Need help starting over
Lost control and now it's time to get it back on track. ..any helpful ideas are appreciated. I am going to go back to my surgegeon's support group and stick with them for a while till I get this under control.
Had my Gastric Bypass surgery Feb 2007 but the lost wieght is slowly coming back and my life is full of bad eating habits and bad choices.
Had my Gastric Bypass surgery Feb 2007 but the lost wieght is slowly coming back and my life is full of bad eating habits and bad choices.
I can't express enough how important it is to go to a Support Group.
They are invaluable. Everyone should continue to go no matter what.
Try the 5-day pouch test. Its a start-up od getting back on track and losing.
Send me your regular email address and I will forward you some information.
Email me @ [email protected]
They are invaluable. Everyone should continue to go no matter what.
Try the 5-day pouch test. Its a start-up od getting back on track and losing.
Send me your regular email address and I will forward you some information.
Email me @ [email protected]
Welcome and thanks for posting, we hear it is only a tool, we hear it can be a 1 y failed diet attempt we just do not believe it until the honeymoon ends,...here is an article I wrote be well u can get on track, my 1st recommendation is management of emotions through group and therapy seems to be a huge help and major piece missing in many programs! Be well and keep in touch!
DO YOU NEED TO GET BACK-ON-TRACK?
You dreamed this would be the last time you would need to lose weight. Weight loss surgery was the answer to your weight loss failures of the past. You were doing so well. Weight seemed to fly off so to speak in the beginning, almost effortless. No matter what you did you couldn't possibly take in enough to not lose weight. For many this was the first time in your life you didn't experience physical hunger. You felt full on so little. You were limited in the variety of foods you could have. Sugar, fats or large portions made you sick. If you didn't chew well enough, or slow down to eat or if you drank with our food you got sick. Dumping syndrome, although not an intentional part of weight loss surgery works as a strong behavior modifier. Who wants to experience nausea, vomiting, sweating, chest pain, palpitations, diarrhea, fatigue, and lethargy and have to lie down for one cookie? But over time your motivation wore off. Fast forward a year or two, you heard the window slam shut, the golden period tarnish and well quite frankly the honeymoon is over. This is normal & expected but you still are surprised & horrified! Denial works for a while but after the ' 10-20 pound bounce back weight' hits you decide you can no longer live in denial. Your clothes don't fit and you are scared to death. Many think their pouches have stretched. In reality it could possibly be a mechanical problem, but most likely it is the honeymoon period ending. You are then faced with the questions, "Did I use my time wisely?" & "Did I make the lifestyle changes needed to be successful long-term"? If you answered yes to both of these questions then congratulations & do not read any further. But if you can't answer yes to these questions and you find yourself OFF-TRACK, keep reading!
You remember hearing about it months ago, bariatric professionals educate regarding its existence & significance; it has many names, 'Window of opportunity', 'Golden period' & 'Honeymoon phase'. Did you really believe, understand and utilize it? Or did you think that weight loss surgery was magic and you were invincible? The first 12-24 months after weight loss surgery is a time of change, growth and rebirth for many. It is the beginning of a wonderful journey. It affords us to experience life unchained by Morbid Obesity and all its limits & complications. You have heard this mantra before a thousand times, weight loss surgery is only a tool and they operate on your stomach not your brain! What you sometimes forget is it isn't the end of your food issues.
You are not alone! Do not allow yourself to be alone! It is in isolation that you continue to struggle and stay off-track. Your surgery hasn't failed; you are just not using your tool to its potential that is all. It is there still; you need to get back to basics though. And yes this means you now have to work harder than the tool! Remember it isn't the surgery alone that makes us lose weight it is the lifelong lifestyle & behavioral changes you make that enable us to lose weight and keep it off. It is the tool that gives us the opportunity to make these changes. It levels the playing field for weight loss and maintenance with those who are not Morbidly Obese! In this delicate time many things happen: dumping may decrease or stop, you are able to eat a larger variety of foods, you can eat larger quantities of food, you get over the newness of surgery and may let some habits slide, the malabsorbtion may decrease as the body tries to normalize! Basically life happens.
So how to get back to basics? You have to just take one step at a time; it doesn't have to be all or nothing that is old thinking! Getting and staying on-track and making is the global goal. Now break down the lifestyle habits you need to stay healthy and on-track. What do you feel you can conquer first? Write down your goal for the week, then work on it, once you have one goal under your belt start on another, be patient and kind to yourself, no one said this was easy! It is hard and no one is perfect! But you can change. The negative habits didn't happen overnight so neither will positive ones! But they wont happen if you don't start somewhere! Asking for help and admitting the problem is a great first step! Life will always be busy but you need to place health as a top priority and taking care of yourself has to be more important than anything else.
