Binge eating

Can binge eaters tell me how far did the vsg help them put an end to this disorder? Please share your binge eating stories before and after the surgery.

Surgery fixes your stomach, not your head. VSG will not eliminate the psychological factors that lead to binge-eating, although you are physically able to eat less.

It's very important to have a good handle on binge eating before going under the knife. Having a binge-- or even deviating slightly from the strict diet prescribed in the first month or two post-op-- can have literally life-threatening consequences.

I thought the nausea and pain after surgery will suppress my appetite and eliminate any thoughts of hunger or cravings which will help gradually get rid of the binge eating habit.

You're sent home with good painkillers, so you shouldn't be in pain for more than a day or two. Not everybody feels queasy after surgery.

VSG does not suppress appetite for everybody, nor does hunger go away completely. Ghrelin is made in places other than your stomach, so it will not be eliminated entirely. Many of us also struggle with "head hunger," which is emotional rather than physical, and not affected by surgery.

Because of the very restricted post-op diet (usually one week each of clear liquids, full liquids, purees, soft foods, and then finally "real" food after a month), cravings can be WORSE than they were pre-op. After three weeks of protein shakes and soup, even folks without serious cravings before surgery say that they'd kill for some ACTUAL food!

This is disappointing and scary yet it leaves me wondering how all those obese people who started with zero determination managed to achieve great results, though they used to be food addicts, and couldnt make it with usual diets.

Most of the people here who have been very successful combine surgery with some sort of therapy. The emotional side of our relationship with food is important to work on, and I know I've heard from some people that WLS made it easier to address that.

I was absolutely a food addict pre-op, and I still am to some extent almost four years later. But having surgery forced me to reevaluate my habits, and gave me a physical reason to stop some of the things I used to do. When you can eat only half a string cheese in a single sitting before getting uncomfortably full, it can be easier to address old habits. The positive reinforcement from rapid early weight loss is a good motivator as well.

There are also several people here on the boards who've started medication for their BED (I think it's Vyvanse?) and used that in conjunction with surgery and therapy to good results. Hopefully a few of them can chime in with their experience.

Thanks a million for your explanation love xx

Not a problem! Feel free to send a PM if you have any other questions :)

This formerly obese person was 100% determined to achieving great results. I can't imagine why anyone would risk their life to have WLS with zero determination. You use the term "food addict", which I would think is different than someone who is a binge eater. I am a food addict - I absolutely love food. I loved food before my WLS and quite honestly I love food now even more.

I can only speak for myself, but when I finally accepted the fact that I needed help losing weight, I was committed to making sure it was successful. I was already in therapy so we just included that in our discussions. I didn't risk my life to have surgery and not succeed. I selected a very skilled surgeon, did my research to determine which surgery was the best for me, learned everything I could about food, supplements, etc., and focused 100% on reaching my goals (which BTW I did).

I spent approximately 3 years post-op focused on nothing but reaching my goals. I lost 100 pounds in 5 months, then another 50 pounds in the next 5 months, and finally the last 25 ultimately came off. I reached my goal weight with hard work, exercise, eating right for my surgery (DS), and learning how to eat health.

Surgery is a tool. If you have an eating disorder before surgery, you will still have the same eating disorder after surgery (they operate on your stomach not on your head). If you're not 100% committed to WLS, then clearly surgery is not for you.

Thanks Janet for your prespective. Your story is so inspiring for me. All I know at the moment is that I have an ailment (obesity) that requires treatment and I must seek medical assistance. If self management was an easy thing I wouldnt even have resorted to wls but I am currently helpless.