TLC Show: I eat 33,000 calories a day

[Sign]

I just watched a show about people dealing with morbid obesity. They had one gentleman on there that at over 33,000 calories in one day. I heard it and my jaw dropped. I can't even conceive of eating that much. I forget the fat intake but it was astronomical. The number that stuck with me though was the 44g (yes grams not milligrams) of sodium a day.

Following that show was a show about the Brookhaven Obesity Clinic in New York. It is unreal to see some of these people at 500, 600, even 700+ lbs and the complications surrounding it. They also talked a bit about the psychological aspects of the food addiction, denial, etc.

Did anyone catch them, or seen them before? What were your impressions of the shows if you did see them?

[SpacecityPaula]

I haven't seen this particular show. but I did listen to something on NPR a couple months back that dealt obesity. They had a teen on there that had gone through gastric bypass surgery. As I listened to this kid talk, all I could think of was - This kid needs psychological help. After he got the surgery, he was still taking in massive amounts of calories in the form of starbucks. He also had a binge and purge cycle going as well. He was also featured on a PBS documentatary. Here's an essay with my some of my thoughts

http://dontbeapicklebump.com/mambo/i...d=26&Itemid=50

[RacerBill]

I saw a similar program on Discovery Health network. It's really astonishing the ways that people can adapt.

33,000 calories a DAY? I'm just trying to get my mind around that. Imagine how much all that would cost! How can someone with an ordinary middle-class income even afford to eat that much?

[Sign]

Originally Posted by RacerBill

I saw a similar program on Discovery Health network. It's really astonishing the ways that people can adapt.

33,000 calories a DAY? I'm just trying to get my mind around that. Imagine how much all that would cost! How can someone with an ordinary middle-class income even afford to eat that much?

Well, he ended up having to re-morgage his house and when he did he spent half of the money on food.

Also, when the people were asked how many calories they thought they were consuming they figured between 2000-5000. That is some major unerestimation!

[Sign]

I also just wanted to add that I can't believe how many people want the gastric bypass and when they are told they can't have it till they lose some weight, or until they correct their psyhological problems and get their eating under control they get hostile, or just flat out deny they have a problem. Many of them have people sneaking fast food/junk into the Obesity Clinic for them.

[Victoria]

That's the part I don't get...There are some people who actually do lose the weight necessary to have the surgery, sometimes hundreds of pounds. If someone is able to lose the weight to be able to "qualify" for gastric bypass, then obviously, they have proven that they have the motivation and will to lose weight all on their own. Why not then just keep doing what they are doing? It just seems ironic to me.

[James Newman]

Having been very large, I think it is easy to take whatever the easy way out may be. I was kind of a strange deal. I let myself go. I more or less didn't care about many things. Food was my drug; Mt. Dew my elixir. Its odd to imagine holding values at that point I am sure but one of mine was that I wouldn't have surgury and I wouldn't take drugs. When I decided I was going to start losing weight I was going to do it the hard way. I got myself into that mess, I could get myself out. I quickly learned that it was more confusing than I thought it might be. Nutrition information was not cut and dried. Fitness in the public spotlight was not readily do-able by someone of my size. 7.5 years later and here I am. I still have a long way to go, but I am on my way.

I can see someone wanting to take the "easy way out." Unless you have been there it is hard to understand. I don't agree with it and it is obviously not something I would do. But the bottom line is most of the time we will choose the path of least resistance and everything we do in life is done to change the way we feel.

Newman

[mom2w]

And the easy way out isn't necessarily effective either. My sil had gps and managed to (from what she says) pop the band so it didn't work. She lost 50# the first month or so and then gained it all back plus some. It's sad. I have a friend who had it in her early 30's. By no means is she slim, but she's smaller and feels better about herself and she's working to change her eating habits to keep that way.

[Aoife]

GBS is a tool, just like any other tool. Some people find it effective, even if primarily psychologically, and use it as a reason to change their habits, behaviors, and life for the better. Some people just double back and add on the pounds like any other type of weight loss solution. I doubt the failure/non-compliance rate is all that different from any other weight loss solution out there.

For some people, they can be determined to lose the 30-50 or whatever that is needed to "prove worthiness" for the surgery, but perhaps they wouldn't be able to muster that determination for the years it would take to lose the 200 or whatever they need to overall.

While some may see it as an "easy fix" (that comes with considerable hardship and risk), and a way to make all their weight problems go away like magic, plenty really see it as their only hope. Maybe they're right, or maybe they're stronger than they think and could do it "on their own." Maybe they can't. Not everyone has the strength, courage, determination, and self esteem to lose that much weight on their own.

Hell, I'd rather people in my family would look at this option rather than do what they do... believe they're meant to be the size they are and there's no hope and nothing to be done about it so lets go eat some more McDs.

[Ogedei]

I flipped by those shows last night. I opted not to watch them.

[Lost Dog]

I used to wish I could have some sort of surgery to make me feel less hungry all the time. It was hard to lose weight when I was miserable day in and day out from hunger.

Fast forward a few years and suddenly it was like a switch went off and I finally was able to not be miserable while dieting. The interplay between physiological and psychological is so bizarre and complicated.

A few more years later (to now) and it's no longer a struggle, but I still feel constantly "hungry." I can feel the difference between needing to eat and wanting to eat, so it's controllable 99% of the time.

It all comes down to emotional eating for me.

