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Hey, Marine--nice to hear from you, and happy one-year anniversary (more or less). My surgeon and nutritionist both said alcohol is fine one year out. However, it always going to be calculation as to whether it's worth the (empty) calories vs. the the benefit. Becoming a teetotaler isn't realistic for everyone, but drinking of course needs to be done in moderation. This will be a lifelong balancing act that does't end just because we are in the maintenance phase. I hope you are doing well!

we were told we could occasionally have alcohol a year after bypass. I do - but I probably have about three or four glasses of wine a year. I can feel it right away...

Anyone have any ideas

@GoForwardGen Reading your post reminds me so much myself. Now I’m not as Young as you, I’m 40 and wish I would have done this sooner. I’ve been the fat girl since I was 8 years old. This is my experience and advice: I too have struggled with mental health issues including addiction and suicide attempts. I was put in rehab in 2017 for addiction to alcohol and opioids. I’ve not taken opioids for recreational use since April 23, 2017. Alcohol is a slippery slope so I have to be vigilant there. In September 2018 I was hospitalized under a mental health watch for a week after attempting to take my own life. I was in a very volatile domestic violence relationship at that time. Through the support of my family and friends and local law enforcement I was able to finally get out of that relationship for good in March 2019. I’ve been in therapy ever since then with my psychologist and psychiatrist and my life has changed for the best! I’ve been on some sort of anti-depressant and/or mood stabilizer since I was 21 years old. I’ve been i the mental health system for a while. None of these things held me back from getting surgery. This past October I had reached a point With my weight that I was defeated and ready for a change. I have Anthem BCBS—it’s the best option they offer and I pay out the wazoo for my insurance through my employer because I want the best. I also had to complete a 6 month weight loss supervision with MANY requirements. So that’s the story of my mental health past. This is my advice: Find a dedicated Bariatric center. I worked with Georgia Surgicare in my state. They were phenomenal!! I started my journey 10/7/19 and had my surgery 3/3/20. That’s 5 months! GA Surgicare advocated for me! They were actually able to push my surgery up one month because I had completed all requirements and was consistently losing weight. I actually found out because I was losing weight on my own is one of the reasons they allowed me to go early. It proved to them I was serious about this. My start weight was 256.6. Day of surgery I was 230. I’m 5’4” so yeah I was a big girl. I say was because I’m not that girl anymore. I’m 218 today and working every day to become healthier. I will no longer refer to myself like that, that was the old me. On 10/7/19 they weighed me and went over everything. I came back on 11/6/19 and had lost 4 pounds. They finally gave me the packet with all requirements I had to complete. They worked with my insurance and found all providers in my network that they also work with. I had to go to a cardiologist for a heart stress test and ultrasound of my heart. I had to get my PCP and psychiatrist to recommend the surgery—which they did. I had to meet with a nutritionist 3 times and show my food logs. I had to go to a Pulmonologist and have a sleep study, yes I have sleep apnea. The reason I suggest a dedicated Bariatric center is because they provided me everything I had to do. All I had to do was make my appointments and show up. GA Surgicare followed up with all the providers and got my insurance what they needed. I had to do every other week calls with a nurse with Anthem to discuss my progress and developed a rapport with that nurse who also advocated for me. Do your research find a dedicated center. Do your part. Lose weight to the best of your ability and show up for your appointments. It was a whirlwind. It went so fast and so slow at the same time. I wish you the best of luck in this journey that is going to change your life!

It was. But over time I was able to eat around it. You can't really stretch the sleeve, despite what many people (and doctors say), but you can find ways to eat more. Slider foods (simple carbs) go down real easy so it's a slippery slope once on it. There's a reason why not everyone loses everything they need to lose, there's a reason why people regain. Hunger does return. After your stomach heals, it can deal with more food, and even being stuffed. That's why I'm much more conscious of bad habits and most importantly, PORTION CONTROL. One thing I did until recently was eat until I had the "full" feeling. I realised after awhile that this was a comforting feeling and something I needed to feel satisfied. But when I was losing on the sleeve I was much more aware of always being just slightly hungry (without the hunger, if that makes sense). Once I learned what that feeling was, I was okay with it, realising I had more energy. But of course over time the pleasure of being full overtook it. Think of being obese as like being an alcoholic - they are both diseases based on addiction, and once you recover (i.e. surgery/weight loss), you'll have to deal with your addiction for the rest of your life. So many people ask, oh, when can I eat cake again, or cookies, or a pizza, or chocolate...but from my experience I think there are some things that I will always have to avoid, because the chance of falling off the wagon again is too great.

