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Holiday, Vacation & Weekend
Holiday Eating
Anxieties for Bariatric Patients
Most Bariatric Surgery Patients experience
a wide range of Holiday eating anxieties which can
actually ruin a perfectly good Holiday around friends
and family. Don't allow your anxieties to spoil the day!
Bariatric, Morbid Obesity, Gastric Bypass, Holiday
Eating Anxieties, Weigth Loss Surgery, Roux-en-y
Most Bariatric Surgery Patients experience a wide range
of Holiday eating anxieties which can actually ruin a
perfectly good Holiday around friends and family.
Prior to surgery, Holidays meant family, friends,
and lots of food to indulge in and enjoy – often at a
glutinous rate simply because Holiday foods are
“special” because they are only provided during the
season and they are prepared so carefully which adds
guilt if you don’t partake of it.
How many times
do you hear these phrases said at a Holiday gathering?
“That’s ALL you’re going to have? I worked so hard
on that dish…”
“You better eat this now, because it
won’t be here for another year….”
“It will hurt my
feelings if you don’t eat this…..”
“These are very
special ingredients I ordered specifically for this
dish…”
“You can’t be NOT HUNGRY… it’s a Holiday!”
“Just ONE LITTLE BITE, PLEEEEEZEEEEZ…..”
“Have more,
there’s plenty…”
“Take some of this home with you if
you’re not going to eat it now…”
“Oh nonsense! You’re
allowed to eat a lot today!”
“You should have worn
your FAT PANTS to gorge yourself like the rest of us…”
OH, how this list could fill a book, right? Such
comments add enough stress to non-surgery individuals
who carefully watch their weight, let alone those who
have had the Bariatric surgery and have to be careful
what they eat, how much they eat, and how often they
eat. So you are NOT ALONE in feeling some anxiety about
being around all of the special food at gatherings this
season.
I’d like to offer some suggestions that
have worked for me and others during this most stressful
time when Holidays equates to special foods and the
pressure to partake in them is way too much out of hand
at times.
1. Prepare you mind for the event:
Reflect on past Holiday experiences and evaluate what
lies ahead this year for you. Have it in your mind what
you will say and do when those food-pushers taunt you or
down-right threaten you to eat during the “special
occasion.
2. Anticipate the food: Reflect on past
Holiday foods that are always provided to you within
your social circle. Predetermine what you WILL eat and
what you WON’T eat. Making a decision ahead of time will
curb your gut-reaction to “cave in” to the urgings by
others to eat what you shouldn’t eat.
3. Never
try anything new at the party: Not knowing how you will
react to the food carries the high risk of making you
ill and calling for you quick retreat to the bathroom or
feeling sick for an hour or so. This will draw attention
to you, which is something you don’t’ want. The host and
guest will feel badly for you, so don’t put them or you
in such a situation. Only eat things that you are
absolutely certain that you can tolerate.
4. Take
baby-bites of the “special” foods: Literally, take a
baby-bite if you absolutely must partake of foods
strictly for the social expectations. If it’s too much
for a baby’s mouth, then you’re putting too much on the
spoon or fork.
5. No-Guilt in Tossing it: In a
social event where you don’t’ want attention drawn to
how little you are eating, take a small plate with small
portions of food, then take small bites of each item,
then TOSS the rest away when no one is looking. This
gives the appearance that you’re “normal” and all will
assume you have gotten your fill. This spares hurting
the feelings of Great Aunt Gerdie who truly does cry if
you refuse her special
60%-sugar/90%-fat/carb-loaded/stroke-on-a-plate pie.
Tossing out the unwanted uneaten portions is just a
“different” way of consuming… so don’t’ feel guilty
about it. All that matters is that Great Aunt Gerdie
delights in seeing her pie disappearing.
6. Eat
healthy before you go and bring your own essentials:
Never go to a Holiday party hungry… NEVER! This is
self-sabotage in the worst way! Enough said? Take along
your own treats and drinks that are RNY-Friendly to you.
Don’t request an extra effort on your host. You know
what you need, so take it with you. While they are
eating pies and cakes, you can have the sugar-free fudge
sickles you brought along or those sugar-free pudding
cups. And if they are serving only sodas or alcohol and
you cant’ do them, bring your own herbal teas or
no-sugar-added hot chocolate packets. This will make
you, the host, and the guests feel comfortable and
nobody will feel that you are “suffering” as they eat
your NO-NO’s.
7. Talk more than you eat: The
Holidays should be about PEOPLE, not food. So be social.
Focus on the people; laugh with them, tell stories,
listen to their tall tales, play games, etc. If you do
these things, you’ll be amazed at how well the gathering
will go for you simply because you didn’t focus on food.
And when the food-pushers come along, just glance by
them off into the distance and make your exit because
you “want to talk to so-n-so or your cell phone is
vibrating and you’ve got to excuse yourself for the
call…. Perfectly acceptable to have a pre-planned “way
out” when you need one.
8. Change the
food-subject: Others may want to cry boo-hoo with you if
you keep telling them of all the foods you’re missing
out on this year. Don’t do that! Rather than mourn the
loss of your favorite Holiday treats, brag on the fact
that you’re feeling so much healthier, your clothes are
getting baggier, and you’re dreaming again of all the
great things that are in store for you now that you are
slimming down. Don’t’ allow anyone to pity you for not
eating like you used to eat.
9. Wear a
“knock-out” outfit: WOW them all this Holiday season by
wearing a special outfit that you feel very proud to be
seen in. The food isn’t special to you anymore… you’ve
swapped that for the special outfits you can now wear!
Let people whisper to each other how great you look
rather than how little you are eating. The stress of not
eating so much will be far away to you when you feel
good about yourself and look good too.
