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Alcohol is my achellies heel. I love it and love wine in the evening. I know I would be losing weight much faster if I stayed away from it. It is high in caolries and it makes me snack more. ARGH!!!

I think already (13 days post op) I am eating pretty much "normal foods" I just make myself live by certain taboos: no caffeine, no fast food, no bread, no soda, no alcohol. I'm just eating much smaller amounts. Oh, and roasted chickpeas...they got stuck.

Haha, I never liked alcohol much, I guess I'm weird. But that is almost an entire days worth of calories... that's nuts!

Yep, that was me too. My problems with my weight were never about hunger ... at least not physical hunger. My problem has always been head hunger, eating over emotion, just about ANY emotion. So, eight months before my surgery I started seeing a therapist, an obesity therapist. Had a session today, it was great!! Journaling works for some, others keep a food diary ... my therapist has had me do both. I won't tell you that things are always smooth sailing, but the head hunger is soooo much better than before. Now, when I want to eat but I know I am not hungry, I take a moment to think about what I am feeling and why I think food will make things better. Usually I am able to "talk myself down from the ledge" LOL But, I've been at this so long now that I just take the short cut: I ask myself if it's time to eat and if the answer is "no" then I think about how eating over an emotion will make my journey to my goal weight that much longer ... so I skip it. It took a while to get to the "short cut" point, but I got there. I have an example tonight. I thought about having a glass of wine or two. I don't drink often, but hey, it's Saturday night and I have a bottle in the fridge. Well, alcohol is just wasted calories and will wipe out much of the exercise I did this week so, I'm skipping it ... just not worth it. Today, it's not a big deal ... that wasn't always the case, denying myself something was just not an option in the past. Hang in there, find ways to break the old habits. You can get a lot of good advice on this forum. Take what you can use and leave the rest behind. All the best to you on your journey.

See my nutritionist and doctor didn't give me a calorie limit, just to make smarter choices, and try to avoid sugar, alcohol, bread, fast food, etc. I don't eat regular 3 meals a day, I more 'graze' during a normal day, because I work a crazy schedule. I wonder where they get 600 calories a day, did anyone hear reasoning behind that? It doesn't seem like enough? And that I need to eat atleast 60g of Protein a day.

Be careful though. I've lost over 100 lbs and I went out with my sister and brother in law for some Mexican food. I had 2 pina coladas and that was enough to make me wobbly. I was almost 300 lbs prior to surgery and alcohol did little to me then. I had to be reminded that it will definitely affect me now! LOL!

Congratulations on giving yourself the gift of a new you and the permission to become the fabulous person on the outside that you already are on the inside. What a great way to start off a new year. The lap band will not only help you become a smaller you but more importantly, a healthier you, a happier you, an all around best you can be you! I'm excited for you. You don't need to tell anyone if you don't want to. And please, please, please don't be embarrassed. I went through the same thing then I realized something.... Smokers have Chantix & Wellbutrin. Drug addicts have re-hab. Alcoholics have Antibuse. Almost all other personal 'issues' or disorders have socially acceptable help. What makes you think that you don't deserve help too? You do. You deserve help just like everyone else. The lap band is the tool you will use to gain control over your food issues and help you develop a great relationship with food. And the best part is, you'll lose weight in the process. Being overweight isn't about lack of self control or laziness, we know that, but sometimes other's dont. As you look around and try to figure out what everyone else is thinking about you, remember this...."They don't know you! They don't know what your life is like. They have no right to judge." Do not give your personal power away to anyone. Walk on proudly knowing that you had the guts to make a change in your life. I guarantee that all those 'perfect' people you see out there, male or female, have got some 'issue' hidden somewhere. We, as overweight people, just keep our issues a little more visible than they do. But not for long. Just remember, the lap band is a tool and like any tool you can chose to use it to its fullest potential or you can throw it in the shed with all the other tools. Use it and all the resources your doctor's office provides and you should do well. Best of luck for you and enjoy this lap-band journey.

I love the Oh Yeah Peanut butter chocolate bars and the Premeire from Costco. Neither one has sugar alcohol in them.

July 1 was my last smoke. Cold turkey sucks. I still get the cravings. I dunno about the alcohol though. Thats gonna be much more difficult!

