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I didn't read the rest of the thread and just read the initial post but it sounds like you may need direct counseling rather than a support group. You may be addicted to food and alcohol.

I have to agree with what most people are saying, which is that you should stop blaming outside circumstances that could be changed and instead look inward, being very blunt and realistic with yourself. Alcohol should not be consumed by people who have had a sleeve for ideally 6 months to one year after surgery. There is a special digestive enzyme in your stomach that processes alcohol. Since 85% of your stomach has been removed, there is very little of that enzyme (if any) to process alcohol. You could actually end up with alcohol poisoning and be in the hospital getting your stomach pumped. If cereal is a "trigger" food (a food that you can't seem to stop eating once you start) then don't buy it. There are a ton of things that I just can't buy because I know I can't control myself and I will eat all of it! Grocery stores sell pre-cooked chickens, usually for $5. If you want something quick and easy, you could get a chicken and eat off of that for a few days. Also, Protein shakes with milk will give you protein and what your body needs to feel full. I tried Isopure Water for the first time today. It smells kinda weird but tastes OK... and dang, it filled me up. I'm actually burping! (TMI) Support groups work when you work the program. Do you think it would be acceptable for an alcoholic to attend an AA meeting if they just kept drinking and drinking, week after week, year after year? Just going will not help someone until they actually hit rock bottom and make the decision to stop. The point is, it is horribly difficult... horribly horribly difficult to stop eating... (I am literally fighting it every minute of the day) but it is something you have to fight just like any other addict. Your stomach is not likely stretched all the way out, but you could be doing damage to your insides. Your hair is falling out because you are not consuming nutrients. The majority of people who get a VGS will have hair fall out - this is because your body is working to keep the more important parts of your body working (like internal organs and muscles) and ignores things like hair, nails, and skin. I've noticed in a lot of your posts you mention things you can't do, such as not being able to cook. I can't cook either, and that was a big fear of mine. So, what am I going to do? I'm going to sign up for cooking classes. In the meantime, I look up stuff on youtube that looks basic enough for someone who can burn water! My nutritionist gave me smoothie recipes that use frozen fruit and yogurt. The frozen fruit doesn't go bad for ages (cuz it's frozen) and the yogurt isn't anything fancy. Then I just add Protein powder and put it in a blender. It literally takes 5 minutes and you can't screw it up. To conclude, it's easy for anyone to tell you what to do; however, you sound very depressed on top of everything else, so anything people tell you to do will seem unrealistic. I have been through therapy myself and was on antidepressants from the time I was 15 up until last year when I finally got good therapy (I'm 33 now). So, I do understand depression... everyone is just like, "Well... don't be sad. Think positive." Gee.... why didn't I think of that? I'm cured! haha. The point I'm trying to make is, PLEASE reach out for help... either to your primary doctor to work with you on getting the correct type of medication for you, or to a licensed therapist that can help you through this. If you can work through some of these issues in a non-judgmental environment, you will feel more positive about your outlook in life, then things kind of click into place slowly but surely.

Mine are always out of whack too! I don't have hepatitis... I'm not an alcoholic...lol. who knows? I feel fine.

The day after Halloween...and I feel like I have a hang over! It's very odd because I have not touched any candy, I did not drink any alcohol, but today I'm feeling like I was up all night drinking and partying. Today I did allow myself one almond cookie, this lovely lady in our education department brought in from the bakery on her lunch hour. (I know everyone wants to beat her over the head!) I have to tell you though I could only eat about 3/4 of it and the smell of the rest of them was actually making me feel sick. I had to move them all into the kitchen away from my desk. I'm the "festive" gal around these parts, so everyone brings things and brings them to me, because I am the self appointed party planner on top of my actual "work" title I'm glad to see people bond together though, so I'm happy to be the office cheer leader, it makes for a nice mix of people working together and getting so much more done then working against each other. There is a method to my madness but don't let them know. I can't wait to go home today and just get into my PJ's and crawl under my covers and turn on the idiot box as my Mother used to call it, and do NOTHING. I took a couple of Advil and might need a couple more to get rid of this brewing migraine...been drinking lots of water, and just trying not to get into full blown black out the world migraine. I love how the band really helps us to avoid these testing times like Halloween. I LOVE the spirit of the holiday, and this year I really have no desire for candy or cake and if I want to have something I can and do and it's very small just a taste and I'm satisfied. Maybe next year I'll have to have a real bitchin party so if I have to feel hung over it will be well worth it after a rocking party!!! At least my body could ache from dancing all night instead of just the miserable weather Hope you all had a good one...I'm off to PJ land and beddybye. Have an awesome weekend all!!!