10. Make
your visit brief: if you are getting too much pressure
from others or are experiencing too many anxieties, let
leave the gathering earlier than you originally planned.
Maybe you’re tired, the roads are getting bad, you
realized you need to do something… remember that
“pre-planned” escape should be there for you if you need
it.
I can attest that these are tactics that
I’ve used and STILL use in social gatherings when it is
expected to eat special foods during special times.
Granted, I am three years post-op, so my anxieties are
not as high as they once were… but they certainly
threatened my Holiday happiness not too long ago!
Remember this most of all…. The more prepared you
are ahead of time, the less you’ll feel nervous about
those awful Holiday Eating Anxieties. Now go have fun!
Healthy Holiday
Eating – Bring Something Good To The Party
It seems that we’re invited to a party or
family get-together every other night in the weeks
before the Holidays. Unfortunately most of the dishes
that are brought to those events are not exactly
healthy. We all tend to overindulge during the holiday
season, tempted by all the unhealthy treats around. But
to be honest with you, I get tired of all the rich and
fattening food rather quickly and welcome a healthy
fresh alternative. This is your year to shine with that
healthy di...
It seems that we’re invited to a
party or family get-together every other night in the
weeks before the Holidays. Unfortunately most of the
dishes that are brought to those events are not exactly
healthy. We all tend to overindulge during the holiday
season, tempted by all the unhealthy treats around. But
to be honest with you, I get tired of all the rich and
fattening food rather quickly and welcome a healthy
fresh alternative. This is your year to shine with that
healthy dish the next time you are asked to bring
something to a holiday party. Here are a few ideas to
get you started.
1. Veggies and Dip
Just
cut up some fresh veggies. Good choices are celery,
broccoli, cauliflower and cucumber. Add some baby
carrots and grape tomatoes. Serve it with a low fat
ranch dip and you’re good to go.
2. Fruits and
Dip
Serve some fruit that’s in season in bite size
chunks with a side of low fat vanilla yogurt. Wash some
strawberries, peel and cut up some apples, pears,
cantaloupe and even some fresh pineapple for a sweet
treat that’s actually good for you.
3. Cheese
and Crackers
Make a platter of several low fat
cheeses and get a box of whole-wheat crackers. To make
it even more fun, use some holiday cookie cutters and
cut shapes out of the cheese. Just arrange everything on
a platter and take it to the party.
4. Bring A
Salad
A salad of mixed greens with some other
veggies mixed in always makes for a great side dish and
will go with any other foods that are served. Start with
some basic mixed greens, preferably dark greens. I like
to mix baby spinach with some other dark greens. Dice up
some red and yellow peppers for color and some slices of
cucumber for crunchy texture. Top it off with some grape
tomatoes and you will have a colorful and yummy salad. I
like to bring several ready-made low fat dressings form
the grocery store to serve with the salad.
Go
ahead; give one of these ideas a try. You’ll be
surprised how well received your healthy dish will be.
Plus you’ll know there will be at least one dish at the
party you can fill up on that is actually good for you
and your health.
Happy Holidays!
Holiday Food
Binging May Not Be Safe
People generally don't feel that something
bad is going to happen to them if they eat
larger-than-usual amounts of food during the
Holidays.However,there are risks to eating so much in so
little time, particularly for those who do not normally
eat that much food in one sitting.
stress,
nausea, side effects
Starting from around
Thanksgiving to roughly the end of Christmas, people eat
more than they usually do at any other time of year.
This period of time is sometimes nicknamed the “season
of gluttony,” where even the most health and
weight-conscious individuals forget about the stress of
watching what they eat and dig into whatever happens to
be on the table at the time. For some, avoiding the
stress and anxiety that comes with turning down food
during the Holidays is often enough to make them go on
eating binges until the 25th comes around and all this
insanity ends.
After all, a little indulgence
during this relatively short amount of time isn't going
to have any harmful side effects on the body, is it?
Well, medical science may have something to say about
that assumption. For most, the worst things that can
happen are things like indigestion, a hang-over (for
those among you who drink), and the need to get
looser-fitting clothing. However, science says that
there may be more drastic side effects than that, some
of which may appear immediately, while others may
manifest later on.
The immediate effects usually
come in the form of flatulence and bouts of indigestion
that vary in terms of intensity. Putting on a few extra
pounds after a couple of meals is perfectly
understandable and, for some people, even expected.
Other, more dangerous side effects can appear, however.
For example, it is quite possible for someone to
experience nausea and drowsiness while driving home
after a particularly big Thanksgiving or Christmas
dinner. Pain in the gallbladder and a mild dulling of
alertness and reflexes can also come because of massive
meals. However, these are just the preliminary things
that people have to worry about.
The higher the
quantity that was eaten and the more fat content it had,
the longer it takes for the meal to actually finish
being dissolved by stomach acids. This causes an extra
load to be placed on the body, forcing the circulatory
system to pump more blood into the digestive system to
keep up with the load. This deprives over areas of the
body their regular supply of blood and nutrients, which
results in things like nausea and drowsiness. For the
average system, this is not a major problem, but for
people with already strained cardiovascular systems,
this can result in things like heart attacks and higher
blood pressure levels.
The ability of the human
mind to ignore things like being full is an evolutionary
mechanism that allows humans to stock up on body fat in
times of plenty. This, in theory, allows people to have
a larger energy reserve when food is scarce. The body
and mind does place limits on things like these, but
during the Holiday season, most people are able to
ignore this impulse in favor of eating more food. People
find it much harder to turn down food during the
Holidays, especially if they're not participating in the
usual family conversations that happen during these
times. However, reducing the amount of food eaten can be
critical in avoiding a number of complications that may
arise from over-eating during the season.