I really need help.. am in a bad place

I am getting close to 4 years post op.. I never lost nearly what I wanted to, but started out much bigger than most who have this surgery also..  It is depressing to me when i go to the surgeon for post checkups and see people my weight who are coming in for surgery :(  Anyway, i am still much healthier BUT i have not been doing well.. Relationship problems, my mother was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, i have lupus and many surgeries, so i know what this means for her.. depressing.. now I have moved and there is just a lot of stress *teenage daugher *  I have also been VERY unhappy that I stopped where i did.. i see my surgeon again in December for a checkup, he said last time if i had any regain he was going to advise converting to a rny but I don't want that, and no, he won't try to make me.. I asked him what size pouch i had.. I was told they don't use the bougie they just form the pouch and staple.. hmm...  no telling what size it is..  Has anyone on here had to have a 2nd surgery done?  I just want to be healthy ...  
  Enough of all that.. what have i done. well, i am not going to weigh until tomorrow BUT i am up between 20 and 25 lbs of my 130 lost..  I HAVE to stop it here.. I WANT to stop it here.. I need help and support which i am not getting anywhere else.. SO i have come home to my friends who understand..   I will not let any cookies, crackers, chips, cheez'its in the house.. these are the things that have really hurt me, and eating out... These are definitely slider foods to me and what i crave.. salty crispy snacks..  I have gotten used to grazing again.. I never was a  big meal eater but a grazer and  i am so disappointed that i let it get this far but I am ready to turn it around..
  Can you guys *please* give me some gameplan strategies.. I assume protein first and foremost but being almost 4 years out my doc says no protein drinks... which i don't agree with, ..  what would you advise..  My first instinct was to go all liquid or to do the pouch test  or just do mostly protein?  I really dont know to get the best jump start so i feel better sooner and lose the fluid from carbs but will listen.. Thank you all so much and big HUGS.. 

Hey there..
im not 4 yrs out but over the holidays last year i gained 8lbs then this year i managed to take that 8 pounds up to over 20 lbs through allowing junk into my life.

I read up everything i could find online from surgeons, and patients that had been advised by surgeons what to do for regain..   not really top much information out there unfortunatly...   But mostly what i found is they suggested to go back onto 2 weeks protein shakes for completely detoxing off all carbs.. the 5 day pouch test is good but it doesnt always get rid of all the cravings and often when you come off it, its easy to slip again which is what i found earlier this year when trying to get the extra holiday weight off i kept falling off the wagon..
Then i read from another surgeon.. this one from new zealand that if you had a weight gain to go back to protein shakes til you got all your weight off this sounded good but really hard to stick to for too long..

So what i did was go back and redid my program ...  starting with fluids, by the time i got back to full solids not only had my sleeve shrunk back in size, i was not as hungry as often.. Its now been two months since starting that and i have only 2lbs to go to get back to where im happy with.. Im now at the high end of my 5lb goal range.
The first week was the hardest so i used chicken broth and hot drinks to help full me up when ever i felt even slightly hungry..  I also used sugar free popsicles to use for something sweet, but in the liquid stage they also gave me something to chew on. im in no way suggesting you have do this but its how i  did it..
going back to my surgeon wasnt an option for me as i had my surgery in san diego in a military hospital and right now im living in new hampshire..

I also started back doing my 2.5 mile wal****il recently when i sprained my ankle...

for accountabilty its great if you have somewhere to post and talk to others so coming back is a great idea..

for me my plan from here is to try and stay away from the foods that did me in for as long as i can.. (i cant say forever because i dont know whats infront of me) ..

if you need any support please feel free to conact me  and ask for support when ever you may need it... Its nice to know your not alone... hugs:)

I'm about 2 1/2 years out and I still drink a protein drink every morning. That's just what I want to have. I am not hungry in the morning and I like my protein drinks. I don' t like to eat breakfast foods or cook in the morning. Protein drinks work great for me.

When I see a gain, I am very careful with no in between meal snacks. Meals are protein and veggies.
If I follow this really closely, it comes off again. I haven't been able to get to the gym as much either, and that contributes to all my problems too.

I am not sure where you are with exercise, but a regular exercise program makes me feel great and I don't want to  snack as much after getting all hot and sweaty.

Come to this board and check in a lot . There is nothing else like the support we get here!

I AM 4 years out...so, big hugs, sleeve sister!

So you have already totally identified your plan: get rid of your carby triggers--the cookies, crackers, chips and cheez'its. Get rid of them. And then do what you need to do. Yes, protein first and always. I don't think there is ANYTHING wrong with using shakes for a while if that works for you. Or you can just eat solid protein--lean meats, fish, chicken, eggs. After a few days, your carb cravings will subside and your hunger will be reduced. Try to get things back to 3 meals, 2 snacks, and if you must nosh on something else, go for protein snacks like jerky or broth with tofu or cheese sticks or plain crunchy veggies...or sugar free gum or sf pudding if you have a sweet tooth at all.

