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Lisa - I find your claims that people who state that the seasons affect their appetites and eating habits are just looking for "excuses" to overeat offensive. I find it PARTICULARLY disturbing to see morbidly obese people perpetuating this kind of myth - that our morbid obesity is due solely to our "excuses" to overeat. We are all here trying to do something about our behaviours and physical predispositions to MO. We are fighting this disease with everything we have. We do not need a member of our ranks telling us that we are simply overeating all the time, and THAT's why we are overweight. IT IS NOT TRUE - PER THE MEDICAL EXPERTS!!! Please re-read this post - also note, in particular, these excerpts: *************** ************** Morbid Obesity is a DISEASE <HR style="COLOR: #d1d1e1" SIZE=1><!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->Morbid Obesity is a DISEASE. It has been recognized as a disease since 1985(!!!!) by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This is going to be a long rant… I mean, post. The longer I thought about doctors who make a patient lose weight before weightloss surgery as “proof” of their commitment to a healthier lifestyle, the angrier I got. I am FURIOUS. I am INCENSED. These surgeons are making their livings “treating” obesity, and THEY DON’T EVEN KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT OBESITY TO CALL IT A DISEASE. THEY DON’T KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT OBESITY TO REALIZE THAT IN 1991, THE NIH CONCLUDED IN ITS CONSENSUS CONFERENCE THAT DIETS, EXERCISE PROGRAMS, APPETITE SUPPRESSANTS AND BEHAVIOR MODIFCATIONS ARE NOT EFFECTIVE THERAPIES. YES, I am YELLING. Because if they DID, they would NEVER tell a patient who desperately needed their help that they must lose weight FIRST – to PROVE they are serious about getting better!!!! And to have this kind of attitude propagated on a weightloss SUPPORT board as acceptable under ANY kind of circumstances is absolutely reprehensible, and a symptom of just how well the prejudice against fat people is accepted. Not only is it tolerated, it is expected as our “just” punishment for being fat. Because after all, we are merely gluttons. The formula is so simple: too many calories in = too much fat. So diet and exercise. Too bad for you that you’re not one of the “normal” people who can regularly consume more calories than they need without getting fat – you are NOT a “normal” person, so you must just go hungry and exercise your butt off. Guess what? The formula is NOT that simple. NO ONE really knows the complete explanation of why some people become MO and some people don’t. But not understanding “why” is NO excuse for discriminating against the MO, or continuing to blame the patient for their disease. If a person could not swim, would it be acceptable for the lifeguard to say, “I could save you, but FIRST you must swim 20 feet to PROVE that you really want to be saved.”? Or better yet, “You can’t swim, so you should never have come into the Water in the first place. Why should I bother saving you? This is your fault.” Except in the extreme cases of denying organ transplants to smokers and alcoholics, I have NEVER heard of denying treatment until the patient starts to get better on their own as an acceptable medical response. (I’m not saying I agree with the transplant thing, just that I have heard that a smoker who doesn’t quit wouldn’t be considered for a lung transplant, and an alcoholic that doesn’t quit wouldn’t be considered for a liver transplant. I don’t even know if that’s true – I’ve just heard it.) Diabetics are not denied medication until they can prove they can get their blood sugar under control with a commitment to eliminating sugars from their diet and exercise. Smokers are not denied the nicotine patch until they can prove that they can quit smoking for four weeks first. A double-amputee is not denied their prosthetics to enable them to walk until they walk two blocks without the prosthetics, to PROVE that they really want to walk again FIRST. The prosthetics, after all, are just TOOLS – not “cures” for amputeeism. People with high cholesterol are not denied medication until they are able to lower their cholesterol first, through diet and exercise. If a depressed person goes to the doctor for treatment, and they meet the protocol, the doctor would NEVER say “Snap out of it first. Then I’ll give you the medication you need to maintain a non-depressed state.” Anorexics are never told "JUST eat!!" Their condition is taken very seriously, and requires medical and psychological intervention. I ask you all, then, WHY IS IT ACCEPTABLE TO REQUIRE A MO PERSON TO LOSE WEIGHT BEFORE TREATMENT?!?!?!? YES, we have to make lifestyle changes – but just like the amputee, we can’t do it without a TOOL. We have a DISEASE. I feel that I have done the emotional work. I have completed a professional counseling program specifically for compulsive overeaters. I’ve been hypnotized. I’ve done every diet known to man, and some that I made up myself. How DARE ANYONE tell me that I am NOT serious about losing weight?!?! I cried on the way into work this morning thinking about this. I am crying now. I will NOT accept punishment for this disease. I will NOT accept blame for this disease. I WILL accept the responsibility of doing something about it, however. But I cannot do it alone – because I am NOT “normal”, and I will ALWAYS need some sort of treatment to HELP me, until they find a cure. And I cannot stand by and let anyone forget that we are NOT here because of some moral failing, some character flaw, some personal