Cara-Lea

Please look into eating disorders treatment. You cannot cure an eating disorder by just forcing yourself to eat. You will simply traumatize yourself further by trying to force yourself into something you aren't able to handle. I have been there, and proper treatment is essential for your long term health.

Thank you so much. I did a LOT of work before surgery to work through my mental illness issues and my eating disorder. I am only a couple of months post-op, but I had already done the work to learn balance is key. I find it very disturbing on here, so many vets who post regularly say so many things that suggest highly disordered eating behaviors and it worries me what newbies who haven't gone through all the therapy I have are learning.

That is around where I was at 1 week post op. I am now 6 weeks post op and my dietitian wants me between 1000 & 1200 per day. My goal is to be between 1200 & 1400 per day by the 3 month mark.

I have been vegetarian on and off for a number of years. I am currently eating meat because I know the challenge of getting enough protein while recovering. That said, I am considering going back to being vegetarian, maybe 6 months post-op or so... Are there any other veggies here? How do you get all your protein? Do you feel like having a sleeve and being vegetarian can work well together?

In another thread I posted that I use meditation and journaling as a way to handle my mental hunger and I was asked to give more details about that. I felt like this is a topic that deserves a separate post, rather than hiding it in a post about something else entirely. I started meditating a number of years ago as part of a therapy program I was going through that combined mindfulness practice and Cognitive Behavior Therapy. When I first started I thought all you were supposed to do was sit and be quiet, and the truth is.. more often than not, I would fall asleep. It took being taught how to meditate for me to understand that meditation is a very active practice, even if you are physically still. I also used to believe that the goal of meditation was to think nothing at all, when in fact, the goal is actually to train your brain to put it's attention where you choose for it to be. One of the most basic forms of meditation is to sit and "follow your breath". This means to sit and simply focus your attention on your breathing. For some people they prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and exiting the nose, other people prefer to focus on the feeling of the breath entering and leaving the lungs. It doesn't matter which works better for you, just do whichever feels more natural for you. The idea is to keep your attention on your breath, and when your mind wanders, guide it back to the breath gently. There is no need to get upset that your mind has wandered.. everyone's does. The goal is to simply catch that your mind has wandered and send it back to what it is supposed to be doing (following your breath). It is good to start off trying to do this for less than 5 minutes when you first start. Very few people can just dive in and start meditating for 30 minutes or longer. Another great way to start is to actually used guided meditations. There are plenty of these out there, look at YouTube or search for meditation apps on your phone. Guided meditations will often give you a visualization to use to practice focusing your attention. My personal favourite guided meditations are by Jon Kabat-Zinn - you can definitely find these on YouTube. I am also a big fan of the book "peace is every breath" by Thich Nhat Hanh as a entry way into meditation. I find that the mental discipline my meditation practice has given me is helping me with my mental hunger because I am more skilled at re-directing my thoughts. So when I catch myself with a craving for something that I am currently not allowed to have, I gently re-focus my thoughts onto something more useful. Some days are harder and I have to keep re-focusing... some days I can just gently say "enough of that now" and I can move on and leave the craving behind. The other technique I mentioned, journaling, I don't feel quite as qualified to talk about... I use journaling erratically, and with no conscious technique. I simply write what I am thinking/feeling. I know there are schools of thought that say you should never go back and read your journal entries, but I find I actually learn from reading my journal entries. I often manage to express myself more thoroughly and coherently in writing than I am able to do verbally. So I actually find I get more out of reading my writing than through the writing process itself. I hope I haven't made this too boring, and that maybe it has been useful to a couple of people.

Sorry for the delay in answering.. been a busy week. I think that this actually deserves it's own post, so if anyone else is interested they can see it too... so i am about to write it.

My plan is to follow my weekly meal plan to the letter and to continue to use meditation to get control of the mental hunger. I also journal if I need to. I've been through this before with my eating disorder recovery, so while it is hard, I have techniques to work through it. I just wanted BrookeR to know she isn't alone.

It is still a struggle for me too. Today I have been absolutely at war with my mental hunger. I've been wanting sweet stuff all day. I'm pretty sure there is some hormonal impact for me.. but only a few weeks out from surgery, it is REALLY hard.

I am just starting week 4 of my post-op foods. I am in the "soft foods" portion of my plan. I can eat eggs, soft cheeses, nut butters (as long as they are smooth), oatmeal (as long as it is on the wet side), ground beef and pork, poultry, fish (all meats must be moist), soft cooked veggies (none of the stringy ones), saltines, melba toast , couscous, quinoa, yogourt, and some fruit.

