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I had my first alcoholic beverage 6weeks post op. WARNING, alcohol takes affect much quicker now. Pre op I could easily have 6-8shots before getting buzzed. At 6weeks 2shots & I was walking crooked. And it was a roller coaster ride. I'd be drunk 1 minute then a few minutes later feel nothing then buzzed again with nothing more to drink. It was crazy. Enjoy yourself, but even if you feel completely sober, do not drive,

When you researched and prepped for VSG what did your surgeon and NUT tell you about consuming alcohol?

Alan, If you've ever tried to drink an old beer (Like from last night's party), you'll know why beer has to have carbonation. Carbon dioxide gives beer it's distinctive taste. Without it it's pretty awful. We work hard to get enough CO2 in beer. If you want to drink alcohol, they make very good wines these days;^). I'm selling all my beer stuff and DW thinks she's going to move her sewing stuff in my brewery. I'm in ham radio and I think it might become a radio room. Today we bought some Quinoa and sugarless stuff. I'm getting ready for my year in hell. I can lose weight readily, keeping it off is the problem. If you guys ever really want to learn beermaking, let me know. I have all the information you can use.

This past week seems so focused on the $10million question.. do I need a fill?? I've posted the link to this list in other threads, but thought I'd just go ahead and put the whole thing here for those of us who need reminding. I hope that all of us who are questioning the need for more (or less) restriction will take a few minutes and go thru this list of questions, answering each honestly, and then make an educated decision rather than just walking in to the Dr.'s office and letting them decide for us based on only a tiny bit of the entire picture. Here ya go: Adjustments How to Tell When You Are Perfectly Adjusted You are losing 1-2 pounds per week. If you are not losing 1-2 pounds per week: A. You may need an eating adjustment 1. Are you eating 60 grams of Protein a day 2. Are you eating 25 grams of Fiber 3. Are you avoiding all liquid calories a. Soup can be sign of “soft calorie syndrome” b. Alcohol contains a lot of calories – 7 calories per gram (1) It’s also a stomach irritant c. fruit juice is just sugar Water 4. Are you making healthy food choices from a wide variety of foods? a. Are you avoiding soft foods b. You can’t just eat what’s easy c. cheese is glorified fat 5. Are you drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day between meals 6. Are you eating too much junk a. chips, chocolate, nuts, ice cream, Cookies and other highly processed junk foods are too calorically dense to be regular parts of a healthy diet. But don’t avoid them completely to the point where you feel deprived. b. Stay out of fast food places 7. Are you getting in two servings of Calcium daily 8. Do you always eat the protein first 9. Then the vegetables or fruits a. Five servings a day b. Potatoes are NOT a vegetable 10. Is your portion size appropriate? a. meat or fish (1) 3 ounces – the size of a deck of cards b. Vegetables (1) ½ cup – the size of your fist c. Starch (1) If you eat the protein and the vegetables first you don’t need much (2) Avoid: rice, potatoes, Pasta 11. You might try avoiding artificial sweeteners a. Some people think that artificial sweeteners stimulate the appetite b. They are HUNDREDS of times sweeter than sugar c. They teach you to like things too sweet d. There is no evidence that people who use them are any thinner than people who don’t 12. Avoid most diet foods a. Real food usually tastes better b. Real food is more satisfying than low calorie substitutes c. When you are only eating a tiny bit the caloric savings is not that great (1) Use a teaspoon of real butter instead of a tablespoon of diet margarine (2) The body has no way to break down artificial fats a. They may go into permanent storage b. Some people think liposuction is the only way to remove hydrolyzed fats from the body B. You may need a behavior adjustment 1. Are you eating only when you are hungry? a. If you’re not sure drink 8 ounces of water and wait. 2. Are you eating three meals a day? a. With maybe 1 or 2 small Snacks 3. Are you sitting down to eat? 4. Are you eating consciously? a. No distractions, turn off the TV, put the book or newspaper away, pay attention to your food and your companions 5. Are you eating slowly? a. Put the fork down between bites b. Take 20 to 30 minutes to finish a meal c. Taking longer might cause the pouch to begin emptying 6. Are you taking small bites? a. Tiny spoon, chopsticks, cocktail fork 7. Are you chewing well? 8. Are you drinking with your meals or too soon after your meals? a. Practice water loading between meals b. You won’t be thirsty if you are well hydrated before the meal 9. Are you stopping at the first sign of fullness? a. Sometimes it’s a whisper: not hungry, had enough b. Hard stop versus soft stop 10. Do not eat between meals. Stop grazing. 