Cattitude

My pre-op diet was pretty strict, I had a much harder time sticking to it than I'm having with my post-surgery clear liquids diet! I was only allowed proteins and SOME vegetables, along with water and meal replacement shakes. NO fruit at all, and many vegetables like carrots were "too starchy". I was on this diet for 10 days. I cheated once by eating a banana, but I lost 8 lbs anyway. The days went by a lot faster than I expected. I did have trouble the first couple of days, my body just wanted to sleep and I had a hard time staying awake.

I'm not sure where you're located, but here in Canada we have private clinics that do in-house financing. When I first expressed interest in getting the surgery, I didn't think I'd pass the credit check in a million years! I've been off work for 2 years on permanent disability, and have a few skeletons in my credit closet. But I was surprised when the application went through. Be prepared to put down a deposit, and your monthly payments could be high, but you can negotiate with many clinics. I've also read that it's cheap to go to Mexico and other South American countries for surgery. Of course you'd have to pay for travel and possibly accommodation.

I have no support - other than what I am finding on my own. I don't have any family or friends. I am living in an emotionally abusive relationship which I plan to leave, as soon as I recover from my surgery. I've had enough of being obese and putting up with his put-downs many times a day. So I decided to have this surgery. My "partner" (not sure what else to call him other than words I'd have to bleep out) is totally against the surgery. He hates that I've gained weight since we first got together and makes snide remarks about how I look and what I eat. I actually thought he'd approve of my surgery, but instead he tells me I'm wasting my money, mutters about the gym and points out every cheesy diet ad he sees. For support I will be making full use of the aftercare support offered by the clinic doing my surgery. I chose this clinic for this reason. They have nutritionists, psychologists, online weight tracking and other things, which they offer for 5 years. I am also signing up for group therapy for abused women, hopefully it will start within the next few months. Finally, I will be drawing from my prior experience from having a gastric bypass in 2005. I lost 159 lb. then, but regained 100 lb. during my current relationship. Not that it's his fault, I'm the one who started making bad eating choices after being thin for 3 years. But at least I know what gastric surgery feels like (though I'm sure lap band will be different) and the "rules" for eating should be similar. I know I can lose this weight and keep it off this time. So, what I suggest is to avoid or ignore those who don't support you, and seek out those who do. Be creative. Ask at the clinic that does your surgery. If you feel you need a self-esteem boost, see if you can get counselling.

My surgery date is Jan 9/13 . Today is the first day of my pre-op diet. Best wishes to everyone else!

Jan 9 for me. I start my pre-op diet on Dec. 31. Good luck to everyone!

Most people lose weight everywhere, though sometimes fat sticks stubbornly to small areas, usually with loose skin. When I had my gastric bypass, after I lost 160 lb. I ended up with loose skin and some fat left on my lower belly. I had a full tummy tuck (abdominoplasty), which is fat and loose skin removal from the ribs down to the pelvic area. It is also possible to have just the skin and fat from the lower belly removed (panniculectomy). Everyone is different, some find their skin tightens up nicely after weight loss, especially if they are young. I was in my 40's, had been obese for nearly 20 years, and had had a child, so my abdominal skin was looser to begin with.

I know a bit of how you feel with the "short-cut" nonsense. My (soon to be ex, but that's another story) is telling me I'm wasting my money on my surgery. Every time he sees an ad for some fad diet I get told all about it and asked if I'm sure I still want to waste all that money! What a lot of people don't understand is that an obese person's metabolism is not the same as someone who has been thin all their life. We all have a "thermostat" in our bodies that is programmed to a set weight. Your body fights to maintain that weight. Dieting and sometimes genetics sets that thermostat a lot higher in obese people. When an obese person loses weight they have to eat around 30% fewer calories (along with exercise) to maintain that weight, than a thin person who has always weighed that much. Then the obese person's body thermostat is still set at the high weight, and the body "fights" to go back to that weight with hunger pangs, storing fat etc. Ask your thin family members if they think they could eat 30% less every day for the rest of their lives, as well as hitting the gym every day - being plagued by hunger pangs the whole time! That's why we get WLS - to make our stomachs feel more full and slow our eating, so we can eat less and lose weight without the hunger pangs. We're actually correcting an abnormality: it's not normal to eat a healthy diet and feel hungry all the time. Thin people who eat healthy diets aren't always fighting the urge to hit the fridge! But thin people don't realize that they're not physically the same as obese people, so they don't understand the need for an extra tool to lose weight.

I also became an alcoholic after gastric bypass. I've been sober for over 2 years now but it was a tough fight to get there. I only recently found out that gastric bypass makes you prone to alcoholism! That's because the alcohol goes straight to your small intestine (bypasses the liver) and into your bloodstream and brain. It's a powerful head rush and very addictive. You can google "gastric bypass alcohol" and find articles about it. So it's not all your sister's fault that she is addicted to alcohol. They should warn EVERY gastric bypass patient before their surgery and forbid them from drinking after the surgery. You might be able to help your sister by going to al-anon or other support groups for family/friends of alcoholics. It will help you too. Hopefully once your sister is ready she will be able to stop drinking. It took me a trip to rehab and then 4 months of drinking on and off before I finally gave it up for good. Re support groups after gastric bypass: for me there weren't any. That could be partly why I failed. I went to the US (Rochester) to get my op done and then there was nothing here for me in Canada. For my lap-band I deliberately chose a clinic that offers a lot of online and in-person support after the surgery.

Hi Everyone! This is my second attempt at gastric surgery. The first time was a roux-en-y gastric bypass back in 2005. My provincial health insurance covered it because I was so sick (dibetes, fatty liver, arthritis, etc. etc.) I was 294 lb when I started and got down to 135. Then after about 5 years the weight started to creep up, even though I was following the eating plan: proteins first, then veg, then carbs. No sodas or sweet or carbonated beverages. My main mistake at the time was taking water before and during meals. My gastric pouch stretched and got bigger so I could eat more. As I got fatter I gave up on myself and slipped more, eating sweets and drinking perrier water. As I got heavier the knees started acting up and I stopped going to the gym. I still feel some restriction in my upper belly but not what I had before. I am looking forward to having an adjustable band to help control the size of my upper stomach chamber, I've read that lap-band is often used as a revision for failed gastric bypass. I am back up to around 250 lb.and want to get back to around 140. I know I can succeed at getting back to my goal weight - I did it before! I know how it feels to follow rules of eating for a long period of tme (5 years?) I know how it feels to be physically restricted in what you eat. I'm not afraid to push away a plate that's mostly full. I know how sick I got when my weight was almost 300 lb. I will think of that when I am tempted to stray from my eating rules. I get my surgery in Toronto. Our health plan won't cover it (don't know why) so I had to get fnancing for self pay. My surgery date is Jan 9, My "Drastic Pre-Op Detox Diet" starts on Dec. 31, which is next Monday. I am treatng the days before as "Last Supper".