kristikay

Wow, just wanted to say you have a very lucky wife to have such a supportive husband.

I have noticed a correlation between my hot flashes and sugar/chocolate consumption. If I eat sweets I get overwhelmingly warm about an hour or two later.

Just another person that was addicted to Diet Coke, I slowly reduced the amount I was drinking and was totally off of it a month before surgery. There are times I miss it but for the most part it hasn't been a big deal. I never would have believed it but you will find it easier than you think.

Just get back on track. drink your Water, Protein first, lower carbs a little, write it down if you have lost "control" The protein first trick helps with the feeling of restriction. Some find a little fast over night and the morning helps the tummy feel smaller at the lunch/or dinner meal.

@@kristikay, according to my surgeon, the stomach may stretch a little, but only IF you've overeaten lots of Protein at many meals for an extended length of time.

I am almost 7 mths post op and I have found that winter is really sucky when it comes to this surgery! You are stuck inside and want nothing more than to sip coffee on the couch with a blanket and a book! I have found that November thru February are still just as hard to get thru as they were pre-surgery.....still have to get thru all the holidays and family birthdays.....it seems every other week junk food is still in the house!
But....you can get back on track. No doubt! You have all the info you need and you know exactly what to eat ....you did it before. Get out your old notes and pamphlets from pre-surgery.....my program required me to take nutrition classes and I have a couple notebooks to refer to. Make an appointment with a nutritionist with bariatric experience??
I am pretty sure you aren't eating as much as you did before surgery so the restriction is still there. No more slider foods. Try the basics again.....protein first, then veggies.....no carbs, few fruits and lots of Water. Give it a week and see if it makes a difference. You will probably feel the control again and be headed in the right direction!
Good Luck! You got this!!

I find if I just go back to basics (no need to go liquid diet) and eat clean my hunger drops and suddenly my sleeve is "small" again.
It isn't really smaller. ..it is simply the sensation of restriction is stronger when you eat a certain way.

I started the 5:2 plan this week and I'm really happy so far. It's definitely doable. I'm a little over a year out, not where I wanted to be weight loss wise. Today I felt a lot of restriction while eating chicken and I haven't felt that in a long while. I was amazed! I think the fasting has actually helped get my tummy back to feeling right again. I honesty missed feeling this much restriction so this was a pleasant surprise!

Well, gosh you sound exactly like I did at the beginning of 2013. I spent all of 2012 going UP on the scale instead of down. The final straw was the +8lbs that I gained from JUST Oct-Jan 1st. Let me tell you it was a definite eye-opener.
You are in the right frame of mind right now. You realize that by not paying attention you can easily gain extra weight. So from now on, you will be paying extra attention to your diet, exercise, Water habits, etc.
This is for LIFE! Not just a journey with an end that says GOAL...NOW GO PARTY. We all basically "get it" in our minds, but living it out is a little bit harder.
I'm 3+ years out and sometimes I still need a knock on the head to get me going. Hang in there...you are in the right place!

Well I weighted and it is as bad as I thought it would be. Gained 10 pounds since I last weighted in October. Gained 20 from my lowest weight. Am now 25 -30 from goal. I have pretty much partied all Holiday season with no effort what so ever!! I am SOOOOO pissed at myself but I learned many lessons:
1. I HAVE to weigh at least once a week. Maybe I would have caught this sooner if I had
2. This will take attention and diligence the rest of my life. I can’t just pretend I am a normal person when it comes to food cause I am not.
3. Sugar/carbs have to be rareish treats not every day indulgences.
4. I need support from my fellow sleeve brothers and sisters. I need to get on Bariatric pal daily.
5. Exercise is necessary not only for my weight loss but also for my mental well being. I am a stress eater and the exercise helps with the stress.
I restarted a ticker and set some new goals for myself. Joined the Valentines Day challenge and set that goal at 10 pounds.
Really trying hard right now not to beat myself up but it is so hard!