11. Do not eat when you are not hungry C. You may need an activity adjustment 1. Are you getting in 30 minutes of physical activity at least 3 times a week? a. Over and above what you would do in the usual course of your day b. Could you make it 4 or 5 times a week? c. Could you make it 45 or 60 minutes? 2. Are you taking advantage of opportunities to increase your physical activity? a. Taking the stairs instead of the elevators or escalators b. Walking on the escalators instead of riding c. Parking your car further away from the entrance d. Getting out of the car instead of using the drive through e. Getting off the bus one stop before your destination f. Washing you car by hand instead of the car wash g. Playing with your kids D. You may need an attitude adjustment 1. Are you committed to your weight loss journey? 2. Are you totally honest with yourself about how much you are eating and exercising? a. Log your food and activity on ww.fitday.com for 3 days 3. Are you using food inappropriately to deal with emotional issues? a. Have you identified what the emotions are that drive your eating? b. Can you think of more appropriate ways to deal with those emotions? c. Are you willing to seek help from a qualified counselor? 4. Are you attending and participating in support group meetings? 5. Have you drummed up some support from your family and friends? 6. Have you dealt with saboteurs realistically? 7. Do you have realistic expectations about the weight loss journey? 8. Are you still obsessing about food, weight, dieting, eating? a. Obsessive – compulsive thoughts (1) Obsess about something else b. Perfectionism (1) All or none, black and white thinking c. Patience with the pace of healthy weight loss 9. Are you acknowledging your successes with non-food rewards? 10. Have you learned how to take a compliment? 11. Are you giving up diet mentality? a. Stop weighing yourself several times a day or every day b. Stop dieting c. Stop depriving yourself d. Stop defining food as “good” and “bad” e. Stop rewarding and punishing yourself with food 12. How do you feel about all the changes taking place? E. You may need a band adjustment 1. You feel like you are making healthy food choices in appropriate portion sizes but getting hungry between meals? 2. You can still eat white bread, fibrous vegetables and large portions. 3. You are having to struggle to lose 4. You are gaining weight in spite of eating right, exercising and having a good mind set. F. You may need your band loosened 1. There are times when you can’t get fluids down 2. You are vomiting too much a. How much is too much? 3. Do you have frequent reflux or heartburn at night? a. Do not lie flat or bend over soon after eating b. Do not eat late at night or just before bedtime c. Rinse your pouch with a glass or water an hour before bedtime d. Certain foods or drinks are more likely to cause reflux: (1) Rich, spicy, fatty and fried foods (2) Chocolate (3) Caffeine (4) Alcohol (5) Some fruits and vegetables a. Oranges, lemons, tomatoes, peppers (6) Peppermint a. Baking soda toothpaste (7) Carbonated drinks e. Eat slowly and do not eat big meals f. If you smoke, quit smoking g. Reduce stress h. Exercise promotes digestion i. Raise the head of your bed j. Wear loose fitting clothing around your waist k. Stress increases reflux l. Take estrogen containing medications in the morning m. Avoid aspirin, Aleve and ibuprofen at bedtime (1) Tylenol is OK n. Take an antacid (Pepcid complete) before retiring o. Try other over-the-counter heartburn medications p. See your health care provider 4. See your health care provider immediately (or call 911) if a. You have a squeezing, tightness or heaviness in your chest, especially if the discomfort spreads to your shoulder, arm or jaw or is accompanied by shortness of breath, sweating, irregular or fast heartbeat or nausea. These could be symptoms of a heart attack. b. If your symptoms are triggered by exercise. c. If your pain localizes to your right side, especially if you also have nausea or fever d. If you throw up vomit that looks like black sand or coffee grounds. Or if your stool is black, deep red or looks like it has tar in it. These are symptoms of bleeding and need immediate attention. (Note: Pepto-Bismol or other medications with bismuth will turn your stool black. Iron supplements can also make the stool tarry.) e. If your pain is severe

