Sleeping with the enemy...
well, the good news is that I have received approval from my insurance company, and set a day of 1/25/10 for my surgery. woo hoo!
The bad news is that for the last few days, I've been having myself a little bachelorette party with food. It's like sleeping with every guy you meet because you know you're getting married in a couple of months! when I come across something that I know will be off-limits for the next year or so, or possibly forever, I go a little nuts. I'll spare you the details, you've all been there, I'm sure.
I'd been doing so well the last month or so, trying to eat on plan, getting exercise, I'm down about 15 lbs over the last 3 months. But now that I'm approved, I'm going through this last fling mentality.
How did y'all deal with this? Is this a normal phase?
Elizabeth
The bad news is that for the last few days, I've been having myself a little bachelorette party with food. It's like sleeping with every guy you meet because you know you're getting married in a couple of months! when I come across something that I know will be off-limits for the next year or so, or possibly forever, I go a little nuts. I'll spare you the details, you've all been there, I'm sure.
I'd been doing so well the last month or so, trying to eat on plan, getting exercise, I'm down about 15 lbs over the last 3 months. But now that I'm approved, I'm going through this last fling mentality.
How did y'all deal with this? Is this a normal phase?
Elizabeth
Surgery Weight (1/25/10) 265 - Current Weight - 184 1/1/12 - Goal ????
Elizabeth,
Try to avoid doing a lot of "last meals." Keep in mind that you don't want to gain weight before your surgery. Some surgeons will cancel your surgery if you gain. I haven't found any foods that I can't have---I just have a tiny amount or a different version of it, like sugar free.
I think what you're going through is normal, but try not to go overboard. You will need to follow a lot of rules after surgery. Try following them now so you can get used to what you need to do.
Julia
I admit, I did the same thing. I was terrible. And back then, I didn't have anyone helping me or telling me different. Even my surgeon or doc didn't warn me against this. And I don't blame them. Things have changed SOOOOO much and everything is totally different now than it was then.
But having said this, I do believe if I would of had better support system like here, it would have deterred me from alot of that overeating I did. Not that I think I would have been perfect food wise. But having support groups and OH is a HUGE help. I can't believe the amount of support out there for patients compared to 5 years ago.
You have the resources to avoid this mentality. You have the ability to turn away from over doing it. It's normal to have these thoughts and feeling but caving in to EVERY food thought will only make things worse later.
Good Luck and congrats to you!
But having said this, I do believe if I would of had better support system like here, it would have deterred me from alot of that overeating I did. Not that I think I would have been perfect food wise. But having support groups and OH is a HUGE help. I can't believe the amount of support out there for patients compared to 5 years ago.
You have the resources to avoid this mentality. You have the ability to turn away from over doing it. It's normal to have these thoughts and feeling but caving in to EVERY food thought will only make things worse later.
Good Luck and congrats to you!
When life hands you lemons, ask for tequila & salt and give me a call!
Elizabeth,
I believe that this is a normal phase - don't know anyone who honestly didn't go through it do some extent. For me, it helped to refocus it as "saying goodbye to old frenemies" and to maintain a perspective that these foods and behaviors were WHY I was to the point of having to have surgery. I was afraid of a life without those comforts. But I also was realizing that if I kept on the way I was going, i wasn't going to HAVE a life, much less any comfort.
The key here is to start now with refocusing your mind around the effort you're undertaking. The sooner you can start to change the mind, the easier your recovery and your transformation will ultimately be... starting to understand and honestly admit (to yourself, if no one else) how you use food in your life is a major step. Understanding which foods trigger binge behaviors and cravings... understanding which are literally addictive substances... and which are "safe" and help you with controlled, satisfactory eating. (I highly recommend the book "Anatomy of a Food Addiction" by Anne Katherine... changed my life by helping me figure many of these things out.)
You're facing a major life change, and an emotional rollercoaster is normal and expected. Your job as you approach surgery is to not let that rollercoaster derail you... stay on track, work with your surgeon's plan, get yourself to support meetings, start walking and stretching EVERY day. Say goodbye to the foods that you need to say goodbye to. Say "see ya later" to the ones you can control and feel safe revisiting down the road. But don't let yourself wallow in either farewell.
Make sense?
Karen
I believe that this is a normal phase - don't know anyone who honestly didn't go through it do some extent. For me, it helped to refocus it as "saying goodbye to old frenemies" and to maintain a perspective that these foods and behaviors were WHY I was to the point of having to have surgery. I was afraid of a life without those comforts. But I also was realizing that if I kept on the way I was going, i wasn't going to HAVE a life, much less any comfort.
The key here is to start now with refocusing your mind around the effort you're undertaking. The sooner you can start to change the mind, the easier your recovery and your transformation will ultimately be... starting to understand and honestly admit (to yourself, if no one else) how you use food in your life is a major step. Understanding which foods trigger binge behaviors and cravings... understanding which are literally addictive substances... and which are "safe" and help you with controlled, satisfactory eating. (I highly recommend the book "Anatomy of a Food Addiction" by Anne Katherine... changed my life by helping me figure many of these things out.)
You're facing a major life change, and an emotional rollercoaster is normal and expected. Your job as you approach surgery is to not let that rollercoaster derail you... stay on track, work with your surgeon's plan, get yourself to support meetings, start walking and stretching EVERY day. Say goodbye to the foods that you need to say goodbye to. Say "see ya later" to the ones you can control and feel safe revisiting down the road. But don't let yourself wallow in either farewell.
Make sense?
Karen
Thank you all so much for your replies. They helped a LOT. I'm over my little affair, I think, although there are some "fienemies" (I love that word, Karen) that I will have a controlled fling with later on, I'm back on track. Thankfully, I didn't actually binge - I just ate foods that I would normally be better about avoiding.
I've heard so much about the surgery being on my belly, and not on my head - it's so true! I obviously still have some "head work" to do on my own over the next couple of months.
I'm reading a book by David Kissler, the former head of the FDA, called "the end of overeating" - he looks at the brain's response to highly palatable foods (those with lots of fat, sugar, and salt) like those served in chain restaurants and the processed foods we buy in grocery stores. It's disheartening, because it's very difficult to retrain the brain, but also gives hope for ways that it can be done.
For today, I'm back on track. Thanks again, Julia, Linda, Karen, JoJo, and all for your words of wisdom and encouragement, they mean a lot. The pedometer is back on my hip, my meal plan is full of whole, nutritious foods, for the day, and my water bottle is at my side!
Elizabeth
I've heard so much about the surgery being on my belly, and not on my head - it's so true! I obviously still have some "head work" to do on my own over the next couple of months.
I'm reading a book by David Kissler, the former head of the FDA, called "the end of overeating" - he looks at the brain's response to highly palatable foods (those with lots of fat, sugar, and salt) like those served in chain restaurants and the processed foods we buy in grocery stores. It's disheartening, because it's very difficult to retrain the brain, but also gives hope for ways that it can be done.
For today, I'm back on track. Thanks again, Julia, Linda, Karen, JoJo, and all for your words of wisdom and encouragement, they mean a lot. The pedometer is back on my hip, my meal plan is full of whole, nutritious foods, for the day, and my water bottle is at my side!
Elizabeth
Surgery Weight (1/25/10) 265 - Current Weight - 184 1/1/12 - Goal ????
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