Bariatric surgery offers an opportunity to change your life; a chance to lose weight and get healthy. But there’s more to it than just deciding to have the surgery. There is the research that goes into determining which particular surgery is best for you as well as the preparation for the actual surgery andthe recovery process. Most of us understand that diet and exercise must change following surgery; you can’t have weight loss surgery, continue to live like you had been living, and expect to achieve and maintain weight loss goals. And we certainly expect to reach out for help when it comes to learning how to eat well and get in shape. But most of us never consider that we need emotional support when going through the process of bariatric surgery and recovery.
In fact, such support is crucial to success. Weight loss surgery plunges us into a new sort of life and it happens quickly. While surgery helps us to eat less, it doesn’t cure the underlying issues that caused us to overeat in the first place. Those issues don’t go away; and while we have the physical support to help reduce the amount of food we can eat and absorb, we also need the emotional support to help us deal with the triggers of wanting to overeat.
Support groups are important to recovery. There’s nothing more encouraging than being able to spend time within a safe community of people who understand exactly what you’ve been through and what you’re going through. Being able to meet people who are in every stage of the process allows you to better learn what to expect, while you help people who come after you. No one will understand what you are feeling more than someone who has been through the same thing.
Luckily, with so many people choosing to undergo bariatric surgery, there are many support groups that have sprung up as a result. You can find support groups through the surgical group that performs your surgery; take advantage of this important facet in your post-surgical recovery to help optimize your chances for long lasting success.
Contact us at the Nicholson Clinic to learn more about the support groups available to you!
