Question:
I am 1 year and 10 months post op from RNY. I started @ 350. I now weigh 270 and am

gaining weight back. I eat lot, especially a lot of junk. I don't want to gain more weight. What should I be doing? By the way, I am hungry a lot. I also want to eat compulsively, craving sweets and chips, etc. Thanks for any insight.    — Linda V. (posted on November 13, 2003)

November 13, 2003
I am sorry you are having difficulties. Do you have an Overeaters Anonymous in your area? If not, I would recommend seeing a therapist before this gets totally out of hand. What kind of support does your surgeon provide? The good news is that you have a tool that will serve you forever and if you get back on the bandwagon with the rules - protein, low carbs, exercise, water, supplements, you should be able to lose this weight again. I wish you the best.
   — Yolanda J.

November 13, 2003
Sugar begets sugar. The more you eat the more you want. I know...because I go on a sugar bingers every so often. I've been educating myself and working very hard to eat sensibly, and to fight the obsessive eating/dieting roller coaster I'm on . I know you believe me when I say it's easier said than done. I know that what you eat affects your blood sugar. Which also affects, saitety, appetite, hunger, cravings, etc. Read South Beach diet for a crash curse on hypoglycemia...and how high GI foods (like cake, cookies, brownies) affects your appetite, cravings, etc. I don't follow the plan per se' but I believe in the concepts strongly and apply them to my eating plan...I do a lot of research about eating and it's affects on blood sugar (I've developed hypoglycemia post) I try to eat lower glycemic foods (you can find that info easily enough on the web without buying the SB diet book and also books entirely about the Glycemic Index are available) I know it's easier for me to say no to donuts than to just have one or even half. If I try to have say just one donute, I MUST have another sweet an hour or two later...and then another, etc...my whole being screams for it. However, if I can stay strong enough to say no to one or even half...I'm free of the sugar demon for one more day. I do eat treats, and often, but I stick with lower sugar ones and force myself to eat only one at a sitting....I can have another an hour or so later (I promise myself) if I want it...but for the moment, one is fine...because I know if I have another right away that is enough sugar to send me on a binger. I'm two and a half years out from RNY and still learning what it means to eat right....it will take me a lifetime to master, but I'm willing to keep chugging along in the right direction...I've fallen many times on my wls journey, my knees are bloody raw, but I keep getting up... YOU CAN DO IT, WE ALL CAN DO IT....but we have to remember that sugar is the devil ;) .We can beat obesity, we have one of the greatest tools with our wls...unfortunately we have to learn in a few short months after wls and apply to our lives what average size people have been naturally inclined to know about eating right(even if they don't realize it...they do)..at any rate I've rambled a bit here, and I could go on and on...but I'll refrain..best wishes to you...if you ever want to discuse this, please feel free to e-mail me. -Kim open RNY 7/17/01 282/140/125 (5'2")
   — KimBo36

November 13, 2003
Linda - I admire your courage for seeing what is happening to yourself and asking for help. Good for you!! Historically I can put my self into such a place of denial that I don't see what I am doing - so I really think that posting your question is so admirable! Anyway - search for the "Pouch Rules for Dummies". I think that it will help you familiarize yourself with how this pouch works and the tool that it can be. I think that if you haven't contacted your original surgeon's office, then you should. Perhaps your staple line has disrupted? Best of luck to you and work on solving your problem now. Tomorrow won't be a better day without making today work for you!
   — Jodie P.

November 14, 2003
As much as I would like to say that after surgery should be easier than before I'm sure it isn't. It is terrible to crave sweets and chips and junk food, and it is truely hard to break that cycle (I AM SOOOOO FAMILIAR WITH THAT CYCLE!) You have to keep trying. It is important not to give in to the cravings for sweets and fat. Instead replace those craved foods with exercise, water, protein... From my experience with Carb Addicts I found myself having a lot less cravings when I ate the correct things with as few carbs as possible, and drank my water. Keep fighting!
   — Jessica Wyatt Robinson

November 14, 2003
When I get any "cravings" I eat protein. Keeping my protein level high, I rarely have these. And it takes care of hunger. I also constantly drink-when I'm hungry, I take a swallow. I use the hunger to remind myself to drink. I get in about 80-100oz a day, of non-caffineted beverage. Also, I eat NO Sugar. Since day 1. All Iknow is that it works for me, I don't dump and I don't have to worry about "a little" bit. That was always my problem, portion control. Used to be my idea of a little pie of cake was the whole d**m pan!! We all have to remember that we had out "tummies' operated on---not our heads! What was there is there. Please use this tool to sidestep the head hunger. It is our advatage over our brain. I hope you find the ways to make it work for you again. Good Luck, Becky
   — bek4901

November 14, 2003
I am 21 months out so can totally understand the issue of weight regain at around the 2 year mark. Linda, if you are eating alot (quantity) at meal time, first check with your surgeon to ensure that there is nothing mechanically wrong. If there isn't, then its not rocket science here. You have to go back to the basics. Try eating small meals several times a day. I eat something every 3 hours or so otherwise I get very hungry too, but if you eat right when you first start feeling hungry, I find that I make better food choices than waiting until I get too hungry. We all crave sweets and chips, thats what got us fat to begin with. Get them out of the house if you cannot control yourself when they are in the house. Fill the house with protein snacks-cheese, nuts, soy chips, peanutbutter on whole grain crackers, protein bars,cut up veggies. And what about protein drinks? Alot of post-ops say that drinking protein shakes when hungry or craving sweets eventually removes the cravings. Seeing a therapist is also a good move, for you, and your mental health. Why are you gaining, why do you want to eat compulsively-solve those issues and you may be able to defeat it. And finally, are you exercising? No one likes to exercise (well, I don't...) but I know that if I want to eat I have to burn those calories somehow so regular heart pumping exercise is essential. You can do this. I know you don't want your RNY to be for nothing...
   — Cindy R.

November 14, 2003
I agree with Kimberly about the sugar, I'm still pre-op, but I know when I have sugar I tend to crave it even more, if I don't have it for a couple of days, I don't even think about it. Be careful with the junk, as you have found you can gain weight back, nip this in the bud before you gain back too much! Maybe you should get some therapy to find out what causes you to eat compuslively, I am sure your surgeons office or local support group could refer you to someone to help.
   — Patricia T.

November 16, 2003
Hey, there is a good book that you can read that will open your eyes wide when it comes to sugar, it is called "Food Addiction, the body knows" by Kay Shepherd. this will explain alot of how your body works and knows exactly what you ingest and how to handle it. Using knowledge and your tool should get you on the right track. I am praying for you. Lisa Hackenburg (postop 10-23-03 Dr. Williams) 331/299/140?
   — Lisa H.