weakness. We are here because we have a DISEASE. We need treatment, not judgment. If we were not serious about getting better, we would not be here. NO ONE deserves to feel badly about themselves because they have a disease. NO ONE should be made to jump through hoops to prove they want to recover from their disease. MO is NOT A CHARACTER FLAW. This is NOT my opinion – this is medical FACT. It is up to US to know and understand this, and to eradicate the long-held beliefs that we have allowed to shame us for all of our lives. We must NEVER EVER allow anyone to get away with propagating beliefs that MO is anything but a disease that requires medical treatment. *************** http://216.239.63.104/search?q=cache:OTJxKzuvN8QJ:www.shapeup.org/profcenter/diabesity/PoriesPres.ppt+is+morbid+obesity+a+disease%3F&hl=en "The truth is that Morbid obesity is a disease, not a moral failing." “Obesity is a chronic, lifelong, genetically-related, life-threatening disease with highly significant medical, psychological, social, physical, and economic co-morbidities.” Statement on morbid obesity and its treatment. Obesity Surgery 1997 7:40-41 “In 1991, the National Institutes of Health concluded in its Consensus Conference that diets, exercise programs, appetite suppressants and behavior modifications are not effective therapies.” Report of the Consensus Conference on Surgery of Morbid Obesity, National Institutes of Health, Washington, DC 1991 ************** http://www.rsapc1.com/morbid_obesity_surgery/ "Morbid obesity is the most common form of malnutrition in the United States and in the world today. It is considered after smoking to be the second leading preventable cause of death in the United States. It is a chronic disease which is very complex and has multiple etiologies." "We lose over 300,000 patients a year to morbid obesity and morbid obesity related medical problems." "There are social, psychosocial and economic consequences of morbid obesity that can be devastating. Unfortunately, the prejudice against the obese is very common in our society." "Conservative management of morbid obesity that includes diet, behavioral modifications, exercise programs and the like have been found to be ineffective over the long term. A person who is morbidly obese who attempts conservative management, as mentioned above, either alone or in any combination, is not expected to be successful more than 5% of the time. Over 95% of patients who are morbidly obese and meet the criteria for morbid obesity will regain their weight and often overshoot their previous weight. Surgery for morbid obesity is the only method that has resulted in long-term maintenance of weight loss and the reduction of the comorbid diseases that are associated with morbid obesity. In particular, hypertension, dibetes mellitus, risks for coronary disease, osteoarthritis, gastroesophageal reflux disease and many others. Morbid obesity is a chronic disease which is defined as a disruption of bodily function that develops slowly and persists for an extended period of time and often for life. It is multifactorial and includes genetic predisposition, environmental factors, social economic factors, cultural influences, hormonal influences and digestive abnormalities. In 1985 morbid obesity was recognized as a disease with associated comorbid diseases by the National Institute of Health. In 1991, surgical weight loss stated to be superior to nonsurgical weight loss methods and that only surgical intervention produced acceptable long-term results. In 1993 the National Institute of Health recognized the vertical banded gastroplasty and the gastric bypass procedure to be effective in significant reduction of excess body weight. The National Institute of Health recognizes morbid obesity as being an epidemic that can only be reduced significantly by surgical intervention for both morbid obesity and its associated comorbid problems." **************** http://www.landauercosmeticsurgery.co.uk/obesity/ "OBESITY: A MEDICAL CONDITION People who suffer from obesity are poorly misunderstood by those of the population who are not obese. There is a common attitude that overweight people are stupid and unable to control themselves. People who are obese are often the brunt of cruel jokes and thoughtless humour, even to the point of suffering abusive comments in public places. We now know that the medical condition of morbid obesity is a complex disorder, and not simply due to over-eating. The vast majority of people living in the Western World eat more calories than they need but it is only a small proportion that relentlessly lay down every excess calorie in their fat stores. Most people have a mechanism, by which their body knows when their stores have been refilled, but there is an unfortunate group of people where this mechanism is defective, and when they eat it can be likened to filling up the bath with the overflow blocked off. There are of course no fat people in starvation areas of the world, but this is because these are regions with chronic malnutrition and nobody there has access to even adequate calories. People who are morbidly obese often find it difficult to believe that their problem is a medical disease and not simply due to overeating. MORBID OBESITY IN FAMILIES The disorder of morbid obesity often runs in families. The chance of having morbid obesity is clearly increased if other people in your family have the condition. Studies of identical twins who were separated at birth and brought up separately show that if one twin becomes obese, then the other one is likely to become obese as well." <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

