sweet tooth and sleeve surgery

[monty 18]

Hi everyone. When I initally went to see my surgeon he recommended the gastric by-pass since my weight gain came not from eating large quantities but rather snacking on carbs and sweets, especially chocolate. He said the "dumping" would keep me "sraight" I should mention I have been on anti-depression meds for years and my family doctor feels my cravings for chocolate and carbs is from the low sertonin levels associated with depression. After doing much research I decided, given my medical history of many surgeries and the depression, I would be much better off with the sleeve. Now I am being discouraged from this procedure because of the sweet tooth. Did anyone who has gotten the sleeve have a sweet tooth as their main problem and if so how is the sleeve working for you? I really want the sleeve and surgery is in 2 weeks. Could really use your help.

Thanks

[rubyspring 1]

I didn't have a "huge" sweet tooth but I stopped at the vending machine most evenings to get Reese's Peanut Butter cups to snack on the way home. About 7 weeks out and I just walk by that machine without a second glance. I even find that I have a hard time with things like Crystal Light being too sweet and now it's one packet of sweetener in my mug of Decaf coffee. Many of the posters on this forum report that they have a hard time consuming anything sweet, Good luck with your decision-making and on your journey.

[Foxbins 625]

I had a terrific sweet tooth--it wasn't a meal unless it had dessert after and Breakfast was donuts, pancakes, or waffles. Now, no. Head hunger, yes, I see cakes and ice cream and candy and think, well, I could eat just a little bit, but I had a cake sample at costco and threw it away after one bite. I had flan at a party and threw it away, too. I still love chocolate but I don't keep it in the house and I would rather be thin than eat it daily as I used to. Now the sugar I eat is in fruit and I am happy. BTW, not all bypassers dump on sugar so that's not guaranteed.

[TijuanaPlication 87]

I've read that 40% of RNYers dump, but that dumping can backfire as a deterrent as it can cause major fluctuations in blood sugar and ultimately result in people consuming more calories to try and bring their blood sugar levels back up.

[TijuanaPlication 87]

See here for an article on weight re-gain after RNY http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/ds/4448101/Xpost-PLEASE-help-Has-anyone-had-the-micropouch-with-Dr/

[A New Day 5]

I chose the RNy first because of this reason. I am a huge sweets eater, but since learning about the sleeve I have chosen it instead. I have 3 wks to go.

[mythreechildren2001 7]

I have always had a HUGE sweet tooth. I honestly felt as though I was 'addicted' to sugar. food I could walk past, but I NEVER walked past chocolate, ice cream, etc. I'm a little past 2 months post op and I am a completely different person. I can easily walk past any form of sugar if I want. I buy Cookies and ice cream etc for my family. It doesn't tempt me at all. Prior to surgery, I could easily eat an entire pack of oreos. We've had a pack of oreos in the kitchen for several weeks now, and I haven't had a single one. I don't know why, but it's just not something that tempts me anymore.

Now having said that, I have had an ice cream cone from McDonalds a couple of times...but I can't eat it all. I usually eat 'most' of the ice cream above the cone and I never even touch the cone. Sometimes I only have a couple of licks and the rest goes into the garbage. There was a time when I would eat all of mine, and then drink the rest of each of my children's milkshakes.

[A New Day 5]

That is great to hear, I sure hope that will be my experience after my VSG. I've been know to order 2 McFlurry's at McD's because 1 wasn't enough! And I always request caramel on top! Uggh!!!!

[monty 18]

Thanks so much everyone. I am so thankful I found this site. Based on what you allsay I am standing my ground for the sleeve! I see him in 10 days and my surgery is 10-3. But since I am self-pay if he won't do it, I will find someone else who will. I really like my surgeon other than this, and once he sees I am determined I think he will do it.

[Escape_Pod 358]

I really thought about RNY for the same reason - I've always had a huge sweet tooth, and I thought dumping might be good reinforcement for me. However, as many have pointed out, you can't count on dumping with RNY - many people don't, and some sleevers do.

The other problem is, I've known myself before surgery to eat so many sweets that it made me sick and that still didn't stop me. Even assuming dumping is MUCH worse, I could see the possibility of it not being enough of a deterrent.

On the flip side, I really hated the thought of a high likelihood of becoming lactose intolerant with RNY. And now that I've had the sleeve, I've noticed on other forums how bypassers have to be so much more careful about things that would never have crossed my mind - Peanut Butter, Tomato sauce, etc. UGH!!

I will admit to a couple of bad incidents with sweets post-op. Bottom line is, if I'm eating sweets now, it's most likely for emotional reasons. 99% of the time I really don't crave them, and I've gotten used to artificial sweeteners, so I'm really ok with sugar free pudding and Atkins PB cups if I really need a treat. Emotional eating is a demon I'm going to have to battle regardless of which surgery I've had. It's definitely something I'm actively working on - if I don't, I'll end up being one of those people who regains down the road, and I am NOT GOING THERE!!

