SlimJill

Personally I spoke to my therapist before surgery about alcohol and decided I would not touch it until I felt I had replaced my addiction with something healthy... It's just too risky to me. The way I see it is - alcohol never meant anything to me before surgery and I'm going to keep it that way! Once I get to a point where I am healthy, happy, and alcohol is purely a social activity then I will experiment a little. The only thing I worry about is my 21st birthday will be approximately 6 months post op in October. Most people know 21st birthdays usually end up in young people getting sick, passing out, or ending up in the hospital with alcohol poisoning ... so the peer pressure will be strong to go crazy but I'll have to reign those crazy friends in and remind them I have something more important to me.

I know what you mean with the food addiction. I knew I was an addict but I guess I didn't realize to what extent I enjoyed food, the planning, eating, endless eating. I no longer look forward to Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and Snacks like I used to. Lunch time at work isn't as special with a Protein shake... I had the same symptoms as you with light headed, headache, a little nausea. My therapist said these are signs of detox. I have the same worries as you... I'd like to think things will be easy after the surgery, but I know they won't be. The whole pre-op diet I've been fantasizing about an asiago bagel with onion and chive cream cheese! For 12 days now! The only reason I haven't eaten it is because I want to be healthy for surgery and not die on the operating table... but after surgery... I'm not sure what I would do and that scares me.

I feel your pain! Stay strong and if you have to go outside so you can't smell it or see others eating it. My 3rd day of the pre-op there was an icecream social at work. Gallons of icecream in the freezer, waffle bowls, yum yum yum yum, but I had to politely decline. And even then people were trying to make me eat it! WTF! (Granted none of them know I am having surgery but still, no means no). They even sent someone out to cover my work so I could go stuff my face but I had to stay strong. In my head I was thinking "Stop! I don't want a bowl, I want an Olympic pool filled with ice cream that I must eat my way out of!"

One thing I can say is this... the pre-op diet made me not fear surgery as much. Before I started the diet I was afraid of dying in surgery. But now I am saying "Cut me open! Get it over with!" I want regular food even if it's pureed into paste! I moved back in with my parents for multiple reasons (20 and recent college grad) and must say it is so much harder to do the pre-op at home. At my apartment with roommates they never cooked! Now my dad is making Mahi Mahi with mashed potatoes and pork chops with green bean casserole! Ughhh I actually had to leave the room because I couldn't stand to smell it. Now only 4 days until surgery!!! And I'm down 13.6 pounds! I hate this pre-op but it sure does work!

Have to say I feel the same. I haven't gotten weight loss surgery yet... but I will. Sometimes I think to myself why did my parents let me get this heavy! I was 150 pounds in 5th grade, 200 in 8th grade! I have even went so far as to tell my mom and dad that I resent them for not helping me before. I didn't buy the food in the house, I didn't set the rules, it wasn't my fault but now it's my problem... I take full responsibility for my issues now, but the patterns and lifestyle were created way back when. Every time I see an overweight or obese girl I want to walk up to her and say Please take care of yourself now... lose 20-30 pounds instead of 100, or 150. gain so many happy years of your life that I wasted! Please! But as others have stated I would never ever do it. I know it would most likely cause harm. Although one thing that had me thinking was this... would you hesitate to tell your friend who was in abusive relationship that it's unhealthy for her, that it could kill her eventually JUST to spare her feelings? Or would you make it your mission to help her get out, even if that meant showing her strength she didn't know she had to change her situation... just food for thought...

I've heard many people describe a honeymoon stage where they didn't feel hungry, but more importantly didn't have intense cravings... Where it was an easy choice to pick an apple over ice cream or grilled chicken instead of pizza. I haven't gotten the surgery yet, but right now in my life if I have a craving it tends to be so bad that I either go right after what I want, OR I eat 10 things and THEN eat the original thing I wanted. This honeymoon stage is very important to me because I believe if I can reset my mind and body during this time without cravings influencing me that it will be easier to make healthy decisions once the cravings do come back (although they might be lesser). In essence, sugar will not have the biological vice grip on me as it does now. So I'd like to hear about other's experience. Did you have a honeymoon stage? How long did it last?

I have not gotten surgery yet, but I will be in the next few months. I have told only a few people and every single one of them gave me backlash. "It's the easy way out, but you're so young, just exercise and eat right... it's not that hard... you just have to want it." I did not think I would receive this much opposition from people who have seen me struggle my entire life, who have witnessed me go through depressions, weight loss, and huge weight gains. It wasn't until a year ago I realized this was a food addiction that I started understanding myself. Not everyone has caught up yet. If a smoker uses a nicotine patch, or rehab no one calls them a cheater or a little bitch. They applaud their efforts for trying to save their life! This surgery should be no different. I have an addiction. I am seeking help. I want to save my life. And in my opinion taking the easy way out, or the wrong way, is to sit at home and pretend that nothing is wrong.

Hello everyone, I recently discovered my insurance company, BCBS of Florida, will not cover ANY gastric sleeve surgery. So I am beginning to look for cheaper alternatives. Mexico is the closest and cheapest option I could find outside of the US. But, how do I verify that my surgeon is legitimate? In the day of technology anyone can fabricate a "medical degree" or numerous "medical documents" proving the are competent to perform gastric sleeve surgery, but how do you double check those? Have any of you had the sleeve done in Mexico, per say, and could give me a solid recommendation? I have seen prices as low as 3,499 or 3,950 for all inclusive gastric sleeve in Mexico, and I want to believe it is safe and top quality. However, my family is totally against it, and have questioned everything I put before them, such as the medical documents many surgeons provide via their websites. I just want to convince my family, and myself, that Medical Tourism is safe and I can prove to them these are legitimate doctors and not just some guy who went to community college for medicine and wants to cut me open...

I have not used him, but I am considering it as well since his price is only 3,950! But I want to make sure he is legitimate first, not sure how to figure that out though.