Pre-op jitters??

Ok today is less than a week from my surgery. I have my pre-op doc visit today and I am nervous!!! Did anyone else think to themselves "do i really wanna do this? do I wanna give up cake, cookies, DR PEPPER!!!?!?!?!?!?! " How do I get over this? I know I want to be in better health and I know I want to be able to move easier but is this the way? I know in my head it is but my heart and my taste buds think differently! I have been on a low carb high protein diet for this makes 2nd week and I have lost right much as it is. But I know I need to lose alot , alot ,alot , alot , did i say alot more?? I just wondering if anyone had these jiters and how you got over them!  Melissa

I had such a long wait from start to finish I got all my jitters out early :-) By the time it got closer to surgery I just wanted it done and over with! Everybody goes thru food mourning - but in reality you can have some of your old favorites post-op. You will find that you may not even want them... but if you do you will be satisifed from a very small amount. I eat cake, cookies and have an occasional coke.. but its a treat and I dont do it often. Nobody believes it pre-op, I know I didnt, but you can eat post-op... in the beginning there are a lot of rules to follow and more restrictions but as time passes things get easier. I found many of my pre-op favorites tasted pretty gross post-op - its amazing how alive your taste buds become after not being slathered in sugar, salt and fat. I tried mcdonalds post-op... the fries were gross (I use to LOVE them) and the burger tasted like crud... a few months ago I ordered a bacon egg and cheese biscuit (I was on a road trip, it was 5am, I was hungry!).... I took one bite and spit it out - it tasted like pure SALT... I had the BF try it and he said it tasted fine... so he got to eat it. I found I now love spices and freshy healthy foods - things just taste different now.  Basically there isnt much to say to get over the jitters - just keep yourself busy and fantasize about the future - I had surgery in June 06 and use to always think about Christmas - thats when I would see my family and friends back home for the first time - what would I wear? what would they say? how much would I have lost by then? It was fun to wonder!

I wish that I could have something more to add to Jennifer's post, but honestly she captured it all very well.

I did have the jitters prior to surgery. I just made myself a list of the reasons I was pursuing the surgery and then I looked at the pros and cons of surgery vs staying right where I was. Obviously, the surgery won out and I'm sooooo glad I did it.

You probably will mourn the loss of some of your foods, but to be honest, the majority of us don't have the incredible dumping syndrome that so many talk about. If anything, eventually you will learn that as Jennifer said you can eat most anything in moderation. Like Jennifer, I used to love Cokes, McDonald's, etc ... I just don't much want it anymore. Sometimes I will, but I have my protien first, complex carbs next and by the time I get to the forbidden fruit, I either only get a bite or two or I'm just too full to go there.

Hope that helps some,

Barb

OH my ,Oh my yes yes I have had these thoughts. I'm not going to be much help to you because I haven't had my surgery yet either but I do have the same thoughts..i just keep telling myself all the good that will come out of it and that it will be easier for me to say no when i have lost a lot of weight.... and can ride my bike with my husband .....and fit in a plane sit with the tray down..... and can buy my clothes in reg. stores and find the style i want to wear... i can play with my grandaugther  and not get out of breath...i can get off my Cpap and can go camping again...i wont be a diabetic anymore....ect..ect........I know as time goes by and i get closer to my date I 'm gong to be a basket case....I want to loose weight before my surgery but I m having a hard time wanting to snack at night. but I m working on it.....Have you ever read eggfaces site..she has lots of helps and recipes she even said she gained 10 lbs gefore her surgery having last meals...http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2007/06/my-favorite-protein-shake-recipes.html........good luck and hang in there....~Mary~

Hey Melissa... I think that we would really worry if you DID NOT have pre-op jitters!  We all had them.  This is a life changing experience and it is permanent, so you have all rights to be nervous.   I am not going to sit here and tell you that  being post-op is easy.  There are things that you cannot predict you will go through.  One thing I really dealt with was the more "emotional" side of eating.  Like Barb said.. I mourned the loss of food like an old friend had died.  I fought with the fact that food would no longer be my comfort and refuge... but I have to tell you... what does not kill us does make us stronger.  I finally had a chance to deal with all of those feelings that caused me to eat.  I no longer hide behind 140+ pounds to be the invisible person in the room.  I love my new self and my newfound self confidence. There are going to be tough times ahead.. those jitters are just the beginning.  But hold your head up high and forge ahead!  You can fight and win this battle!   Good luck and keep us posted!!

awww you look like a princess!

Okay.. if you say so!  Thanks!  LOL 

Thanks all for your replies. I guess I am just being selfi****hink I come to the realization that my wants need to subside to being here for my kids. I think this is just "what about meeee" day and I just need some encouragement. I sure am glad this site is here Thanks again  Melissa

Food has always been a friend for me.  A really bad, manipulative, greedy, needy, and useless friend who got me into a kabillion types of trouble and left me holding the bag -- but still!!   Now that I've got almost one month under my Bandit Belt and have lost 27 pounds (no kidding -- 27 pounds with a Lap Band!), I can honestly say that I've had maybe one wistful moment about my choice to give up the Bad Friend in favor of the Good Band.  I choose great food every single meal: if I want a yummy piece of blackened salmon, then that's what I make for myself; if it's something sweet I want, I can whip up a single serving of No Pudge Brownie or feast on Kay's Protein Cinnamon Toast Pretzels.  I can see the look of envy on my friends' faces when I say I can't go out to Taco Bell or Wendy's or whatever for lunch because I brought my own yummy stuff (today was a salad with fresh tomatoes and cukes and feta cheese, plus some rotisserie chicken capped with puttanesca pasta sauce and grated parmesan cheese).  Ha.  I'm not missing out on anything!! Yeah, I still look at cupcakes with a heartbreaking ache of longing!  I'm not gonna lie about that.  But in my heart of hearts, I know that one cupcake wouldn't be enough for me ... they were brazen frostinged hussies all tarted up with their sprinkles and jimmies, and they were doin' me wrong! I'm much, much happier right at this moment than I ever was with those floozy cupcakes! One more week, and you'll be freeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!

YOu are so normal.  I will be two months out tomorrow and I have to be honest I still have a lot of mental issues going on with the food.  I used to say that Mt. Dew was my drug of choice and honestly I do still think about it quite frequently, but it isn't nearly as good as it used to be.  I tried a drink about 2 different times and I can definitely do without it and plan to. 

The hardest part for me has been when it's time to eat and I put the food on my plate.  Mind you I'm putting much less than I used to have on the plate, but there is still a ton left on that plate when I'm done.  My head hasn't caught up with my stomach yet.  I'm really not sure when that will happen either. The hardest part for me has been that eating is no longer fun and entertainment.  It's strickly a means of living at this point.  Mind you, I'm only two months out, so that may change.  The biggest thing to remember is that this is not easy but it is much easier that I thought it would be.  I don't miss the taste of my old friend food, my mind just needs to catch up with my taste buds who are enjoying the new way of living.  My the way, just for the record, I haven't dumped yet on anything. I do feel extremely tired after eating something that wasn't the wisest choice and my body reminds me not to do that again, but no dumping.  To be honest, sometimes I wish I would dump.   Good luck - you are making a good choice.  Just make sure you're mentally ready too. April