I had Gastric bypass surgery 2.5 years ago.  I lost 125 pounds and felt GREAT!  Since then I have gained back half my weight and I can't seem to get my eating under control.  I need help and I don't even know where to start.  I'm terrified of regaining all my weight, but that is exactly what is going to happen if I don't do something now.  Any suggestions or feedback is appreciated.  Thanks.

My husband had gastric 3 years ago and struggles with the same issue. He found helping busy his mind and lifestyle helped keep his mind off food. Also believe in yourself. My husband also goes back to protein shakes once a say it seems to help. If you continue to struggle may be there is something your doctor can do to help. Good luck.

You KNOW what to do.  Back to basics starting with WHY are you eating too much?  You should think about talking to a professional to address that issue.  If you grasp WHY you are sabotaging yourself, it will arm you to fight the battle ahead. 

Next is your food choices.  Remember that food plan that helped you lose the 125 pounds?  Go back to it!  Reduce your calories to 800 a day.  Protein first.  Drink your fluids.  Move.   Weigh your food.  Track what you eat.  

Be aware that this time will be harder than the last time.  It will be slower.  But you remember how GREAT you felt at the lower weight.  You can get there.   

 

I'm only 6 months postop, so I'm in the middle of the honeymoon period. We have a menu thread that is posted everyday where a lot of us go to post our meal plans.  Come on over,  start planning, weighing and measuring again. Cut your carbs, up your protein and get back to basics. 

Check out the RNY boards here.  Your tool is still there,  you just have to use it. 

someone posted that on BOTT group.. (I hope she doesn't mind i copy that here:

  brilynn79
on 2/14/16 3:38 pm VSG on 09/16/10

I just found this in my messages from this group 4/15 cutting and pasting this information as it looks very helpful.

16 Ways To Get Back On Track:

1. Eat dense lean proteins first.  When you eat lean protein, it stays in your pouch longer and gives the satiety that lasts longer so you don't get hungry as quickly.

2.  Foods to avoid and eat in moderation.  Avoid processed foods, foods with high sugar, fried food, fast foods (also known as "junk food"). In moderation, eat complex carbohydrates. Complex carbs are plant based, whole grain foods such as oatmeal, brown rice, quinoa, or as an ingredient within a food such as whole grain bread or pasta. Starchy vegetables such as potatoes, beans, peas and lentils are also complex carbs.

3. Be aware of your liquid drinks.  Calories in liquid drinks can add up so check for nutritional info and serving size. Due to the nutritional value, liquids such as protein drinks are a better choice than apple juice or a mixed coffee beverage. After some procedures, alcohol is absorbed quickly and you will feel the effects faster which can cause you to become intoxicated on small amounts. Alcohol beverages contain calories but provide minimal nutrition.

4. Eliminate grazing and emotional eating. Grazing is the habit of eating small amounts throughout the day. Grazing is usually mindless eating compared to planning out your food for the day. Emotional eating is when you turn to food as an emotional response.  This could be for uncomfortable emotions, to self-medicate what you're experiencing or feeling happy, celebratory or reward yourself.  Avoid emotional eating by distracting yourself until the craving passes.  Grazing and emotional eating are causes for weight regain.

5. Eat mindfully. Eating mindfully allows you to fully savor what you're eating. Ways to eat mindfully are eating slower, chew thoroughly, paying attention to the flavor and textures of food, and putting your fork down between bites.  Mindless eating is the hand-to-mouth pattern when you've consumed food without being aware of how much you've eaten and aren't aware of your fullness level.

6. Portion control.  Portion control is an important component to weight loss and getting back on track. When you plan your meals, you are able to visually determine the portion sizes right for you.  When you know your portions, you won't as easily succumb to portion distortion.

7. Drink water. Have you replaced drinking water with different beverages or high caloric fluids?  Our bodies need water to stay healthy, vibrant and energetic.  Water has a critical role in every system of our bodies. Make a goal to drink at least 64 ounces of water per day to keep hydrated.

8.  Don't drink with your meals. Think of your surgical tool as a funnel. When you eat, the food is at the base of the funnel which causes satiety.  If you drink fluid with meals, the food gets flushed through your pouch so you have minimal satiety.  Without the sense of satiety, we will become hungry within a short period of time.

9.  Exercise and stay active. Exercising is an important component for a healthy body. There are many reasons to exercise such as more energy, burn calories, improve your mood and self-esteem, and increase your health.  Find an exercise or activity that you love and enjoy so it feels less like "exercise" and more like "having fun."

10.  Vitamin supplementation and lab tests.  Taking vitamins after weight loss surgery is an absolute must for anyone that has had weight loss surgery.  If you've been off track and neglected your vitamins, start taking them now. If you haven't been to your surgeon or doctor in over a year, make an appointment for a physical and lab tests.  Vitamin deficiencies can occur, and make you feel lethargic and the cause of low energy.  You may have physical symptoms of deficiencies but don't recognize them as vitamin deficiencies.

11.  Sleep.  The recommendation for duration of sleep for the average adult is eight hours.  When you're tired, fatigued or don't get good quality sleep it impacts our decision-making and impulse control, i.e. food choices.  When you're rested, you feel better, more apt to be active and exercise plus make healthy food choices instead of reaching for comfort or fast foods.