I think your post really spoke to me. I had WLS at the hospital I work and and a lot of co-workers know I had it. So I know when I go back to work after taking a month off, I'd better show a loss. I feel that pressure. Here is the plan I'm following : -800 to 1200 calories a day -60 grams of Protein a day minimum -64 oz. of Water a day minimum -no non-natural sugar -no more than 20 grams of fat -no more than 100 grams of carbs -no white carbs (sugar, flour, rice, bread and potatoes) -no sugar alcohols (aka, sugar free candy) -no use of straws -no chewing gum -no caffeine (at least for the 1st 6 months) -no carbonated drinks Well, I am loosing consistently. But now I find I feel like a failure if I'm not 800 calories a day or less. I never go under 700. I log everything that passes my lips on thedailyplate.com, and measure everything.

Omeprazole won't work the day you take it. The absolute minimum amount of time is 24 hours before you even begin to see a difference. It can take a few weeks before it kicks in but you should be noticing a difference reasonably soon. BJean is correct, you do need to cut out a lot of excess acid causing foods, raise your bed, don't eat before bedtime, no alcohol, etc. This does need to be treated so it does not cause "forever" esophageal problems such as cancer, scarring, stricture, etc. The surgical fix for this is pretty amazing. When you wake up in recovery you'll already notice a difference. It's an immediate cure. But it is very similar to banding. The nerve that gets irritated and makes your shoulder hurt will really kick in after this procedure. But the recovery is pretty much the same as banding but ... NO POST OP DIET! Yippeeee!

Green: You've outed me. I love, love, love ice cream. It is my drug of choice. I am about ice cream, as an alcoholic is about booze. It is of course somewhat a head issue, but I believe that it is a chemical issue as well. I just feel too good inside and I get too elated (high?) when I consume ice cream. That's a tough row to hoe. But I do know that I have to get to it and git 'er done! I do not crave volumes of food and that's a good thing because I can't really eat massive quantities anyway. You'd think I'd lose weight since I am not eating quite a few of the dense calories and white foods that I ate before banding. I guess I will try again this week. My doc is very conservative with the fills. I reckon that's why I've had so many but still haven't reached nirvana yet. :cry Gosh I hope your bloodwork abnormality is nothing to worry about. It always pays to check things out though. I hope you will keep me informed because I really do care about you, grrl!

If it is the same one I saw before it was some ladies who had a bypass and then replaced their eating addictions with other addictions, I belive one was alcohol and another one was sex.

Yeap, it's amazing the things we learn from ours and other people's experience. That's it, just give your stomach and aesophagus some rest for a couple of days, and the best thing for that is to stay on liquid+mushies, don't eat solid food for 48hrs. And most of all, don't drink wine when you have a PB episode or throw up, or slime - the wine (or any other alcohol beverage) will only irritate your stomach even more. niki

