anyone have a problem with alcohol since surgery???

I am 18 months out and was a casual drinker before surgery but now its seems I want to drink more often. It makes me feel good, but the next day my little pouch hurts bad. Can I damage my pouch. I have been reading that the  chances of having a problem with alcohol after surgery is pretty high. I know that it hits me faster and I never drive when Ive had a drink. Im a little worried about having a problem with it but am really concerned about damaging myself. Any suggetions. Thanks

It might be the sugars in the alcohol that cause your pouch to hurt. I know I used to drink casually before surgery but could drink ALOT. Now I can't drink very much at all and I'm totally wasted...The problem lately has been that the little bit of alcohol that I do have causes me to dump. Not pleasant at all so I just don't drink much ever. Not even like I used to.

I've seen where food addictions after WLS are transferred to other things and alcohol seems to be the next biggest target with WLS patients..And for that reason, I've seen on several boards where alcohol is discouraged completely...Maybe there's a good reason for it.

I wi**** would make me dump, then maybe I would stay away from it. Actually not much makes me dump,only have dumped once. I am going to call and see if I can get in to talk to someone about it because I am really scared of becoming addicted. I can see that it can happen really easy. I have lost 110 pounds but have gained back about 10 in the last 6 months and am sure the drinking has alot to do with it. The next day I crave carbs like crazy. Thanks for your input.

Alcohol irritates the stomach lining.  That, plus the sugars, don't make it worth it to me.  My doctor had me sign an agreement saying that I would avoid alcohol altogether, not only for the aforementioned reasons, but also because of the addiction on a fraction of the amount that you used to have.  And we all know that alcohol just has "empty calories" anyway.  Avoid it.

By problem, I assume you mean addiction? Statisically, 34% of us will have problems with alcohol. My own stat from years of doing what I do was right around 30%, so I'm agreeing with that.

My own personal problem was thrift store shopping. 27% will deal with shopping, officially. My stat was 25%.

#3 is "wrong sex", so it means that it's with the wrong person(s) and generally makes the WLSer feel bad about themselves or costs them a marriage or disease or something. I'm not making the judgment on "wrong", they do. But my stat was 20%, official is 22%.

The rest were drugs and gambling, very small and can't remember the stats.

I must start out by saying... some dr's will tell you never drink after having RNY as alcohol poisoning can occur quite quickly.. however I have had a few drinks here and there and have been fine..  I mean like 1 or 2 but never more..  I find wine makes me feel drunk but mixed drinks don't seem as bad..  I don't experience pain.. but definitely if you did it was probably the sugar..  Ask your dr or surgeon for their opinion of alcohol you maybe surprised.  What have been your experiences.. 

hi! am 19 months post op and alchol was my biggest problem it began in june of this year, i would crave for a drink every nite and in the morning i would beat myself up...it was an  addiction  tht i picked up and i thank God i stopped cold turkey, i drank crazy for about 3 months and i had began adding weight. my advise is stop, look for something else positive tht u can do, when u what a drin****pt busy and looked at the big picture, tht i was harming myself  and i had gone thru alot to have this get in the way. take one day at a time.  Be blessed

I really appreciate the advise from all of you, I know I can get this under control, Thanks Debra

Wow, oddly enough I haven't been on this board in a couple of years (4 years post-op RNY) and this is exactly the reason I came here! I'm a wine drinker and the last year has been really bad with my drinking. I started at 259 and my lowest weight was 144 (before I had two more children). Now I'm at 166 and can't fit into any of my clothes! So I feel like crap, at myself for not being able to control this, for gaining weight, for how bad my life sucks - mostly because of the drinking but also having some marriage issues, partly because of the drinking - and how bad I feel about myself because I just can't seem to stop. So I'm beating myself up, which makes me feel even worse about myself which makes me eat and drink more. I know it's a bad habit and I know I need to do something about it. I need motivation to get back on the right track from someone who is in the same situation. I want to stop drinking, I want to lose the weight again. I want to feel good about myself again. Why do I keep kicking myself down the hill? Oh, and the sick hurty feeling in your pouch - mine sometimes feels like I've got rats in there trying to claw themselves out - probably isn't sugar, it's likely the acidity in your alcohol of choice, especially if you or anyone in your family has ever had a problem with ulcers or acid reflux. Feel free to contact me if you want to talk about this with someone who's in the same boat. Maybe we can help each other :)

I'm in the exact same mode you are in.  My 4 year anniversary was 9/29/07.  I have found that I enjoy having a glass of wine in the hot tub each night.  The problem is the glass keeps getting bigger and sometimes I have 2 or 3 of them.  I have about 25 pounds of extra weight on me right now and I'm sure it's all from the alcohol.  My surgery worked like a charm - I still can eat very little and get full.  I just violated the very first rule my surgeon and nutritionist told me "NO CALORIE CONTAINING BEVERAGES!" I went to this site for some support and it has been wonderful.  No more alcohol for me - I'm done.  I hope you are able to stop as well - let's help each other through this!