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I still occasionally have dreams in which I'm smoking - and I quit smoking 27 years ago! I think addictions can be like that - whether food, cigarettes, alcohol, etc - they can remain part of your self-identity even years after you quit (or in the case of food, after you tackle your bad eating habits).

I’m 3.5 years out. Started at 235 lbs. I’m a 5’2” 50 yr old female. I stayed “on plan” (note: MY plan NOT my NUT’s) which was low cal (<800 cals), ultra-low carb (< 20g Net Carbs) throughout weight-loss phase. I got to goal (127 lbs) around 7 months post-op and have stayed below goal ever since...almost 3 years. This morning i clocked in at 118.7 lbs I no longer eat to any “plan” other than to try to stay under 2000 cals a day. I am about 90% successful sticking to this. I eat basically anything just not at pre-op levels…think like 1 to 1.5 cups at a time. And this includes desserts, low-nutritional snacks, fried foods, alcohol and lotsa butter, lol. I also eat my fair share of salads, so it’s all good. Bread, rice, pasta and potatoes are not regular foods for me, but only because these things sit heavily in my stomach and gets me super full super fast. Plus, I just don’t really crave them all that much. you will find out what foods will work within your lifestyle as you progress. Good Luck! ❤️ P.S. I ate pork and red meat (and all things carnivore) now, and even during weight loss phase…they never went off the table for me.

Taking my own advice - Hold myself accountable. Surgery 10/2020, HW somewhere in the 280's. Low weight 165 ... Current weight 175.... Why? Here's why... Last day tracked January 19th Last regular/daily tracking November 2021 Last day registered weighing - January (I still do weigh almost daily though) Eating/drinking (including alcohol) whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted - "Justified" it by telling myself "It's ok, I can't eat that much of whatever... and I'm drinking low calorie alcohol. All of this equals close to 10lb overall gain in a fairly short period of time. Failing to address it now will simply put me back where I started. If you've been at all successful in this journey, you know what works and what doesn't - Don't lie to yourself and pretend everything is fine and end up with a 20lb gain - Mentally 5 was my threshold and we see how that worked out. For me at least, I don't want to feel ashamed that I worked so hard only to fail in the long run. Today, back on track, I have no doubt that I will fall off the wagon again, but hey... it's a marathon, not a sprint. I WILL track food and drink - even if it's not something on my plan. I WON'T lie to myself. I'll set realistic/attainable goals. I WON'T do anything drastic (for me) like liquids only for x number of days - It isn't sustainable and results with me doing stupid things.

Tomorrow is my three-year anniversary. I stayed at my goal weight pretty easily for the first 18 months but gained about 20 pounds over the past year. I'm eating the same things as I did during the first year, but more of them. My diet is still high protein, low carb, low fat, and no sugar (or alcohol). I'm satisfied with my current weight, but now I really need to be careful to make sure I don't creep up. It's definitely harder than it was during the first 18 months or so, but I'll never go back to my old way of eating (nor anywhere near my previous weight).

could be the gum - either air or the artificial sweetener they use. otherwise, some people develop intolerance to certain foods after surgery. Some become lactose intolerant - and some can't handle some of the artificial sweeteners (esp sugar alcohols - the ones whose names end in -itol. Like xylitol or maltitol or sorbitol. Those can cause G/I distress in some people.

I feel you. I have read that a few week stall was normal. Most everyone seems to have them. I too went into a LONG stall at about 5 months out from surgery. Had surgery in May and the last time I really lost any good amount of weight was Oct. I stalled, then spoke to my nutritionist in Dec, made some adjustments then lost like 3.7 in January but haven't lost again since! That's like only a 3.7 lb loss in about 5 months!!!! CRAZY!! You MAY be able to explain your stall away because you have been indulging in foods more off plan (chips, diet soda, etc), but I haven't even been doing that! I have not had any other drink but for water since last March! But for the occasional alcoholic drink (like once a month). So yeah, your guess is as good as mine. You can read more about my issues (if you want) in my thread that I have going. Explains more about what has been happening, my exercise routine, etc. Hopefully you will get things moving again soon. Maybe cut out those foods and see if that helps? I also suggest speaking to your nutritionist. They may be able to help you get yourself back on track. Are you tracking your food?

