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OK, I'm back and able to type a bit more. I decided just to post here instead of a PM as others may benefit from my experience. I first came to AA just over 14 years ago after hitting one of my bottoms. I don't call it rock bottom as I know I have the capacity to go lower if I were to relapse. That has been true for me in the past. Addiction is a cunning, baffling, powerful foe as I knew deep down I was doing things I did not want to do, but felt powerless to stop the cycle. I repeated the same behavior time and again expecting different results, only to have things turn out the same. I would abuse substances because I didn't want to feel or confront the emotions I was dealing with. I treated substances as a reward when times were good and as a crutch when times were bad. The bottom line, for me, is that these substances weren't my problem. I was. They were my solution to help me cover up the reality of my issues and they worked quite effectively for a long time. Until they didn't. And that is when I was given the gift of desperation. I could no longer go on the way I was. I had to make a change or life as I knew it would lose all meaning. I was at a turning point. I had reached my bottom. Some of you may be asking, "What substances is he referring to? Alcohol? Illicit drugs? food?" The answer is, "Yes", to all three. I have found that I abused food in no different way than I abused alcohol. Through the help of AA, the need to use alcohol was lifted, but then I was able to replace that addiction with food. So, I very much believe it is quite plausible to begin abusing alcohol in new ways if you are no longer able to abuse food the way you used to. And if you were abusing it prior to VSG, then even more so. Trust me, there is not a single person who walks into their first AA meeting on the best day of their life. Nobody wants to make that first appearance and nobody wants to admit they are an alcoholic. To be honest with you, I don't want anybody admitting they are an alcoholic if they truly aren't. I wouldn't wish alcoholism on my worst enemy. But if you believe you may have an issue with some addictive behavior issues, then know that the rooms of AA have provided simple solutions to millions of people who have been able to lead much happier lives free from their addictions. I was just telling somebody yesterday that if you would have asked me to script out what I wanted to be like 5 years after getting sober, I wouldn't have been able to script it any better than how it turned out. Yes, I still have issues. Sure, I am only two and half years post VSG. But I know that this and many other options in my life wouldn't have been even possible had I not stayed sober. Going to an AA meeting does not make you an alcoholic. You are not going to be thrown into a back room and have AA shaved into your hair. Know that every person in AA, at one time, felt very similar to how you are feeling right now, and they are there waiting with their hand out. All it takes is willingness to make a change.

..... exercise? Walk immediately, restricted to no lifting over 25 pounds for six weeks. ....drink alcohol? Six months out. .... smoke cigarettes? ( I am sure the doctor would tell you not to start again.) Pretty much "if you've gone this long without it, might as well not do it any more" though I quit years before surgery when I got tired of chronic bronchitis. .... smoke marijuana? Given the obvious side effect to this one I'd figure it would be one of the worst things I could do with a sleeve. Nothing like being rabid hungry and eating too much AND of the wrong things to undo the entire point of VSG in the first place. ... anything else? Well I ended up disregarding some of the "get back to normal eating" schedule and started eating certain things (Protein heavy like poultry/fish) way early.

I haven't smoked pot since I was 18 and that was 10yrs ago. I don't know how my doc feels about it. We live in Colorado where weed will be legal in June or July of next year. I plan to never smoke pot again but I'm past that age where stuff like that appeals to me and I have 3 small kids. As far as exercise my doc wanted us to walk ASAP, nothing strenuous until 6-8 weeks post op. I plan to lift weights this week for the first time since surgery and I'm 7 weeks post op. Caffeine I'm supposed to avoid it until 3 months I think and that's the same with alcohol. I haven't drank caffeine or alcohol and don't plan to until I reach goal. I don't want it to slow down my weight loss.

I can only tell you from my own personal experience. The band has been working very well for me and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I wish I would have done it sooner. I am very happy with my weightloss results so far. The band does prevent me from overeating. I do not count calories, but I also do not live on candy bars, icecream, Cookies or alcohol. To tell you the truth, I put very little effort in. It has not been a hardship and does not control every minute of my life. The only negative for me has been thinning hair. I think I am more at risk for this than some others may be because my hair is naturally baby fine, thin and straight. At almost my 7 month mark, I think the thinning is slowing down. Good luck to you with the surgery, the weightloss, and a better future! :biggrin:

Thanks everyone. I reallyfeel I could benefit by eating raisen bran for the constipation issue, but I am a carbaholic. Just like an alcoholic avoids the drink, I don't know where to quit when I start with carbs. I have to wonder if a small amount of raisen bran would cause cravings though. I guess I just need to try and see. It's going to eat up all my carb allowance for breakfast.

