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You really need to figure out why you are doing this to yourself. Being successful with this surgery is way more mental than physical. There are lifetime changes you have to be willing to make. Besides all the physical and medical reasons of why you shouldn't be eating and drinking this way so soon, it is concerning that if you are willing to sabotage yourself now, what will you be doing 6 months or a year out when you have much less restriction? Do you have a therapist or support group through your surgeon? Have you had counseling over issues you may have with food and alcohol? I don't mean to sound harsh, and of course I don't know anything about your personal history, so I can only base my reply on the information in your OP.

Try your best to do a real, honest head-check, especially where wine is concerned. I don't know if alcohol is an issue for you (it is for me) but you must be very careful. Especially so early. I drank wine at 5 weeks out and regret it. At only 12 weeks, it continues to be a problem for me and always will be. In addition, it greatly slows the rate of loss for a variety of reasons. It is very early on for you to be on this slippery slope. But if you are not able to control what you eat, at least chew things to an absolute mush consistency as much as possible and avoid wine. Tell yourself it will still be there, and you can have it down the road.

Looks like we are all 10 days:) I have to see my surgeon Tuesday and he will clear me for puréed foods, 4 weeks of that before I can have soft foods, 2 weeks of soft foods before I start "mechanically soft" foods and a week of that before I'm clear to add "regular" foods to my diet and when I start soft foods I was told I could start to slowly introduce alcohol in the form of non-carbonated drinks into my diet. And only little bits at a time. Ahhh to be normal again....lol

I can totally relate to this!!! Oh, and for the record, I saw that post the other day too and I agree... It's fun to say "oh thanks! I've lost 40 lbs" but now at 75 lbs lost, I am really embarrassed, which I didn't see that part coming. I'm in pharmaceutical sales (which is known to have the stigma of very pretty/good looking people in it ) and I'm like you... I was not prepared for my "story" that I was going to tell people. Nobody said anything until I had dropped about 45-50lbs and then out of nowhere, some of my doctors and nurses I see weekly all started the "what's your secret?" (To which I always want to respond with... Well funny story, I had 75% of my stomach removed! It works wonders!) hahaha... Anyway, in the beginning, I started to overthink it or wonder if they could tell I was lying or if they suspected I had surgery. Now, I have the same story everytime... "I've cut out sugar, carbs, caffeine and alcohol as much as possible, I lift weights 5 days a week and I run/walk a lot. All of these are true! Practice your story a few times in your car on the way to work... Keep it consistent... Also, my advice is to never give people exactly how much weight you've lost... I stopped telling numbers after about 52lbs ...I always say "oh I only weigh myself every few weeks and try not to obsess about the number but just go by how my clothes fit!" I had surgery on December 17th of this past year and if people start to ask when I started dieting, I tell them September/October so my weight loss seems more realistic. Nobody has questioned me once! Here is a before/after and here is one from last weekend.

Name, real or screen~ Bandista Goal weight for May 31st~ 195 Weight on May 1st~ 204 Age~ 52 City/State~ New Hampshire Dietary goal for May~ Liver Cleansing diet, no alcohol, health protocol Exercise goal for May~ Add in new mini-elliptical exercise upstairs Personal goal for May~ Finish scanning all photos for various projects Date banded~ November 5th, 2014 Total weight loss since banding/pre op diet~ 44-46, depending on the day -- trying to get to 50 pounds down for my six month Bandaversary! Favorite Flower? Lisianthus

I had my sleeve on Match 25th and have lost (15 pre-surgery / 10 post). I've lost more weight prior to having the surgery done and it's been 5.5 weeks where I have completely stalled and have not lost anything since the 1st week after surgery. I've heard of the famous 3 week stall but 5, going on 6 weeks.... I'm so frustrated. I get 20 grams of Fiber in using the tasteless fiber in my H20 and drink the recommended 64oz each day. I've been doing T25 workouts and eating just Protein (eggs, chicken, lean meats). I cannot figure it out. There was a point where I notice jeans fitting better, so thought it must be muscle gain but now I'm feeling bloated and no difference at all. I'm ready to give up. To go through the surgery, give up starch, fruit, alcohol, soda, sweets, even vegetables for 5.5 weeks I would expect 15 pound weight loss without even having the surgery. I'm hoping someone else has gone through this, looking for hope or advise. Was really excited to start this new journey but now feeling frustrated.

