superbariatricbabe

Short story: I've started seeing a therapist in the last couple months because I know I need to work some stuff out before I go through with the RNY surgery. I'm dealing with stress, anxiety, and all kinds of emotions that I don't really have the equipment to handle. My therapist thinks that I turn to food for comfort. After a binge, I feel calm... and disgusting. But calm, and whatever was bothering me is now buried under pounds of food. In a horrible way, I feel better for the short term. What makes this really frightening is that if this is why I'm eating... how can I stop? If I get bariatric surgery without addressing this problem, I'll end up totally lost and unhinged. My question is to successful RNYers: Where do you find comfort after your surgery?

My holiday was a bit of a bummer. My dad has been ashamed of my weight for the last 15 years-(I'm only 30) and has tortured me about it for as long as I can remember. He's kind of an assh*le. I love him, but he is. So I hoped that he would be supportive of my WLS choice. He was not, but about a month ago after seeing my great results - he seemed to have this change of heart. My husband and I drive home to my parents house every Sunday for dinner, so I had to have a talk with dad about my new diet. I gave him the basic low fat, low sugar, Protein first guidelines and said "if there's ever any issue with dinner or you want to make something that doesn't fit my new plan it's not a big deal. Just let me know and I'll bring an alternative." The next Sunday he made an amazing and perfectly fine fish stew and I was elated that we'd had a civil conversation and he'd actually LISTENED to me! Fast forward to Christmas - DH and I talk to him about dinner the week before and he says he's making roast chicken. Yay! I can eat that! But when the day comes we go over for Xmas supper and Dad has made the greasiest most unhealthy pizza I've ever seen in my life. I wanted to cry. And dad got all pissed off that I wouldn't eat the pizza until I explained why and then everyone got all weird and it felt awful. I felt forgotten and left out and like a huge inconvenience to everyone. I ended up not eating anything all day and just feeling awful. (Also they live out in rural Virginia- I can't just pop in the car and hit a trader joes) I can't really explain why that pissed me off so much, but there were only 4 (mom, dad, hubby, me) people at Christmas supper and he decided to make a greasy pizza... Ugh. I feel like a whiney spoiled baby but at the same time I wanna be like "dude, your daughter just had weight loss surgery- you want to feed her pizza? WTF?"

Yes!! It's so hard for me to not drink after a meal! Truthfully I usually have taken some sips during and after meals. I'm a ???? bad girl. Is that really bad?

Poor broxmerci! I hope they find out what the bleeding is from- it sounds really terrifying. 2 months out and I've lost about 40lbs! Still struggling to get all my Water but doing really well with food and Protein. Still foaming occasionally if I don't chew enough but overall feeling pretty great. Frustrated that 40lbs lost is only 1 size smaller! I feel like I should be smaller.

Hang in there Bronx! Sending you healing vibes and happy thoughts. Keep us posted, we're all going to be thinking of you. ????????????

I made the cloud bread! It's AMAZING. I missed bread so much and it totally "scratches that itch."

Ooo please post that cloud bread recipe! Sounds amazing.

Don't panic! 2 cups of Water weighs 1lb. You might have just been dehydrated the last time you weighed or well hydrated most recently. 1.2 is a small and total normal fluctuation, so please don't worry too much.

Welcome! First off- you need to stop spitting your food out immediately. It really messes with your digestive system and can cause serious ulcers. Testing boundaries is normal for some people- I definitely moved onto soft foods a little earlier than my doc suggested but French fries and fried shrimp are going a little too far. Thankfully our tummies are small enough right now that you can't do too much damage. But it will slow your weight loss down, and you only have a 6 month window of maximum effectiveness. Plus it's the perfect time to explore new options and build good habits which is what makes this surgery so successful for many people. Why waste it? I think you need to start going to support group meetings and maybe consider seeing a therapist who works with eating disorders. In my personal experience I know that I could not have been compliant without that outside help. Cravings and overeating are 99% emotional for me, and sadly that's something that the bypass can't fix. Learning to separate the emotion from the food is a key component to success for me.

Glad to hear you are home and doing better! Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Anyone foaming? I've had three cases of "foamies" after eating chicken or turkey. Sometimes it's okay, sometimes it goes terribly wrong. Most recently tonight. It's a weird sensation where my mouth is filling with saliva and my stomachs feels something stuck uncomfortably. Then it starts this whole burping swallowing burping cycle until I either vomit or get through it. I feel like a cat with a hairball!

Thanks for the good advice ladies! I think you are right about it being in my head- and it's definitely easier to stay focused on days when I hit the gym.

