Guest guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Hi everybody, My name is Connie and I am new, not only to Yahoo, but to the Gastric Bypass subject. My husband and I have been discussing having this surgery; both of our doctors have blessed the idea. It will probably be several months before we have the surgery however. Hubby has restorative colonostomy surgery coming up in two weeks. I have been asking myself, why do I need this surgery? If I am going to have to diet after the surgery, why don't I diet and forget about the surgery? Is this a common question? Of course, if I could stick to a diet, I wouldn't have to worry about the surgery. Do any of you feel like you were forced into dieting after having the surgery? Do you feel like you are missing out on something because you cannot eat like you used to? Or is the fact that you are losing so much weight so quickly, so wonderful that you do not have these thoughts. I worry about what happens when all the weight is gone; am I going to be depressed because I cannot indulge in some of my old favorites. Is the high protein, lo carb eating a lifetime schedule? I envy all of you who have had the surgery and are losing the weight. Is there counseling before and after to get acclimated to the idea? I am 65 years old, have been over 100 lbs overweight for many years. Any advice any of you can give me will certainly be appreciated. Thanks Connie Ohio Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 welcome connie! there's a world of factors that differentiate wls & regular dieting. w/ regular dieting, the majority REGAIN the weight, plus plus. the wls folk produce less of the hunger hormone, ghrelin. right off the bat, i'll be the first to say that wls involves sacrifice, dedication & committment. keep researching, keep soul searching & keep us posted. lori h. > Hi everybody, > I have been asking myself, why do I need this surgery? If I am going to have to diet after the surgery, why don't I diet and forget about the surgery? Is this a common question? > Of course, if I could stick to a diet, I wouldn't have to worry about the surgery. > > Do any of you feel like you were forced into dieting after having the surgery? Do you feel like you are missing out on something because you cannot eat like you used to? Or is the fact that you are losing so much weight so quickly, so wonderful that you do not have these thoughts. > > I worry about what happens when all the weight is gone; am I going to be depressed because I cannot indulge in some of my old favorites. Is the high protein, lo carb eating a lifetime schedule? > > I envy all of you who have had the surgery and are losing the weight. Is there counseling before and after to get acclimated to the idea? > > I am 65 years old, have been over 100 lbs overweight for many years. Any advice any of you can give me will certainly be appreciated. > > Thanks > > Connie > Ohio Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Hi all! It's been a few days since I've been able to post. We've been busy as the dickens with it being Domestic Violence Awareness Month. But I'm always reading and thinking of y'all and your successes. Anyway, I wanted to welcome Connie! You'll find this to be a great support group! I'm also pre-op, but I found your questions to be interesting. As for dieting, I think my feelings about this are...I can diet in conventional ways. However, I'm usually only able to get off 20 lbs at the most, over the course of six months, and then my weight loss dwindles to pretty much nothing after that, maybe 1/4 lb. per week, if I'm lucky. At that rate it would take me around 6-7 years to lose all the weight I need to lose. And then I always regain it right back plus some. So looking at it in those terms, without the surgery, I'm going to have to do some pretty hardcore dieting the rest of my life just to be losing and regaining it all the time. And yo-yo dieting over the long-term can be worse for your health than just simply being overweight. I'd say it's a vicious circle. So I've accepted that I can never eat like a non-overweight person. But I see wls as a tool that can make this situation much more manageable with better and more permanent results. I know it's going to take a lot of effort on my part (permanently at that). As for long-term food issues, I think it pretty much depends on your pre-op relationship with food. I'm not a grazer. I don't eat all day long. In fact, just the opposite, I usually only eat twice a day, but it's often on the run, and I don't always make good choices (that, and the fact that I take after my mom, and we just seem to gain weight on air). So my post-op issues may be different than someone who partakes in a lot of emotional eating. An emotional eater will have to deal with making that break from seeing food as their friend or crutch. And they may experience a sense of loss or grief, much as they would if they lost a friend or family member. In my situation, I'll be struggling with how to fit high-quality protein into a hectic schedule (that and re-training a skinny husband on how to eat more healthy). We will all experience post-op struggles...but that's what support groups like this one are for. W. Birmingham, AL Dr. Schmitt (waiting on insurance appeal) > Hi everybody, > > My name is Connie and I am new, not only to Yahoo, but to the Gastric Bypass subject. My husband and I have been discussing having this surgery; both of our doctors have blessed the idea. It will probably be several months before we have the surgery however. > Hubby has restorative colonostomy surgery coming up in two weeks. > > I have been asking myself, why do I need this surgery? If I am going to have to diet after the surgery, why don't I diet and forget about the surgery? Is this a common question? > Of course, if I could stick to a diet, I wouldn't have to worry about the surgery. > > Do any of you feel like you were forced into dieting after having the surgery? Do you feel like you are missing out on something because you cannot eat like you used to? Or is the fact that you are losing so much weight so quickly, so wonderful that you do not have these thoughts. > > I worry about what happens when all the weight is gone; am I going to be depressed because I cannot indulge in some of my old favorites. Is the high protein, lo carb eating a lifetime schedule? > > I envy all of you who have had the surgery and are losing the weight. Is there counseling before and after to get acclimated to the idea? > > I am 65 years old, have been over 100 lbs overweight for many years. Any advice any of you can give me will certainly be appreciated. > > Thanks > > Connie > Ohio > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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