Question:
How can one prepare themselves mentally for the change in eating habits.
Presently: 287lbs. 5'5. I'm going to one of the seminars Monday. I'm still doing my research on finding the right doctor and which procedure is right for me. After speaking with people who have had the surgery, the've said it's more of a mental challenge than anything. What all have you done before and after the surgery to help deal with the change of eating habits? What about the excess skin, is surgery a must to remove it? — Adrienne Harris (posted on October 9, 2004)
October 9, 2004
Adrienne, for me, it has been a mental challenge but I actually started
working on the mental challenges long before I had the surgery when I
realized that I was getting sicker and sicker and was headed toward a slow,
miserable death. I went to counseling and did a LOT of self examination to
see why I ate the way I did. I was pretty successful in resolving a lot of
emotional issues but by that point, I had to struggle to lose a pound so I
didn't make much progress on my weight. The biggest help to me was when I
tried the Atkins diet and realized that once I got the carb demon off my
back, I could be pretty successful in at least maintaining my weight. I'm
just a bit over a year out and have only "lost control" about
twice since surgery and that consisted of eating about 300 extra calories
over a day's time so it wasn't too bad. I haven't tried sugar at all, I
just assume it will make me sick. I'd rather not know if it doesn't and
that would be my advice to you...just plan to never test it. Fortunately,
the highly refined foods like white bread make me feel like crap so it's
been pretty easy to leave that alone. I was the champion bread eater of
all time before I went on the Atkins plan in late 2002. I did faithfully
attend a support group pre-op and early post-op. It's been hard to get
there over the last three or four months (lots going on personally) but I
still try to make it as frequently as I can and I check the questions and
answers on this web site everyday. I guess the best advice I could give
would be that you internalize now that your eating habits will be different
for the rest of your life. That doesn't mean you will be deprived for the
rest of your life but that you will have to have a good plan that starts
with protein first, then veggies, then fruit and rarely if ever, the high
glycemic stuff like white flour. And drink, drink, drink 'til you're sick
of drinking. That has been the hardest part for me, not the change in
eating habits. As far as the surgery for excess skin, that is a very
individual thing as well. It depends on your skin tone, genetics, etc.,
etc. Not much help I know but you really won't know until you get close. I
started out at 276, am down to 151 and, although I could use some
tightening up, I could really go without any surgery at all because mine
isn't so bad. For me, it would definitely be a vanity thing. No way to
tell what you'll experience but that's part of the beauty of this journey.
Good luck on your research and hope everything works out well for you.
— scbabe
October 9, 2004
Although I didn't think so at the time, the physician supervised diet I had
to do before getting insurance approval did actually get me into a mindset
of changing my eating habits. My doctor had me do a 1600 calorie per day
diet and to track every bite of food that went into my mouth. It's kind
of revealing when you see it on paper and it taught me to look at the
nutrition content of what I was eating. It taught me to read the labels
and count the calories. I've found now a little over 2 years out as long
as I stay in the neighborhood of 1200 calories, I maintain pretty well,
which is what I must do for life. I discovered what a demon carbs are for
me and I don't indulge much in that dept. any more. I've learned to
control my blood sugar drops that I've had for years and didn't ever get a
handle on and best of all most of my medical problems are gone. If I'm
tempted to slip, all I have to do is to re-visit all the pain I was in as a
pre-op. Makes one think twice.
— Cathy S.
October 10, 2004
The mental challenge isn't limited to just your eating habits. The first
couple of months are difficult because you are learning what you can and
can not eat and how much. But after that it becomes 'old hat' till about
two years out. There is nothing I could have done to prepare me for any of
the mental challenges that I faced. <br><br>The first couple
of months where you are faced with the realization of why and how much you
actually eat is quite the eye opener. You will not only miss foods that you
can't eat, but even though you are full, will still miss eating the volume.
That one was a shocker to me. Thankfully all that goes away. After you
try bread and it sits in your stomach like a rock and you feel miserable
for an hour or two....you just don't want it every again. Same with sweets
and whatever else it is that YOUR stomach doesn't like. Your cravings do
go away through behavior modification. Bread and sweets make you feel like
crap...you don't crave them.<br><br>The biggest mental
challenge for me was dealing with the new found confidence. This sounds
stupid, but it is actually weird. Dealing with attention was difficult.
After the weight is gone from you body, it is still in your head. You look
beautiful, but still feel fat. Why is that man looking at me? Oh my god,
he is walking over here!!! It takes about two or so years for your mind to
catch up. Then your in a size 10 and feel fat. What the hell is that
about? Enter questioning your entire life....Is my job good enough, my
spouse, my education, my closet...etc. <br><br>excess skin is
more of an annoyance than a life altering event for me. I am three years
out and have not had PS. I have the jiggly belly and the upper thigh
shake, but it really isn't as bad as it could have been. It would be nice
to have PS, but it is by no means necessary for me, for others it is.
Completely depends on your body and you won't know until you have lost all
weight. Anyhow, the mental challenge is not limited to eating habits. It
is present in ALL aspects of your life after surgery. Being informed that
the challenges are there is the best thing, and sadly something that most
people don't realize. ~~Rebecca
— RebeccaP
October 10, 2004
Rebecca is correct. I help run a support group and I aways recommend that
any one concerning this surgery think about seeking counceling before and
after surgery. We used food to mask our feeling and cover life issues.
Once you have the surgery you can't use food to do that so you need to
develop coping skills besides food. The surgery is just a DIET TOOL. During
the recovery you need to develop good eating habits (what you eat, where
you eat, how you eat). We have to turn around old eating habits so we don't
go back to old habits which can happen. If you abuse the tool (new stomach)
it will expand and you can gain weight. Think about regular diets... if
they worked why are people still fat. The diet programs may be good but
its the emotional part that diets like Weight Watchers, Atkins, etc have
not master and never will.
You can start preparing for this surgery in a couple of ways. Join a
support group (good to talk to others), exercise (start building muscle
tone), eating protein (helps with the healing process), seeing a dietitian
before the surgery (can give you ideas of the correct protein, reading
labels, etc). Please read the profiles on this site. You can e-mail me. I
will be happy to share my story. I was 329 lbs before the surgery, I'm 18
months post-op and currently at 138 lbs. I am having PS only because I'm
having a difficult time sitting with the extra skin I have. Most
insurances may not pay for PS so please keep this in mind. They pay for
the Bypass for health reasons but they think PS is cosmetic. Find out from
your insurance company ahead of time so that if they don't you can start
saving if you think your going to need PS. It's a nice to have but not
necessary. Good Luck.
— Linda R.
October 11, 2004
The greatest challenge is mental. Losing weight is very easy compared to
the emotional stuff. If you eat to hide your emotions you will have to
find another way to deal with them.
— mrsmyranow
Click Here to Return