5 weeks out: I'm afraid I'm eating too much. (800-900 calories) I can drink about 8oz per hour which is okay, and usually eat 4-6oz before fullness kicks in. But I'm trying to focus on low fat low sugar high Protein stuff. Some times things stick and make me feel super awful, but the majority of stuff I handle okay. I ate an entire 6" egg white sandwich - took 3 hours but it happened. Now that I'm on solid but soft foods I feel like I'm eating slowly all day long. Its a chore for the most part, but I'm starting to get some cravings back again especially late at night and it's frustrating. Maybe it's PMS but all I want is salt, carbs, and chocolate. Thank god for PB2. I just ate 3 saltines and they were AMAZING. In truth my eating habits are pretty good and I'm trying to make good choices, but it's rough! The freedom from food for the first five weeks is mostly over, and now my brain sometimes forgets that about the RNY and just wants to snack. Confusing and frustrating!!! Anyone else 5 weeks out feel the same way? What are you eating? How do you do feel?

Stalls are totally normal so please don't panic. As long as you are getting your 60/64 then there's nothing else you can do. Your body has undergone some serious trauma and your metabolism can respond in different ways. The stall will end before you know it, and you'll be fine soon ????

. It's ok! You've lost your two main coping mechanisms for stress, and there's going to be a time where you just can't handle stress well. I've been trying really hard to focus on what I'm feeling at times of stress and give myself permission for a little mini freak out. It's going to take time for us to learn how to deal with stuff without food or smokes, but trust the process - it will happen.

Kim, it's okay to be in pain. I was a wreck for a full 3 weeks from persistent pain in one spot on my abdomen. It was sharp and almost burning- I asked the doc about it and he said it was because there's a stitch there holding the muscles together where the largest laparoscopic tool went in. He explained that it was going to hurt as muscles pulled against the stitch or tensed from being tired at the end of the day. He also said that it would dissolve and eventually I might feel a 'pop' and the pain would stop, but it's more likely that it will pop overnight and I won't even notice it. He was absolutely right!! Week 4 I woke up one morning and sat bolt upright with zero pain like a miracle! Overnight the pain stopped and I was back in action.

My knees don't hurt when I get up anymore. And not sure if this is related, but my husband and I have been going at it like rabbits this last week. Guess he's pretty thrilled with the changes lol.

Down about 25lbs since surgery (40 total) and still on purees for another week. I've definitely tried a few "advanced" foods and had no problems as long as I go slow and don't overdo it. Pretty excited that the doc has cleared me to exercise, I've done a couple deep Water aerobics classes with my MIL that were fun and surprisingly intense. Abs (or the spot in fat were my abs are hiding) are still sore from Saturday! Also- my physical hunger has definitely come back but only in the sense that I get super cranky if I haven't eaten. Anyone else craving chocolate?? If so I have the perfect snack that my pouch and I both LOVE. 2-4 tbsp of Just Great Stuff Organic powdered Peanut Butter (regular and chocolate flavor), with a pinch of salt and Splenda, mixed with enough water to make it the right consistency. It tastes like Nutella!!!

3 weeks out I am back at work part time. Not sure I can handle full time yet- really enjoying my recovery. Plan to be back full time next week.

Yeah, I definitely gained 8 pounds of IV Fluid after my hospital stay (that's a full gallon of water!). It's like they send you home with extra fluid because they know it's so difficult to get your Water in for the first few days. Also - I just put up a new blog post up @ http://superbariatricbabe.blogspot.com

3 weeks out- Is anyone else having weird stuff with their body temperature? Sometimes after I eat I get freezing cold. My hands and my feet are literally cold to the touch, and I get the chills. I've been spending an hour after each meal snuggled under a blanket. Alternatively I walked to work today (3/4 mile) and while it's not the easiest walk - it's not like a march through Death Valley. Nevertheless now I can't seem to cool off! I've been here an hour and my skin is still hot. My face is so flushed that the mailman just asked if I have sunburn! Anyone else experiencing anything similar?

Good luck beni!

Laykee- is the water bottled or from the tap? I mentioned it to my DH and he wondered if the water might be hard or soft, or if there could be impurities in your plumbing.

Omg all my mother talks about is how much extra skin I'll have after this process is over- it's the first thing and the last thing she wants to talk about every time I see her- and she's constantly hatching new plans to "fix" me further. I had to stop her one day and say "one project at a time, Mom." She also seems to be obsessively predicting how great my life will be and how beautiful I'll become. It's pretty upsetting. While I am also excited about my future, I'd love it if my mother wouldn't make it so perfectly clear how disgusting she thinks I look. Truthfully I was pretty happy even at my largest weight- I had gastric bypass so I could have a child and be a healthy mom. Hopefully I'll be a more empathetic mom than my own lol!

Laykee- what temperature is the water? I definitely have more difficulty with colder drinks.