thesmilos

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

You no longer have to worry about where the hostess will seat you in a restaurant...corner booth? Bring it!

So I stepped on the scale this morning and the following was staring back at me.

I have now lost 101 pounds and finally passed the 100 lbs lost mark about 6.5 months after surgery. I have been staring at the scale impatiently for the better part of the past week waiting for this and today was the day. I keep reminding myself that I originally thought it might take a year to get to this point and it bested that by 5.5 months. As an added bonus at my six month appointment I was told I had lost 96 pounds overall, but had lost 102 pounds of fat, so I actually gained some muscle. In addition to that my measurements showed a loss of six inches from my neck and 12 inches from my waist. Surgery definitely is the tool that makes the difference.

Wooohoooo. I am now in Twoterville!!!!!
HW 393 in 2007
Start of journey weight 372 6-28-13
SW 340 on 2-18-14
Today 298.5
I am LOVING my sleeve. I have not been in the 2's in probably 15 years or more.
Before

A few weeks ago on Easter Sunday

I would just like to say to everyone I wish them health and happiness. The sun is back out in Florida, I have on shorts and flipflops. I was in the pool this morning. I bought size 12 shorts yesterday and they fit. I have saggy skin but I will never have surgery to remove it. I accept it because I am the most critical of myself, not others. I can say that the sleeve has changed the life of me and my husband. He is wearing a pair of Chaps cotton boxers, size XL (not a 3X) and dances around the house smiling. I wish I did not know we were 67 because we sure feel 95% better than we did 5 months ago. We found our silver lining with the sleeve!

I commissioned a cartoonist to create a piece for my surgeon as a gift. I thought I'd share it with everyone for a Saturday chuckle.

Be well…

Hw: 259
Sw: 241
Cw: 198
Surgery was January 22, 2014
Can't believe I finally weigh less than 200 pounds. My baby brother gave me the best compliment last night by telling me I wasn't his big sister anymore...... I'm now his "little" sister. Had me in tears!!! No more fat suit for this girl!

I have been relatively successful with rebuilding my health and body since my sleeve almost 6 months ago.Doc says I have lost 77% of my excess weight so far. I can't say I have a lot of confidence yet, but I am trying to work on it by stepping out of my comfort zone in some way every single day. I am a work in progress and here are few things I would not have done 6 months ago.
1) Say no to bad choices like carb-a-licious Snacks. I do not feel deprived, so this one has gotten much easier for me.Chips and fries have lost their power over me.
2) Exercising when I don't want to (I still don't love it!)
3) Last week I took my first "selfie" ever. In the past , I was always the one who took everyone elses picture, so I wouldn't have to be in the pic. I bet a lot of us did that.I recently realized how much I stayed hidden in the background.
4) I must confess that I bought a "fit and flare" dress last weekend because it was a size 10 and it fit properly. Shopping for new clothes still stresses me out quite a bit, because I am not sure what size I am, or what looks ok at my age.
5) After dropping 7 sizes (22 to 10) I finally found the courage to cancel my Lane Bryant credit card and unsubscribed their emails.
6) Shopped for new bras at Victoria's Secret for the first time. The "secret" is , they only go up to size 38, and they still don't fit me. Won't be going back anytime soon. Hated this one, but hey- I tried something new. They are not all going to be home runs.
7) Ignoring toxic acquaintances. Life is too short to waste on people who do not truly matter to me. Especially my co-worker who commented that I could have lost the same amount of weight at Jenny Craig and surgery was "ridiculous" and a "lazy" way to deal with my "issues". I give myself props for not tipping her out of her desk chair. The old me might have done that, or obsessed about doing it! Smile and nod, and walk away.
8) I traded in some of my sensible flats and loafers for some pretty mid-heel pumps. I can wear them all day with out my feet hurting or swelling.
9) skinny jeans. 'nuff said. Especially when paired with aforementioned pumps.
10) I have always loved my hubby. I love him a lot more often now if you catch my drift. Lots of extra energy these days. He is not complaining about this one for sure!
What new new found confidences have you experienced? I'd love to hear some from you

I wish you all the best. I still struggle with the fear of weight gain and find that there are days (like today) where I cannot stop eating. Even though I am choosing Protein first and trying to keep track of what I eat, I get over whelmed with depression and then "the moose is loose" in the kitchen. The food I have in the house is "safe" but when I go to my parents home I have even a bigger challenge. Tonight I was offered a mini bag of popcorn only to realize it was kettle corn. Like an idiot, I ate the bag (didn't want to offend dad) and then I was nauseated.
I am still on the weight loss diet and loose about 1/2 lb a week. Though I am getting closer to my goal, I fear the day when I start gaining. I know this is a life long struggle and the surgery is a tool to help meet my goal. Fighting the head/mind games will be an ongoing battle for the rest of my life.
It helps to read that others have the same struggles.