Over the last 2 months since being referred to RNY by my PCP, I've slowly changed from being a food consumer addict to a food controlling addict. Or weight loss addict. Awesome [emoji52] I've been so obsessed with a self made goal before surgery. I've lost 36 pounds in 2 months by sticking to my dr monitored diet + exercising and hate the idea of not losing a total of 60 before surgery. I didn't have a weight loss goal by my surgeon so this is all self induced. Lol. My fear is - an addict has mental punishments for themselves that will make it easy to get so down over one mistake that you give up and take the easy road. For me, being a food consumer addict is a heck of a lot easier than food control/weight loss addict. I journal a lot to try to sort through my own brain. I just fear I will fail in some way that I will turn back to food. It's like I can't just be normal. I have to be in control of something. Anyone else go through this concern? My back story if you're interested: My sister and I were raised by a drug/alcohol addict and a control/cleanly addict. We both knew what the signs of addiction were and we both chose to monitor our food addictions closely, though not perfectly. The recognition of being an addict lead to extreme measures to not turn into "them"... which meant we ended up becoming more like an addict haha. I became an anorexic in high school because I guess weighing 158 pounds was super obese in my eyes (if I only knew what obesity really was). Then when I was found out, I transitioned to a binge and purger. When I moved out of my parents home and half way across the US with my fiancé - away from anyone we knew. I could only afford junk like ramen and rice. Mac and cheese and bread. I got pregnant and married within 2 months and that was the end of my body as we knew it. Anyway, after a move across states again and 2nd pregnancy, I ended up being diagnosed with severe Health complications and was put on a dr monitored diet in 2012. From 2012 - 2014 I went from weighing 287 to 225. In 2014 I became pregnant again (through 2 forms of birth control so yes it was truly a surprise) and my dr told me to eat what I felt I wanted because I was so high risk, he only wanted me listening to my body. I took that too literally and let my cravings for meat and mayo get the better of me. My baby was born in 2015 and my high pregnancy weight was 320. I got down to 298 when I delivered and then quickly rose to 328 and stayed there. 2 years later I'm on another dr monitored diet, exercising regularly, and have weekly weight loss goals for myself. I've lost 36 pounds and have a goal of 24 more before surgery. I think about food/weight all day and know that can't be healthy but I'm just not sure how else to make certain I don't give up or fail. HW: 328 (02/22/17) SW: TBD CW: 292

