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I had my surgery December 17, 2009. It has been a month and altogether I have lost 22lbs. I am 5'8" and weighed 209. I weigh 187. I did not follow the aftercare diet to the tee, my body lets me know if I should or should not eat something. As for the Jerusalem Hospital, I have nothing but good things to say. You must remember that the Dr. Almanza, the staff and Dr Betancourt work seven days a week, 365 days a year. They are doing many surgeries a day. (When I was there they did 5 procedures - 3 sleeves, 1 band and 1 rouxny). So they have probably experienced a great deal of situations and are now very experienced at handling almost all emergencies and complications. What to take: 1. Gas-x The meltaway strips -the red(cherry/cinnamon?) 2. Germ-x - for plane, clinic, house, vehicles. I used this like crazy to prevent flu/colds. 3.Neosporin spray for the wounds. 4. Several pajamas(3), robe, and slippers. Pajamas with pants were better becuz the drain was not taken off until the fourth day.I also took several (3) of those comfy jogging (house of Derrion)sets. It to put on not much to coordinate and looks good and comfy 5. I took prilosec becuz i had read the boards, some people get heartburn. I did becuz i had a spicy tomatoe basil Soup at hotel the night before I was flying home and got heartburn with hiccups.If not for prilosec I would not have been able to sleep that night. 6. I get cold, so i took (3) thick warm fuzzy socks. .. 7. i took a magazine and a book but could not read. Took laptop but really did not use ..You will be tired. 8. I did not take earplugs but wished I had. There was a person who came to help their loved one recover and they were staying at the recovery house. They slept in the room directly above us and they fell asleep with tv. on very very loud. My roommate and I did not sleep all night the first night, so in retrospect ear plugs sound good. 9. Alcohol swabs for wounds also. I took band aids with wound care gel in them. I changed the bandages. I was very worried about infection. 10. A final item on wish list that i would have taken would have been to get antibiotics in liquid form from my general doctor. She was not upset about me going to Mexico and having this surgery so i'm sure she would have prescribed it for me had i asked. The antibiotics they give you to take (when they dissolve in your mouth) taste horrible. horrible. HORRIBLE they made me want to vomit. I hope this helps, good luck. I have had no serious complications. I havebeen tired, very tired, but ihad surgery so I know and am hopeful that in another month, my body will adjust and i will get back to normal

In no particular order: I don't keep "crap" in the house! (Although there's more now while my son is home from college for the summer but I'm doing pretty good at staying away from it.) When I think I'm hungry, I wait 15-20 minutes to see if its physical hunger or just head hunger. I never eat just because the clock says it's time. I use small plates and silverware. This makes me eat less and take smaller bites. If the TV is on, the fridge is off limits. I keep my before picture on the front of the fridge. It makes me stop and think before opening the door. I NEVER drink calories!! (With the exception of protein shakes and maybe the occasional cocktail.) Regular exercise. It doesn't always have to be a rigorous gym workout. Yard work, walk, clean the house, play with the dogs etc. Just keep the body moving. Stay well hydrated. I usually have a glass of something handy..water, iced tea, s/f whatever. I try to stay focused on things that are not food related. Pick a sports team and follow them...get involved in politics...volunteer at your child's school or a senior center...throw yourself into your career....it doesn't matter what it is just keep the mind focused. Keep alcohol consumption to a minimum. Track food and exercise. I keep a spreadsheet on my computer of my weight every week along with any other medical information...doctor's appointments, fills/unfills, menstrual cycle, mammogram, pap etc. GO TO THE DOCTOR!!!! Whether I think I need a fill or not, I always keep my lapband appointments. For the first 2+ years, I went every single month. Now I go every 2-3 months. Mix it up. The body has a mind of its own. If you do the same thing everyday, your body will know what to expect and you won't lose as well. Once every week or two, kick the calories up. Change your activities. Cardio one day, weights the next. Have fun!! Get the gang together and find somewhere that's having "Ladies Night" and go dance your a** off. Camaraderie and its good exercise. Keep a positive mental attitude! I always look at the bright side, no matter how hard it is to find. Don't linger in bed. When I wake up I get up, even if it's 6am and I have nowhere to be. (Like today!) I find that regular chiropractic adjustments keep my body and mind working at optimal levels. I realize that some people don't "believe in" chiropractics but then again some people don't "believe in" lapband either. We all know that they are wrong! I could probably come up with a few more but I'm still on my first cup of coffee. Besides, I think I've babbled long enough. Hope some of this helps!