It is mainly the wasted calories that makes alcohol a discouraged beverage. But, everything in moderation. I was released for alcohol consumption 3.5 months post-op with a warning to avoid red wines. I waited until after I was at goal to drink wine. I had one glass stretched out over an hour. It hit me hard, and fast then I sobered up fast. Now, my tolerance is back to what it was pre-op. I drink very, very socially, and tie one on monthly. I don't ever see a weight gain, nor do I get hangovers, but I am also in maintenance. A lot of sleeve patients choose to partake in alcohol before reaching goal report stalling, or it slowing down their loss. If you figure it into your caloric intake, then just following it up with tons of clear fluids.

Most doctors allow alcohol after a few months. I started having a drink occasionally after 2 1/2 months, the main thing is the empty calories, but I do enjoy a cocktail or 2 on the weekends now that I'm nearly 5 months out. I lost my taste for wine though which is sad in a way, but my surgereon says it usually returns at some point. Each surgeon has different guidelines so you're better off asking. I'm off to have a drink now that it's friday night

I admit that I like to drink. In the last year I have cut my alcohol use down significantly from a cocktail or two per night to one-two per week instead. I also make smaller ones than I used to. After VSG why are we not supposed to drink alcohol? Is it just the extra [empty] calories or is there another reason? I have already cut down from 7 oz martinis to 3 oz ones. I have 1.5 oz martini glasses I can switch to in my bar if it is just the calories. I do enjoy drinking wine as well and have cut down from 3-5 bottles per week to just 1. If there is another health issue other than the calories? It is no big deal to drop my consumption to almost nothing but really don't want to lose the booze completely (although I am willing to do that if necessary).

My gas pains disappeared Day 4- thankfully as I can't buy gas x where I live. I hope yours goes soon Amy. Heat pads and walking helped too and I'm sure managing to sleep on my left side helped. I know if you need to get rid of wind, if you lay on your left side it will come up, so maybe this helped me too??? I live overseas (Middle East) and things are often done differently here. So, I would love to hear what your Dr's are saying about your diet. I'm on a liquid diet for 2 weeks which includes homemade Soups with lots of Protein, diet yoghurt and fresh juices. Week 3 I'm allowed the soups to become a little thicker and introduce more pureed food and then week 4 he said I should be able to eat normally again! Which will be one day short of Christmas day!! What are your Dr's telling you? And- Is anyone allowed a glass of wine (alcohol) on Christmas Day? I haven't asked as this is a muslim country and my Dr is also Muslim. I don't want to offend anyone or let them think I'm an alcho lol I was thinking that 1 glass might be OK but not sure. What are your opinions on this?? I will be nearly 3 weeks banded by that stage. Thanks!

I'm so relieved to read that some people are trying 'mushies', I'm not the only one. Banded on 12-6, and feeling alot better this week. I haven't been walking too much, because I feel "protective" of my belly, just normal walking around stores, down to my local post office, etc. It's also been 22 degrees outside here in Delaware, BRRR!! I can't wait til I can horseback ride, I will clear it with my doctor next Tuesday, she's pretty conservative, so I dont know what she will say. I'm not having bread, or anything too "hard or scratchy". I've been living mainly on scrambled eggs with some ricotta cheese mixed in, soups, hot chocolate protein powders, cream of wheat, lots of fluids. It's so hard to break the habit of eating while drinking, ie washing things down. No soda, no coffee, no alcohol, no bread, no sugar. Wow I'd lose weight following that alone, based on how much sugar and bread I used to eat! I made the mistake of trying to be polite and basically "peeled" a chicken finger to eat, with some squash at TGI Fridays for lunch, and my stomach gave me hell to pay. I was so rumbley with diarrhea. I thought I'd explode like a seagull with an Alka-Seltzer. I'm terrified of "messing up" my pouch, by trying mushies too early. But I cannot stand any more full liquid diet. Everything in moderation I guess. Anyone else having this fear, of "messing up"? B

My band is actually the opposite with alcohol. I never used to really have a problem while drinking but recently whenever I drink my band closes up for days! I mean not a little but a whole lot. Sometimes even drinking tea after a night of a few drinks is hard. Just like our bands and fills are different so is our tolerance for dinner foods, drinks etc. I am actually going for another unfill in a few days because my band is getting tighter over time and it is becoming unbearable to even have a sip of wine at dinner every once and a while.

I drink vodka cranberry juice, I had to give up the diet coke because of no carbonation rule. Alcohol is okay in moderation. I usually save some calories during the day if I know I am going out for drinks. But I make sure to eat about an hour before because drinking alcohol makes me hungry and I know I can't eat anything because I would end up eating junk. And I am only 6 pounds away from goal.

