A Food Funeral is a Negative Outlook
The term “food funeral” is a slang term used to describe a large meal prior to bariatric surgery in mourning of all the good food you feel you can never have again. While the term is somewhat of a joke, it tends to put a negative outlook on the future you have with your weight loss surgery tool. Bariatric surgery is an amazing life changing opportunity and your outlook and attitude make a huge difference in how successful it can be.
Treating the time before your pre-op diet as a “food funeral” and trying to overindulge is likely to have negative consequences such as:
• It does not prepare you for the pre-op diet.
• It will make you sick and regret it the following day.
• It puts a negative outlook on your future with your new tool.
• It is the start of a chain of negative reactions that become detrimental
to your long-term success.
• It will cause weight gain that can delay or even cancel your bariatric
surgery
Let’s talk about the first point; the pre-op diet is there for a reason. Generally the pre-op diet lasts 2 weeks and consists of 4-6 protein shakes each day with the addition of lean protein. The pre-op diet is for your benefit and the safety of your surgery. It helps first to shrink your liver and second to help you prepare for your weight loss journey.
It should be taken very seriously.
It’s About Moderation
We have all heard the saying “It is all in your head” and to an extent… it is. We need to get it out of our head that after the surgery we have to completely say goodbye to the foods we love forever…which just is not the case. It is all about moderation.
It is understandable to have worry about future social interactions but things can be like the used to be just with less food. Often people worry about what to say to friends as not everyone is comfortable sharing that they had surgery, and that is okay, there is nothing to be ashamed about, if you want to say you are trying a new diet, that is perfectly fine. But never feel ashamed about taking your life back, fighting obesity, and being able to enjoy things again!
If you and your friends like to go out to eat occasionally and order appetizers, entrées, maybe drinks, just remember moderation. Have 1 mozzarella stick instead of 4 or 5, or skip them and have Buffalo wings…have 1 and some of the carrots/celery that come with them. Order off the kid’s menu or share with a friend. If you want to have some wine with the girls, have one but make sure it is at least 15 minutes after you finish eating and sip it slowly over the evening.
The thought that we will never be able to have something again puts us in a panic and it makes it harder to follow anything. If we keep telling ourselves we CAN’T have it, we start obsessing and that becomes all we think about and clouds our judgment. We need to start thinking that we CAN but in moderation.
Keeping a Positive Outlook
It is important to have a positive outlook on your journey with your tool. A positive outlook on food and your relationship with it. A positive outlook on your willpower. A positive outlook on your success. Keep this mindset and you will reap the rewards. It all starts with your pre-op and getting yourself ready….not a funeral. You got this!
Weight Loss Solutions 