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Let's face it. We have been living to eat not eat to live. We are addicted to food in some way or to some degree or another. Anytime someone goes into addiction recovery (alcohol, drugs, gambling) they recommend to the person in recovery that they abstain from relationships for the first year. Addiction is addiction is addiction. Getting normalized in your daily life and stabilizing your weight is far more important than being in a relationship. I am not being judgemental here and I am sorry if that is the interpretation but that was not my intent. We are fighting for our lives. If I were a recoverying alcoholic and Thanksgiving and Christmas were nothing but drunken brawls interspersed with football games and gifts then I would go on a cruise! My quality of life is my utmost priority in my psycho-social behavior. My quality of life includes losing weight. It is absolutely my highest priority.

I believe anyone that has 85% of their stomach removed will lose weight. You can't help but lose, if you are limited to 4oz of food every few hours. Now the big question is, where is your hunger coming from? Only you can figure that part out. Is it from emotional eating, boredome, stress, or is it because you have hunger pangs caused by the hormone ghrelin? From my own experience, I knew that my hunger was real (even though I had eaten 2 hours earlier, I'd be hungry again). It wasn't until I talked to my surgeon that he told me that I had an excess of the hormone ghrelin (produced by the stomach). The bigger the stomach, the more of the hormone produced. The surgery stopped my hunger pangs. I have not had that nagging sense of hunger (other than my stomach growling) since surgery 7 weeks ago. And 4 or 5 oz of food keeps me satisfied, whereas before, I could eat 1 lb of steak and know I'd be raiding the fridge in 2 hours. And I don't have any cravings anymore for certain flavors. Whereas before, I'd think about something that would taste good and I couldn't get the thought out of my head until I ate it - and a lot of it, not just a small portion. Don't get me wrong, you can sabotage yourself after surgery. There are foods, called slider foods, that are calorie dense (ice cream, peanut butter) that pass through the stomach quickly, so it's possible to eat more. And it is possible to just graze all day on snacks that are high in calories. The sleeve gave me the control over my eating that I needed. When I eat, I have full control of what I eat. I can pass on the donuts or just have 1 and be satisfied. With the exception of pasta - it triggers my sugar cravings. So I have to be real careful about eating it. But I don't know if I'd the same success if my hunger was tied to my emotions instead of hormones. I really believe food was an addiction - one you can't quit and never touch again. Other addictions can be quit and never touched again. But what if a heroine addict, smoker or alcoholic knew they had to take some every day or their body would die? What if they had 75 TV channels that ran commericals for cigarrets every 10 minutes during their favorite programs? Or had reality programs (like the best places to pig out or the food challenges) devoted to the best places to get their fix and showed people taking drugs and loving it? Could the addicts just reduce the amount they took every day and never over do it or would they give in to the nagging voice in their head telling them how good it was going to feel? Ok, rant over. :-)

So when did everyone have their 1st drink? Be honest ppl

I gave up alcohol entirely because of the empty calories.

Very sorry to hear that your wife is not that supportive. This certainly has to be a factor in your present situation. I, too, have a huge sweet tooth. I could stop eating fatty foods without a problem, but controlling intake of sweets is one of the hardest things for me to do. I changed over to sugar free candies. What that does for me is that it satisfies the craving for sweets, but I know that if I overdo it, I'm going to be hurting, in the form of gas pains and other short-term gastric issues from the sugar alcohols.

Ummmm no sarcasm intended, seriously! I truly wanted to clarify! Everyone's plans are different. Everyone is here seeking and sharing information. You came on to a thread where someone offered info and said no thanks it didn't fit your plan. I wanted to clarify to make sure I didn't miss anything before suggesting for people who didn't mind the sugar alcohols might want to try these. Believe me, if I disagree I will disagree, read my other posts! I don't use sarcasm on the net much because without tone of voice it tends to be ineffective.

Everyone is different. Believe me I miss food so much. I play tricks on myself. Sunday dinners I keep myself busy and sit down and eat when people are almost done. Alcohol is not a problem. I don't drink as much as I did but I still go out and have a good time. The smoking I quit but sometimes I have just a puff or two. It is all in your mind. I still sometimes think what the hell did I do to myself when I am craving a hamburger or deli sandwich and know if I eat the bread I will throw up. It bugs you in the beginning but when you go from a size 20 to 12 and feel 20 years younger than it is worth it.

