Been there....done that....got the t-shirt!!

I had my gastric bypass in 7/2003. Although I could drink my fair share prior to surgery, I was able to control my drinking, distaining during my pregnancy and for over a year following my gastric bypass. (I do have an immediate family history of alcoholism so I'm pretty alert to the warning signs.)

The problems post-surgery, was gradual at first, and probably had a lot to do with the fact I could drink 1/2 a glass a wine and get a good buzz. I could say I'll only have one glass but well buzzed by the first, my good judgement and willpower were gone. I went, in less than 3 years, from a glass to a few to over a bottle of wine per night. I had to drink and would prefer to do so by myself, mostly so nobody I knew would see how much. My desire to drink was so strong, I began to sneak off from work and lie to my family as to my whereabouts on almost a daily basis. My lack of judgement led to driving and a couple of accidents and ended in the relization that I had no control over my life and in-patient treatment for alchohol and severe depression (luckily before I killed someone or ended incarcerated).

I had to face that I ate for a reason and losing the weight didn't fix the problem. Food's an addiction. I ate because I was depressed and that didn't change...only now I couldn't eat enough to provide the self-medication (self-comfort) I sought so I traded one addiction for another. Alcohol turned out to be an even easier and faster solution. Not only could I get drunk quickly, "relieving my pain" but I wouldn't eat, stay skinny, and drinking alone allowed me to "get away with it".

I spent 11 weeks in treatment at a dual-diagnosis pschyciatric facility in the "Professionals In Crisis" program. I'm thankful I was advised to not go to a re-hab but, instead, to a facility that could treat not only my alcoholism but also the depression and need to drink. My treatment involved a complete phyciatric evaluation, therapy with doctors both one-on-one and groups as well as group therapy with my peers. Although an exact diagnosis probably isn't possible, I was made aware of my depression, life stresses and some personality disorders that explained some things about my behavior and addictions. My medications were carefully monitored and adjusted as needed. I attended classes and treatment daily for trauma, depression, addiction, perfectionism.....and followed a 12-step program. I realized that there are a lot of other professionals that, like myself, find themselves in trouble (my unit consisted of doctors, lawyers, an airline pilot and a nun). Only about 1/3 of the patients had an addiction, most were in treatment for various mental/personaility disorders, often brought on not only by body chemistry but also everyday stress. I've been sober 14 months and every single day is a battle!

Also, alcohol isn't the only addiction found in post-gastric bypass patients. Some turn to drugs, gambling, shopping, sex.....

Good luck!