I cheated...

Okay, so I'm on the 2 week liquid diet prior to surgery, which is October 22nd. I haven't weighed myself, but  I know I've lost weight, because my face looks thinner, and my bra fits differently.

Last night, I broke. I had two egg beaters with bacon bits and cheddar, frozen yogurt, and a pop tart. I'm not so worried about the frozen yogurt- it was sweetened with Stevia, and has only 15 calories an ounce- so I can't imagine it's much worse than chicken broth. And egg beaters aren't sooo bad- it's the pop tart and the cheddar cheese and bacon I'm worried about.

That being said, I feel much better after cheating- like I can handle the rest of the liquid diet. TOday is day 8, and I think I can stick it out. 

I don't feel guilty. Should I?

I don't think you should feel guilty.. I think you should be worried.  I would be concerned at my ability to handle the changes in my diet post op...especially while you are healing....

Its your journey and definitly not my place or anyone elses place to tell you you should/shouldn't feel bad.....

Good luck.

Juls

That's a very valid point, and I guess I didn't think about it that way. I think I was able to get through the first 7 days of the diet by thinking about the long term payoff... but yesterday, I forgot several of my snacks, and let myself get hungry. And when you're hungry, the temptation is harder to resist.

I guess I felt that after 20 years of binge eating, sticking to the liquid diet for 7 days was a victory. Maybe it's time for a call to the nutritionist.

 I noticed you said "And when you're hungry, the temptation is harder to resist." true, I understand that, but what will you do if you are hungry after surgery? I am 4 weeks out and have felt true hunger since around week 2. But if I gave into temptation, I would get sick or hurt myself. Just something to think about. You have to really think about if you can resist those temptations for the long haul. Best of luck to you!

I think the point of the liquid diet (other then to shrink your liver) is to help get you prepared for the "after"... its a cleans if you will.....

I am sure there are people before you and will be after you who do the same thing... Your not alone in cheating...

I might make a call to the social worker before the nutritionist... This is the point in my journey where I would be saying to myself, obvioiusly I need extra help changing my mind set.  Be prepared that some centers will postpone your surgery for cheating...   I am not saying they WILL but be prepared for it. 

You CAN Do this.... If you take it seriously you will SUCCEED LONG TERM... I think its a blip on the raidar but I would SERIOUSLY consider getting extra help.

I just want to see you do really well!  :)

I stayed true to my pre-op diet because I felt it was, for me, a test.  And I so wanted to pass that test.  You flunked!

That being said, the fact that you posted on here shows some awareness that I hope helps you re-examine your choices going forward.  Put it behind you and learn from it.  Best of luck to you in your upcoming surgery.

Sandie

The pre-op diet is the hardest part of the whole process. One slip that you recognize and use as a learning experience to refocus probably won't be a big deal, but if the feelings and behaviors of binge eating accompianed it, I agree that you should talk with the psychologist and/or nutritionist. I'm not saying you won't be successful with surgery- you absolutely can be! But if you need a little extra help, don't be afraid to ask. It will make the journey so much more plesant.

@Alexis- Thanks. This is what I needed. I appreciate it. I need to learn that getting adequate nutrition, and that I'm going to feel hungry, but it's okay to ignore it.

There is ZERO evidence that a pre-op liquid diet has ANY benefit. What DOES have a benefit if eating a moderate-calorie diet high in protein and low in carbs. The only 'bad' thing you ate was the pop-tart.

Hi Julienne,

I don't think it is great that you cheated but I don't think it means you are or will be a failure. The pre-op diet is really tough...I remember being sooooo hungry I could barely stand it. I was a binge eater but I have found that since the surgery I have no desire to binge. When I do crave something sweet I have a tiny bit of that sweet thing rather than eat 500 or 1000 calories trying not to eat it (then usually eating it anyway).  The restrictive portion of the DS helps me feel full and satisfied quite easily.

I imagine you posted this knowing that you would get blasted. Perhaps you did feel a bit guilty after all. Maybe you just need to take a good look at why you cheated and how you might avoid it in the future. I try not to think about my post-op journey as a diet; rather, it is a new way of eating so I need to find ways of satifying cravings in a healthy way rather than constantly feeling like I am deprived  or feeling guilty that I "cheated." So far it has been a breeze because when I want something sweet I have it, but rather than having two chololate bars and a row of cookies, I have yogurt and berries with granola or frozen greek yougurt, or if I'm feeling particularly evil I have a cookie (yes, one cookie). That being said I know that if I start eating too much sugar or carbs it will be hard to stop so I am really careful about that.

I think you need to chart your own course. Have you thoroughly researched what eating will be like post-op? Can you live with that? Do you have ideas on how you will combat the types of cravings that lead to you cheating last night?

Good luck!!!