Don't forget the "how soon can I have alcohol" crowd!

I had mine on the 20th as well! The throat was never sore, but it was raspy for the first few days. The gas pain persists but I'm hanging in there. Today is the first day I've felt human. We're even going to a movie tonight (one of those nice places that bring you food and alcohol ... yeah, I'm taking a protein shake in my purse. Lame.)

So what? There are equally as bad doctors in the US. Just in the Phoenix area alone there was a plastic surgeon that killed three patients before the board finally revoked his license. There is a practicing pediatrician that is a convicted pedophile. There are many docs that have a "letter of concern" in their board file for operating while intoxicated. Want an example of just one state alone?? Check it out: Arizona Medical Board - Protecting the Public's Health Check out the board actions for the last two years. Just because it is Mexico does not mean all Mexicans are bad and they can't have a good doctor. Just because it is the US does not mean all Americans are good and we have only good docs. Quite frankly, we aren't a whole lot better than Mexico in many cases when policing doctors. Ask any OR nurse which docs she would let operate on her and she'll be able to count them on one hand. You can find 100 articles about bad care in Mexico and I can find 1000 articles about bad care in the US. Do you know that the hospital I went to in Mexico has a lower infection stat than Mayo Clinic and they have the same number of beds? They do the same procedures as well. I have worked in the US medical system for 25 years. I'm here to tell you, we aren't all you make us out to be. Medical care has its good and bad. There are good docs and bad, same with nurses and hospitals. I know of a nurse that I worked with that couldn't get her narcotic counts straight. She came up wrong each and every single time. She finally had to ask pharmacy to quit putting so much Ativan in the Pyxis because there were always 100 vials and she couldn't count that high. So they started keeping 10 vials at a time so she would quit making mistakes. Wouldn't a better option have been to put her to work in the laundry department? There was an actor on 60 Minutes Sunday that was talking about how a US nurse gave his twin babies 100x the amount of Heparin they were supposed to receive. Those vials went through three different hospital employees and not a single one noticed that the strength of the Heparin was 100x stronger than the MD orders. Three babies died, most lived including the actor's children. The pharmacy technician filled it with the wrong drug, the pharmacist checking it didn't notice, the nurse administering it didn't notice either. The children were overdosed. Just within the last two months it was discovered that two hospitals in two different locations were not cleaning their endoscopes properly and people were swapping spit and poop with one another. Now they all have to be tested for HIV and Hepatitis for the next six months. There is a plastic surgeon in AZ who had his sterilization equipment break so he was soaking them in alcohol instead of sterilizing the instruments. He didn't want to spend the money or wait for parts so he just cleaned the instruments. Alcohol does not do NEARLY what people believe it does, it does not sterilize. I can go on all day long with one example after another of the great care in the US. Shall I? People die every single day in the US due to medical mistakes. Does that mean we should tell everyone to go to India for their medical care? According to your logic, that is exactly what we should be doing.

I would just add that at around 6-7 weeks pis top I had my first beer, wasn't a good move as I continued after that. The result being that the bubble expanded in my sleeve and stretched my sleeve, now I have surgery coming up on the 29th May for what is called an Omega loop bypass, which is a mini bypass including a resleeve, I would seriously urge anyone to stay away from alcohol, I learnt the hard way. As for smoking, we all know the down side, but remember it hits your lungs not your sleeve Was supposed to say post op not pls top lol

Why, oh why, didn't I think of this before?? I hope it's OK to post this here. I haven't been sleeved yet but I have started dieting in preparation. I've enjoyed everyone's stories, I've laughed and cried. I know we are all in search of the same goal. Everyday I look at the before and after pics. I read all the posts. Y'all are my inspiration. It hit me like a ton of bricks this afternoon, so I thought I'd share a little. I'm 44 years old and life has been a roller coaster, just like my weight. My battle of the bulge is similar to many. I didn't get fat overnight. It was fast, but it wasn't overnight. This is the biggest I have ever been. Yesterday, I thought I was 250#, but noooo, that was just cruel joke my scale played on me. I had just lost 10 pounds. I went to the doctor yesterday and he weighed me in at 262#. That can't be! I just lost 10 pounds, it should say 252#! That just added insult to injury. Damn scale! So actually I started at 272#. I realized I was staring 300# in the face, I was over half way there.......I just wanted to cry, it was tough holding the tears back. Anyway he made it better. Everything is gonna be OK, once I get my sleeve. I am trying to prepare myself mentally for the upcoming changes. I've read things like head hunger and food addiction. I can relate to that. I LOVE food. I eat even when I'm not hungry. My life revolves around food. I've come to realize I'm a food addict. Food is my drug of choice. It satisfies me, it comforts me. I'm no stranger to addictions. I really hate to admit this and probably shouldn't, but in my early 20's I had a nasty drug habit. I kicked it on my own and have been clean for 22 years and have never touched it again. Fast forward a few years and I married an alcoholic. That is a recipe for DISASTER! We have been together for 18 years. He has been sober for the last 6+ years. My husband wasn't your everyday drinker. He was binge alcoholic. He could go weeks or months and not touch a drink. But when he did, all hell broke loose. That's a familiar word. "binge". It was very ugly. I won't go into all that. He needed help. He tried "Antibuse", that didn't work. It was supposed to make him violently ill if he took a drink. It made him sick even when he didn't drink. AA didn't work, all that talk about drinking triggered him to want to drink. I was at the end of my rope. Nothing was working. I started researching, there had to be a way. Other people quit drinking. I quit drugs, why couldn't he stop drinking??? My research lead me to www.rational.org. OMG! that opened our eyes. It worked for us. He has been sober for almost 7 years. It can be used for ANY addictive behavior!! It's free. It can't hurt to try it. I used it 3 years ago when I lost weight on Adkins. I got down to 160#. Major life upset and I let my eating get out of control AGAIN. My bad. Anyway, while I was vacuuming today, it all came back to me. I went back to the website and it was still there. I encourage anyone that needs help to take a look at it. I am starting to use it again today. It can't hurt. It is another tool that some may find useful. Anyway here is the link and an explanation from their website. It was originally geared to alcohol and drugs but they found it works with all addictions and bad behaviors. The key is to change the words alcohol/drug with food/binging/overeating or whatever your vice is. Change the word abstinence to healthy eating. I know that it works and I will use it. It helped me to get a piece of paper and write it all down. It's not that long. Don't rush through it, think about what they are saying and let it sink in. It makes so much sense. When you read it, it's like flipping a switch. It will hit home for some. If it works for you, it's awesome. It will only take about 15 minutes to read through it. Another tool for your weight loss journey.. www.rational.org (copy & paste the link) This was taken from their website: Quick Start on Rational Recovery ©2009, Jack Trimpey, all rights reserved. There is enough information at this website for you to totally recover from any addiction, e.g., alcohol, crank, crack, heroin, opiates, sex and porn addiction, overeating, computer addiction, gambling, or other personal behavior that goes against your own better judgment. • If you're drinking/using today, you won't learn much of anything. Come back in the morning or when you aren't under the influence. • To quit your addiction you must first stop drinking/using long enough to learn AVRT®. Quit Now For Life! You now have access to Addictive Voice Recognition Technique® (AVRT®), a powerfully simple means to defeat any addiction, to any substance or behavior, in as short a time as you like. The link below will guide you through the decision making process to total recovery, before you sleep tonight. Go to www.rational.org , on the right hand side of the page click on the blue button that says CRASH COURSE ON ARVT Before you click this link, however, observe your thoughts and feelings, positive and negative, about abusing food. Feel the hope, but notice the dread! Thoughts and feelings which support continued abuse are called the Addictive Voice (AV); those which support abstinence are you. When you recognize your AV, it becomes not-you, but "it," an easily-defeated enemy that has been causing you to abuse food.