I first started here back in 2016 and let me tell you, although there were a ton of supportive people (especially veterans who were 3-5 years out and had years of experience to draw from, which I find really lacking now), there were also a lot of flame wars and ganging up on people. Whole threads would get shut down, people got banned, and a lot of people left en masse to try out other forums (but I still like this one the best). So the current group of active people here are great, no real shaming for going off-plan, or hurt snowflakes who couldn't take constructive criticism/help for what it was. At least, I haven't seen that since I've been back. It's almost like this is a new place. The little bit of tension that does exist is a pale shadow of what was here before! As for soda (or any carbonated drink), I think in the end it's up to each person to decide if it's worth it for them. I used to be addicted to Diet Coke/Coke Zero, drank at least a litre a day, until one day it just made my gastro-intestinal issues so bad I decided to stop cold turkey (this was years before my sleeve surgery). I never went back. I would occasionally have a Sprite or ginger ale but I wasn't addicted to those so it never got me back to drinking Coke. After my sleeve surgery, about 6 months out, I was with some colleagues at a restaurant and my only choice of drinks (besides water and alcohol) was soda, so I tried a very small ginger ale. I was in so much pain after a couple of sips, not only could I not finish the drink, I couldn't finish the meal. The few other times I've tried anything carbonated over the years has been the same - my stomach just can't handle it. The other thing I would worry about when re-introducing it (or any other "problematic" food/drink) is that it can be an enabler to other foods we shouldn't be eating. While I drank Diet Coke on it's own, I also liked it with pizza, or Doritos, or chips, or pretzels, or... you get the idea. I've learned from my failure with my sleeve that that's what I have to be the most concerned about - not that having something once in a while will throw me off track, but that it will encourage me to try other off-limit foods once in a while, until it becomes a regular habit once again.

I think you're doing really well! I've only lost 3.8 kgs since surgery and that was two weeks ago. Some people lose weight really quickly post-op, for others it's more of a slow burn and then really gets going a few weeks in. Also, in regards to your friends, I find that a lot of people don't understand how weight loss works. Most people think it's a matter of less calories in + more exercise = weight loss. But our bodies are really complicated, much more so than a 2+2=4 equation, and most people who are obese or morbidly obese have other issues, like insulin or leptin-resistance, which can really hinder weight loss. In addition to that we have lower metabolic rates that are difficult to change. There are two contradictory actions when we diet and start an exercise regimen at the same time. The exercise will give a boost to our metabolism, but the diet will slow it down. So in effect they cancel each other out which is why most people plateau after a few weeks and can't figure out why. The body doesn't like change and will always try to get back to where it was, especially metabolism. Also fat cells like being fat and will use any opportunity to fill themselves up again - something to remember when you are 1 or more years post-op. Going back to any old habits will be a very happy reunion for your fat cells, which is what happened to me and why I needed revision surgery. Fat cells never disappear, they are always there, just much smaller than before. Which is why people who were obese before will always struggle with food compared to people who have always (or mostly) been at a healthy weight. And of course most of us probably have real addictions to food, which is difficult to deal with. Compared to drugs or alcohol, none of which are needed to survive, we need to food to live, so have to deal with our addictions every time we eat, go shopping, or are in any other situation involving food. It really is a hard mental game to keep up with. Anyway, I'm just saying this because if you think of losing weight as a race, obese people do not start at the start line with regular (mostly healthy, maybe overweight) people. We are handicapped by our obesity, our metabolism, our brains, our resistance to different hormones, our food addictions, our co-morbidities, etc which puts us way back behind the start line. So we never get a fair "race" compared to our healthier counterparts. But when we get surgery, the loss of part of our stomach basically resets the entire body back to zero, and now we have a more even playing field. We still still have to work at it, and be vigilant with our food choices, but at least we are no longer handicapped by everything else that was preventing success in all the years we were trying to lose weight. I was reading an recent medical journal that says a) obesity is a disease, just like cancer, and should be treated as such, and b) gastric surgery should be renamed metabolic surgery since it has so many positive effects on the body. Honestly, it's now even being considered as a treatment for diabetes, since it has been so successful in eliminating that problem with obese people who had it pre-gastric surgery, but not afterwards. A good book to read (if you haven't already) is "Fat Chance" by Robert Lustig (M.D.) who goes into really good detail about what I explained above. I find educating ourselves with facts is the best way to counter people who will dismiss what we are doing as a "scam". Most people who think that probably have a very limited idea of what weight loss really entails. Finally, you don't need to prove anything to your friends. The only person you need to prove anything to is yourself! Good luck! Stick to the program, don't worry too much about the scale when it doesn't move fast enough or stalls (because that will happen). When it does, focus on non-scale victories, like clothes fitting better, or moving down in size, being more comfortable in a seatbelt, needing to fill the bathtub with more water since you don't displace as much as before (!), finding your collarbones and cheekbones again, etc. You got this!

