Any regrets? ...and other questions from a new member.
I'm new to the forum however I've been reading for several weeks. I have a surgery date scheduled which made things very real. My wife and I have talked about it extensively but are having a few second thoughts. One of the questions we have is: what do post VSG folks think about their surgery after the "honeymoon" is over....ie after the weight is lost and you realize that you've reached your target weight.
Does anyone regret the surgery?
A few more...
Do you miss the way you used to eat before?
Have your meals/surgery dominated your family?
Do you know of any way to prevent relationship issues?
What's the most difficult part of going through this?
How did this affect your children?
What foods do you miss the most?
What can you eat that you thought you wouldn't?
There's several more I'll have I'm sure....
Thanks,
H
No regrets whatsoever! That is not to say I haven't had a few moments of regret from time to time but they pass quickly and I have been extremely happy with my VSG.
You have to learn a whole new way of eating. Do I miss the old one? Yes sometimes but here again the results you see on the scale and in the mirror make it all worth it.
My family has joined me in a healthy lifestyle which makes it a lot easier both food and exercise. I also try to be accommodating when they want to eat out or order a pizza.
As for relationship issues you both need to be understanding. You have to understand that over the next few months you are going to be more selfish and self centered than you ever have in your life. You will constantly be thinking about when and what you are eating. You will be laser focused on your weight loss so every now and then you have to sy thank you to your family and friends for being supportive and understanding. You need to be pre-emptive with your significant other and discuss what's about o happen. The more you communicate the better off you will be.
The tough part is every once in a while you will feel overwhelmed and you will look at that pizza Ono the stove and it would be real easy to take a bite. It will set you back and it is emotionally tough. Your weight loss will stall from time to time and that is rough in the head. It will pass but they affect me every time and I am on like stall 150.
Children roll with the punches. Hopefully they will want to help you stay the course and eat healthy with you and exercise too.
I miss pizza and pasta the most. I do eat the top off of pizza which helps. I have not eaten pasta since. You can find fairly suitable replacements for just about everything. I thought I would miss potato chips but so far not so much.
Technically I can eat anything. I still have a tough time with chicken but pretty much everything else goes down pretty well. That being said I try to stick with a low carb ketogenic diet. I spent a lot of time reading about nutrition and eating strategies so that has helped me quite a bit.
Hopefully I have answered everything. Feel free to ask anything else that comes up.
Does anyone regret the surgery?
Not one bit!
Do you miss the way you used to eat before? Not really. It did take a while to get used to eating the new way, but once I got into the groove of it, I've been fine. What was a bit hard was very early out eating so little and getting full so quickly. It took a month or two for my eyes to match my stomach capacity.
Have your meals/surgery dominated your family? No. I have a very supportive partner and he eats the way I do, but eats normal sized portions.
Do you know of any way to prevent relationship issues? From what I have seen and experienced it goes like this: relationships that were strong stay strong or get stronger. Those relationships that had trouble (hidden or open) seem to come to a head sometime after VSG. Not sure why this happens, but I have seen it several times over the past 18 months.
What's the most difficult part of going through this? Truly understanding that the VSG is only one tool in an arsenal of tools to battle obesity. You can't rely on just the VSG to keep you at goal weight. There's a lot that goes into maintaining weight. You really have to commit to a complete lifestyle change (at least in the food department).
How did this affect your children? N/A - no kids. Just dogs.
What foods do you miss the most? There is nothing I really miss. I figure now that I've reached goal weight there is really nothing I CAN'T have. Luckily, what I want to have has changed a great deal. For example, I have not had pizza, pasta or a sandwich in 18 months. I dont' miss those things either. I figure I can have them whenever I want. I just don't really want. I'd much rather splurge on something in the dessert department (but that' off limits for me right now, so....)
What can you eat that you thought you wouldn't? Good or bad, I can eat anything. I have yet to find the one thing that doesn't sit well in my sleeve! I always say I have the sleeve of steel!
Hopefully, you will find some of my answers helpful. Just want you to know that I would do my sleeve over in a heartbeat. One of the best things I've ever done for myself. Honesty!
Does anyone regret the surgery?
I am one year post op as of May 31st coming up. I do not regret one minute of it with the only exception of not having done it sooner. I have had a couple days when I ate too fast or too much and regretted that action ... but that feeling passes within an hour or two with the help of Zantac 150 and or Gaviscon Chewable antacids.
Do you miss the way you used to eat before?