I agree with Riley. If you are close to surgery than I wouln't risk it. When on a pre-op diet for 2 or so weeks, it is meant to shrink the liver. That is why you either go on liquids or no carbs(in my case). Alcohol is made up of a LOT of carbs.

Surgeon said alcohol was OK 48 hours post-op? Seriously?!!!!! That's crazy to me.

I have been thinking a lot lately about all the habits in my life that in a way aided my food addiction and really bad eating habits. Now obviously the ultimate activity was eating for the joy of eating but now that I think about it, there are a lot of activities that I participate in that were in a way always affecting my eating habits. So I decided to make this post in order to list those activities and remember. In a way this is just a personal way to gauge what activities are bad for my new lifestyle as well as to keep in mind that I did pair these activities with food so that in the future when I do participate in them, I have that mental note. Can anyone else think of any activities that were partnered with excessive eating and in general a sedentary lifestyle? For me the primary ones were: 1. Video games. There were days were I would sit for HOURS and play online video games on my computer chair. In the mean time I would order large amounts of take out twice. Once for lunch, once for dinner. Sometimes I would also snack in between. Pair this with sitting in a chair all day, I started packing on pounds. 2. Same routine as video games but with TV and movies. I cannot watch TV or a movie without eating something. Popcorn, dinner, Snacks, beer, large coke. All kinds of unhealthy stuff. Now I am trying to re-train myself to not watch TV while I eat. 3. Pub crawling, going out excessively in the evenings with friends. Now this is an activity that almost everyone partakes in to some extent. Going out is just a natural social process but it was what I associated going out with which was damaging. VERY heavy drinking, decadent dinners, midnight mcdonald and snack runs. Typical college lifestyle only supercharged and would happen at least 3 times a week and included LOTS of eating. 4. I know I kind of mentioned this in my other post but drinking beer/alcohol EXTREMELY often. I lived in Montreal for a while, big drinking city, big college city. People in Montreal LOVE to drink. 2 beers with lunch, 5-7 happy hours, long nights of binge drinking. Buying packs upon packs of beer any and every time you went to a friend's house. It was very rare that there would be an occasion without drinks. As of now, after my weight loss surgery, this is something that I will hugely reform. I will not partake in 95 percent of the drinking that I used to anymore. Anyone have any they would like to share?

I can relate to all of the above. Drinking a bit too often, occasionally drinking too much and eating way to much and too often. The more I would eat, the hungrier I would get. Obviously and especially carbs which I was totally addicted to. Am and always will be a carb addict, but luckily at this point I cannot consume them in an adequate quantity to fuel that addiction. I also recently saw "End of the Tour", a movie about the great author David Foster Wallace. It was fabulous. It briefly touched on his alcoholism and potential drug addiction (tho in the movie his character claims that he was not on drugs). It also very briefly touched on what he called a tv addiction. He did not have a tv in his house, he said that he had to give that up. Then when they were on a road trip for a book signing, he overslept one morning because he had stayed up late watching tv the night before. When they went over to a friend's house, all the friends were falling asleep on the sofa but he was wide awake and his eyes glued to or fixated on the tv. I find myself also procrastinating on things I need to be doing so that I can watch tv or just finish this one episode that turns into another and another. Then its like 4 or 5pm on a Sunday afternoon and I still have to do my grocery shopping, house cleaning, laundry etc which I should have been working on all weekend. This bad habit got really bad when I was broke and unemployed on and off during 2008-2009. I could stay up till 2am (or 3, 4 or 5) watching endless movies, and since I didn't have to go to work the next day. But now I do. But I still like to lose myself and veg out in front of the tube. Don't know if I'd ever have the balls to give it up like David Foster Wallace. But sometimes I wonder if I did, how many other books I would read or walks would I take? As far as socializing, eating out, vacations etc...I can now enjoy all these things and the company without being a member of the clean plate club. And after eating less than half my meal everywhere now what do I notice? That the thin people I'm eating with don't even notice because they only ate about half of their food too. And they did not plow through a whole basket of bread like I used to. No wonder they are skinny. I used to eat like it was a contest that I had to win. But now, for the time being, and hopefully forever, I have broken free from the grip my addiction once held. While I know that I am still an addict, I'm not in an "active" addiction right now. And I am so grateful to my sleeve for giving me that freedom and giving me my life back:-)