I’m a little over 3 years post op losing 96 pounds and have gained 20 back with alcohol being the main reason. Also, it’s become a habit as I have been drinking daily. I tend to eat more and the wrong foods when drinking. Today is the second day I haven’t had a drink and I’m going to try to only drink on Friday and Saturday and switch from wine to sugar free vodka. I was a big drinker before surgery and an even bigger one after. I hope you find what works for you to lose the weight, best of luck!

When I've been under huge stress, the urge is really intense -- it's a quest for that initial period of calm and peace that comes with a few sips. But our brains are terribly unhelpful at reminding us of what comes afterwards -- the decline of the calm and peace (which may cause us to keep drinking to regain them), followed by even more depression. And let's say we do keep drinking to try to keep the horrible feelings away... then there's the unbearable hangover that (in my case) will last for nearly 12 hours. People without alcoholic tendencies try to be helpful and say things like, "take a walk in the sunshine" or "listen to feel-good music" but they don't understand that those activities, while very helpful, don't bring the calm and peace that have quieted our disturbed minds. I think some of us just have different wiring. So what's the answer? First, I have to absolutely stay away from alcohol and fight the urges by reminding myself of their price. Second, I'm seeing if CDB will help me by allowing me to feel calmer and slowing my racing thoughts. Third, like you, I'm in therapy and my therapist constantly quizzes me about my feelings about alcohol and my current attempt to totally abstain. The toughest people I know who've given up alcohol say "ride it out" and they actually do push themselves through the bad feelings until their cravings pass. I hope to be one of those people eventually. But know that there are a lot of us who totally understand and feel your situation.

I'm 5 years out (2016) with GS and alcohol has been a sporadic transfer addiction since 2019 after my Dad passed away, then 2020 Covid...relationships...2021 basically LIFE to 2022. Ok, that's sugar coating... I saw it becoming a minor issue in late 2018, however, I was still working out and maintaining my weight loss. I made comments on another thread late last year about alcohol and transfer addictions after a bad night and it's now Feb 2022. I do ok..."for a while"...and then? Boom. Last Thursday I had a horrible regression into two bottles of wine, where ALL my feelings came out. They were Good, Bad and then UGLY. I'm not sure who that person was and I know that version of me can't live like that anymore. I got all my bloodwork done and know my health is stable....Got my roadmap there. This Thursday I'm starting some much-needed therapy for my mind and all these "feelings" (new or old) I didn't learn how to manage. It's time to be responsible and respect the mental with the physical...get my soul feeling balanced again. I still have my sleeve restriction and will be working on losing the 50 or so lbs I've gained over two years. I really appreciate posts like this and sharing your stories to inspire me...that I haven't failed and am not alone in some of the feels that were trapped in the "fat".

I just have water. Ask for a slice of lemon or lime so people don’t immediately think you’re just drinking water. In time you may be able to tolerate/be allowed to have some carbonation (sparkling water, soda water). You can stir it vigorously so some of the carbonation reduces & if you take it slowly a lot will abate as you sip. I went out for a ladies lunch last week & two of us just had water while the others all had wine or champagne. It’s certainly cheaper 😉. It can be a bit of a change of mind set initially if you’re used to drinking alcohol or carbonated drinks when you go out. Honestly, I sometimes had an alcoholic drink if I went out when I was past month 2 of the losing phase. I would have one glass & sip for literally hours & it was only about once a month.

