gained 14 lbs

Hey. I have a story to share that might make you feel not so alone. I'm in need of a bit of support myself, so maybe we all can do this together. Start a "get back on track group" or something. Anyway, I've been away from ObesityHelp for two years out of shame and fear. I had my surgery 3 1/2 years ago, and I went from 288 to 148. I sit here now at 188, 40 pounds heavier. I feel I have failed myself and all those who helped and supported me. I have the most love-hate rollercoaster of a relationship with food -- crash diet for a few days, then hang out with my friends Ben & Jerry for a few days. Then I feel awful and vow to diet and exercise for ever and ever, and it starts all over again. The worst part is that I'm stretched out and can eat almost normal portions. I exercise a lot, but what good does that do when you can put away 4,000 calories in one day? Hubby is a dear and tries to be supportive, but he's thin as a toothpick and cannot understand the overeating mentality. What is it that makes some of us eat like this? I don' t really know where I'm going with this, lol, but I just wanted to reach out. It's a lifelong struggle, and it's nice to talk to someone who's going through similar things. My email is [email protected] if anyone wants to talk. Sincerely, Kim

Kim, I don't know about your doctor but my surgeon offers an outpatient surgery called sclerotherapy. It creates scar tissue at the bottom of your pouch so that the food stays in there longer making you feel full. This area can get stretched out and so you can eat more so that is what they do to help combat that. I don't think that is my problem though. My portions of chicken, steak, and other dense things are still quite small. I'm also lucky in that I still "dump" if I have too much sugar so there is no way Ben & Jerrys could be my friend again - not to mention the gas - it would knock you out, drag you down, and kick your butt. You could be minding your own merry business and unknowingly walk into my wall of gas and it just smacks you in the face. I've never smelled anything like it before in my life. OK - so enough of that - sorry - it's just that I'm surprised you are able to eat ice cream like that but you are farther out than I am. I thought that the dumping thing would last though. Although my mom had sugery like 6 years ago and she doesn't dump at all. Don't be a stranger to the boards though because it feels so good to be connected to others in the same situation as you. It can help you be accountable and feel encouraged. Thanks for helping me feel better! If you want more info on the sclerotherapy my surgeon has info on this: mmpc.com/specialties/michigan_weight_loss_specialists/serv/bariatric/sclero Patty

Wall of gas. As for the sweets, yeah, I get dumping pretty bad. But not even that stops me when I get the craving demon. Sometimes it's easy to lose perspective. Thanks for the info on sclerotherapy; I hadn't heard of that before. It sounds kinda scary, though. So how did you do on diet and exercise yesterday? I did pretty well, and the scale moved in the right direction. One day at a time.

My mom had the sclerotherapy done and it helped her at first but then she said it went back to normal for her. She doesn't follow any of the rules though. I know Dr. Baker said he has had very good results with it. It is nothing compared to having the gastric bypass. It is outpatient. They just use a needle and inject something that creates scar tissues which causes the area to become larger so that the opening is smaller. Dr. Baker requires a nutritional consult, exercise consult and one other thing (I forget) and that totals $180. You don't find out until the day of your sclerotherapy (once you are under) if you even need it. That is when they measure the opening and if it meets certain criteria then they do it otherwise they don't do anything. So unless you are sure that is the problem it didn't seem worth it to me. I have tried ice cream on and off but I was lactose intolerant before surgery so now it is really hard on me. So much so that it doesn't look very appealing. Not just the gas but I will be laying down in bed wishing I'd just throw up so that I didn't feel like I was going to die. It finally passes and I wonder why in the world did I eat that. I did well for exercise but I still struggled with the snacking. I didn't do as bad as before though so I'm counting it a victory. I'm totally not weighing myself for like 2 weeks. I get too tied into what it says to do that. If it stayed the same or went up I would probably cry so it's better to wait, atleast for myself. I can't imagine losing weight after dieting for one day. So you must have had an awesome day to already see a loss. Good for you.

Hi Patty: Boy, I know the feeling. I started munching a little too much this afternoon, and because I've been sick and haven't been exercising, I've noticed things getting a little tighter on me. This is my signal to crack down again. So once I've kicked this cold, it's back to the Y on a regular basis. I love my occasional beer, to. I have learned that I can't have more than one or two beers a week. It's my weekend treat. Sometimes I'll only have one. Some weekends, I won't have any. But I seldom have more than two. I started that early on, knowing the beer really wasn't great for me, but depriving myself of something I enjoyed wasn't either. So I settled on having one or two a week. When I was stalled in January, I went back and did a modified pre-op fast diet with MMPC supplements (I know, you're thinking, yuck!) But it worked. I had one real meal a day, then had the supplements at other meals and snacks. It kick-started my weight loss. I think you could try that too. At the same time, I also got rid of the junk food (I live alone, so it's easier). I quit grazing ... something I need to do again. Support is important too, so if you need someone to talk to, I'm here. I don't live very far. Maybe we could go to the Y sometime together ... I can get guest passes. Good luck and let me know if you need to talk. Eileen

Thanks Eileen! I should stick to the 1 or 2 a week rule. That would be a great improvement. I did much better today and am hoping to keep it up tomorrow. I suppose if this doesn't work then I'll have to try going back to the pre-op diet. Boy - I remember that was sooo hard. Good for you for sticking to it. Thank you! Patty

i needed to kick start myself too------so i have really hit the protein super hard since Saturday......and cut out any refined sugars and flour etc.....and it has worked......try to limit those bad carbs if ya can and those pounds will get back off........you are doing great...the best thing you did was come back here so that we could all work together........one day at a time.........hug rae

Patty, I don't hardly ever post but I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone. I am only 9 months out and always worrying if I will get to goal. Lately I have been gaining weight and it is freaking me out. If you want an e-mail buddy I would really enjoy chatting with you or any interested in keeping on track and helping each other through the bad times. Let me know you can e-mail me at [email protected] Thanks for the chance. Dawn