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.

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!

it varies. General rule is if you are stalled lay off the sugar alcohols

My incisions are good. One is a little sore, the only place I bruised was on my left side. I went through a lot before my R&Y was done. I went to my primary care she referred me to a wonderful surgeon. She found I had cancer in my stomach. Then she found I have NASH. Non alcohol related cirrhosis if my liver. I had numerous minor surgeries before this. Once I was under she decided to remove the stomach. It was pretty rough the first few days. But I have lost 27 pounds since the surgery. Sent from my Nexus 6 using the BariatricPal App

I think to get net carbs you take the carb content and subtract the total protein and sugar alcohol's. That could be labeled as Maltitol or some other form of sugar alcohol.

There is great advice here. I will gain weight eating 1000 calories a day from sugar and starch. My tolerance is basically nil. Your liver produces 300g of glucose for basic body functions everyday regardless of what you eat, so eating more carbs on top of that can be a recipe for disaster. Fructose (half of the table sugar [sucrose] we consume is glucose, the other half is fructose) Is unique in the way it interacts in our body. Fructose crosses the blood/brain barrier, in a similar way to highly addictive drugs like opiates, cocaine, and methamphetamine. The result is extreme cravings, withdrawal symptoms and very high relapse rates when trying to give it up. Many of the most addictive food products that people crave and can't give up are made with high fructose corn syrup, which is even more addictive than table sugar because of the higher fructose content. I have read studies that report it is harder to quit sugar than smoking, heroin or alcohol addiction. The difference, of course, is that we recognize those are dangerous, deadly and addictive substances and have rehab programs set up to help those addicts. Fructose is passed out by the fistfuls to children at Halloween, Christmas, Easter and readily available dirt cheap on literally every corner store and restaurant everywhere you look.

I'd suggest hitting an Overeaters Anonymous meeting - just look them up online. food addiction, like alcohol addiction, can be cured through a 12 step program. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Be careful indeed, especially if you used to have cravings for it before. Nonetheless I enjoy a glass of wine or liquor (with a ton of ice), but I try to keep it as occasional as possible. I was sleeved on February the 25th and had my first glass of alcohol at the end of June when friends from abroad visited and we celebrated, it went down fine.