There are people who become addicted to alcohol after the first sip. I think that was me with food. I just loved it. I have eight brothers and sisters, and even though we all played sports and were extremely active, I was the only fat one because I could never, ever get enough. It was all I wanted, and I spent all my money on it from babysitting cash at 13 to a good portion of my salary in my thirties. I can't believe how much extra money I have now simply because I'm not heading to a local restaurant, buying 3-4 meals and eating it in the car. Now, when I go to the grocery store, I walk up and down to the aisles and still look longingly over all the delicious things I can't eat. I flip them over, look at the nutritional info, and sometimes I put them in my cart and then dump them right before the checkout line. I really miss food. Most of it makes me ill so I couldn't eat it if I wanted to, but that doesn't change how badly I still want it. I still throw away most of what I buy because I can't eat it, but it makes me feel secure to have it around for awhile. My vice was binging though. I usually only ate once or twice a day, but I could eat enough for 3-4 people in that time. And soda? Oh boy, I lived on mountain dew for 20 years.

alcohol wipes.

Whether to tell is a personal choice. Some people tell anyone who will listen, others may tell 1 or 2 confidants. In my case I kept quiet initially because I wasn't for sure if I was going to have the surgery. I just wanted to go through the process so that it would be on the table. WLS can be very controversial to some and I just didn't want to feel the need to justify my reasons. I made an informed choice. I was at peace with that choice. I chose to tell my husband, my 2 children and my mother initially because they are my primary support system and if something happened to me they deserved to be informed. Once I closer to my date-- I begin strategically telling very close friends (3) and family. They were very happy for me and extremely supportive of my decisions. They were very instrumental in my recovery and have provided ongoing encouragement and support post op. I don't regret telling not a 1 of them. I did not tell associates, distant family, neighbors, co workers and I take all of their compliments with a simple thank you and a smile. I don't find it necessary to explain myself to anyone. I too worried about what I would say but I noticed-- no one really cares what I'm eating. In family settings i'll fix a plate with items to nibble on just to look normal but no one says hey you hardly ate anything??? It's about being in the moment and enjoying that family time. Even if that means telling a funny story, or initiating Karaoke or an interactive game. No one will pay attention to your eating habits! I think I was more worried about it than anyone else. The only time I was called out was when my husband and I were hanging out with parents from my sons baseball team and I wasn't drinking alcohol-- it felt a little awkward to feel that way just for not drinking. Can u say peer pressure? Honestly we 'd hung out with the coach and his wife in the past and they've always known me to drink at least socially. But it's over and I didn't have to tell them a thing and since my son quit the team the next time I see them, I'll be skinny. LOL!

