LindaS

That your stomach will eventually quit growling. I'm 20 months out, and tonight my stomach was making enough noise it was practically part of the conversation.

Congratulations on 2.5 years! I love how your poses got more sassy as time progressed.

I felt like it happened to me, but I don't have it documented like you do. Not long after surgery, I had a new prescription. Within a month, it felt like I couldn't see well with my new prescription. I wrote about it here somewhere. I believe my contacts didn't feel right either. It did get better eventually.

I love my sleeve! Here I am wearing my fat clothes in both pictures.

Talk to your stylist about options especially cuts that will minimize the appearance of thinness. I have pretty thick hair, so I didn't worry too much. I was proactive in discussing my concerns with my stylist. She recommended shampoo, but I never tried it. I started washing my hair every other day and didn't color for the first year after surgery. I could have colored my hair, but I didn't want to risk something going wrong that would mess up my hair since it was already in a weakened state. By six months, it quit. My MIL has naturally thin hair and is currently going through the thinning stages (she had surgery in October). She uses a hair piece to fill in her hair. She bought it at a beauty salon, and she frequently gets compliments about it. She usually pulls her hair back in a bun and then uses the hair piece at the back where the bun is located.

The referral from your PCP is for insurance reasons. Your surgeon can probably offer a sample referral letter (mine did). I had to meet with a nutritionist before surgery to discuss my pre-op diet as well as my diet immediately after. I also met with the nutritionist the day after my surgery to make sure I understood the post-op diet. I met with the nutritionist again at 3 months or so to discuss my plans for when I was on a "normal" diet. It mostly concerned how to read food labels and discussing smarter choices. I didn't have to have any time-related requirements to qualify for surgery (like 6 months of documented weight loss attempts). I did have to meet with a psychiatrist, have a endoscopy and a sleep study as well as the nutritionist appointment. I was able to get these done very quickly, so I had surgery a little over 5 weeks after attending my original meeting. Once everything was set, it was just a matter of finding a time that worked for me.

I was 255 when I had surgery. I am 5'7, so my BMI was right around yours. Almost everyone told me that I was too small to need weight loss surgery. They said I didn't need to, that I wasn't fat, and I could do it on my own. They loved me like I was and why would I want surgery? I knew I was obese, but those around me didn't see it. It wasn't until after I started losing weight and family members went back and saw pictures of what I used to look like that they realized how big I was before. But most don't remember how big I was unless I remind them, and I do. I saved my fat clothes from my "before" picture and put them on to compare how far I've come. I'm going to add that picture here. I am now 172, which is a loss of 83 pounds.

My scars aren't noticeable. Like CowgirlJane, my stretch marks are probably worse. I have photos of my belly at 18 months in my gallery. I am linking to it here. The only mark I see on my belly in these pictures were not from the surgery.

I just recently started adding more fruit into my diet. I do like grapes or another type of berry instead of something like chips or popcorn. They are high in calories, but an actual fruit is supposed to be better for you than the juice made from the fruit.

I'm 19 months out, and I don't see mine although I suppose if I were to look really hard I'd probably find them.

I like frozen greek yogurt, greek yogurt, cheese sticks, Babybel, cottage cheese, jerky, or a spoonful of Peanut Butter, or a Protein bar. I also like boiled eggs or a single cooked egg with a bit of shredded cheese. I also keep powdered drinks in my pantry in different flavors. I just add Water, and they each have 15 grams of protein in them. I buy Bariwise flavors.

What a gorgeous baby! Thank you for the thorough update. I am amazed that you are doing so well and in such a good mood despite the move and lack of shapewear! Enjoy that baby!

You need to get your protein in. It will help you feel full, and you won't have room for those other things. Try snacks that are high in protein instead. I like cheese (Babybel), jerky and protein bars for snacks.

My doctor told me to stop using the scale. Try taking photos and measuring as well. Although you aren't seeing changes in the scale, it doesn't mean change isn't happening.

I'm 5'7 and almost 20 months post-op. I started at 255 pounds, and I am down to 172. I don't tend to count calories -- I count Protein. My goal is 70 grams a day. I eat protein first almost always, which leaves little room for other things. My calorie count based on this protein goal is typically under 1,000 calories. Most of the time, it is around 800 calories. I exercise regularly, and I have a lot of energy. I also have months where I don't lose any weight at all. My blood work has came back normal, but I will have my latest results April 8, which is the day before my 20 month surgiversary. To get over 1,000 calories, I need to make bad choices. Those choices usually involve carbs (potato chips or popcorn) or liquid calories. If I keep protein first, I do well.