Hi! I hope you don't mind me asking a question. Prior to the band I enjoyed having a few cocktails with vodka, lime & club soda being a preference. I have been scared to try club soda in anything because I was warned off any carbonation (alcohol too,but hey, I'm not perfect!LOL) so my question is... Does the tonic bother you at all? I heard it could cause discomfort. I've been drinking Water and a piece of lime with my vodka but would love a little soda! And Yes, to the alcohol naysayers, I, too, know the disadvantages of drinking alcohol Cheers!

All I know is you aren't supposed to drink alcohol or caffine right? Caffine is because it makes you hungry... Alcohol I assume because you don't eat much and it's a of slider calories.

Hey all, sorry, I haven't posted on here since I was pre-op. A little background...I had my surgery Jan 18th of this year, with a starting weight of 244 (I'm 5'6"). I'm currently at 160, and haven't had any major problems with my band (very few incidences of PBing, reflux, etc.). I'm trying to get the remaining twenty lbs off me as soon as possible, because I was a self-pay and my year of free doctor visits/fills expires on 1/18/11 (I'm not trying to REACH my goal weight by then, just trying to get as close to is as healthily possible). I've kept my band tight, but not tight enough to cause discomfort, with the exception of the past week. I had my last fill a week ago, and I was fine the first few days, and now it takes a little while for water/protein drinks to go down, and food is basically non-negotiable. I haven't thrown up, I'm very careful about that. I am definitely going in for a slight unfill tomorrow morning, but I've noticed that if I have a few drinks (I like gin and tonic) my band loosens up and I can eat food! Is this normal? Has anyone else experienced this? I know alcohol is a diuretic, but so is caffeine and caffeine TIGHTENS my band!! Hope someone else has experienced this and give me some insight as to why this happens. Also, just to clarify, I know I shouldn't be having alcohol since it leeches vitamins from the system and is empty calories.

Meredith, I was going to OA for a while then all my job crap got in the way i was looking to going back cause it help to be around people who had eating issues. I would say I am a compulsive eater as well. I forgot who it was but someone on this board was talking to me about it. You can go online and get information about meetings and they will send you information as well. I think it is hard for people like our group because our addiction is food and we need food to live unlike people who are in NA or AA who can just put themselves in an enviroment that does not contain the Drugs or Alcohol. I know in OA that is a book and a workbook basically it is the same 12 steps like AA. I did find it informative and like I said once I get settle into my new job I going to get myself back together with a plan of attack to get myself under control and losing again. I have a couple of more days of orientation and then I start working in my dept most likely Thurs so then I will know more of what is expected of me.

Thanks for the recipes, Apples. I will do the asparagus for sure and will do the roast if I don't find a good prime rib. This will help a lot. I will have to use everyday dishes as that's all I really have except for possibly my mom's set of the blue and white Currier and Ives dishes everyone had in her day. We are really boring when it comes to beverages, DH & I have diet coke or water. We don't drink much alcohol, or tea or coffee just because we don't like it not because we have any issue with it. What should i have to drink??? Is instant coffee a bad thing? I do have a really old coffee maker my kids complain about when they visit (tends to get a lot of grounds in the coffee somehow). Wine? what kind??

Sugar alcohols are sweeteners that don't affect tooth decay (so you'll find them in SF gum & mints). Sorbitol, manitol, a bunch of others - they've been around for ages. But some people have gastrointestinal reactions - gas, bloating, rumbling, etc. Nasty! I chew SF gum now and again, but I found out the hard way not to eat a whole roll of SF mints!