Hey SuperDaddy... Our son sees me and gets my full support (physical, emotional, mental) every day all day. I have been a stay at home mom for years. Our son is disabled and I walked out of a full time job with great pay and benefits to support all of our sons needs. The financial end fell on my husband. Our son has a ton of family (we live with my mom now) and he has a great group of friends at school. As far as councel with Pastors and churches....we dont belong to a church and I dont see us joining one any time soon. Just not our thing. Dont get me wrong, we have our religion, but its practised at home. I know he is fighting addiction just like us with the band...but unlike us, he doesn't need alcohol to survive....we need food to live~ Did you ever try giving a recovering alcoholic just a sip of vodka? Can get pretty ugly~ I think what I am going to do for now is make it perfectly clear that I need to trust him again. The night that all this crap came down, I totally lost trust in him....that says alot considering we were together for 15 years~ I think I am going to allow our son to go during the day and then just have my husband bring him home at night.....that too will enforce the continuity of Anthonys "new home"..I am going to call my husband now to try and talk to him about these issues and see where this gets us. Communication was never our strong points. Obviously~ Im sorry if my tone seems a little off, I surely dont mean it to be.....Im not trying to be mean or sarcastic.....just thoughts that are coming out...I asked for input and I truely truely appreciate it~~~~ Thanks again for listening~ Oh, forgot to mention...My primary support in all this is my father. My father does have the ablity to see both sides of the issue. I am a Daddys girl and he doesn't want to see anything bad happen to me or to his Grandson....but he does tell it to me straight~ I have a very special relationship with my father and he doesn't hesitate to tell me Oh no girl Your wrong when I am wrong....Dads are very special and I know what its like to be without one. My father spent alot of time away from the family when I was growing up...like in other states...not at work....my parents were seperated more than they were married...so I do not want our son to have to experience the same feelings I did......

Make sure you eat breakfast in the morning which includes some sort of protein -- Greek yogurt, weight smart oatmeal, scrambled eggs... If you have a smart phone try using My Fittness Pal to track your progress. and keep you honest. Cut out all soda and alcohol ... its evil!

There is seems to be a lot of opinions out there. My doctor said: No NSAIDS (ever, period, no discussion) No Birth Control Pills For the first 3 months all pills have to be crushed or you can't take them. He said to talk to pharmacy about what can be crushed and what can't be. If I need antibiotics a suspension needs to be taken. I should ask if there is a liquid version of all medications for life. Liquid is always preferable to pill form. Capsules that can be opened are next best. I should look for alcohol free syrups. I should avoid alcohol. Under no circumstances should I drink on a daily basis (I don't even drink so I don't care about it) I think my doctor is Dr. Strict. :ohmy:

Nutrition and Dietetic Department Diet before your Obesity Surgery In preparation for your surgery it is important that you follow a special diet for 10 days prior to your operation. The diet must be low in fat, sugar and carbohydrate and is very restricted. The purpose of the diet is to reduce the size of your liver and will make your operation easier. Daily allowance 2-3 pints of semi skimmed milk 2 diet yoghurts – natural or fruit flavoured 3- 4 portions of fruit (you are allowed all varieties but try to include a banana, orange or grapes each day) Sugar free Jelly (optional) Low calorie vegetable soup is also allowed in moderation. Drinks Water, tea, coffee, and low calorie drinks or squashes are allowed freely. Sweeteners are allowed 1 small glass of fruit juice (orange, pineapple or tomato) No other foods should be eaten Alcohol is not allowed

I would recommend to call your doctor. also the alcohol could have irritated the stoma. I didnt have a drink until 3 or 4 months out. kathy

From the fast diet website: Well today is my first day and it’s a fast day! I already do 4:3 most weeks (Mon-Wed-Fri) so will be doing that for the whole 6 weeks. Normally if plans make 4:3 difficult then I just do 5:2 but for the 6 weeks I will sub with a weekend or do back to back in the week. I usually save all my calories for even meal and plan to continue this. (I think I might also do a sep personal diary thread). Here is a short summary of what I have gleaned so far……. Mimi describes the FBD as a “short term, souped up strategy for summer” It’s approach is three pronged, based on way to: - tighten up on fast days - toughen up on non fast days - tune in on any day One of the ways suggested to tighten up on fast days is to try 4:3 but it is not the only suggestion. There is also suggestion to do 2-2 (based on Brad Pilon’s book Eat Stop Eat) which essentially means after a normal lunch on day 1 eat sparingly (or nothing at all) until a late lunch the following day . Extending the fasting window so rather than have say Breakfast at 7am and supper at 7pm missing breakfast or fasting from supper to supper. And being fastidious about your calorie quota. On non fast days it is about holding back on indulgences and “superfluous snacks” and treats, cutting alcohol (entirely or reducing), eating less refined foods and cooking at home. Suggestions include following a more Mediterranean diet or even Japanese with more emphasis on healthy cooking (grilling, steaming, raw). Aiming to have meals based more around vegetables and reducing meat intake, being careful about portion sizes etc. There are lots of other great tips – some of which I have already done over the years like eating more mindfully and not having dinner on autopilot. Then there is emphasis on quality of exercise and the suggestion to introduce 3 High Intensity Training (HIT) to your weekly exercise schedule. They also state it should be 3 max and give lots of suggestions on how to do this. Plus 2 strength training sessions incorporating push ups, lunges etc. on non cardio/HIT days. I suppose if you have Fast Exercise by Michael Moseley you could get the info there. http://thefastdiet.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/FB-PLANNER.pdf Book available in US paperback on amazon. Not on kindle yet.