And it is very easy to avoid the buffets. Go somewhere nice and if with bandsters, share a meal with one or more. Or eat a wonderful appetizer. At the Bellagio, crab cakes benedict is awesome and bandster friendly (always have to go there for late Breakfast and that tides me over till dinner). :hungry: I always share. I would think alcohol would be more an issue for me than buffets (and gambling) :youcandothis: . But I'd go there. :clap2:

Throwing up when you get too drunk is a protective measure our body takes to prevent alcohol poisoning. Just keep it in mind that you cannot even make yourself vomit now. I have zero judgment about drinking, but safety requires that you keep yourself from a point of danger even more so now that you are banded. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Be sure to check your surgeon's guidelines. I had to sign a "contract" agreeing that I wouldn't drink any alcoholic beverages for one full year.

i know it's tiring to hear "talk to your doctor", but if something should happen you want your doctor to have your true and complete history. I know with my doctor who I also signed a contract for a year no alcohol surprised me when I told him about my annual Christmas drink. He let me have it! So ask him/her.

Well, if you look at my posts, you'll find a couple of heated discussions about alcohol. I have been a confirmed social drinker and disciplined low carb dieter for 40 years. I never drank during the week and generally followed low carb diet guidelines. I gained 75 pounds very slowly over 40 years by eating too much low carb food (nuts, cheese, dark chocolate) when I drank alcohol. I entered this journey knowing that I'd have to abstain from alcohol for an extended period of time. My program guide said 6 months, but in further discussion, it became clear that this was just a typical guideline - "your mileage may vary!" There are three issues to consider. 1. Damaging your surgery: The biggie here is creating a fertile condition for ulcers. Discussing this with the surgical team, I learned that the surgery effectively heals at 6 weeks and if you google around, you'll find some surgeons who recommend 6 weeks as the earliest green light. If you have ever had any kind of acid reflux, you should proceed with caution. I did have a glass of wine at 6 weeks with the extra protection of an extra antacid pill and plenty of Water and food before and after. 2. Your Liver: The kind of rapid weight loss we see through WLS puts a stress on your liver; as does alcohol. One surgeon mentioned this in the context of waiting until you're near goal to restart drinking. I was about 75% toward goal before imbibing and have continued to limited my daily and weekly intake. 3. Your Weight Loss: I have found that the top rated programs have the longest abstinence waiting period. I think this is for our own good, because alcohol is generally a empty calorie and many drinks have lots of carbs. In addition, alcohol can increase hunger, which makes it tougher to stay on track. I continue to log calories on days when I drink - including the alcohol. One doctor told me 300 liquid calories won't hurt my Weightloss, but potato chips, candy, and ice cream munchies will. My program closely tracks patient weight loss for life and uses our data to promote their effectiveness. If none of us every drink again, they're numbers would likely look better. I am about 4 months out and I've added 10 ounces of alcohol to my weekly 9,000 calorie diet since Christmas. To my surprise, it has not reduced my weight loss one iota. Now the biggie for you is RNY. I had the sleeve and in my orientation at Newton Wellesley, one of the top surgeons in the country (Sheila Partridge) recommended the sleeve for social drinkers and/or people who needed to take NSAID'S. She suggested that RNY patients should abstain from both! That said, I have heard from plenty of RNY patients on this forum who do drink. That's all I know...

Your body does weird things with alcohol after surgery. You get drunk fast and sober really fast which leads to more drinking. Many people become alcoholics because of this. Be careful. Many people in my surgeon's support group have experienced this so no alcohol is suggested.

One of the sugar alcohols gives me horrible diarrhea but I forget which one. The rest just give me gas which I can live with. I think everybody's different

I think only real sugar can cause true dumping syndrome (in some people, anyway - the majority don't dump) - HOWEVER, a lot of people have issues with certain artificial sweeteners, esp sugar alcohols (those with names ending in "-itol", like xylitol). They can cause cramping and diarrhea in people who are sensitive to them.

