Help, I can't stop eating

[shortsleevedkay 28]

hello everyone, i am getting sleeved on January 31st and i can't stop eating all my favorite foods i won't eat again in excess. I have my days mapped out as to what i will be eating. this weekend i ate donuts (which i stopped eating years ago), kingcake, seafood buffet on fri and sat night. Monday i will eat buffalo wild wings , tuesday i will eat boiled shrimp, crabs and spicy boiled crawfish, that morning i will eat Ihop egg omelet. wednesday is the day i have to drink liquids after 10am.. i am getting nervous and i cant stop eating. i hope my poor eating habits isnt an indication that i will have trouble after getting sleeved. Has anyone else ate their favorite foods a few days before surgery? Good luck everyone, i hope i carve my cravings before surgery, lol.

[Liz'sReady4change 27]

You can relax, because you are normal. I too began to eat everything right before surgery due to being afraid to not ever be able to eat those items again. I hadn't had a whopper from Burger King like in 7 years and ate a whopper meal, and a lot of my favorite fattening foods before too. You are normal to have these feelings but now that I am 7 weeks post op, I realize I can already eat anything I want but in a very small portion. So you don't have to feel pressured to get it in now. But I don't crave the whopper or most foods I used to eat because you may find that white flour is harder to digest. So even if you tried to eat pizza, you can't eat more than a couple of bites, but it fulfills your craving for that item. Also, I have came to realize that I did this surgery to use as a tool to help me not eat those types of foods so I'm concentrating on better nutrition. and as long as i get my Protein in on time, I never get so hungry that I start eating junk. I'm 28 pounds down since surgery and I'm extremely happy! I wish you the best!

[.......... 129]

you should reconsider what you are doing,stop and make a commitment now, I can say it took me a long times in months to work out kinks up to the surgery. What your doing can be what they call a food funeral, but, mostly I think that applies to a day or two where some one does the same and probably not so close to surgery, I believe I read of an indescresion similar a few times, but who knows what others really do about it all. You need to retrain those needs as well as have the lessser crave and hunger after the surgery, redesign how you use those foods and whats the ingrediant you put with the main ingredient into each recipe.It's not that you can not have some portions with your favorite things its how its perpared and what the nutritional value and size is so you can maintane an on going, long term diet of few calories. commit to doing it more yourself if you've taken to restaurants now.

[clk 3,519]

I want to preface by saying that I am not trying to be judgmental or critical or harsh.

But you CAN stop eating. The issue with allowing yourself to address the problem (compulsive overeating, binges, grazing) this way is that you could easily do the same POST OP, too.

Many binge/graze/overeating habits rear their ugly heads post op. And if you can't sit down and eat an entire box of Cookies in one sitting post op, it's entirely possible to slowly consume the whole box in one day once you're healed. Nothing will stop that behavior or impulse but you.

Let me again preface this portion of my advice by saying that there is no "right" or "best" way to achieve goal or approach your diet post op.

That said, I very firmly believe that moderation is key. Okay, I'm not advocating cheesecake in the soft foods stage. But telling yourself before you're even sleeved that you'll "never eat certain foods again" is going to cause a sense of deprivation and resentment, which does (as you're experiencing) lead to binges, overeating and grazing behavior.

Any food you love and enjoy right now is entirely possible to eat post op. Yes, you need to heal. And yes, you're probably going to have a Protein heavy diet in the beginning because you won't have room for much else and Protein is the priority.

But once you're nearing goal you will have to learn to incorporate a more balanced approach to food. Maintenance is not a diet. You cannot (or rather, should not) approach the sleeve as part B of your new diet. You cannot (again, should not) approach your diet as an all-or-nothing frantic race to goal...but then just throw off the diet and expect the sleeve, on it's own, to keep you there.

You are not likely to fix this prior to surgery. I don't mean that to be defeatist. It takes a long time to break a lifelong bad habit and replace it with a good one. Food funerals are normal to some extent. But there is a definite line to walk and you should be very careful not to excuse a habit that you will need to confront and resolve later because you feel out of control around food right now.

I hope that something there helps. There is a great thread (and I'm not just saying that because I'm in it) that has a mix of pre and post op people discussing disordered eating, and you should check it out. You aren't alone. Many of us have to fix these head/emotional food issues in ourselves before we can happily and successfully maintain. http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/63618-if-you-were-a-binge-eater-before/

Good luck,

~Cheri

[.......... 129]

Breakfast today I had a cup juiced vegetables with pineapple, wedge of Tomato. snack was a small amount of rtd Protein drink with some powdered 1/4 tspn. additions, reishi mushroom, noni, spirillini, chia seeds. lunch was a turkey burger with feta on zero carb bread and organic ketchup, snack was wedge tomato and ounce low cal cheese, dinner another smaller burger with no bread a small amount Protein rtd with a few 1/4 tspn.s same powdered additions of which I've several varitions and ways to use each day.

I am sure the scale is going to be showing a steady downwards pace for some time to come.

I plan to go to a good resturant some day and get something not so dietary once in a while,not in current plans though. I think of it only this early in the game, I was scared of it thinking to only hide behind a salad or what have you and now am satisfied I'll be alright when I do go. I am limited by size and want to add common sense but it's going different than before to enjoy that.