I am 4 years banded. I am down 102 lbs. I started at over 385, lost 20 before surgery and now weigh 283. My goal is somewhere below 240. My BMI now is only obese, not morbid obese. After surgery I went from 365 to 290 then back to 353. This year, I committed to following the rules and lost 70 lbs. My secret, eat real food. I usually start my day with Unjury protein shake with a banana in it and Chocolate Silk soy milk. Lunch is usually what my wife makes. Salads, meat and cheese, sometimes leftovers. We do Water Zumba at the gym. Dinner is meat, vegetables, salad, sometimes potatoes or bread. All made from the outside aisles of the grocery store. Way off the carbs. Way off the sweets. When we eat out (we travel a lot) we ALWAYS split everything. Never order 2 entrees. Little soda, never diet soda. Alcohol is allowed. This is how normal people live. I now feel normal. I spent the last 6 weeks in Hawaii, Atlanta and Florida and most days in swimsuits. This is how normal people live. Really, while I still want to loose 40 or so pounds, I feel normal. It has taken 56 years, but I am Happy!

It's actually pretty easy to not say too much. I had a hernia fixed same time as RNY so I just told peeps had hernia operation and then I was on meds for 6 months which I couldn't drink alcohol when taking and now had to watch what I'm eating - it's best not to tell people cause they judge you!! It's the easy way out and it becomes a discussion even years after surgery by some friends and family who won't let it go...normally people who need to lose weight! I wish I had told less people. Your health is what matters people need to mind their own business and comments. If they want to get the surgery they can talk to their doctors and do research. I told a person who had easily 200 pounds to lose about my surgery cause I thought it would help and she asked how I lost my weight and she's used it against me since and has told many people...so lessened learned we don't need to try and save people who don't want to be!!

So since my great doctor's appointment I've had really good restriction. I'm not hungry very often and when I do eat, if I don't chew well and eat small bites, I get a very painful feeling in my chest. I thought I was going to have to throw up a deli sliced piece of turkey for lunch on Monday. I waited it out and it went down. I lost another 3-4 pounds after the fill, and then after a weekend of eating some lemon bars that I made for my boyfriend (bad idea to have some left over) and drinking three marguaritas Sat night and 1 big alcoholic drink on Sunday, I was up the 3-4 pounds again. :rolleyes2: I cracked down this week and am now eating like I do when I'm serious about losing and that is coffee, yogurt, cottage cheese and a healthy dinner. Last night I had broiled fish (orange roughy) and broccoli. I've been to the gym every day so far this week and am actually headed there now. I'm down 2 of the 4 I gained back. It's scary that I can gain weight so easily. I know that my weight fluctuates with water and throughout the day so I try not to be too hard on myself, but I can't let myself get off track. I think some of it may be due to only eating liquids right after a fill and then switching to solid foods. I'm staying at 1200 calories a day, so I should continue to go down if my metabolism functions like it should. It's so easy to get addicted to sweets, so I'm outlawing them again for awhile. I really have been having trouble eating a lot of different foods, but I need to just remember to eat slow slow slow. I'm going to church with my bf on Sunday and then we're going to sunday brunch, so I'll need to really be careful about eating slowly. I've been obsessing about how bad my boobs look and I'm getting saggy skin fears. I know I'm happy about the weight I've lost and sometimes I feel that I look really good and then other times I'll catch myself in the mirror and get horrified. I know I need to concentrate on losing and working out and see what happens, but my arms look really bad. They just hang. It's not all skin, there's a lot of fat still in them, but wow they look bad. If the excess skin was gone, they would be pretty small and toned right now. Oh well, I guess you're supposed to wait until you're at goal for year to give your skin time to shrink back, so we'll see. I'm just impatient and want to look good now! Here's a new pic I just took.

