cegull

i had a NSV today!
i bought this reeeally cute dressy trench coat like 6+yrs ago. when i bought it, it was really snug but it still "fit". i figured id lose more weight & itll fit good. then i gained weight & literally couldnt put an arm in the sleeve. well, i just tried it on & it FITS!!! like its even a lil big but asize smaller would be snug. im like so shocked right now. it feels good to know that im doing what i set out to do!

Mashed potatoes boiled in chicken broth and mashed with Greek yogurt and a little milk.
Ground sautéed turkey seasoned with broth and onion and garlic powder. After cooking, chop super fine.
Gravy: Low fat cream of chicken Soup mixed with Greek yogurt and chicken broth.
Layer and eat...Delish and went down well and stayed down!

And I sat there, eating my ham slice and cheese stick, while my coworker ate one across from me. I had no feelings of envy, temptation, or mourning. I didn't even realize until I got home that I'd gone up against my major trigger food and won! It's a great NSV and a big step forward to getting a healthy relationship with food.

I get it from my naturopath. I can give you her info; she ships if you're interested. She's a firm believer that not all supplements are good and she only orders high quality stuff. The name of it is Nordic Naturals ProEPA xtra It's says it's Ultra Concentrated Superior Triglyceride Form Pharmaceuticla Grade Molecularly Distilled Omega-3 Fish Oil
Hope that helps!

After you enter your food into my fitness pal, hit the "home" bottom at the bottom, then hit "daily" at the top. It will give you a break down of all your nutritional info for the day. Also, when you are looking at your food diary, touch any food you entered and it will show you the same break down of that food.
This assuming you're looking at the mobile app. You can do the same online but the approach is slightly different.

Congratulations cegull!

Hi everyone! I had my post-op appointment today (surgery was August 7th). It feels so good to have those staples removed. :-) We went over my labs and everything looks great so far. I'm down a total of 22.4 lbs (includes the 2 week pre-op diet). Whohoo!!!

I'm wearing out the timer on my iPhone lol. You have to sip, sip, sip an ounce every 15 minutes. It is so hard not to chug Water.< /p>

Congrats!!!

Congrats

First let me say I feel fabulous! I've lost over 70 pounds in just over 5 months. I went from a 22 to a very comfy 12. The road has not been easy and for all you newbies...here is my list of amazing highs...and of not so sunshiny lows.
Disclaimer: This is my experience...it may not be yours.

