Guest guest Posted December 7, 2001 Report Share Posted December 7, 2001 There is still a lot to be learned about obesity. Yes, some of us ate way more than it takes to maintain a healthy weight. However, this is caused by a multitude of factors intertwined in ways that aren't yet known. We don't know which ones are causes, which are correlations, which ones are only devastating in direct combination with eat other. There are satiation disorders. There may be something genetic that makes us crave more food. If we still had times of extreme famine, we would be the ones to survive. Our bodies are efficient storers of energy. Our bodies also recognize when there is an abundance of food available it should be hoarded for when there may not be any food. The trouble is that we now have only times of plenty (and tons of plenty) and the cycle of famine never comes. Then there are a psychological pressures that are introduced in the middle of all of the genetic and physiological ones. When these begin interacting, it gets even more complicated. We begin dieting to overcome our famine ready bodies which brings on metabolic and psychological difficulties related to food. Dawn Dr. Hess, Bowling Green, OH BPD/DS 4/27/00 www.duodenalswitch.com 267 to 165 5' 4 " size 22 to size 10 have made size goal no more high blood pressure, sore feet, or dieting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 7, 2001 Report Share Posted December 7, 2001 I think that this can be relative. " As much as they want " could really be less than " as much as I want " . Especially for youngsters. Some actually have a satiety disorder where they never feel satisfied and are hungry all the time. Me, I come from a family of healthy appetites. I was not heavy growing up, I could eat large amounts of food and not seem to have any problems with my weight. It was when I started having children that my weight started yo-yoing and I started packing on the pounds. Kathleen F Open Duodenal Switch Drs. Rabkin/Jossart 01/02/01 - 374# 12/06/01 - 228# http://www.webniche.com/wls/ ...snip.. > > The person next to you can eat as much as they want and never gain weight. > ..snip.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 8, 2001 Report Share Posted December 8, 2001 Ford, I thought your answer was thoughtful, incitful and the absolute truth, at least in my experience. I do tend to get caught up in the " self control " aspect of my obesity. Since I have repeatedly been able to lose 100 pounds, it bugs the crud out of me that I could regain it over and over again. Thank goodness all those mental flagellation days are finally over for me! I have discovered Pepcid AC and almost all my nausea and heartburn problems seem to be behind me. Now I have discovered that along with eating I may potentially become a new source of " natural gas " for the state of California! Ho boy do those gas pains hurt! Hugs, Theresa Surgery date: DS Nov. 19, 2001 Highest weight: 293 Surgery weight: 251 Current weight: 230 Height: 5' 7.5 " > This is a letter and my response to it on another list I am on....does > anyone have anything I can add to this? > > ===================================================================== > > From " CJ " : > > Kathy, I can relate to a lot of what you wrote. Ford, I am trying to learn > more about what you said. I have heard obesity is a disease and that " it is > not our fault " . > > Example: > > The person next to you can eat as much as they want and never gain weight. > > Still, I don't quite get it. > > I started gaining weight in the 5th grade. I truly was eating more than my > siblings/friends. Throughout my teens, I chose or only had available the > high > fat/high calorie foods. We did have some vegetables in the house but I > usually did not want to eat them. My family didn't have a lot of money and > we ended up eating a lot of pasta, potatoes, and bread (all with butter). I > chose excessive portions. I did not get any exercise. I didn't maintain my > weight. I was always gaining or " fad dieting " . Right up to the surgery, I > ate excessively and late into the evening. My grandparents and parents were > at times only approx. 20-30 pounds overweight which is really not a lot in > my world. > > Why isn't my " super " obesity (BMI 52) my fault or responsibility? > > Don't get me wrong. I am not beating myself up over this right now. I am > in the weight loss mode! Thank God, but I really do want to learn more and > would appreciate any feedback. > > CJ > > ========================================= > > My reply: > > Did you want to gain all of that weight? > > Probably not...or at least not consciously. There are a lot of reasons > people gain weight. I gained because I used food as a comfort to keep all of > the unmanageable parts of my life at bay; when I ate, I could really relax > and enjoy myself. I used food to comfort myself when I was upset, and used > food to reward myself when I did something good. This compulsion, which, to > some extent, I still have, is part of what made me fat (My BMI, by the way, > was at one time as high as 68). This is the first part of our illness. > > There are people out there who can eat like that and not gain weight. If you > think about it, all of us on this list are (or were, before the switch) > GREAT candidates for survival in the next ice age. We