I think a lot of people hope that the band or other surgery will stop the hunger. But, you have to stop both types of hunger for it to be successful, long term.

[SpacecityPaula]

Originally Posted by Aoife

GBS is a tool, just like any other tool. Some people find it effective, even if primarily psychologically, and use it as a reason to change their habits, behaviors, and life for the better. Some people just double back and add on the pounds like any other type of weight loss solution. I doubt the failure/non-compliance rate is all that different from any other weight loss solution out there.

Actually psychologically, a lot of people do not find GBS a successful tool, they actually transfer the problem with food to another mode - alcoholism, gambling, shopping, and promiscuity. When Bob Greene and Oprah launched the whole "Your best life Now" Program, one of the things he said is that often fat is used to "hide" some emotional issue and until you are willing to look at that, you won't be successful. I know that the statement true in my case, and I am dealing with the issues as they come up.

In the intelihealth.com article I posted below, the following statements were made regarding weight loss surgery:

There's another paradox: The positive step of dropping pounds can be stressful in itself.

"Dynamics change after you start reducing weight and putting the next foot forward," says psychologist Melodie Moorehead, the other author of the upcoming Bariatric Times article.

"Relationships can shift as you put more balance in your life. You may have to retrain your boss that you're not working 65 hours a week or retrain family members that you're taking better care of yourself.

"Perhaps, for the first time, you're going out on dates or playing soccer or doing a number of things to round out your lifestyle," says Moorehead, who works with patients at JFK Medical Center in Atlantis. "All of this requires adjustment."

In other words, weight-loss surgery alters more than a person's pant size.

I would venture to say that any kind of weight loss causes changes in these dynamics. I know they have in my case. I'll never forget when I figured out a smaller me meant that I would be physically closer to my boyfriend. In my mind, I hadn't lost weight, he had... and that's why hugging him felt different. Never mind that there was less me between him and me. I've noticed changes in self perception and my perception of others as well. And some of these changes made me really uncomfortable and meant that I had to explore some parts of my thinking that I didn't necessarily want to.

Here are some articles on Addiction Transfer:
http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH...14/510565.html

http://psychcentral.com/blog/archive...x-think-again/

(this one is actually about how alcohol absorption is different with people who who have had gastric by-pass surgery)
http://gaduiblog.com/2006/08/04/gastric-bypass-surgery/

[James Newman]

I guess I actually have a lot more to say about the psychology behind gastric bypass, etc. Unfortunately I can't right now. There is a lot to explore here but I still feel the bottom line is management of emotion and patterns of habit.

Newman

[Aoife]

Originally Posted by SpacecityPaula

Actually psychologically, a lot of people do not find GBS a successful tool, they actually transfer the problem with food to another mode - alcoholism, gambling, shopping, and promiscuity. When Bob Greene and Oprah launched the whole "Your best life Now" Program, one of the things he said is that often fat is used to "hide" some emotional issue and until you are willing to look at that, you won't be successful. I know that the statement true in my case, and I am dealing with the issues as they come up.

no, I'm sure they don't. I'm saying that is potentially WHY people turn to it, and that in the end it's just a tool like everything else (albiet a risky tool).

ANY change in life, weight loss including, brings about a LOT of other stuff. And for any person to be successful in anything they need to overcome whatever is holding them back... Sometimes failure or non-change is a comfort too great to change, sometimes looking at what's really going on is too painful to deal with.

There's a lot of pain, or at least discomfort, in change, of any kind, and people often choose to avoid it rather than reap the potential rewards of change for any number of reason.

Surgery is still a tool. It's as successful as the person using it. It itself has nothing more or less to offer than most other tools (risks aside)... use it correctly and get the results you want; use it incorrectly and don't.

People yo-yo all the time. People lose lots of weight and gain it all back all the time. People lose lots of weight and gain even more back all the time. People lose weight and keep it off all the time. People lose weight and gain a bit back all the time. Regardless of the tool they use, it's the people... and sometimes people find the right tool, are in the right place in their lives, are psychologically ready to move on, etc. And sometimes they're not.

[mom2w]

I find the mental side of weight loss to be very interesting. I know that when I was overweight, I was totally aware that I wasn't healthy and I should do something about it, but I really didn't do anything about it. Maybe I'd try to eat less for a few days, but I didn't have a good plan/program to adhere to. Some people don't need structure; I do.

What changed?

The big factor was dh's sister dying of brain cancer. But it was her death that spawned our quest; not her diagnosis 8 months earlier.

People have told me "you're so lucky" "I wish I had your will power" "you're so committed" But am I? I know it's not luck. If I were lucky, I'd be able to eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted and as much as I wanted. Will power? Not really. Same with commitment. It's kind of like being a parent. That baby depends on you to take care of it and if you don't, no one else will show up and do it for you (under normal circumstances). It's just what you have to do; like it or not (and some of those diapers & late night feedings are 'nots'.)

So how does one flip that switch to make things change? What suddenly makes it real and important?

My parents have tried just about everything out there -- Weight Watchers, Atkins, South Beach, Curves, who knows what else. They walk & she goes to Curves (don't most older women these days?) Yet, they aren't motivated to stick with it and become healthier. They rely on more variety, strength dosages of medicine and lament their increasing body mass and health issues (both are mid 60's). Shouldn't that be enough to make one change?

Ok, I'm just thinking out loud here. I guess if we could bottle the magic elixir that flips the mental switch, we'd be rich!