A gorgeous 40 year old mother of two, who happens to to be about seven to eight years post gastric bypass postop. She also, happens to have a little big problem in her smaller body.
"Julie often turned to food and alcohol to find comfort in tough times. She had gastric bypass surgery when her weight ballooned, but now she spends her son's child support money."
On alcohol, a lot of alcohol. You see...
First thing you must note, Julie started drinking at six months post surgery.
This is extraordinarily dangerous. Your surgeon told you to be careful for a reason.
Alcohol + early gastric bypass = possible brain damage and Wernicke's encephalopathy. Wernicke's can occur even without the aid of drinking heavily, do not help it along.
Gastric bypass triggers impaired vitamin intake in the best of situations, and pairing this with alcohol abuse can increase the risks of things like thiamine or Vitamin B1 deficiency. Typical people have a hard enough time metabolizing, removing nutrient intake and adding alcohol is a very bad idea. Don't do it. Don't take advice from internet peoples, but don't do it.
Also note that alcohol really messes you UP post op -
If you aren't one of the gastric-ally enhanced like your super enhanced *sarcasm* blogger here, let me explain something to you:
Diet coke and rum, and I'm on stage.
A few sips of a martini and I'm holding walls.
I'm pregnant in one half-glass of wine.
Alcohol is a different beast with a short gut. Your mileage may and should and will vary, but for most of us, alcohol hits our systems FAST, HARD and feels like it leaves just as quick, even if it doesn't - - which can lead "us" to drink more.
It can be a sick cycle, and the longer I live with my own super enhanced system, the more I realize how much it's all quite interconnected. (Hello, carbohydrates, let's get shitfaced!) I'm not an expert in any way, I just live with it, watch others deal -- and read about it daily. (And, damn it if my opinions aren't changing.)
I'm not really blogging about Julie here, you see. I feel like I/we can't judge. Because, you know what, she is any one of us. It would not take much to jump on that slip and slide of transfer addictionfor any of us, and who are we to judge that? (As I sat with my heavily buttered toast and ATE FOOD during this episode, right?)
Transfer addiction can hit ANY OF US if we aren't dealing with our triggers...
...To over eat, drink, compulsively shop, gamble, ludicrous hobbies that suck up ALL time and money, taking off to do stupid shit, (Yes, I Am Talking About You, CUT IT OUT, what you're doing is totally destructive though you don't see it, and you probably won't see this anyway...) overusing the internet *coughIknow,* obsessions, sex addictions, etc...so forth, so on and yadda yadda yadda, this list, really has NO END... And, we all know someone who has a problem. And, yeah.
My Name Is Beth And I Am Addicted To Caffeine, Simple Carbohydrates And Online Gratification Via Instant Results Via ADHD Brain With A Side Order of Seizure Disorder.
Also: who's to say what addictions and compulsions are truly destructive vs. not? I mean? Sure, I use the net too much, but... what if I was knitting so much that my house was full of yarn? There are things to consider here. Also: addicts will rationalize everything to make their addictions seem okay for THEM. *beam* Am I NOT right?Any of us who ever used food to deal with emotional reasons or anxiety is at risk to transfer to something else, or continually cycle back to heavily buttered carbs. We substitute WHAT-EVER we can to get the same effect in our BRAINS. It's just a cycle of fail until we can fix what's broken to begin with! If you have ever said, "As soon as I lose the weight, things will be better -" that's a sign that they won't. Start working on it yesterday.
Also - I must mention it. I notice the chatter - "OMG HOW MUCH WEIGHTED DID SHE GAINED?!"
The woman was on Intervention because she's drinking herself to death. Her weight regain is of zero importance. Priorities: #1 - Live. #2 - Stay Alive.
At the close of Intervention last night, we were told that Julie is attending AA and was sober as of September. I wish her the very, very best.
Are you out there, Julie?