You mentioned you lost a significant amount of weight in 10 months and that you had plastic surgery. When was your sleeve surgery and when was your plastic surgery? I was initially thinking that if you lost that much weight that quickly, you might still be adjusting mentally. But having plastic surgery made me think you had lived at the smaller size for a while. If I consider you might have fast tracked all of that, I would guess you were at your heavier weight just two years ago. This makes me think all of the changes are a LOT to process, and I am not surprised you are unsure of yourself. What I suggest is that you take photos of yourself now. I also suggest you look at your photos from back then. Compare them. Analyze them. See how much progress you have made. In your current photos, take pictures of you with other people too -- especially people that you might have been photographed with in your larger size. This can help put things in perspective. I know that seeing myself in pictures lets me see things I never see when I look in a mirror. I think it can be even more helpful if you can do it wearing clothes you wore in your before pictures or next to objects from your before picture. It lets you see how much is missing now. Good luck! And I am so curious about your complications from losing weight too fast.

I am 5'7" and when I got to the 185 range, I stalled for several months. I did start losing again, and I am now down into the low 170s. I sometimes still stall, but as long as I keep on track, the weight eventually comes off. I had my surgery August 2011, and I am trying to reach 155. It does get harder to lose the closer you get to goal. Linda

I've been using MyFitnessPal for quite a while, and I was frustrated that the prediction of what I'd weigh in 5 weeks seemed to be way off. Today, I was adjusting my settings again, and I noticed that MFP had set my calories burned from "normal daily activity" at over 2400. My actual BMR is about 1500. You see this number when you log into MFP, go to the home page and then click on "goals." I can't manually adjust the number MFP gives me for my "daily calories burned," but I was able to get it down by choosing "sedentary" instead of "active." This still gives me a higher calories burned from "normal daily activity" at 1800, but it is closer to my actual BMR. I noticed doing this also lowered my projected weekly weight loss, so I am hoping this will make my projections a bit more accurate. Of course, I am assuming that "normal daily activity" per MFP means my BMR. If I used something like Fitbit to log in with MFP, will it adjust these numbers more accurately? Or are some of them still MFP's default? Linda

I choose custom. I can't edit anything under the header "your diet profile." There are 3 headings. The one on the left is "daily nutritional goals," and they are all editable, although some are connected. On the top right are "fitness goals," and they are all editable. Under "fitness goals" is where the "your diet profile" is located. I can't edit that section. Thanks for trying to help.

I am doing it from the web page. I start by doing here: Home>Goals>Change Goals. On the right side, it says "your diet profile." Under that, it says, "calories burned" and then "from normal daily activity." To change some of these numbers, I click the "change goals" button. Not all of them are changeable. I can't edit the "from normal daily activity" number, which I think is used by MFP to figure out what I will weigh in 5 weeks. The only way that I found to change that "from normal daily activity" number is by doing the following: I have to change my "activity level." I change my activity level by going to "settings" (up by the log in). I get a screen that says "Update your diet profile." There, I can input my current weight, goal weight, height, gender and date of birth. Under that, I can choose "describe your normal daily activities." This selection seems to change the "from normal daily activity" that I mention above. I had to change mine to "sedentary" in order to get the "from normal daily activities" down to 1850. I can't get it any lower than that.

You can change some of the goals, but you can't change all of them. Some are also related to each other, so to get my Protein where I want it to be, my carbs "goal" is actually higher than what it really is. The only way I found to adjust my "daily calories burned" was to change my activity setting. it didn't let me change the actual number. This is why I was wondering if linking up MFP to something like Fitbit would be more accurate.

I haven't had any issues since surgery. I didn't even vomit in the hospital. I love my sleeve and am happy with my decision. Surgeries have risks. Not having the surgery also comes with risks. My dad had a chance to have weight-loss surgery and freaked out and didn't go through with it. Because of his decision not to have surgery, he spent most of his life sitting on our couch and hearing about my life second-hand instead of being there. His health deteriorated, and during the last 5 years of his life, he was in the hospital more than out of it. I wish he would have went through with the surgery. If he had, my dad might still be around today.

How does this time compare to other times you've tried to lose weight? How many pounds lost are you averaging in a week? 4.5 pounds a week. That's awesome. Don't get discouraged -- find other things to compare your loss to.