At what point does the obsession stop?

[her1981 448]

I feel like I'm obsessed with food now more than ever. My cravings/appetite has returned, and now I'm constantly obsessing over how I can have what I want but make it fit into my 800 calories per day. Because I'm so limited, I want everything to taste phenomenal. It's so strange. Is this dysfunctional?

Edited May 21, 2016 by her1981

[Kindle 8,667]

Sounds about right to me. I'm 2 1/2 years out and every day is a battle between what I want to eat and what I know I should eat. I don't win every battle, but I am winning the war. To lose the war is to go back to the way I was....fat. And that is flat out not an option.

Find whatever is your unwavering motivation and turn to that when you are struggling. I was able to increase my calories significantly after passing my goal weight, so you may find some relief once you reach that point. Actually, at 10 months out, 800 calories is pretty low. Have you tried to see what happens if you go up to 1000 calories?

In any case, I find that maintenance is much harder than losing. Finally turning to a therapist to help me learn how to deal with stress and emotions and all that other stuff food used to "fix" has helped tremendously.

And hey, we are all a little bit dysfunctional

[her1981 448]

@@Kindle I've been hitting 1000 quite often cuz I'm so hungry!!!! I try to compensate with more exercise. The stalls are coming more frequently and the weight loss suddenly came to a screeching halt. I wonder if the doctor would consider giving me an appetite suppressant.

[her1981 448]

I'm trying to find a therapist now. I'm not sure what I really need though. I considered going to a wls support group, but I'm sure I need more one on one.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

How could an appetite suppressant speed up weight loss if you're eating only 1,000 calories max?

[her1981 448]

@@VSGAnn2014 Idk... I'm getting desperate. It's this kind of "dysfunctional" or "disordered" eating that concerns me. If I eat too much, I don't seem to lose. I tried going up to 1000 and I gained about 5 pounds (2 weeks ago), and still can't get them off.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Oh, ouch!

Good on you for seeking out a therapist. I'm sure you'll have some great conversations.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

You didn't mention Protein at all. Are you able to reach your Protein target within 800 calories? When you say you are trying to fit whatever you want in 800 calories, what does that mean?

I agree that 800 calories seems very low and unsustainable.

Appetite suppressants seem like the last thing you would need. You don't need to be starving yourself.

The great thing about my sleeved life so far is that I get to eat smaller amounts of delicious, nutritious, high quality food and be satisfied.

A therapist sounds like a great idea.

You may also want to consider OA, too. The website, OA.Org, has meeting lists, literature, and even podcasts that you might find useful.

[Kindle 8,667]

@@Inner Surfer Girl has a good point. Do those 800 calories include at least 60-80g of Protein? Some patients have even higher Protein goals. And what about fluids....at least 64oz? 100oz would be better.

Appetite suppressants are a band aid. Yes, they will make staying at 800calories easier, but that is not a sustainable caloric intake anyways and your hunger would come right back when you stop the drugs. Learning how to cope with life without food as a crutch is a permanent fix.

As for a therapist, someone who specializes in bariatric issues and eating disorders may be a good place to start. Personally, mine specializes in grief recovery and cognitive thinking. We don't even talk about food or diet. I barely mentioned I had WLS and it is not a focus of our discussions. But the mental tools she is giving me complement my VSG tool very nicely. Very rarely are obesity issues about food, they are about emotions and behaviors. All things that take a LOT of work to acknowledge, overcome and change.

[TheRealMeIsHere! 863]

if you are getting all your Protein, try adding non-starchy veggies to fill you up.

I had the same problem, now I eat salad frequently. I make taco salad with 93 % ground turkey, big mac salad with the same, Italian sub salads, ham sandwich salads, etc....that way I am getting all the FLAVOR of my fav. foods, without the fat & carbs.

I add non-starchy veggies to a lot of meals, to bulk them up while adding few calories. http://www.hungry-girl.com/ has a lot of great suggestions

If sweets are your thing, you can cook with Protein powder, pancakes, Cookies, muffins etc....

800 cals a day is quite low, when you went up to 1000, were you eating sugar, flour, rice, Pasta or potatoes? Those things will slow down weight loss, cause cravings and possibly cause weight gain.

Edited May 22, 2016 by TheRealMeIsHere!

[catwoman7 11,215]

we had surgery the same month (I was June 3), and I average around 1000 calories. 800 would be a really low day for me.

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

This is what I started doing so I could feel like I am eating more. I have a "huge" salad in the afternoon. 2 cups of salad seems massive, but its a slider. I use calorie free dressing and barely any cheese. The whole thing is 35 calories usually.

148 pounds in less than a year is a lot. Your body might need to rest. I'm not sure you should be so concerned about not losing weight as long as you are eating on plan, even if you are eating 1000 calories a day.

If you really think you are getting out of control with food, you could try a couple days of liquids and see if that helps break you out of it.

[James Marusek 5,244]

I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery. This is my approach during the "Maintenance" phase. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery2.pdf

[audaciousmarie 161]

I feel like I'm obsessed with food now more than ever. My cravings/appetite has returned, and now I'm constantly obsessing over how I can have what I want but make it fit into my 800 calories per day. Because I'm so limited, I want everything to taste phenomenal. It's so strange. Is this dysfunctional?

I often wonder that too (and I am pre op). Will I forever be obsessed with food and my weight?

Sent from my SM-T800 using the BariatricPal App

[her1981 448]

@TheRealMeIsHere! @Kindle @Inner Surfer Girl I eat a low carb/ketogenic diet. I am sugar free and grain free. I always get at least 80 grams of Protein - no matter what. I don't usually snack or I may have one snack per day. I log my foods daily so I can keep up with what was "working". I've stayed closer to 900 calories since around the 3 month mark as I could never get myself much lower (probably due to fat intake, but you need fat if you don't eat carbs) It was working for the first 140+ pounds, so quite naturally my thought is that I needed to go down. Not sure. Keep in mind that I exercise for about 45 minutes to an hour 4 days a week. I also only eat between 10am and 7pm. Here's my macros for a typical day:

Edited May 23, 2016 by her1981