LDallas

I'm 4 years out. I started feeling hungry 6 months after surgery. Constant struggle. Cant eat big portions but hungry every two hours. Its terrible.

Tip for hiding flabby upper arms!! Buy short sleeved polo's and T-shirts in the men's dept. They are less expensive and the sleeves come down further. Double bonus!

Not sure if you did this before surgery or not. But I remember those meetings where I was eating large portions and having a cookie (and chips) later and I would always look at the skinny girl in the room who ate the healthy salad and maybe some fruit for a snack and was so jealous that she had self control that I didn't have. YOU are that girl. I bet you someone in that meeting wished they had your resolve. Not sure if that's any consolation.
Good post, I'm still working through my food demons and it's a little scary to know that it never gets "easy". I should have known better. It isn't that easy now. The other day one of my friends said, "Don't take this the wrong way but I'm surprised how hard you still have to work to lose weight." Thank you! It sure is.

So, I am hanging out right at my goal weight, which is higher than my lowest weight. I knew this was very likely to happen and so on the one hand, i am okay with it, but on the other hand, I feel fatigued by it. I know that I need to stabilize/re-lose a few pounds to keep that "cushion" between me and the 200s or 300s.... but I grow tired of it sometimes
In the past, that seemed very do-able. Buckle down, go back to basics, do Protein first, do 5:2, change up exercise. For whatever reason, right now, while it seems possible I had one of those pity parties where I asked myself what is fair about me eating a pittance of food, spinning on my bike and yet still struggling to keep a normal weight. I watch others eat a whole lot more than me and I sometimes want to eat with abandon too. The thought crossed my mind... is this REALLY worth it?!??!???
Then, I thought about the people I was comparing my eating to. Example - I went into the office yesterday and did a day long workshop so got to see people eat lunches - large portions and of course Cookies for snack later. The two ladies i sat next to are considerably younger than me - one is obese and the other is morbidly obese by my judgement. I had to remind myself that they are still healthy, but they are heading down my former path and I cannot let myself go back or else i go back to feeling ill, feeling like i was becoming disabled, feeling hopeless.
Anyway, it is worth it, but this is the first time I have ever really questioned it. I think I understand a bit more why people regain years out from surgery. We all know that you have to maintain a healthy lifestyle etc but I am telling you - my experience is that "lifestyle changes" UNDERSTATES the level of effort required. I don't even really eat junk food, but I still need to really watch what I eat - this is beyond "healthy choices" this is eating very small, eating the right things very consistently or else I will regain. This whole thing about an average healthy woman needing 1800-2000 calories a day to maintain is bogus. i don't eat anywhere near that and I know many of my fellow vets that are maintaining don't either.
So, as I used to say, but haven't in awhile...."carry on... what choice do we really have?"

Hw 299 cw 159 i lost 140 pounds total and im 5'8

Update: HW: 301 SW: 286 CW: 195 GW: 170

Tip for hiding flabby upper arms!! Buy short sleeved polo's and T-shirts in the men's dept. They are less expensive and the sleeves come down further. Double bonus!

Hi, I posted this a few weeks ago on vets forum:
UPDATE: price was $15k for TT and arms combo.
Hi, not sure where to post this! General, over 50, slow losers??? So here I am Vets, as I thought that's who may have the most interest. I had my PS appt today, wanted to share the info I received. Hope it's helpful. First, my ins is Excellus BCBS. Here's the low down:
Appt was about 40 mins with the surgeon. I was worried he may say I need to lose more but he didn't. They won't do surg if you plan on dropping a substantial amount more of weight. He said very doubtful ins would pay for any of it. My insurance requires several things, just for panni. Mainly, the panni must be hanging below your privates (down to mid thigh area). Mine doesn't. Something else I didn't know, panni only allows them to cut below belly button, meaning...one cut then pull it all down and reattach. Your belly button will now be very low, skimming your groin area. He does TT and arm combos a lot, but won't do TT with breast lift. Would be separate procedures because TT pulling down, BL pulling up. Too contradictory. They're mailing me a price quote. Will see what if any I do, after I get that!
VSG Oct 2012
SW 303. Size 24
CW 225. Size 14/16
F/50
5'10
Highest weight ever(1997-2001): 390 size 34/4x
Lost this weight on my own

Best decision I ever made!!