I just drink water right now, but taking the Crystal Light Iced Tea to-go pack would make the water look like a brown-liquor drink if looking like you had an alcoholic drink was important...

I have a halloween party to go to Sat night. I'm pretty excited because I'll get to dance & socialize! While I'm not a big drinker, I would like to be able to have 'something.' This party is at a hotel so they should have a decent selection. Any suggestions out there?

I drink around 4-5 times a week! I can't handle beer because of the fizziness of it. Kills my stomach. I love Jose Quevo and can't drink it anymore because it burns to bad! I usually drink some red wine or my favorite is a Cape Cod with Vodka/cranberry juice but have to be careful of the calories in alcohol. I never realized how much was in them until you really start looking at it!

Here’s why putting yourself first can make everyone else happier, and how you can put yourself first this holiday season. The holidays are about being a good person, right? You’re supposed to be thankful for what you have. You’re supposed to give to others, and put others’ needs first. I agree completely, but you can do more for others when you’re at your best. You’ll be at your best when you take care of yourself, so here are some ideas for keeping yourself in your best physical, mental, and emotional shape…so you have more to give others. So here are some ways to put yourself first this holiday season. They’ll help you eat a little healthier, stay a little fitter, and be a little more in control than if you neglect your own needs. And they’ll help you be able to do more for others. Eat Right Can’t get away from this one, can you? You know when you eat well, you have more energy, feel more confident, and are happier. That’s a recipe for being able to do some quality gift shopping or even volunteer work. You know what “eating right” means. Base your meals around lean protein like non-fat cottage cheese, tuna, beans, egg whites, or chicken breast, for example. Add a bunch of vegetables, and enjoy some fruit or healthy starches at most meals. Pretty simple, and so effective! Oh, and if you do indulge? Keep it to a small and delicious bite to savor. Use the Trash Can, Don’t Be One If you’ve ever eaten something just because it’s there, you’ve used your body as a trash can. That’s because you ate something you didn’t need instead of simply leaving it or throwing it out. This happens a lot around the holidays, when you might eat the leftovers or a plate of Christmas cookies because you feel guilty throwing them out. Guess what. When you throw trash into your body instead of a can, you’re not helping starving children in Africa. If you really want to help them, why not make a donation? Donate, say, a penny for every calorie you dump, or a quarter for every cookie you toss. Now that’s how putting yourself first can help out others in need! Exercise When you exercise, you’re happier, more energetic, and more focused. Sound selfish? Not really. You can be more productive at work, better able to entertain your friends and family, and readier to whip up that next batch of cookies when your children have a last-minute request for a contribution to a classroom holiday party. It can be tough to stick to your regular exercise schedule during the holidays. You can save time by getting your gear ready the night before and by planning your workout ahead of time so you make use of every moment. Since it can be tempting to sleep in instead of a morning workout or just hang out at home in the evening, make use of other people to stay accountable. Make plans to meet an exercise buddy, or commit to group fitness classes. And, if you’re feeling too stressed or tired to do a hard workout, try going to the gym for some easy stretching. You’ll still get the mental benefits and stay in the healthy habit of being a gym rat. De-Stress Have you ever wanted to tell someone to just “chill!” because they’re making you nervous? Don’t be that person! Keep yourself cool and collected so everyone wants to be around you and not avoid you. De-stress in whatever way works for you. You can go for a walk, get a massage or manicure, take a drive, or go shopping. It doesn’t matter…as long as you do it and it works. If it involves someone else, you’re doing double duty and helping someone else out as well! Have Fun Amidst all the hustle and bustle of taking care of yourself and others, don’t forget to have fun. Do whatever you want, whether it’s meeting a friend for (healthy) lunch, watching a full season of a TV show in a few days, or doing all the aisles at Walmart at 1:00 a.m. Whatever you’ve been dying to do all year, do it now. When you keep yourself happy, you’re better able to appreciate what other people need or want to be happy. Forgive Yourself Yes, things will go wrong. You’ll eat too much, or go a little overboard on the alcohol at a holiday party, or sleep in instead of working out. Or you’ll forget to pick up a gift for someone, or burn the cake you’re baking. It’s okay, and you’re best off if you can laugh it off and move on. Fret about it, and you’ll just be hurting other people who would rather see you happy than upset. The holiday season is supposed to be about giving, but that can drain you if you don’t take care of yourself. Just like you do during the rest of your weight loss surgery journey, you need to put yourself first during the holidays. That lets you give your best to everyone else, too.

