Hi everyone! I just joined yesterday. I have my first appointment with my surgeon in September. I've been seriously thinking about WLS for the last 10 months or so. At first I thought about the Band and then did enough research to determine it was no the right fit for me. Now I'm thinking about Bypass vs. the Sleeve. One thing I see different accounts about is what you can eat after surgery. And I'm curious what can you guys eat? It seems you can eat anything you want just in smaller portions? For those that struggled alot with a carb/sugar addiction before surgery has it been a struggle for you now as well because you know you can have it?

My food addiction is pretty severe - and I struggle with quantity and types of food. I'm also one to like and sometimes seek out that feeling of being so full you feel sick. SO I feel worried that maybe the Sleeve isn't the right choice. I do have a great therapist and she and I are working on these things.

Just looking for feedback from anyone that was like that before surgery and how you're coping now with the Sleeve?

Thanks!

Talk seriously about this at your preop appointments. I have been successful with the sleeve and one of the reasons is learning to eat"till absence of hunger". If you seek out that full feeling consistently I think you risk losing the feeling of restriction and maintaining weight loss is very difficult. I worry that the sleeve is not the right procedure for you (but I am working from a sample of one person, it is the surgeon and nutritionist etc to discuss this with)

I was over300#, maintaining at about 140# now.

Thanks Jane - that is my main worry as well. Where it seems with Bypass I will have more 'incentive' to not have that feeling bc the types of food I would eat would make me so ill. If i understand correctly, most that have the Sleeve can eat whatever they want?

One of the main reasons I chose the sleeve is because I CAN eat whatever I want, just not much of it. I am unwilling to give up everything I love forever. I don't want to never again be able to eat a piece of cake. Obviously I won't be eating a piece of cake for a very long time and if/when I am finally able to and *want* to, I am hopeful that my sleeve will restrict me from eating very much. If I had to 100% never have some of the foods I love ever again, I wouldn't have surgery at all.

I don't know much about RNY but eating to satisfaction (lack of hunger) and not "full" is is a key long term strategy for sleeve. You will likely lose fine, it is the maintenance thing..

And I can and do eat anything as a sleever. ..no dietary restriction or intolerances except ice cream makes me feel ill. I think i am now mildly lactose intolerant and I was not before.

Jaime - that is a really good point. It is something that has bothered me as well - the idea of never having a slice of pizza again. So thanks - its really something for me to consider.

Thanks Jane - I think that if I could just get ahead of my weight for a bit that feeling so much better would motivate me to maintain a bit more. I've just read some scary stories about people that don't have too much restriction with the sleeve. But honestly if I was going to do this - I would see my therapist throughout. She specializes in WLS so I think she and I would continue to work on my eating issues and that would help me as well.

I'm really leaning more towards the Sleeve.

Jane - you've had amazing results - Congrats!

I think it is important to note that things like cake don't provide the same restriction as dense Protein. You can still eat a lot of cake, or at least way more than you'd think.

In answer to your question about cravings, the surgery did nothing to reduce my craving for sweets. I fight that daily.

Best of luck with your decision and your journey!

Hi everyone! I just joined yesterday. I have my first appointment with my surgeon in September. I've been seriously thinking about WLS for the last 10 months or so. At first I thought about the Band and then did enough research to determine it was no the right fit for me. Now I'm thinking about Bypass vs. the Sleeve. One thing I see different accounts about is what you can eat after surgery. And I'm curious what can you guys eat? It seems you can eat anything you want just in smaller portions? For those that struggled alot with a carb/sugar addiction before surgery has it been a struggle for you now as well because you know you can have it?

My food addiction is pretty severe - and I struggle with quantity and types of food. I'm also one to like and sometimes seek out that feeling of being so full you feel sick. SO I feel worried that maybe the Sleeve isn't the right choice. I do have a great therapist and she and I are working on these things.

Just looking for feedback from anyone that was like that before surgery and how you're coping now with the Sleeve?

Thanks!

Think again about the "eating whatever u want" concept. I lived by this from day 1 after lapband in 2009. Excessive vomiting caused a slip and a sleeve revision a yr ago. I lost all the way down to 150 by eating whatever I wanted, just less of it (from 250). Until it stopped working a few months ago.

I can now eat more than in the beginning. And being used to less than 1,000 calories a day up to about 1200-1500 of whatever I wanted caused me to gain 9 lbs over the last 3 mths. U WILL eventually be able to eat more (never the amt u ate before surgery, however) and if u continue to eat "whatever u want", u will either gain or stop losing. I can almost guarantee it.