Ya, I learned the "alcohol now hits us harder" rule the WRONG way. Last week, I was on a cruise and had maybe 4 drinks....and 2 shots. For me, this is normally not enough alcohol to have much effect, especially with dinner and over the course of an 8 hour evening out. Well, boy was I wrong. I was feeling ok, and then suddenly, I wasn't ok at all. I then vomited for 15 hours. Which was painful. I was pretty sure I would die. So I can say, wholeheartedly, that we can NOT consume alcohol the same way anymore. Not to mention we are eating a lot less so there is nothing to absorb it. And my doctor was adamant that there can never again be carbonation or beer. This all happened as a result of cranberry and vodka.

This question is for all you seasoned bandsters...So I know we're not supposed to drink after we've had the band placed...I wasn't much of a drinker to begin with so it hasn't bothered me in the least bit...however as many of you know there are times when a drink is almost impossible to refrain from (wedding toasts, etc) So my question is this...in the event that we decide to partake in a drink, what's the best choice for us to make? I know fizzy/bubbly drinks or beer is not an option (I've heard it stretches the pouch!! . I'm only a couple of weeks out so haven't encountered this obsticle yet....any suggestions?

Drink in moderation and remember to include the calories. Also be aware that alcohol often gives people the munchies which could sabotage your diet efforts. A glass of wine is probably one of the better options.

That's a bit what my life has been like the last 10 years and why I have gained so much weight. I keep thinking "oh, this week will be no good, I'll start my diet next week" and proceed to make the most of the current range of engagements. I hope with the band I can learn to make the best choices in whatever possible situation and not eat half a cow, a field of potatoes and an entire barrel of wine everytime. But at least generally my outings are family oriented or restaurant based and health choices are possible. There's nothing wrong with mum's roast lamb, just on a smaller scale. I guess alcohol is the number one menace though - I find with a drink or two inside me, all my good choices go out the window.

Well I was hoping to hear some first hand information NOT second hand edited from a book info. For instance I didn't know that some people replace their food cravings with other substances like alcohol. I didn't know this till after my mothers friend became an alcoholic. I'd just like to hear from real individuals and their REAL experiences. Thanks

I guess big people are more of an open target since people can clearly see we have a problem. There is no way to "hide" from people. People can hide alcoholism and drug abuse and many other things, but we are just out there. It still doesn't make it right. I wish people knew what it felt like. Once I went to a party of people I didn't know and I wore a bathing suit. I had a cover up on but some guy walked past me and said "omg what is that?" and it didn't feel too good. Him and the rest of his groupie friends sat there making fun of me for about an hour until I asked my boyfriend for us to leave.

I have BCBS-Federal. I was missing a note from my doctor stating that I had not been treated for alcohol or substance abuse in the past year. Once submitted, it only took one day for my approval to go through. HOWEVER, I would have not known until 5 days after the fact. I was approved on a Wed, it just so happened that Friday I had to call BCBS regarding something else, so while on the phone I asked about the status of my request, and thats when I found out I had been approved 2 days prior. I emailed the bariatric coordinator at my surgeons office to inform her. She emailed me that following Tuesday, to inform me that she received the approval from BCBS. So that being said, I would take the previous advice and keep calling to follow up.

I don't understand people who ridicule others at all! I would never comment on another person's flaws but it seems like if you are big your an open target. I don't understand the argument that obesity affects everyone because it raises the cost of health insurance well it may be true but doesn’t everything raise the cost of health insurance including drinking, smoking, and any and every kind of illness. And just like every other kind of illness we did not choose to be obese, because who in their right mind would choose it. And I hate the argument that all fat people are lazy and have no self control. Why is it that people have sympathy for drug addicts and alcoholics and do not blame their vices on them while if you are fat you automatically have no self control? It makes no sense to me. If anything it seems like it would be easier to be an alcoholic because once you quit drinking you never have to drink again we can't quit food it is there everyday taunting us. Jeeze sorry I am kind of rambling here I was looking online for info about exercise for big people and I came across all these anti-obesity web pages, I shouldn't have looked but I couldn't resist and now I’m angry. Well thanks for letting me vent

I used rubbing alcohol when that happened. Then followed by benedryl HW 242, SW 236- Bypass 12/20/17 GW#1- 199 [emoji736]. GW#2- 175 CW 192 5’6”