3 weeks post op I have realized that food was my addiction along with Diet Pepsi. The more weight I lose the better I feel which makes me want to take on more activities in my life. I have found myself out in my yard a lot more weeding, planting and just enjoying it! I say this is a time for you to start fresh and new! A NEW YOU!! I agree with the other's take up a new hobby or do something that you have never done before. The sleeve definitely assists me in thinking about what I put into my mouth now as I am sure it will you. I have found beverages that I never knew existed before and it's fun to try out new one's I also look at labels now when I didn't before. I've never been tempted to turn to alcohol because I know this journey is to get me healthier and I know drinking or drugs won't accomplish that

I had a great time with my son and his girl. We went to Laguna twice - what a beautiful place! Dana Point, the pier in Oceanside, the beach walk in San Clemente - all beautiful! David had duty every morning and his girl slept late so I walked the beach by myself. We went out to eat every night and I ate a lot of great sushi and delicious Mexican food - and by 'a lot' I mean variety, not quantity. I even tried soft-shell crab for the first time. I stocked my little fridge w/Greek yogurt, Atkins Protein shakes, humus, and sf Popsicles for Breakfast and lunch. I carried Quest bars in my bag for a snack, if needed (I found a nutrition store 1/2 mile from my hotel that carried them). I went to Starbucks every day for my iced green tea and drank it in the sunshine from a park overlooking the beach. We went to a luxury movie theater where I drank a little wine while watching the movie (very little - I'm a major lightweight w/alcohol now!). I enjoyed myself, tried new foods, and still lost weight! I'm down 3lbs! Now I'm only 3 pounds away from my goal weight of 115. :-)

Last week I went to my three year surgery follow up at Kaiser Fremont. It was a group appointment that took a couple of hours and included talks by our Bariatric Medical Doctor, Bariatric Psychologist, Bariatric Nutritionist, and Bariatric Surgeon. If you needed one on one appt, they scheduled those after. Kaiser does a great job with education. There were a lot of good handouts and good information shared. Some highlights: From the Surgeon: When people get a revision, weight loss is only around 10 lbs., which the surgeon credited to the liquid diet followed before and after surgery. He said they don’t know why there is not substantial weight loss with the revision surgery, but he theorized that whatever was reset during the first operation was a one time thing. He also showed an image of stomach and how blood flow to the stomach is decreased with each operation. I hadn’t realized how many veins and arteries were connected to the part of our stomach that is removed. A lot! The stomach can only stretch so much. It does not continue stretching once it gets to maximum capacity. People may think they are eating more at one time because the brain adapts. Ulcer is leading cause of death in long term complications. Ulcers are caused by too much alcohol, smoking, and some drugs, including SSRIs, immunosuppressors and the usual suspects. Not spicy or acidic foods. From the medical doctor: Kaiser Vitamin recommendations have changed. For the latest, along with the latest Kaiser Bariatric Surgery Guidebook, see: Iron in Ferrous Sulfate form can cause stomach upset, that’s why they recommend Ferrous Fulmanate or Ferrous Gluconate. Take with stool softener if needed. Watch for birth control pill malabsorption. For those that don’t like pills, she offered the following schedule:Morning: Wellese liquid Calcium or calcium citrate chews, multi with iron Evening: Wellese liquid calcium or calcium citrate chews, multi with iron Weekly: 5000 mg B12, 250 mg B1, Iron with Vitamin C Once per month: 50,000 iuVitamin D From the Psychologist: Tip for eating less: Do not put serving plates on table. People eat more then. Serve from kitchen so people don’t see extra food and have to get up to have a second helping. Cross addiction is more common in year two than year one post op. She had a whole list of books for us, but strongly recommended Mindess Eating by Brian Wansin. She had a handout from AmiHungry.com for Mindful Eating After Bariatric Surgery. Download it here: Water, etc. From the Nutritionist: Eat 20-25 grams of Protein per meal (70 grams per day). 3-5 planned meals per day, 1200-1500 calories per day, limit carbs to 30 per meal (15 carbs average in 1 starch, dairy or fruit). Eat protein first, then up to ½ cup veggies, then carb such as whole grain, fruit or dairy. Eat protein with any foods with higher sugar content. For example, have some cheese with grapes.

Well it wasn't exactly warm for the first few days I was there. Nights about 45° and days 58-60°. After that it got into the high sixties and you still needed a jacket at night. Then suddenly, on Tuesday the temp shot up to 97° and Yesterday it was 90°. A lot of good that did me - Tuesday I had to take my son's girl to San Diego Airport, and Wednesday morning I was back at the airport for my flight home. But the strong Santa Anna winds damaged the radar that services our airport and the flights were grounded for hours. When we finally took off at 5pm the winds forced us to use a runway that took us over the city skyline and the mountains behind it so we couldn't carry a full load of fuel if we wanted to clear it. That meant an unscheduled stop in Indiana for fuel to make it to our next stop in Maryland. Maryland was having bad weather and grounding flights but our late takeoff meant the storms were over by our arrival there. I landed in Providence at 3:30am and had to wake my husband to come and get me. I got home at 5am this morning and slept till noon! Longest day ever! Hats off to the flight crew for trying to make the best of a bad situation. The Captain invited us into the cockpit one by one to take pictures, answer questions, and explain how everything works. When we finally took off all the alcohol was free - a glass of wine helped me sleep through the longest leg of our long flight. The attendants did the best they could to ease tensions, and meet everyone's needs. So glad to be home but it's not exactly warm here! Lol And I got a tattoo Monday night. My first one! My son paid for it for Mother's Day. It hurt but my Marine son was watching so I took it like a Marine mom should! :-)

