Still having issues with overeating..

[believexrebecca]

Has anyone else? I'm thinking of getting counseling for it but not sure what to look for, counselor wise. I also have been eating A LOT of bad things. I haven't actually lost weight in 2-3 months and I've only been sleeved for 5 months.

[Ann2]

Ruh roh!

Yup. You need to get some help -- and pronto.

I've been seeing a therapist for 18 months now, and have been sleeved for 16 months (have lost all my excess weight and am maintaining pretty effortlessly right now).

Try to find a psychologist (you don't need an MD) who has a lot of experience working with bariatric surgery patients. Your surgeon's office (particularly, the nurses and staff there) may be able to recommend someone who's good. That's how I found mine -- I talked to the staff, not my surgeon -- and asked them, "Who's REALLY good?!" They told me, flat-out: "Dr. X is great. Dr. Y is OK. Dr. Z -- don't even think about going to him -- yuck!"

Of course, Dr. X was booked to the max, so I had to wait until his schedule opened up -- was on his waiting list for 6 months before I got a slot. I plan to see him throughout 2016, too. I saw him every other week for a few months, but then slowed down to once a month.

Turns out I'm not crazy, I don't have any unknown, forgotten childhood traumas (other than those I knew about -- nobody's childhood was perfect). I just needed someone to help me become much more consistent and disciplined about my self-care. And believe me, Rebecca, when I say that although I was GREAT at so many other things in life I have sucked at caring for myself -- doing the things every day that make me healthy and happy and able to live the life I really do want.

I have so much admiration for you. I've followed your struggle to get WLS here. So PLEASE don't waste that sleeve. It will help you create the life you want. But the sleeve alone ain't gonna fix you. YOU still have to fix you. And if you need help to fix you, then please, please, please find it.

Ann

[MargeB]

The therapy is really, really important. If simply dealing with hunger solved the obesity crisis, diet pills would work. There is SO much more to it than that. Body dysmorphia, using food as an emotional barrier.

You've already lost 100 lbs. That takes some getting used to. Change is scary, even if it is good.

Today, I told our family therapist, who has been working with our kids (one has high functioning autism) that I needed to take the time and money for a therapist for myself for a while. This is hard work, changing a lifetime of habits.

Good for you for recognizing the issue!

[cathbas]

ditto with what ann said...Great advice!! you have done real well...100 lbs down!! keep on going..and yes..get ahold of it before it gets ahold of you..

[LaurieMosher]

I am not eating right either. Not overeating because I can't but I have been eating candy and cake crap...just go back to the basics. I need to as well...boo for us! lol

[Firebreak]

You're not alone. I feel like I'm overeating too. My loss hasn't stopped, but it's definitely slowing.

I'm hoping this is just temporary, there are too many tempting things available for me to eat this time of year, but once the holidays pass I want to get that stuff out of my sight again.

Right now I can't enter my kitchen without seeing something yummy calling my name. My wife likes to bake, and people like to bring bad things in December

[Ann2]

Being assertive about what we need to become and remain healthy (while not being a total asshole about it) is a critical skill for all us WLS patients.

Our needs are important.

My humble opinion.

[jerzeygirl]

As usual, Ann is giving great advice. I think many of us had trouble taking care of our needs first, and that might be part of what led to being morbidly obese. I found in the beginning that I was never sure if I was eating correctly, grazing too much, not eating enough protein, etc. It took so much work thinking about food planning that it began to "rule" my life. I learned through others who had the surgery, my local support groups, this site, that sometimes you just have to "breathe" and step back to take a look at what plan you're really following. If it's not what you need to do , then re-think the plan and adapt it to achieve the success you envisioned when you chose to have surgery. For me, a vision board works, looking at older pictures where I weighed 285, looking into my closet and all the nice clothes I can now wear, and mostly for me is thinking about how improved my health is now after surgery. Reevaluation of my lifestyle helps me to take the time I need to either choose another path or modify the one I'm walking now. A counselor is always a good option when you're having great difficulty, but in the meantime maybe "mindful" eating and looking at how great you've already done; might give you the kick in the butt you need to continue your success.

I'm not trying to over-simplify the situation because there is nothing simple about this journey, both physically or emotionally. Just trying to give some options that might help until and if, you choose to seek professional help. You've already done such a great job, and you surely want to take advantage of the "honeymoon" period of weight loss surgery which is the first 2 years! Continued success!!

[bikrchk]

I am in maintenance now and I still WANT to over eat... All the time! I also have a 90% sleeve so I don't have a lot of wiggle room for indescretion. More often than not, I realize how some of that stuff in excess will make me feel now and manage to keep it under control enough that I can maintain my loss. I've also not wavered in my workouts, which helps a lot. If you're having problems with control and its affecting your weight loss this early, address it now with someone! You have a small window of about 1 year while you body adjusts to surgery when it's easier to lose and develop new habits. Don't waste it! Get in front of it!

