Intro and question for successful "losers"

Hi, I'm still in the beginning stages of my journey.  I have done the orientation and had my first appointment with the surgeon (Dr. Klein at HHRH).   My next appointments are in August.   Slow process, but I am happy with the pace.   I want to applaud the users of this forum.  People are so open with their personal stories.  I am amazed at the people who continue to post years after their surgery.  It is so helpful for those of us starting out.  Thank you!

One of my thoughts that continues to nag at me is why can't I do this without the surgery and how is the surgery going to change that.   I browse the "what are you eating today" posts and look at the meals.  I have been able to follow something similar for short periods of time, never for very long.  I imagine many of you are like me, tried program after program.   My question for the long term successful losers is what changed?  How have you been able to stick to this when in the past you couldn't? 

I'm pre-op too so take everything I say with a grain of salt... but from what I understand- the fact that our stomachs are so much smaller, and the aount of ghrelin (hormone that produces hunger) is reduced- in the beginning at least we are prone to eat less.  It's not a guarantee, and will take diligence, but as long as we follow the rules, and don't stretch our new pouches, we're going to do great!  

That's pretty amazing that you've met with the surgeon. It's amazing the difference between TWH and HHRH.  I had my orientation on April 18th, and meet with the social worker next week. I then meet with the Nurse Practitioner on July 6th.

Nothing else until September 7th when I have the nutrition class. I'm really hoping they will schedule the dietition and psychiatrist appt prior to the class. :)

Imagine having a big huge wart on the end of your nose, all your life. The psychological damage and the determination that when you could, you would do something about it and have it removed. Then you finally elect and pay for its removal and buy the ointment and take care of the incision until you are healed. Look in the mirror and cry for happiness. Well, electing to do something about your weight is on a much bigger scale. Nobody feels sorry for you when you are hauling around the weight. Nobody feels sorry for you that you elected to have WLS, yet you become that much more determined to heal yourself. And when you finally lost so much weight, feel lighter than air...you will take care of yourself more and train your brain to act on an issue instead of trying and failing. Electing to do any kind of surgery is that kind of difference than trying to cope and fail and getting back in the game of life.

Having said all that for you to read. The difference is CAPACITY. You cant eat too much. You and only you know what you went through to get to WLS and you WILL MAINTAIN AND STAY ON TRACK to keep losing to feel lighter than air and being able to face yourself in the mirror everyday.

Everybody needs a jump start and then its up to you to maintain.

What a great analogy!

Well said!

Hi Tracks!!

One of the main reasons why you can't do this without surgery is the physical nature of you anatomy. Your brain says "eat less, exercise more..." but that will only get you so far. We have all lost weight, but we don't have the mental capacity to keep it off. It is harder to train your brain only. 

Have a smaller stoma*****orporates the physical aspect that we need. You still have to be mentally prepared and willing to do this. Getting a smaller stomach doesn't fix it... it only helps. You will notice how little you are consuming, especially the first few weeks. You will question yourself if you are getting enough calories and protein in during that time. 

When you have these physical limitations, it doesn't take long for the weight to fall off. Yes, you might stall a few weeks out, but for some that is normal.

When I did my 3 weeks of Optifast, I noticed how the weight was coming off, and I thought to myself, "why am I even having the surgery. I can do this on my own"  Then after a couple of days of thinking like that, I reminded myself of how many "diets" I have tried......and failed.

We need this for a reason. That reason can be life or death for some. We are given a chance to make ourselves healthier. Basically, we are given a helping hand. And, there is nothing wrong with asking for a little help now and then.

Good luck.

Cheers,

Skotti

The difference for me is that I am never hungry and that I can eat very little when I do eat.

It lets us learn new habits while we cannot eat very much. For many of us, the further we get out, the more we can eat. That's when the real work starts.

I have been hungry since day one and can eat a ton of food now, but most of the time I choose not to. The mental part is the hardest and most important.

Tracks,

I'm 16 years out, and oh so much has changed in this process during this time.  For myself, I met my surgeon on March 31, 2000 (after reading his name in a post on this site -- all these years later, God bless you Roseanne, my dear) and had my surgery on April 17 -- less than 3 weeks later.  There was none of that Opti stuff, and endless consultations with this nutritionist and that psychologist and orientation and all that.  Cut, staple, close -- here's a vague and quite general sheet about what you should eat and how soon, a couple of appointments with a dietician afterwards, thanks for coming out, have a nice life.

And I still managed to lose 150 pounds and maintain that loss, because I realize that it's a tool and not a cure.  You will be successful, at least initially, if for no other reason than you cannot cram the amount of food you're eating today into a stomach the size of a large egg.  You can try -- and some of us have, including me -- but you'll wish you hadn't.  Oh, boy, will you wish you hadn't.

To be successful long-term, you will have to remember "tool, not cure" and be mindful of what you eat.  It's not a "diet", it's a complete lifestyle change, and, if you embrace it fully, you will be successful.

And, during that 15-minute appointment with my surgeon that completely changed my life, he told me something that I have always remembered about diets and the morbidly obese.

He told me that, if you took 100 morbidly obese individuals and put them on a supervised diet and exercise program, every last one of them would lose the weight.  Has that not been our experience?  I've been on hundreds of diets and lost thousands of pounds, but it's only since my surgery that those pounds haven't found their way back home and brought a whole bunch of their friends with them.

So now you have 100 formerly morbidly obese people who are all thin and beautiful and vowing never again to be fat.  Go back a year later and all but three of them will have regained what they lost, and probably more besides.

The moral of this story?  Diet and exercise has a 97% failure rate for the morbidly obese.  We can't do it alone and keep it off, or even keep some of it off. We are doomed to the yo-yo cycle of gain-diet-lose-gain more-diet-lose-gain-even-more, world without end, amen.

That said, your journey is your journey, and the choice is ultimately yours, and I wish you nothing but smooth roads and sunny skies, wherever the path takes you.

If you are willing to do the work to change why and what you eat you will be successful. WLS helps you lose a lot of weight in a relately short period of time. Feeling so much better helps to make you want to stay here. But you can and many do eat around the surgery and gain. It is not a magic procedure that will ensure success. You still need to work at it. You need to work at the reasons you became obese and find strategies to cope.

I am healthier and much better off with less weight but know it is a day by day struggle to maintain