5 years out in December...
Beginning weight 320...dropped to lowest 175...plateaued at 185 for a couple of years...back to 230 now. I switched my eating addiction to alcohol addiction the past year (put on nearly 45 lbs since '12). Stress from job (new job this year)...and the drinking. I am (hopefully) on the road to recovery on the drinking part--Now though---just depressed. Back in size 18 pants/shorts...had gotten down to a 12 and a 10 in some dresses. Ugghhhh... Words of advice, encouragement? A good "been there done that...but turned it around" would be awesome! :)
Laura,
I am only 5 weeks out so, I haven't been there done that, but I have been reading on this forum daily since I found it! Have you gone to the search button at the top and typed in regain? I just did, and found a ton of posts. Maybe no one has been there and done that who has read your post in the last two hours since you posted it but there are plenty of regain posts out there.
When I am struggling with something, I do type my subject into the search engine and find a ton of posts to read and I find comfort in people's stories who have been there and done that!
Be hopeful, it sounds like you are starting the journey back to health and for that I congratulate you!
Ha...didn't know there was a search button at top... :) Too busy wallowing in my pity party. :)
I'll check it out...and good luck on your journey. It is truly worth it, just do not fall into the alcohol trap. Empty calories! Wine and liquor. I know right now you say--not me, not me... but the temptation will come sooner or later.
**** happens. You know what you need to do.
Regain can happen even without alcohol. A lot of peddle deal with that. Alcohol dependency can happen post op RNY.. I never had issue with alcohol Before RNY, post op - I like it way too much. Not getting hangover- or getting sick from it - allows me to drink and drink some more. I had to make a decision not to have any.
Some meds may cause cravings... When I was on Lexapro- I was craving booze. I found out that for Some people- antidepressants and alcohol are really really bad combination.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23796469
On top of that- low iron - low energy - make me crave alcohol more. I also deal with adrenal insufficiency, and when I get low on cortisol, I crave any stimulant...wine for example...
giving up booze - is a first step. Getting counseling, getting back on track eating wise - should be another... Good luck.
Hala. RNY 5/14/2008; Happy At Goal =HAG
"I can eat or do anything I want to - as long as I am willing to deal with the consequences"
"Failure is not falling down, It is not getting up once you fell... So pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again...."
Went to first AA meeting Monday. Haven't had a drink in almost a month now--will be a full month Friday. Still crave it, still think about it. Especially when my husband continuially "looks into my eyes" and watches my every move all evening, every day... Uggh... I'm trying to be understanding, but all it does is remind me that I could be drinking. LOL. We shall see. I ordered the Shakeology 21 day fix and tried a protein mix last night--1/2 scoop. It is the first protein mix I've drank since surgery that didn't make me sick. I'm going to try a full scoop today. The exercise CD? LOL Well, it makes me tired from the couch. :p BUt I will try.
Anti-depressants... my Dr. put me on some for my menopause symptoms. I didn't like the way they made me feel, so I stopped them. Would rather have the mood swings naturally.
Still at 226-230ish...but at least I'm thinking on the right track.
I 100% agree with this. I *know* I have an addictive personality (or whatever they call it). Knowing that my food addiction/obsession will not just magically "go away" I have embraced and started the process of trying to make my new obsession my health and weight loss! Even in the ~2 months that I have been working on it, I have noticed a difference in how I approach food... and I am definitely relying on things like the OH forums to keep the addictive part of my brain busy thinking about weight loss vs. thinking about what I could be eating right now. Making the conscious choice to move my addition to something else is working for me so far!
Lap-Band 2011 | DS Revision 9/28/15 | HW: 380 in 2011 | GW: 140
Blog: http://felicitywls.blogspot.com/ | Twitter: @FelicityQ13
I have a number of friends who have struggled mightily with alcohol after RNY. And in the end, it contributes to regain. But the bottom line is that there is a core of addictive behavior at work.
Yes, you can lose the weight. It's slow - painfully slow, because we know what "fast" looks like!
But I hope that some who have also dealt with the addiction (via AA or treatment program) will enter the discussion. Jill from PA is a wealth of information but I forget her screen name off the top of my head! She participates in a 12 step program for food addiction as well, and is a wonderful example.