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Yes. The question is SHOULD you.

Alcohol after surgery can cause a few problems.

1. Addiction transfer- if you have a food addiction prior to surgery, it's a lot easier to move from one addiction to another when you can't compulsively eat anymore

2. The way your body processes alcohol after surgery is a lot different. Most people lose their tolerance and are flat out drunk after a few sips. So don't ever drink and drive after surgery. Not even one drink. For someone who is alcohol sensitive after surgery ONE alcoholic drink to a bypass patient is the same as almost SIX to someone who hasn't had the surgery. Your blood alcohol % flies through the roof really quick. Some people have no problem with it but most can't drink like they use to.

3. It's calories. As fun as drinking is (I'm 22 so I've only drank for a year and now I have given it up which is hard with my social life), it's not a necessity. My program has a flat out no alcohol for a year policy but not everyone is like that. I'm not taking the risk alcohol after surgery can bring so I plan on waiting a couple years.

Edited by LoseItKacy

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immediately after surgery NO

after a while...not a good idea. For one, since you're not getting as much food you will get drunk much faster and might not be aware of it. Also it's empty calories.

you don't need alcohol to enjoy yourself

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I would just like to add.

Sorry for my terrible spelling errors in my first point.

I am a week post op and still taking pain meds so I was really out of it typing this response. But I think you get what I'm saying lol

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It's a low consideration of mine at the moment, but I can see where a long while down the road it could be nice to enjoy a beer while grilling a salmon filet or some other tasty Protein.

I am done with the old ways, though, of sitting around a bar and guzzling 36oz drafts beers and grazing on chips 'n salsa. The old trick was to do this for the duration of a football game and then ordering fresh guacamole in the fourth quarter and enjoy watching them prepare it for my food calories to wind down the evening. This or an order of wings.

Not a thing in the world wrong with the above scenario if I'd nurse a beer.......and have celery with the salsa or guacamole and some types of wings are going to be great.

I just don't see myself feeling much like sitting around for games once I get well into this. I think the new life is going to be more active and restless energy will find me in the gym daily, tackling productive yard work and engaging in new outdoor hobbies.

Games can be watched later on....from my recliner with ice packs on my ailing areas that are sore from pushing it hard on my misadventures. :D I can't wait.....

I would just like to add.
Sorry for my terrible spelling errors in my first point.
I am a week post op and still taking pain meds so I was really out of it typing this response. But I think you get what I'm saying lol

lol....got the pain meds working in ya. Hope they truly are working for you and easing the discomfort.

I know I'll be making some posts while under the influence of them next week, too. :P

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This was one of my questions as well but like LoseitKacy said it's better to wait a full year I think. Even if it's just a sip of wine. I used to be a jack n coke and margaritas kinda girl but had to leave that all behind. Heard clear liquor goes down better though! Might try a vodka up, in about a year or so. Maybe clear rum hehe.

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I am four months out and I have a glass of red wine almost every night. My tolerance has not changed, nor have I suffered any ill effects from the alcohol. I do make sure to include the glass in my daily calorie tally.

I have a few other friends who have had VSG, and they too enjoy a regular glass of wine.

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      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
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      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

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        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

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