I DO understand since I tend to be a grazer as well and I must be very, very careful about what I allow into the house. You know that you just need to get your head and soul back in the game, and it sounds like you are ready to do that!!

We are here to support you, Cindy.

Lizanne

 i thank all of you who have posted so far.. This is  a new week, a new day, a new start..  I appreciate you being here for me.. As far as exercise, i go to the gym and walk .5 miles..  I then do the windjammer cardio machine for 15 minutes and the exercise bike 10 minutes.. i am going to start swimming laps again. 
  I am limited in what i can do there, i have lupus, have had back surgery, right knee surgery and ankle fusion that did not fuse back to the bone, so that is all the walking i can do, not allowed to use a treadmill or any machine that hurts the ankle, so this makes exercise much of a challenge..   
  Why would i have quit losing weight so quickly..  i lost 100 lbs exactly after surgery at my lowest, which was for about a day. but anyway,  my starting bmi was 63, at surgery time, but it still so high, i will have to check it today,..regardless i have a long way to go

No words of wisdom here that you haven't already been given, but I just want to let you know I'm thinking of you!  I'm in a similar situation -- physical problems plus I started eating junk carbs and sugar again.  Now, as you can see below, I am 25+ pounds over goal, dang it.  So I know where you are coming from.  Best wishes as you get yourself back in gear!
--Dorothy

you can do this - you just have to change a few habits back to what they were before. you may not want to try to change all habits at once - just one per week. Like first get rig of all the snack foods and add one protein drink a day. after a couple of weeks of carb detox then start tracking food again and maybe reduce calories a little. and increase the water. next, maybe start short walks each day. The main thing is that habits can be formed over about three weeks and if you try to do everything new at once it can be overwhelming and make you want to quit. but a little change each week can help develop a new routine comfortably. and keep track of all this stuff. I still food track in maintenance mainly to make sure i get my protein in. You should still be getting 70 per day by my doctor's advice and I think doing this helps in maintenance because if you get that in you tend to eat less junk.

GL and report in how you are doing.   Diane

 It could be that your surgeon made your "pouch" too big.  Someone posted on the main VSG boards a study that was done and in the beginning of using this surgery as a stand alone surgeons were using a 66 french bougie, which is so much bigger then what they are using now.  I'n the same article they were talking about how some surgeons were leaving a little pouch at the top and bottom of the stomach, similar to a barbell.  Anyway, maybe this is why you stopped losing so quickly.  You don't say how much weight you have left to lose but maybe you should look into converting to a DS.  I'm just giving some options here but hang tough.  We are here for you!

 I lost 133 lbs, 100 after surgery..   I still had 75 to lose which is now close to 100 again..  I weighed this morning and have gained 23 pounds back.. I got on track today and am doing liquid.. I was so saddened, i didnt realize how much i had gained, i know a fair amount is fluid but its from eating salty stuff..   

My doctor does not do DS at all.. when he converts he goes to RNY..  i know it sounds odd, at least it did to me..  I have been off the boards way too long i will be much more accountable with my posts..  I thank all of you for your help..  Going back to shakes is NOT easy but i am determined..  I also did my 1 hour arthritis class today..  I normally walk 1/2 mile and do 1 1/2 mile on the bike and 15 minutes on the windjammer cardio machine..  I am really trying.. it is hard to me to think about going to a RNY, i really don't want to.. but I do not want to stay so much overweight either.. Now do not get me wrong, coming from where i did.. almost 400 lbs, i am a lot healthier, but with the Lupus and joint problems i do not need extra weight..   I am so confused about what to do, but i do know one thing.. If i do the best i can do until i see the surgeon in a few months, i should have a great loss.. if not then i will probably talk to him about surgery..  I hope i do not have to..  That is why i said it was hard when i go in for my post op checkups and see people my weight just having the surgery. or less than my weight...  No offense to any of you lightweights :)  

I wish they could just make my pouch the right size if that is much of the problem.. how can i know.. how much food should i be able to eat almost 4 years out..  I need to make a new post of that for the people who are far out ... from what i read you can eat something like cottage cheese to see how big your pouch is?

So find a surgeon who does do the DS. Tehre are too many complications with RnY from not havinga pylorus valve, IMO. Plus, it's a surgery with a lot of regain issues.

It is possible to be "resleeved" but I think it's a risky operation as there will be a lot of scar tissue to deal with.