can metabolize food > like nobody's business...get every speck of energy out of the food we eat > and store it against the day we have no food supply. We evolved this ability > back in the centuries of scrambling to get any food at all, when old was 30, > back in the dawn of time. We, you guys and me, are the top of the > evolutionary chain when it comes to processing food. That's the other part > of our illness. > > Try this out: I heard a radio spot the other day by Mariette Hartley > promoting a " natural " alternative to Lasik eye surgery. If you go through > this program, so she said, you would have good vision without having to have > surgery. > > Now....suppose glasses had never been invented, and this program, which may > work (I don't really know), but we'll stipulate that it works for, say, 5% > of all the people who try it. The rest are out of luck...they just will not > be able to see. > > Then they discovered surgery that would correct your vision. However, it has > a social stigma: Why do you not have enough self-control and resolution to > take care of this WITHOUT the surgery? Many people don't have bad > eyesight...why do you? Did you read under the covers too much? Strain your > eyes? Run with scissors? Abuse yourself excessively? What's wrong with > you...have you no self control? > > Dieting works for about 5% of those who seriously try to lose weight. Is > that really a viable solution? > > Statistically, no. That's really obvious on the face of it. > > Are you at fault because you gained weight and couldn't lose it? > > I don't think so....you had the cards stacked against you, both in the > social, economic and emotional pressures that sent you to food for comfort, > and the inability of your metabolism to withstand the onslaught. > > Do you want to look and feel like you did at your heaviest? > > No. > > If there were ANY solutions that actually worked, other than this, there > would not be any fat people. Nobody (repeat: NOBODY) wants to be fat. Give > yourself a break....you are doing a very brave thing, and taking a stand > against your own death. This is HARD to do, folks...this isn't the easy way > out. Don't let them tell you otherwise...be proud of who you are and what > you're doing. Don't be ashamed. Be proud. > > Ford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 8, 2001 Report Share Posted December 8, 2001 Ford, That letter was beautiful! I don't really have anything to add. I just wanted to say Thank You for writing such a responsive and sensitive letter! Tracey in Santee (San Diego) Dr. Keshishian 11/12/01 > This is a letter and my response to it on another list I am on....does > anyone have anything I can add to this? > > ===================================================================== > > From " CJ " : > > Kathy, I can relate to a lot of what you wrote. Ford, I am trying to learn > more about what you said. I have heard obesity is a disease and that " it is > not our fault " . > > Example: > > The person next to you can eat as much as they want and never gain weight. > > Still, I don't quite get it. > > I started gaining weight in the 5th grade. I truly was eating more than my > siblings/friends. Throughout my teens, I chose or only had available the > high > fat/high calorie foods. We did have some vegetables in the house but I > usually did not want to eat them. My family didn't have a lot of money and > we ended up eating a lot of pasta, potatoes, and bread (all with butter). I > chose excessive portions. I did not get any exercise. I didn't maintain my > weight. I was always gaining or " fad dieting " . Right up to the surgery, I > ate excessively and late into the evening. My grandparents and parents were > at times only approx. 20-30 pounds overweight which is really not a lot in > my world. > > Why isn't my " super " obesity (BMI 52) my fault or responsibility? > > Don't get me wrong. I am not beating myself up over this right now. I am > in the weight loss mode! Thank God, but I really do want to learn more and > would appreciate any feedback. > > CJ > > ========================================= > > My reply: > > Did you want to gain all of that weight? > > Probably not...or at least not consciously. There are a lot of reasons > people gain weight. I gained because I used food as a comfort to keep all of > the unmanageable parts of my life at bay; when I ate, I could really relax > and enjoy myself. I used food to comfort myself when I was upset, and used > food to reward myself when I did something good. This compulsion, which, to > some extent, I still have, is part of what made me fat (My BMI, by the way, > was at one time as high as 68). This is the first part of our illness. > > There are people out there who can eat like that and not gain weight. If you > think about it, all of us on this list are (or were, before the switch) > GREAT candidates for survival in the next ice age. We can metabolize food > like nobody's business...get every speck of energy out of the food we eat > and store it against the day we have no food supply. We evolved this ability > back in the centuries of scrambling to get any food at all, when old was 30, > back in the dawn of time. We, you guys and me, are the top of the > evolutionary chain when it comes to processing food. That's the other part > of our illness. > > Try