Donna4545

I play Diablo II: Lords of Destruction, where I have a level 75 Sorc and a level 17 zon. I play irregularly, but would love to partner up with anyone who plays on USEast realm.

I think that sometimes we choose the WLS closet (and the LBGT closet) to protect ourselves, and we do it for a good reason. We simply don't have the emotional energy to deal with other people's ignorance. And at work, if they act towards us based on that ignorance, we might miss opportunities or otherwise suffer from office gossip, from the perception that we are weak, and therefore less than competent--not a good way to be thought of at work. Some people DO have the emotional energy to be WLS advocates in their workplace and personal/community lives. That's great! But I am not one of those people. And if I am not comfortable with it, I'm going to be miserable faking the enthusiasm and energy I don't really have. So let the born activists do their thing; for the rest of us there is no shame in the WLS closet--it's just another survival strategy.

My written instructions say "Limit alcohol", which I do. I figure the calories into my food log. I didn't become a lightweight after surgery, though. I drink low cal white wine. Red didn't taste right post-op--at least not yet.

Welcome! I hope your surgery recovery is going well.

Wow that is amazing--I wish I had results like that!

Wow, you look great--the haircut is very becoming. Thanks for the inspiration!

For 5 weeks I was perfect and did everything by the book.Now that I'm back at work, I'm finding it hard to do everything right (I do get fluids) and I'm HUNGRY! Help! I'm relying on protein drinks too much (too tired to cook after work), I'm not exercising (because I need to get to work in the morning). I'm having a hard time getting my butt into gear. I even had one really bad day when I had 1,200 calories. (averaging 800 otherwise though). I seem to have lost my motivation and I don't know where to find it!

Well this morning I'm magically down almost 3 lbs. I am going to throw the scale out the window and go back to a sane life.

I have a card but I doubt I will ever use it.

I am being driven insane by the scale. This morning, magically, 290.6 after a week of fluctuation between 292 and 293.6. Will it stay down tomorrow? Arrgghh! If I could scream without scaring the neighbors, I would.

I am being driven insane by the scale. This morning, magically, 290.6 after a week of fluctuation between 292 and 293.6. Will it stay down tomorrow? Arrgghh! If I could scream without scaring the neighbors, I would.

haha! no it's just you and me lol--everyone else is losing just fine

I'm also in an educational setting and this is the 2nd week of classes and I am so busy (I know, excuse) that I haven't exercised at all. It's all I can do to get to work in the morning, and to get my fluids in. Oh the self-hate!

I didn't "weigh in" here--see the ticker for the dastardly starting BMI of 51 and pre-pre-op diet weight of 331. I've got 150 or more lbs to lose. I must confess when I see people getting the surgery to lose 40 or 50 lbs it kind of pisses me off. I know it's not rational, I know it's not kind, and there's nothing personal against the people--but the truth is that I get this pissed-off feeling about it. I can't even articulate why. Maybe because I was told by insurance companies that I didn't qualify so many times and it doesn't seem fair that they did (I realize they might self pay). Dunno, guess I'm a head case lol.

That's ok. People will find it.

Coffee makes you pee so I wouldn't count it, or milk, but tea yes, anything made with water, in general, yes I would count it.

Try these things: Always have crystal lite, tea or Water in your hand. Drink 64 oz a day No or very little Pasta, rice, bread, potatoes At least 60 grams of lean Protein a day (some can be from a Protein shake with less than 5 grams carb and sugar per serving) Exercise--it curbs appetite Don't eat in front of the TV Pay attention to portions Don't buy junk food at all and no fast food Never go grocery shopping when you're hungry Eat 3 meals a day with protein Snacks in between (but don't graze all day) Get a good night's sleep Take a Multivitamin every day Avoid coffee and alcohol (stimulates appetite) See my blog (link below) for some pre-op tips. If you blow it one day, start fresh in the morning and move on. It's a new day.

My GP told me that some people's livers just make more (or less) cholesterol no matter what they eat, that it's genetic.

I am right there with you. I have lost 21 lbs in 6 weeks and it just seems to take forever. This week the scale goes from 292-293.6 and back for no apparent reason--but it looks like no loss this week and maybe even a completely inexplicable gain of 1.6 lbs. I've heard people say change your exercise, up your calories, up your Protein to shake the stall but I don't know. I am eating WAY less calories than I am burning by about 2,700 so how is it physically possible to plateau?!!

It took me 6 weeks post-op (just now) before hunger became adjusted and normal (for the sleeve anyway). Before that I would have trouble figuring out what was hunger and what was just rumbling. And I would get hungry while I was eating (weird!). At 4 weeks, I got really hungry a lot, like my body was giving its last struggle to get my attention. After that, it cleared up. That said, everybody is different.

I am 6 weeks out and I'm discouraged--I'm just not losing even though I'm following the rules. I thought this was supposed to be "the honeymoon period" where we lost weight easily! I've only lost 21 lbs since surgery--that's six weeks! 150 lbs or more to go (the nutritionist arbitrarily set my goal at the very top of the normal range for my ht and wt). This week the scale stays the same, or goes up a pound (292.0to 293.6) I feel like this isn't working.

Hard to digest fiber like celery, orange membranes, fruit and vegetable peels, fresh coconut.

I think you're doing amazing under the conditions that you have to work with. Keep the faith! If there's anything you need that's mail-able (protein powder?) let me know and I'll send it to you! Donna

I was just cleared for a normal diet when I had to go to the east coast for a conference. I took GoTein for being stuck in airports and on the plane (single serving, good stats, mix with water). Otherwise I ate restaurant food and had a ton of leftovers. I brought Protein powder so I could have a Breakfast in my hotel room (brought a shaker bottle and mixed it with unsweetened Starbucks iced coffee I got in the hotel lobby). Eating in restaurants wasn't hard (I just picked whatever protein wasn't fried/breaded). Keeping the Water bottle filled was the biggest challenge. I gained 2 lbs on my trip, I think it was travel itself, PMS water retention, and restaurant food--but once I came home and got back on track it came right back off. I think learning how to travel with VSG is going to be something I perfect over time.

See the archives in my blog (link below) for what I did for Pureed, Mushies, Softs. It's mostly real simple stuff because I didn't feel like cooking. Also, pureed canned chicken is better than it sounds lol. Add a little lowfat mayo and some celery seed--woo!