Would love some BTDT success stories. I had a successful VSG 2.5 years ago and initially lost 70lbs. Sadly with the pandemic I have regained 25-30 lbs. I am crushed. I think my pouch is still small as I cannot eat large amounts of food but I’m afraid I’m addicted to sugar. Anyone able to get back on track after weight gain. ☹️

4 hours ago, Meggie1111 said:

Would love some BTDT success stories. I had a successful VSG 2.5 years ago and initially lost 70lbs. Sadly with the pandemic I have regained 25-30 lbs. I am crushed. I think my pouch is still small as I cannot eat large amounts of food but I’m afraid I’m addicted to sugar. Anyone able to get back on track after weight gain. ☹️

Are we twins or what???? Same here. Gained 10-12 pounds. Every single one of those pounds is chocolate/sugar. Still eating small amounts of food. Just addicted to sugar! I want to kick myself in the butt.

Try sugar-free items to kill the cravings.

This site's store has A LOT of options for "fake treats," IE, treats that are both pre-portioned and don't contain sugar or anything to harm you (in fact, a lot contain vitamins and protein). I don't crave sweets near as much as I did pre-op, but when I do want something sweet, I find a sugar-free, bariatric-friendly product works well.

Russell Stover's also makes VERY good sugar-free chocolate. Just a piece is enough to satisfy me and it's inexpensive. There's also Breyer's Carb Smart ice cream and Smucker's sugar-free hot fudge if you have a hankering for something of the ice cream nature. Their SF hot fudge I KID YOU NOT tastes EXACTLY like the real thing! I top my coffee with it and SF Cool Whip if I want a "mocha."

Yep, you have to kill the sugar cravings. Avoid artificial sweeteners & sugar substitutes too as they still feed the craving for sugar. It’s hard cause it seems like sugar or sweeteners are in everything. I used fruit to help sweeten foods if I had too like in plain yoghurt or to give me a little burst of sweetness. Just watch dried fruit cause the fructose is concentrated & it’s easy to eat a lot. (Remember 2 pieces of dried apricot are a whole apricot & a prune is 1 plum.)

Big thing is to get it out of your house. If it’s not in the cupboard you can’t eat it. Oh, you may suffer some side effects from the withdrawals but they will pass.

Good luck.

Frozen bananas make me feel like I’m having a treat, and frozen grapes are wonderful too with limits.
I peel and half a banana, stick a pop cycle stick in it and freeze about 4-8 at once.

I’m 2-1/2 years post Rny and in the past year I’ve gone from 120# to 152#. ☹️ It all started last year after my husband came home from a 3 month stay in the hospital, needing full time care at home plus the pandemic. I do great during the day, but after I go to bed I binge on Cadbury milk chocolate bars. I know it’s an emotional/reward treat for myself but it’s gotten completely out of control. I’m the one who buys them, I keep them in my bedroom and eat while I’m half asleep! Having my husband home is like having a 6’2 baby (260#) to care for, and my life is one big rut. I don’t mind caring for him at all, in fact, I’m extremely grateful that he’s here! Since we’re in quarantine though, I stay in my comfy pjs every day unless I need to run to the store for supplies. I’m fortunate that he’s on a feeding tube so I don’t need to cook much, but I don’t like to eat when he’s awake since he’s unable to eat by mouth and misses it. So I simply wait until he’s asleep at night and “treat” myself to the milk chocolate. I’ll even eat it after I get up during the night to take care of him. It’s not as if I’m hungry at all, just searching for pleasure. I fooled myself as I started to gain the weight saying that I would lose it as soon as I can get outside for a walk once the weather gets warm. I’ve tried to ask myself if I feel happier eating the chocolate, or was I happier weighing 120#? I don’t feel like I’m addicted to sugar because I only want the Cadbury milk chocolate. At first I didn’t mind weighing 130-140#, but I see it creep up and I realize it’s going to be harder to lose. It’s so hard to give up, and harder to find pleasure in anything else these days! Even if I can stay busy during the day, my mindset looks for pleasure at night. I’m on antidepressants, and my husband likes me to sit with him during the day and watch television. How do I find the strength to give up my Cadbury milk chocolate pleasure?! Pray?

8 hours ago, dedegale said:

I’m 2-1/2 years post Rny and in the past year I’ve gone from 120# to 152#. ☹️ It all started last year after my husband came home from a 3 month stay in the hospital, needing full time care at home plus the pandemic. I do great during the day, but after I go to bed I binge on Cadbury milk chocolate bars. I know it’s an emotional/reward treat for myself but it’s gotten completely out of control. ..How do I find the strength to give up my Cadbury milk chocolate pleasure?! Pray?

Whether or not to eat sugar after WLS is a bit controversial. Some will say "in moderation" and others will say "never again." This has to be your personal decision -- which is right for you.

A Cadbury bar is about 200 calories (you'll find a range of estimates if you google, but I'm going by MyFitnessPal's verified estimate). Are you eating just one at night or several? If you're having three, for example, you're adding 600 calories a day to your regular calorie intake. If that 600 calories exceeds your daily maintenance caloric needs, you could gain a pound every six days. In a worst case scenario, that would result in a five pound-a-month gain.

So think about taking two steps. First, decide whether sugar will continue to play a role in your life. Acknowledge that it may be *extremely* difficult to give it up and you may need to come up with a substitute -- something you can chew on at night if you are feeling cravings. Second, if you decide you must have the Cadbury bars in your life to some extent, consider keeping a daily log of your calories so that you don't exceed your maintenance needs. In this case, try to eat the smallest amount nightly that would satisfy you, and chew each bite as many times as possible to savor the flavor.

Lastly, if you decide you want to lose the regained weight, you'll need to recalculate your daily caloric goals so that you can start losing again. Be practical -- it's hard to shave off 500 calories a day for a one pound-a-week loss -- so set an achievable goal.

I wish you the best and hope your husband is doing well.

On 1/16/2021 at 5:17 PM, Meggie1111 said:

but I’m afraid I’m addicted to sugar.

You are NOT "addicted to sugar" or are you sneaking into the kitchen, pouring tablespoons of plain sugar down your throat?

I could have written this post myself I’m 4 years post on but in the past year I have gained 21lb and feel so mad with myself. I to feel it’s sweets stuff that is my total downfall and would love a way to quit.

Same thing is happening to me. I can relate