this out: I heard a radio spot the other day by Mariette Hartley > promoting a " natural " alternative to Lasik eye surgery. If you go through > this program, so she said, you would have good vision without having to have > surgery. > > Now....suppose glasses had never been invented, and this program, which may > work (I don't really know), but we'll stipulate that it works for, say, 5% > of all the people who try it. The rest are out of luck...they just will not > be able to see. > > Then they discovered surgery that would correct your vision. However, it has > a social stigma: Why do you not have enough self-control and resolution to > take care of this WITHOUT the surgery? Many people don't have bad > eyesight...why do you? Did you read under the covers too much? Strain your > eyes? Run with scissors? Abuse yourself excessively? What's wrong with > you...have you no self control? > > Dieting works for about 5% of those who seriously try to lose weight. Is > that really a viable solution? > > Statistically, no. That's really obvious on the face of it. > > Are you at fault because you gained weight and couldn't lose it? > > I don't think so....you had the cards stacked against you, both in the > social, economic and emotional pressures that sent you to food for comfort, > and the inability of your metabolism to withstand the onslaught. > > Do you want to look and feel like you did at your heaviest? > > No. > > If there were ANY solutions that actually worked, other than this, there > would not be any fat people. Nobody (repeat: NOBODY) wants to be fat. Give > yourself a break....you are doing a very brave thing, and taking a stand > against your own death. This is HARD to do, folks...this isn't the easy way > out. Don't let them tell you otherwise...be proud of who you are and what > you're doing. Don't be ashamed. Be proud. > > Ford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 10, 2001 Report Share Posted December 10, 2001 Hi Ford, I was very interested in your comment that you still feel the compulsion to eat to compensate yourself for what is going on in your life. I think most of us suffer from that affliction and, as you say, that is one BIG reason (no pun intended!) why we are obese. I have had people who are not supportive of this surgery say to me, " so, what's this surgery going to do for your 'emotional' eating? " The fact is, I really don't have an answer for either them or myself. As one who has had the surgery, what has been the impact on your emotional eating? How does it all fit into the scheme of things? I have read about people not wanting to eat many of their " problem " foods post-surgery, and having the desire to exercise more, but don't recall anyone specifically addressing the resolution of emotional eating problems. Any comments from you or anyone else on this subject would be appreciated. Blessings, Sue Everett > This is a letter and my response to it on another list I am on....does > anyone have anything I can add to this? > > ===================================================================== > > From " CJ " : > > Kathy, I can relate to a lot of what you wrote. Ford, I am trying to learn > more about what you said. I have heard obesity is a disease and that " it is > not our fault " . > > Example: > > The person next to you can eat as much as they want and never gain weight. > > Still, I don't quite get it. > > I started gaining weight in the 5th grade. I truly was eating more than my > siblings/friends. Throughout my teens, I chose or only had available the > high > fat/high calorie foods. We did have some vegetables in the house but I > usually did not want to eat them. My family didn't have a lot of money and > we ended up eating a lot of pasta, potatoes, and bread (all with butter). I > chose excessive portions. I did not get any exercise. I didn't maintain my > weight. I was always gaining or " fad dieting " . Right up to the surgery, I > ate excessively and late into the evening. My grandparents and parents were > at times only approx. 20-30 pounds overweight which is really not a lot in > my world. > > Why isn't my " super " obesity (BMI 52) my fault or responsibility? > > Don't get me wrong. I am not beating myself up over this right now. I am > in the weight loss mode! Thank God, but I really do want to learn more and > would appreciate any feedback. > > CJ > > ========================================= > > My reply: > > Did you want to gain all of that weight? > > Probably not...or at least not consciously. There are a lot of reasons > people gain weight. I gained because I used food as a comfort to keep all of > the unmanageable parts of my life at bay; when I ate, I could really relax > and enjoy myself. I used food to comfort myself when I was upset, and used > food to reward myself when I did something good. This compulsion, which, to > some extent, I still have, is part of what made me fat (My BMI, by the way, > was at one time as high as 68). This is the first part of our illness. > > There are people out there who can eat like that and not gain weight. If you > think about it, all of us on this list are (or were, before the switch) > GREAT candidates for survival in the next ice age. We can metabolize food > like nobody's business...get every speck of energy out of the food we eat > and store it against the day we