feedyoureye

Thanks for the reports girls! I got no money and lots of sags/wrinkles.. but some day I will get some work done...after my body settles in a bit to where it will stay for a while...Im thinking the lower face too Fox.

Holy Schmoley! You look great and HAPPY.

Best of luck girl! I'm sure you will be soo happy with the results!

Cludgie, Congrats on being "normal"! Only you will know when you are at the right weight for you. If you are really worried, have a talk with a nutritionist or Shrink... just to touch base with someone with a medical perspective. I am just a few pounds from "normal" too, and plan to lose a bit more after that. I want a cushion so if there is a bounce at three years like some talk about, I won't bounce out of the ball park!

great thread!

You look fantastic!

ONE POUND!!!!! WOOOOOWHOOOOO!!!!! You look fantastic.

Its one reason we have the post op liquid diet... to help keep stress off the new staple line in the stomach. Part of the cause may by your DR, Part is how we follow the diet and part is the state of your stomach before surgery...some have erosion from the band or scaring from some other surgery or problems. I was also told 1%. I had no problems.

You will be! Before you know it you will be posting your own pics here. Don't forget to take measurements and good photos before surgery... you will be glad you did.

When you are at goal, you go into maintenance mode. Some simply eat what they have been, because their weight loss has come to a halt, others need to add calories in to maintain their new goal weight. I am losing very slowly at this point... and am adding some calories in to my daily plan to see how far I can go to stay the same. I mostly eat under 1200 calories a day at this point, and am thinking I will need to get up to around 1600 to stay the same at goal... I will see when I get there I guess! About a month ago or so, I added about 200 calories a day, and this helped me start losing again after a long stall. You will find that you can eat more and more (up to a point) as time goes by... the sleeve stretches a little and swelling goes down until it is going to stay the same size (assuming you don't stuff it until it hurts all the time!) I think I read this happens by around 8 months out. When you under eat, like we do on out losing plans, your body is burning excess fat to supply part of its energy needs, when you have lost the fat, then you need to eat enough to supply all of your energy needs. You do not eat the same ounces and calories the whole time you are losing. I started at about 1/4 cup at a sitting, and now I can eat quite a bit more...depending on what it is. Protein, about 1/2 cup... sliders and veggies up to 1 1/2 cups at a time. Each person will find these numbers and times a little diferent.. you need to discover the details of your life yourself. The Drs and we can give you guidelines, to point you in the general direction, but you will have to do the rest of the work yourself finding out what your body needs. Its all part of the adventure!

Stacey, search for this question, it has been asked many times, and you will see many answers, most but not all are positive. I have never regretted my decision... 9 months out and 8 pounds from "normal".

I think if I wrote down EVERYTHING I spent, just like I do everything I eat, I might think twice about at least a few of my purchases.

You go girl! Awesome!

I am trying to get out of the house more... just to wear the new cloths! Just having my own personal fashion shows in the mirror is not enough. I cut my hair yesterday, and love it too... but just getting out of the house to hang out with some nice gals that appreciate fashion was a perk too! I think the museum or some galleries is next. (Galleries are FREE...so they may have to come first)

Wow!!! You look fantastic!

I have to say I do really enjoy it, and so far its not getting in the way of anything else thats important to me...finances, or relationships... I think really, I just need a GIANT makeover... and prefer recycling and vintage as style accents. Im ready to go and cut off my (thinning) waist length hair this week too... that will cost me more than a week at the thrift store for sure...I would prefer to leave it long, but the thinning is really making it look not so nice, and I have short little new hair growing all over my head... that looks weird. I do get a thrill out of change too... and now that the weight loss is slowing way down, I may be filling up my desire for thrills with some other thrilling activities! Thanks for letting me know I am not alone in the thrift store!

Thanks guys! I think I need to go through the closet once again, organize and take a hard look at what I really want... and get those 3 bags of too large clothing out and to the thrift store! Its hard for me to see what I really even have on hand to wear... my closet is not very well designed. I think a weekly budget is a good idea. Once I spend it, then its over for the week... and if I dont spend it, perhaps it can go into a vacation fund or something else that is non clothing related. I write down everything I eat, perhaps I need to write down everything I spend for a while, to get in touch with what I am really doing.

I think taking a closer look and asking questions out loud is a great start! Shining the light on old mechanisms can make room for change...for the better! This is what it takes for the sleeve to work at its best. Keep up the good work... I have had to look at similar things too...I'm sure many here have.

How about you? I go to the thrift store at least once a week, maybe three.... I did need to toss/give away 95 percent of my clothing....and now Im sure I have replaced that... but JUST have to check out that thrift store one more time...just in case there is something I have missed. I have always liked cloths... have cultivated a style for myself...but when I was heavy (for most of 20years) I would feel like buying something else, because I never felt like I looked very good in anything. Clothing can only do so much for covering up the fact that you are fat. As I have lost weight, I feel like I do look good, better than before for sure. I can buy cloths that are not from the Womens dept. The thrift store is fine with me... we have a Goodwill close to work that carries fabulous things, designer, vintage and other... for a song. I don't make much money, and the thrift store prices are not breaking the bank... I just sort of hope I STOP the habit pretty soon or I will be drowning in cloths. I don't have great storage and do not want to live on a pile of cloths! I think part of what I am doing is finding my look.... I keep trying stuff on and looking in the mirror... to try and "see" myself... the new me. I am also scanning fashion blogs. I used to work in fashion display, and dressed windows and such, used to get paid for my fashion sense... after I got heavier and heavier, it was so hard for me to see myself in that context...very hard. What do you think? I do put some of the new cloths back in the recycle pile when I don't think I will end up wearing them... this helps...but I do feel a little frenzied. ...oh yes, I also am finding ways to "go out" more, see people I haven't seen in a while, hang out, and reintroduce my new self to the town again... Got to have something to do so I have an excuse to dress up! I even dress up to go to work, which does not care one way or the other... just part of the reinvention...

Just a few more days. Hang in there. You may not have a taste for so much salt after the surgery. Unless you sweat a lot because you exercise a lot, too much salt is not great for you.

Sorry you are facing so many challenges right now, but I know you will make it through to the other side of it all. I just got through a 6 week stall, and I was pretty sure I had met the end of my weight loss, but happily, In not there yet. Just be good to yourself, and keep treating yourself with the best quality food and overall treatment. You deserve it! Congrats on all the weight you have already lost.

I think you should pin a note on your butt that says "Move along, nothing to see here!"

I hope they did have surgery... their chances of staying a healthy weight is much improved with the surgery. There is still a stigma attached to this surgery. Not everyone feels this, but many do... Thats one reason that many here have told no one. I tell almost everyone if given half a chance, and have had good responses. Not everyone has this experience. Look how the tabloids whipped Star Jones! She did "lie" about it, and this gave fuel to the fire....but still.

Great story! I have found my yoga pants heading south a couple of times... I need to get new ones before they really decide to take off without me!