I'm now learning to eat a little more healthy. While I still plan on enjoying pizza, burgers, and tacos OCCASIONALLY, it won't be a part of my regular diet anymore. I quit drinking my glass of wine at nite. Not only does it give me 110 empty calories but it also makes me think frozen pizza or Del Taco sounds like a good idea at 9pm. I'm on day 6 of drinking chamomile tea in replacement of my wine. Last nite I was hungry (and I am usually hungry by 8pm cuz I can't eat much at one time, making me hungry every 2-3 hrs) and ate 6 bites of chicken salad. I was good. Went grocery shopping and didn't buy 1 frozen Lean Cuisine or frozen pizza. I've now lost 3.5 lbs of the 9 I gained.

Eventually eating anything u want will catch up to u. Everyone told me this and I refused to believe it. heck, I lost 100 lbs eating whatever I wanted. But to keep it off, I have to change my eating. Now that I can eat more, I have to fill up on healthier foods.

Good luck to u!

Learning to eat just to satiety has been key for me as well. Full. Just. Hurts. I've learned to avoid what hurts. Simple as that. I eat what I like in small quantities. I record all of it in MFP along with my exercise so I know I'm getting enough Protein and the right amount of calories. I exercise 5 days per week, (cardio with a bit of strength and core work). Some here will gasp, but if I want the donut, I'm probably gonna have the donut. If I have it, it is unlikely I will finish the donut. Today there were donuts and it didn't phase me. Didn't care. Didn't crave it. Didn't miss the fact that I passed. Next week, who knows? Going out to dinner with a friend tonight and will have a glass of wine or 2. That will be my donut today. I've exercised, taken my protein and have an extra 500 calories to play with. I've been in maintenance for over a month and actually dropped a little below goal. I'm more focused on food now than I ever was, but it's a different kind of focus. I've found a way to stay in control that works for me. Get help if you need it. Mine come in the form of a face to face support group and the friends I've made there who will hold me accountable. You'll find what works for you too.

This is really interesting and scary to me at the same time. I don't want the surgery to be another failure for me. I know that its only a tool and motivation and not the be-all to cure my issues with food (thank god for my therapist) - but I'm nervous, knowing my attitude about food, etc., that I will fall into the same old habits of being able to eat the same foods.

Alot of soul searching to do - hopefully my doctor will be able to guide me with this decision too. So many people have been so successful with the Sleeve and I assume there are many like me that have struggled with losing weight and eating unhealthy foods. So there must be a big motivation in doing this surgery and being able to deter you from returning to unhealthy patterns.

I'm assuming - yes??

None of us want to fail. I "failed" with the lapband and was pretty determined to not repeat that cluster.

I have lost over 160# since being sleeved and currently maintaining successfully, so I know it is possible!

anyway, what I am really responding to is the title of this thread - the comment about "loving that super full feeling" - red alert. I cannot speak for any other surgeries, but for the sleeve and the band, that super full feeling is not the goal. I just want people going into this whole thing with a very clear picture of the situation is all.

This is really interesting and scary to me at the same time. I don't want the surgery to be another failure for me. I know that its only a tool and motivation and not the be-all to cure my issues with food (thank god for my therapist) - but I'm nervous, knowing my attitude about food, etc., that I will fall into the same old habits of being able to eat the same foods.

Alot of soul searching to do - hopefully my doctor will be able to guide me with this decision too. So many people have been so successful with the Sleeve and I assume there are many like me that have struggled with losing weight and eating unhealthy foods. So there must be a big motivation in doing this surgery and being able to deter you from returning to unhealthy patterns.

I'm assuming - yes??

Hi Gabrielle! I'm just 5 weeks into this, had my sleeve surgery done on july 14th, and here's my 2 cents:

1. the surgery itself with no change in eating behaviors is not possible, at least not at first. your new tummy will tell you, powerfully, when it is full and you will have to obey or get sick. it's not hard to obey. if you get 2-3 ounces of Soup on the liquid diet, you may eat less because your body can't even take that much yet. this is in the beginning. as you go on in weeks your eating behavior can (and will/would) change the size of your "tummy pouch" because if you eat until painfully full every time or most of the time, it is indeed possible to stretch your tummy and it can increase in size to the point where there's really not any point to having the surgery in the first place. I think/hope that that scenario is rare. but it is possible. so the eat whatever you want (choice of meal, size of portion) attitude is really not the place to start. I understand it is also really critical to keep to the recommended diet plans (eg clear liquid, then full liquid, then puree, etc) while your stomach is healing is also key.

2. once you get to eating "normally" aka normal foods... this is where some people find they cannot eat certain things because they make them sick, which changes their meal choices. other people can "stomach" anything. so far everything I've eaten I can handle, and so far i'm finding that my best mental attitude is probable to consider myself on a diet for the meal planning because portion sizes may be small now, but portions of what have a direct impact on my weightloss. in my opinion, if you (people considering WLS, not necessarily you personally) aren't committed to making better food choices and sticking to portion sizes etc. for the rest of your life then the surgery probably isn't a good tool to pursue. It shouldn't be the only tool in your toolbox is what i'm saying. It's not magic surgery that will get a person down into target bmi zone without any further effort.

