Just past my 3 yr surgeryversary...

Hello, my name is Barbara and I am addicted to carbohydrates..
Hey guys, it has been a few years since I have visited. I had lost 80 lbs post surgery. So thru learning how to eat around my sleeve I have gained 30 back. I still feel restriction and have pain awhile when I eat all at once. I would like to hear how others who have truely dealt with this addiction . How you have come to control it?
I look at my body am I am so dissapointed in what I have done...
Signed,
Desperate to get healthy...

 I am only 7 months out but I definately understand carb addiction. My first line if defense is eating protein first followed by tracking using MFP and keeping carbs around 40. When I get much more than 50gm carbs my weight loss slows or stops. Carb count 60 or above and I am hungry all of the time and crave carbs. I pretty much eat a high protein diabetic diet. Send a friend request to me if u decide to us MFP I am pedirn06

It's still a huge battle for me. I regained all of the 55 I lost. (Now, I don't want to scare anyone away from VSG- I fell off the wagon when my husband was diagnosed with grade 4 brain cancer April of last year. I stopped going to the gym and we were in survival mode for months. He's doing well now, and I need to refocus on me.)

I struggle because I used to be vegetarian and would go days without meat. I'm back again in these forums to help me see what others eat and be inspired.

Hijack... I cannot private message you because your profile is private, but if you'd like to attend a support group, I know of a great one here in Austin. Send me a note and I'll give you the details if you're interested.

Thanks!  Just accepted your friend request.

Hi Barbara --

Welcome back to OH.  You have taken the first step in getting back on track by returning here to your support group!

I certainly understand carb addiction, because sugar and junk carbs are my drugs of choice, too.  I had a 30-pound regain after about a year and a half, and it was the devil to get off again.  I just couldn't seem to get back on track (didn't *choose* to get back on track??****il I got really sick about six months ago (nothing to do with wls or weight).  The weight came off then, and I sure don't want it back again!

The best advice that I read here about getting back on track is to go back to basics -- protein first, green veggies next, and only a few complex --COMPLEX-- carbs if you have room after the protein and veg.  Also drink water like a fish.  It is hard after a backslide, but it can indeed be done.

A lot of us old-timers hang out on the maintenance board:  http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/VSGM/discussion  although not all of us are at maintenance.  Feel free to drop in there for advice, too.  Best wishes!

--Dorothy

Hi Barbara!

I am a compulsive overeater and food addict, too.  I am only a year out, but I understand disappointed and desperate.  I know the incomprehensible demoralization of being in the throes of my addiction, but I have also known long periods of peace around food.  Recovery is possible.

I can only tell you what I know has helped me.  First, I cannot do this alone.  I have to have a support group of like-minded people who understand my struggle.  I have been in and out of OA for 26 years, though I haven't attended meetings in quite a while.  I have not been able to get off the sugar without OA, and although sugar is not the totality of my problems with food, it is 80%.  I have been imperfectly off the sugar for 8 years now (I did have a slip a few years ago but managed to pull out).

I am also very sensitive to simple carbohydrates.  Right now, I am mostly not eating them.  When I do (and I have at several junctures since surgery), it has been painful to get off of them, but very possible and I feel a lot better.

So this isn't advice, this is just what I do.  When I have had too many carbs (like on vacation), I have to detox.  The carbs really increase my appetite, so for the first few days, I don't think too much about my total calories, I just focus on eating the very best "optimum nutrition" I can.  If I'm hungry, I eat some dense protein (like chicken breast).  I try to keep the food simple, as few ingredients as possible.  I can get very overstimulated by food, even if it's "good" food.  So I try to eat simply.  I usually have "too many" calories for the first few days, but as the carbs recede from my system, my appetite returns to normal and I can start eating my "normal" food plan. 

It is almost as important that  I weigh-measure-record everything I eat (and drink, if caloric).  This helps keep me honest, which in some ways is more important that "on plan."  If I absolutely "have to" eat X, I weigh-measure-record.  I don't let myself sit mindlessly eating from a bag of nuts, but I have measured out and eaten quite a few nuts in one sitting (2 ounces, I believe).  I try to post here pretty often, and I just started logging on myfitnesspal.  My food log is not private, anyone can see it.  My pride stops me from eating some things, because I don't want to log it and have people see I ate X.

When I really struggle, I send my food log to an actual, like-minded human being.  This is my way of surrendering.  It always goes better when I remember I have a disease, I am permanently broken when it comes to food, and I need the help of others to get better.  Please feel free to PM me if you wish. 

 Barbara,

It is possible to lose your regain. I wrote a long post about how I did it. You can find it here: www.obesityhelp.com/group/VSGM/discussion/4538261/How-I-got- that-regain-off-with-PIcs/

Thank you for your post. I had stopped my shakes in July but will stock up again when I get paid. I have been tracking on MyFitnessPal since December and the has kept me accountable and it really does make a difference. Please keep posting and keeping us motivated!

Thank you all for posting. At first it appeared that the only time I had been craving carbs is around the time of my period. But for the last month or so it's been more than usual. I attribute it to stress -and yes I can identify the source. I have learned as a result of it that carbs is still where I turn to during stress. I have had no soda but have had some surgery deserts. I fear weight gain and began my workout regimen this past week after taking most of the summer off. I have gained two pounds but refuse to allow myself to sabotage my success. Time to refocus and get this last 12lbs off! Thank you for sharing your wisdom.