I now eat salads vegetables I don't drink alcohol or fizzy drinks anymore cant stand the smell of alcohol don't eat much rice or pasta but can eat bread at a minimal I didn't have anything till I was 13 weeks out but feeling good that's the main thing

Wise words. Really look into this if you're having trouble with alcohol - if you're restricting yourself too much for a period of time, your subconscious will find ways to break 'free'. And alcohol can be just one such way. Ie. if you've told yourself you'll never have x, y or z food, then be curious if alcohol becomes a 'get out of jail free' card to have that food. Because what may end up happening is all those desires channel into the alcohol, and then you've got two, not one, problem. For most, the cure for being out of control is not more control, but finding a balance. To not see any foods as good or bad, but as food, period. To count calories, but allow oneself to go over some days and under others. Again, if you're perfectly happy within the restrictions we set for ourselves here, fine. I am most of the time. Yet I know it's so much better to have a few popsicles than it is to get myself drunk to make the popsicles happen anyway.

Alcohol ended up becoming a major obstacle to my loss. My social life involved regular beer drinking. After getting sleeved I knew I was not supposed to drink carbonated beverages, however my desire to hang out with my friends caused me to learn how to overcome that obstacle and drink beer. I think this is the major reason I never hit my weight loss goal and then gained some back. What worked for me recently was to use a time restricted feeding program along with a Keto based diet. I ate mostly Keto and only had two meals, lunch at Noon and dinner around 5-6pm. This came from, the insulin control diet programs recommended by Dr. Jason Fung. Given that my sleeve kept me from feeling really hungry it worked well and I dropped the 20 pounds I gained during the pandemic restrictions. Now I have major issues with hiatal hernia and GERD, so a revision to RNY is scheduled for tomorrow. I've decided since I have been given a second chance I am going to make the most of it. I have determined that alcohol no longer has a place in my life, and neither do snacks and slider foods.

I think alcohol lowered my inhibitions to eat too. I just responded to another post about alcohol and said post surgery I don’t like the taste of alcohol anymore and can’t seem to drink it fast enough to get a buzz anyways so it’s sorta like what’s the point? I am actually glad I no longer like it cause I know it’s a waste of my calorie budget and I think it makes me eat more.

Good point. I recently discovered myself that drinking alcohol seems to coincide with me eating more.

Is it the calories in alcohol or the fact that it lowers your inhibitions with eating other foods? If the former, switch to spirits with zero calorie mixers. If the latter, quit alcohol.

Somebody else on here today was talking about alcohol being an issue. Now that you know your primary trigger, you know what to work on. Have faith that your tool of bypass will still work for you if you get back to basics in terms of tracking your intake, watching drinking your calories, etc.

Wow 20 years ago you had bypass? That is amazing. I saw someone else on here mention alcohol is causing weight gain for them. Maybe you can switch to a very low carb, calorie beer?

It's been 20 years since my bypass. My surgery weight was 379. My lowest was 170. The most I weighed post opp was 243. I'm now 218 and I'm struggling to get under 200. Anyone else here has this problem. I know alcohol is one of the biggest set back

