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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 she was allergic to the sugar alcohols anyway.

When it comes to food I'm not fussy I will eat whatever. The reason I had the band done is because I simply ate too much even though it's not take away or bbq meals. I never really had a problem with junk food only had it on occasion. drinks on the other hand are my weakness (not alcohol) I love my soft drinks and energy drinks. Is it possible to lose weight while still having drinks? I can cut to the sugar free range but I must have drinks. Of course I still do drink Water but I can't do without my drinks. I asked the doctor and he says diet soda is ok but just gotta watch out as it's still calories. Can't be too much calories though right?

I think there are two good reasons to avoid alcohol. First, it falls in the same category as fruit juices, in that it's basically liquid sugar that just goes right through your stomach. How is that different than eating ice cream? Except for the buzz, of course. But ice cream can offer a "comfort" buzz too. So if you wouldn't eat ice cream because you know it's a really bad choice, why would you want to drink alcohol? And secondly, people who are under the influence tend to make other unwise choices. For example, I've polled many, many people who have quit smoking for a length of time of time and then started back up again. Guess what proportion had an adult beverage in their hand when they took that first puff? Yup, 100% (including myself the first time I quit). So how many sleevers have been at a party, and after a drink or two said, "Maybe I can just have one little pig-in-a-blanket..."

I had my first glass of wine about 4 months post. Have since had a Bloody Mary, margaritas, vodka cranberry, and whiskey water. Unfortunately no change in how alcohol affects me. I'm NOT a cheap date...I could drink my date under the table. So for me, it's just empty calories....no different than ice cream (and I've had that, too )

Day 29: I am grateful that we are able to pay all our bills and not have credit card or other debt. We do occasionally use a 6 month no interest thing on big purchases (most recently 10 tires) because I hate paying interest. Well I have really enjoyed this challenge even though I have failed miserably. Weight this morning was 212.4 and I only went alcohol free on 3 days. I did stay within my 4 ounce limit with only a few deviations though. I am just too weak....

+1 i had like 4-5 partial drinks during entire weight loss phase. Now, i am what one would call a regular drinker (some may even, dare i say, call me an alcoholic). I was a drinker before surgery as well. (Though before surgery I would drink lots in a short amount of time, every few weeks, now i drink less at a time, but more often). My increased drinking frequency had a lot to do with Covid lockdowns starting in 2020 though. From a weight-loss perspective, what little i did drink during weight loss phase did not seem to affect ME in getting to goal. Nor does the amounts i drink now seem to affect my ability to maintain my current weight (note though that i simultaneously keep an eye on my total calories - alcohol or otherwise- , so there’s also that) I get tipsy quite fast post-wls (and on small amounts), but I also sober up in record speed. As others said above, if you really want to, try it out and observe how you react, and then decide if want to again. Or, don’t. Up to you…you know yourself best. Sincerely, An alcohol-drinking-DRINKER (from Canada). (i also smoke, drive above the speed limit, and am late paying my taxes this year…)

If you only have one stick at a time it's not an issue because you'd only get 1 g of sugar alcohol. You'll get dumping when there are 6 or more grams of sugar and sugar alcohols in a serving. HW 283. SW265. SD 3/22/13! CW 244.

Hi Dee, July 17 will be here for us fast. My pre-op is 6/28, then begin pre-op food plan July 7. I quit caffeine 3 days ago and it seems hardly worth it to make coffee anymore - so bland without the kick! But it's fun to play in the kitchen and try various concoctions of protein shakes, etc. Gave up on soda last January and quit alcohol last month. "It's just temporary," I tell myself!

i do worry about that last one. addiction issues run in my family. alcohol, gambling, food seems if you got my blood in you you get to fight one or all of these. hell some days i think i am addicted to being worried about addiction haven't drank in 20 years cause i promised myself i would never be my father love poker so much i won't allow myself to play more than once or twice a year cause i see nothing but a dark road down that path Now food is gone so i spend my time worried about what i'll have to worry about next. some days the whole bigger brain thing just seems more trouble than its worth.

