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I found the best way to get rid of the cravings was just to accept that, at least for me, certain carbs are like alcohol to an alcoholic. Once I limited my carbs to the low carb vegies and stopped using anything that had sugar, wheat or gluten in it, my cravings actually stopped. .

Wait WHAT!?!?! You had five drinks and drove an hour later? :faint: Yeah i live like 10 minutes from where we were and was perfectly fine. I danced and pee'd it off. And we ate food afterwards so i was fine. The only way your body can get rid of alcohol is through your liver. Dancing and peeing will not help your body metabolise alcohol. Only time. You were a massive danger to yourself and other road users.

I would think that people may begin to start going back to bad habits. Although candy, alcohol and other things like that don't take up a lot of space, they have a lot of calories in them. So instead of trying to eat like they did in the beginning...they have changed their habits.

I understand where you are coming from. My husband and i have been married for 20 1/2 years. He has been with me thru everything. When we got together i was a size 0-3.... over the years i ballooned up to a size 18. Never has he said anything to me about my weight, but it did effect our marriage. For the past few years before LB... we maybe had sex 2-3 times a year... yes you heard me right... a year. This was not all his fault, i could not stand my self and it did effect everything. He is 6'4" and is NOW in great shape, but he went thru a "fat" stage also. Thru the years i wondered if we would make it. Well we hung in and things are getting better. My confidence has gone up and the new found "sex-life" is amazing. We do still have our issues. I getting use to the attention that i use to get from men that disappeared for years... again. Oh, we still fuss and argue all the time.... but it is what it is. Everyone goes thru tuff times no matter if you had WLS or not............... im going to share something with you that has gotten me thru the years of doubt. My grandma told me this ....... you know what you have.., but you never know what you'll get. Every man has issues, don't trade one for the other. Ask yourself these questions: Does he hit me, do drugs, alcoholism, verbally abusive?...... If you answer no to all these, then stay put... Last year he and i took a weekend away, just the two of us and rekindled our relationship...... if you can, try this.. it might help. Best of luck to you....... and you need not apologize for awkward.... opinion are like a$$ holes.... everyone has one.

If you use search for "alcohol", you will see you are going to get a myriad of answers. Many programs ask that you wait 6 months to a year; however, there are many people that imbibe much earlier. As you make that decision, here are a few things to keep in mind: 1) Alcohol is pure liquid calories. You need to track it and only use non-calorie mixers if you are going to drink. 2) Please know that MANY people struggle with alcohol addiction after WLS. It is very common so be very very cautious. 3) Do not eat when you drink. Don't let your drinking lower your resolve to stay on a plan. 4) Remember you are in a honeymoon phase and need to do everything you can to take advantage of that time. Does alcohol really fit in to that? 5) Remember that alcohol may hit you faster and could potentially make you sick. If you are going to drink, I would suggest trying at home first so you know how it will affect you. Will having a drink this early out kill you - likely not. Just because you can, does it mean you should - likely not. You have to make the best decision for yourself knowing all the risk factors. Also, let me say this - I am 8 1/2 months post-op. I have had 1/2 of a glass of sangria and 1/2 of a bloody mary during this time (1 around 7 months post-op and 1 about 8 months post-op). I am headed out on vacation to an all inclusive resort where in the past, I have enjoyed a few adult beverages. I talked to my NUT this week and she said I should try to restrict my drinks to 1 per day. That is not likely to happen and I told her that. I will be cautious. I will track it. I will exercise in hopes to keep the calories from stacking up too much, but I am going to try to enjoy my vacation and stay on plan in all the ways I can - Protein, Vitamins, Fluid, exercise and most importantly for me, I have to make sure that when I return I do not use it as an excuse to return to my old lifestyle. We have been given a gift in the form of WLS and I want my life to be different here on out. If alcohol turns out to be a stumbling block for me personally, then it is something I will have to stay away from.

Wow there are some real judgey people. Use your own common sense. A drink now and then is fine if you want. That your thinking about it being a red flag is proposterous if you are talking about 1 or 2 social drinks. They have some alcohol hang ups to say that. Good luck!!

I think that you should not drink at all. At 2 weeks out that your even thinking about it is a red flag in my opinion. I went through a 6 month support / educational class before my insurance would give me my surgery date and all I ever heard when we spoke about alcohol was "no". No more, none, never, full of empty calories and bypassed people have a very high chance of becoming alcoholics......just say no!