No shame Heather!! Everybody has some addiction or quirk - some demon to deal with - ours just happens to be food/weight! You don't have to do it on your own!! It takes a village to raise a child - meaning we all need help & support. This is harder than being an alcoholic or drug addict, if you ask me. try giving a crack head 3 rocks or an alcoholic 3 drinks - 1 for breakfast, lunch & dinner & see if they can stop! They don't have to drink or do drugs to survive but we still gotta eat! We can't just forego it like they can!!!! You are well on your way, girlfriend!!

I have migraines, used to have them 3 to 4 times a week. I have greatly reduced the number and intensity of my migraines by avoiding triggers: Fake sugar (all kinds for some people, Aspartame for most) MSG Citrus chocolate Caffiene Nitrates and Nitrites Aged cheese Alcohol Bananas Nuts Processed foods like bacon, sausage, hot dogs You don't have to eliminate everything forever, but the book I read recommends eliminating everything that might be a trigger for 1 to 3 months, then adding back things one at a time to see where you're triggers are. Triggers are cummulative, so sometimes you can have chocolate, and be fine, but for me, if the weather is bad, one cookie will push me over the edge into a migraine. If you're interested, the book is Heal Your Headache. I have told my nut I can't eat fake sugar because of the migraines and she scoffed, so she wasn't helpful. But someone on the forum suggested that we (those with migraine issues) advise the hospital of the fake sugar 'allergy' at checkin and whenever discussing allergies. If you don't want to go all the way with all the possible migraine triggers... try eliminating the fake sugar. I had fake sugar by accident and got a migrain in less than 30 minutes. It's my worst trigger. Good luck! Hope the headaches cease.

For me it just works itself out if I stick to my calorie goals. The first night that I was "allowed" to drink according to my nutritional guide, I had two drinks (which worked out to about 200 cal). I got a buzz but then I was hungry with no calories left for the day, which made for a miserable evening. Worse yet the alcohol definitely seemed to make my hunger worse. To avoid being hungry I need to plan my entire days intake around those two drinks in the evening, and its just not worth the hassle, so I rarely drink at all anymore.

I do not remember it being painful to drink, it was slow at first. But if you are curious about the effects on your band, use common sense, lots and lots of carbonation could cause your band to slip, stretch, or just in general cause problems with the band and your stomach. If you are going to be drinking mixed drinks you will be fine, even ones with soda. Once the ice melts a little and the alcohol diluting the soda, a drink becomes flat enough to drink easily. Obviously you don't eat as much anymore so be conscience of the effects of the alcohol, you won't need as much. And at the same time, too many drinks on a full stomach will lead to bloating and you will be very uncomfortable. Oh yea, I figured it would be worth mentioning, and this is probably not for everyone, but I get really gassy when I drink a lot of beer!! Heads up on that.

