Other people can put a lot of pressure on us to eat. Consciously or not, they can make us feel bad or guilty for passing up food that we know we shouldn’t eat. It can be innocent, such as kindly (they think!) offering some specially baked goods. Or our friends or family might tell us while at a restaurant, “It’s just one meal…it doesn’t matter.” You know it DOES matter, but how do you handle the situation? How can you stand your ground (“No, thank you!”) when you risk making them feel bad for your refusal?

I’ve found that I can use my surgery as an excuse to say NO to something I don’t want to eat when people pressure me to eat it. If I simply say that I don’t want to eat the ice cream, they’ll say just a little won’t hurt me. If I say it’s not part of my lap-band diet, they’ll accept that I “can’t” have it, and won’t pressure me.

Sure, it’s a little white lie, since I could have a little ice cream by now. But they don’t need to know that. So I guess you could say I’m using my WLS as an excuse.

Do you ever use your surgery as an excuse? How? Do you think it’s helpful?

I think that's a great idea. I would use it, but I don't tell people I've had WLS.

The few times people have tried to push food on me, I just told them, "No, thank you. I can't maintain my weight loss if I eat food like that."

I feel so lucky to have gotten a 2nd chance at life, that I don't worry about hurting people's feelings or explain why I won't eat certain foods. I just say, "No thank you." And leave it at that.

I had one lady try 6 times to get me to eat a piece of cake.

5 times I politely refused the offer. On the 6th time, I couldn't take it any more and just had to walk away from her.

I don't always tell people I've had WLS. I have used it as an excuse with family. (In other situations I just identify an ingredient the offending food surely contains and claim I have an intolerance or allergy to it")

Hmm, interesting question. Since I eat so little, I dont say no to anything unless its going to cause a stuck episode. 90 % of my daily food is protein, , fruit, raw veggies, or salad. Even if its unhealthy, 2-3 bites is about all I can manage anyways. Except for sweets. Then I seem to have no problem eating those, in any amount. Sigh..............

My unit at work know about my surgery and are very supportive. And if I refuse something, they already know it's bc I can't eat it. Sometimes they even ask me if I'm able to eat a certain food before offering it to me! I'm not ashamed of having WLS, and people's negative opinions don't matter to me anyways, so I don't hide it ????

I'm still pre-op, but when I'm watching what I eat and people are pressuring me, I say, "No thank you. I don't eat that." It's firm, and I feel empowered instead of apologetic.