have no food supply. We evolved this ability > back in the centuries of scrambling to get any food at all, when old was 30, > back in the dawn of time. We, you guys and me, are the top of the > evolutionary chain when it comes to processing food. That's the other part > of our illness. > > Try this out: I heard a radio spot the other day by Mariette Hartley > promoting a " natural " alternative to Lasik eye surgery. If you go through > this program, so she said, you would have good vision without having to have > surgery. > > Now....suppose glasses had never been invented, and this program, which may > work (I don't really know), but we'll stipulate that it works for, say, 5% > of all the people who try it. The rest are out of luck...they just will not > be able to see. > > Then they discovered surgery that would correct your vision. However, it has > a social stigma: Why do you not have enough self-control and resolution to > take care of this WITHOUT the surgery? Many people don't have bad > eyesight...why do you? Did you read under the covers too much? Strain your > eyes? Run with scissors? Abuse yourself excessively? What's wrong with > you...have you no self control? > > Dieting works for about 5% of those who seriously try to lose weight. Is > that really a viable solution? > > Statistically, no. That's really obvious on the face of it. > > Are you at fault because you gained weight and couldn't lose it? > > I don't think so....you had the cards stacked against you, both in the > social, economic and emotional pressures that sent you to food for comfort, > and the inability of your metabolism to withstand the onslaught. > > Do you want to look and feel like you did at your heaviest? > > No. > > If there were ANY solutions that actually worked, other than this, there > would not be any fat people. Nobody (repeat: NOBODY) wants to be fat. Give > yourself a break....you are doing a very brave thing, and taking a stand > against your own death. This is HARD to do, folks...this isn't the easy way > out. Don't let them tell you otherwise...be proud of who you are and what > you're doing. Don't be ashamed. Be proud. > > Ford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 10, 2001 Report Share Posted December 10, 2001 Hi Ford, I was very interested in your comment that you still feel the compulsion to eat to compensate yourself for what is going on in your life. I think most of us suffer from that affliction and, as you say, that is one BIG reason (no pun intended!) why we are obese. I have had people who are not supportive of this surgery say to me, " so, what's this surgery going to do for your 'emotional' eating? " The fact is, I really don't have an answer for either them or myself. As one who has had the surgery, what has been the impact on your emotional eating? How does it all fit into the scheme of things? I have read about people not wanting to eat many of their " problem " foods post-surgery, and having the desire to exercise more, but don't recall anyone specifically addressing the resolution of emotional eating problems. Any comments from you or anyone else on this subject would be appreciated. Blessings, Sue Everett > This is a letter and my response to it on another list I am on....does > anyone have anything I can add to this? > > ===================================================================== > > From " CJ " : > > Kathy, I can relate to a lot of what you wrote. Ford, I am trying to learn > more about what you said. I have heard obesity is a disease and that " it is > not our fault " . > > Example: > > The person next to you can eat as much as they want and never gain weight. > > Still, I don't quite get it. > > I started gaining weight in the 5th grade. I truly was eating more than my > siblings/friends. Throughout my teens, I chose or only had available the > high > fat/high calorie foods. We did have some vegetables in the house but I > usually did not want to eat them. My family didn't have a lot of money and > we ended up eating a lot of pasta, potatoes, and bread (all with butter). I > chose excessive portions. I did not get any exercise. I didn't maintain my > weight. I was always gaining or " fad dieting " . Right up to the surgery, I > ate excessively and late into the evening. My grandparents and parents were > at times only approx. 20-30 pounds overweight which is really not a lot in > my world. > > Why isn't my " super " obesity (BMI 52) my fault or responsibility? > > Don't get me wrong. I am not beating myself up over this right now. I am > in the weight loss mode! Thank God, but I really do want to learn more and > would appreciate any feedback. > > CJ > > ========================================= > > My reply: > > Did you want to gain all of that weight? > > Probably not...or at least not consciously. There are a lot of reasons > people gain weight. I gained because I used food as a comfort to keep all of > the unmanageable parts of my life at bay; when I ate, I could really relax > and enjoy myself. I used food to comfort myself when I was upset, and used > food to reward myself when I did something good. This compulsion, which, to > some extent, I still have, is part of what made me fat (My BMI, by the way, > was at one time as high as 68). This is the first part of our illness. > > There are people out there who can eat