Unsure and Confused, help!

Hello Friends, Well, I went for my consultation and I am confused. I thought my mind was made up and all I could think about was this surgery. Then, after listening to the nutritionist, my husband and I looked at each other like WOW, this is so drastic! God forbid anyone smokes, drinks and loves coffee, not to mention sugar. It is so final. I mean I can NEVER have my favorite foods again, NEVER! I will never be able to have a slice of pizza or a cupcake or anything. I was under the impression that after down to your goal weight you could have things in moderation, but for the most part you need to stay away from sugar/carbs. That was fine with me. But to NEVER be able to have my favorite foods again is scary. Yet, everyone I've talked to said they would have the surgery again in a heartbeat. What do you all think? I know it is ultimately my decision, but it means a lot for me to hear from people actually dealing with this personally. I cried all the way home I was so disappointed that maybe this surgery isn't going to happen. I want to lose this weight so badly, but I don't want to end my life and not be able to enjoy myself ever again either. I'd love to hear from all of you. Janet Hadden

I would have the surgery again in a heartbeat. i love myself more than i love cupcakes. It took me a while to realize that but once i did it was a "DUH!" moment. Screw cupcakes, i look good, i feel good and my life is soooooooo much better.

Yes WLS is drastic. Yes it is a LIFE LONG commitment. And YES I would do it again tomorrow if I had to. The surgery it's self is the EASY part if you ask me, it's the after life that is the true hard part. Im sure if I really stop and look back at my life pre-op I was very addicted to food. In fact I'm sure in some ways I STILL am addicted to food. Before WLS I had ZERO zilch NADA in the way of will power. The main attraction for me to WLS was as someone told me "WLS is FORCED behavior modification". Meaning I can try and push limits but I will pay a price. I've not really given up anything. Meaning I can still have a taste or two of my favorite things I just can't gorge on them anymore. The ONLY thing I can think of off the top of my head I have given up 100% is soda and bread. (And that's only cause both those things make me BARF ) I can eat the toppings off pizza, OK not quite the same but it satisfies my craving for pizza. I can tolerate about 2 bites of cake.. again not gorging myself but enough to take the edge off my sweet tooth! I've always drank de-cafe coffee so that was easy for me... and I've never smoked so i can not comment there. I eat carbs in moderation, I keep my sugar intake below 10 grms a serving (sometimes I slip up but...). I am NOT on a diet. I do not deprive myself of anything. I have a new LIFESTYLE. I concentrate on making better choices... do I slip up from time to time.. sure I do and my body lets me know it. But heck I'm 5 months post op, down over 90 pounds and counting. I bought a dress in a size 10 this week... my life is what it was meant to be!!! Besides honestly post-op you aren't hungry. Food normally (not always) does not have the hold over you it once did. Not sure if any of this helped you.... I'm sure I said something in here to TICK someone off, but hey it's my point of view and HECK I'm entitled to it! Best Wishes and GOOD LUCK! Erin 282/187/155 * note NEW goal weight

That is simply not true. Most post ops I know have coffee. I have mine every morning with my splenda and SF creamer. I can easily have a slice a pizza. I like to have a big salad with it so the salad mostly fills me up, but I love good pizza. I stick to the thin crust though. I went out tonight and ate spicy indian food. I love it! The good thing is that I have enough left overs for lunch. My friend ordered a pice of this mango cheesescake. I had a couple of bites, but it was very sweet and that satisfied me. I can have cake, but I skip the frosting and just have a small piece. This surgery is not the end of life. You do have to alter your attitude, but I enjoy food and love ethnic dining of all types. I love to cook and bake up a storm at Xmas time as well. I have to be careful because dumping is a real issue for me. I am so ok with that. I like have built in mechanisms to control my food. It keeps me in check. There are thing I can never really eat, but there are so many that I can that it is really ok. I love a good steak or a big salad with the works. I love chinese, but can not eat the egg roll and usually stick to the unbreaded, unfried met with fresh veggies. I love mexican and usually stick to the fahitas. I love Thai and will splurge on occassion with the Pad Thai, but genereally have a meat and veggie dish. Trust me, you will love life so much more and over time you will be able to enjoy most of your faves again. I love good food and enjoy my dining experiences so much more these days. I used to worry about them not giving enough food. Now I enjoy the flavors and freshness the best. I have a new appreciation for fine dining and do it often. Big deserts are certainly a thing of the past, but I am just as happy with a bowl of fresh fruit these days. That is my experience. I have 8 other people in my family who had WLS and we all enjoy food. Holiday eating is scaled down quite a bit, but we all still have a great time. No one I know personally feels deprived in any way. I do miss those milkshakes though. A smoothie will have to do. Terri

mango cheesecake - sounds wonderful!!!

