working on minimizing the scars with silicone scar and tretinoin via the advice of my dermatologist. My asthma is way under control so need for my maintenance inhaler. I feel that this was a reset in my life in many ways. I do Zumba, walk, and use dumbells to stay in shape. I make sure to stay hydrated per my surgeon's instructions. I follow my surgical team's advice to the letter. I'm just feeling blessed. Best of luck in your journey.

I had surgery at age 55. No issues. I was a slow loser, but I don't know if that was related to my age or not. Some younger people lose slowly, too. That said, I lost 100% of my excess weight, over 200 lbs. So no, it was no problem at all.

I will be turning 50 exactly 1 week from today and had RNY surgery 2 1/2 weeks ago. The surgery went well and I'm doing fantastic! If it weren't for the incisions on my belly and the desire for a quick afternoon nap when that wasn't my habit before, I would almost forget I had surgery at all.
So far the recovery has been far easier than I imagined. A few days of pain managed with Tylenol, some fatigue, and that's it. My blood pressure, which has been high even with meds for a decade or more, has been back in the normal range without meds since the minute I woke up from the anesthesia. I'm not sure age is as important as your general health, immune system, etc. I've been lucky in that I generally don't get sick when others do, never had food allergies or digestive issues, and am in fairly good health except for the obesity related concerns I was hoping to reverse/ward off.