Just for insurance... Okay, back to the topic at hand. My next guess is alcohol poisoning. Have you been drinking?

Sorry to hear you experience this but then again it was your choice to drink it or not. Next time just get water and it's way to early to drink alcohol. Hopefully you are not feeling sick anymore.

PCOS Health Review Hi, Two articles today: new research on berberine, and importance of vigorous exercise. 1) More Good News about Berberine There's a never-ending flow favorable research about berberine extract. For example, just this week a paper was released that said: "Our study found that administration of berberine alone may improve the menstrual pattern and ovulation rate" in women with PCOS who were not ovulating. They also reported: "Berberine can also decrease sex hormone binding globulin, insulin resistance, total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein ["bad"] cholesterol in normal weight polycystic ovary syndrome women." That's quite a mouthful but essentially they are saying that berberine extract can help you to reduce some of the factors that are contributing to your PCOS. This was a study of 98 Chinese women with PCOS who were not ovulating and who took berberine extract for 4 months. You can see below that their ovulation rates improved over time. Berberine and ovulation Other studies have shown that berberine extract can reduce obesity, improve insulin function, protect the liver and kidneys, and help to prevent diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and possibly Alzheimer's. It also has an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect. Berberine has also been shown to relieve non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is a problem for up to one-half of PCOS women. It appears that when you take berberine, a lot of it ends up in the liver, where it helps to clear out fat and help the liver to normalize itself. Once again, it appears that a berberine extract supplement may be helpful to you. Get automatic 10% off at checkout + free shipping for recommended berberine extract and all other supplements if your order is over $85 (expires midnight Tuesday). 2) How Vigorously Did You Exercise Today? So what's best…walking, bicycling, weight training or "high-intensity interval training"? Well, it's all good! Anything you can do to keep moving will reduce insulin resistance in your muscles, help you control weight, and cause you to feel better about yourself. However, emerging research is showing that the intensity of your exercise is a crucial factor. The University of California at San Francisco recently studied 326 women with PCOS. They compared women who exercised vigorously, exercised moderately, or were sedentary. The women who exercised had better metabolic and hormone control over their bodies. But those who exercised vigorously had the best metabolic control of all, and their weight was less that the other groups. The researchers said: "every hour of vigorous exercise reduced a patient's odds of metabolic syndrome by 22%". That's a huge drop! (Note: metabolic syndrome and polycystic ovary syndrome have many overlapping characteristics). The next time you go to exercise, put some oomph into it. If walking is all you can do, step up the pace. If you go to the gym, review what you're doing and see if there is some way you can increase the vigor of your exercise without hurting yourself. And above all, have fun! There's no doubt that exercise is an essential and central component of PCOS control. Best of health! Bill Slater, Editor PCOS Health Review co-author of "The Natural Diet Solution for PCOS and Infertility" "Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment." -- Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama PCOS Health Review is a newsletter providing natural health information for women with PCOS or ovarian cysts. PCOS Nutritional Supplements Store: www.ovarian-cysts-pcos.com/store You can get in touch with us here: newsletter@ovarian-cysts-pcos.com Sources: Li L et al. A Single Arm Pilot Study of Effects of Berberine on the Menstrual Pattern, Ovulation Rate, Hormonal and Metabolic Profiles in Anovulatory Chinese Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. PLoS One. 2015 Dec 8;10(12):e0144072. Yan HM et al. Efficacy of Berberine in Patients with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. PLoS One. 2015 Aug 7;10(8):e0134172. Greenwood EA et al. Vigorous exercise is associated with superior metabolic profiles in polycystic ovary syndrome independent of total exercise expenditure. Fertil Steril. 2015 Nov 6. pii: S0015-0282(15)02031-2. Unsubscribe from this newsletter or update your email 110 NW 51st St. Seattle, Washington 98107 United States

