A gastric band company to me put weight ON!

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  • Akimajuktuq
    Akimajuktuq Posts: 3,037 Member
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    It is really difficult for me because I have NEVER had a healthy relationship with food. From an early age my mum called me a fat cow leading me to be anorexic for years. Suddenly the anorexia stopped and the bingeing started. I really need psychological help. Am thinking of going to overeaters anonymous.

    Yes, go to OA but also give some thought to the possiblity that BED just might be related to malnutrition. Yes, obese people can be, and often are, malnourished.

    I supposedly had BED, and many other illnesses, which have been cured by changing WHAT I eat. Not by willpower, not by moderation, etc. The food; it matters.

    PS: all surgery comes with the risk of death. GB surgery has even higher risk of death than many other surgeries. The surgery will NOT be a solution for BED and if your BED is due to malnutrition you will likely get worse. Do you care about your health? Or just what the number on the scale says?
  • 36jessica
    36jessica Posts: 319 Member
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    Hi Rosie!

    You seem to have a lot going on right now. Maybe you should focus first on getting the emotional side of your issues under control with some professional help. You've spoken about binging and drug addictions etc., so I think you might want to figure out what pushes you to do what you do. Gastric band surgery won't help unless you're psychologically ready to deal with the consequences such a procedure would bring on. In addtion, if you were told by the company to gain weight in order to undergo the procedure, obviously you are NOT an ideal candidate (I can't believe they were so unethical!). Why not look around and spend the money you would have spent on the band surgery on someone who can help you through your emotional struggle? Good luck, Rosie. :flowerforyou:
  • agdyl
    agdyl Posts: 246 Member
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    Alcoholic cake??

    alcoholic foods are foods you cannot control. for example if I start an entire trifle or cake i end up eating the lot.

    First - seek professional help with this and not surgery.

    Second - you can't control what food your spouse or anyone else places around you. I used to be frustrated by this as well - my husband would bring home oreos and chips and ice cream and I would say that I "couldn't resist". I blamed him and not myself and kept eating those foods that triggered me to overeat and kept getting mad at him for bringing them in the house. I'd blame my coworkers for bringing donuts in the office. And I totally get why this was ingrained in me - my mom wouldn't allow junk food in the house when I was a kid, so my dad would sneak it in and he and my sister and I would "have to" eat it ALL before Mom caught us and threw it out. Great behaviour... But ultimately that choice is always mine. I've stopped eating those trigger foods, and not because that food isn't around me. Because I've just learned to say no. I've learned that I feel better when I eat healthy foods in reasonable quantities and I want to feel good tomorrow, now just feel good during the 30 minutes I spend stuffing my face with oreos.

    You can do it. But keep looking for support to help you.
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,775 Member
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    I am desperate to stop bingeing and lose weight. I am losing weight with MFP but very slowly. I lose for 2 or 3 days then go on 2 day long binges. It is really getting me down.

    How will the GB address the mental/emotional issues that lead to binging?
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,775 Member
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    Alcoholic cake??

    alcoholic foods are foods you cannot control. for example if I start an entire trifle or cake i end up eating the lot.

    then don't start a trifle or cake.
  • AbbsyBabbsy
    AbbsyBabbsy Posts: 184 Member
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    Unfortunately it is impossible to not have alcoholic foods in the house as husband loves his cake!

    Make a list of your binge triggers. Don't eat them ever again. Not a sliver. Not a slice. Not if it's a special occasion. Never.

    There will come a time where these foods don't hold power over you.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    No offense, but a gastric band won't be a miracle solution to keep you from binging. If anything, it will make it even more dangerous...
  • TheCurvyJ
    TheCurvyJ Posts: 43 Member
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    This is a standard approach for Bariatric Centers. They want your money so they are quick to tell you to gain so you can qualify then take it off on your pre op diet or in the big drop after surgery. I wouldn't really recommend it, but if the option is to do that or pay $20,000... Some people are desperate enough to do it. But if you have issues losing enough to have a band installed, it's still going to be hard to take off that extra weight.

    But basically, they want to fill beds.
  • TheCurvyJ
    TheCurvyJ Posts: 43 Member
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    Really not this easy. It really isn't. Not having them there doesn't make you NOT want it. Doesn't make you not go out and get it.

    I would not recommend the band for binge/purge, though. WLS is not much of a cure for an eating disorder.
  • mspoopoo
    mspoopoo Posts: 500 Member
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    Have you actually called around and found out what is available for counseling for you?

    Does your gp know about your conditions?

    I would make an appointment with your gp and talk to them seriously about these issues you have shared here and get a referral to see someone.

    As for the husband. I would just ask him to eat the sweets etc somewhere else for awhile.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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  • smantha32
    smantha32 Posts: 6,990 Member
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    It is really difficult for me because I have NEVER had a healthy relationship with food. From an early age my mum called me a fat cow leading me to be anorexic for years. Suddenly the anorexia stopped and the bingeing started. I really need psychological help. Am thinking of going to overeaters anonymous.

