Originally posted October 14, 2008
I started talking about some of the cons I’ve been reading about while looking in to Weight Loss Surgery (WLS). Yesterday I touched a bit on some of the basic food aspects as well as the general surgery stuff, this next one that I’ve found some info on goes a bit deeper, the addiction.
I don’t always eat because I’m hungry. I know that’s a factor in things overall, maybe even more of one that I realize. Does it mean I’m addicted to food? I dunno. But there’s a few sites out there that I’ve found that talk about the problems of addiction when it comes to WLS, and how after the surgery many folks trade their addiction to food for another addiction. The most common one seems to be alcohol, another I see mentioned is gambling.
Alcohol… an addiction I’m fairly familiar with.
My dad’s an alcoholic, one that has been dry for 30+ years. I have no real memories of my dad drinking. Don’t know that I ever saw him drunk. But yea, I’ve lived with the results of it since it led to the split of my parents when I was about two. I know that to this day it is a part of who he is, and to some extent who I am. Did that stop me from drinking? No. Has it stopped me from drinking too much on occassion? No. Do I think I have an alcohol problem myself? No.
It may mean nothing, but I’ve had to throw beer away that went kinda stale on me in my fridge. There are few beers I “like”. There are a few other drinks that are ok… an ice cold Mikes Hard Lemon or Limeade on a hot summer day are reallllly good. But I could just as easily drink iced tea, coke, regular lemonade (for now anyways). I really don’t think that will become a problem. Yea, I know a lot of the arguments that could be made to say it doesn’t matter… I don’t have to like what I drink to be an alcoholic, I don’t have to get drunk to be an alcoholic… I don’t even have to drink that often… but this is one area that I just ain’t worried about.
Gambling? I dunno, kinda the same thing. I’ve gambled. I like playing cards and such… but I’ve just never gotten in to it. So I’m not going to sweat that either.
So what else is there? If it turns out I have a food addiction, what other vices might I transfer that too after a WLS?
Think Gastric Bypass Surgery is the Quick Fix? Think Again. [psychcentral.com]
Alcohol and Gastric Bypass [themorbidme.com]