The sugar alcohols used in many artificial sweeteners cause problems for many people: diarrhoea, bloating, discomfort, … Personally I try to avoid or reduce as many artificial sweeteners, sugar alternatives & sugar as I can. It’s hard because it’s in almost everything you buy. I did it to kill my sugar craving - it has. (Artificial sweeteners & sugar alternatives still feed your desire for sweet.). Also there is a lot of research being done into how artificial sweeteners still lead to weight gain, affect your immune system, etc. But this has been a personal choice for me. Generally if I want something sweet I’ll eat some fruit. But again it’s been my choice to do this. I have made chia seed pudding & used vanilla extract as flavour. There is natural & added sugar in it but it’s very little. Also added milk powder which gave some sweetness (& extra protein) & a natural sugar. What about a fruit crumble? Cook up apple, berries, rhubarb or other fruit & sprinkle the top with a mix of rolled oats, coconut, nuts, a little plain flour, cinnamon a little butter & bake until golden. Use a little monk fruit for a touch of sweetness if the fruit is a little tart & in the crumble topping. Congratulations on your daughter’s weight loss. So wonderful she’s been inspired by you to make changes in her life too.

You don't have to have fun with cigarettes or alcohol! However, choosing alcohol would be the lesser of the two evils. :thumbup:

Well, thanks. Unfortunately, I do have a great understanding of it. A very personal one. I self medicated - drugs and alcohol up until I got married, then I began eating and vegetating instead. By the time I had 2 children and was 27 yrs old. I had gained an additional 100 lbs and learned to hate waking up in the mornings. I had gone from a vivacious fireball into a lump of self-disgust and codependency. Where I used to get in the car and drive across Texas, I had become afraid of putting my kids in a car and heading out for 80 miles. I hated the way I looked, I hated the way I felt, I developed illnesses I now will have forever. I stewed in a vile pit of self hatred and unrealized expectations and it got me nowhere but farther into the pit of hell. I could hear myself clawing to get out and begging for someone to help me, but no one could do that for me. No matter how hard they tried or wanted to, it was not theirs to do. I lived in a marriage for 20 years that really only contributed to my self-loathing. Then, one sad day, waking up angry because the sun had risen yet again, I asked myself what on earth I had allowed to happen. I checked myself into a 30 day treatment for depression and it was probably the 30 days that saved my life. I was ready to just drive myself off a bridge or take the whole bottle of pills they'd given me instead of the one I needed to maintain some sense of daily balance. Instead, I informed my husband he needed to get a sitter because I was going to get me well, otherwise, I was no good to him or my children. That was July, 1988. It was a hard 30 days, but I went there with the desire to come out a better person. The medication they gave me helped me to see color by the 5th day instead of the 'gray' I'd been walking through for years. I had energy I hadn't had since before I'd gained my weight. I learned that taking care of ME was okay and leisure is actually a word that belongs in my vocabulary. I learned what is and is not acceptable behavior for me and those who choose to be around me. I learned that it's okay if EVERYTHING isn't done ALL the time. I learned that I have limits - like I personally can't handle school, church, work and children all at the same time and be good at all of them, but I'm still a worthy person. I learned that if I go to bed at night and I dream constantly or lay awake with thoughts rolling over and over in my head, I'm not allowing the chemicals that need to be replenished the time to do that. I learned that I can't wish that away and that in my case, I had to take the medication that allowed that to happen or I was always going to be worn out from working harder at bedtime than I did in the daytime. I learned that makes me no more weak or useless or unworthy or 'psycho' than someone who needs insulin for diabetes or synthroid for thyroid purposes. I learned that often people choose to continue to allow their lives to be miserable (or those around them) simply because they're too prideful or not educated enough on the true reality of what 'depression' or 'emotional illness' is, yet it's OK to act out irrationally or to be filled with self-pity and not take responsibility for their own behavior. (Not sure I understand that one, but I think it has to do more with weakness than acknowledging the problem and tackling it head on.) It took me 12 long years of transformation, from being that codependent, lethargic housewife to getting a job and learning that I could work and I could derive self-esteem from something other than myself, my husband or drugs or alcohol. I struggled. I went to Al-Anon for family members of Alcoholics/Addicts - (my family was riddled with alcoholism and my sister had become a heroin addict). I worked on identifying my true pain and also my true worthiness. I learned I did have strengths of character and that it was perfectly okay to stand up for what I knew was right. I learned I deserved better than what I was getting and my children deserved better too. In 1998, I moved out. I still had my $8 an hour/Bust your behind hospital job, but I knew I deserved something more. I prayed to God for some way to make it on my own, but I moved home to my mother's. In 3 short months, I was offered a job that more than tripled my wages (and there is no Divine Providence? Thank you Lord.). I have been landing in cities across the country, living in hotels, seeing places I would have never dreamed of before. I had never even flown then. I drive a brand new car. I recently bought my own home (without the help of ANYONE), my credit is near perfect and I don't have alot, but I have more than I did in that whole 20 yrs of being married. My conscience is clear. I have struggled with my weight and had some severe/near death health issues, but even that I have faced head on and have learned to manage and still live. Are all my days great? No way. Was any of this easy? Hell no. I've had days I just wanted to give up. I've had days that I wonder why I continue. I am alone. I hate being alone, but I know that eventually even that will work itself out. But, I'd sure rather be alone than to live like I was living. I sure never want to go back there. I sure feel for anyone who is going through it, but I can now see from the other side that it can be managed. There is a threshold, and it's scary, but there really is another side.