Below are some ideas to help you refocus and get back on track. Remember everyone's needs are individual so use the following as a guide in how to break down habits. It is meant to help you feel not so overwhelmed. If you held on to some basic fundamental pouch rules you are ahead of the game. How many are you already doing? You may not be as off-track as you thought! Look at the positive and build on that!
Follow-up:
Ø Resolve to recommit to your lifelong aftercare program. When was the last time you went to see your bariatric surgeon, clinical nutritionist, dietician, primary care provider? When was the last time you had a complete set of labwork? Life-long follow-up is necessary for your health and can be a motivating factor for your long-term success! Do not feel ashamed of regain, empower yourself and surround yourself with professionals who can assist you on your journey!
Fluid:
Ø Resolve to drink 64 ounces daily, this will keep you full longer and keeps a small amount if tension on the pouch. Make sure most fluid is non-carbonated, non-caffeinated, non-alcoholic & non-calorie. In other words don't drink your calories! Many times when you think you are hungry you are simply thirsty! Fluid load before meals, by drinking a cup or two of water before you eat you can curb that hunger.
Ø Do not drink with meals and wait 1-2 hours after meals to start drinking, or you will just make yourself hungry again sooner! You can eat a lot of food by sipping with meals and washing the food down because the pouch has no pyloric valve controlling the flow of food, it is now a leaky drain and after a little time you have more room in the sink to fill so you can all eat a while after you eat.
Vitamins:
Ø Resolve to take a multivitamin, calcium citrate, B12 sublingually or parentally as directed by your labwork. And of course any other supplements you may need such as iron, magnesium, thiamine, zinc, Vitamin A, D, E.
Meals:
Ø Resolve to journal your food either online or in a notebook. You can't possibly know what you are eating or need to change until you visually see it! This also helps you be aware & accountable to yourself. Some free sites for this are: http://www.fitday.com/
http://www.onlinefitnesslog.com/
http://www.dietagenda.com/
http://www.nutrawatch.com/
http://www.sparkpeople.com/
Ø Resolve to eat ONLY 3-4 small meals a day over 10-20 minutes no longer, and NO grazing. Just because you may only eat a few bites here and there, over the course of a day you can eat thousands of calories mindlessly NEVER getting full! Portions are important! Measure, don't guess that handful of peanuts you think is ¼ cup may really be a ½ a cup!
Ø Eat protein first! Composition of meals should approximate: 50% protein leaving 25% of meal for veggies/fruit and 25% high fiber, multi-grain carbohydrates. Avoid sugar and refined carbohydrates such as candy, cookies, cake, crackers, bread. These refined carbohydrates are a 'waste of space' and you can easily consume many calories with little nutritional value, and they'll make you hungry sooner! It doesn't have to be 100% of the time but should be the way you eat more like 90% of the time! Many people seem to be carbohydrate sensitive while others are calorie sensitive. Finding the balance that works for you is imperative. "Diet plans" work because people are mindful, accountable and usually eat less. It is still about calories in and out for most of us.
Exercise:
Ø If you are not exercising start by resolving to exercise 30 min 3x a week, then increase to 60 min 3x a week or 30 min 6x a wee****il you are exercising 30 min daily (or more)! It helps you cope with stress, so you don't turn to food, it will help the weight loss and also give you energy! You will feel better about yourself and be less apt to go for the food.
Support:
Ø Resolve to either get involved in a local support group monthly. Weekly would be better but at least once a month. There are also many online support groups that can help also. Or get into therapy to deal with your food issues and look at why you are sabotaging your happiness. Most of us have food issues and we all need to face them eventually. The surgery is a great help but the brain is slow to change.
It is hard work but looking at the issues and wanting to deal with them is the first step! Be proud of yourself for that and you can do it. What purpose is food serving for you? Do you need to hold on to old unhealthy habits of numbing your emotions with food or can you develop new, healthier habits to deal with stress? Today is a great time to start, not to change everything but to change one thing. Stop the excuses! If you wait you may have another 20 pounds to work on. Holidays and parties are always going to happen, you can always find an excuse to wait or a reason why you can't. Its difficult but search within yourself and find a reason why you can and do it. Remember why you started this journey and what you told yourself not so long ago! The power of positive thinking is yours! Think progress not perfection! You are worth it!
Feel free to join me on: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/OSSG_Off_track/
DO YOU NEED TO GET BACK-ON-TRACK?