[monty 18]

I really thought about RNY for the same reason - I've always had a huge sweet tooth, and I thought dumping might be good reinforcement for me. However, as many have pointed out, you can't count on dumping with RNY - many people don't, and some sleevers do.

The other problem is, I've known myself before surgery to eat so many sweets that it made me sick and that still didn't stop me. Even assuming dumping is MUCH worse, I could see the possibility of it not being enough of a deterrent.

On the flip side, I really hated the thought of a high likelihood of becoming lactose intolerant with RNY. And now that I've had the sleeve, I've noticed on other forums how bypassers have to be so much more careful about things that would never have crossed my mind - Peanut Butter, Tomato sauce, etc. UGH!!

I will admit to a couple of bad incidents with sweets post-op. Bottom line is, if I'm eating sweets now, it's most likely for emotional reasons. 99% of the time I really don't crave them, and I've gotten used to artificial sweeteners, so I'm really ok with sugar free pudding and Atkins PB cups if I really need a treat. Emotional eating is a demon I'm going to have to battle regardless of which surgery I've had. It's definitely something I'm actively working on - if I don't, I'll end up being one of those people who regains down the road, and I am NOT GOING THERE!!

[monty 18]

I can soooo relate to what you said. I am very concerned about emotional eating and I don't know yet how I am going to handle that issue. I have started reading Breaking free from emotional eating by Geneen Roth[quote. I don't have a lot of reasons they suggest. Main emotion is stress from years of being a perfectionis. I hope exercise will become my new friend! Thanks for replying.

name=Escape_Pod' timestamp='1316315043' post='209062]

I really thought about RNY for the same reason - I've always had a huge sweet tooth, and I thought dumping might be good reinforcement for me. However, as many have pointed out, you can't count on dumping with RNY - many people don't, and some sleevers do.

The other problem is, I've known myself before surgery to eat so many sweets that it made me sick and that still didn't stop me. Even assuming dumping is MUCH worse, I could see the possibility of it not being enough of a deterrent.

On the flip side, I really hated the thought of a high likelihood of becoming lactose intolerant with RNY. And now that I've had the sleeve, I've noticed on other forums how bypassers have to be so much more careful about things that would never have crossed my mind - Peanut Butter, Tomato sauce, etc. UGH!!

I will admit to a couple of bad incidents with sweets post-op. Bottom line is, if I'm eating sweets now, it's most likely for emotional reasons. 99% of the time I really don't crave them, and I've gotten used to artificial sweeteners, so I'm really ok with sugar free pudding and Atkins PB cups if I really need a treat. Emotional eating is a demon I'm going to have to battle regardless of which surgery I've had. It's definitely something I'm actively working on - if I don't, I'll end up being one of those people who regains down the road, and I am NOT GOING THERE!!

[Escape_Pod 358]

I'm actually going to a Geneen Roth retreat in October - I'm looking forward to spending a few days really focusing on this issue. I'd also really recommend reading The Pathway by Laurel Mellin - I'm finding her technique to be a very practical approach to breaking the cycle of emotional eating. Geneen really helped me understand the why, but I needed more pragmatic advice on the how, and Mellin's book is helping me with that.

[monty 18]

I would love to hear back from you about your take on the treat. I will be sure to check out The Pathway. Thanks!

I'm actually going to a Geneen Roth retreat in October - I'm looking forward to spending a few days really focusing on this issue. I'd also really recommend reading The Pathway by Laurel Mellin - I'm finding her technique to be a very practical approach to breaking the cycle of emotional eating. Geneen really helped me understand the why, but I needed more pragmatic advice on the how, and Mellin's book is helping me with that.

[dragon 1]

It's funny. At first, I was considering RNY for the same reason.

Eventually, I decided to go with the sleeve. As fate's sense of humor would have it, I'm one of the tiny percentage of VSG people who dumps on sugar. The docs don't know why, but about 1/3 of the time, if I eat something with sugar, I will be sweating, shaking, heart palpitations, and eventually, after an hour or two, I will slimy up everything I have eaten in hours.

You don't want to dump. Trust me.

The beauty of VSG is that it changes how you feel about food, what you crave, and how much you want. I can eat one occaisional peice of something sweet, and be satisfied; I can leave the rest sitting on my plate (Really!) without wanting to finish it. And it pisses me off when I take one flipping bite of cake, and feel like crap until it all comes up. (It doesn't happen every time, and I am stupid, so I do try to eat a bite of sweet or two about once a month).