Unfortunately, having surgery does not mean that you’ll no longer experience the cravings or feelings associated with overeating in the past. Binge eating is often triggered by feelings of stress, tension, anxiety, depression, anger, boredom, loneliness, frustration or sadness. Learn to identify what causes your binging so you can develop a plan to manage your emotions. Recognize that it is frequently an emotion, not hunger, that is triggering the binge.

The goal is to break the connection between emotions and food. It’s not easy, but cravings and binging can be controlled. When a craving hits, try distracting yourself for 10 minutes. Leave the house and go for a brisk walk, call a friend or read a good book. After 10 minutes, the craving should disappear or at least become manageable. Keep unhealthy foods out of the house. If you still feel out of control, ask your support group or bariatric team for help.

With any surgery there are postoperative symptoms to watch for, especially when there is a large incision. Immediately contact your surgeon if you experience increasing pain or a separating of the incision. Other symptoms to look for are fever, pain, shortness of breath and leg pain. Fever can be a sign of infection, and if accompanied by cough or shortness of breath, fever can be a sign of pneumonia or other lung problems. In addition, shortness of breath can be a sign that a blood clot has become dislodged from your leg and traveled to the lung. This can be life-threatening and should be reported to your doctor immediately.

After any abdominal surgery, there can be bowel obstructions and adhesions, which can cause pain and vomiting. If the band is too tight, or if the bypass openings become too constricted, you may experience frothing or vomiting when you try to eat. Determining the right amount of constriction with a gastric band is part of fine-tuning the procedure. After gastric bypass, your surgeon may have to stretch the surgically reconnected area where the upper stomach has been reattached to the small bowel.

Overall, the major issue is communication. Your entire health-care team should be aware of the common symptoms that occur during the postoperative period and be prepared to report them to the appropriate team member. Successfully avoiding major postoperative complications takes careful monitoring by everyone involved in the patient's care.

In the first few weeks, symptoms such as fever, shortness of breath, severe or worsening abdominal pain, shoulder or back pain, leg swelling, chest pain, weakness and persistent or frequent vomiting should be considered potentially serious. If you experience any of them, call your surgeon or go to the emergency room immediately.

Specific symptoms may signal a particular problem depending on which weight-loss procedure you undergo. For the adjustable gastric band, abdominal pain or vomiting after eating, severe heartburn or losing the feeling of restriction may indicate an erosion or band prolapse. Redness, swelling or drainage may be a sign of an infection.

After a gastric bypass or biliopancreatic diversion, severe abdominal pain unrelated to eating may be a sign of an internal hernia. Abdominal cramping pain and bilious vomiting could mean you have an intestinal obstruction. Worsening food intolerance and vomiting likely represent an anastomotic stricture, which is a narrowing of the connection of the pouch to the intestine. Lastly, an anastomotic ulcer can cause upper abdominal pain, vomiting or heartburn after eating. Always remember to consult your doctor.

Most patients are very nervous right after surgery. It’s important to listen to your body and not be afraid to seek help from your bariatric team. Some symptoms can result from the actual procedure, but others are often related to your food choices.

First and foremost, follow the guidelines of your diet plan. Make sure you “listen” to your new signals of fullness—they’re likely to be higher up around your rib cage. Stop eating before you are full. Instead, aim for a feeling of contentment, even though you could eat a little more. If you overfill the pouch, you may experience pain, nausea, vomiting or “dumping” syndrome (a severe form of diarrhea and cramping). These symptoms can be minimized if you are careful in your eating. Make sure you try new foods in tiny quantities—a bite or two—to see if you can tolerate them. There are many reasons for discomfort after eating—the food’s texture, flavor and serving size among them.

Pay attention to your energy level—it should get stronger every week. If you are constantly fatigued or “out of it,” you might have a vitamin or mineral deficiency. This can happen even in the early weeks after surgery. You’ll gradually get better acquainted with your new body and feel more confident in what is normal for you. Meanwhile, when in doubt, seek your doctor’s help!