Question:
Ok, I admit it....I have Last Supper Syndrome
My surgeon, for obvious reasons, asked me to avoid this, but I'm having some difficulty. I haven't increased the amount of food I eat, I just don't worry about WHAT I eat. Are there any real dangers physically or emotionally to this practice? — SweetDragonfly (posted on August 10, 2003)
August 9, 2003
Well of course ideally we should all loose weight before surgery, because
thinner is healthier. But if we could do that we wouldnt need surgery:) You
just DONT want to put on a lot of extra weight pre op, or get problems like
diabetes worse. My surgeon says other than that enjoy:)<P>
Last supper syndrome for most is a waste, at least it was for me. I can and
do eat anything I did pre op, only in smaller quanties. Been ike this since
a few minths out I guess. Rare porterhouse steak at one month out, small
amunts of goodies, you name it I can eat it. I cried the day of my bowell
prep, as I ate my last chocolate chip cookie, figuring I would never taste
one again. Now I have to be careful about eating too much junk. All that
worry and a year of my life wasted over a non issue. BTW my wife Jen is the
same way, and most of our postie friends.
— bob-haller
August 9, 2003
The biggest issue with last supper syndrome is that gaining any weight is
not good. Also it will just cause your liver to stay or get bigger, making
surgery more difficult. This will drastically figure into whether you can
get LAP surgery if you are a candidate. Huge livers are usually the reason
someone doesn't end up with a LAP when they were an ideal candidate.
<p>I did do some last supper syndrome but not too bad and did it 3-4
weeks before surgery because the last 2 weeks I had to eat protein and
veggies only. I did quite well with that and managed to lose 21 lbs, which
was great. I did have one night where 4-5 brownies flew in my mouth but
that was it. Try to limit the carbs as this will start to get you onto
your new life. Like Bob said, there is very little I do not eat that I did
before surgery and it's 99% sweets. I will have a bite or two but the
thought of eating a whole brownie scares the heck out of me. I don't need
it. I'm way to protein focused to put that much crap in me. Now a bite
maybe, but haven't done that yet. I have eaten 1 cookie and didn't dump
but that's the most sweets I have eaten. I'm a little over 6 months PO.
— zoedogcbr
August 10, 2003
I see nothing wrong with a little "last suppering". I think that
you can do it in such a way so as to not go crazy and gain. I too stopped
worrying about what I ate but when surgery was about two months away I
started limiting the last suppers to once a week. Those were some well
planned out meals, believe me. I was satisfied and honestly sometimes now
(I am a big dumper!) I wish I had planned at least one or two last meals.
The last 2 weeks before surgery I did a 1,000 calorie per day low fat diet
and lost 11 pounds. My liver was nice and defatted and it was not so bad.
Remember that so many carbs are fat free or low fat so it makes that part
of it easy. Good Luck and don't beat yourself up but don't go crazy either.
— Carol S.
August 10, 2003
I didn't have the opportunity to have a last supper as I only had 7 days
notice of my surgery and needed to immediately eliminate fats and alcohol
so that the surgery could be performed laparoscopically. Given the
emotional roller coaster I found myself on during the first post-op weeks,
however, I was glad that I hadn't last suppered. You see, I was plagued by
lots of guilt that I hadn't been able to control my eating and that I
gorged rather than ate; these feelings, of course, led to lots of fear that
my bad eating habits were so ingrained that I could never succeed as a
post-op. The only comfort I had was knowing that I had stuck to the
program during the week before surgery and that I had already avoided
temptation when it really counted. And, in the months since then, I have
been amazed at how much different my relationship with food is (where it
is now principally utilitarian)--- so much so that, with one exception
(when I couldn't enjoy my daughter's birthday cake this summer) I have not
wished that I had splurged on last suppering before surgery.
— SteveColarossi
August 10, 2003
My nutritionist called me and warned me not to gain weight before my
surgery. The hospital I had it done (St. Joseph's in Burbank, CA) is
phenomenal, but their surgical tables on hold up to 350 and I was 340. So
here I was 2 weeks before surgery paranoid about gaining weight. What I
finally did was to increase my exercise and eat what I wanted. I just
didn't have seconds. I wish I could have done that my whole life. LOL. I
ended up losing about 5 pounds pre-surgery.
— mrsmyranow
August 10, 2003
Myra, A WLS hospital that has a surgery table limit of 350 lbs? What a
joke. I'd say they are in it for the money and not to help people as there
are tons of people over 350 lbs getting WLS. The hospital I had it done at
has done people over 700.
— zoedogcbr
August 10, 2003
I had last breakfasts, lunches AND dinners. I didn't gain any weight, but I
ate whatever I wanted. Like another poster said, it was pointless because I
eat whatever I want now anyway. I *can* eat anything, but there are some
things I don't want to eat anymore. Like seafood, pasta, and rice. I used
to live on those types of things and now they don't sound good. I've never
thrown up, and I feel great. So... start trying to not drink with meals,
carefully chewing things, and eating the protein first. THOSE are the
things you'll have to focus on. Take care of yourself!!!
— Diana L.
August 10, 2003
I last suppered myself to death that last month pre op. You know what? I
lost 12 or 15 lbs then! Why? That last month I quit ALL sugar! Lived on
Splenda for my sweet tooth. Does'nt mean it will work for others but I ate
like a hog and lost. So evidently stopping sugar was the reason.
— Danmark
August 10, 2003
I too "last suppered" the month prior to surgery ... I had a list
of foods I wanted to have ... BUT, I didn't have them all in one day, nor
did I have extreme amounts of them. I also kept in the back of my mind ...
for the most part, we WILL be able to eat just about everything (if not
everything) at some point, so you don't have to go crazy!
— Karyn B
August 11, 2003
This discussion sort of reminds me of when I was diagnosed with diabetes. I
went to the diabetes educator with anger and a chip on my shoulder. One of
the first things she said to me was "There is nothing you will not be
able to eat." I keep thinking that the one thing that will prevent me
from the "Last Supper" syndrome is telling myself that eventually
I will be able to have what I want, just not large amounts.
— Susan R.
August 13, 2003
Original poster, here....thanks all! I appreciate the response!
— SweetDragonfly
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