I am planning on having one margarita tonight. I was never a big drinker. Very rare so of course no alcohol since 12-27 surgery. Thoughrd? Is it really easy to get drunk? I do NOat want to be drunk. Just a small social drink. Any one have experience to share? If it's a bad idea I might just call it off. Thanks! Sent from my VS995 using the BariatricPal App

Keep in mind that as we get a handle on food addition, other additions may show their ugly face for example shopping addition, gambling, alcohol addition.... Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

And btw.. Love the, smoke fags and drink alcohol to get pissed

Personally I would send a meeting request and reserve a conference room so this meeting will be private. I would tell him that you are very uncomfortable with him policing your eating habits. That you do your very best to eat healthy and if you end up having to eat a unhealthy meal on RARE occation; it is not his place to comment. Also that he does not know how you will eat when you get home to make up for a higher calorie lunch. If after you have this meeting he continues to comment on your eating habits go to HR. What he is doing is bullying you. Tell them you've spoken to him privately and he is continuing to harrass you. It is their job to deal with work place bullying. Trust me an HR generalist/manager does not want you going to their boss (HR Director/or VP) because they've failed to deal with work place bullying. I had a boss that would comment about everyones lunch. She was a vegetarian and no matter how healthy your lunch was she would say gross/disgusting there's meat in there! She would have vegan soup for lunch that had 35 calories and make sure EVERYONE knew about it. She also however would talk endlessly about her alcohol fueled orgies on the weekend! NOT kidding. I had several thin coworkers comment to me how annoyed they were about the way she commented about everyones food habits, yet she was a high functioning alcoholic. Oh and by the way she would go to the company store at the other end of the building and buy cookies and eat them when she thought no one could see her. Priceless. This is why I don't tell coworkers that I've had WLS. You can be guarenteed that every though I have skinless chicken breast and raw veggies (no dips/dressings) everyday for lunch; the day I have a 1 inch square piece of birthday cake someone will comment about it. For other readers esp. if you work in an enviroment with HR you boss does not need to know what surgery you are having. That is the beauty of HIPPA. A manager does not have the right to determine what medical proceders, ordered by a doctor are neccesary. The notes my doctor gives just say the gastro/intestinal dept; says nothing about WLS. I had a coworker have breast reduction surgery and was out on disability for 6 weeks. Some might argue the company should not have paid her to be off 6 weeks after breast reduction. Clearly WLS is more health oriented that that.

First, let me say I agree with the whole 'don't break the rules, stay on plan' thing. If I were to look back on my posts here, I suspect I might find a post or two saying just that. Over and over. Could you expand on the alcohol and the idea it is a life and death decision? I've never heard this, and obviously, never heard medical support for it. In my personal situation, I had and have liver issues which for me mean: Alcohol and many drugs that may be hard on the liver I have to stay away from. But this is because I have specific medical concerns. DS: I don't remember the ins and outs of DS well enough to make any claims. Sleeve, Band: For surgeries that leave the pyloric valve in tact food/drink digestion works pretty much as pre-op. The restrictive nature reduces volume and things related to volume. RNY: the 'bypass' part causes anything one eats or drinks to dump directly into the intestines. As such, any alcohol consumed forces the body to work on it all now. This can be overwhelming to the liver. You can hit alcohol poisoning on much less alcohol. Drink often enough and cirrhosis can become an issue quicker. In the weeks can take for your innards to heal completely after surgery I've never heard that alcohol poses any sort of unique life and death threat. A good choice: definitely no. A life and death choice: I'd like to see the math. I do so enjoy learning new things. Thanks, Tek

Ask your Team about their position on Alcohol. Their advice is is top tier since that's who will monitor your medical progress. Everything else is anecdotal at best. Good Luck ♥️

Agreed on this not sounding like alcoholism issue. Just talking about why it is a no-no early post-op. I don’t think a couple sips of anything is going be a big issue. I have had tiny sips of my husband’s beer and wine since surgery, probably less than a tablespoon collectively. I think the dangerous part is if everything goes ok, it seems ok to have more. Tek, you and Ms. Mocie can take this further if you want. I’m out😊

Hi, this is what held my surgery up going through the psychology process, they start from the very beginning of you being a child and what family life was like, then they go through relationships, losing people, alcohol and drugs. Personally mine was abusive relationships in the past and my partner passing away. But they want to know everything about everything.