Yes I do live in SE Idaho. I've quit drinking Diet soda for about a year now. I occasional have one at a restaurant but I usually have Water. That is one thing I am worried about is my water intake. I drink a lot of water, I guess I am just going to have to figure it out. Probably not a big problem. I never really drink alcohol much, I only do on occasions. I quit smoking two months ago. Which probably led to my last increase of weight. This overrating thing is my last vice I need to shake. I'm just impatiently waiting for bariactric services to call and get me going. Thank ya'll for your encouragement and comments. I appreciate it.

It seems like a short time, but it will go by faster than you think. I think you are spot on in preparing for your new like in these next 6 months. That is exactly what I did and am having nice success post-surgery. Here are some things to think about - this is according to my doctor and as you will read on this forum it seems every doctor is different. No soda for the rest of my life - so if you have a soda habit, try to kick it now No alcohol for 6 months after surgery. I stopped my weekend beers 4 months prior to surgery and I thought this would be the hardest - but I don't miss it (unless I'm at the ball park and then I'm missing a beer and a dog ) The hardest was to no drinking during meals - that was the biggie and even 6 weeks post-op it still can be a challenge. This isn't easy by any means and I have to say some of the emotional issues that need to get dealt with are much harder than figuring out what to eat. As my surgeon said AFTER surgery - "OK, the easy part is over--this is where the work starts." I wish you the best of luck - this was truly one of the best decisions I've made for myself - and remember this is for YOU. Keep the eye on that prize and you will be successful.

I've had more than one stall / plateau since surgery - see my signature area. One thing I think helped me break the most recent stall was to "change it up." I've been following the Atkins diet ever since I resumed solid food a few weeks post-op so I started eating some carbs and increased my calorie intake for a couple of weeks. I eat 4 times a day - 8a, noon, 4p and 8p. I love Quest bars, and I was eating one of those for 2-3 of the 4 meals each day. Someone on this site said she had to cut back on Quest bars to get the wt loss going again, so for the past week I've limited myself to just one bar per day - I eat real food the other 3 times each day now -- but just Protein and fat, keeping the carbs as low as humanly possible. Also I was eating several sugar free hard candies each day, and someone on here said she had to stop eating sugar alcohols for Atkins to work for her, so for the past week I've cut out the hard candies too. I had not been exercising at all since surgery, so now I've started wearing a pedometer to count my steps each day, with a goal of 10,000 steps a day eventually, and I've started taking my dogs for walks several times a week. And sure enough, the pounds have started to come off again, albeit v-e-r-y slowly. I'll TAKE it! The important thing is ... SLEEVE ON!! Best wishes!

As very nervous....its only been a week..,ive lost 5 lds yeah,,,,but really misss my girls and going out ..so tonight Feeling great and having tolerated ....string cheese ,soups,guacomoli. Hummis, i decided ill try..the girls do not know...they think I am on a medically supervised diet....we went for chinese...i ordered won ton soup. Drank half the broth was fine,,,,then ordred diced beef for lettuce wraps.....I never ate the lettuce....just put some on my lettece and ate with a spoon...i chewed and chewed. Went down fine...once or twice felt like it was a bit much....but all went well...no alcohol of course

Psych evaluation was pretty basic...I talked to the psychologist for an hour...we talked about what I knew about the surgery, did I understand I could die, loose skin, support system, drug or alcohol use and diet and exercise. After I had a about a thirty minute questionnaire!

Thats awesome and i think its a great idea to get a head start. my surgery was 2/17/14 and i started preparing myself in october when i signed my paperwork and got my surgery date. i started making small changes like substituting 1 meal for a protein shake. i bought all kinds of protein shakes to find ones that i really liked. i stopped drinking soda and alcohol...i believe thats what led my post-op diet to not be as challenging. i didnt think the pre-op was too bad either. i dont lose as much as other people, but i am happy with my weight loss. i feel great and have no complaints about my decision, it was the best decision i ever made!

I would add, not to be negative, just realistic, do you know for sure you can give up french fries, a hamburger from a fast food place, pizza, macaroni and cheese, soda, alcohol, fried chicken, biscuits, and that sort of food the rest of your lives? Please do a ton of research here because you seem to be very young and this is not an easy journey for any of us. I wish you all the best. I have dieted my entire life and everyone in my family has been overweight. I wish you good guidance and the best!

