Looking for similar exp or the like-->

addiction transferrence....? I have reached out here so many times. I think I'm alone, I hear from ppl who had other addictions pre-op. Am I alone? GOD I hope I am not. My only addiction pre-op was food. No alcholol. No drugs (not now either) but I drink too much. Pls I only want to hear from those who can relate. 0 to 100 mph. But I still prefer food, even when drinking, and then-I spit it out-the food. I Never wasted food before...........tell me I'm not alone.

Lori, I have written to you before. You are not alone. It does not matter what or how much you used before surgery. NOW you are drinking and still have food issues. Why does it matter if you drank pre op? You do now and feel it is unmanagable. Looking for differences between you and others who share the same feelings is a way to stay isolated. Do you really feel that what you did with food pre op is any different than alcohol? I do not. I was going to die from the damage done to my body. I was using food to bury my feelings. So now you have substituted alcohol? The feelings are the same. Addiction is a disease of feelings and emotions. Why is killing yourself and medicating yourself with food any different than doing it with alcohol? I previously used the example of shopping. Say for example you did not spend a lot of money on clothes pre op. Now that you are thinner you started shopping until you could no longer pay your bills. You would have a serious problem. Would it really make any difference that you did not shop excessively pre op? NO! Respectfully am saying I think you know you have a problem and want help but are not willing to look past any differences with others in order to relate. I realize it is scary. I am well educated, successful in many ways society measures those things and yet I was not happy in my own skin. I never got into trouble. I am well respected. No one who knew me had any idea I was in the mess I was in. It was all inside.On the outside I drank socially, took meds for very real medical problems, I was fat but so are a lot of people. I had to step up and say I want help. What I am doing is killing me. I had to reach out and realize that if I had made a few worse decisions I too could have become that person on the street instead of a professioanl with a family. It did not spare me the pain inside. I went to meetings expecting to have nothing in common with Harley riders, and people who went to prison. Surprise! The same feelings and coping skills I had used that lead me to morbid obesity and serious health problems are the same feelings and bad coping skills those people experienced. Looking for differences is a reservation about doing something to make it better. I am NOT trying to put you off. I Really do care. I have tried previously to reach out to you and I just do not know how else to say it. I hate it that you post looking for support but disappear because so far no one has said the magic words I did not drink pre op. I did not drink daily. It doesn't matter. I used everything, money, pills, food , relationships, drama all together and no one was the wiser. Still I was an addict.When we use drugs(alcohol is a drug) or some substitute we release the addiction. I hope this reaches you. Maybe someone else can say it better than I. I am sorry you feel alone. Hugs, Laurie

Hi Lori, I did not drink pre-op. I certainly did post-op. Before surgery, food was what I used to numb pain and quiet anxiety. Bad day at wor**** CREAM! Anxious about a project? SPAGHETTI! Remorseful about a bad decision? BUFFET! A bottle of booze could have lasted MONTHS in my home before surgery. It didn't take very much time at all post-op to transfer that over to alcohol. I can't stand to be "alone in my head" sometimes. Drinking every evening shut off all those thoughts and worry from the day. It gave me something to do when the boredom and dissatisfaction got to be "to much". I believe that for those of us who were MO, we were using food to medicate something in our emotional state - be it abandonment, anxiety, depression, what have you. The only time we felt comfort was when eating. The same is true for the post-op alcohol addiction. The only time I felt comfort was when drinking. I personally do not have food issues now. In fact, I have to REMIND myself to eat. I also have to remind myself not to drink because it was destroying my health, my friendships, and hurting my family. I can say however, that I've not yet found the magic to be "happy in my head". I'm praying it will come with some hard work in therapy and continued sobriety. You are not alone - believe me. I will agree with Laurie though - all our cir****tances and details might be different, but underneath it all - we're all trying to quiet the same feelings. We're all using the same dysfunctional coping skills, and we've all "been there". I'm glad you're here. hugs, m