I think you're looking for something in this thread. I'm not going to provide what you're looking for. Drama.
I will state to the others that read this post...I'm scared.
Yesterday I ate a cookie, 3 homemade caramels and Chex mix and I didn't have a physical reaction. I ate roast beef, some potato and a dinner roll...nothing. The only thing that upsets my sleeve is the bariatric Vitamins. So while I'm not screaming (or posting) "Oh my god I had a cookie, Is that OK?" or crying in the corner, I believe I have cause for concern.
I'm scared because I believe the limitations with regard to the types of food I eat I will not be provided by my sleeve. It scares me that there appears to be little my stomach won't tolerate. I will get the Portion Control from the sleeve, however, as evidenced by yesterday, I can eat around it.
Like Roo101769 states above, I'm not going to bash anyone for eating anything and certainly not for something I have done myself. While I enjoyed my Christmas day with my family and I did enjoy my Snacks, I am moving on. I have made my plan for the day - 3 meals, 3 Protein supplements and a trip to the gym.
Happy Holidays, all! And best wishes for a very, very good 2014!

I agree with your overall message.... We shouldn't freak out over a little slip. But you have no clue how life is gonna be this time next year....or the year after that. Your assertation that your sleeve won't allow you to eat high sugar food in large quantities is just plain wrong. Embrace healthy eating habits now while it's still easy. Cause later on it gets a lot harder.

I am not saying this for pity or to be confrontational. This is just MY truth. I can (and have) eat slider foods easily. Not to the extreme quantity I once was able, but much easier than I can eat Protein. I have struggled with stopping now that I started. There may be people who can limit their self to just one, I am not that type person. As the poster said above, be careful. I am just over two months out and already find slider food easy to eat, so I am very worried about 4, 6, 8 months out! This is my addiction. I have fought it and have been able to lose 62lbs since August. ( both before and after surgery) But I am still morbidly obese. I still need to lose about 118lbs. If I don't get a grip on my addiction again, it will win. I didn't have major surgery for that to happen. I would never beat anyone up for doing something I have done. I just say remember how we all got to this point to begin with. If control was easy for us would we really had needed the surgery?

Sounds like you're just in a funk. Something good will happen that will change your attitude. Unfortunately, we tend to allow outside events determine our emotional forecast! This is an issue def meant for your therapist and I'm glad you have one to moan, b***h and complain to, not everyone does. I'm also happy to be part of your sounding board, give me your best shot!!!
Since you've lost so much weight, your hormones have probably been up and down, have you thought about meds or maybe changing them if you already take them?? At least until your body is done losing the weight and your hormones balance out.
I hope your life changes to a point where you are happy again and that your true friends love you 'unconditionally' and will help you mend the relationship(s) most important to you.

I am SO SORRY! I was scheduled for surgery on July 31st, and in my meeting with my surgeon, she realized I had Atrial fibrillation. Had it not been found, I very well could have had a stroke. I was sad and depressed for a good month after I had a heart procedure to correct the problem. Now I hope to have surgery in December, if at all possible. I am trusting in the process. I guess we were both lucky, it's just hard to accept that sometimes. Best of luck to you!

I have had a busy, wonderful, stressful summer that I let become an excuse for going beck to some bad coping behaviors. Of course the coping behaviors involved going some horrible eating habits. I had lost about 57 pounds and have gained back about 5. I am evaluating what I need to do to get back on track and this seemed a good place to start. Still love my sleeve and am so grateful for the weight I have lost but it is time to get myself going again, still have a long way to go to be where I want to be. Any advice or encouragement is welcome! I know there are lots of people that have had great success on this forum!

I have had a busy, wonderful, stressful summer that I let become an excuse for going beck to some bad coping behaviors. Of course the coping behaviors involved going some horrible eating habits. I had lost about 57 pounds and have gained back about 5. I am evaluating what I need to do to get back on track and this seemed a good place to start. Still love my sleeve and am so grateful for the weight I have lost but it is time to get myself going again, still have a long way to go to be where I want to be. Any advice or encouragement is welcome! I know there are lots of people that have had great success on this forum!

Better then boycotting!!!!!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2013/05/14/abercrombie-and-fitch-homeless-brand-readjustment_n_3272498.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

First off, I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I am very close to my daddy and I can't imagine the pain of not being able to talk to him every day. There are no words that I can say that can take away your sorrow but I know he will always live on in your heart and in your memories.
As far as calling the surgery a "tool"...
The dictionary definition of tool includes "anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or purpose: Education is a tool for success".