Not really. As a matter of fact if you think about it this way it really helps. If I wanted to buy an expensive steak that was perhaps $10 per pound. Before I would eat the whole thing in one shot. Now that is about 5 meals. How can that suck? I still get to eat the same steak and I am still full after doing so. I will take $2 meals over $10 meals anytime. Not to mention there isn't much I can't eat. This surgery has me from day one eating a healthier way and I enjoy all the healthy foods.
Have your meals/surgery dominated your family?
Well I am a single man living alone. It really has no impact on my family considering that my family consists of father, mother, brother, and sister and they all live a good distance away.
Do you know of any way to prevent relationship issues?
Two things. Number one is that the person having surgery and perhaps the spouse can go to support groups locally. That way if an issue comes up it can be discussed before getting out of control. Number two and more importantly is communication. Talk with each other and let each other know about the issues along the way.
What's the most difficult part of going through this?
I would say the not knowing what it's like to have had this surgery. For some people the surgery itself can be daunting. Mine was fairly straight forward. I went into the hospital on a Thursday afternoon and was released on a Friday afternoon. I stayed at a hotel with a half mile of the hospital for four days and walked a lot and drank as much as I could and slept a lot the first few days there.
How did this affect your children? N/A
What foods do you miss the most?
Honestly ... things that crunch. Although I do eat about 1.5 oz of almonds each day (I am in maintenance now). I have also read recently of cooking up chickpeas (or garbonzo beans same thing) in a way that they are crunchy.
What can you eat that you thought you wouldn't?
Again I have no limitations on what I can eat. I just have to continue to make healthy choices. I don't think that there is anything that I currently am eating that I haven't eaten before.
One question that you missed and you will see posted here almost daily. Tomorrow is surgery and I am getting nervous ... help.
The answer to that is that you are experiencing a normal reaction. It is very common to be nervous about this. However I will usually post the question back to you ... aren't you more afraid to die the slow death that obesity is guaranteed to provide you. Obesity will cause health issues and these health issues get worse the longer you are obese. That is a non disputable fact. It is very likely that you obesity will end with a heart attack or heart disease among other health issues. All of the medications that you take over the years for this poor health do have side effects that sometimes can be worse than the thing they are designed to fix.
I was on two meds for diabetes type II and now I am not and have not been for one full year. That's a big money savings. I was on two meds for blood pressure and now I am not and have not been for one full year. More savings. I was on a med for high cholesterol and no longer am. All these meds were stopped one week pre op and I have not taken any of these since. What a savings. Meds aren't cheap. Not to mention that even with them my diabetes was barely controlled and my blood pressure still really wasn't controlled. I always was just a little too high with the two meds I was taking. Not now.
Yes you are going to be nervous. Yes it is normal. Yes you should be more nervous about doing nothing as that is a guaranteed death sentence ... as slowly but surely obesity is killing you and while waiting for that death to come about it will be a huge factor in your having poor health.
By the way in about 5 1/2 months post op I lost 95 pounds. Since then in an effort for me to try to gain back about 10 pounds I have only succeeded in loosing 4 more. I am hitting about 1700 calories a day and that is basically maintaining weight ... this includes a bit over 100 net carbs per day. Overall in the last year I have a record of weight loss. There are times when I have had stalls but there has never been a time where I weighed myself from one week to the next and showed any gain. It may have been the case that if I weighed myself daily I would have seen a couple ups and downs but since my weigh ins were weekly I always saw the net loss ... never any gains.
Isn’t it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do their “practice”? - George Carlin
I am sure some people do. I don't. Just regret not having had it 10 years ago.
Do you miss the way you used to eat before?
Not one single bit.
Have your meals/surgery dominated your family?
Not at all. I don't cook separately for me. I just choose what I want to eat from the family meal. It has rendered everyone healthier.
Do you know of any way to prevent relationship issues?
This has nothing to do with surgery... it has to do with relationships. Sure, post op you can have mood swings and hormonal issues (probably more pronounced for women - maybe?) but if your relationships are solid before surgery there is no reason why surgery would change that.
What's the most difficult part of going through this?
The realization of the fact that I wasted a good 10 years of my life being obese when I could have had the surgery sooner.
How did this affect your children?
Great impact. I have three teenagers who were totally behind me on the surgery and they are proud of me and happy for me. It has affected them positively. They are aware of what they eat and how they live and exercise now much more so than before.
What foods do you miss the most?
