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I put on coconut oil after every shower (going with the Bahamas theme) ???? so would they still stick if I cleaned the area off with some rubbing alcohol. Sent from my Y538 using the BariatricPal App

@@Destiny66 hello I don't know how strict your program is but my surgeon was very strict if u gained he wouldn't do the surgery 6- 10lbs isn't horrific get on south beach phase one today no carbs sugar pasta rice bread etc proteins and vegs only no soda no alcohol exercise as much as u can u should lose most of it hopefully if your only up a 1 lb or 2 they will overlook it lol good luck to u

The thing about torrid love affairs is they never end with a clean break. Sure, you have every reason to think it’s over. You changed your phone number, attended a weekly support group, burned every picture of the two of you together and started dating a healthier, saner person - one your friends actually like. But passionate romances don’t die until the second or third bullet. There’s always at least one steamy reconciliation before the thing is finally stone cold dead. You’ll run into your ex at the store and go a little weak at the knees, or you’ll send a gushing e-mail on a lonely Friday night, or you’ll decide that avoidance is childish and the grownup thing to do is at least be friends. Before you know it, you’re right back where you were, and after the initial exhilaration dies you realize your mistake. Nothing’s really changed and you’ve wasted time and emotion yet again on someone who isn’t and never will be good for you. An unhealthy relationship with food is eerily similar. You may be stunned to learn that you’re so in love with the simple act of eating. One of the most common things bariatric surgeons hear on follow-up visits is, “I never realized what a relationship I had with food”. You thought your weight problem was from ignorance over what to eat, or faulty childhood messaging, or not making time to care for yourself, or your grandmother’s genes. That may be where it started, but that’s not what kept it going. After surgery, you figure out the truth. You’ve been embedded in a romance as sticky and hard to leave as Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor’s on-again-off-again love affair. Just like lovers in a doomed romance, you’ll be tempted to drift back into your old relationship with food. And it’ll sneak up on you when you’re most vulnerable, right when you think you’ve got the whole thing whipped. Here’s what happens. Your surgery gave you a massive head start. It forced you to change your eating habits, it did away with your hunger pangs and allowed you to drop weight at breathtaking speed. You got positive reinforcement from the immediate success of your new behavior and from the fact that you just flat out felt better. Every week contains a little drama in the form of unaccustomed praise, changed relationships, different activities, and new clothes. But the excitement will wane. Life will settle down, just like someone who’s had a thrilling engagement with lots of gifts, a fabulous wedding, an extended honeymoon, and the first couple of scary post-marriage fights and rapturous make-up sessions, but now has to get used to day-to-day married life with the spouse who leaves a trail of potato chips in his wake and the mother-in-law who calls three times a day. In other words, life will become normal, and, at times, even mundane. Even more sobering, your body will adapt over time. You’ll be able to undo the straitjacket put on your system by the surgery. For those who had a gastric bypass or vertical sleeve operation, two things come into play that will test your resolve. First, you’ll get hungry again. Even though the surgery bypassed ghrelin, the hunger hormone, other hormones will ramp up to fill the void, and most patients will start feeling hungry again, anywhere from six to twenty-four months after the surgery. Second, your new stomach will adjust and toughen up, just like babies’ feet callous as they learn to walk. It will expand a bit, and its cells will change to create more and thicker mucus which cushions the food you ingest, making it easier to eat bigger quantities and varieties of food. If you had the gastric bypass surgery, a third issue will come into play. The dumping syndrome that’s kept you from eating sugar will disappear in most patients. So the piece of cake that would have made you violently ill six months ago won’t cause a problem now. For lap band patients, two issues can lure you back into your old lifestyle. First, you’ve figured out how to cheat, and you’re familiar enough with the band that you’re no longer worried about hurting yourself if you thwart its restriction. You can drink high calorie milk shakes or put your favorite food in a blender and eat as much as you want. Second, you rely on the lap band to limit your food intake like a surgical shock collar rather than taking control of your own behavior, creating a negative reinforcement method of diet control that starts to grate on you. You have your surgeon decrease the saline in your lap band for special occasions, like Thanksgiving, and then put in enough saline “to make me throw up” when you want to lose more weight instead of taking the steering wheel and driving your own eating and exercise plan. Over time, you’ll begin to resent the choke hold the band has over your body and you’ll grow tired of the twice-monthly maintenance visits to your doctor. That’s why the first six months after your operation should be treated like a sprint, wringing every benefit you can from the surgery while you’ve got all its mechanical and behavioral benefits going for you – the compliments, the falling scale numbers, the lack of appetite, and the physical inability to eat too much. This time won’t last forever, and those six months will be the best shot most people ever get at losing their excess weight. You’ll learn to listen to your body to tell you when you need food. You’ll figure out what it feels like when your glucose is low, which means you need energy and should put some fuel in your tank. You’ll be able to tell the difference between real hunger versus head hunger, between needing energy and just mindlessly following an eating habit, between desiring food versus needing food. There is no finish line. There is no moment when you can say, okay, I’ve won that battle and I can forget about it. Like a recovering alcoholic has to pay attention to what he drinks for the rest of his life, you’ve got to be vigilant about diet and exercise for the rest of yours. But, you say, that sounds depressing. Surely life wasn’t meant to be quite so restrictive. That’s just too hard. Actually, it’s not. It’s just conducting yourself in a fashion that’s consistent with your goals, something you’ve been doing your entire life with your job, your marriage, your family, and your friends. Think about it. The things you’re proudest of in life are the things that have required the greatest work and sacrifice - your education, your children, your marriage, your career. Maintaining a healthy weight is no different and it’s something you should pat yourself on the back every day for doing. You’ve tasted what life is like without the suffocating excess weight. Your new habits are far less restrictive than the physical, social and emotional limitations your old weight burdened you with. It’s time to kick your dysfunctional romance with food out of your life forever.