You dreamed this would be the last time you would need to lose weight. Weight loss surgery was the answer to your weight loss failures of the past. You were doing so well. Weight seemed to fly off so to speak in the beginning, almost effortless. No matter what you did you couldn't possibly take in enough to not lose weight. For many this was the first time in your life you didn't experience physical hunger. You felt full on so little. You were limited in the variety of foods you could have. Sugar, fats or large portions made you sick. If you didn't chew well enough, or slow down to eat or if you drank with our food you got sick. Dumping syndrome, although not an intentional part of weight loss surgery works as a strong behavior modifier. Who wants to experience nausea, vomiting, sweating, chest pain, palpitations, diarrhea, fatigue, and lethargy and have to lie down for one cookie? But over time your motivation wore off. Fast forward a year or two, you heard the window slam shut, the golden period tarnish and well quite frankly the honeymoon is over. This is normal & expected but you still are surprised & horrified! Denial works for a while but after the ' 10-20 pound bounce back weight' hits you decide you can no longer live in denial. Your clothes don't fit and you are scared to death. Many think their pouches have stretched. In reality it could possibly be a mechanical problem, but most likely it is the honeymoon period ending. You are then faced with the questions, "Did I use my time wisely?" & "Did I make the lifestyle changes needed to be successful long-term"? If you answered yes to both of these questions then congratulations & do not read any further. But if you can't answer yes to these questions and you find yourself OFF-TRACK, keep reading!
You remember hearing about it months ago, bariatric professionals educate regarding its existence & significance; it has many names, 'Window of opportunity', 'Golden period' & 'Honeymoon phase'. Did you really believe, understand and utilize it? Or did you think that weight loss surgery was magic and you were invincible? The first 12-24 months after weight loss surgery is a time of change, growth and rebirth for many. It is the beginning of a wonderful journey. It affords us to experience life unchained by Morbid Obesity and all its limits & complications. You have heard this mantra before a thousand times, weight loss surgery is only a tool and they operate on your stomach not your brain! What you sometimes forget is it isn't the end of your food issues.
You are not alone! Do not allow yourself to be alone! It is in isolation that you continue to struggle and stay off-track. Your surgery hasn't failed; you are just not using your tool to its potential that is all. It is there still; you need to get back to basics though. And yes this means you now have to work harder than the tool! Remember it isn't the surgery alone that makes us lose weight it is the lifelong lifestyle & behavioral changes you make that enable us to lose weight and keep it off. It is the tool that gives us the opportunity to make these changes. It levels the playing field for weight loss and maintenance with those who are not Morbidly Obese! In this delicate time many things happen: dumping may decrease or stop, you are able to eat a larger variety of foods, you can eat larger quantities of food, you get over the newness of surgery and may let some habits slide, the malabsorbtion may decrease as the body tries to normalize! Basically life happens.
So how to get back to basics? You have to just take one step at a time; it doesn't have to be all or nothing that is old thinking! Getting and staying on-track and making is the global goal. Now break down the lifestyle habits you need to stay healthy and on-track. What do you feel you can conquer first? Write down your goal for the week, then work on it, once you have one goal under your belt start on another, be patient and kind to yourself, no one said this was easy! It is hard and no one is perfect! But you can change. The negative habits didn't happen overnight so neither will positive ones! But they wont happen if you don't start somewhere! Asking for help and admitting the problem is a great first step! Life will always be busy but you need to place health as a top priority and taking care of yourself has to be more important than anything else.
Below are some ideas to help you refocus and get back on track. Remember everyone's needs are individual so use the following as a guide in how to break down habits. It is meant to help you feel not so overwhelmed. If you held on to some basic fundamental pouch rules you are ahead of the game. How many are you already doing? You may not be as off-track as you thought! Look at the positive and build on that!
Follow-up:
Ø Resolve to recommit to your lifelong aftercare program. When was the last time you went to see your bariatric surgeon, clinical nutritionist, dietician, primary care provider? When was the last time you had a complete set of labwork? Life-long follow-up is necessary for your health and can be a motivating factor for your long-term success! Do not feel ashamed of regain, empower yourself and surround yourself with professionals who can assist you on your journey!
Fluid:
Ø Resolve to drink 64 ounces daily, this will keep you full longer and keeps a small amount if tension on the pouch. Make sure most fluid is non-carbonated, non-caffeinated, non-alcoholic & non-calorie. In other words don't drink your calories! Many times when you think you are hungry you are simply thirsty! Fluid load before meals, by drinking a cup or two of water before you eat you can curb that hunger.
Ø Do not drink with meals and wait 1-2 hours after meals to start drinking, or you will just make yourself hungry again sooner! You can eat a lot of food by sipping with meals and washing the food down because the pouch has no pyloric valve controlling the flow of food, it is now a leaky drain and after a little time you have more room in the sink to fill so you can all eat a while after you eat.
Vitamins:
Ø Resolve to take a multivitamin, calcium citrate, B12 sublingually or parentally as directed by your labwork. And of course any other supplements you may need such as iron, magnesium, thiamine, zinc, Vitamin A, D, E.