Here read this about SLIDERS.. Slider Foods Spell Weight Regain For Weight Loss Surgery Patients Soft processed carbohydrates, slider foods, are the bane of good intentions and ignorance often causing dumping syndrome, weight loss plateaus, and eventually weight gain for gastric bypass, gastric band (lap-band), and gastric sleeve bariatric patients. To the weight loss surgery patient slider foods are the bane of good intentions and ignorance often causing dumping syndrome, weight loss plateaus, and eventually weight gain. Slider foods, to weight loss surgery patients, are soft simple processed carbohydrates of little or no nutritional value that slide right through the surgical stomach pouch without providing nutrition or satiation. The most innocent of slider foods are saltine crackers, often eaten with warm tea or other beverages, to soothe the stomach in illness or while recovering from surgery. Understanding Slider Foods The most commonly consumed slider foods include pretzels, crackers (saltines, graham, Ritz, etc.) filled cracker Snacks such as Ritz Bits, popcorn, cheese snacks (Cheetos) or cheese crackers, tortilla chips with salsa, potato chips, sugar-free Cookies, cakes, and candy. You will notice these slider foods are often salty and cause dry mouth so they must be ingested with liquid to be palatable. This is how they become slider foods. They are also, most often, void of nutritional value. For weight loss surgery patients the process of digestion is different than those who have not undergone gastric surgery. When slider foods are consumed they go into the stomach pouch and exit directly into the jejunum where the simple carbohydrate slurry is quickly absorbed and stored by the body. There is little thermic effect in the digestion of simple carbohydrates like there is in the digestion of Protein so little metabolic energy is expended. In most cases patients in the phase of weight loss who eat slider foods will experience a weight loss plateau and possibly the setback of weight gain. And sadly, they will begin to believe their surgical stomach pouch is not functioning properly because they never feel fullness or restriction like they experience when eating protein. The very nature of the surgical gastric pouch is to cause feelings of tightness or restriction when one has eaten enough food. However, when soft simple carbohydrates are eaten this tightness or restriction does not result and one can continue to eat, unmeasured, copious amounts of non-nutritional food without ever feeling uncomfortable. Many patients turn to slider foods for this very reason. They do not like the discomfort that results when the pouch is full from eating a measured portion of lean animal or dairy protein without liquids. Yet it is this very restriction that is the desired result of the surgery. The discomfort is intended to signal the cessation of eating. Remembering the "Protein First" rule is crucial to weight management with bariatric surgery. Gastric bypass, gastric banding (lap-band) and gastric sleeve patients are instructed to follow a high protein diet to facilitate healing and promote weight loss. Bariatric centers advise what is commonly known among weight loss surgery patients as the "Four Rules" the most important of which is "Protein First." That means of all nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fat and alcohol) the patient is required to eat protein first. Protein is not always the most comfortable food choice for weight loss surgery patients who feel restriction after eating a very small amount of food. However, for the surgical tool to work correctly a diet rich in protein and low in simple carbohydrate slider foods must be observed. The high protein diet must be followed even after healthy body weight has been achieved in order to maintain a healthy weight and avoid weight regain.