Though my banding wont happen until some time early next year (Jan or Feb) I have decided to use this time before hand as my "rehearsal dinner"- changing my eating habbits, re-evaluating my relationships (healthy and unhealthy ones) with those in my life, realizing that I AM worth a lot more than I've allowed myself to feel and be treated lately.... Last night was a "going away party" for a friend who is moving to Hawaii- because I had to be at work pretty early this morning (630am), I didnt do the whole "partying" thing with them- but I did join them for dinner at Carrabba's (Italian restaurant). I made pretty healthy decisions as far as what to eat-- Blackened Talapia, fresh green beans, and a ceaser salad. Sure, I ate basically everything, but it wasn't a huge bowl of pasta with a cream sauce! I tried to time my meal so that it took the recommended 20 minuts to eat- chewed each bite at least 30 times, etc... It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be lol! And, I don't really think I drank much while eating either- which is really a big deal for me, because I'm usually gulping down something! (Even if it's just water!) This morning for breakfast I had some string cheese and a chocolate-peanut butter protein shake- which is actually delicious! I will have something to eat at 1030ish (4 hours after breakfast)- and continue to try to follow the through with the right decisions and hopefully form that as a new habbit BEFORE I'm banded... Now, the relationship part is a little tougher... my weight isn't 100% to blame on my relationship issues- it's self esteem issues in general, growing up with an alcoholic father, dealing with abandonment issues, parents who always cheated on each other- etc. So, obviously I've made a lot of bad decisions when it comes to who I've dated in the past- 95% of them were cheaters themselves, my ex husband is an alcoholic, etc... Yes, I'm lonely most of the time, yes I enjoy having someone show me affection, yes I probably settle for less than I deserve... Wait, scratch that- there is no "Probably" about it- I DO settle for less than I deserve, or at least-- I DID! I was so desperate for someone's affection that I didn't take the time to be picky about WHO was giving it to me... And sadly, those people are still in my life. Making an apperance when THEY want to- not when I want them to (well, I always want them to, but you know what I mean!) So quick to say yes when they ask if they can come over, so quick to letting them in to hang out and watch a movie- KNOWING what the out come will be later-- so quick to forget the anger I have towards them, the resentment, the pain... all for what? A night of forgetting about my loneliness, only to feel even more lonely when I don't get a phone call the day after, or even the week after? That's ludacris!!!! So as part of the "new me" that I'm working hard to create, even before I get a lap-band, I WILL NOT put up with it anymore... I will not be someone's option when I've made them my priority for so long- they are now just my option- and honestly, they aren't even my best option! I'm going to learn to be conent with what I already have in my life, I'm going to learn how to take care of myself- physically and emotionally- because once I can do that, then there are no excuses for someone else not to take care of me in those same ways!!! No more using me, no more making me question myself when it's been them doing the wrongs, no more thinking "well, I guess this is all that I deserve"-- SCREW THAT! Even being fat I know that I deserve to have someone in my life to look at me and think I'm the most beautiful girl in the world, I deserve someone who is going to be open and HONEST with me, someone who is going to be loyal, and someone who is going to treat me the same way I've been treating others! I took the first step last night- "he" came to dinner last night, and normally he would have come home with me, watched a movie or whatever, and well, I don't have to spell it out... but when he hugged me goodbye, I turned my face so he couldn't kiss me goodbye, got into my car quick enough that he couldnt even have the chance to invite me over or ask if he could come over- and when he sent a text a few minutes later (of course saying BS like "you should have come over for dessert"--- gag me!!!) I sent back- "Sorry- I'm learning to be selfish and putting myself first- satisfying you is not on my to-do list... you can be my FRIEND- and that's exactly how you will be treated" I am finding "myself"- the girl that I've always been, but let others push into the corner... I am going to have moments of weakness, sure- we all do right? But I will have the courage to pick myself up and give it another try every time I fall! :clap:

So after some arm wrestling i got blue cross to cry uncle, had my pre-op clearance, and I'm scheduled for wednesday AM (dec 15 -- Northwestern in Chicago). I have been *so* good for the past two weeks. stopped smoking, stopped drinking, did not let one carb pass my lips. Even was compliant on that damn CPAP machine. I hate that (*^_($^(# thing. Tonight, after confirming alcohol was not a carb, I went ahead and had a couple (vodka). Smack me with a noodle, but i was starting to lose it. What a really wanted was a going away party with white castle, but I held back. I actually don't mind the whole Protein shake thing. I got a gold card at GNC, and I think the 42G protein shots are fine. I honestly like those Ostrim meat stick things. So that 'll be fine. I'm pretty sure the "iso" whey thing is just a marketing gimmick, so clue a brother in on that. thoughts? What i'm gong to miss is pizza. and crusty bread. Crap -- I'll stop talking. Look at the audience -- im sure you know what i mean. So anyway, glad I found this group. I may need some help doing those ticker updates. Tomorrow I take my "before" measurements and pics, even though I've already lost 8 lbs on the pre-op diet. I'm ready. cheers.

I was allowed alcohol (1 drink once in a while) after 2 months. I used to be a party girl myself, the first time I went out after surgery i managed 2 cocktails (cosmos I think) and I'll have a drink every now and again, mostly diet coke with rum or vodka (lower calories) but as Julie said beware, because they are empty calories! I completely lost mu taste for wine (red, white even rose which I used to love!) I do hope i get to love my wine again!