WLS for a sugar/carb addict and binger?

[Yettid 67]

I've had a lifetime of compulsive sugar binging and compulsive carb eating. I'm an all in or all bets are off eater. On plan or off. Donuts for lunch or salad. You get the picture. I'm 46, 5ft tall and 220. I've gain and lost the same 30 pounds dozens of times. I can gain 10# in a month. I'm terrified to get wls and gain it all back or still not be able to control my eating. But in the same sense I feel like it's my only shot to maintain a somewhat normal weight. Help!

[blizair09 3,250]

WLS can be a tool that can help you lose weight, maintain a healthy weight, and improve your quality of life, but you have to put in the hard work to be successful long-term. While you can (and probably should) work closely with a psychologist and a nutritionist, it ultimately comes down to you doing what you need to do to be successful. And you must make a commitment to this become a lifestyle change. People bat those terms around all of the time, but it is true. The people on here that do not reach their goal or that regain all their weight later never changed their relationship with food, depended on the "honeymoon period" to do what they did do, and more or less were seeking to "eat normally, but just less" (which is a fallacy, in my opinion).

The question you have to ask yourself is this: Am I prepared to change my life to ensure my success? If yes, then WLS is for you; if no, you might lose a little weight, but you'll never get where you want to be.

[Apple1 2,572]

14 minutes ago, Yettid said:

I've had a lifetime of compulsive sugar binging and compulsive carb eating. I'm an all in or all bets are off eater. On plan or off. Donuts for lunch or salad. You get the picture. I'm 46, 5ft tall and 220. I've gain and lost the same 30 pounds dozens of times. I can gain 10# in a month. I'm terrified to get wls and gain it all back or still not be able to control my eating. But in the same sense I feel like it's my only shot to maintain a somewhat normal weight. Help!

I would start addressing your food addictions now before surgery. I would get a referral to a therapists that specializes in these areas. The surgery will be a tool to help you, it will reset your metabolism, but you will still have to make the choice to stay on your diet plan. You need to get in the right mental frame of mind. This is a lifestyle change for life, not a diet. You have to chose to want to develop healthy eating and exercise habits.

There are many successful examples of people that have beat their food addictions on this forum. The way to conquer them has been different for everyone, but for me avoiding the foods that I know will cause me to slip up is working. I avoid simple carbs completely. I have decided to stick with a low carb way of eating indefinitely. It works for me. You can do this if you go all in, and make perminate changes to your relationship with food.

[Introversion 1,876]

22 minutes ago, Yettid said:

I'm an all in or all bets are off eater. On plan or off. Donuts for lunch or salad. You get the picture.

I used to be an 'all in, all out' eater, too. Either I was eating ultra-healthy stuff, or if not, I compulsively ate the most unhealthful meals and treats imaginable.

I have since dropped that 'all or nothing' mentality toward my way of eating. If I want something unhealthy, I eat it, but I'm not eating five or six servings of it.

Even with bariatric surgery, you can overeat the crappiest junk food. A person with a sleeve or bypass can eat 10 donuts and never feel fullness or satiety because crap such as donuts, chips and crackers are 'slider' foods: they turn into a slurry and slide through your stomach without ever making you full. You can eat unlimited amounts of the aforementioned foods in addition to popcorn, pretzels, Cookies, etc.

Many bariatric surgeons do not warn potential patients about slider foods, yet they are the root of most weight regain in the weight loss surgery community.

Personally, I attended a few therapy sessions with a counselor once I approached my goal weight. You are taking the first step by admitting to your problem. Good luck to you.