I swear that I feel like a recovering alcoholic. No joke.

Congrats Carol!! You are doing amazing! And you are much more strict than me! LOL Good for you. I have taken a much softer approach - the mental has definitely been harder for me than the physical. If I cut back anymore, I would likely be looney. ok, loonier : ) I average 500 calories, less than 40 carbs, 60 or so Protein. I am lousy in the Water department, but was before surgery also. I feel fine so my body must be used to it. LOL If I count the one or two shakes I have every day, then I am close to 64 oz tho. Alcohol definitely hit me hard at first. I have had a couple of ounces of homemade lemoncello the past two nights, and it hasn't made me very loopy. It does have alot of sugar in it tho so will need to be a weekend treat : ) My first hard boiled egg was an experience as well! Even tho I took an hour to eat it! I have had some since tho as well as scrambled eggs and they have gone down just fine. Everytime I eat something new tho my stomach gurgles like crazy! Its actually pretty funny. Does it really keep track of post op foods??? Great post! Should be very useful to people considering surgery or recovering!

Same procedure of MGB, different doctor's rules. I am not to touch alcohol, coffee or tea again. Lucky for me I dont have a problem with that.

Yes that's wild alcohol free for a year but however my procedure did get postponed for the use of nicotine (cigarettes) [emoji2955] had to quit completely Sent from my SM-A716U using BariatricPal mobile app

Hi all, I’m scheduled for surgery sept 21st all appts are done and drs have signed off . I got a call today from the surgeon and she says she got a letter from the insurance (tufts) saying I need to have been alcohol free for the past year. She said in all the years she’s done surgery she’s never heard of this. I honestly don’t drink more than one drink a month and it’s been months since that , so she’s writing a letter to them stating I haven’t drank in months. But, I think this is something made up as a reason to try and deny my surgery since Covid has taken a toll on the insurance companies. Anyone else have this issue? I really hope it’s resolved because I’ve done everything for this surgery, and something like this should of been brought to my attention months ago.

Speaking from the sleeve experience as I am sleeved now and have been for over a year now, I was 389 at surgery, 1 year later I am 197 or a little less, There is a gland in your stomach called Grehllin or however it is spelled that sends a signal to your brain telling you when your hungary and also slowing your metabolism. (once removed it was like a miracle) (For example myself, I unfortunately have not worked out since surgery, just normal routine work walking around at different facilities) Yes I have lost some muscle mass. I find it hard to intake the amount of protein without tasting horrible protein shakes or shots and so on. I eat probably 6 times a day in small portions About the size of half a happy meal but of pure protein like chicken or fish. I have been very successful with my sleeve and feel confident that anyone who is sleeved will have some success if not meet their goal except with excessive obesity. The VSG is step 1 of a 2 step surgery for those who need it. I was told no heavy lifting after surgery so I didnt. I was also told to walk alot, no running for at least 6 weeks, I would advise against volleyball for a while :cool0:. The best advice is to let the sleeve heal inside of you, dont hurt it. I was soooo careful drinking and eating after surgery for so long because I didnt want or need complications. (word of advise to anyone.. When they tell you to go to the hotel and wash your wounds I wouldnt do that, Take some Neosporin spray, alcohol wipes and completely cover your wounds while in the shower anywhere in Mexico. I look at it like this, If it is not safe enough to drink it isnt safe at all) You can wait till you are back in the states to wash them hehe. Just make sure that you clean them with the alcohol wipes and neosporin spray :car: .. Not knocking mexico or anything, this is where I had my surgery performed in Tijuana Mexico at Hospital Angeles. I hope my post is somewhat helpful if not feel free to contact me if you would like to ask specific questions I will be more than happy to support you all in anyway I can :car: I also apologize if my typing is wrong, I am super tired from working all day in the heat but wanted to post

yep - all good things cost us lol - it's surprising how many calories are in alcohol - and I agree - it's just not worth it! Best of luck at weigh-in!