I am new to this website but wanted to find some support from people who have been there, done that. I am scheduled for surgery on 1/9/12 and I start the pre-op diet on Tuesday. I'm excited for the results but not necessarily the journey. How hard has it been to change the lifestyle that most of us have lived most of our life?

Mentally I think it is a bit harder than physically. I had surgery 12/5/11 and find that my sleeve takes care of the physical side of things for me. I haven't found it too hard to give up anything besides Mountain Dew and popcorn... And honestly the soda needed to go anyway. Eventually I will be able to have popcorn again and be in control of how much I eat! Nothing that I have experienced has been enough to make me regret my decision. To date I am down 27 pounds since surgery and 37 since the start of this journey. That's almost 40 pounds gone in 3.5 months! Who wouldn't be happy with that?

When you start your pre-op diet, and you cut out all the junk, all the sugar, you will notice that a lot of the eating you are doing is not due to hunger. So you will start to make adjustments. For me, I noticed I needed to get my stress under control without eating as the coping mechanism. After a few weeks, you will not miss the sugar. I did protein shakes and only 1 meal for about 6 mos before the surgery, so after I got it, I was only really doing the same thing minus 1 meal, so it has not been that bad. Also 2 days prior to surgery, I ate only clear liquids (which was difficult for me), so after surgery, I got to at least get my protein shakes back. As everyone will tell you- the weight loss is worth it! Good Luck on your journey. This site is great for support & tips.

First Off Congratulations on deciding to change your life forever! Some people will say well why don't you just diet instead of having your stomach stapled & I will tell them that is easier said than done and the decision to have surgery for me atleast was not an easy one!! I am not going to lie the first few weeks are HORRIBLE you are in pain and trying to figure out what works with your new stomach but I never felt hunger I am 4 months out now and still sometimes I will feel hunger but for the most part nothing. Your hunger is going to be all mental so I suggest in the 2 weeks leading up to your surgery find one activity to focus on when you think your hungry...My activity was walking so anytime I thought I was hungry I would walk and now I am up to jogging 3 miles a day!! Soon you will notice that your focus isn't on the next time you will be able to eat but the whole world that has opened up to you because of the extra baggage that you are leaving behind every day!! Good Luck with your surgery!

When you start your pre-op diet, and you cut out all the junk, all the sugar, you will notice that a lot of the eating you are doing is not due to hunger. So you will start to make adjustments. For me, I noticed I needed to get my stress under control without eating as the coping mechanism. After a few weeks, you will not miss the sugar. I did Protein shakes and only 1 meal for about 6 mos before the surgery, so after I got it, I was only really doing the same thing minus 1 meal, so it has not been that bad. Also 2 days prior to surgery, I ate only clear liquids (which was difficult for me), so after surgery, I got to at least get my protein shakes back. As everyone will tell you- the weight loss is worth it! Good Luck on your journey. This site is great for support & tips.

hi rosiesweetie - i never knew you're early pre-op story about drinking 2 shakes a day w/one meal OMG - 6 months - do you mind if i ask how much weight did you lose pre-op?

i'm only 8 days post-op but dr. didn't require weight loss before WLS (i wish he had cuz i actually gained weight on a last fling) anyways, i'm feeling and doing well - my "mental" problems" came yesterday when i was out and about and saw a ton of food restaurants. i wanted to faint.

so yes Kareform, alot of this "hunger" is in your head, stress all that good stuff. Diligence will get us through every day.

kathy

enjoy your jouney, we'll all see less of you on the other side

kathy

I'm 11 weeks post op. I find that this is the best thing that's ever happened to me or for me. I had a little bit of pain from my incisions and went back to work 1 week after the surgery. I find myself getting hungry around meal time, but I think that might be stomach acid so I started taking prilosec. It's better. I have lost 43.3 lbs since my surgery on Oct 4, 2011. More amazing is that I have lost alot of inches and am now into a medium size clothing and I love it. Still loosing and that's great..... It is life changing! Best decision I have ever made.

Kara, It's hard, but not undoable. Like Danielle said, the sleeve makes sure you can't overeat. You are responsible for following your diet and your doctor's guidelines. If you comply with what he tells you, the lifestyle change is pretty easy.

As you lose weight, you will feel more like exercising and maximizing the weight loss. It will become a nice little circle, exercise, lose weight, lose weight, want to exercise more.

There IS a head component to this surgery, even though they operate on our stomachs. You will need to face your food issues, either before surgery by choice, or after surgery by necessity. Once you are back on solids, it's possible to sabotage this just like anything else by eating sweets and other high-calorie slider foods. You will have to make good choices. For me, My Fitness Pal works. I don't want to eat junk and then have to list it on MFP. I keep my diary public so people can see what I'm eating. And, I'm no angel either.

I still love sweets (after a 3.5 month disdain for them, they're back) and crunchy Snacks. Now, I try to keep myself down to 1 sweet thing a week and to make a better choice if I can. Atkins has a couple of bars that really help with that.

Anyway, it IS a lifestyle change, but most of it comes about from necessity.

I wasn't looking forward to the first few weeks after surgery either. Many people said it was horrible while many others said it was fine. My first 3 weeks turned out to be just fine. Amazing actually, considering 85 percent of my stomach was removed.

However it was surgery after all, so things did come up, but reading on this website for months prepared me for that. I knew I couldn't lose this weight on my own. I was ready!

My fourth week was tougher. Go figure. My CPAP machine was filling me with gas so I couldn't eat. The low calories and mild dehydration gave me nausea. Luckily my surgeon and I realized what the problem was. It is now getting better.

In another words, we are all different. Be positive and patient! It will probably take a long while until it all falls into place. Best wishes!

In the beginning it was pure hell to get used to the journey mentally. . . you really need to get your head into what is happening. . . you really have to get ready to accept what has happened cause there is no turning back. . . now at 2 years out it's second nature. . . no problem, i can even eyeball portions now. . . freaks me out when i go out to eat and they serve me these hugh portions! Amazing how much people really eat. . . good luck you'll get there. . just think positively! Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year!

I would get counseling beforehand to address your food demons. There is a reason why you overeat that even you may not know right now. You may have turned to food for comfort, in times of stress, or a number of other things. Now, food is no longer there for you in large quantities so you need to find another thing to comfort you. That could be taking up a new hobby, exercise, spending time with family or pets, etc. I wish you luck in your new life! Getting the surgery is like being reborn. I still haven't found my new comfort as of yet. I been spending most my vacation time in front of the TV or playing Kinect.

I think it all works together. One of the things that has made my journey a success is something that comes natural. RESULTS. When you follow your surgeons directions, you will lose the weight. When you follow the diet and exercise, you will see results. It is human nature to want to continue and see it through when you see the results of the BIG PICTURE. Remember, the sleeve is only a tool, it will provide the restriction needed to limit your intake and you will lose weight. You still have to make a lifestyle change to eat healthy and exercise to become healthy and to maintain the new you.

I told someone the other day, you could have the surgery, eat the most horrible food you can imagine, loaded with sugar and fat and guess what, you will still lose the weight. Why? Because you are only eating 4 oz of it. Your resting metabalism will burn the calorie intake that you are able to eat. The problem with this plan is you will probably end up with Diabetes, High blood pressure and many more health problems. It totally defeats the purpose.

If we chose to have this surgery and put our bodies through this, I would think that we would want to do what is physically and mentally required to get the most out of our new bodies.

Now to answer your question, keep your eye on the big picture, the pre-op diet is a breeze, think of it as the first of many steps to a healthy new lifestyle. When you see the results along the way, you will welcome the next challenge and say bring it on.

Good luck to you on your journey, you will be very successful.