Megan292

Surgery tomorrow. Scared! But looking forward to coming out the other side. I think I'm all prepared for coming home. Protein shakes. Broth made and in the freezer. What else.... ETA: oh no! I wanted to delete that picture because I have it in my Before picture in my profile now and I hate to look at it every time I come here. But the Edit button is gone

I am Megan in the UK, in the final stages of being approved for gastric sleeve surgery. I hope to have surgery before Christmas. I am getting quite anxious, not about the surgery itself, but whether I can handle only being able to have small meals. I have always been a binge eater, and when I have lost weight it has usually been by filling up on large quantities of vegetables. If I restrict quantities I tend to binge. I've lost 7 pounds in the assessment stage but it has gone up and down. Sugar gives me a boost and I use it almost like a drug. I haven't talked to the doctors about this very much because I'm afraid of being turned away. I'm relying on the surgery stopping me wanting to eat large amounts. I am worried I may be expecting too much of it ... but I have tried every other way to lose weight. I have health conditions that would be improved by lower weight. I think this surgery is my best (only?) hope and the doctors seem to agree. So I have come here to try to avoid anxiety-related binges in the lead-up to surgery. This will be my thread where I will come and post progress and when I just need to calm down. Here are some reminders for when I am struggling. Reasons not to overeat Back pain Heart palpitations Headaches Out of breath going upstairs Can't keep up with friends when walking Struggling to get my work done Waste of money Things to do when thoughts of food seem overwhelming Clean something in the house Sing Move around waving arms in the air to work off some energy Go for a walk - but not near any shops and don't take money/cards Take a break and sit down with a cup of tea If I am tired: rest. If I am anxious: move the body.

That's great, Rainbow! I think we must be the same day since mine is the 11th in the UK

25 pounds in a month is amazing! I certainly never did that without surgery. I would be very happy with that my first month. You look lovely, can definitely see the difference in you!

Mine is the 11th. Good luck to everybody!

I have a surgery date - October 11th. Excited and a little scared! After so many months of assessments, it suddenly seems to be happening very fast!

Here should be my before pictures.... taken today.

Congratulations, you look amazing! What an inspiration!

Thank you all for this thread. I have so far not told anybody. You guys who do tell are brave. After reading this I think maybe whether to tell people depends on how much you are willing to argue about it I don't like conflict at all so I think I will go the route someone suggested and just say to people who need to know (like work) that I'm having "a routine surgical procedure". "Routine" so they know it's not something that's going to mean a ton of other time out, and vague enough that they will think it's something embarrassing "down there" and get the hint that I don't want to be specific.

This is true but in my experience without surgery it goes right back on after the diet ends and then some, because the body rebels against the restriction without surgery. To me, having surgery is not about losing faster but about losing and keeping it off. Concentrate on doing that however slow and you will be fine

I also have issues with binge eating. I had the impression my medical people were looking for reduction in both the size and frequency of binges, more than weight loss. I achieved a reduction in both and some weight loss automatically went along with that. But your situation or the policies at your hospital may be different. I haven't completely stopped binges yet, and they know it, but the binges are smaller and less frequent. I didn't have to specify every bite, and I started to talk about "overeating" instead of "binge" after a while to make it sound less. But I never lied. I would answer honestly when/if asked. I'll have to stop for the preop diet, because I have to follow that for a "perfect" two weeks to get a cancellation surgery date if one comes up. This is a feature of our medical system in the UK where after completing assessment there's still a long wait in principle, but in practice we can often get surgery quicker if available to take a cancellation at short notice. But for gastric surgery it means going on the preop diet and staying on it, on "standby". I plan to start this tomorrow. I don't think it's worth lying because in the end if they open you up and your liver is too big they may just sew you up again without doing the surgery which would be a real pain in the A.

Good luck for tomorrow. Let us know how it goes. I'm supposed to be having a sleeve but I already get GERD and now I'm worried it will get worse and I should be having bypass.

Thanks for all the tips! Love the idea of petting a skinny top

Thank you so much @Sosewsue61 . I think (although I KNOW better) I am still expecting food to solve all my problems (either by eating it or not eating it). How come you know my brother so well ... LOL What you say about the emotions makes a lot of sense. I've had counselling as part of the assessment and preparation for surgery but I have trouble putting it to practice. Running to my old "friends" in the fridge seems so much quicker and easier. I know this is something I must change. Yesterday I was feeling rejected twice over. (1) I offered to do more hours at my voluntary job, but the manager said no. She said she didn't want me to get too tired but I was imagining other reasons in my head. (2) My best friend organised a trip with some other friends for her birthday and didn't ask me, even when somebody dropped out at the last minute. They went with an empty place. I think this is because they want to have a wild time and I have stopped drinking alcohol. And I know it is better for me not to go because I don't want to be tempted to start drinking again so close to my surgery, plus all the hotel food. But I still feel upset that she didn't invite me or even explain. I know overeating doesn't deal with the feelings in any useful way - in fact the opposite, just makes everything worse long term - but it does make them feel so much less powerful temporarily ... I will keep working on this

I ate too much today. I have figured out a diet that is a little more than the preop diet they told me about. I don't need to start the strict preop diet until I have a date for surgery, but I think if I get used to eating smaller meals it will help me for the future. 4 meals a day with less veggies and carbs than I am used to. Starting tomorrow.