I told everyone I worked with, my family and most of my friends. I didn't tell people who I thought wouldn't be supportive...ie--I didn't announce it on facebook. I am glad that I shared the information with most of the people in my life. I know two other successful band-ers and their support has been priceless. I also didn't want the rumor-mill running at work. My husband and I work at the same place and I just decided to be honest and up-front about it. I don't regret my decision. 99% of people I worked with have been supportive and very nice. I do once in a while get snide comments---my aunt saying that she would like to lose weight but doesn't want plastic around her stomach, etc. But, I am doing this for my life and health and I am proud of my decision. As an adult child of an alcoholic parent, I am tired of keeping secrets. I want to live a honest, happy life.

some people become lactose intolerant - at least temporarily (although sometimes permanently) after WLS, and some people can't tolerate sugar alcohols (the artificial sweeteners they put in a lot of those things). SO maybe one of those??

Nice of you to join us! Great Idea! I am an alcoholic, also with a family history of alcoholism, deceased d/t cirrosis etc. more family members than I have time to name. I have small children and what has driven me to AA is my oldest child who started to realize what was going on. Was your mom recovered when you were growing up? will you share your experience as a child of an alcoholic parent? I am curious to know the view of a child. I don;t talk to my son about my going to AA mainly because I have only been sober now for a couple of weeks and have been trying to get sober for 3 years, I don;t want him to see me fail so I don;t talk to him about it. I think it would be to grown up of a responsibility for him at this age to worry about me. Can you help me to know what he is seeing from the eyes of an 8 year old. Thanks

wow good posts. i enjoyed reading all you have to say. I attended ACOA years ago. it was very helpful and good to see that i was not alone in some of my confusion.. my dad has been a recovering alcoholic for 28 years.... he stopped drinking when i was very young , I never witnessed him drinking. but the absence from the home was hard on my mother and all 5 children. fortunately my father got me involved in his recovery. my parents divorced and that is a scar that never healed. the exposure to AA and my fathers recovery was wonderful. my father and i are really close and the program helped my father to grow and become a wise man. i have learned a lot from my dad and his wisdom. he helps many people and is a blessing. i learned one important thing about myself. that is that im terrible at commitment. this is due to the divorce and unstable environment i was raised in. i always feel like if i get too close i will get hurt , that it is going to end eventually. everytime i had a fight with a boyfriend id break up and move away. extreme stuff that was unhealthy. i still struggle with chaos. sometimes we are comfortable with the chaos we were raised in and even though i recognize that it is unhealthy and i dont want to live that way, its like sub consciously i consider it normal. i enjoyed the meetings. i think it is wise if alcoholics get the whole family involved in the recovery, if possible. i understand the fear that you may feel, but i think the family can get help and learn even if you slip up and take a drink. i recommend surrounding oneself with people who have many years of recovery .

