Honestly...do you miss eating the way you used to?

Yes and no.  I say yes because I believe that no matter how much you try to prepare yourself, you will truly never know until you are living it.  There are times when it's very hard, especially if you are an emotional or bored eater.  I miss zoning out and comforting myself with food after a stressful day. 

On the other hand...I hated how I felt.  Food was a very temporary band-aid to a bigger problem in my life.  I think most people would say I've got most everything under control and to feel out of control with my weight, really made my cry out on the inside.  I would trade my former best friend (food) for how great I feel now....hands down, any day.  It sounds silly, but it is amazing to be able to cross my legs, walk and not get out of breath, wipe my butt (I can't believe I let it get that out of control). 

I'm a huge supporter of therapy.  I suggest asking around for a good therapist.  I'm going about once every two weeks and it helps, especially in the beginning.

Your post speaks for a lot of people, including me. 

I'm almost 2yrs out. I can and have eaten pizza,cake,fries,cookies and brownies. HOWEVER, I plan those items and never take more than 3 bites. I make sure I get my protein,vitamins and water in. Some people cannot eat even a taste of these foods post op. These items are not a trigger for me. Soda was my nemesis, and sweets.

I did end up lactose intolerant because my gallbladder had to be removed so I avoid fried foods and I can't eat ice cream.--i do miss ice cream. It's ok though. I am below goal.

Honestly there is a rare time when something tastes good where I wish I could eat normally without feeling sick b/c my stomach can't hold more than 3 oz and there was one time I was missing how I could eat a MOUND of pasta in one sitting, but i know from reflecting that it was the ACT of binging not the food or hunger that was making me feel like that...that is a head hunger issue and I dealt with it and never felt that again.

I am amazed how I am no longer obsessed with food.  I was a chocaholic, a Coke-aholic and I could drink a huge Slurpee like twice a day and i never believed people when they said they no longer craved sugar but lo and behold I don't crave it at all any more!

I can honestly say the only thing I really do miss is the ability to drink with some food, I would love to be able to have a glass of milk with something or a tea but by no means do I have any desire to wash food down with gallons of milk or juice or pop like i used to.

If you do have the VSG you will be amazed how you change and how food no longer controls your every thought.  You become empowered and you have more energy with the weight loss that enables you to keep busy doing so many wonderful things that you don't even have time to miss the foods you used to live for.

Good luck with your decision!

Sorry to reply twice but I just had dinner and was reflecting on your question and wanted to share. I was craving a salad so made one...lettuce, tomato, green onions, cucumber, radishes. Yummmmmmm!!! Dill and greek yogurt dressing. Super yummm...my favourite food. I ate grilled lamb first to get my protein in. I ate three bites of the glorious salad and that was it. I was done. Totally satisfied, satiated, full...not so much...just comfortable. Thought about before surgery. I would have eaten all the salad in the world and I still would not have been satisfied. The surgery has given me the gift of both food enjoyment and the feeling of contentment and satisfaction which I was forever chasing before but never got. So I confirm. I do not regret the before VSG eating AT ALL.

Thank you for taking the time to reply twice! :)  I'm glad you did because your second post really got me thinking.  When I went back and read the question I had posted I thought it was really weird that I put down some of that stuff like I'd miss it when really my greatest love is salad! But like you I like to eat as much as I want and I eat a lot! Last night was grocery shopping night and that's when I always get a bunch of yummy salad stuff and make a huge salad when I get home. That's just what I did, and I ate it all and then some. I felt sick afterwards. Friday night is always the night I overeat like that. Then I got on here and started reading all the replies. As I read them while feeling so sick from eating so much it made all the replies seem to make that much more sense. I would like to be able to eat 3 bites of salad and feel satisfied and enjoy it. When I eat so much of what I love, afterward I don't love it so much...it kind of takes away from the enjoyment I had while eating it in the first place....if that makes sense. Anyway, so thanks again! 

This is my truth:

I miss baked goods.  I do.  I love to bake, I love to eat baked goods.  However, because of my (admittedly newish) sleeve, I am able to resist them.  Since my surgery, I have made banana bread with my kids twice, brownies once, and cupcakes for my daughter's birthday party.  My family has had pizza countless times.  Fancy mermaid cookies were the favors at my daughter's party.  We had 100 boxes of girl scout cookies in our house.  And I'm ok.

Do I think they'd taste good?  Yes.  Do I eat them? No.  Could I have done that before?  No way.  I'd have been sneaking over taking a little bit every time I walked past, and I'd have spent our savings on Samoas and Thin Mints. 

Here's something else that was news to me:  no one cares what you eat.  People at parties are focused on socializing and having fun.  They are not noticing what you eat.  I went to a party last weekend (in my size L dress from Old Navy, go me), and because things hadn't gone as planned that day I didn't get a chance to eat dinner before the party.  I stuck some turkey pepperoni in my purse "just in case," and as it turns out, it was a good thing I did because everything at the party was too carb-heavy for me.  I had my snack (and shared with a friend).  I drank water.  I talked and laughed and had a good time.  I don't think anyone noticed that I wasn't eating chips, and if they did, they didn't care.

If I really really missed a burger, I'd have one without a bun.  When I really want pizza, I eat turkey pepperoni.  Once you detox from carbs, it is much easier to do without them.  I do not miss bread, crackers, etc.  Just the sweet stuff. 

So basically, yes, sometimes you will miss your old food "friends."  But you'll find new, healthier ones, or you'll start DOING instead of EATING and not have so much time to miss them. 

I did have a bad incident during a visit to my inlaws (at egg rolls and peanut butter cookies), and I worked through that with my therapist when I got home to figure out what was going on there.  Surprise, it wasn't about food, it was about stress and childhood triggers.  I'm working on other ways to deal with stress.

VSG is not easy (at least it hasn't been for me), but it's WAY easier than trying to diet on your own.  I feel like I got a willpower infusion.

To be honest, you will have "head hunger," which is a craving for a food, even though you might not be physically hungry. Sometimes I still fantasize about cake and other carbs.

But, the funny thing is, it doesn't feel like a huge loss. It's like fantasizing about wealth or terrific sex--it's nice to think about, but I'm not suffering because I don't get them. :-)

And the up side is that there are lots of sleeve-friendly foods I can eat, and they are tasty, satisfying, and fulfill my nutritional requirements. Sometimes if I want more of a certain food, I'm able to avoid going over my limits by telling myself I can have it tomorrow. I would not have been able to do that before surgery!

Good luck with your decision! VSG does require some changes in you, but for me the changes have been really good and rewarding ones.

Yup I miss it all the time but I knew going into surgery that I have/had a VERY dysfunctional relationship with food. I used it and abused it at every turn. I miss like Ive missed relationships with the WRONG person while I miss them I know that the ending of our relationship was showing myself true ultimate love. I love myself more then I miss food.

Ms Shell

I'm going to be very honest and say that I do miss eating more and high calorie food than I should.  I've been thinking over the past week how I wish I had the Roux en y rather than the sleeve so that I would be super sick if I ate wrong.  With the sleeve, it's like nothing else can go in after you reach a certain point.  My problem is not eating too much but eating the wrong foods.  Also, diet DP.....oh my goodness.  Water intake is so hard for me.  So.....the answer for me is yes. I do miss that full feeling.  With the sleeve the full feeling is more of a miserable feeling which helps.  Sliders are also a problem.