PS. The realization that the individuals on these shows WATCH themselves on TV and how does THAT feel? *thud*
I realized why I dig this show, just as it came to an end last night. It figures. You have to understand, I don't "do" weight loss shows. Typical weight loss makeover programs make me want to throw things while I count the product placements and analyze the commercials. I can't deal, here have some Extra gum with me?
On My 600 LB Life, the weight loss surgery patients followed a similar time line as I did. I had the same surgery, in the same year. It's likely we had similar education and similar support options, aside from the whole "you're on a documentary" part.
The patients featured on the program start with much more difficult situations than I could ever imagine, but I am left wondering about them. I apparently GET IT at some level and I'm wondering way too much about their current situations...
Where are they now?
How are they? Are they okay? Are things good?
Did anyone ever tell them about their vitamins? Diet? How are you eating now?
Did they get better aftercare than we did in the same time frame?
Have things gotten better for post ops since 2004?
How's the family? Did you move out? Please say you did?
And, are they still getting support?
The show glazes over and skips integral parts of the post-op process. Any of us know that we're missing about 99% of the story here. However, the bits and pieces we do see give us a glimpse of "whys..." It would be much more responsible to show more of each patient's realistic post op experience. There's so much we don't know, don't see, and there's seven years of a few minutes of footage here.
The show feels a lot like a post op check up. Quick and not thorough enough. That said, it's already over.
I'm sure that people like me, peers, are looking way too closely at it because we have lived it. We are waiting to see details about the "whys" -- and the general viewership probably doesn't care -- according to the comments onTwitter this morning -- they just want to be jerks.
Her mother, who is overweight herself, was inexplicably cruel and teasing to Ashley, even as she appeared to be on hand to support her daughter. It was a dynamic and a relationship that was very difficult to understand, but it was very clear that her mother's cruelty hurt Ashley. It may well have helped lead her to the dark place that saw her put on so much weight in the first place.
The episode chronicled her seven-year journey toward a healthier life and body, including multiple skin removal surgeries along the way. But even at 500+ pounds, Ashley started dreaming of getting back to one of her childhood passions. As a girl, she'd played softball, until it became too physically exhausting for her to do so.
Once she'd managed to shed most of those excess pounds, she signed up to coach softball to be close to the sport that had brought her so much joy. She shared her story with the kids on her team, serving as inspiration that anything is possible and it's never too late to take the reigns of one's life. Her ultimate dream is to own a childcare facility where she can maybe reach out to those struggling kids like she was and provide a helping hand before they find themselves living their own 600 pound lives.
There are a few products that are staples in the bariatric world that I have never ventured out and tried. UNJURY Unflavored Whey Protein Powder is one of them. (I did try their Chicken Soup flavor, because it was something different and salty, and I am a sodium lover, hello Ramen Noodle Broth.)
UNJURY was around back when I was a bariatric baby, in fact, there weren't many options back then for protein, I bought what I could find at GNC and that was that.
Today, I tried Unflavored UNJURY Protein. It's an affordable source of whey protein isolate. It is, $16.95 for 17 servings.
Unflavored protein for a bariatric post op is like the HOLY GRAIL.
All of us obsess about it, "OMG WHAT IF I AM NOT GETTING ENOUGH PROTEIN? CAN I PUT PROTEIN IN MY FOOD? WILL I TASTE IT? OMG!" We all do it. But, finding a protein that does not smell or taste like protein, might be harder than getting the protein minimums down to begin with.
I should note first, some details from UNJURY:
Ingredients: Whey protein isolate and soy lecithin
Contains: Milk and soy. ***Note: Soy ingredient is Soy Lecithin, not Soy Protein.
For all UNJURY flavors, do not use in liquids hotter than 130º F. Proteins, when heated, change texture. For example, you have seen an egg white go from a clear gel, to firm white, when cooked. For UNJURY, in a hot liquid, the proteins tend to clump. A food thermometer is a good way to get the temperature nicely warm…just right.
*Note: We don’t recommend mixing Unflavored UNJURY in plain water.
I ripped open a single serving packet and sniffed. It smells like protein. A very strong whey protein smell, and almost slightly sour vanilla. (I got the same reaction to the Chicken Soup variety -- which I immediately wondered "Why does this smell like vanilla?")