[Grace]

Hi Rebecca,
I haven't stopped in for a while but felt well enough today to do so and wanted to chime in on this one.
I had my surgery 4 yrs and 4 mo ago.
I started at 335, dropped to 218 in 9 mo and then got sick (sleeve related, gallbladder, gastritis, hypoglycemia).
I regained weight, about 45 lbs, partly due to having to eat rice and potatoes for the gastritis but partly also because
I out and out hated what my body looked like at 218 and didn't understand. Why didn't it look like I pictured?
Also, I found I was actually uncomfortable in my "new" body. It happened too fast. I didn't recognize myself and
what everyone was saying about how terrific I looked just made me feel so sad for all the years I thought I looked
fine and obviously didnt (at least by society's measure). It took 27 months to straighten out the gastritis and get the hypoglycemia under control.
During that time I gained about 7 more lbs but in general I was at a point where I didn't seem to gain or lose without doing something drastic like eating ice cream all day (impossible with hypoglycemia). Anyway the sleeve was and still is a great tool for portion control but really, that's all it is after a while so making lifestyle and other changes is essential or it surely can all come back with a vengeance.
This year I finally felt well enough and saw a therapist who suggested I try dropping lbs again but very very slowly so my brain can keep up with my mind. I am down 14 lbs since June. I'm at 256. just 2 lbs a month. Horrifying from a sleeve standpoint of what was 3 lbs a week average but you know it's OK. Maybe I'll get down to my goal of 225 and maybe I will not. But I'm going to keep eating healthy and see what my body does.
You are down 100 lbs. Whew! Your body is screaming at you, hey! I was starving, feed me, I need my fat back!!!! This is part of a survival instinct and quite normal. So, now, the best thing you can do is to indeed feed your body and your brain with things that are good for them both. That means protein and lots of it, moderate to low carbs (ALL COOKED VEGGIES) and lots of good fats. A huge thermal mug of decaf tea with a tablespoon of coconut oil and some vanilla extract will keep your stomach busy and happy for hours. Eat an oz of cheese. Eat bacon (yes, bacon). But keep each meal you eat to only 150 calories and eat 6 times a day. That's 900 calories. Plenty to live on, enough to have energy but still drop lbs. You might drop only say... 6 lbs a month going forward, you might do 10. If you did do 6 that would be another 72 lbs by next December. I promise you, when you start off larger, being at 225 would be just fine. You'll need skin removal and it will be more lbs. Then, after some time, you can decide if you need to drop more. So, why cooked veggies... because grains will be a huge downfall, you might was well just eat sugar because your brain sees them the same. And cooked because you aren't ready for salad yet and I still think after all these years that eating salad was what stretched my sleeve out for a while. I stopped eating them early this year and about 3 weeks later my sleeve volume tolerance went from about 2 cups back to about 1. Seriously....
Anyway, do see a therapist so you can learn what is scaring you because I really think that is what is going on. Just be ok with where you are, just maintain for a bit and then in a month or so, perhaps you will be ready to love your self enough again to feed your body the good food it deserves.
Wishing you all the best
Grace

[Stacy'sSleevedLife]

It is so important to get help, you have taken the first step by realizing there is a problem. The easiest way to find help is to maybe look for WLS groups they are almost everywhere. Going to a group meeting helps because you will see your not alone and that many have this problem before and after surgery and this helps many time to not feel like the lone ranger and you might find a support buddy and that can help more than you know.

Good luck

Stacy

[Merry Mary]

You are down 100 lbs. Whew! Your body is screaming at you, hey! I was starving, feed me, I need my fat back!!!! This is part of a survival instinct and quite normal. So, now, the best thing you can do is to indeed feed your body and your brain with things that are good for them both. That means protein and lots of it, moderate to low carbs (ALL COOKED VEGGIES) and lots of good fats. A huge thermal mug of decaf tea with a tablespoon of coconut oil and some vanilla extract will keep your stomach busy and happy for hours. Eat an oz of cheese. Eat bacon (yes, bacon). But keep each meal you eat to only 150 calories and eat 6 times a day. That's 900 calories. Plenty to live on, enough to have energy but still drop lbs.

I don't agree with eating only 900 calories a day and restricting carbs. I eat a well rounded diet, carbs, fat, protein and always, always, always have at least 80 gm of protein and at least 64 oz of water. I exercise 6 days a week and average 160 protein and 100 oz of water. I eat every 3 hours and based on my last body composition analysis, I need to eat 2500 calories a day to maintain my current weight.

Find the right mix of fats and carbs that works for you. After you eat your protein, have vegetables and fruit if you want it and have room

I found increasing my water intake helped rev up my metabolism.

[believexrebecca]

I saw the head of my bariatric program yesterday. She usually sees people every 3 months she wants to see me every month with food logs. She gave me a ton of instruction to follow and gave me the okay to do low carb like I did pre-surgery. So we will see where this takes me!