It will be uncomfortable for a few days post op
I was not hungry for weeks after surgery
I was scared to eat or drink and I didn’t drink enough...thus Constipation and weakness
I didn't feel normal for about 6 weeks. I needed naps and I took them
The weight literally falls off...seriously I was looking for pools of fat in bed when I woke up in the morning
I hit the 4 week stall and it lasted two weeks. Expect it and don't stress
On day three, I had a massive freak out…seriously threw a four year old fit…pissed off my stomach was gone.
No one noticed for months and that irritated me.
EVERYONE notices now and it's all they want to talk about.
Don’t tell anyone you are going to Mexico to have your stomach cut off unless you trust them completely.
I threw up alot...just slime mostly...while I was learning my new tummy. It will scare you and if you are like me…it will happen a lot when you transition to solid foods.
food addiction does not magically go away...if you have a problem before..you will still have it. I think about food all the time, but I finally have a way to resist it. I am a sugar addict. I never crave carbs, but I crave sugar like a mad woman.
Going out to dinner is awkward. I hate watching people eat
Put the lotion on the skin! My skin got really dry.
I’ve lost half my hair at 4.5 months post op. Mine came out in chunks. Freaked me out! Our Golden Retriever and I are in a competition for shedding. It will be ok. Take your Vitamins and buy Nioxin. It doesn’t help my Hair loss, but I feel like I am at least doing something about it.
Don’t take a powerful laxative when you are constipated…especially before your child’s school performance. It may say “See results in 2-4 hours” but it means 30 mins and then you’re stuck on a mini toilet with both legs numb, crying to everything holy to save you.
Shopping is amazing! I still feel like people are looking at me like I don’t belong there…but that’s all in my head.
My shoes no longer fit. they are too wide now!
Your pre WLS Spanx will look huge in a couple months
Trust me…put some Granola bars in your glove box and a few packs of mixed nuts. Sometimes your hungry and there is nothing that you can eat.
Handy meals from the market or gas station when you didn’t plan ahead. Single string cheese, an apple, mixed nuts, readymade hard boiled eggs, The inside of California rolls- no rice, campbells Soup at hand or ready made Soup in a coffee cup.
Handy items at fast food places that sit ok on my tummy include: Taco Bells refried Beans or the inside of a chicken taco. Wendys chili, McDonalds oatmeal, McDonalds yogurt parfait
I feel guilty in front of my heavier friends. I always try to wear a sweatshirt so I don’t rub the weight loss in their faces.
You get drunk really fast...like a half glass of wine. Be careful...it sneaks up on you...and before you know it, you’re waiting for your hubby to pick you up...from less than a glass. Its crazy. I don't really even try anymore to drink.
I crave raw fish, cooked fish, broiled fish, grilled fish...any fish really and it feels amazing on my tummy.
I cant eat steak
I love that I have collar bones
I update my Facebook pictures and secretly love the compliments
I own a woman's North Face now
I can buy bras at Victoria's secret
I pack all my food for work in snack bags and the little tupperware containers for salad dressing.
I can still have M&M's...its just like 9...instead of the king size bags
Take heartburn medicine everyday...don’t wait until you get heartburn.
Buy stock in Maalox
You can have a full meal at Costco- samples + WLS = Cheap Date!
Food Portion jokes get really old
Fast food burgers makes me want to vomit.
At 5 months...salad is wonderful. I can eat about a cup of greens...which takes me a while and I feel a tiny bit normal.
Post-op, If you can swing it, buy a Vita-Mix blender and make your own soup. Canned soup was nasty right after surgery. Freeze them in 4oz canning jars. It will be two servings.
Quit Smoking before surgery. I waited and it slowed my healing. It also gave me terrible heartburn. I am 5 weeks smoke free
You don't have to "confess" you had WLS. It's ok to say thank you for the compliment and not feel guilty. I'm just now starting to accept that I had a little something to do with this insane loss. I tell people when they ask now how I lost the weight, that i exercise and use Portion Control.< br /> People will treat you different. Salesladies ask if I need assistance, men hold open doors and the skinny girls at work talk to me now. It's shallow and pisses me off, but it's nice to not be invisible anymore.
WLS is very difficult. For me, it’s not physical, but the mental. Sometimes I just want a cheesecake like before. It goes away very quickly, but it still comes and goes. Sometimes I get angry at my sleeve because I can’t eat something I see others eating. Most of the time I have to hide my expression when I see people shovel food in the way I used to. It’s shocking to see when you’re on the other side of WLS. I used to inhale my food like a tiny food thief was going to come in and take it away from me.
You will have to say no to your family when they all want to go to a Chinese buffet. I’m still not ready to walk in and be near a buffet.
It feels awesome to give your clothes away, however, do not offer them to your heavier friends. It’s insensitive and they won’t return your calls for a week.
Last one...I played laser tag this past weekend with a bunch of 9 year old boys. It was soooo Much fun!!!

Please feel free to add any other thoughts or tips...

Today at work a coworker asked if I was losing weight!!! YAY!!! I know it's so frustrating when you are bigger and you lose 5, 10, 15, 20 lbs and no one notices because you're so big! Well, someone noticed!!!

Hey everyone who else is on my fitness pal?? Be my friend, MamaMelly83.

Friday. Weigh in day.
When I started this Quest I was 441lb, BMI was 56, waist was also a 56. Bodyfat? High at 52%. Work scrubs size 5XL
I climbed on the scale an looked down. After a few seconds it stopped and landed on 299lb. I yelled so loud my neighbor from downstairs knocked on my door. She asked if anything was wrong. "Everything was right" I told her. For the first time since I was 20 years old, I was under 300lb. I know I'm not at my goal but hot damn I can sure see it from here!!
299lb
36% BF
38 BMI
42" Waist
2XL Work scrubs
About 20lb lost was LBM. I never thought that 10.5 months from the date of surgery I'd be here. At just under 3.5lb/wk weight loss average, I feel pretty good. I still can't believe that I'm 299lb and still losing! There are weeks (sometimes 2-3 in a row) where I don't lose a single ounce. Sometimes I actually gained. One week I gained six pounds and thought I screwed something up. I'm now thinking about skin surgery. I look at myself and guesstimate that I have about 5-9lb of hanging skin. When I roll down past 20% BF then I'll get more serious about that.
You all here are so very wonderful. I don't post much now with work and school going on but I read about all the people here. Each of you inspired me, motivated me and gave me hope. I was assured that I didn't mess up my body with this surgery. Y'all are terrific!! Bless every last one of you!