I could never get an answer from my Dr or the PA. Their standard answer is, "it's about the size of a banana"...as they point to a plastic sleeved stomach hanging on a metal stand. Grrrrrr.

I could never get an answer from my Dr or the PA. Their standard answer is, "it's about the size of a banana"...as they point to a plastic sleeved stomach hanging on a metal stand. Grrrrrr.

There is a forum called food and Nutrition under General Weight Loss Surgery that has categories for phases and special diets, etc. it is helpful to put food/recipe-related posts under that forum so people can find them easily. You don't have to recreate the wheel.

" I understand vsg is just a tool, but I hoped it would be a great tool for at least the first 8-12 months, giving me time to work on the mental part while I still lost weight. "
This is precisely what is happening right now! Here you are, unable to over-indulge, and you have already decided you are a failure!
Of course your enjoying the little food your eating! Of course you're obsessing over the things you can't have right now! That's your brain panicking about not getting a fix. Stop judging it and observe it. That's what working on the mental part means. Learning the ways that the brain gets you to cave and learning how to stop the little bastard from undermining your confidence. Get a journal. Write it down. Pay attention to the patterns. Learn your negotiation tactics so you can recognize your mental triggers. The weight will start dropping soon enough so focus on that voice in your head! Its not will power. Its self defense. Now is the time to watch how your "opponent" disables you.

I just posted this in another thread but it mostly applies.
PLAN. FOR. IT.

Most of us are food addicts. We have no self control when it comes to food. We will under estimate what we ate and then be surprised when the weight gain happens. I strongly advocate keeping a food diary. It's not to obsess over calories and how low we can keep then and stay healthy. It's to keep ourselves accountable. I use myfitnesspal. I have it set to also include carbs, sodium, fat and sugar. There is a maximun level of carbs, fat and sugar that works for me, so I monitor that. I used to have a problem with my feet and legs swelling so I monitor my sodium levels.
I fill out my diary in the morning and add or subtract in the evenings according to what I actually ate. They also have an app for on the go changes.
I do not allow anything in my house that I cannot eat without bingeing. I don't care is it's Suzie's favorite thing. It's not allowed because I am an addict and have no self control. If you have family members who miss their favorite food, tell them to buy a single serving portion and eat it. Sabotaging foods are not allowed in the cabinets.If you were an alcoholic would they insist on keeping that 6 pack in the house?
EXERCISE - I don't care if it's taking a 30 minute walk each day or Leslie walk away the pounds DVDs. Commit to something on a regular basis.

Make a list of food items you are eating and health habits you dont like. Then write down what you do instead. Pin it to your refrigerator door.
For example:
Starbucks Mocha Frappachinno - Homemade version using coffee ice cubes, vanilla soy milk, and sugar free chocolate Syrup.
chocolate candy - sugar free hot chocolate
Skipping exercise - Walking on break at work, different body exercise each day while brushing teeth morning and night.
Give yourself a reward for making the list, and rewards for sticking with it.
lynda

Join us in the Veterans Forum. There are a lot of us fighting regain.
You have to do what you were told in the beginning. Tons of Protein, veggies and fruit if you have room.Push the Water. Stay away from carbs.
I gain immediately if I let them in my diet, and what is worse, they make you crave more carbs and unhealthy foods.

Hi, not sure where to post this! General, over 50, slow losers??? So here I am Vets, as I thought that's who may have the most interest. I had my PS appt today, wanted to share the info I received. Hope it's helpful. First, my ins is Excellus BCBS. Here's the low down:
Appt was about 40 mins with the surgeon. I was worried he may say I need to lose more but he didn't. They won't do surg if you plan on dropping a substantial amount more of weight. He said very doubtful ins would pay for any of it. My insurance requires several things, just for panni. Mainly, the panni must be hanging below your privates (down to mid thigh area). Mine doesn't. Something else I didn't know, panni only allows them to cut below belly button, meaning...one cut then pull it all down and reattach. Your belly button will now be very low, skimming your groin area. He does TT and arm combos a lot, but won't do TT with breast lift. Would be separate procedures because TT pulling down, BL pulling up. Too contradictory. They're mailing me a price quote. Will see what if any I do, after I get that!
VSG Oct 2012
SW 303. Size 24
CW 225. Size 14/16
F/50
5'10
Highest weight ever(1997-2001): 390 size 34/4x
Lost this weight on my own

I am 5'8" HW 305 CW 186 my lowest weight was 155 my goal weight is a normal bmi which is 164.
Picture on right is when I was 193.