ANYTHING .. That you can eat a lot of. As in cereal and alcohol in your case. Alcohol is sliding and you can drink endlessly and gain from all the gazillion carbs/calories. If you can eat/drink something and not get full with it then it's a slider food. You're digesting it as fast as you're consuming it. Avoid it.

Alcohol is PACKED with calories dude, so yes alcohol is the problem AND do is food.

Im 11 weeks out and I've had 2 drinks over the last 6 weeks. i choose not to drink because of the calorie count, but the alcohol doesnt affect me any differently than it did before. I did not get drunk or even tipsy off of 1 drink... Just my story

i miss alcohol lol! I haven't had a drink in two years and I'm so nervous with the sleeve

OP- only YOU can decide if you have a problem with alcohol. The reason we are all picking up on that is because it is fairly common to see an alcohol problem emerge after WLS. It seems to me that alcohol is very important to you. That doesn't necessarily mean you have a problem with it. But consider also, if it is not a 'problem', then it shouldn't be a problem to give it a rest for a while. I must tell you that I, personally, am a recovering addict with over 3 years free of drugs or alcohol. When we are having trouble succeeding, we have to look at our self-destructive behaviors which may be contributing to our failures. I wish you much success and hope you can get some assistance to help you get on track.

Ooops.. I had a little candy and some alcohol...

Jesus I feel like you all think Im an alcoholic or a soon-to-be.....

I threw up once when I had Cookies and Water, and I probably took too big of bites. I have had scares, but the only time anything has came up was once. And I learned my lesson to limit my drinking and eating at the same time. What are some dense Protein foods that can keep you full? eggs are apparently dense protein, dont do **** for me. Doesnt help that I cant cook. Doesnt help that I can eat a full bag of cereal and not feel a thing. I dont know how to take personal responsibility when I THOUGHT that was the point of the sleeve, to help me out. All it did was make me hurt like hell for two days, hurt bad for another 7, then be sore for another so and so weeks. TJL, Im mid summer. I have been taking my Vitamins once a day, maybe three days a week or four, when I want to be taking them twice a day seven days a week....Maybe thats why Im losing hair so fast. Its a bit disgusting. And guys Im not an alcoholic........I dont know why you got that picture. Alcohol now gets me soooo drunk that before I used to control myself, now its harder. I remember taking a shot of a 100 proof vodka and almost immediately felt it. It just goes through me.....

Were you honest with your surgeon's office about your drinking? If so, shame on them for being greedy. It doesn't sound like you were a good candidate for WLS. VSG was an intervention to help you make your life better, but it's totally up to you if you want to succeed. Alcohol alone is not going to stretch your sleeve, though it will make you incredibly sick and cause you to further progress your clearly budding addiction. Are you following the nutritionist plan at all in terms of food? Small meals, high Protein, low carb? Separating eating and drinking? Are you only spending 20 minutes eating at each meal and chewing slowly? These are the most basic requirements postop. If you aren't following the guidelines and you are depressed and drinking heavily, then it's easy to see why you are struggling. I think you need to seek help if you want to make this work. It's NOT too late to make real change for yourself.

How far out from surgery are you? Don't be too concerned about the hair, it seems to happen to everyone(including me!) What are you eating? If you are just eating cereals/grains you won't feel the restriction, have some protein first before you eat anything else. go back to the basics, lots of water, protein, get some basic exercise like walking. A 60 lb loss is a great start, you didn't say how much you wanted to lose, so I am assuming that you still want to lose more. About the alcohol, my Doc told me that alcohol would speed through your system now, you are now officially a cheap drunk, probably don't need more than 1-2 to get that way. If alcohol is a big issue for you, you could try having a glass of water in between your drinks.Do you have a NUT or a counselor you can talk to? Hope things improve for you.