For me, as someone who has tried everything to lose weight, as someone who has been researching this option for well over a year rejecting it time after time because I just KNEW I could do it on my own, as someone who is VERY physically active every day, I am hoping that this procedure is going to be the tool I need to be successful in breaking my cycle of yo-yo dieting. Yes, I do understand the seriousness of the procedure and I know the risks. That said, there are just as many risks to my health if I stay at this weight. I don't feel the use of this word minimizes the seriousness of what you have gone through or of what I am going to go through.
That said, I am also someone who believes that many curse words are simply four or five letters strung together, that there is really no meaning behind them except the intent in which they are spoken. I highly doubt that there are many people here who have gone through this process that are flippant about their journey,

As far as gaining back all the weight? I have a very close friend who lost 180 pounds with gastric bypass, gained it all back over 5 years, had the surgery again, lost it all and gained again. I have another close friend who had this surgery 2 years ago, lost 75 pounds over 6 months and has gained 50+ back since. I have no doubt she will gain every ounce back that she lost because she thinks her sleeve is going to to all the work instead of seeing that it is a means of helping her control her portion size, not what kind of crap she shoves in her mouth all day long...

I 100% agree that it's a major surgery and we should be thinking of ALL the possible risks and complications prior to doing it. So many lives have been changed because of it.
Still, I'm going to call it a "tool". Just like obtaining regular exercise is a "tool". Just like obtaining counseling will give you some mental "tools" to employ to help you make better food choices and avoid emotional eating. The point of calling it a tool is to drive home the point that it IS NOT a magic pill... and it WILL NOT lose the weight for you..... It is still only a tool that we can choose to use or not to use.... and getting the sleeve is only ONE part of the equation. Granted, it's a tool that we have risked our lives to obtain.... it's a tool that if used properly can add many years of health to our lives... but it's still a tool... and to me to hear it called that in no way detracts from the gravity of the surgery.
It's all about context.. if someone is saying.. "it's just a tool.. no big deal" when they're contemplating surgery.. then yeah.. they definitely are looking at it wrong.. but when you've got people saying "Remember, this surgery won't FIX you.. it's only one tool that will help you on the journey"... that's a completely different context.

I think some people are just looking for a little encouragement. I don't see anything wrong with that. This is a life changing event & if we can't lean on each other (who are all going thru the same thing), then who else can we lean on? I don't know...sometimes a little compassion can go a long way. Maybe they NEED to be reminded to drink their Water or whatever the other rules are. (I don't know yet since I am still going thru the initial steps.) I'm just worried now that if I come here looking for encouragement, someone will start a snarky thread about me & that would just break my heart & not make me want to come back to ask questions.
As I say to my children all the time, be kind to people, so they are kind back to you. Just a little kindness goes a long way.
~ Peace

I posted this on another thread a little while ago. In light of this new thread, I think it bears repeating.
While I can somewhat appreciate what you say, if it was that easy there would be no needs for boards such as this. The truth is that slow losing can be very discouraging and can cause people to throw up their hands and consider themselves a failure and go back to the old habits that got them here to begin with. I've been in a very slow losing slide for the last month, losing a total of 5 pounds in the last 30 days. I've eaten my calories, watched my carbs, done the carido etc, but the weight is just coming off slowly. I wasn't discouraged early on, but now it is starting to come and I can see myself creeping back into where I was before. Weightloss, regardless of how it is approached, either surgically or through the old fashioned methods, it tough. Don't you feel that it we were all eating the right number of calories and doing the right number of jumping jacks that we would be skinny in no time flat? It just isn't that simple for some. It is tough to come on here and read that someone who was sleeved after me, has lost 70 or 80 pounds. It's hard to read that someone is losing 4 to 5 pounds a week for 5 to 6 months and you are busting your hump to lose 1. This is where I was before, I'm losing the weight that I've lost maybe 10 or 15 times. Yes I expect better results and a faster weight loss and I don't think that is totally unreasonable. So I can certainly empathize with the OP. Hopefully that will give you some perspective to "understand people" a bit better.

Hey you guys I think the Instagram page isn't working out unless everyone became friends so I decided to create a secret Facebook page called Sleeved and Freed so either post email address for Facebook or find group and request to join

What I have been told in regard to pricing for garage sale is if the item is in good shape price it at a fourth of original price. So you paid $40 you would ask $10, I have some clothes I would like to sell also. It would be nice to get a little money to put toward the new clothes, right?

Funny thing is there is always someone looking at our progress and wishing they were like us... There's always some we wish we're we're losing like too.
I'm eight weeks out and I'm an extremely slow loser and huge staller. I'm not giving up though.. Nope nope nope
I'm so much healthier and soooo much happier