Today is my birthday and I'm 4wks post op and wanna know how soon did any sleeves start drinking?? But remember I'm really don't drink like that only on occasions.. Help pls

Also, be careful with alcohol after surgery. Since you no longer have food as an escape lots of Bariatric patients end up turning to alcohol and end up in AA... I've seen it happen to myself as we'll as 2 of my friends who had the surgery. Since you can't eat and drink at the same time you end up drinking on an empty stomach and we all know how fast alcohol hits on an empty stomach.

My dh can eat a ton and stay thin and athletic while I can eat a small amount and get heavy. Metabolism is so vastly different in some people. I have a lot of heavy and thin friends and I don't really think of them in terms of weight so much as that is just who they are . . . kind of like some people have big noses and some have small noses. I do find myself having a bias when people blatantly disregard reason and do self destructive things. Whether it is overindulging in alcohol, food, drugs on a regular basis I seem to get upset. I am not talking about an occasional issue but a sustained issue over extended periods.

Our demons are no different than the crack addict or the alcoholic. How many alcoholics have quit for years only to fall off the wagon in one fleeting moment. I spend way too much time here, too. But without LBT I have no other avenue for expressing myself. It's so safe here, because I could talk (write) for hours if necessary, and it doesn't matter if anyone reads it or not. Just getting it all out takes it off my shoulders. I've had a heck of a time so far after losing two ports, so maybe I'd still be on my honeymoon if I had regular fills and constant restriction. For now I'm going to keep writing and posting till I figure out my next move. I shudder at the thought of yet another surgery, but I need a fill, which means I need a port. I like to ramble, blah blah blah yada yada yada! The whole "honeymoon phase" isn't something I came up with. My surgeon explained it to me and it clicked immediately. This isn't something specific to me, it's something most, if not all of us, will have to face eventually, so thank God for LBT. Peace n' love - it's bed time. Wink.

Ofcourse it is not going to help! It's like saying, "here child your black you need to bleach your skin to be pretty" or "hey there sinora being mexican is worse than being american, just hate yourself for having an accent" I find all of this untasteful and alarming. I have 2 daughter's and by god if they put those things on us like cattle, those label's i'm going to washington with my fat ass and telling mr. big man that if he could be an alcoholic and addicted to cocaine and be our leader then why cant someone whom has issues be themselves. hell we KNOW what we are. we are not stupid and it is not like we are not trying!:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

I gave up anything carbonated, alcohol, sweetened begs and any sweetener that wasn’t natural years ago. Coffee was my last real THING! 😜 :). Argh!

I felt such a sense of relief after reading people's posts for this thread. I have experienced all of these emotions when I see obese people... empathy, sympathy, anger, disgust, relief, shame, etc. When I see someone who is morbidly obese, I want to just give them a hug and hand them one of my surgeon's business cards and tell the person how the LB has changed my life (empathy/sympathy). I also have felt anger/disgust when I have been out to eat and I see a morbidly obese person pound down a gigantic appetizer, an equally huge meal, and then order a monsterous dessert. I want to lecture them about how they are using food to kill themselves and that pigging out will not solve their problems. I then feel ashamed of myself for my self-righteous attitude towards someone's choice of lifestyle. I am more than willing to share my experience with anyone who has questions about the LB. I just need to remember that just like a drug or alcohol addiction, a person doesn't want help until he or she is ready to accept it.