Also, the whole "Im not an alcoholic because Im in college" is bullshit too, anyone with a brain can know that. Its like saying just because Im a professional gambler doesnt mean I have a gambling problem or something like that. Regardless, the alcohol isnt the problem, its the food. People told me I would be stuffed. People told me I wouldnt be able to eat, that I would throw up if I pushed myself. And guess what? I threw up once, and that was enough to know that I should not drink (Water......) after eating a whole lot, and I should definitely chew a bit better. Other than that....yeah nothing is really working. I wonder if its possible to see how much my stomach stretched.

I'm going to try really hard to not sound judgemental, but what makes you think binge drinking is a good life decision? Surgery or no surgery it's irresponsible and unhealthy. You had VSG surgery to help you lose weight, thereby making you healthier. Why would you throw it all away for college parties? If you want to be successful at the weight loss, and at life in general, you will stop going overboard with the alcohol. This whole "I'm not an alcoholic until I graduate" thing is complete and total bullsh*t. I hope you know that. Buckle up, eat right (high Protein, low carb), don't drink, and you will see the sleeve still works for you. You will get out of it what you put into it.

Last night I drank a whole bunch for halloween, and during the past four days or so I have gone through like almost 4 boxes of Cereal, and not the good kind. I see people post on a support group Im in (not sure why Im in it..like...it does nothing for me but see people succeeding...yay them...) All this surgery did for me was make me drop like 60 pounds in the matter of 6 weeks or so, and made me not handle my alcohol at ALL. So I'm THAT guy when I go to college parties. And by THAT guy, I mean the guy who is the most drunk. I dont want to be the most drunk. I wonder if my stomach stretched all the way out? I never feel full anymore. My hair is falling out at an alarming rate, my shower/bathtub is a mess because I have like tens of dozens of hair strands just all around... yay life.

I understand. My family doesn't really "celebrate" Thanksgiving but we all end up together with a crap ton of food. I'm thinking of going late after everyone has eaten. Even though it's still a month away and I'll be on soft foods, I'm not sure I can handle it. I might have someone set aside a tbsp of mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes (or whatever soft stuff there is) on a little plate. Otherwise, it's too fresh for me to trust myself. I'm still in the highly addicted stage.... I need to avoid food like an alcoholic needs to avoid a bar!

I originally had joined dailystrength a few years ago with this handle. My bf was in active addiction to alcohol/cocaine/ prescription pills and i made it b/c even though his family had given up on him, hope still lived within me that he would come through it. Today he is 20 months sober after 30 years of active addiciton. Now, hopeliveshere, signifies my new start, i have hope that i will overcome obesity.

I do reduce by fiber but not by the sugar alcohols. I don't trust them. Still, my nut is anti legume. Sigh.

I am so sorry and glad your son was there to catch you! For me, that dose of wine could cause issues if I drank it before eating ..if it had been many hours since previous meal. Sleeve changes ability to handle alcohol, but this sounds like something different to me too. Keep us posted.

Any type of Alcohol are empty calories. And beer is carbonated which is a huge no-no as mentioned above. Being banded is life changing.

Sorry to hear about the seizure, scary stuff I'm sure! I hope you are feeling better already though. I wouldn't necessarily connect this to WLS. If you have passed out in the past, that was also likely a seizure. It might be that you just have a mild form of epilepsy that has not been previously diagnosed. Your experience is quite similar to a friend of mine (always quite thin, no WLS, a former ballerina) who was just finally diagnosed with epilepsy in her mid-40s. I personally doubt it's blood-sugar related either. But that's not based on any medical knowledge, so feel free to ignore me entirely LOL. In any case, this is what the neurologist will sort out for you, and you will know what it is and how to treat/manage it. How soon will you see the neurologist? (Are you taking any meds that have seizures as a possible side-effect? Might seem like an obvious question, but there are more that can cause this than people realise. I doubt it's anything to do with the wine unless it was an interaction with something else you might be taking. Half a glass of wine is not even a 'therapeutic' dose in terms of alcohol content, if that makes sense.) Feel better, and keep us posted!

My doc said NO to alcohol pretty much ever again. I've got no problem with it. I think if in doubt, just don't do it.