My motivation came as I was recovering from domestic violence in my last relationship. I had to move away from the area and move in with my family after he took everything from me. I’ve spent the last year in therapy and healing. I moved on March 16th 2019. I gained about 70 to 80 pounds in the last year and half of our relationship. I was eating and drinking alcohol for comfort. Part of regaining control of my life and independence has been this process. I’m grateful to be a year out from the madness of past life and grateful for this new journey becoming the woman I know I am, I can be and will be.

No dumping. However, one has to keep in mind that dumping usually doesn't occur once you eat a gram of sugar. With the MGB, when I ate too much sugar at once I felt queasy. Late dumping only occurred when I also drank alcohol and ate too much sugar.

I had bypass and a hiatal hernia repair. I think total time was about 3 hours. I was walking as soon as I could get out of bed. I was up to 10,000 steps by day 7. Even so, I developed 3 blood clots in my left leg and had to go on a blood thinner for 3 months. At 6 months, I developed an ulcer, even though I do not drink any alcohol at all, do not drink coffee or any caffeinated drinks or soda, and eat a very clean diet. It just happened. But it is all under control now with omeprazole and I go back in 3 weeks for another scope. Then I will be off the omeprazole, hopefully. Still, I do not regret the surgery at all. My little complications are nothing compared to the life I was literally losing to obesity. WLS was one of the best things I ever did for myself.

One problem with doing coke is you don’t know what it’s cut with, and that could also make you sick. I’m not a prude or even anti-recreational drugs in particular, but with this surgery I think an occasional drink if you’re not an alcoholic or an occasional toke, if it’s legal where you live and doesn’t make you ravenous are pretty much the reasonably safe options. I now get drunk from one drink, so be very careful driving.

I'm glad to hear that you no longer want alcohol. That gives me hope. I actually haven't had a drink for three days and I don't miss it. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I was surprised as well. My list from my doctor is: Clear Liquid Diet in hospital (day of surgery + next day) Full Liquid Diet, 1-day post-op - 1-week post-op. Chopped Diet, 1-week post-op - 1-month post-op. Avoid foods with more than 2gm sugar alcohol 8 cups of fluid between meals Take multi-vitamins Exercise - No lifting over 10lbs first eight weeks after surgery. I do have the Premier Protein shakes, which I liked before the surgery, but after the only one I can tolerate is the chocolate one. I do like the clear one, but it is only 20g, but it also counts as a liquid, so that is a win-win. I was all prepared with caffeine-free coffee and everything, but I was told coffee is fine, so happy dance. I do like seaweed, so I am going to get some of those for snacks and just add protein powders to everything I can since 92 grams seems like a lot.

TBH, I know exactly where you are coming from. I too drank a lot before surgery. My poison was vodka—a lot of vodka. I drank vodka the night before my surgery...not much granted. I was scared but it was a clear liquid.... I’m day 6 post op and have zero craving for alcohol and so happy I don’t! I am loving not wanting alcohol! I hope your doing well on your journey. My dr did not test me for anything but pregnancy.

Heres my thing, there is a lot of research done these days, and its proven that taking in medical marijuana by ingesting it, is way healthier then alcohol and doesnt have addictive traits like alcohol. These are facts. Not opinions. I dont encourage anyone to do anything. ONLY MY EXPERIENCE. They day i came home i had my infused coconut oil and i still do to this day. And i think ive been pretty successful. Anyone that takes a prescription drug has no right to tell anyone else that this prescription is different. The days of close minded "marijuana is the devil" are over. Please i encourage you to do your research before you bash something that youve been told your whole life is the devil so thats what you believe. I hope everyone finds what THEY NEED to be successful on this journey. We are all different and may take different roads but i hope we all make healthy new lives and continue to grow. ❤️ i hope everyone has a great day!