You mentioned AA working for you for your alcoholism. Have you considered OA for your food addiction? Since they are both based on the same 12 steps, it might be really helpful for you. I wish you and your wife the best of luck. Your kids need you. Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

I understand what you are saying. Alcohol was my go to in order to escape. I try to hit an AA meeting once a week. I am coming up on 9 years sober and I am not tempted to drink, however I feel as though I am abusing food like I would abuse alcohol or drugs. I am going to see the surgeon one week from today. We will see what he has to say. I am not sure I can pass the psyche evaluation in order to be clear for surgery. I just want to get some weight off so badly, my quality of life is suffering. I am tired all the time and my knees and lower back hurt constantly.

I know so many of you will be able to relate, so please sing along if you know the words! It still amazes me how powerful things that happen in childhood can be. In my case as in so many others', there was no safety from fat criticism at home. In fact, my worst critic was there every night: my mother. My Dad came from a family of alcoholic men and settled in to be one himself. He was also fat, as was my older brother. My younger sisters took after my former-ballerina mother. Mom didn't criticize Dad's drinking in front of us, but his weight? Oh, yeah, that was fair game. Dad and my brother (affectionately known as Doc) and I were all geeky and book-oriented. Rather than running around the yard playing tag, I wanted to read books inside. My first gym teacher was apoplectic at my utter lack of love for sports and running. Mom didn't care so much about that - she still tells the story of how she utterly destroyed the teacher when the teacher called to complain that I didn't know how to skip - but she did care very much about my weight. I don't want to talk yet in-depth about what she said. The post would need a trigger warning if I did. We all know the words, anyway. Years later, I am so very unwilling to tell my family about what I'm doing. Every time I have taken initiative on a health decision, my family has found a way to credit someone else with telling me to do it. My brother-in-law got banded last October, and I know for sure that if I tell my family what I'm considering they'll have two reactions at once: Tell me I'm utterly insane for mutilating myself and also (in the same conversation) it's a good thing I'm FINALLY getting a brain, because W. looks so much better now and I should have done this years ago. I can't tell my sisters, because they'll run straight to Mom. I can't tell my brother, because he lives with Mom while he's looking for work. (These are the brothers and sisters who had an actual, sit-down-and-come-to-Jesus intervention with me when I said I was going to move to Minnesota. Good thing I don't drink or do drugs.) It hurts that I cannot rely on any support from my blood family. It hurts more than I can say. My friends and loves are totally behind me and supportive. Why can't my family be?

I'm not sure where to post this, so I hope this is OK. I had VSG in October of 2015 and lost 115 lbs by the following August (10 months out). I went from 254 to 139. My goal was 129, but I likely was in that ballpark because of loose skin weight, so I felt like I had hit my goal. I maintained that goal weight for six solid months. In December 2016 I had a betrayal by someone very close to me that I'm still not over. Somewhere in early 2017, I started eating more carbs. Grazing more often again. Drinking a lot calories, much of it alcohol. In the first year post op, I became a runner and was running up to five miles, 4-5 days a week. In 2017, it tapered off until I hadn't run in months and recently had to restart C25K completely, and couldn't even run 1/4 mile anymore without having to stop and walk again. I have regained almost fifty lbs and I am so pissed off and angry at myself. I cry daily over it. I have no clothes to wear. I was 188 last week. I saw a counselor at the end of 2016 and most of 2017 to try and deal with my "head stuff" and honestly feel like I did more damage than good. She was all about forgiving myself and it just ended up that I'd "binge" or not exercise and instead of trying to refocus, I'd just forgive it, make an excuse and do it again. I'm not sure of anyone here can even help me but I needed to post this and put it out there as a first step in being accountable for my actions again. I promised myself I wouldn't be a statistic with this surgery. I worked so hard and went through too much to end up here and I desperately need direction to get back on track. I have my 2 year check up with my surgeons office on Wednesday. I will tell them all of this, as well. Thank you for listening. Sent from my SM-G935V using BariatricPal mobile app

I realized today that I can drink more! I am a HUGE drinker (non-alcoholic!) and I mourned not being able to drink more than food. Today I realized I was doing 'gulp-gulp' instead of just gulp!! I'm so excited. It only took me 5 weeks!! Yahoo!!!!!!! :-)

I've been eating quest bars since surgery and I actually enjoy them. However, the sugar alcohol in them has me farting so frequently I can't stand to be in the same room as myself. Does anyone have a recommendation for a bar with no sugar alcohol? Thanks.