Since it has been ages since I even looked at one of her books, I can't really say. I have had counseling as I was one of those that believed that surely I must be broken inside to weigh 300#. I had a counselor give me this book called "Ed". yes, the author had named her eating disorder "Ed"
I just didn't relate. I can (and have!) talked about my childhood for years and yet I was still hungry. I still had this overwhelming drive to eat. Like, an hour or two after a meal, I was ready for another one.
The eating disorder counselor would ask - what do you feel when you are hungry? HUNGRY! I don't think she ever believed me.
Anyway, post sleeve - I do see a counselor 1-2 times a month. Guess what we NEVER talk about? How food is love, how food is a substitutue for a decent father or whatever.
When I talk about needing to work on the "mental" part of all this what I am referring to is how much my life has changed and how it is good, but also difficult at times. For awhile, it was strange to look like an attractive woman and it made me feel awkward, like I had lost a protective shell. I am talking about accepting on a very deep level that I need to eat just alot less than other people do in order to maintain a trim weight. I am talking about finally being in a position where there is a whole wide world out there... what do I want out of it?
So, this is why I don't relate well to the whole eating disorders movement. I surely had "disordered eating" and I surely used food and obesity to numb emotions. But bigger than those things, I was hungry almost all the time and that primal urge drove alot of my behavior and it just doesn't anymore.

I have had a rough time making the numbers I wanted after surgery. During the all liquids phase I did excellent with my weightloss but it slowed drasticly after I started foods again. I had trouble making it to 64 ounces of Water and meeting the protien recomendations. a little overa week ago I was desperate when I gained 4 lbs in my fourth month so I decided to consume 120+ ounces of water and go over my daily recomended Protein requirments. I lost 11lbs this week!!! I was really affraid I wouldn't lose any more weight but my hope is renewed =) Just wanted to share and encourage anyone who isn't drinking enough water or getting enough protein!

Where you are getting that blueberry flavored liquid Calcium?

I'm in the same position – I really want to try to "restart" weight loss. I'm just past year and in reality I've lost a good amount of weight but I want to lose a bit more to get it closer to my goal. I need to start doing better and I guess examine what I'm doing wrong.
I know it's hard to be proud of yourself when you haven't done what you wanted to be happy and proud of yourself of what you've accomplished because let's face it it's hard to do. I think in reality we are all very hard on ourselves and I don't know about everyone here but I know that with me can be counterproductive.
Good luck with your journey and I hope that you're able to attain the goals that you have set for yourself.

Since I first posted this I have gained almost 10 pounds! Ugh! But I know that I have only myself to blame and I CAN and WILL turn this car around! I obviously got disoriented and started driving up the scale instead of down. Well not anymore! I'm in charge of this journey and I'm responsible for reaching my destination. Yes there have been road blocks and detours that have gotten in my way, but it's up to me to get back on the road and put the pedal to the medal! Anyone else going my way?

Bariatric Buddies, the support group for my Surgeons office, created this cookbook of recipies for each phase of eating post surgery. This has probably been posted before. I hear if you send it to FedEx Kinkos it costs about $3 to print and bind. It has all the permissions to print and use. Dr. Ludwig is a wonderful surgeon and has a comprehensive aftercare program including Bariatric Buddies. Cheers to the lovely ladies who put this together.
http://www.chicoweightloss.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/BariatricCookbookJuly2014.pdf

Hey Fellow Sleevers! Wow this topic is so on point. I'm almost two years out. I too, am hungry all the time (since about 4 months after surgery!). I'm up about 10 lbs from my lowest wt. The grazies have snuck back in, the weighing, measuring have left the building. I recommitted this week. Logging in MFP, trying to keep in the 800-900 cal per day range. It's so hard!! Still need to up my liquids. Seems all I want to do is eat saltines. LOL And let's not forget that d*mn Halloween candy! It's good to be back on the boards...keeps me focused. Would love to make it to 199.
SW 303 (Oct 25, 2012) sz 24
CW 222. Sz 14/16
F/52. 5'10"
All time high wt 390 (2001) ugh