Where did I say that? No, there's alcoholism. There's probably a lot less than what's usually assumed in America (sometimes, AA meetings aren't the solution to being a bad person/having a life that needs fixing), and a lot more than what's usually assumed in many parts of Europe (sometimes you're not fun, you're just a drunk). The truth is probably somewhere in between.

I had a VSG in September. I was permitted to have raw vegetables at three months, along with carbs. I haven’t had any issues with veggies but it does seem like the few times I’ve had “conventional carbs” like a piece of bread or a little pasta it hasn’t agreed with me so I avoid them (I make “sandwiches” with low carb or cauliflower tortillas, or on lettuce, when I want something like that.) Alcohol they told me to wait at least six months, preferably a year…I’ve had alcohol twice, and while I havent gotten ill or anything it is a lot of empty calories and I can’t have club soda, tonic water, diet soda as mixers or something like beer or White Claw because of the bubbles. Be warned; the first time you drink after that long and after losing six months worth of weight, it’s going to hit you much harder. Be careful.

My husband stayed with me for some days, but he must return tomorrow. My surgery was August 14th. I can move around, but my pain meds cause me diarriah due to sugar alcohol possibly containing sorbitol. That makes me uncomfortable and edgy all day. I don't know when the soreness will end and when this discomfort will subside. I'm hungry and I wonder now if this was a mistake? Thin or fat? Not sure? Maybe it's my discomfort talking and I'm damn tired of liquids! Sorry y'all too much complain. No sleep since 2 a.m. (TX time).

Every insurance is different, and perhaps you have other co-morbitities that you haven't mentioned here, but usually if your BMI is under 40 they are expecting two or more other comorbidities (Non-Alcohol Fatty Liver Disease, Hypertension, Diabetes, Hyper Lipedimia, Sleep apnea, etc...)

I’m a 5 foot 11 inch tall 25 year old male who is scheduled for the gastric sleeve surgery on July 23rd. I had my consultation with the surgeon on February 22nd and he stated I do not need to lose any weight before surgery. My dietitian said the same thing and to continue the diet I have been on since December. I have lost 20 pounds in the last 3 months by changing my diet to much cleaner foods and walking my dog for roughly 30 minutes a day. I was 278lbs December 19th 2017 and now on April 2nd I weigh in at 258lbs. I cut out almost all carbs and artificial sweets in the morning and replaced them when egg white omelets with cut up vegetables and half a cup of oatmeal with honey and raisins. Lunch & dinner consist of vegetables, high protein beans/rice/lentils & lean meats. I try to stay away from sandwiches due to the bread and their favorite sidekick, chips. I have also cut down my dairy intake by about 90% and avoid pastas. I don’t have a sweet tooth so candy and soda consumption have never been an issue for me. I’m more of a greasy burger and cheesesteak with fry’s and ketchup kind of guy. My general practitioner believes this surgery is a bit extreme and unwarranted due to my age and state of health. I do not have diabetes, show signs of pre-diabetes, sleep apnea (never been tested), or constant high blood pressure for it to be an issue. My family background does consist of type 2 diabetes on my mother’s side as recent as my aunt. High blood pressure and cholesterol is evident on my father’s side as well but no diabetes. I have recently graduated from college and am no longer in that unhealthy atmosphere of drinking alcohol and poor eating choices. I want to cement a solid foundation from here on out to live a healthy and happy life and am looking for any advice on my situation with this surgery choice and/or any questions for me that I may have not asked myself. I appreciate your time reading this and hope to hear from anyone out there in regards to their thoughts or recommendations for me.

don't drink alcohol.

Eh. Nothing has hurt my sleeve but diet coke. (A sip at that). Alcohol has not affected me any stronger.