So today is my first day of pre-op. Being in the UK it's bedtime soon so I've had my day and all has gone well! I'm not really an eater so the lack of intake is ok with me. Water, Protein shake, water, water and 3oz of roast beef with a good salad. I'm sure it will get 'tense' as I head towards the op on September 13th (thankfully not a Friday!) I had a great party this weekend where I drank for to much as I said goodbye to Alcohol.... For now. So I'm starting my journey at 358lbs. Apprehensive, nervous not knowing what you don't know BUT double exited. A lot of you guys have inspired me to get this done and if I get anywhere near your successes. I will be delighted. Ollie

My granddaughter celebrates her half-birthday- so in 6 mos give yourself a party! It may not be a pig-out alcohol infused affair, but you are going to feel great and you will be much happier!

This is very true and there have been lots of studies about it. If we BAN a food it makes it more attractive and we crave it more. If we know that it is allowed ( as a sometimes food) it loses its power. Having said that though there are some people that cannot stop at 1 bite, once they start they have to eat the whole packet . A bit like an alcoholic that cannot safely have just 1 drink . If this isn't you then I don't see the harm in factoring intreats, so long as you account for them and they don't become a habit.

Hi All, Newbie here😀. Wanna share my journey in getting sleeved & how its turning out so far. Am 40 Yrs old. Gained weight in last 2 years (from 320 lbs to 427lbs) due to severe depression & alcohol abuse. Suffering from Anxiety & panic attacks. So with courage from my wife & family went & sought help in June 2018. Quit Drinking in Sep. Have been sober since. Was smoking till Dec 28th 2018. Not much. May be 5-6 V light slim cigarettes a day. Have had hypertension for last 10 yrs. No Sugar. No diabetes. No Cholesterol issues as well. Got admitted on 29th Dec. Had my Laparoscopic Sleeve done on the 30th of Dec. Got discharged from Hospital on the 1st of Jan 2019. It was a wonderful homecoming. Have been recommended a liquid diet by the team for 3 months. I asked the team if i could swim as even prior to getting sleeved i used to swim 2 times daily. Surprisingly they okeyed me to swim and did water proof dressings for the stitches which we replace after disinfecting every day after i swim. Its been a week today since the surgery. I have been swimming for 3 days regularly now. I feel soooooo different. Sorry for the long first post. More to follow. Glad to be a part off this great community.

If you didn't know.....Acid reflux/ heartburn/GERD is due to too little stomach acid. I agree with these articles about how it all works. apparently hydrochloric acid supplements are real cheap might be worth a try! Knowledge is Power ya'll.😊 "clinicians have found that giving hydrochloric acid supplements to patients with heartburn and GERD often cures their problem:" Vitamin D level is about 60 ng/ml, and I strongly recommend you use LabCorp, which is a high quality testing facility. As I’ve discussed in many previous articles, you can increase your Vitamin D levels through food triggers -- Food allergies can be a problem, so you’ll want to completely eliminate items such as caffeine, alcohol, and all nicotine products. Increasing your body’s natural production of stomach acid -- Like I said earlier, acid reflux is not caused by too much acid in your stomach -- it’s usually a problem with too little acid. One of the simplest strategies to encourage your body to make sufficient amounts of hydrochloric acid (stomach acid) is to consume enough of the raw material. One of the simplest, most basic food items that many people neglect is a high quality sea salt (unprocessed salt). I recommend eliminating processed, regular table salt for a lot of different reasons, all of which I’ve reviewed before. But an unprocessed salt like Himalayan salt -- one of the best salts on the planet – will not only provide you with the chloride your body needs to make hydrochloric acid, it also contains over 80 trace minerals your body needs to perform optimally, biochemically. Taking a hydrochloric acid supplement – Another option is to take a betaine hydrochloric supplement, which is available in health food stores without prescription. You’ll want to take as many as you need to get the slightest burning sensation and then decrease by one capsule. This will help your body to better digest your food, and will also help kill the helicobacter and normalize your symptoms. Modifying your diet – Eating large amounts of processed foods and sugars is a surefire way to exacerbate acid reflux as it will upset the bacterial balance in your stomach and intestine. Instead, you’ll want to eat a lot of vegetables, and high quality, organic, biodynamic, and locally grown foods. You can also supplement with a high quality probiotic or make sure you include fermented foods in your diet. This will help balance your bowel flora, which can help eliminate helicobacter naturally. Optimizing your vitamin D levels -- As I’ve mentioned many times in the past, vitamin D is essential, and it’s essential for this condition as well because there’s likely an infectious component causing the problem. Once your vitamin D levels are optimized, you’re also going to optimize your production of 200 antimicrobial peptides that will help your body eradicate anyinfections that shouldn’t be there. Implementing an exercise routine – Exercise is yet another way to improve your body’s immune system, which is imperative to fight off all kinds of infections.http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/25/news-flash-acid-reflux-caused-by-too-little-acid-not-too-much.aspx

Yes we certainly will be cheap dates...lol. I think being able to have a glass of wine with dinner occasionally will be the thing I miss the most, but hey, the odd small glass of low alcohol wine can now be dessert Thanks for the message, I have sent a request to join that group. The thing I am excited about the most is being able to take my daughter to the beach or pool next summer and not feel self conscious about my weight.

