What is your relationship with food and has it changed?

I know that my relationship with food was very different pre-op and even in the post op period when I was losing weight than it is now. Pre-op, I really used food to deal with anger, frustration, loneliness, and celebrations. While I was losing weight post op, I had more of an idealist, almost adolescent relationship with food, meaning that things seemed to be good or bad, right or wrong, without much gray area. Now that I'm 3 yrs post op, I find that I seemed to have found a generally healthy balance. I don't deny myself any type of food, but I now have an awareness of the value of what I'm eating and do a much better job of maintaining a balance that helps me maintain my weight. I think that balance is what I was missing pre-op and to an extent, but necessarily so for the first year post op. 

So no matter where you are in your journey, have you looked at your relationship with food? If so, has it changed at all and how?

Great post Barb,

I too used food pre-op to "medicate" myself for all sorts of reasons.  For many years, my DH was drinking heavy and every evening, while he drank in the garage, I ATE MYSELF into morbid obesity.  That is hard to admit, but I know it's true.  Through the past 3 years of health issues, we both have changed our relationship with food (me) and alcohol (DH).   We are both much lighter and healthier than we were and now we are very conscious about what and how much we eat.  He stopped drinking beer and also stopped smoking and I'm so proud of him for these changes. 

Now when i get stressed or upset, I do sometimes think about reaching for something to eat but I'm much more in control of it now.  I will not let it ruin my health and life as it did in the past.

Happy Wednesday!

Alice

It's a strange love affair.....I still LOVE to cook. I could care less if I eat it or not. For me the act of planning and cooking is my stress reliever (my kitchen is MY happy place and everyone leaves me alone while I'm there). It's also a major way that I show the people around me that I love them and want to take care of them.

Last night was BLTs - mainly because I'd grown the tomatoes (and that's a whole different topic on stress relief) but it's a favorite of David's. I changed it very little to accomodate my needs.  A half of a BLT on some Pepperidge farms Multigrain bread and I was done. But I enjoyed it. As a preop I wouldn't have stopped until I'd have eaten at least 2 full snadwiches.

Tonight is Chicken Fajitas (because my boys - LOVE them). everybody is excited. I'm looking forward to the time we spend together. There will be loads of laughter and conversation all around the table. I can't wait. I'll be the one with the huge grin from ear to ear. They'll be the ones rubbing their bellies and groaning that they ate to much.

- Iris

Food used to pretty much be my drug of choice, especially after I gave up drinking and the assorted recreational substances I had got into.

At this moment, now that I'm almost a month postop, me and food are a little iffy about each other.  On the one hand, I don't want to be obsessed with food (anymore)-I don't want to be addicted to it, don't want to think about it 24/7.  On the other hand, now I'm having this hypoglycemia and I have to eat EVERY TWO HOURS.  I have to plan, every time I go out, and make sure I carry enough stuff with me so that I can eat when I need to eat.  It seems like I'm thinking more about food than I did before!!

I also think that maybe I enjoy things more.  I had a teaspoon of ice cream the other day and it was great, and I didn't want any more because what I had was good and satisfied me.  Last night I had half of one ravioli and it was fabulous, and I didn't want anymore because it was good and I was satisfied.  So that's really nice; a kind of scary feeling of freedom, if that makes sense.

I'm still having the urge in my head, though, to be 'dieting'; I catch myself saying things like 'if I can just lose 10 more pounds' (like it's not going to happen), or 'you can't have that, it's fattening'.  That's habit, I guess.

One thing that I always did preop and am still doing, though, is reading cookbooks.  I have so many cookbooks!  My husband had to make me a whole bookcase in the kitchen just for them and I have overfilled it.  Many of them are historic but I have all kinds.  Actually I've given a few away in just the last week, but I've bought a couple too so it all evens out :)  And I read them over and over.  Right now I'm trying to find good high-pro recipes that aren't ridiculously fatty, so it's not like I'm reading The Cake Bible (real cookbook, I have it) and daydreaming.  :)

I think that the first step to achieve a goal is to admit there is a problem.  I have always had a problem with food.  I learned at an early age to use food as a source to solve any issue (anger, frustration, happiness etc.)  I am 4 yrs post op and the first 3 years were a breeze.  I was so conscious of what I ate and I was a stickler to all the WLS rules.  I didnt sway one bit.  In the last year I left my hometown and moved to NC where I am the only person here.   I have no family here and all my support systems are back in NY.  Its been very difficult.  Being here has caused me to go back to some very unhealthy eating habits.  I started smoking another bad habit but it kept me from eating.  I have since quit smoking and the eating is out of control.  I am so afraid I have stretched my pouch and that eventually I will gain back all the weight I worked so hard to lose.  I want to get back on track and stop this bad relationship with food. 
I feel I've made one step in the right direction.