Getting really worried!!!!!!!!!

Ok all, I have been reading all of your posts and I am really getting worried here. Alot of you are having problems with the snacking and eating thing, I have always considered myself to be strong minded but it's like this weight thing took me all at once, I have no idea how I got so fat, none at all but now I will be getting a chance at a new life, like being re-boen so to speek but what if I can't do it, the requirements and the mindset to know what is right, what if I am doing the wrong thing? I have been in so much pain for so long I don't know life without it but what if I am putting to much faith or hope or whatever in to this surgery, I'm not stupid, I know this will not cure me of all my health problems but I am expecting it lessen them and even cure some like diabetes, blood pressure, sleep apnea, and a few others BUT what if it don't, oh god what if it don't, I can't continue this kind of pain the rest of my life. Has it helped pain wise for you all. My daughter had quite a bit of back pain. I had back surgery a year ago, did not help, most days I have a real hard time walking or even moving, what if i have back pain as well? How am I going to walk in the hospital, I am so scared I can't believe it. I see my daughter and she is doing so awesome and I feel like I am being a big baby but I am truely afraid, this from a woman who quit smoking who smoked 3 packs a day and quit cold turkey and rarely think about them, have quit for 8 months, hell that was a piece of cake compared to how I am feeling right now. Am I just trying to find problems where there aren't any? Any help would be so appreciated. Thanks all for letting me cry on all of your shoulders. ~~~~~~~Tina

tina, i can only speak for myself on this. it has been hard for me not to snack. i guess what you chose to snack on the difference. i used to snack on junk food and candy but now i choose foods that have protien and sugar free and fat free. i do another diet with this one. i do weigh****chers along having this surgery. for a while you may not be hungry what so ever. everyone is different. i used to eat when i was happy, sad, mad eating was my comfront food. only thing i can say that may sound not nice but at least we cant eat as much as we use to. so now my snacks are beef jerky, bacon bits and cheese. instead of recesses peanut butter cups, chocolate bar, chips. just think positive they say sometimes when we feel hungry we just need to drink. honestly i wish i had the magic answer but none of us do. i hope you luck......lynda

I agree with Lynda- What you eat now is very different from what you ate before. You also have to remember this surgery is a tool- you make of it what you want. If your goal is to lose enough weight to be healthy, this is for you. If your goal is to become a size 2 super model- keep looking! The hope is, you will learn how to eat, so when those days come when you are very hungry (7-12 months out) you'll know how to eat and not fall back into old, bad habits. Anyone who tells you this surgery is easy, doesn't know what they are talking about! YOU still have to control what you put in your mouth, and when. It gives you a good healthy boost, so you can lose enough to start exercising and continue to eat healthy. Jeri H.

Hi Tina, Know what? Case of nerves for upcoming surgery isn't it? Mine is Tuesday & I've had conflicting thoughts race thru my head also. I'm diabetic also with other health probs as well. I know this is a tool & I'm praying the co-morbids will go away! Ok, enough of that! My input is this, I find this MessageBoard is the biggest support I have found yet. I read here constantly about what other's are going thru & what answers are posted on them. I plan on using these as my tools. I also go to the Q&A which has been a great help also. I'm not going to let the what if's get in my way, think that will throw a wrench into losing weight. Instead, I'm writing down all the info I can. Like Lynda suggesting what snacks to eat, keep that in mind, or what to do when you hit a plateau. I'm not going to worry myself with the what if's instead I'm going to turn it around & look at it in a positive way. Remember all of us are here for each other! Carolyn

Tina, Being one that has posted a lot about snacking, I really should have posted a reply to you sooner. Sorry that I didn't do that. What the other ladies have said is so true. I have a dietician that is skinny and I think she has something against fat people. Also, the program that I went through is brand new and everyone is still learning - including the dietician. Anyway, she is the one that told me not to snack because she thinks that it will be bad for me in the long run. However, I met with the psychologist Thursday that also works at the center and she said that her belief is that NO snacking is rather "unrealistic". Soooooo with that said, I have to find a way to snack if I need to, in a controlled way, and learn not to feel guilty about it. Also, keep in mind that because of the overall changes we make in eating healthier, snacks are healthier as well. A snack of a cheese stick and 2 reduced fat ritz crackers is much different than half of a big bag of doritoes and a whole package of reese's peanut butter eggs (Yep, Lynda, I loved them, too). Chips are no longer in my house and the sweets are only here for special occasions like Easter - and I won't even try them because I believe that I dump. Snacking aside, you are having normal pre-op fears. If you are committed to this surgery, you will do well in your post-op journey. I think that everyone that has had this done has a fear in the back of their minds that they will "screw it up". In order to make the best use of this "tool", the eating habits and exercising habits and mental attitudes about food and things has to change. I am still in the process, as I'm sure many of us are. Change doesn't happen overnight and four months is nothing compared to a lifetime of being fat (yep, truly a lifetime because I was even a fat toddler). So, on top of all of those other things, I have to learn to be patient with myself, accept the days that I have 100 extra calories or a snack that the dietician thinks that I shouldn't have and know that I have worked very hard to get to this point. I AM committed to living healthier and making the changes necessary and it sounds like you are, too. There, in my attempt to give you a pep talk, I gave myself one as well. You will do a fine job, Tina. The fact that you are here getting support already proves that you want to stay connected, get info and prepare yourself. You are going to do wonderfully. Have faith!! God bless, Andrea

You know what girls, I think it's not the snacking thing really, I'll deal with that when it comes, it's the am I going to be in less pain? The thought of still having this much pain after all is done really makes my stomach queezy. Like I said I already have bad back pain, what if I can't get up and walk after surgery because of so much pain? Dixie says not to worry alot of it could be gas pain and I do so trust her judgement but I'm still really worried and I just can't seem to get it out of my head, but I guess push come to shove I'll deal with it then cause no way in hell am I not having this surgery after waiting almost a year. Woooooo, took a deep breath, that helped. Thanks ladies for all your support, I needed it and still do.~~~~Tina

Tina, I hope by now you might be feeling a little more confident about the surgery. I had the RNY done in 10/03 and it is the best decision I have made in a long time. At the time of the surgery I was taking 2 different insulins twice a day, taking other medication to control my diabetes, severe sleep apnea, no energy, etc. I have also had 4 back surgeries. As of today I no longer take any medication for my Type II diabetes, no longer need the Bi-pap machine for the sleep apnea, am up and going all day long and feel 100% better. I also look 100% better. My wife had the revision RNY last month. So far she has lost 40 pounds and already has more energy than before. She has hypertension but has been told by our PCP that she could possibly be off the medication for that in a few months. She also has arthiritis in her ankle but has needed no pain relief for it since the surgery. This surgery is not a magic bullet but if a person is willing to work with the surgery and do what is expected the results are fantastic. I hope for your sake your pain does go away afterwards. It should at least be less than now. Just think how good you will feel and how great you will look. Enjoy the process. Good luck