I was terrified going into surgery. I truly thought I was going to die. I went so far as to remind my family exactly what my wishes are for what should happen after I die. I was sleeved on July 18, and I am here today, almost 1 month later. It is ok for you to be terrified. Surgery, even laproscopic surgery is a BIG deal. What I would suggest you consider is if your fear of death is actually a way to cover for fear of what your new life is going to look like. I know that was at least partly true for me. I was legitimately scared of actually dying, but I also new that my life, as I had known it, would be over when I woke up from surgery. That is a terrifying prospect too.. but one that is much harder to articulate than the fear of actual death. Whatever your fear... you are allowed to feel that way... just don't let it get in your way. Take deep breaths and keep moving forward.

I wholeheartedly believe you have to do what works for you. That said, I told everyone at work the truth. In fact, I haven't kept my surgery a secret from anyone. I have done nothing wrong, by choosing to a medical procedure that will improve my health, if anyone wants to judge me for it, that says far more about them than it does about me. Though my honesty, I got INCREDIBLE support in my workplace and was able to talk with other people who are struggling with their weight and support them in their journeys. Being so open has been one of the best parts of my journey - it has shown me how much love people are able to share.

Hi all, I am 2.5 weeks post-op and today, as per my program I started soft foods. I have a question about my sleeve "rejecting" foods. I know that when I introduce a new food, it is possible my sleeve won't like it and I will vomit. I was wondering, how quickly will this happen after eating the food my sleeve isn't ready to accept? Is it very quick - like within a couple of minutes or does it take a while - like 30 minutes? I also know to NOT drink any water for at least 30 minutes after eating. I have been doing this right from the start of my full fluids (soup, yogourt and oatmeal) diet. Thanks!!

I struggled both with shame and fear, just like you. I can tell you that what helped me was to be willing to release the past - the reason I ended up weighing 350lbs, I had to leave it all behind me so I could change. Please, let it all go. Forgive yourself. Forgive anyone who hurt you that pushed you towards food. If you let all of that go, you will lose the shame. As for the fear... I was f'king terrified going into surgery. I really thought I might die... but I also trusted all the professionals around me who I knew only wanted to see me survive and thrive. So yes, sitting waiting to go into the OR on my surgery day... I was so afraid, it felt like I was leaping off a cliff... it was probably the bravest thing I ever did.. and you can be that brave too. I promise. I have a picture that says "Sometimes the fear won't go away.. so you'll just have to do it afraid." Tell yourself that.

I may be in the minority around here on this one, but I believe setting goals around a number on the scale is absolutely toxic and can lead to disordered eating behavior and all sorts of mental health issues. My goals are all based around non-scale achievements. How far can I walk without getting winded? Am I advancing in a yoga pose I have been working on? Is my blood pressure staying in the healthy range? How many days in a row have I reached my water-intake goal? All of these things are far healthier goals than worrying about getting to a certain # on the scale by a certain date. There are just too many variables that I can't control when it comes to what the scale says. Whereas I CAN control how far I am walking, or how much water I am drinking.

I'm 11 days post op. Taking all my meds was really tough for me at first too.. it is getting easier now. If your vitamins are a big challenge, consider vitamin patches or vitamin chews. They might help make it easier.

I am about a week and a half post-op. I have moderate sleep apnea and use a CPAP. I was required to take the machine with me to the hospital and wear it (almost) every night. Good luck with your journey. Make sure you follow all your instructions, even the ones you hate. It is worth it.

Weird. I'm on full fluids and well cooked, fairly loose oatmeal is one of the things I am allowed to eat.

I don’t own a scale. I have told my doctors that I don’t want to own a scale. This is a part of my recovery from my mental illness and eating disorder. I get weighed when I go to the doctor. My weight was stable for 2 years before surgery this way, and I have no fear that it will be different post surgery. I’m far more interested in these numbers: blood sugar, blood pressure, resting and active heart rate.

My surgery was July 18... one week ago today already.

I am exactly 1 week post-op today. Last night was the first night I was able to sleep in my bed. I slept on my side, propped with pillows so as not to roll onto my stomach at all. I have been sleeping in our recliner since I got home from the hospital on Saturday.

This is so real for me. I love clothes and while I am super excited about being able to populate a whole new wardrobe, I am also really sad about the clothes I am going to be shrinking out of. I have a plan in place that makes me feel a little better. 1) I have kept a couple special items that I am going to take to a seamstress when my weight stabilizes, and see what can be done with them. 2) I have other friends who are similar in size, so I am slowly pulling items as they become too big and I am handing them to those friends. 3) At some point I will have a raid my closet party and friends can come and take anything that doesn't fit me anymore. 4) Everything else after that point will be donated to something useful.

Hi everyone, I just wanted to introduce myself and say that I've been lurking for a bit here and finally decided to sign up. I am still very new on my post-op journey, but I am excited to see where it takes me. Cara