I need Answers please!!!

Hi All, It's that time again. Yes, for me to vent. My support systems are in order, my weight is pulling off fast, but fast in who's eyes? Not mine that is for sure. Oh you look so good, to who? Not me. I know you feel good, No not really. Sure I can eat just about anything and not get sick, at least for now. Be thankful they say, oh but I am thankful. So what are you trying to say they ask? I am doing this thing because I have no choice at his point I say. But in the meantime can anybody tell me when does it get better. I have talked with my therapist, I have talked with my Lisa C. I have talked with Lisa D. I have talked with Wendy, I have talked with Debbie and tons of others. But when do I feel better I ask. Now what I need to know is the real deal. I need to talk to someone who is having the emotional difficulties that I am having. I am not sure what is wrong, is it just me, am I the only one that feels this way. I mean I read post after post after post and I hear all the glitz and glamour, but I have yet to come across anyone that has really displayed any real emotional trauma. If you are out there please respond because I need to talk. If you do not wanna tell your story on air please email me privately. I just need to know am I the only person that feels this way. I can give very good advice, and I can give lots of support and say encouraging things and mean them from the bottom of my heart, but I can not take my own advice, I am terrible at being my own support person. I am not trying to scare and new post ops or pre ops, this does not affect everybody the same, but for me it is beyond anything I could have evr conceived mentally and before I loose my mind I just need to know is it me? Am I the only person that feels this way? Adrienne

Hi Adrienne, I'm afraid I am pre-op yet, so I have no answers for you, but I completely understand the desperate feeling you have for needing answers. One thing that I have noticed in my travels through the WLS surgery community is that most people aren't willing to accept or acknowledge that some people have negative experiences and sometimes even taunt people who say anything negative about WLS. I suspect this comes from wanting to defend something that has indeed helped them immensely, even in many cases saved their lives. But complications and negative experiences are very real to those who experience them and need to be addressed rather than swept under the rug. Here are a couple of resources I've discovered on the web that might be helpful to you: The first is a Yahoo group called WLS_uncensored. The group was started by some people who were being somewhat harrassed by members of another Yahoo group for posting their negative experiences. Any comments or questions -- good or bad -- are welcomed with this group, and it seems like these are pretty nice and helpful folks. It's a group you must apply to join, but you'll likely be accepted within a day of applying. If you need directions on how to join the group, reply to this post and I'll elaborate. The other is a website called www.gastricbypass.netfirms.com This one is less interactive, as there isn't really a message board to pose questions, but it's full of many stories of people who had negative experiences with WLS, how they dealt with it and what the end result was. It is a font of much other useful information, but I thought if you were able to read other people's not-so-good experiences, you might not feel so alone and may be able to formulate a game plan to deal with what's happening to you. I pray that you're able to find the help you need. I know how lonely and worrisome it can be to be going through this alone. Unfortunately, while the doctors make sure you've got all the information you need to get physically healthier after surgery, sometimes the mental health aspect gets shoved by the wayside. Some people require long-term counseling to come to grips with the new person they are becoming. I myself think I am probably prone to be one of that group, so I'd be interested if you uncover anything concrete in your quest for answers. Take care, Kariann