The first number on my scale this morning was a 1, yay!!!! It has not been a 1 in five years so I'm super happy today! My weight loss hasn't been as quick as some others but I am so happy with the progress I have made. I love my sleeve!
I weighed 260lbs 1 week before my surgery, 251 on the day of surgery, and 199 today. My weight loss slowed after the 2nd month, I now lose about 8 pounds a month (which I will gladly take!!!)
I did have a ton of hairloss but it has stopped or at least slowed greatly. I do take my Vitamins everyday along with Biotin and Iron. I feel like my weight loss is coming off differently than in the past when I've slimmed down before having kids. I am holding a ton of weight in my belly still. I don't really notice a ton of sagging skin but my eyes have more wrinkles from where my face has lost fat. Oh well!
I try to get my fluids and Protein in, it's getting harder since I get more food than Protein drinks, but I try for at least one Protein Drink per day. I really like EAS myoplex, Adkins, and Slim Fast protein. I hate the juice Protein Drinks. I hope to lose another 60 pounds by next March. Good luck all!!! Happy losing!

I am going to try this, hopefully it works! I had my sleeve surgery November 29th, 2010. The first pictures are at my highest when I got married (I love my husband, he has loved me no matter what size!), around 260ish lbs. The second are the day of my surgery, 220ish lbs. The last pictures are at my current weight, 135-137lbs (I LOVE my hormones, I LOVE my hormones). There are 2 standing in my old jeans and I fit in 1 leg (1 is me AND my daughter in my jeans). There is also a picture of my biggest jeans (size 22), and my new jeans (size 4..I wear a size 4-6). I never dreamed I would ever be this size or weigh in the 130's. I honestly never thought I would even reach goal because I had tried and failed so many times in my life. I hope these pictures are inspiration that, if you let it, the sleeve is an amazing tool! And I hope it inspires the slower losers too! It took me 18 months to reach my goal weight of 140lbs, and I have even lost a few more pounds in the last couple of months. So don't get discouraged if you don't lose all your weight in the first 6 months. If you make the changes you need to make to have a healthy life, it will happen!
    

Hey there! I'm a little over a year out from surgery at Evergreen in Kirkland. Recovery in the hospital was more painful than anticipated, but not bad - I just read too many breezy posts about how it didn't hurt at all and people didn't feel like they'd had surgery. NOT my experience! But it was smooth sailing - no complications, no vomiting, no food intolerances, and no stalls until the very end! I'm about 7 pounds below my surgeon's goal, about 3 pounds above my personal goal - I would have been there by now but I've been ditzing around since about March with carbs and slider foods that lead me into a full scale sugar cycle that I spend several weeks digging back out of ... rinse ... repeat.... Believe it or not, though, I do think I'm learning from the experience. I'm eating clean again, feeling great, working with a personal training, and I know I'm going to make it to goal. I'm so close!
I went from a size 22-24 to 6-8 depending on the brand. More importantly, I have the strength and energy to do whatever I want to! I hike, and run, and I started strength training last week with a personal trainer. I couldn't be happier.
My advice? Follow your surgeon's plan and don't cheat. The post-op diet can be really hard, but this is your best opportunity to make a clean break from the old habits that made you overweight. Right after surgery you can't eat hardly anything, you don't feel very well, and your life is upside down. You have to build your eating habits from the ground up. DO IT RIGHT! Honestly, the further out you are, the bigger the temptations are to eat the wrong things, and the harder it is to stick to those good habits. The more practice you get in doing it right from the starting line, the stronger you'll be when temptations build.
Commit to getting some exercise as often as you possibly can. You want to conserve the muscle you have to keep your metabolism up as you lose and make your body burn fat instead. As you get stronger and thinner, you'll be able to build on that, and with any luck you'll come out the other side being able to eat a decent number of calories in maintenance. Believe me, eventually your hunger will return, and you'll want to have room in your diet for foods that will keep you satisfied and happy.
Feel free to send me a private message if you have questions or if I can help! I've loved this journey, I love being thin, and strong, and healthy. You're going to love it too!

You can do it group! Best of luck!

Hi everyone , I was sleeved on the 8th. Still in the hospital . Having dry heaves and nausea. Have been up walking in the hallway. I hope to go home tommorrow Good luck and praying for up comng sleeved

Hi!! IV is in and I'm waiting to be rolled back to surgery :-)

Hi!! IV is in and I'm waiting to be rolled back to surgery :-)

Hi!! IV is in and I'm waiting to be rolled back to surgery :-)

Hi!! IV is in and I'm waiting to be rolled back to surgery :-)

Hi!! IV is in and I'm waiting to be rolled back to surgery :-)