That said, i understand that RNY/gastric bypass people have issues with dumping syndrome and persnickety food tolerances which are not a problem for the most part with the sleeve. and, to a certain extent, if you include "in moderation" or "occasionally" to the phrase "you can eat whatever you want" I think that's a fairly true statement for sleevers. You may find things you can't tolerate, but when I asked at the doctor's office they said that food intolerances may be time-sensitive, meaning that if you can't tolerate something <6 months post op that doesn't necessarily mean you can never eat that again. It might just be chalked up to your stomach is that of a baby, having to relearn how to eat everything right from the beginning. So if you have a food intolerance (eg beef) <6 months, try it again after you pass the 6th month mark and you may be pleasantly surprised. All of that said, I'm not sure where things stand with bread, rice, soda, etc which starting sleevers are not supposed to eat because they tend to expand in the stomach. The reason for not eating them now is the gas/pain they would cause.

Hope that helps you

yas

Thanks Yasman! I appreciate your thoughtful answer.

I hope no one misunderstood the title of the thread or my sentiment that I 'want' to eat until I get that bursting/sick feeling from being full. Or I should say, that is what I am working on in therapy. I know that distracting myself with that feeling is what has made me close to 240 pounds and I know it is what keeps my addiction alive. Its destructive and I hate it. In reality I don't do that often but I know that at times when something becomes too intense I'll seek food and that feeling to take my mind off the uncomfortable emotion.

I KNOW - I truly do know - that the only way either sugery will work is if I work on my deep rooted emotional eating issues. But I also know, and my therapist agrees, that I need some help with this. And I do believe that WLS is what will help me reset and stay on track. So I hope no one thought that I was saying 'gee I want this surgery so I can eat whatever I want afterwards' - I'm actually feeling like maybe Bypass would be better so I have a stronger reason, aside from getting heathly, not to eat the wrong foods.

I've spoken with 4 or 5 - I think 5 - people who have all had the Bypass and they say it is very hard but very worth it. That is the best thing they have ever done.

anyway - thanks so much for your thoughtful and honest responses. I really appreciate it.

At eight months post-op, I can eat what I want in portions so small that I think my six year old granddaughter eats more than I do. But here is the difference from my pre-op appetite: I do not want the same things. I used to eat six pieces of toast with a big Breakfast. Now the smell of bread make be sick to my stomach. If I came around a pizza I would eat some, but now I would scrape the goodies off the crust and just eat the sauce, cheese, and toppings. Not that I wouldn't want the crust, but I just do not have the tummy real estate to hold it.

If I give Miss Tummy more than she can hold, she WILL give it back. So, that is one reason the sleeve is so effective for me. It limits me in quantity, and the fear of going back to where I was bigger around than I was tall, is incentive enough to make better choices. I am not 100% perfect wth this, but Miss Tummy keeps me in line.

Thanks Miss Mac ... I think that is what I'm most interested in. How has the Sleeve changed the way you eat and is it enough on its own physically to be that 'tool' everyone mentions and HELP motivate you more than you were before surgery???

It seems for you it has which is great and helpful. Thanks.

I will be 3 years out in December and have been posting on this and another sleeve forum for about 3 years. My perspective comes from my experiences, but also from gleaning much from others.

So, now I think I have a better grasp on your question too.

I absolutely could not have done this without the sleeve. IT has been an amazing "tool" for me. I went through a fairly long period of time when food lost all appeal. You will often see posts of people lamenting how food tastes bad now, it is such a bother to eat, will I ever love life again sort of thing. THAT is a golden opportunity time to change some habits, break some addictions and really think about the role that food should play in your life. The sleeve gives you a reprieve, a window of time where you physically cannot eat as much and for most of us, don't really even want to eat.

I had a few occasions during the first 6 months I was sleeved of vomiting (maybe 2-3 times) due to eating too fast. It happened because a certain "compulsion" to shovel food overtook me and it didn't take much for my tummy to toss it back...ha.

Don't rely on that though.

For most people - that all changes one day. Your appetite returns. Food starts tasting dang good again. If you aren't careful, you start to learn "how" to overeat again.

So, I hope this is a more thorough explanation. for me, the sleeve gave me a reprieve from that 24/7 DRIVE for food I used to have. I lost alot of weight. I liked it, i like how i feel, how I look, how athletic I have become, how my life has changed. Now, coming up on my 3 year anniverary in 4 months - I would say that maintenance is alot more about that motivation than the contrainsts my tummy puts on me. I still have very good restriction and am not going around starving all the time - but - I know how to overeat with the sleeve. If you read posts on the veterans forums, you will realize that MANY people know how to overeat with their sleeve.

Once you have been obese, it doesn't take "much" overeating to start regaining. That is our reality - we still have the disease of obesity and the weight would love to come back!

For now, I am doing good, very happy with my sleeve and maintaining well - cautiously optimistic about my long run results!