Yeah.. pizza and pasta sometimes. But I am pretty sure I'll be able to have these on occasion in maintenance. Otherwise I eat really pretty much everything and don't miss much. Bread.. potato chips..
What can you eat that you thought you wouldn't?
Really I can eat absolutely everything. I have no intolerance to any foods.
Good luck!!! It's really all worth it. You will see.
5ft0; highest weight 222; surgery weight 208; current weight 120
Just thought I would let you know that I really believe the mood swings and hormonal things are things that only the women experience. I can say definitely that I have not had any mood swings or hormonal issues and I am a man.
It is interesting that I see many women on here complain or at least mention these issues. I have not seen a post of such issues by a man which also leads me to conclude that this is something women and not men experience. Of course the other conclusion that would fit is if other men do experience these ... they don't talk about it.
But all said and done the only thing I can say for sure is that I have not had mood swings or hormonal issues post op.
Isn’t it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do their “practice”? - George Carlin
I don't think it matters what sex you are. If you used food as a mood altering drug, and no longer have that drug available, you may become one mean, irritable, grouchy, sad sumbeech.
I'm not saying that's my situation. However, I do have a little difficulty dealing with the fact that the world is FULL OF IDIOTS!
Tom
Hi H!
1)Surgery regret: Not for a second...not even once. I was so tired of carrying the weight around, losing/gaining, sweating, being short of breath, depressed, medical issues, anxious. This was LIFE CHANGING.
2)Miss the way I used to eat: I ate with guilt at every bite before VSG. At a party or event I would shut off my brain and just eat with reckless abandon. Now I think before every bite. I enjoy my food because I know it is good for me, not slowly killing me. I'd be lying if I said I miss being able to just breeze thru a buffet, or mow down a whole pizza in one sitting...but doesn't an alcoholic miss a good stiff drink? I sure don't miss the depression and fear of dying from being in such poor health...
3)Food dominated family: I work at making it as it always was for them. MY food is my issue. I don't make my teen boys and hubby eat MY food...I cook for them, and if it's something I can make VSG friendly, I will make a small portion for me. If not, I have VSG friendly turkey burgers, and meatloaf balls that I made and froze. I just cook them up and add a side of broccoli and I'm good.
4)Relationship issues: What needs preventing? I don't get this really. My relationships with others have improved because my relationship with myself has improved. I now have respect for myself, and others around me seem to respect me becuase of my attitude and positive outlook since VSG. I will say my relationship with my hubby has exploded off the charts. It's like we're 20 again! And my kids...I can keep up now! They are not shy about bringing me around their friends and events now. I do find that I have new anger issues...no food to cover it up. I think folks are surprised by this in me...but I'm learning new ways to channel this.
5) Most difficult part: Paying attention when a crisi****s. I have to be vigilent of my triggers. When stres****s unexpectedly, my old self would turn to food...I have to have the presence of mind to know that NO crisis will blind me to that. Having emergency food on hand at all times is imperitive. Water water water (Jerky, protein snacks, sugarfree candy to suck on). I also agree with the stalls. You have to expect them and keep your head up. March thru, stay positive and focused...all the time.
6)Children: They are so thrilled with how happy and positive and involved I am. Before VSG...I was depressed and really just waiting to die. My mood and attitude reflected this. Now our house is busy and full of activity and laughter.
7)Food I miss: Ah...yes. I do miss two things, Pizza ( I stay away from all processed carbs...so no crust)...but like Keith, If I really want it, I'll pull off the toppings and eat a few bites. And the other: Chinese food.
8)What can I eat that I thought I wouldn't be able to: Really, I can't think of anything. I guess in the past world of "diets" I would never eat bacon or sausage. These have lots of fat...but VSG wise, in small amounts...I can have this. The only NO WAY things for me are ALL processed carbs. NO bread, bread products, cookies snacks etc.
Just remember a few tips: Know your doctors plan and get to know the nutritionist. Make sure you follow it to the letter and ask them any and all questions during your journey. Make sure the emotional issues that got you to this point of considering VSG are in check...if not, find a good counselor, becuase VSG will fix the size of your tummy, but it won't fix your head.
Also...this is no walk in the park. This is the tough and you have to be determined and dedicated to make this work for life. I'm still in the losing phase...but listening to our Vets, I know the hardest stuff is yet to come. But y'know...I wouldn't trade it for ANYTHING. I LOVE my sleeve!!!
Peace to you!
~Deb