Meals:
Ø Resolve to journal your food either online or in a notebook. You can't possibly know what you are eating or need to change until you visually see it! This also helps you be aware & accountable to yourself. Some free sites for this are: http://www.fitday.com/
http://www.onlinefitnesslog.com/
http://www.dietagenda.com/
http://www.nutrawatch.com/
http://www.sparkpeople.com/
Ø Resolve to eat ONLY 3-4 small meals a day over 10-20 minutes no longer, and NO grazing. Just because you may only eat a few bites here and there, over the course of a day you can eat thousands of calories mindlessly NEVER getting full! Portions are important! Measure, don't guess that handful of peanuts you think is ¼ cup may really be a ½ a cup!
Ø Eat protein first! Composition of meals should approximate: 50% protein leaving 25% of meal for veggies/fruit and 25% high fiber, multi-grain carbohydrates. Avoid sugar and refined carbohydrates such as candy, cookies, cake, crackers, bread. These refined carbohydrates are a 'waste of space' and you can easily consume many calories with little nutritional value, and they'll make you hungry sooner! It doesn't have to be 100% of the time but should be the way you eat more like 90% of the time! Many people seem to be carbohydrate sensitive while others are calorie sensitive. Finding the balance that works for you is imperative. "Diet plans" work because people are mindful, accountable and usually eat less. It is still about calories in and out for most of us.
Exercise:
Ø If you are not exercising start by resolving to exercise 30 min 3x a week, then increase to 60 min 3x a week or 30 min 6x a wee****il you are exercising 30 min daily (or more)! It helps you cope with stress, so you don't turn to food, it will help the weight loss and also give you energy! You will feel better about yourself and be less apt to go for the food.
Support:
Ø Resolve to either get involved in a local support group monthly. Weekly would be better but at least once a month. There are also many online support groups that can help also. Or get into therapy to deal with your food issues and look at why you are sabotaging your happiness. Most of us have food issues and we all need to face them eventually. The surgery is a great help but the brain is slow to change.
It is hard work but looking at the issues and wanting to deal with them is the first step! Be proud of yourself for that and you can do it. What purpose is food serving for you? Do you need to hold on to old unhealthy habits of numbing your emotions with food or can you develop new, healthier habits to deal with stress? Today is a great time to start, not to change everything but to change one thing. Stop the excuses! If you wait you may have another 20 pounds to work on. Holidays and parties are always going to happen, you can always find an excuse to wait or a reason why you can't. Its difficult but search within yourself and find a reason why you can and do it. Remember why you started this journey and what you told yourself not so long ago! The power of positive thinking is yours! Think progress not perfection! You are worth it!
Feel free to join me on: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/OSSG_Off_track/
Take Care, 
Jamie Ellis RN MS NPP
100cm proximal Lap RNY 10/9/02 Dr. Singh Albany, NY
320(preop)/163(lowest)/185(current) 5'9'' (lost 45# before surgery)
Plastics 6/9/04 & 11/11/2005 Dr. King www.albanyplasticsurgeons.com
http://www.obesityhelp.com/member/jamiecatlady5/
"Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect, it just means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections!"
Jamie Ellis RN MS NPP
100cm proximal Lap RNY 10/9/02 Dr. Singh Albany, NY
320(preop)/163(lowest)/185(current) 5'9'' (lost 45# before surgery)
Plastics 6/9/04 & 11/11/2005 Dr. King www.albanyplasticsurgeons.com
http://www.obesityhelp.com/member/jamiecatlady5/
"Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect, it just means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections!"
(deactivated member)
on 11/7/08 7:15 am - MT
on 11/7/08 7:15 am - MT
Jamie,
OMG I am so glad I peeked in and read this!!!!
THANK YOU!!!
OMG I am so glad I peeked in and read this!!!!
THANK YOU!!!
Hey Kenny, Let's support each other long-distance-like and we CAN do this!!
I've been today drinking much more water then I'm used to., it feels filling but like my body was way too dehyrated. I really watched what I make for dinner for me & the boys...and made myself sit down away from the kitchen and the computer just to get some quiet time in....takes one day at a time. After supper me and the St. Bernard will go for a wolk before bed.He has this great dog-coat that has lights on both sides of it like tail lights so folks always see us comin'!!
I've been today drinking much more water then I'm used to., it feels filling but like my body was way too dehyrated. I really watched what I make for dinner for me & the boys...and made myself sit down away from the kitchen and the computer just to get some quiet time in....takes one day at a time. After supper me and the St. Bernard will go for a wolk before bed.He has this great dog-coat that has lights on both sides of it like tail lights so folks always see us comin'!!
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