Your family and friends should be a source of help and support, and the best way to make that happen is provide them with information. Share your educational materials with them and encourage them to attend a support group with you.

Explain what helpful support means to you. For some, it might be shopping for the right foods in the early weeks after surgery, for others it’s being an exercise buddy for a daily walk. It’s important to point out that you are in control of your own weight.

Many loved ones feel they need to be the “food police” and constantly ask about your food choices. Their intentions are good, but misplaced. You don’t need to hear questions like, “Should you be eating that?” or, “Is that on the diet plan?”

It’s also important for loved ones to understand the metabolic aspect of the surgery. It can be scary to see you go from eating a few thousand calories a day to a few hundred at first. They need to understand that this is a process and that a period of adjustment for everyone is normal. If you keep the lines of communication open, you will have the kind of support you anticipate.