Hi All! Its been a while since I posted anything or been active. I found out in November that I was pregnant. I was 8 months out of surgery when I got pregnant. My fiance and I had just gotten engaged a few months before and were planning our wedding. So it was definitely a surprise! I was really nervous about proceeding with the pregnancy. I just knew I would be ready in just one more year (I've been saying that for the last 5 years!) BUT I was pregnant now, 33, in a great relationship, with a stable income, healthier then Ive been in a while and all out of excuses not to start my family. So my journey began... I am currently 23 weeks pregnant! This is my first pregnancy so I have nothing to compare it with but this has been my experience in case any of you find yourself in my situation. Its hard to find doctors who understand how VSG affects my pregnancy. They understand that I need to be monitored more but don't really get the nuances. One example; I was given this HUGE jug to collect my urine over 24 hours. When I returned it, I was told that they need AT LEAST 4X more urine than I had collected. They were convinced I didn't collect all my urine. I told them that was everything I had to give! They told me to drink more water. Now this community knows how hard that task is. I still can not eat and drink at the same time. I also cant just drink a gallon of water in one go. It feels like a herculean task. I have tried 3 times and have still not filled this jug! I've learned that drinking tea increases my urine output so I have hope for my next attempt. I was really sick throughout my first and second trimester. I already had bad acid reflux before and after surgery and was taking omeprazole to relieve it. Turns out you can't take anything stronger than Tums while pregnant. So on top of the normal nausea, I felt the need to throw up to relieve my indigestion and heartburn. I started really hating food when everyone else kept trying to feed me more! I've been feeling better now though. I was allowed to take pepcid and it actually helps. Now, I have the desire to eat more but still cant eat more than a few bites of anything in one sitting. My food also takes forever to digest so I have to be really picky about what I eat. Fruits are my best friend! I kept my surgery a secret. My fiance and sister are the only ones I told about my VSG. So no one really gets why Im having a hard time eating more. They also keep wanting to see my belly but Im not sure how to explain my incisions. It feels too late to say anything now... so its awkward and more isolating than it could have been. But my family can be SUPER judgy so I think they would just find a way to make me feel bad about it and I don't need the added stress. I get to do more sonograms than your average mom to be. Because of my VSG and previous hypertension, I'm monitored more and have more doctor visits. I really don't mind! I love getting to see whats going on in there! So far so good... mostly. I keep expecting the docs to say my baby isn't growing or Im malnourished but that doesn't seem to be the case. Everything is progressing normally and baby looks good. They did mention that one of babys kidneys is not eliminating waste as it should. The other kidney is fine but they want to keep an eye on it. Of course we are worried but its actually pretty common and generally resolves itself. If it doesn't, there is a small procedure to fix it after birth (if necessary) so we are trying not to sweat it. I got Covid. I'm a teacher and as soon as the mask mandate was removed, I got COVID. Never mind that Ive been vaccinated, boosted and was still wearing my mask! Im actually recovering now. (SIDE NOTE: We seem to be having a second surge at my school. I wonder if any other teachers (or parents) have noticed that?) I was EXTREMELY sick the first week. I was lightheaded, coughing, full of mucus, achy and just couldn't get out of bed. I also couldn't take any medicines because of the pregnancy. My mom kept sending me home remedies but when I looked them up, there was always a warning for pregnant people. I just had to ride it out. Baby seems ok but I'll know more at my appointment next week. As far as my VSG goals... I was 195-200 lbs when I found out I was pregnant (SW:267) and had been stalled there for almost 2 months. I was getting a bit discouraged because my whole weight loss process had been so slow and felt harder for me than it seemed like it was for some people here. I also had a friend who had her VSG after me and had lost almost twice as much weight as I had so I knew it wasn't in my head. I started drinking again and sneaking in more cheat snacks. When I found out I was pregnant, I cut out all alcohol and was really strict about making sure the little food I ate was good for baby. I dropped 20-25 more pounds. Im currently 175 lbs. I havent really gained any weight. Part of me is happy about that and still trying to get to my goal of 155 while pregnant. But I know I have to put on weight for baby. It's really a mind f**k. Doctors say the baby is growing normally so there isn't much to worry about... yet. Technically I'm still overweight and they don't recommend as much weight gain for overweight moms. Im entering my third trimester now and am supposed to put on 1-2 lbs a week. We'll see how that goes. Im still trending downwards... If you made it to the end, thanks for reading through this entire post. I hope it helps. I hope to update you with only good news in the weeks to come! Last note, I'm having a girl! So exciting!!! My VSG has definitely complicated things but I think we made the right decision and I am really excited about entering this next chapter of my life healthier than I have been in years!

Rocky80, you should stop drinking alcohol for at least 2 weeks before surgery. Leading up to surgery day you need to be shrinking your liver, alcohol doesn't help with that.

I was told no nicotine, including vaping and the patch etc and they tested for it preop. They didn't test me for alcohol. I didn't even know there was a test for it.

So do they test you for alcohol? Or just nicotine Sent from my N9560 using BariatricPal mobile app

My surgeon's instructions were 6 months after the surgery for caffeine and alcohol intake. I also had to sign a disclosure advising of the negative effects of alcohol and consequences after vertical sleeve surgery. As much as I love a good cocktail, I'll wait. Not interesting in doing anything that could cause me harm.