HI, I'm the original poster. It's been a while since I wrote that. My problem was most definitely my gall bladder. I had it removed last year and was instantly better, but I ended up in the ER 3 or 4 times before they finally decided to take it out. The ultrasounds showed that my gallbladder had a few stones, but they couldn't see any huge ones and my gallbladder wasn't enlarged. And my liver enzymes were never elevated in blood work either. Finally after another trip to the ER and probably my 6th or 7th ultrasound, they saw that (while it still didn't look too bad) they decided to remove it. The surgeon looked at it after it was removed and it was FULL of stones, and one of them was quite large. I don't know how they missed all this on the ultrasound, but... they did. The GB attacks I had were terrifying. I felt like a 300-pound man was sitting on my chest, I was dizzy and sweaty, my heart was racing, I'd have diarrhea and sometimes vomit during all of this... awful. I'd usually end up kneeling, with my head on the floor. All this would go on for 1-4 hours. I am SO GLAD that they finally took that thing out. I haven't had anything like that happen since the surgery. It's very astute of you to notice the similarities between drug addiction and eating disorders/obesity. I didn't notice this myself until I was watching a TV show about drug and alcohol addiction and I realized that I was acting just like the addicts, but with food and not drugs. That really helped me to understand my own behavior better. (Some of the things I have done for food are just flat out embarrassing.) I wish that more people would understand that maybe not all, but at least some obese people have a real problem and can't just "eat less" like everyone tells them to, any more than an alcoholic can just "drink less" or a drug addict can just "use less."

I joined this forum as a concerned husband and not a patient just to make this post. My wife is having almost the EXACT same issues. I decided to do a little research and found you lovely people. First off I want to say that the surgery has done wonders for her and so many others. I just wanted everyone to understand that I'm not taking a negative stance on the surgery at all. I am very supportive of her and anyone who decides to change their life for the better. She had the surgery about 4 years ago and the dizzy sPells have gotten progressively worse. Actually here are a list of her symptoms. 1. Almost daily dizzy spells getting progressively more constant. 2. Nausea and throwing up almost every couple days. Sometimes due to eating too fast though. 3. Anxiety and panic attacks 4. Shaky hands (especially during and after a dizzy spell) 5. Very weak and tired I have seen others post that it may be dehydration but it's not in her case. drinks plenty of Water and about 1-2 liters of Gatorade a day. It also isn't a gallbladder issue either. She's had an upper GI and ultrasound. She also has had blood work that shows no sign of any mineral deficiency or abnormalities. We were referred to a cardiologist and she has had an EKG and wore a halter for 24 hours with no abnormalities. She also had a tilt test performed with nothing out of the norm.The cardiologist suggested a device called a reveal which is a device that records your blood pressure if it falls below or above normal. You can also hold a remote to your chest to activate it during or after a spell. It's about the size of a USB thumb drive. She got that surgery about a week ago and will have it installed up to 3 yrs. Thank god for forums like this otherwise we may have never thought this may be a cause. I now have another avenue to look at thanks to all of you that posted. So TY! Unfortunately I started looking for answers tonight because she had one of her worst spells ever. She was on the verge of passing out for almost 5 minutes and her hands were trembling. She was fighting for her eyes to not roll back the entire time. Once she came around she had a cold sweat, headache, and was exahusted. It was really scary and I felt helpless. It's my job to protect her and make everything ok. I want to thank everyone for helping me feel not as helpless and hopefully will help to solve the problem. I will keep this forum updated on her progress as to possibly help out others that may be having the same issue wether it ends up being a lap band issue or not. I wish you all the best of luck in reaching your weight loss goals and while I can not speak on the disease of obesity I do understand the struggle to a certain extent. I am a recovering drug addict and alcoholic of 9 years and am still baffled at how similar the diseases are. Ty again for all your help.

