Carb Addict

I will be having VSG in late October, but I really want to start making some changes in my diet now! Problem is, I'm such a carb addict...I am petrified that I won't be able to get this under control by the time I'm ready for surgery. I'm dancing the line of becoming diabetic and have PCOS, so this isn't something that I just want to do, I have to do it! I've read many places that sugar is a more addictive white powder than heroin..crazy! I'd just would like to hear any others that have had issues getting off of this horrible stuff 😞

I understand. I am a huge carb addict. My pre-op diet was a very low carb diet (no shakes or anything for me). I can tell you that once you get detoxed off the high carb diet, the cravings decrease significantly. The detoxing is no fun, but it only lasted about 3 days for me. And then, as if by magic, I wasn't fantasizing about junk food 24/7. Good luck to you!

Perhaps start out slowly now since surgery is a while away?  I know I tried cold turkey once and developed the worst headache and constipation I had ever had.  Then I started increasing my protein, lowering carbs slowly at first, then saying good bye to them almost altogether.  I'd say the first week when you are decreasing them dramatically is the hardest, then it's like magic, you don't have the cravings after a while, if you're increasing protein--pretty amazing really.  If I can do it, trust me, you can too!

Prior to surgery, I loved regular coke and pasta and rice dishes.  I lived on all of these stuff.  Meat/Protein was never something that I liked to eat.  Getting off the carbs is the hardest but I am stubborn and when I made the decision that I wanted this surgery there was no stopping me.  A lot of this will be a mind game.  While I tried cutting back, I still had these nasty things up until the day I started my preop diet.  I have purposely tried to stay away from carbs since I had the surgery.  In my mind, I have told myself that they are bad for me.  When I eat any noodles/pasta, my stomach literally hurts afterwards now so I basically try and stay away from them.  I find this more with pasta and white flour products.  The corn taco shells go down so much easier than a flour tortilla.  To be honest I hope that I always have this feeling so that I don't go back to eating a lot of carbs.  I am one of those that followed the 600-800 calories, 60-80 grams of protein and 40-50 grams of carbs.  I do not feel deprived and if I did then I might change what I do but this is working for me. 

My point being is that I was once a carb addict and going through process and making up my mind to change my lifestyle, I have been able to do it and stay between 40-50grams of carbs a day and I don't miss them anymore.

You can do this if you want to.  It may not be easy but it is possible and you can be successful.

DISCLAIMER:  I am not knocking anyone that eats more carbs than I do, you have to find what works for you and then stick with it. 

Smittyjen,

The battle to limit carbs is a tough one but it can be done.  The responses you have gotten are right on the mark.   Here is a link to a search of threads dealing with this issue.  Read what members are saying    

http://www.obesityhelp.com/search/action,search_oh/?q=carboh ydrate+junkie&cx=000946886326336472648%3Ae-vpeg4uyxw&cof=FOR ID%3A9

Also here is a link to an OH article that is informative on the subject of carbohydrates: 

http://www.obesityhelp.com/articles/whats-the-skinny-on-carb s/

Good luck and best wishes on your upcoming surgery.

Thank you ladies that responded...just what I needed to hear 😊

Whenever I was caught up in a nonstop carb whirlwind, I'd pickup a roasted chicken, some sausage,eggs....steak, whatever....protein.....and give myself the freedom to eat what I wanted of it....and green veggies....this was pre sleeve....two days of that and then I would start working on reducing portion size....but the protein eating wit o hunger stopped the carb craziness in about a day.