I was told 1 year .. no alcohol... I hope it isn't so!

Thanks everyone. It's a weird thing. Intellectually I feel no shame for WLS. It was an excellent decision and I should have done it a long time ago. I would never judge anyone else for doing it. Yet, part of me does feel embarrassed that I couldn't do it without intervention. Food is an addiction for me and I don't want to discuss something that private with others. Would an alcoholic or drug addict be expected to casually discuss their issues with others?

No pain, no vomiting, no dumping, have eaten every type of food. Sleevers don't normally have trouble with red meat, so you shouldn't need to avoid. Have restriction but can eat whole banana (wish I couldn't)... Less of v protein dense foods. Drink alcohol occasionally. I avoid fizzy things but know sleevers who don't. Basically I eat very normally but small portions, and choose to avoid carbs 99% of the time.

I met with nut and psych Thursday (still pre op) and the topic of alcohol was discussed both places. Nut said after 1year, red wine in small amounts occasionally was okay. I told her I wasn't much of a drinker now, just an occasional glass of wine, so that was great and totally doable. Psych asked again how I felt about it and I repeated my unconcern for it. She proceeded to say not only is it high calorie, and can affect weight loss, but due to the size of our new stomach 4 oz. will put us over the legal limit, plus the starling statistic that followed. 30% of WLS PATIENTS BECOME ALCOHOLICS. I was stunned. It becomes the new coping mechanism, instead of our beloved food. Those who never drank before are at risk, and those that did, even more so. So please be careful!

And I really don't understand why there are so many different boundaries with alcohol ! Some surgeons say 3 weeks , 1 month , 3 months , 1 year , never !!! Can't they all get on the same page !!! Or somewhere close within range of each other ... Jus sayin

Ok I know I haven't been very active since just after my surgery but I felt like I had to start helping those going into some thing that can change your future so much. Now let me start by saying that at 6 months out was enjoying my drinks on occasion and when I was at Disney got a little buzzed on occasion, so I come at this probably sounding a bit like a hypocrite so I apologize. lets start by looking at the health issues, you are only a month out of your surgery, you should still be soft foods and yes alcohol is a liquid but it is highly corrosive to the stomach and your stomach is still healing. It can take 8-10 weeks before your stomach is "healed" and more than 6 months before it begins to scar and be considered healed. So there is a health issue to drinking. Put aside the addiction aspect it can cause many issues. I also want to address the fact that you say that you couldn't get past a milestone without drinking, I assume that this is a way that you have celebrated large milestones for most of your life, but one thing you have to keep in mind is that after a procedure like this it is a lifestyle change. You can't have a procedure like this and not change your life going forward. There needs to be a mindset change in the way you think about everything you are about to embark. I was a big foodie before my surgery and used to "enjoy" food well beyond a reasonable limit. But when i went to Disney I had to change the way I looked at food, it was a temptation to over eat and go to far but I know that I will not succeed if I don't make major changes. For those that find people on here rude for trying to help keep in mind that people come on this forum to get help and insight into life before, during and after the surgery, these replies are just trying to help those that might read these posts. While drinking is OK there are cautions that need to be taken, and while it may be OK for some it could be dangerous for others. I am sorry for my rant but it felt like it needed to be said.

It might be the erythritol or sugar alcohol in them that has that effect on some. I don't have any of those issues with Quest Bars.. I like them and use them for extra Protein on days I am in a hurry.

Doctors seem to be all over the map on tea, coffee, and alcohol (not to mention other foods). You can find studies that say that caffeine is a diuretic, that it isn't a diuretic, that it makes you eat more or less, that it helps alertness, that it does nothing... I have to wonder if their own preferences control just what studies each doctor decides to believe and transmit as orders to patients. Well, that's no true exactly...I don't really wonder. Since this is a diet for life I am choosing to drink my tea and coffee much the same way I always have...2 cups of hot tea in the morning and a latte here and there through the week. Gallons of unsweetened tea during the day. An occaisional cocktail...calories permitting. My doctor says "whatever works".