like that and not gain weight. If you > think about it, all of us on this list are (or were, before the switch) > GREAT candidates for survival in the next ice age. We can metabolize food > like nobody's business...get every speck of energy out of the food we eat > and store it against the day we have no food supply. We evolved this ability > back in the centuries of scrambling to get any food at all, when old was 30, > back in the dawn of time. We, you guys and me, are the top of the > evolutionary chain when it comes to processing food. That's the other part > of our illness. > > Try this out: I heard a radio spot the other day by Mariette Hartley > promoting a " natural " alternative to Lasik eye surgery. If you go through > this program, so she said, you would have good vision without having to have > surgery. > > Now....suppose glasses had never been invented, and this program, which may > work (I don't really know), but we'll stipulate that it works for, say, 5% > of all the people who try it. The rest are out of luck...they just will not > be able to see. > > Then they discovered surgery that would correct your vision. However, it has > a social stigma: Why do you not have enough self-control and resolution to > take care of this WITHOUT the surgery? Many people don't have bad > eyesight...why do you? Did you read under the covers too much? Strain your > eyes? Run with scissors? Abuse yourself excessively? What's wrong with > you...have you no self control? > > Dieting works for about 5% of those who seriously try to lose weight. Is > that really a viable solution? > > Statistically, no. That's really obvious on the face of it. > > Are you at fault because you gained weight and couldn't lose it? > > I don't think so....you had the cards stacked against you, both in the > social, economic and emotional pressures that sent you to food for comfort, > and the inability of your metabolism to withstand the onslaught. > > Do you want to look and feel like you did at your heaviest? > > No. > > If there were ANY solutions that actually worked, other than this, there > would not be any fat people. Nobody (repeat: NOBODY) wants to be fat. Give > yourself a break....you are doing a very brave thing, and taking a stand > against your own death. This is HARD to do, folks...this isn't the easy way > out. Don't let them tell you otherwise...be proud of who you are and what > you're doing. Don't be ashamed. Be proud. > > Ford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2001 Report Share Posted December 11, 2001 TO make it clear: I was, and continue to be, a compulsive eater. Nowadays, though, I am a whole lot more in touch with that compulsion. It was transparent to me before....I didn't believe in it. Many times since my surgery I have been nearly sick from being overfull, and still I wanted to eat. That's eating for the satisfaction of eating, not the satisfaction of hunger. This compulsion has gotten a lot more identifiable and controllable in the last few months. I think that that is because the contrast between " want " and " need " is so obvious these days....it feels SILLY to want to eat when you are so unhungry. Makes you think...and I think it even makes that subconscious part of you that drives that desire think. The compulsion doesn't go away, though. There are many foods that I used to eat a lot of that I can't tolerate any more. Pasta with tomato sauce for one....cooked tomatoes seem to make me feel ill for some reason. I can't eat ketchup (or even catsup) any more, and I used to put it on everything. I can eat spicy foods....I eat a lot of Mexican and Thai. I don't handle orange juice that well. Grapefruit juice just makes me ill to think about. I can't handle most sodas, either, because they make me feel bloated. For some reason, though, I can handle Dr Pepper. I used to drink about 2 2-liters of Diet Coke a day. Now I drink a lot of water....I never knew water could taste so good. Exercise more? I suppose so....but mostly because I can...I can walk now, I can do a lot of things I used to not be able to do, and not breathe hard doing them...there is a lot of joy in just walking when you couldn't before. Re: Is it our fault? Hi Ford, I was very interested in your comment that you still feel the compulsion to eat to compensate yourself for what is going on in your life. I think most of us suffer from that affliction and, as you say, that is one BIG reason (no pun intended!) why we are obese. I have had people who are not supportive of this surgery say to me, " so, what's this surgery going to do for your 'emotional' eating? " The fact is, I really don't have an answer for either them or myself. As one who has had the surgery, what has been the impact on your emotional eating? How does it all fit into the scheme of things? I have read about people not wanting to eat many of their " problem " foods post-surgery, and having the desire to exercise more, but don't recall anyone specifically addressing the resolution of emotional eating problems. Any comments from you or anyone else on this subject would be appreciated. Blessings, Sue Everett > This is a letter and my response to it on another list I am on....does > anyone have anything I can add to this? > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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