[DanaInNewOrleans 513]

hello everyone, i am getting sleeved on January 31st and i can't stop eating all my favorite foods i won't eat again in excess. I have my days mapped out as to what i will be eating. this weekend i ate donuts (which i stopped eating years ago), kingcake, seafood buffet on fri and sat night. Monday i will eat buffalo wild wings , tuesday i will eat boiled shrimp, crabs and spicy boiled crawfish, that morning i will eat Ihop egg omelet. wednesday is the day i have to drink liquids after 10am.. i am getting nervous and i cant stop eating. i hope my poor eating habits isnt an indication that i will have trouble after getting sleeved. Has anyone else ate their favorite foods a few days before surgery? Good luck everyone, i hope i carve my cravings before surgery, lol.

Hi Kay,

Ok, so I know you've got to be somewhere around New Orleans if you're eating King Cake and boiled crawfish, shrimp and crabs!

I'm in Mandeville...... I actually made sure I had a few things before surgery -- like beignets with as much powdered sugar as I could smoosh on them ( and I rarely eat beignets but for some reason I insisted that had to be one of my goodbye foods before surgery)

~Dana

[*Dean* 1,594]

I was put on a 2 week pre op diet, and I was glad that I was.

Plus my surgery date got moved forward suddenly, and I had to go straight on the pre op diet. So no food funerals, or last binges.

I've had an inappropriate relationship with food for years so I didn't want to have a 'last binge'. If I had an inappropriate relationship with my sister, I wouldn't go out on one last date with her for old times sake either! (NB - I don't have a sister)

On re reading that it's probably a piece of dark copper humour, but my point is regular binges are riddled with guilt. I think a pre sleeve binge would be pretty blah. Like a celebration of being overweight and not happy with myself.

Long story short you will eventually be able to have small amounts of all the food you've mentioned. Especially the seafood! So just relax. Enjoy what you eat before surgery, but it's not the end of eating.

All the best,

Deano

[.......... 129]

I was put on a 2 week pre op diet, and I was glad that I was.

Plus my surgery date got moved forward suddenly, and I had to go straight on the pre op diet. So no food funerals, or last binges.

I've had an inappropriate relationship with food for years so I didn't want to have a 'last binge'. If I had an inappropriate relationship with my sister, I wouldn't go out on one last date with her for old times sake either! (NB - I don't have a sister)

On re reading that it's probably a piece of dark copper humour, but my point is regular binges are riddled with guilt. I think a pre sleeve binge would be pretty blah. Like a celebration of being overweight and not happy with myself.

Long story short you will eventually be able to have small amounts of all the food you've mentioned. Especially the seafood! So just relax. Enjoy what you eat before surgery, but it's not the end of eating.

All the best,

Deano

true, no use in doing the guilt after the fact, but other points are whats to be done later too that is going to be different.

[.......... 129]

good luck to you shortsleevedkay

[O.T.R. sleever 3,386]

My opinion here is, it is completely dependent on the OP's mindset.

I went into this surgery knowing that I was committing to an entire lifestyle change. I knew that after surgery that I was not going to ever overindulge on food again. I knew that there were going to be several foods that I wasn't going to allow in my diet at all for a long time.

I had a huge food funeral. Literally weeks of eating anything that sounded good. I kept it in mind that if this was going to work for me, I was going to have to be committed.

If that's your mindset, then I believe that you'll be fine. On the other hand, if you are looking forward to eating prettymuch the same stuff you already do as soon as possible just in smaller quantities, then the whole food funeral thing I could see being a bad thing.

[DanaInNewOrleans 513]

For some reason I did not feel the need to go crazy before surgery. My husband, friends and family were more concerned about me eating favorite things before surgery than I was. I think it was because I always viewed this as long term freedom -- I have every intention of eating what I want, the only difference being I will only be able to eat a small amount. I know that I will be able to eat my favorite things again, just in much smaller portions.

[*Dean* 1,594]

I agree Dana. Eating what you want in smaller portions and I'm also enjoying having the power to make better choices more often as well.

[*Dean* 1,594]

My opinion here is, it is completely dependent on the OP's mindset.

I went into this surgery knowing that I was committing to an entire lifestyle change. I knew that after surgery that I was not going to ever overindulge on food again. I knew that there were going to be several foods that I wasn't going to allow in my diet at all for a long time.

I had a huge food funeral. Literally weeks of eating anything that sounded good. I kept it in mind that if this was going to work for me, I was going to have to be committed.

If that's your mindset, then I believe that you'll be fine. On the other hand, if you are looking forward to eating prettymuch the same stuff you already do as soon as possible just in smaller quantities, then the whole food funeral thing I could see being a bad thing.

There is more than one way to skin a cat!

(what ever that means! )

[shortsleevedkay 28]

Thanks everyone!!!! This food funeral of mines is coming to and end...i thought i had it out my system in December but i guess its due to me being nervous, very very nervous , 3 days away and knowing that i am going into this not telling no one but my daughter about this lifetime journey i am about to embark on. My food choices , especially the seafood is something i know i will not be able to eat the same way because i love highly spicy boiled seafood, the sweets is something i am not much a fan of so i am ok with eliminating that because this new journey is something that i will be totally commited to. In my eyes i am getting these food choices out of my system and i will be making more healthy food choices. And Dana..yes i am in Louisiana near Lake Charles, lots of hot spicy seafood and kingcakes during Mardi Gras time..lol.. I am driving 3 hours to Hammond, La to have my vertical sleeve done with the spider technique,,, 1 incision and shorter recovery time. Thanks again everyone!!! I will keep everyone in touch with my experience

[12345 80]

I followed the 2 week pre-op diet. BUT, before that, I did eat a lot of my favorite foods. I will admit there was even a Krispy Kreme drive-thru incident.

But since my surgery 6 weeks ago, I have followed the planned diet. I have lost 59 pounds so far but I know Krispy Kremes are NOT in my future and I'm ok with that!