Too much b.s for me dealing with these obnoxious people you all have run into. I have not lied ever. I am on a low-fat diet and eating healthy to save our lives because of diabetes, asthma and high blood pressure. Quit drinking alcohol, quit drinking soda, quit carbs, no Desserts. Life is much better. Sigh. Life is sweet. No drama.

Talk to your surgeon but from what I have been told, alcohol is not OK. Empty calories and carbonation.

Remember every doctor is different I would talk to your doctor The first 2 weeks I could take children's liquid Tylenol - after that Tylenol (or the like) only. No ibuprofen beacuse of it's irritability on the stomach According to my doctor no carbonation ever again - I've read people on here do, not very often, but they do. Right now, I'm not willing to take the chance - I was horribly addicted to diet soda and don't want to fall back into that trap. Decaf coffee for the first couple months - I've seen some people have regular coffee as well, it is too tough on my stomach. No cream and sugar - too much sugar. Remember that sugar that moves too quickly though your stomach will end up in your intestine that doesn't do a good job of breaking it down. I put Splenda in my tea - and I have had a cup of decaf and I add a little vanilla Protein shake to it for "cream" I drink 1% or skim, Yes--just plain - it's a good source of protein. No alcohol for 6 months per my dr. after that I don't know--It will depend on how my stomach handles it. I bought a ninja blender and use it frequently for various things. -- You might search on juicing on this forum. I would make sure to add unflavored protein to your juices. Good Luck

I have to confess I miss alcohol.

I am so thankful for your responses. She and I just had a conversation and we are going to make sure she is a "squeaky wheel". I just called her nurse and left a message that Mikaela is still throwing up. Her last ER visit was a few days ago at John Muir Trauma Center and by their mannerism you could tell they were not real impressed with her surgeon. In answer to the drugs. When we reported to her surgeon that she had gone to the ER and had to have potassium pushed, he decided to order her hydro condone for pain. She took it and threw it up. I know it would be naive to think that our 21 year olds are always angles but she never saw the point in alcohol or drugs but even if she did she would just throw them up. She has not kept much down since her surgery. Last time she had her glucose levels they were low at 60. At first the doctor went over her diet and told her to be sure to stay away from sugar and then when he got the labs back he changed his mind. He told her to drink anything she could keep down. They have done the swallow test twice and the liquids are moving through. Mikaela watched the test and she told me that her stomach looks really small like it would only hold two ounces. She said the Fluid goes through but very slowly. Last ER visit as well, they pressed on her stomach and it was painful. They checked her bilirubin, and anything that would have to do with the liver. I know I'm all over the place with this information but we have done so much. It is like her surgeon is giving up because he does not know what to do. When I asked if she is such an inconvenience could be get a referral out he said no because she signed a contract with him. Her surgery was done at Travis AFB in Fairfield CA. We bring her home every weekend except this past weekend to keep an eye on her.

This is a problem with anyone who gives up an addiction... There are several people on here that have given up alcohol and food addictions at the same time. The first part of the plan is to admit that you have a food addiction. That you are a food addict. That you use it as your coping mechanism in life. If you past 50 years old the chances of you taking on another addiction is about 30%..... Take the time to find out what caused the addiction in the first place and turn it around. Instead of living to eat. Eat to live...I now spend my hard earned money on quality and not junkie foods. I buy the very best of everything for me and mine because we are worth it....Next I read every label and spend a long time enjoying shopping now instead of rushing through, grabbing something quick and shoving it down. If I can't pronounce it I don't eat it...lol I look for different recipes and have started to try new foods. There are other things you can do as well. Like write down every day 5 nice things that happened to you the day before and read them as your stress levels rise...This is not easy to do... Next take up a hobby, volunteer somewhere. Get your body moving (walking gym, exercise ) instead of watching the T.V Plan ahead.....Have something with you that you can fool yourself into thinking it is unhealthy but really is..Like a Protein cookie. All these things were mentioned to me by a substance abuse councilor....This is your time to make it work.. This is up to you...This is about you...no one else...No one will shove the food down your throat...We have to fix the brain and the body will follow suit.....

Maybe you might see some addiction expert if you are sincerely worried about this. Pretty much I think it is a personal choice if you want to turn to drugs or alcohol, and I say this because of a pretty bad history of drugs and alcohol in my immediate family. I say this with utmost sincerity. Best wishes and God Bless.

I'm scheduled to get sleeved in June. I was just wondering if anyone has had problems with transferral of additiction? I've heard of people turning to drugs and alcohol to replace the food. What healthy coping strategies has anyone found to deal with day to day life when the food can no longer be your comfort?