Hello, One of the things I've always cherished about twelve step programs is the honesty I found there. I come from a large family, ten girls and three boys. My mom died of metastatic breast cancer when I was nine, and after that were my first memories of my father's drinking. As a blind child I was sheltered, according to one of my sisters, from lots of things, but his rage wasn't one of them. Or his live--in girlfriend. I live with a lot of physical and emotional neglect, broken windows, horrible living conditions which I won't go in to, unless someone really wants to know. My father was the only one in the family allowed to get angry. He used to introduce me to his alcoholic friends as "my blind daughter,," and one time I made the mistake of pointing out how obvious that was. He was taking most of the money given to me by the state as a disabled child, until one of my older sisters stepped in. When his girlfriend pointed out that I had a broken window in my room, his response was, "She's got money. Let her pay for it." When I first joined Al-Anon, I was very angry, and refused to see my father's alcoholism as a disease. I'm sure my sponsor wanted to strangle me at times, because I wanted to just tell him what a jerk he was. While I never forgave him for the way he treated me, I was able to accept the fact that I couldn't change him. When I moved in with my sister, I thought that all my trouble was over. Little did I know that the effects of my father's drinking would follow me, and they would be things I'd have to work on, be aware of, probably for the rest of my life. My family can't understand why I refused to see my dad when he was dying. I felt nothing for him. He never denied he was an alcoholic, and told my sister he didn't want to beg anyone to come to see him. But he also asked me years ago if I believed he loved me, and I said no. That was very empowering to me. I have lost four of my sisters to illness, and a brother who was shot to death. I think they all went to their graves bearing the scars of my father's alcoholism, but for the most part, they had contact with him before they died. Not my brother, though. He was a pretty troubled young man. Thank you for reading this, if you've gotten this far. Thank you, Green Chrysalis, for this thread. Debbie

I thought this was going to be something along the lines of Lady Chatterly's Lover when I saw the title. As has been mentioned, go back to lean Protein for a while. Also, you mentioned you were "getting your liquids". Just because you get to the goal set for you doesn't mean you have to stop, or even that it is enough. So a little more drinking might help you some - Water and other non alcoholic things of course!

Can someone explain what exactly about the show was offensive? I am seriously confused. Am I misssing something? No one is really giving any specifics other than complaints about Oprah. She annoys me @ times too, so I understand that. And I'm not saying that the show is all about helping people. You can't cure someone w/an hour talk show, but it might clue someone that they have an issue. Or maybe listening to how the alcoholic mom affects her kids will show someone else how their kids might be feeling.

I know in the future when I'm banded I will: drink coffee straight after dinner. I dont care if it washes food through, I have no problem beating hunger at night anyway, its not a time when I eat much. I know on occasion I will drink wine with my meals too - when out or eating with family I know I will also occasionally choose to consume alcohol rather than food. I will continue to consume liquid calories in the form of yogurt for Breakfast. I love yogurt.

I am on vacation in Mexico , eating normal , but working out a lot ., plus enjoying alcohol cuz I know it’s almost over !

To me, sugar is as addictive as alcohol and drugs. I can totally lay off sugar rather than tell myself I will only eat one or two mouthfuls. If I can't have three cupcakes, i don't want any. I feel so much better mentally since I am not eating them. I finally feel in control of myself. I truly understand how people feel in trying to kick the habit.

I would wait till you are back on solids, then it's fine I mean I can't imagine it would feel good if you aren't eating at all. But remember, alcohol has a ton of calories.. so try to limit it to special occasions.

Too funny! I had the same question! I was banded 2/28 and I asked my nutritionist that question and she said the main reason for no alcohol in the beginning is due to empty calories. Also when people drink they tend to snack. She said a glass of wine occasionally would not kill me but to watch drinking calories. Good thing for me is I only drink vodka an water with lime so it's only 64 calories per oz of vodka. I just wanted to make sure it was not physically harmful to have alcohol, and to answer that question....no! Bottoms up...carefully, lol!