It is like telling a Alcoholic not to go to AA or a drug addict not to go to drug rehab it is a illness so is obesity. They could not stop on there own they needed some help this is no different. Maybe if they tried and go with you to a support meeting to see what it is really all about to get a full understanding they would not be so quick to judge. People need to walk a mile in other peoples situation before passing judgement. And Beside love ones are suppose to be the least judgemental of all they love you and should stand by you and be understanding! When I told my family they were like when where which surgery are you doing they were on it and I am getting a revision from lapband to bypass so this is my 2nd and last surgery!

Hi everyone. I had gastric bypass on September 28 and so far, things are great. I'm down 31 lbs., I feel fantastic and I've already been able to eliminate some medications. Here's my question... I was very constipated after surgery (which I know is to be expected) and had only gone 2 or 3 times in 3 weeks, even when using benefiber every morning and evening. After discussing with my doctor, I started fiber chews at twice the normal dose (2 chews twice a day) until things started moving normally, and two days ago knocked it back to 1 chew twice a day. Now, my poops are regular (usually once a day) but I'm concerned that they are very light colored and they float. I've done some research online and this can indicate several different things, including liver disease (I did have non-alcoholic fatty liver prior to surgery) or malabsorption (not getting enough nutrients). I'm just starting my soft foods phase, so I wasn't able to have much fiber until now but I'm curious if any others had experienced this particular issue, and if it turned out to me anything major. I feel better than I have in years and have so much energy, so I think if it were something serious I would know. I'd just like to see if anyone else had any insight. Thanks! Missy

Even though I work in computers now with the school system, my college degree was actually Counseling with a concentration in Substance Abuse. While working at a drug treatment center I worked with patients on developing coping skills to help them deal with cravings to use. We would tell them, they must avoid people, places and things that are triggers; some to the point of having to live some where other than where they came from. During that time I was in denial that I myself was an addict, but my drug of choice was food. Unfortunatly, I can't avoid food. I must eat, but as I continue on the self reflective journey I have been on of late, I realize that I have food triggers. Cookies- I love them, they are buttery and chewy and oh so good. If I make cookies and eat one, I can't stop- I must eat more. Ice Cream is another problem, I love ice cream, any shape or form- cones, cups, shakes- yum. So I know, no ice cream should be kept in the house because I won't stop until it is all gone. Now you may say, where is you will power, where is your want power? I do want to lose weight, but there are times where it is like an out of body experience, I realize what I am doing is wrong and I will regret it, but I can't stop- this is classic addict behavior. If you are able to use your want power to prevent you from ever slipping up- awesome for you- but addicts many times can not rely strictly on that. I am actully going back and reading some of my old college textbooks to help myself with this addiction. While I have lost a little more than half of what I want to lose, in order for me to lose more and here is the key- keep it off- I must figure out my triggers and develop coping skills for dealing with these. Is this journey easy- heck no! Will it be worth it- heck yes. But, I feel I will be much more successful long term now that I am looking at this for what it is! Just like drug, tobacco, alcohol addiction is a life long battle- so is food addiction. For those of you who what I am saying rings true, take a look at yourself- what are your triggers- what can you do to cope with them. So with that- Hello, my name is Kim and I am a foodaholic.

I'm a drug and alcohol counselor. I really hope you understand that even though you've quit drinking, it doesn't mean you're automatically cured of the issues that made you drink in the first place. Now you seem to be transferring your addiction back to food. You're dealing with your depression in very self destructive ways. I hope you're seeking treatment, a 12 step program or counseling. Without getting to the bottom of the reasons why you continue to abuse alcohol and food, there's a very high chance of relapse, both for drinking and for putting the weight back on. Good luck to you!