hi guys, before my surgery 2 months ago i was an alcoholic. i kept this even from my doctor. a friend of mine from work informed me that certain draught ales with widgets had low carbination. i have been cheating a bit and even had hard liquer a few times. my surgery was 8 weeks ago, what kind of damage can i be doing to myself? any bad stories to tell?

Mate, go to AA or go to your doctor. This is quite obviously something you can not do on your own. Exactly the same as weight loss for all of us. Get some help. Deano

I also wanted to point out that going to an AA meeting is NOT A FORM OF WEAKNESS. You will not be seen as weak for asking for help. In fact, it takes an act of COURAGE to do this.

A wise scholar once said, "If I am not for myself, who will be?"

I also wanted to point out that going to an AA meeting is NOT A FORM OF WEAKNESS. You will not be seen as weak for asking for help. In fact, it takes an act of COURAGE to do this.

A wise scholar once said, "If I am not for myself, who will be?"

Mate I reckon anyone saying AA is a form of weakness is about as informed as someone who says WLS is a cop out.

People need to respect people for facing life's challenges head on.

Scotti you need to get help. AA is NOT a form of weakness. It is proof of your inner courage shining through the fear of change that you have decided to attend a meeting. It takes far more courage to seek help for a problem than to deny the problem. The damage an alcoholic inflicts on their family is devastating. I am the child of a raging alcoholic. My mother refused to get help because it was "weak". After 25 years of self loathing she took her life. She could not live with the guilt of the abuse she dealt us. She devastated her children and robbed her grandchildren of the chance to love her because she refused to look beyond herself. You can do it. You just have to be willing to take that first step.

A good lunch is canned chicken with fat fre mayo, pickles, and mustard wi th a string cheese. There are a lot of different uses for the chicken and it has a lot of protein. Good luck to you!

hi guys' date=' before my surgery 2 months ago i was an alcoholic. i kept this even from my doctor. a friend of mine from work informed me that certain draught ales with widgets had l carbination. i have been cheating a bit and even had hard liquer a few times. my surgery was 8 weeks ago, what kind of damage can i be doing to myself? any bad stories to tell?[/quote']

I think if your drinking with friends. you need to try to find other friends that are not going to be as damaging to your sleeve or even your liver. I know everyone has to have a social life but it not worth dying over.

hi guys im back. thanks for all the encouraging posts. i attended aa several times and will probably be back at one soon. still have my slip ups and on a bad habit schedule again. ill be honest though, the sleeve has been a success. i have changed the types of foods i eat, and mainly gotten my portion problem under control. when i look back at when i posted this, i cant believe id been looking for issues related to drinking. i found an answer, now i have constant intestinal pain! no idea what it is either (pretty sure i know what caused it). no insurance since december so im on a scarey path, cant believe i still pick up drinks. anyhow im trying and doing well in other ways, sucks i am letting this get the best of me. 221 lbs today from 299 sept 27th when i had surgery. whopping 78 pounds in 4 months!

hi guys' date=' before my surgery 2 months ago i was an alcoholic. i kept this even from my doctor. a friend of mine from work informed me that certain draught ales with widgets had low carbination. i have been cheating a bit and even had hard liquer a few times. my surgery was 8 weeks ago, what kind of damage can i be doing to myself? any bad stories to tell?[/quote']

Bro see all the support you are getting everyone of us want to see you succeed it takes a lot of courage to come out and share your struggles I know you can do this GOD bless you.

Scotty, congrats on your weight loss. That is awesome!

I am happy to hear you went to an AA meeting. Walking in the door the first time is the hardest thing to do, for sure. Don't let your momentum stop there. Pick up a big book (the blue book) or read it online. If nothing else, do yourself a favor and read the first 3 chapters. It won't take you long. If you find you can identify, then you will know what to do next. If you have an issue with the GOD text, every time you come across it, just substitute the words AA.

Give it try. What is the worst that can happen?

What is the best?

I hope you get the help you need to get your addictions under control. Might I suggest in addition to AA search for a WLS support group too? Replacement addiction happens to a lot of ppl postop. It may help to find ppl who've been in your exact shoes.

Amanda Rae

just checking in, still can kick the booze. daily struggle with ulcer too :-(

just checking in' date=' still can kick the booze. daily struggle with ulcer too :-([/quote']

Still can or not

cant i meant

I'm sorry to here that

thanks for the ideas. failed this weekend on drinking. i drank a gallon of ale' date=' half a bottle of wine and two shots of whisky sunday :-( just got off work and gonna try an aa meeting for the first time in my life. i feel pretty pathetic. has it really come to this?[/quote']

Ok, first I want to thank you sincerely for your honesty, it is extremely refreshing. Second I have to commend all the people posting for truly trying to be helpful and doing so with out judgement or criticism..... (Im converting to the mans room)

Third.... Pathetic? How bout brave? It takes a LOT of courage to do exactly what your doing right now which is facing your issue and having the balls to try and make a change.... I doubt your going to find anyone that would find that pathetic especially in a forum designed for people that took such drastic (brave) measures to overcome their own addictions.

I wish you the best.

Just reading your story Scotty. My heart breaks for you. My grandfather was a functioning alcoholic for over 40 years. He quit drinking and smoking January of 2000 with AA. By 2004 he was facing stage 4 lung cancer and late stage cirrhosis of the liver. It was too late for him. I will never forget my last conversation with him a week before he passed. He told me, "the drink and smoke may have killed me, but G-d dammit, I quit. And no one will ever take that away from me."

You started this thread saying that you needed fear. You are burning your stomach from the inside out. You are at serious risk for internal bleeding and stomach cancer if your ulcers are both left untreated and compounded with alcohol use. THIS is the fear you were looking for. Those are life altering and in a lot of cases life ENDING complications. I know this is hard, especially as a functioning alcoholic. Functioning so well keeps you from many of the immediate consequences that could come of your drinking but it keeps you from dealing with the long term consequences that are building up in your body.

Keep going to the AA meetings. Use the resources around you. The recovering addicts that are reaching out to you. Don't let your massive weight loss be your grand finale. It is not too late for you!