Ok guys - I went to GNC and got the Isopure. It comes in the hugest containers - it is so funny - one of my friends came over and said "Wow you sure have huge jugs!" I laughed so hard my port hurt! Anyway, I have made up a pitcher of Protein shake with SF/FF frozen yogurt, a couple of tbls. of reduced fat Peanut Butter, skim milk, and the chocolate Isopure powder. I am drinking 2 cups a day - which gives me 50 g of protein and I feel much better. I think that was definetely the problem. I talked to my dietician this morning and she still feels 30 g of protein a day is enough but I do not agree. Also - thanks for the heads up about the eggs - I will hold off. Now that I am feeling better I don't feel like I HAVE to have one. However yesterday I did go to a restaurant and I ordered some soup and some baked fish and I had about 5 tiny bites of the fish and it was fine. I think it was because I was also having the soup - which I'm sure helped wash it down. I know that is against the principle of drinking while eating with the band, but I had to try it. I guess when we start real eating we shouldn't have anything liquid like soup with our meal? That would defeat the purpose right? Anyway - tomorrow I go to my first support group meeting and I am looking forward to it. Oh and also I have Bunko tomorrrow night (which is usually a lot of fattening food and lots of alcohol). I am really woried about it so pray for me. Only one of my Bunco girls knows about the surgery so I am going to try to just be laying low. I will say I already ate dinner or something and I guess bring a Protein Shake with me. Any suggestions? Anyway - just wanted to thank everyone for the support and I will keep you all posted. I love your suggestions and I am about to hit the 2 week mark and transfer over to mushies so any advice is appreciated.

Hey all! I had sleeve surgery on 6/25, tomorrow I see my surgeon for my 1 week post op and I’m containing the urge to weigh myself until then. 

I spent 1 night in the hospital, was able to get in enough fluids and was discharged the next afternoon. I live about an hour away from the hospital where I had surgery and summer traffic in the area doubled the time it took to get home. I was glad to have had a pillow in the car (after reading another person mention it to help going over road construction & such) it definitely helped with the stop and go traffic car jerking my hubby fought to drive me home. 

Everyday has gotten a little better with everything from pain to sleep, I slept for 5 solid hours last night before waking up (it’s killing me to sleep on my back, I’m a side sleeper normally). 

My incisions have been the most tender things once the gas pain dispersed. Mainly my large incision and the one to the right of it. But they are healing well with no heat, inflammation or anything concerning. 

I’m not taking real walks yet but have made sure to walk around the house often (every hour or so when awake) But today felt like a giant leap in energy as I got an itch to organize and unpack some things in my kitchen and did it before getting too tired out. 

Makes sense I get worn out quick as I’m on a watered down juice diet since surgery. But after my checkup tomorrow I will start 1 week of shakes on Thursday, followed by 2 weeks of soft foods, before moving into solid foods after my 1 month check up. 

Important side notes- I had my first BM 4 days after surgery. I attribute this to adding daily liquid Probiotics to my regiment (add to my first Water in the morning) when I came home (it was cleared through my program) & it helps promote healing. After all 70% of your immune system comes from the bacteria in your gut good,bad, or ugly. 

-I also dilute concentrated Protein with some water to get some protein in even while drinking mainly juice and I think this has helped with everything from having some energy to not feeling nauseous. 

Both of the above products are non-gmo/vegan/organic/no sugars/no sugar alcohols in them. I can’t wait to see the scale at my doctors tomorrow 😍




Yes!! I was lucky that my first pouch was 6 millimeters (I think) leaving room for the revision. I didn't participate in any normal ulcer causing issues like caffeine, smoking, soda, alcohol and so forth.

I also have issues with my liver enzymes. Interestingly they have always been high in all the blood tests for the past 15 or so years. I think most doctors just thought that I was either an alcoholic or drug addict in denial. Since my rny my physician is now monitoring them carefully and has done heaps of extra tests. I have managed to put him off doing a biopsy at this stage. Your BMI is normal , you don’t need to gain weight. It may happen at some stage in the future but you don’t want to do it deliberately at this point. I requested a DEXA scan . It showed that the levels in my hip and spine are at osteopenia levels.I don’t know if this is because of the surgery or if it is just normal for age. Most people in Aus don’t get scanned unless they have had a break by which stage it is a bit late. Pretty ironic considering the TV ad campaign they had recently about looking after your bones. My Dr prescribed a prolix injection twice per year. I had to get it done as a private script as I do not qualify to be covered on the PBS but I figured it was worth it. There was a weekly meds option which would have been cheaper but it sounds as though it’s hard to take and it was doubtful that it would be absorbed correctly, there is also an annual infusion option.