    Weight loss surgery won't stop the bingeing. You should talk to a professional who specializes in eating disorders.
  • Mistyvs
    Mistyvs Posts: 56 Member
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    I didn't read all the replies but I'm sure this has been said. GB surgery will not stop your bingeing. You can and will still binge after you've had it. I've known several people who have had it, not changed their eating habits, and gained all their weight back. A nutritionist and/or a counselor sounds like more of what you need. Deal with WHY you're bingeing. Women, Food, and God is a great place to start.
  • nyrina4life
    nyrina4life Posts: 196 Member
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    Please, do not go for the surgery. You have no need for the surgery, and it could turn into a rather fatal mistake. It is still surgery, and you never know what may or may not happen.

    Also, if you are dropping the pounds on your own then it is obvious you do not need to surgery. What you do need is a good psychiatrist who can help you. Binge eating is a disorder, and there is help out there. All you have to do is seek it out, and listen to what they have to say.

    Even on your worst days, you could still manage a small loss, and that would still be good for you if numbers is all you are focused on. But truthfully, I suggest you see a psychiatrist or a regular physician who could assist you. Also look to see if there are local groups that are for people who suffer from eating disorders. I know over here, there are plenty that are like AA meetings and have successfully helped people.

    None the less, good luck on your journey and may you never, ever give surgery another consideration. It is NOT the magic pill, wand, or wizard that will make all rose colored and beautiful.
  • LeanAmbitions
    LeanAmbitions Posts: 40
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    Any type of weight loss surgery becomes more risky with a binge eating disorder. The pouch in gastric bypass can stretch back into the same size it was before surgery if the binge eating doesn't stop, and your gastric band can slip and cause damage from over eating. Please get the help you need to overcome the binge eating. Ask your husband if he can eat his cake outside the house because your weight and binge eating bothers you to the point you are contemplating life-threatening surgery and need the bad food out of the house to overcome it.
  • mccbabe1
    mccbabe1 Posts: 737 Member
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    Unfortunately psychological help is almost impossible in the UK unless you pay private (which I am considering doing). I have gone through this with bipolar and had to be admitted into a psychiatric intensive care before I was deemed to be ill enough to access the therapy.

    :noway: wow that is sad! lots of counseling/help places here in the US!
  • kaned_ferret
    kaned_ferret Posts: 618 Member
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    I don't think psychological help is limited in the UK at all - though I'm sure depending on where you live will make a difference to what you can get on the NHS. If you haven't done so already, please talk to your GP and outline everything you have shared with us here. There is usually a limit of 6 sessions for any one problem, though sometimes a GP will send you back for more.

    Certainly if you are looking to spend £ on the gastroc surgery, it would be cheaper, and more effective, to go private with those £ for the mental/emotional help you need here.

    It is true about replacing one addiction with another quite often - but this time, take control and choose that new addiction, and make it something like exercise. Every time you're ready to binge, do 10 star jumps. Still want to binge? Do 10 more. If you're not up to that yet, make your new addiction browsing the forums on here - I can honestly lose hours daily with logging my food and exercise, and having a read at all the interesting stuff / some crazy stuff you get on here!

    You've already shown that you *can* be in control with the weight loss you've already achieved. And there's plenty of us here to support you on your journey to help you be accountable. Yes it's a slow journey but slow and steady really does win this race :flowerforyou:
  • Frelling_Tralk
    Frelling_Tralk Posts: 56 Member
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    Agreeing with everyone else that getting some counselling is your best bet.

    Presumedly when you're binging you carry on eating past the point of feeling full/it getting physically painful, so you would end up doing exactly the same with the gastric band and possibly harming yourself as well. The only thing it will change is to make your stomach smaller and to send a signal to your brain earlier that you are full, but think about how you are binging now and ignoring that full feeling, a gastric band won't help you control that
  • rosiecbolton
    rosiecbolton Posts: 85 Member
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    I phoned the company back today and complained that I was told to "eat more, stop dieting and push my BMI up". They could not have been less interested. Instead the woman said at my BMI I needed a gastric balloon and they help loads of people with binge eating disorder and have "never once had a patient who has not lost weight". I doubt that as they do 1000s of surgeries a year. Horrible and unethical and has really put me off surgery
  • sharonfoustmills
    sharonfoustmills Posts: 519 Member
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    Unfortunately psychological help is almost impossible in the UK unless you pay private (which I am considering doing). I have gone through this with bipolar and had to be admitted into a psychiatric intensive care before I was deemed to be ill enough to access the therapy.

    Wow, that really sucks. In the U.S. we have a lot of low cost therapy available to people who want/ need it. Surprised the UK does not have charitable groups that offer it, because we have them in every city here. Do some research and make sure, because groups like United Way offer help in the U.S. for low/ no cost. (I worked as a volunteer counselor at one of them for a year and a half.)

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