Gastric Sleeve and Eating Disorders

hi'it seems your thinking is heading in the right direction. keep up the good work.have a good christmas ,

Hi Chris, Cat and Fadding Away,
Thanks for your responses. I sort of figured what you said Chris about pretty much everyone on this list having had disordered eating if not an actual eating disorder so we are all in the same boat there. I was also thinking along the same line. If your capacity to binge is greatly reduced, then why would you want or need to purge? Of course I still have a lot of work to do in how to handle the urges to binge in the first place and have not taken the decision to have surgery lightly. I am trying to be as informed as I can about the consequences of what can happen if I do relapse.
I hope you are all enjoying the lead-up to Christmas. I have had 3 parties / eating events in 3 days so I am on a roll. I am actually pretty happy with my eating under the circumstances as I don't think I have been too much of a pig and I have been walking every day. My problem has always been closet eating / bingeing and I haven't been doing any of that. I do plan to have a BLOODY good Christmas food-wise though and eat as much of and whatever I want as I figure I will never be able to do it again :)
I look forward to chatting with you all in the forum over the coming weeks and months.
-Deb

Firstly, Deb, welcome and congratulations for being successful in your ongoing fight against purging. And also for being brave enough to both ask the question and tell us a little about yourself.
As you must be aware, a lot of us have mental health issues, and depression is a big one.
And of course we've all suffered from eating disorders of some description, or we wouldn't need to be here.
It's just the form that they take that is different.
Personally, I haven't had the same problems as you, however I would venture to say that, at least at first, you won't feel the need to purge because you'll hardly be putting anything in your stomach. And if and when you do feel the need to binge, and I know this one very well myself, you just won't be able to have the quantities you expect, so it won't be a major problem either.
Over time it might change a little, but I suspect that the op will actually help you in your fight.
Keep us up to date, and good luck with your journey.
Chris

Hi Deb, I haven't got an eating disorder but I agree with the other post, vomitting or even rethcing the first few weeks afte th op. can have serious consequences, thats why they put some of us on anti-nausea meds even as a precaution. If I were you I would be be honest with your surgical team and especially the psychologist. its likely your surgeon won't know whether that should preclude you from the op. or not but if the psychologist is experienced in eating disorders (and don't presume she is) then she will be able to assess you properly.
Alot of us go through a hell of a lot in our heads after the op. so I think its really important to get that sorted out as much as you can first.
Cat.

Hi
I only have suffered from over eating
I did think about going anorexic but I could'nt go without my food ,so never went passed a thought.Not trying to make fun of your situation . I did vomit a few times from purging ,but that didnt sit well with me either. I am just a wimp all my problems are in my head in different ways. I suffer depression and other things. I could go on for ages.
I do hope that your belima will subside when you have your sleeve done. There is no chance that you can eat heaps.Unless you call 1/2 - 3/4 cup heaps.Do take care and keep us informed of your journey.
Oh yeh just one thing more , vomiting in the first few weeks after surgery can cause trauma to stomach and may cause leaks , so realy try not to vomit early post op

Hi All,

I guess I am asking a lot here as it is a very personal issue, but do any of you have a history of eating disorders? If so, what have been your experiences around gastric sleeving?

I have had bulimia on and off since I was about 15 (I am 39 now).
I was in two minds whether or not to tell the surgeon as I was afraid he would laugh me out of his surgery or treat me with total disdain.
It turns out that altough the bulimia is an issue, my sheer size is enough of an issue to make me a candidate for surgery (whew!)
The last time I purged (vomited) was about a week before I saw the surgeon for my consult in November.
I haven't binged since I saw him either but I must confess it has been a huge battle. A couple of nights I went to bed ridiculously early just to escape the munchy demons. I have been walking every day and as a result of this and my extra care with my eating, I have lost 4 or 5 kg in three weeks which is pretty cool.
Dr Cohen has referred me to a psychologist as he wants me to have support before and after the surgery. The next time I see the psych she will have information for me about the consequences of returning to bulimic behaviour post surgery (something I really want to avoid).

I have seen several psychs over the years, done the Body Esteem Programme for people with eating disorders at the Joondalup Women's Health Campus and the Hollywood Hospital outpatient clinic for people with anorexia and bulimia twice so I have done a lot of work in addressing the issue. Fighting the vomiting post binge is part of the reason I have gotten so big. To an outsider it must look like I have totally lost control by getting so big but it is actually a consequence of my success in fighting the eating disorder. I would classify myself more as a binge eater who occassionally self-induces vomiting than as a chronic bulimic which I was.

Sorry to rabbit on so much about myself, but I feel I am asking others to share personal information, so it is only fair that I tell you about my own experiences.