I just tried a beer at 3 months out. It was a non-event. I had to drink it slow and I ddn't finish it, but I was able to sit back a happy hour and feel like a normal human being. I am staying in my calorie guiltiness. I think there is a little too much drama around this. I can ruin my diet with excessive alcohol, or with Cookies. I don't plan to do either. So far beer does not appear to be an evil, sleeve-exploding devil-beverage. Sent from my iPad using VST

I don't think it is nonsense. I think the reason why any data has come out is based on the fact that the lapband and gastric bypass have been around longer. There is very little data about the long term affects of the sleeve since it is still very new as a means of WLS. Hence why most of the articles are revering to the gastric bypass. However, it is an interesting correlation since many on this site alone have expressed a new found addiction to shopping. And there have been studies about people going from alcoholism to other things, so the argument can be reasonably made to suggest why not WLS too. We have addictions to food, why can there be no transference. All and all, I agree with IrishEyes that they were merely trying to share information with fellow Sleevers and give food for thought (pardon the pun). I know that it will keep me on guard once I get sleeved since alcoholism does run in my family. So I, for one, say thank you.

The issue I had with those is the very high amounts of sugar alcohol. I can do 1-2 grams of sugar alcohol in a bar without the laxative effect hitting me, but 12 grams is just way too much for me to handle.

With all due respect, you are making a judgement. "We all know people who go a little extreme with both diet and exercise and I don't want that to be me." That's YOUR opinion. But what if they are perfectly satisfied and living a happy balanced life TO THEM? Just because it would make your life uncomfortable does not mean your way is the right way and their way is wrong. There are many paths to the same truth. "We all have a friend or coworker that doesn't stop talking about every meal or their gym routine..." Really? I think that also sounds like a judgement and maybe you are sensitive to that so it registers with you. "Worrying about every calorie or obsessing about every workout isn't really healthy in the long run." Of course it isn't. But again, that's your perspective. ARE they truly worrying about every last morsel? Maybe they track things more detailed than you. Maybe they meal plan. But obsessing? How are you qualified to make that mental health assessment. I think you are judging. Just because you are different doesn't make you right and them wrong. And this is what I object to about the left turn this thread went in. I'm so absolutely tired of people not just living and letting people live. I'm so sick of being hammered and shamed if my way is different. In RL and online. What makes you and authority? What makes Summerset? And even more...how does anyone who lacked the basic skills in understanding dietary moderation PRE-surgery, just "magically" wake up the next day after surgery and suddenly develop those abilities inately for the rest of their lives? LOL. I call BS and shenanigans. Why? Cuz stomachs heal and restriction loosens. You can eat more. You can eat bad foods. You start groovin on living life and you add back alcohol. And it's a recipe for "magic moderation regain." On this board right now, there are 2 such posts about the subject. Over the last 18months I've seen 100s of these threads. I'm gonna place my bet on @skinnylife @BigViffer @Biddy zz and @Diana in Philly those types of people with focus and plans that they will continue to live excellent, rewarding lives of health, happiness and normal weight.

I just came across this and thought you might find this interesting: The 10 Most Common Mistakes WLS Patients Make Vitamins, supplements, or Minerals 2nd Mistake: Assuming You Have Been Cured of Your Obesity 3rd Mistake: Drinking with Meals 4th Mistake: Not Eating Right 5th Mistake: Not Drinking Enough Water 6th Mistake: Grazing 7th Mistake: Not Exercising Regularly 8th Mistake: Eating the Wrong Carbs (or Eating Too Much) 9th Mistake: Going Back to Drinking Soda (soft drink) 10th Mistake: Drinking Excessive Alcohol For anyone wanting to read the mistakes in full detail; the National (America) Association for Weight Loss Surgery website address. The 10 Most Common Mistakes Weight Loss Surgery Patients Make I know I've been guilty of some of these from time to time. I think I need to print this out! :thumbup:

I'm on my third week and feeling good. I've been reaching my Water intake goal but was wondering other than adding crystal light what other beverages can I have. I used to be a Coke drinker for decades but none at all since surgery. Thank you for your suggestions. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App