I hate to admit this, but I have a problem with wine...drinking a bottle a night kind of problem.

That's probably part of the reason I've gained so much weight. That and my compulsive eating.

Stopping is hard so I've started going to recovery meetings.

I realize you're not my doctor, but I do value your opinions. Do you think it would be better to see how much weight I can lose by not drinking rather than get surgery? Surgery is a hugely important step. On the one hand, I want the surgery to help me lose a lot of weight fairly quickly (it would take forever for me to lose 100 lbs). I know I'll have to stop bad eating and drinking habits and take better care of myself. However, I want the tool of surgery to help me.

Is my thinking way off track? Am I putting too much faith in surgery and thinking of it as the easy way out?

Technically if you stopped drinking and didn't change anything about your eating habits you should lose 1 to 1.5 lbs a week. A bottle of wine has about 600 calories and you need to burn 3500 calories to lose a lb. So you're taking in an extra 4200 calories a week. So if you cut those out you should lose at last a lb a week. But for someone who is drinking that much and trying to stop you may find yourself snacking more or wanting sweets which is going to cancel out some of those calories. I suggest buying some sugar free hard candies to have on hand if you need them. Coming from a family of alcoholics I urge you to get help if you need it. Don't let it t

32 minutes ago, alleamarie said:

Technically if you stopped drinking and didn't change anything about your eating habits you should lose 1 to 1.5 lbs a week. A bottle of wine has about 600 calories and you need to burn 3500 calories to lose a lb. So you're taking in an extra 4200 calories a week. So if you cut those out you should lose at last a lb a week. But for someone who is drinking that much and trying to stop you may find yourself snacking more or wanting sweets which is going to cancel out some of those calories. I suggest buying some sugar free hard candies to have on hand if you need them. Coming from a family of alcoholics I urge you to get help if you need it. Don't let it t

So it would take two years to lose 100 lbs? I just can't see that happening.

Thanks for suggestion about the sugar free hard candy!

40 minutes ago, imaginegirl said:

So it would take two years to lose 100 lbs? I just can't see that happening.

Thanks for suggestion about the sugar free hard candy!

Without surgery it could take you longer if you are still eating above maintenance calories. Before tackling weight loss surgery you will need to tackle the drinking and compulsive eating...have you seen a counsellor?

My nurse practitioner suggested I cut back to 1 or 2 glasses a night, however I haven't been able to do that.

Tonight I'm sober because I'm so tired of being overweight.

Have you thought about AA? A friend of mine had the sleeve done a few years ago, she developed a drinking problem was drinking one to bottles a night. She knew this wasn't sustainable for her, joined AA and has been sober for over nine months. She is much happier and healthy for it.

23 minutes ago, Hop_Scotch said:

Have you thought about AA? A friend of mine had the sleeve done a few years ago, she developed a drinking problem was drinking one to bottles a night. She knew this wasn't sustainable for her, joined AA and has been sober for over nine months. She is much happier and healthy for it.

Good news! I'm trying to find an AA group I like.

That's great! If AA isn't for you there is another support group that works a little differently than AA

https://www.smartrecovery.org/about-us/

They have actual meetings, online meetings as well as a online community.

I wish you all the best!

I agree with the AA plan. I think you need to address your issues with alcohol before you even think about weight loss surgery. The first year after surgery is enough of an emotional roller coaster on its own without trying to stay substance abuse issues.

You are smart to correct your wine habit now, pre-surgery. This is a hard journey. The best I've ever undertaken. But it's hard. And there is cross-addiction susceptibility among our community. And drinking post-wls can be terrible for our bodies and also contribute to regain.Even thought it will delay surgery, it will benefit you in the long run. Praying you can find a group that works for you. I don't think alcoholics can "cut back." I think there's too much back sliding. Do one thing at a time. Take care of the booze problem first. Then clean house and fill it with nourishing food. And start addressing binge eating/night eating. Maybe even seek personal counseling for substance abuse and disordered eating.

Oh, and you need to document when you start your programs/counseling cuz no surgeon will accept you into their program without a verifiable specified length of time in recovery. It varies from doc to doc. Mine would want 1 year sobriety in a program and you have to show proof of start date and proof of sobriety. It's that big a deal.

Agree with all of above. As a GI nurse, I see the bad and the ugly (there is no good) that comes from WLS patients who resume drinking after surgery. The worse ulcers I have ever seen are from that combination. I cannot imagine a bariatric doctor doing surgery on you until the drinking issue is under control. The tissues simply will not heal. That is the issue with smoking, as well.

Bariatric surgery is about a lot more than losing weight and looking good. It is about building a healthy lifestyle, resolving comormidities or future comorbidities (high blood pressure, diabetes, GERD, sleep apnea, asthma, stroke, heart attack) and giving someone the chance to have a longer and healthier life. Hanging onto acoholism is in direct opposition to these goals. Perhaps an inpatient treatment program would work for you, but whatever you choose , I wish you the very best in this long, challenging journey. It is highly possible that the over eating and the alcoholism are related - just different branches of the same tree. Serious counselling might be helpful in getting to the root of both problems IMHO.

You all are so helpful. You've made me realize that now is not the right time for surgery. I'm going to focus on my recovery for now. If I do have the surgery, I want to go into it with a clear mind and ability to set new goals to help myself.

No doubt a difficult decision to make, but it is good that you have made it. I wish you well in your recovery.

On 3/8/2020 at 4:24 PM, imaginegirl said:

You all are so helpful. You've made me realize that now is not the right time for surgery. I'm going to focus on my recovery for now. If I do have the surgery, I want to go into it with a clear mind and ability to set new goals to help myself.

Hi, I just found this thread - and I wonder how you are doing? Its been awhile since this post but it really resonated with me.

First of all - opening yourself up on this forum takes a huge amount of strength and I give you kudos.

As for me, I LOVE my chardonnay.....all my friends and family joke about that is my fav thing. (at my big birthday last year, every single gift had a chardonnay theme :-)) Everyone's drinking has their own level of what is "too much".

I had a revision 5 years ago and lost 80lbs...on cloud nine, felt great and had an amazing experience. Four months after surgery, I started drinking again. I was able to "drink through" my sleeve and starting gaining the weight back year 4. Drinking for me leads to very bad food choices especially late at night. I also developed severe GERD and a hiatal hernia that were both so painful, and what felt best was comfort food.

Today, I am one week out from a revision from a Sleeve to RNY. My surgeon suggested it as the only way to get rid of the GERD. If I could pass along what I have learned this past week - is that the challenge of not being able to reach for a glass of wine is real. It has shown me how much I was drinking. I won't say it is harming my daily progress to meet the protein, water and exercise needs. However, I will say it is making it more difficult mentally. Like a fly swarming around your head reminding you - "you can't drink right now!" Not a good distraction. Only you will know what is best for you - but I do wish I had stopped drinking all together at least a month or two prior to my surgery.

This is a marathon not a sprint, and I am here to support you if you need it. I know exactly where you are coming from!