[Sherrie Scharbrough 311]

All that was said above!! I was a BALS TO WALL OR NOTHING kind of person!! Who HATED exercise!! Guess what I have been very sucessful with my RNY. I had it done July 2, 2013, within 6 months my weight dropped to 117#'s, I felt hrrible and couldn't eat hardly anything. I had Strictures so I couldn't keepm anything down. All has been corrected and I am GREAT. I will share my stats: HW 249 SW 232 LW 117 CW 125. I now don't binge but I still have my sweet tooth. My surgery makes it haard to eat to much of it. I know that mos people say that they stay away from certain foods but my Suregon and Nutritionst both told me before my WLS that in time there are no forbidden foods just eat in MODERATION!! That is basically how I eatr like was said above if I want something I eat it but not the whole package. I started having 1 peice of good for you bread but I eat 1/2 a sandwich. For myself I didn't gain all of my weight from unhealthy foods alot of it was the amount that I ate!! Good luck and keep us posted on your journey!!

[NYCGAL000 59]

I too am a food addict but its not sweets, I cant stand candy, cake or Cookies, icecream, none of it, I'll never buy that stuff, I got fat from bread, pizza, chips, sandwiches, Bagels, CRACKERS, anything crunchy and salty. Wont the surgery help so that we will feel full faster when we eat these things or we just should never eat them again?

[Apple1 2,572]

1 minute ago, NYCGAL000 said:

I too am a food addict but its not sweets, I cant stand candy, cake or Cookies, icecream, none of it, I'll never buy that stuff, I got fat from bread, pizza, chips, sandwiches, Bagels, CRACKERS, anything crunchy and salty. Wont the surgery help so that we will feel full faster when we eat these things or we just should never eat them again?

Bread is a big no no after the sleeve. It will expand and fill you up. Crackers and chips are slider foods that you will be able to over eat on. They turn to mush in your stomach and slide right on through. Some people are able to train themselves to eat just a small amount of those things, but if they are a trigger for you I would avoid them if you want to be successful long term.

[NYCGAL000 59]

OMG just my luck! why cant candy be a slider food instead i hate candy! life is so unfair!

[Yettid 67]

Thanks all! Essentially, I guess the question is, will wls help me stop binging and eating sugar ? I've tried everything else this far and I go back to it:(

[Apple1 2,572]

3 minutes ago, Yettid said:

Thanks all! Essentially, I guess the question is, will wls help me stop binging and eating sugar ? I've tried everything else this far and I go back to it:(

It will only help if you do the work necessary to change your relationship with food. See the replies above.

you can definitely make this work if you want to.

[Yettid 67]

I do want to:). I feel like I've truly tried many times. My fear is how will it be different "this time".

[Apple1 2,572]

Just now, Yettid said:

I do want to:). I feel like I've truly tried many times. My fear is how will it be different "this time".

If you have never had WLS before you haven't had the advantage of the metabolism reset or the lowered hunger hormone Ghrelin. It will definitely help you, but you will still have to do the mental work.

[nomorefattypatty 329]

OMG just my luck! why cant candy be a slider food instead i hate candy! life is so unfair!

Candy is a slider food you can eat a whole bag in just a few minutes. Just keep that in mind!

Sent from my N9519 using BariatricPal mobile app

[NYCGAL000 59]

no i meant i wish ONLY candy was a slider food because i hate candy lol

[Introversion 1,876]

1 hour ago, Yettid said:

Thanks all! Essentially, I guess the question is, will wls help me stop binging and eating sugar ? I've tried everything else this far and I go back to it:(

No...you can still eat sugary foods compulsively with a gastric bypass or sleeve. Only a small percentage of bypass patients experience the dumping syndrome after eating sugar; however, the majority tolerate sweets without any issues.

You can still binge-eat with a reduced-sized stomach, one donut or cupcake at a time. These are sliders, a.k.a. slurry foods. They turn into a liquid slurry once you swallow, sliding through your stomach and into your intestines rapidly without ever challenging your sleeve or bypass pouch. You can eat 50 cupcakes and never feel full.

In essence, the bariatric surgeon operates on your stomach, not your mind. 90 percent of success with bariatric surgery involves changing your psychological outlook on eating. Good luck to you.