I began my WLS journey in 2015 with gastric sleeve surgery in September. My starting weight was 301, which I had managed to diet down to 285 by the time I was approved for surgery. Surgery weight was 277. Surgery was uneventful and I was back at my normal activities within a couple days. My goal weight was 185, but I only managed to lose down to 210. I believe this was because I made the mistake of continuing to drink alcohol after surgery (although less than before) and still ate too many snacks and slider type foods. Over the next several years my weight gradually increased until it settled in at about 230-235. Then the pandemic occurred and that added 20 pounds, so I was back to 255. This is when I learned what I felt was a good method to handle regain - I combined time restricted feeding with keto dieting... I only ate between Noon and 6pm, and strictly limited carbs. Doing this for a couple of months I was able to drop from 255 back to 235. I had issues with reflux before the surgery, and they continued after. They seemed to worsen as time passed. I learned not to eat at least 3 hours before bedtime, and still sometimes I'd end up sleeping in the recliner for several hours when the reflux was particularly bad. I also had developed a hiatal hernia (which a CT report said was small). Then in January of this year something changed. I started having issues where I could only eat a couple ounces of food without feeling severely overstuffed. This plus some bouts with chest pain prompted a couple of ER visits for cardiac workups. Finding no cardiac issues my doctors determined the pain was likely the hernia that had expanded. I also started experiencing symptoms that seem to be consistent with "silent reflux", such as throat, ear tube and sinus issues. I scheduled an EGD with my bariatric surgeon who found a 3cm hiatal hernia. He is going to repair it this coming Tuesday, and to prevent recurrence of the hernia as well as to resolve the GERD issues is doing a revision to RNY. I'm not happy about having to start over with the healing process, but am excited to finally lose the excess weight, correct the hernia and GERD, and get a chance to do things right the second time. So, here are some lessons learned along the way. If they can help someone else then this post is worth making: 1. Listen to your surgeon. If they recommend one procedure over another, there is a reason why. I probably should have done the RNY in the beginning but opted for the sleeve even though I had existing reflux issues. 2. Follow the dietary guidelines. They are there to assure the most successful weight loss. Unfortunately I 'taught myself' how to overcome the carbonation in beer and continued to drink it after recovery, which is a large part of the reason for lack of loss and regain. I wasn't addicted to either, but both were present in my social environment. I have now determined that alcohol and junk food are poison to my system and have resolved to be diligent in avoiding them. 3. If you do experience regain, get on it quickly. I found that time restricted feeding along with a keto eating plan worked wonders for me. I was essentially following the insulin control program established by Dr. Jason Fung. I quickly dropped close to 20 lbs using my sleeve along with this plan. 4. The sleeve, or bypass, is a tool that is given to you for life. You have a great window of opportunity the first year to lose weight and correct health problems. Make the most of it. Even though the tool is still there in later years, it becomes more difficult to lose weight after your system is fully healed and settled into normal life. It's possible, but harder. Make the most of the "one year honeymoon" window!

I am going with an alcohol withdrawl. I was craving alcohol but now I am not. Please dont drink because alcohol can ruin your body Sent from my octopus using BariatricPal mobile app

The stomach sounds are normal. Most sleevers don't dump; that's more common with bypass, and even then it's only about 30% of people. When something doesn't agree with me, I have diarrhea or vomiting. The diarrhea is often from sugar alcohols or too much coffee. The vomiting is usually from my vitamin or sometimes eating too fast. You're not going to "ruin" your surgery by eating something that doesn't agree with you.

Last night’s dinner: Sweet n spicy BBQ pork and Buffalo Cauliflower. I had one pork medallion and a couple cauliflower florets: 134 calories. P.S. As an aside, since we’ve been doing a “Dry February”, i find I’ve been eating much less. I wonder if alcohol consumption is somehow tied to food consumption?? And as a bonus, i also notice i’ve been sleeping much better (like longer and more soundly…go figure).

Hey all.. I was sleeved 12/1 HW 432 SW 416 and current weight fluctuates between 378 and 370. Im not losing inches or pounds. I have multiple chronic illnesses, including PCOS. Goals consistently met, following plan. Its been almost a month and a half stalled. Ive tried everything- sugar, alcohol, carbs, protein. Cannot workout due to POTS, so doing what I can at home. Frustrated beyond belief. Sent from my SM-N986U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

Started pre-op diet at 276lbs. Surgery was cancelled for another 2 months but I kept calorie counting that whole time so in total I lost 25lbs pre-op in the end. Surgery weight 251 Date of sleeve 17 November 2021 Current weight 220 So that's 31lbs off in 11.5 weeks since surgery. 8lbs in the week of surgery then a long post-op stall that lasted over 3 weeks. I have really found a groove with my eating and am losing a steady 2lbs a week at the minute. I do drink some alcohol every weekend which I know is completely empty calories, but it's something I have chosen to do and factor in. If I stall again or once my rate of loss slows I'll probably stop it again! Hope that helps. I loved reading other people's stats pre-op and I still do really. 😍 Keep asking questions - it's a big decision, a lifelong commitment to being different, and there is such a lot of experience in this group you're absolutely right to use it.