January 16, 2017 ============== 9 days until my next appointment. At my first appt way back in June, I was told I needed to be at 253.2 (about 250-251) by my home scale) and have all other requirements met before they would schedule my surgeon meeting. A few months ago (after meeting all requirements except the weight loss), they told me they if I could get to within 5 lbs of that goal, they'd schedule me. At my Dec appt, I was 6lbs over my goal. Yep. Grrr. As of this morning I was 254.8 on my scale, putting me within 4-5 lbs on my home scale!!! I am down over 3 since my Dec appt (again, based on my home scale). So I have 9 more days to drop another couple lbs and get safely into that 5 lb range. My diet since Christmas has been lots of Water, high protein/ low carb. No caffeine, no alcohol, no excess sugar, etc. Lots of sleep. I have lost 3 lbs since Jan 1st with this. Let's see how much more I can lose!! Fingers crossed my body cooperates on WI day I plan to bring a change of light clothes with me to put on before I weigh. Jeans can't be helping Sent from my Nexus 5X using the BariatricPal App

My surgeon says ABSOLUTELY NO ALCOHOL for the first year and then only in small amounts after. I know when I drank alcohol before I was sleeved and "ate well" my weight wouldn't budge or it would increase. Alcohol really does a number on the body. I would recommend stopping alcohol altogether until you reach your goal. I love red wine, but I have no intention of having any until after I've hit my goal. I just don't want to fall into my old habits of just having one glass a night before bed. It stalled me preop and I have no doubt it would stall me now. Since surgery, I haven't even craved it. I guess we will see where I am in 6 months, but I personally am not opening that door! Good luck, I hope you can get yourself back on track. Just remember the sleeve is a tool, not a quick fix. We are all in the same boat. I wish you well.

Chewing gum makes you produce more spit, which makes you swallow more, plus sugar free gums have manitol / sorbitol in it which is a sugar alcohol and that alone can cause alot of gas. I was wondering about chewing gum while banded.. guess I don't have to ask LOL. Nes, I'm glad you passed the gum, I can't imagine what that would have felt like if you didn't ICK !!!! Thanks for posting about your experience.

CalorieKing has some good food ideas, i joined up and finally made my way around the site, but you can make up your own menus with their suggested food and it counts the calories for you so basically after you put in your details it calculates what your calory intake should be and works it from there. EG: (First number is cals, 2nd is Kj) Breakfast (x) 3/4 cup of low fat milk, 1% 86 361 (x) 1 cup of Uncle Toby's Fibreplus 106 441 (x) 1 cup, mashed (225g) of Fruit, fresh: banana, raw, edible portion 200 835 Meal Total 392 1637 lunch Load Meal | Save Meal Cals kJ (x) 1 serving, 100g can drained (90g) of John West: Fish, canned: Light Tuna Tempters, Onion & Tomato, Drained 81 340 (x) 3 cracker (3.2g) of Arnott's: Crackers: Jatz 97% Fat Free 39 162 Meal Total 120 502 dinner Load Meal | Save Meal Cals kJ (x) 1 small serving of fruit 50 210 (x) 1 serving of Steamed Fish with Rice and Broccoli (View Recipe) 323 1342 (x) 3 cups of tea or coffee, black 36 162 (throughout day) (x) 1 carton (200g) of Yoghurt: Fruit Flavoured, Fat-Free / Diet, Average All Flavours 94 390 Meal Total 503 2104 Snacks Load Meal | Save Meal Cals kJ (x) 1 tablespoon of peanuts 168 693 (x) 2 cups of popcorn, air-popped 54 225 Meal Total 222 918 Food Total Cals kJ Day Total 1237 5161 This is an example when i was playing around trying to figure it all out.. Then at the bottom after all that it says: You have used 1237 out of your net daily budget of 1470 calories and have 233 calories remaining. 17% of the calories are from fat, 29% from Protein, 54% from carbs and 0% from alcohol. Anyhow i thought it was great and helps when making htose choices of what to eat to ensure you arent eating too much or too little.. AUSTRALIA: CalorieKing.com.au - Australian Online Diet and weight loss club. Lose weight for good! AMERICA: CalorieKing - Diet and weight loss. Calorie Counter and more. Shell

khath0620, I think it is a good idea to drop the alcohol. Remember it is a lot of calories for nothing more than a buz. I don't drink so this is easy for me to say; but I would rather eat a good cookie than have drink (yes I know alcohol does'nt have any fat!). Will you be bringing food to these parties? If so you might consider bringing shrimp coctail (expensive I know, and some bansters have trouble with shrimp); becuase they would be a good high protein, low fat option for you to eat.