Oh I agree a puff on Friday is ok - Or a glass of wine wont kill any of us - But every single person on this site has a addiction issue - None of us could control our weight and food intake! That is a fact, so my view we have to be even more careful during this journey that we are not transferring out addiction to food to say pot or alcohol. We all did this to get healthy and see no health benefits from Pot or Vodka, One thing i know for sure I will die way younger then i should have due to beating he hell out of myself and playing way to hard with Vodka, lifestyle and smoking! Nobody can dispute that fact, I just hope all the work we all are doing to get healthy can offset the damage we have done already

Thank you and yes, I think I have figured it out I take 1 equal in my coffee with FF unsweetened creamer in my coffee and as Batwoman stated it has that sugar alcohol in it so I will start using rhe fairlife I guess as a creamer and try Stevia for a sweetner! Thanks so much!

Agree with all of above. As a GI nurse, I see the bad and the ugly (there is no good) that comes from WLS patients who resume drinking after surgery. The worse ulcers I have ever seen are from that combination. I cannot imagine a bariatric doctor doing surgery on you until the drinking issue is under control. The tissues simply will not heal. That is the issue with smoking, as well. Bariatric surgery is about a lot more than losing weight and looking good. It is about building a healthy lifestyle, resolving comormidities or future comorbidities (high blood pressure, diabetes, GERD, sleep apnea, asthma, stroke, heart attack) and giving someone the chance to have a longer and healthier life. Hanging onto acoholism is in direct opposition to these goals. Perhaps an inpatient treatment program would work for you, but whatever you choose , I wish you the very best in this long, challenging journey. It is highly possible that the over eating and the alcoholism are related - just different branches of the same tree. Serious counselling might be helpful in getting to the root of both problems IMHO.

What works for one does not work for all. I do not drink alcohol of any kind, have never cared for it, and strongly advise against mixing MM and alcohol. By the same token, I don’t believe mixing MM and alcohol was even part of this thread. Used sparingly and PRN, each has its rightful and legal place. The subject of addiction is an entirely different topic.

You are smart to correct your wine habit now, pre-surgery. This is a hard journey. The best I've ever undertaken. But it's hard. And there is cross-addiction susceptibility among our community. And drinking post-wls can be terrible for our bodies and also contribute to regain.Even thought it will delay surgery, it will benefit you in the long run. Praying you can find a group that works for you. I don't think alcoholics can "cut back." I think there's too much back sliding. Do one thing at a time. Take care of the booze problem first. Then clean house and fill it with nourishing food. And start addressing binge eating/night eating. Maybe even seek personal counseling for substance abuse and disordered eating.

So sorry you're going through that, but I totally feel your pain! My particular surgery causes excess... ehm #2 issues and it's not fun. At all. I'll be minding my own business and then suddenly it's like: "RRUUUUNN!" or you have an accident. And I learned that anything with sucralose or sugar alcohols upset my stomach. Stevia is the only way to go for sweetners for me. I hope you can figure out what's causing your issue. I'd suggest maybe monitoring what you're eating and trying to pinpoint it. Hopefully that'll put an end to it.

I agree with the AA plan. I think you need to address your issues with alcohol before you even think about weight loss surgery. The first year after surgery is enough of an emotional roller coaster on its own without trying to stay substance abuse issues.

I'm preop as well and alcohol has also been a problem for me over the past few years. I drink about the same amount as what you've stated here. For me, I see my upcoming ESG as a chance to reset my lifestyle. Not just post-op, but starting from right now (and the ESG giving the opportunity to make the best of this second chance). Not many people get a second chance, so I'll make the best of it I can.

Technically if you stopped drinking and didn't change anything about your eating habits you should lose 1 to 1.5 lbs a week. A bottle of wine has about 600 calories and you need to burn 3500 calories to lose a lb. So you're taking in an extra 4200 calories a week. So if you cut those out you should lose at last a lb a week. But for someone who is drinking that much and trying to stop you may find yourself snacking more or wanting sweets which is going to cancel out some of those calories. I suggest buying some sugar free hard candies to have on hand if you need them. Coming from a family of alcoholics I urge you to get help if you need it. Don't let it t

sometimes too many carbs or else sugar alcohols will do that to (some) people (sugar alcohols are artificial sweeteners that end in -itol. Like sorbitol or xylitol)