Hey all- Dooter here. I haven't been on here in a while, but this thought has been plaguing me, and I need to get it out. -Let me preface this discussion by saying I am GLAD I had the sleeve surgery, and I would not change it for the world. I had NO complications and I lost 102 pounds in eight months, and for that I am grateful. I needed to do that quickly for my own sanity and health. HOWEVER- that said-
DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT think for one teeny tiny minute that having surgery and dumping a bunch of weight is going to fix your head and the behavior that got you here. Not gonna happen. During the "honeymoon" period where you can sneeze off five pounds at a time and you're never hungry after your teaspoon of food, you can't imagine EVER returning to old feelings and desires. I am here to tell you that it sneaks back in a little at a time. A taste here, a taste there... "oh look. I've gained a pound. well, that was salty food, I'll just drink more Water tomorrow." HORSE HOCKEY!!!! That's where it starts. Your old head trips creep in. Hiding food. Eating junk now, figuring you'll just shape up "next week" or "tomorrow." Tomorrow never happens and you've gained 30 pounds back. Yes. With your itty bitty stomach, you have gained 30 pounds back. It can happen. Or worse, you gain it all back. That can happen too.
The reason I am writing this and being to harsh about it is that you are a person who is considering, or who has gone through a MAJOR life changing surgery. SO CHANGE YOUR LIFE!!!! Be vigilant. come out of that honeymoon with your armor on! You WILL stop losing at one point and your body will begin to fight you as mine has. The diet my surgeon gave me no longer works at this point in the game, as my metabolism is stuck in cold molasses and it has taken a personal trainer/dietitian to get it moving again, and it is majorly hard work and painful and distasteful at times, but I have another 100 lbs to lose AFTER the 30 lb regain is gone.
​Have somebody close to you hold you accountable for exercising and eating right. Splatter it all over Facebook if you have to (I did) so you'll have MANY people holding you accountable! Do what you have to do to reach your goal. Don't settle for less and don't eat crap. And don't think that surgery is the final solution. It's a tool that will get you halfway there. The rest is up to YOU and no one else. Thank you. That is all.

Hello All
To cut a very long story short;
My surgery was performed on the 20th Feb 2014 and I was to have a Gastric Bypass. My surgeon found issues which would prevent the Bypass, therefore he chose to perform a Sleeve instead...I was devastated when I found out, so disappointed!
Now, I am over the moon, i love my sleeve! I am 47 lbs down - long way to go, but bring it on.
Good luck to you all.
Nobby

What a difference a year makes! I desperately wanted to be a different person and I completely changed my life. If I can do this, anyone can! You can read more about my journey on my blog http://fatgirldivesin.blogspot.com/
  

Hey there, guys and gals! How is everyone this lovely night? Today I am 3 and a half months post vsg and I am down...75 pounds! Starting weight was 220 and my current weight is 145. My first bigger goal was 150 pounds. My ending goal is between 120 and 130 pounds (I am 5'2"). So, I have 15 pounds left to lose until I reach 130 pounds and I will just see how I look and feel from there. I am ecstatic with the weight loss results so far!!! I do want to warn you guys (a little late now I am sure) that there are skin pictures involved LOL! I have a sports bra and pants on. I only put a few on here. I have more on my profile page, and I also, just last night, uploaded a progress video of a bunch of pictures. Feel free to check it out on youtube...the title is very long, so you can just access it by typing in "72 pounds down" in the search and my video should be first. My name is "FindingMyselfAsIDisappear". If not, then just stop by my profile for more pics. Here are a few "in progress" pictures! Good luck to everyone with your journey!!! And if anyone else wants to post a progess update, please feel free!!! I love seeing how everyone is progressing!!!

its been a little over 11 months since my sleeve surgery (march 19, 2013). yesterday I accomplished a goal that ive had since I was a teenager. im 50 years old now and just ran my first full 26.2 mile marathon! my goal was under 5 hours and I did it in 4 hours 51 minutes. ive been running ever since I started exercising after surgery and when I first started I couldn't run for more than 1 minute! after running a few 13.1 mile half marathons i started training 5 months ago for a full 26.2 mile marathon and now I can finally check that off my bucket list. today im at my lowest weight ever at 180.25 pounds. for the last 20 years before surgery I was always around 300 pounds. im so grateful for this surgery, but the truth is that if you don't use the surgery as a tool along with good food choices and exercise, it will be hard to achieve your long term goals. the surgery alone may have lost me 60 pounds, but believe me, the last 60 pounds is because of me using my new sleeve as part of an entire life style change that includes eating healthy, knowing when to say no when my sleeve is satisfied (not bursting) and dedicating myself to exercise 4x a week even when I don't feel like doing it. I never thought I would be a success story as that always happened to someone else, not me....well now its me and it can be you too! best of luck to everyone, post pre-surgery and post-surgery. just remember to stop making excuses and start making the changes to guarantee yourself success.
   

Hello muppie91
I started at 362. My surgery weight on 12/23 was 322. Currently I am at 276, down 86 pounds so far.

We have the same starting weight!
I was 362 on April 3 2013 day of surgery. Today I am 218 so 144 down. My highest ever was 418 though and that puts me at 200 down from that as of today!!!

"No matter what anyone says to you or what comments any one makes I want you to know that I'm really proud of you for getting your stomach surgery. "
I just received that in a text from my 17 year old daughter, Jolie. Yeah. It made me cry.
All I'd told her was that I was gonna get a Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy and hopefully it would allow me to lose enough weight that some of the pressure on my spine would be eased.
We used to go cross country 3 miles a day. Rain or shine. As a family. Then I had my injury, gained 150 pounds because I was sedentary and fed my emotions to "feel better".
She's apparently watched several documentary type videos on the surgery and educated herself very well. I honestly thought the less she knew, the easier it would be on her. Not the case. I feel like I really dropped the ball by not going into greater detail with her on my surgery, but it's ok because she picked that ball up and dribbled it all the way to the basket by herself.
Then she said there was one lady named Melissa who was so worried that after weightloss surgery her family would be judgmental, she was 600 pounds and had "only" lost 200. She thought they wouldn't tell much of a difference and be critical of her even getting the surgery. When her family first saw her the burst out in tears of joy. That was the first time they'd seen her able to even walk that far.
She said "if Melissa can do this then so can you. You got this".
February 18th is my day and she's right. I got this.
April

Congrats...you look great!