Cross Addiction
My friend's daughter had gastric bypass and became a severe alcoholic after. She is nice and slim, but has a terrible drinking problem.
After she lost her driver's license, a cop pulled her over and asked her for her license. She said, I wish you people would communicate with each other. You have my license so how do you expect me to show it to you?
Her insurance paid for her to do a 90 day rehab in California. She was at the airport when she saw a sign that she said had special meaning to her. That sign said "Bar"
She walked in and ordered a drink. No one heard from her and she does not know what happened after that. Three days later the police stopped her about three hours away from Ohio in Pennsylvania.
After talking on the phone with her husband, the policeman drove her to the airport and got her on the plane.
Special instructions were given not to let her drink during the flight.
She has been there over two months and the counsellor there says she is doing well.
It is hard to watch, but sometimes we have to laugh.
Cross addiction is real and something that weight loss surgery patients need to be aware of.
Real life begins where your comfort zone ends
I am so sorry for your friend and all the fears and concerns in coping with her daughter.
The first woman w/ WLS person I ever met in 2009 was a very unhappy new alcoholic...just being around her socially taught me a lot about resolving 'mental' food issues beforehand, along with having WLS.
she was open on how 'crazy-making' it was for her not to be able to eat the volume of food, have carbonated sodas, etc. when it helped resolve her anger and stress in the past. Even knowing why she couldn't eat too much didn't help, drinking was her daily focus, how long til the next drink was possible. her poor husband was living with a totally different person than he married, life was hard on them both.
I was aware that there has been a rise in both turning to alcohol and drugs to cope. Another woman I met had WLS thru Medical, free to her, to help her mental health, but she turned to street drugs and lost her child, a 3 yr old, to the state.
In the times I have been restricted on eating I am very aware of not going in the kitchen, not having food on the time horizon, what food was banned, having to go X hours until I could eat again...that was a small experience.
Before it was confirmed WLS was not medically advised for me I even tried following the diet program sent to me by the VA bariatric nutritionist. It was "lack of volume' more than anything else that made me aware of adjusting to that long term, and how large of daily protein grams I'd have to consume.
Anyone who says 'WLS people took the easy route' should be smacked!...takes real courage to face unknowns and go forward anyway to help yourself.
