never been more disappointed in myself in my life!!!!

Hello fellow sleevers.
I am 4 years out and I have not posted on here for over 3 years
I was doing so great. Reached my goal, felt amazing! (Down 120#'s and smaller than I have been my ENTIRE adult life).
Now I'm worried I'm starting to fail and fall back into my old habits. I have stretched out my stomach a little. Now I can eatore like 12 oz at a time instead of 6-8. I have gained 10 lbs and I'm beating myself up for it. I had amazing willpower for 3 yrs, now I'm finding myself giving in to all kinds of comfort food again. I am definitely "living to eat" instead of "eating to live" again. I can't eat a ton at once, but I find my cravings irresistible.
Please tell me I'm not alone and I will be able to stop this before its too late! I cry every time I think of myself going back to pre-surgery weight.

you know what to do 

 get back on plan and you will lose the weight again

even if you can eat 12 oz that IS NOT A LOT IF IT IS THE RIGHT STUFF A NORMAL UNCUT STOMACH IS 32 OR MORE OZ

 YOU CAN DO IT YOU DID THE FIRST STEP REALIZING YOU HAVE A PROBLEM AND YOU KNOW HOW TO FIX IT SO JUST DO IT

 you can be back at goal in a month or 2 , just get off your ass and get moving and stick to your plan

Hi shananagan77,

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

Here is an email I have shared with others that are looking to get back on track, I hope it helps

 

You have already taken the hardest step by saying enough is enough and now I want to get back on track.  Here are some steps I hope will help you. They helped me...  Also, be sure and join the Back On Track Together group link in my signature area.

Planning/Preparing

Remember when we were preparing for surgery?  How many meetings, classes and such did we attend?  We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success.  And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods.  Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies and fruits.  

Journaling

Get back to journaling.  This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life.  Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating.  It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband.  It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food.  Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health Tracker

Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself.  Make them realistic and small.  Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat, fiber, calories, and sugar. Important vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan)

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea?  I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass.  So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer.  I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what I kept moving.  If I could not go to the gym I would walk. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lift weights. When I stopped, the weight came on.  So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV.  Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group.

Keep me posted on how you are doing

 

Kathy,

Thanks for your post. I really learned a lot from it. You are always so helpful on this forum. You've been very successful in your quest to be thin. I had RNY on 12/15/14. This is a tough battle I must say. Well worth the battle though. Look forward to hearing from you. Bless you.

Robin

Awww, thank you Robin for the kind words. I thought I had this weight loss, never gain again licked.  Just recently I did everything wrong due to some serious health issues with my husband and gained.  PM me any time if you want someone to talk to about the rough part.  Did you have detailed pre-op classes and support?  Does your surgeon offer regular follow up support?  OH was a big part of my success too.

I am here for you!  Hugs 

Kudos for realizing that you have a problem & you want to get it together b4 you gain too much weight. Get back to basics, you know how to lose the weight, but something is triggering you to go back to your old ways. You might want to try therapy or some other support group like overeaters anonymous. Tackling the underlying issues that causes you to overeat will be a first step to keeping off the weight you've worked so hard to get off in the first place. Good Luck, you can do this!

I try to think about how UNHEALTHY all that food is and what it is doing to my body, and how bad I feel after I eat it. I generally try to eat healthy, clean pure foods and not processed or fast food, even before surgery. Flubbing up OCCASIONALLY is ok just try not to make it an everyday habit. You will be ok because you are aware of what you are doing, good luck!

You are definitely not alone!  I am also back, after great success, then getting complacent and regaining some weight.  I have gotten back to basics, eating fewer calories, very few carbs, high protein, and lots of fluids.  Coming here, and now back to the maintenance discussion group, daily, weighing myself daily, tracking my food and fluids, trying to eat more slowly, etc. are all resulting in losing the regained weight.  How wonderful that you woke up, so to speak, when it was only 10 lbs.  Welcome back!  Stop beating yourself up - it only results in more emotional eating.  You are here now and sound ready to move forward.  Just commit to following the plan that worked for you in the losing phase, for one day at a time.  Hugs!  Mary

Thanks everyone for the encouraging words. I will start getting back on track. I can't wait till spring. I live in the Midwest and the cold and snow are bringing me down. Walking and spending time outside will help get my energy back up I hope.

Only 10 pounds! You can handle this. Good for you for coming back here to OH for support. You'll be in my thoughts.

Robin