Whew! After question #500 on my evaluation, I was ready to scream, "Yes, it's true ... I DO hear voices in my head ... come take me away!"

OK, all you Pre-Ops: I just attended my second seminar last night, held by my surgeon. I went with my sister, because she's going to have surgery sometime this year, too. (My brother had his surgery last September ... do you think we should get a family discount?? Long story.)

Anyway, my surgeon said, "For those who cannot lose weight by their own willpower, WLS supplies the willpower." I wrote that down and thought a bit about it today at work. I think it's true, but the statement falls short in another way. I want to say that, "WLS supplies the willpower, but I supply the work." I must change my relationship with food, and I have a six- to twelve-month window in which to do it. THAT'S WORK!

Thoughts?

Deb, I think your surgeon has oversimplified a very complicated process. WLS is the "tool" to provide you the ability to change your lifestyle, it isn't the willpower, that can only come from the individual. Surgery allows us the time we need to get our house in order. From attitude and bad habits, to facing issues that we were never willing to face before, the surgery allows us precious time to get our game plan together and then execute the plan for our future.

Learning to follow the simple rules will give results that up until surgery we only dream of. Success breeds more success and we continue down the road to our own specific goals. Support from family and here in the neighborhood is also key. Learn all you can before your surgery and go into it with your eyes wide open and well prepared and you will do very well!

Well said Celadon! I agree 100%.

Use your time of healing (and rapid weight loss) to start living your life as a thin person. Get therapy if you need to, start doing activities that get your body moving, try something new...become who you are in your heart. Develop all of the new habits that you will need to make a part of your permanent life. No more drive thru breakfast, lunch and dinner. Cooking your meals with the very best ingredients that you can afford. Vitamins on a regular daily basis! Read the info here...you'll be a success knowing what is to come.

I made it a point to NOT be one of the statistics that was quoted to me early on in the process...that I'd probably never see my goal weight and that I'd most likely end up at a weight that would still be considered "obese". Not good enough for me! Not good enough for you!!

I agree w/ what has been said.

Don't you just love that 500 question eval! I kept wondering why I was taking it instead of the psychologist talking to me for 1/2 hour to really learn about me instead of asking me the same questions in three different ways.

I like the words "Determination" and "Resolve" vs. willpower.
Willpower (to me) suggests that it's something I have
I think it's a set up for failure.

Your pouch is a "tool" you will hear it over and over again.
They (the WLS doctors et al) can not say that it is a cure all.
We can gain the weight back.

The tool (your pouch) and the "Rules"
are a new way of life. If you resolve to this new way of life
You will be a winner.

POUCH RULES
Drink 64+ oz of water a day
65-70 + grams of protein a day
Protein First (plug up that hole up (stoma) makes you feel full! - let it digest and get that nutrition)
(that's what they mean by no slider foods)
Exercise - 30 minutes a day
Take you vitamins, calcium

I am adding - give back. Post what you know, join a WLS community.
Giving back keeps your recovery "in your face"
We (I) have such amnesia at times when it comes to my WLS lifestyle.

Friends, did I forget any rules?

Blessings on your journey - resolve to follow the rules and your pouch will be your best friend.

Hugs

Nancy

Nancy, this is HUGE! Every single member of this community should feel as you do because for us all, the KEY to success is as you say, to keep our recovery 'in your face' by giving back. Thank you for the reminder!

I'm Sorry but a nutritionist once told me you can't loose weight and keep it off on just willpower. There has to be other tools involved and wls is one of them and it's one that is not taken lightly nor is it an easy decision to make. So hang in and keep plugging away!!

My eval was a piece of cake thank God!!

Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines willpower as "energetic determination." I never got ANY of that from the surgery. I don't know if anyone else did, but I certainly didn't. And there sure wasn't any willpower there when I regained the weight. The thing that gave me "energetic determination" was the 5DPT.

Thank you, everyone, for your thoughts on this topic; it's been a puzzlement for me as I've made my decision to have surgery and am now helping my sister understand what's in store. I believe this has been the core issue for me and one that I keep coming back to when someone else asks, "Don't you think you can just follow the rules without the surgery?"

Surgery allows us the time we need to get our house in order. From attitude and bad habits, to facing issues that we were never willing to face before, the surgery allows us precious time to get our game plan together and then execute the plan for our future.

I love what Celadon says here, "... precious time ..." That time will be precious to me, and I fully intend to take every advantage that my pouch will afford me when I arrive.

I'm glad the n'hood is here, the library, the recipes and that you all want to give back (thanks, Nancy, for the words) especially with this wonderful forum. AND I'm glad that Lynn P is in my hometown and we hope to meet up soon!

Hey Deb!

At the conference there was a talk about Appetites, It's NOT all in your Head. They talked about the various hormones that are in our bodies. Most of them are working against us an/or not working efficiently. It made a lot of sense to me. It causes a short circuit of wires.

When he go to Lowes or Home Depot we buy the tools to make our yards look nice, our homes more efficient, to fix our various things that are broken, nothing does the work for us. We NEED the tool to accomplish the task at hand.

I get frustrated when people think it is all willpower. What about the willpower I don't have that makes me want to snuggle up to a baby. No I can't snuggle with every bodies baby I see, I might get hauled off to jail. It is the common sense that I must use to avoid the jail! that gets a hold of me. I guess it can be looked at it for so many different ways.

Good thought provoking ideas...

Well said, everyone. Nancy, thanks for the concise synopsis of what we need to do to stay on track. Lots to think about and absorb from this thread.

Wow when I got my psych eval I just answered some standard Dr questions and then the psychiatrist talked to me for an hour. No questionaires to fill out Thank God! I guess different programs have different ways but I had to use a psych from my insurance plan and she wasn't affiliated with my surgeon speciffically although she treats alot of WLS peeps.