12. Get logging.  You can use ObesityHelp's Health Tracker  to track your nutrition, activity, body measurements, and create tickers and reports. Tracking your food gives you accountability and an overview of what you are, or aren't, doing. In addition to accountability, tracking is a good way to bust out of the complacency rut.

13.  Be active within the bariatric community.  When you are active on message boards, not only are you giving support to others but to yourself as well. Make sure to stop by your surgical procedure message board to check in with other OH community members that have the same weight loss surgery procedure as you. For extra support for getting or staying on track, consider joining the Back On Track Together OH Group.

14.  Attend regular support group meetings.  Support group meetings are composed of other WLS'ers.  While our stories and bariatric surgery procedures may be different, we share the experience of being morbidly obese, pre-op's and living as weight loss surgery post-ops.  We are with others that understand and appreciate the weight loss surgery journey of each support group member.

15. Create small goals. Getting back on track can be broken down into achieveable goals.  Maybe you need to get back to a couple of the healthy habits in this article, or maybe you need to get back to most of them. When you create the momentum of being on track, you're less apt to go off track again.

16. Keep your head in the game. Getting back on track is a mindset. Make the commitment to yourself that you're ready and follow through by your choices and actions. Being on track isn't a diet but it is a lifestyle. If you have a meal or a day that you've eaten off track, get back on track and continue on. Don't let one day turn into one week or one month. Keeping your head in the game of being on track will carry you through the challenges and reach the success you want from your weight loss surgery.

Bariatric Surgeons Weigh-In

 Dmitri Baranov, M.D., PhD, F.A.C.S. explains that, "It is important to follow-up with your bariatric surgeon not only to ensure your well-being, but also to check your blood vitamin levels, as they are not routinely checked by primary care physicians. He recommends that bariatric patients follow 4 simple dietary rules, 1) eat 3 solid, protein based meals/day; no meal skipping 2) do not eat and drink at the same time, 3) stop drinking 30 minutes before the meal, and resume drinking 45-60 min after the meal and 4) avoid liquid calories such as soda, milk, and juices.     Dietician for Dr. William A. Graber's practice, Evelyn Mariani, MS, RD, CDN shares her three favorite tips: 1) Portion Control: Bariatric surgery is the best tool for portion control. The more solid the food is, the less you'll eat of it, therefore the portion control falls into line. 2) Stay Active & Exercise: There are countless benefits to exercise and stay active such as to build muscle that will make a difference in how you look. A patient weighing 180 lbs with more muscle mass versus 180 lbs with more fat mass will look different and likely fit into different sized clothes. 3)Get Support: I recommend OH and any/all support wherever a bariatric patient can get it. Support is a huge factor for long-term success.  Guillermo Alvarez, M.D. 's shares his four back on track guidelines, 1) WLS is not a guarantee.  Surgery goes a long way to avoid simple carbs. Avoid simple carbs and maximize your results, 2) have an accountability partner to exercise with and share simple low carb recipes, 3) the secret to maintaining weight loss long term is to avoid bread, pasta, rice, white potatoes and processed foods. Eat whole natural foods for life and 4) follow up with your surgeon and keep in touch.   Every day is an opportunity for you to recommit to your weight loss surgery healthy lifestyle. When you get off track, the basics will be your guide to getting right back on track and staying the course to life a healthy, fulfilling life after bariatric surgery.

 

I know the feeling. It is very hard to get back on track after you have been off for awhile.  Have you just been being lazy about your food? That is what happens to me.  I think I have it handled and get lazy about how much and what i am eating.  Also, i get really bored with the food choices if I keep it to rigid.  I know that i have a trouble with emotional eating.  So I would determine where you are going astray and then go from there.  Baby steps...You did not gain it back in a day and you won't lose it in a day.  Hope this is helpful,  Find someone you can chat with...

I could have written this myself a couple months ago. I was in a very bad spot mentally. 

While most people will tell you just to go back to basics and stay on track,I can tell you from personal experience that sometimes that's not enough to change directions. 

I found OA and have been actively involved for a couple months now, and I'm recovering physically and emotionally and have lost 35 of my 70+ lb regain. I could not have done it without OA. (Overeaters anonymous). I was the queen of losing weight for most of my life - I knew how to do it but there were issues that were much bigger that i had to deal with - my eating and weight were just symptoms of a bigger problem. 

Please Send me a message if you want to talk more about it  I'm happy to talk to you about how I've gotten out of the place you're in now  

 

Thank you so much for responding.  I'm really interested in how OA has helped you.  Do you attend meetings regularly?  Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated!

Here's a thread I started recently. Feel free to PM me to talk more about it. 

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/vsg/6001105/Losing-the-regain-down-32-lbs/

Cindy,

i had gastric bypass 13 years ago. You have to make a decision. A choice to follow the steps for your HEALTH, not just your weight. join the Y or your local gym, hire a trainer if you can, even for 6-8 weeks to get you started and keep you focused. Don't give up!! You can do it. Talk to your bariatric surgeon. Good luck!