For review purposes, I like to mix the product as-is. I added the packet of protein to a glass, and added cold water. I broke the rule. To be honest, the PACKET does not say, do not mix with just water. But, I have to taste the product - NOT what I am adding to TO.
The UNJURY protein powder may be one of the fluffiest appearing powders I've seen. It's awfully purdy. I mixed it with a whisk, and it took quite a long time to dissolve into the cold water. It looked a bit horrid at a point:
And, I thought I would abort mission and throw it away.
A bit more mixing, and the powder finally dissolved. The resulting drink was a mostly smooth, sort of clear-ish, whey-looking yellowy liquid. (Nursing moms? Yeah, like that.)
One sip, Beth. One sip for a honest reaction, and then I would add it to a "preferred beverage" to give it a fair chance.
And -- one sip. It tastes like UNFLAVORED WHEY PROTEIN. Big shocker! It smells like whey protein, and it tastes like whey protein. The texture is okay, it's super-thin and there are very few chunks (curds?) floating about. But, it tastes, because it has to. It's the nature of the product.
Alone, it's not good. Not at all. They warned me. I did not listen.
I bastardized UNJURY - my apologies - but can coffee fix everything?
After adding stuff TO the mixed Unflavored UNJURY, it'smouth-tolerable. The taste isn't bad, the coffee covers of the flavor of UN. As with other whey products it leaves a sticky mouth feel. I am not a fan of this, and I immediately want to drink or eat more after I take in a sticky-whey product.
However, the odor is horrific. I cannot get past the cup, even with coffee added. Perhaps heated it would be better? I don't know, but I am not loving this at all.
That said, it is a good quality product.
As a supplemental source of protein, it's great. 20 grams of high quality whey protein isolate with a PDCAAS score of 100? Damn near perfect.
Form your own opinions - as always - try it for yourself.
Older people who consumed more than 2,143 calories a day had more than double the risk of a type of memory loss called mild cognitive impairment compared to those who ate fewer than 1,500 calories a day, according to a study being released Sunday by the American Academy of Neurology on its website (aan.com).
The more calories older people consumed, the more likely they were to have mild cognitive impairment, says Yonas Geda, lead author of the study and a neuropsychiatrist at Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Other investigators from Australia have shown that excessive calorie intake is associated with a greater risk of mild cognitive impairment, he says.
I am 33 years old, and already have a cognitive impairment. No thank you for this. Thanks.
NEW ORLEANS – New research suggests that consuming between 2,100 and 6,000 calories per day may double the risk of memory loss, or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), among people age 70 and older. The study was released today and will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans April 21 to April 28, 2012. MCI is the stage between normal memory loss that comes with aging and early Alzheimer’s disease.
“We observed a dose-response pattern which simply means; the higher the amount of calories consumed each day, the higher the risk of MCI,” said study author Yonas E. Geda, MD, MSc, with the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.
The study involved 1,233 people between the ages of 70 and 89 and free of dementia residing in Olmsted County, Minn. Of those, 163 had MCI. Participants reported the amount of calories they ate or drank in a food questionnaire and were divided into three equal groups based on their daily caloric consumption. One-third of the participants consumed between 600 and 1,526 calories per day, one-third between 1,526 and 2,143 and one-third consumed between 2,143 and 6,000 calories per day.
The odds of having MCI more than doubled for those in the highest calorie-consuming group compared to those in the lowest calorie-consuming group. The results were the same after adjusting for history of stroke, diabetes, amount of education, and other factors that can affect risk of memory loss. There was no significant difference in risk for the middle group.
“Cutting calories and eating foods that make up a healthy diet may be a simpler way to prevent memory loss as we age,” said Geda.
The co-authors of the study include Ronald C. Petersen, MD, Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology, and other investigators of the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging in Rochester, Minn.
The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Robert H. and Clarice Smith and Abigail van Buren Alzheimer's Disease Research Program.
The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 25,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
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