It was the bomb! Those are moments I sometimes wish I could turn the pouch off for a few minutes.

UMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM MILKSHAKE...that would be so good. My favorite, Jamocha shake from Arby's. That being said. I do everything in moderation. I will tell you, I stuck 110% to the rules until 6 months, about 90% until 1 year. Now, I eat what I want with the exception of fruit and sugar. I was an ice cream junkie. A pint of Ben and Jerry's at a time. Now, I dump on anything over 7-10 grams and I don't miss it. You can subsitute just about anything for something you think you will miss so much. However, your taste will change. On the way to the hospital to have my WLS I was craving SALAD. Of all things, I just wanted a salad! You have to make up your mind for yourself but the word around the board is "nothing taste as good as being thin feels!" ~Van

Ok, let me try to explain a few things and hopefully ease your mind.... Let's address the fuud issue! First, never say never!! Of course, when you first have the surgery, things like coffee are off limits. You just had major surgery and now you have this little pouch, and it can hardly hold anything!! And like a new bavy, a pouch is very small and sensitive. I mean, would you give coffee to a baby?? The main issue with coffee is that it is a stimulant. It would be hard on your pouch. I gave up coffee right before my surgery, and I had my first cup (decaf) at four months post op. Either it was too strong or I had just been away from it so long that I no longer cared for it. So switch to decaf! Sugar. I suppose they told you all about dumping and getting sick. THEY'RE RIGHT. Pizza. I had my first slice (and a very small one at that) about three months post op. I chewed it very slowly and found that one small piece now satisifies me. What they are worried about is that since you have no gastric juices, it might bother you. Yes, for the best weight loss, limiting your sugar/carbs is important. Pop. Carbination is the killer and can expand your ouch. Flat pop isn't good either. Water is much better. Cupcakes. I haven't tried a cupcake, but I had two VERY SMALL bites of chocolate cake on Sunday. It was more like getting the crumbs off the plate with the back of my fork. I was worried about dumping, but the small amount was enough. Every person is different. Yes, you make a HUGE sacrifice, but it is worth it. I hope this helps!

HI Janet, I will probably get clobbered over this but I am going to go ahead and say it anyways. Your concerns were the same as mine and they are exactly why I chose not to have the RYN-Y and go with the DS. Instead of getting into the huge differences between the quality of post-op life of the DS as opposed to RYN-Y, I would strongly encourage you to do more research. Go to the DS board here and lurk. Read what many have to say. I researched & waited for nearly 10 years before I had my surgery. The amount of revisions in them are non-existant. That can't be said for the RYN-Y. Also we can eat normal. No dumping. Either way good luck on your journey. Ok I'm rerady to get beaten up by everyone now.. Patt age 54 DS 11-24-05 in Brazil with Dr Marchesini Pounds down so far 60+ Regrets? That I didn't so this 10 years sooner.

Hi. What I am going to say is going to raise more questions in your house if you really read what I am about to say. 1. Everybody's surgeon/surgery was the best. 2. I would be completely happy eating my protein bars and drinking my shakes. I suppliment my diet with fruit, veggies and meat. 3. I have no hunger nor feeling of fullness. I eat by quantity and quality. 4. Eating is refueling for me only and I do it every two and a half to three hours. 5. The surgery reworked my thinking on food. I am no longer preoccupied with what to eat. It is all second nature. Are you ready to change forever? If you have even the slightest incling that this is not for you then don't do it. Having regrets after sugery is natural but to say "I knew I shouldn't have done this" may have deadly results. To quote one of my favorite people in the world, "You have to want it bad." - Dr. Michael Wood kp @ goal