"Why the protein bars/wafers? Is it because they are easier to get
down then meat protein?
I'm afraid I'd be a complete bitch (ALL the time) if I had to eat
like the WLS success stories I've encountered. Does the hungry go away?
That email in the newest post is where I'm at. I see how beautiful
you look and want to be there - but the food stuff and the illness has
me really worried. I don't know if I want WLS that bad.
Is it really worth it?"
I'll reply in pieces, because this is a multi-part question.
- The protein bars? I eat them because they are ready to go, require no cooking, no prep, have the right nutrition, and certain ones digest so easily - and cause no gastric distress. Many forms of meat protein are difficult to eat in the regular form - unless drowned in liquid. That, and I am not going around with a can of chicken in my purse. (When out to eat, I order meat or cheese, yes.) For most meals though, I eat protein bars. Meat doesn't always settle nicely in my pouch, and can cause nausea, retching, etc. If I do eat meat, it's when I'm making it for the family - as I do not cook entire meals for my self or just the two of us, it's always a waste.
As for being a bitch, because I have to eat like this?
- That's a personal choice, I could eat differently if I wanted to badly enough. It is VERY difficult to lose weight at this stage in the game, and I basically have to "starve" to do so at any point. Eating like I do - random bits of small portions, is the way I can "maintain" or try to lose - when I eat more - I gain weight.
- I'm a bitch anyways - eating doesn't change it - BUT - considering that the coping mehanism of drowning feelings in food is gone - most of us get Super Bitchy. Sure, you can still overeat - binge - graze - what have you, but, then you're dealing with the Fat again, after botching your body up with the weight loss surgery, and you're inching back to where you were!
- Thin and bitchy is a given - you're a food addict with no "drug" anymore, how do you expect you are going to feel? It doesn't magically disappear, it takes a very long time to relearn new habits, and the triggers that cause you to overeat in the first place do not go away either.
- Living without your "coping" mechanism can backfire. You can become The Bitchy, and you can get a transferred addiction (gambling, sex, alcohol, drugs, smoking, spending money, even exercising!) that is even worse that the food issues.
If you are wondering if you're not ready to give up many of the pleasures of eating food - you're not ready.
It can really mess you up, if you are THAT addicted and not ready to consider the possibility of not having the stomach to handle many foods.
Some post-ops cannot handle many foods at all - in variety - some vomit anything with substance and live on supplemental protein.
I can't speak for anyone else, but for me - I cannot eat many raw veggies, tough meats, eggs, and milk. That in combination with my pickier tastes (I also do not like any seafood, many other meats) leave my protein choices slim - cheese, beans, lean meat that I am willing to eat OR supplements.
As for illness - do you mean the possible complications? They don't happen to everybody - but - if the benefits of WLS outweigh the risks for your particular body - WLS is worth it.
For someone like me, who had no complications of obesity - it seems like an unfair trade. Yes, it was my CHOICE to have the WLS, I could have done without it. I know this. I do not blame anyone - but - much of this should have been explained to me pre-operatively four years ago.
I gave up a healthy (if obese) body for a smaller version that is getting "sick" due to the WLS. The benefits, surely would have saved me if I stayed MO for longer than I did (I was only really big for about five years) perhaps keeping me from having Type II diabetes, heart issues, etc from the obesity.
But, having WLS triggered other issues in me - (not speaking for anyone else, but there are others, ask around) like the bizarre hypoglycemic conditions I now deal with daily, the anemia, the vitamin deficiencies, etc. I am nearly certain that other conditions will arise as I age, that can be attributed to my ****ed up digestion.
We are merely lab rats for this WLS stuff, noone knows how healthy I'll be at 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 years of age - who knows.
Sure, it's likely I would have dropped dead at age 40 with a heart attack if I stayed at 320 lbs, too, so it's all a game of choices and risks.
What are you willing to risk? That's a personal choice no one else can make for you.
"Why the protein bars/wafers? Is it because they are easier to get down then meat protein?
I'm afraid I'd be a complete bitch (ALL the time) if I had to eat like the WLS success stories I've encountered. Does the hungry go away?
That email in the newest post is where I'm at. I see how beautiful you look and want to be there - but the food stuff and the illness has me really worried. I don't know if I want WLS that bad.
Is it really worth it?"
I'll reply in pieces, because this is a multi-part question.
As for being a bitch, because I have to eat like this?
If you are wondering if you're not ready to give up many of the pleasures of eating food - you're not ready.
It can really mess you up, if you are THAT addicted and not ready to consider the possibility of not having the stomach to handle many foods.
Some post-ops cannot handle many foods at all - in variety - some vomit anything with substance and live on supplemental protein.
I can't speak for anyone else, but for me - I cannot eat many raw veggies, tough meats, eggs, and milk. That in combination with my pickier tastes (I also do not like any seafood, many other meats) leave my protein choices slim - cheese, beans, lean meat that I am willing to eat OR supplements.
As for illness - do you mean the possible complications? They don't happen to everybody - but - if the benefits of WLS outweigh the risks for your particular body - WLS is worth it.
For someone like me, who had no complications of obesity - it seems like an unfair trade. Yes, it was my CHOICE to have the WLS, I could have done without it. I know this. I do not blame anyone - but - much of this should have been explained to me pre-operatively four years ago.
I gave up a healthy (if obese) body for a smaller version that is getting "sick" due to the WLS. The benefits, surely would have saved me if I stayed MO for longer than I did (I was only really big for about five years) perhaps keeping me from having Type II diabetes, heart issues, etc from the obesity.
But, having WLS triggered other issues in me - (not speaking for anyone else, but there are others, ask around) like the bizarre hypoglycemic conditions I now deal with daily, the anemia, the vitamin deficiencies, etc. I am nearly certain that other conditions will arise as I age, that can be attributed to my ****ed up digestion.
We are merely lab rats for this WLS stuff, noone knows how healthy I'll be at 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 years of age - who knows.
Sure, it's likely I would have dropped dead at age 40 with a heart attack if I stayed at 320 lbs, too, so it's all a game of choices and risks.
What are you willing to risk? That's a personal choice no one else can make for you.