Thanks everyone for the support. I really needed it! I still have 3 more holiday parties to go but I am planning on Protein 1st, dropping the carbs and no alcohol. I am a total carb/sugar addict so if I can steer clear of those, I think I will be in better shape! Happy Holidays to you all! The New Year is going to be GREAT! Katie

I'm 11 days post op. I had vsg in Mexico, my doctor didn't really give me a good plan, but my coordinator just told me 2 weeks of liquids, 2 weeks purée she said I should be able to eat almost everything except bread, alcohol, at thanksgiving, I've had yogurt egg drop Soup, chiken pea soup, jellos. What has I believed really helped my stomach is kiefer (probiotic) no flavor with a little honey and I feel like it's just helps I have had 2 very small bowel movement. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

My husband said something about someone "being fat" and not really in a mean way if you can describe someone as fat in a NOT mean way but I quickly corrected him. I don't care if I end up a size 2, I am always going to be fat because I can never see a day when food is not my issue. I could care less about drugs, alcohol or cigarettes- but leave me alone with a box of donuts and I am still that fat girl.

Thanks for posting that website. I always joke that I like to eat my calories, not drink them. My surgeon's rules were no alcohol for 1 year post-op (he also admitted that it was the most commonly broken rule.) I did it though, and made it through the first year and no alcohol. For everyone who is struggling, get back to basics, detox from the sugar, carbs and alcohol, and get back on track. Use your tool, don't waste this gift you've been given!

I never went into this journey blind. I knew this was just a tool to help me with this life long struggle of losing weight. but i have fallen back into the same old pattern. The only difference is i cant eat much. i dont eat alot of bread or those kind of carbs veggies make me extremely gassy even though i was blaming bread im nvr thirst so i have a hard time drinking water. i still can drink alcohol like i used to which i plan to give up starting tomorrow so that i can get this back on track. what through me off is the stall i have been in for a long time. i cant shake it. but now i have even gained 4 pounds. what the heck. the once a week that i do have a beer or two or more you wouldnt think would stop my weightloss. the carbs i dont eat you think would help but it aint. the most i might consume for calories is 1000 cals. that if i am eating bread or candy or crap like that. im frustrated im disappointed. i dont know what to do with myself. and the slips with the food or the drinkin is all cause im disappointed. I think i am gonna try boot camp and see where i go from there because i cannot handle this. this feels worse than when i would diet before. except before i know i consumed to many calories. where now i aint even eating 1/4 of them and still no loss.grrrr. anyone else experience an almost 2 month stall? my weight has maybe changed by 2 lbs in the last month or 2. i still have 90lbs to lose before my goal and i am almost 5months out and still only down 42lbs. HELP

O lord people, didn't you read her post and request to not reply with the criticism about it being so early in her journey? To the poster, have your self a drink, dear and enjoy your birthday. If your stomach isn't liking it, im sure it'll let you know and stop. I had a girls night about this time after my surgery, which included several glasses of wine. Didn't hit me any faster than preband, my band didn't fall off, and I'm still losing weight. One day of alcohol isn't going to hurt you IMO. I hope you have a fabulous birthday.

I think before surgery eating was in part due to control. You may not be able to control the world around you but you sure can control what you eat even if it seems that's out of control. Even if we think we can't control our eating the truth is we do. And let's just be honest we liked eating. We liked it so much it became our drug of choice to the point our bio feedback mechanism was to set eat more. It was killing us but we couldn't stop. The live to eat syndrome. How different is that from anorexia, drugs or alcohol. I would argue there is very little difference. But I do think some of us are more predisposed to overeating and some of us are more predisposed to alcoholism. All part of the human condition. For me, and this is a journey by no means over, it has been about relinquishing control. Coming to an understanding that I don't have control. Throwing up because I was eating too much after surgery, in a way, was the best thing that happened to me. Mind you eating too much is eating 1/2 cup instead of 1/4 cup and two tablespoons. Not a binge but I certainly was looking for that full feeling that relaxes you. Guess what, it's not there anymore. It's, I am eating and then I fall of the cliff. A all is well goes to I have to throw up in a second flat. I have no choice regarding that. I am bound by the physical reality. My surgery is calling the shots, not me. I have very little control. Then, it became all about I don't know how to do this. I have to follow this plan very closely because I don't know how to do this. I don't know how to eat. Imagine how devastating and enlightening this can be at the same time. Once I realized this I was much happier because my choices are more sensible and I don't fight the reality. I back of from this need to eat what I want. Does this mean I won't try to push the envelop? Probably not, but I have to start somewhere. I am relearning how to eat. With 42 pounds lost I feel 100% better and this alone keeps me going. I am over the moon!