princesstia

I'm 6 months out and 70 pounds down! pic here is at preop 3months and 6months out.

wow!!!

you look awesome!

congrats! wait til you get out of the 190s... it was a struggle for me but maaaan.. it felt good!

dont feel bad. i know exactly how you feel! Im six months post op and have lost 70 pounds but have seen the scale move up a total 7 pounds and am like is this really it?! super frustrating especially when you go into the surgery have high expectations. but just so you know.. you are doing fine. my doctor actually told me i was losing too fast and to try and intake more. 8-10 pounds a month is more than enough. Gives your body a chance to catch up to itself. dont worry. just know, as long as the scale is moving down, no matter how slow, its moving in the right direction!

Well unfortunately I'm writing today's blog with such an attitude. At 4 weeks out, I still can't even keep liquids down comfortably. I hate it! I was so stressed out and tired last night that I just got on my knees and prayed. I'm tired of crying, tired of the thirst (not hunger, but thirst!)... I'm sure when I get to my post op appointment I will be put on an IV for dehydration because I've taken in less than 20oz each day over the last week. I feel so unhealthy and can't even complain because I elected this. I'm sure this is PMS or one of those emotional stages we all go through.. But I definitely don't like it! On the other hand, I'm down 30 pounds. Here are my stats: HW: 256 SW: 247 Day I left surgery: 258 CW: 226 Not too bad considering all of my clothes are sagging but my body feels really jiggly so I know I have to get in the gym and do sme weight lifting but I vowed to not do anything until I can keep down a set number of calories... Keep me in your prayers for I know better days are just ahead!!!

I completely agree. I must admit that prior to surgery i would read posts about the awful 2 and 3 week post op issues and would silently conclude to myself... that isnt gonna happen to me lol.. serves me right... i was not exempt. But knowing that people have been through it and are doing 100 times better as the weeks progress is such a relief that this too shall pass!

This has been one hell of a ride. I've been both excited and depressed just the same. I am here to tell you weeks 2 and 3 are literally the hardest. At this point your tired of liquids, see a few stalls, and have all these thoughts that maybe, just maybe, this surgery isn't gonna work for you. And I'm telling you, I have felt all these things. On the plus side I did weigh in this morning and hit my one month post op goal 10days early!!! Yay for me!... Here are my stats: Starting weight: 256lbs Day of Surgery: 247lbs Day I left from Hospital: 258lbs 3 weeks post op: 230.2lbs I honestly didn't plan on seeing that weight until one month post op.. But 26 pounds down in the first 3 weeks with a stall in between.. I won't complain. Hope everyone is doing well as they recover, and for those considering the surgery: do your research! Know what to expect, and come to a point in your journey where you are ready for the rollercoaster because it is one hell of a ride!!!!! Tia

Believe me, I was!!

Excited but a little exhausted at the same time!!! Had surgery on December 20th and the first week was smooth sailing. Wasnt until about 12 days post op did I realize I had not had a bowel movement. I was in an all out panic and my surgeon was too. He ended up having me take some Miralax and Colace and this morning had my firt BM since surgery.. Glad that's over with! Stepped on the scale last night and was 235.6lbs!! Not much of a loss like in the first week, but I'll take every single pound. Starting Weight: 256 Day of Surgery: 247 Day Left Surgery: 258 1 Week Post Op: 241 2 Weeks Post Op: 235 total loss thus far: 21 pounds Not bad. Won't complain. But I think in this week I will begin taking my vitamins (and boy there are a lot!) and doing some cardio at the gym. So blessed to have gone through this process with little to no complications and even more blessed that I am on my way to a healthy new me! Happy losing all!

I know it gets better but the emotional roller coaster I've been actually living through the bad days does take a toll. Now I'm like ok I have no pain, no nausea, noncustodial reflux but will take one sip and burp and its back up. As for the energy I have tons for some reason though when I work out I can't even run for a full 15 minutes.. But no head hunger or anything, once I'm out and about food is the last thing on my mind...

Now I said when I started this whole journey that I would be completely honest with myself about life before and after the sleeve. Half of me is like yes!!! I did it! I'm On my way to a new life. The other half is like Tia wtf did you just do. Juice and sipping and vitamins forever? Was it that serious? I'm definitely having mixed emotions about this procedure at this point in m journey. I'm 10 days post op an have lost 20 pounds (22 pounds if you wanna count the day I left surgery at 2 pounds heavier than my starting weight)... Unfortunately I feel this is due to the fact that I haven't even gotten 10oz of liquid in a day since surgery and no protein. Everything I want my stomachs says no and spits it out. From broth to protein to Gatorade. I have this foamy spit that comes up by the loads. Looks like little gas bubbles in it and I'm not sure if this is my body's way of releasing gas or my body's way of saying nothing will stay down. So frustrating! I have found that the premier protein shakes are a bit more tolerable than any other protein shake but I can ony tolerate maybe an ounce an hour. If that! Also vitamin water is my best friend. It's the only thing that goes down and stays down. Minus a few burp ups I may have... Overall I guess the journey has been interesting but definitely one filled with so many emotions. Ups and downs on a daily basis. The few people that I've met in this forum have done wonders for getting me through the last week and I thank goodness I have this place to vent and release my thoughts. It'll take me literally 50 pounds to drop a dress size so at least I can hang onto all this fashion for a while. Other their than that I've been a trooper since about the second day post op. out and about shopping and hanging out. Went to a football game last night and getting ready to go roller skating this evening. Things will get better but my doc has me on liquids for a full 4 weeks s by the end of this ill probably never want to see or hear anything about soup again in my life. I thank god for the opportunity to get to my goal weight but I'm also saddened that this is all there will ever be! Looking forward to better days...

With less than 24 hours away from the big surgery, I find myself enthralled in all sorts of emotions. One moment I'm excited. The next I'm a little worried. The next I'm axious to get this over with.. And the next I'm flat out afraid. I've been up since 3am this morning. I just can't sleep.My mind is moving just too fast. I've been going back and forth to some major events in my life and trying to figure out what led me here.. Then 2 events pop in mind.. One when I was about 19 and was having an argument with one of my ex boyfriend's friends. He made a pass at me and I told my boyfriend at the time who addressed him about it. He was so upset with me he yelled "that's why your're a cheeseburger away from obese". I was soooo offended, like could he really have said that to me.. But then again, he was right. I had no come back. Then lastly I remember having an argument with an ex friend of mine at about 21 and boy was it a bad one. Not wanting to be defeated like I had in the previous argument, I was guns loaded. In a tit for tat I blurted out "that's why your ugly and you look like a gorilla". Not one of my proudest moments I'll admit. Very childish.. She responds "that's why your fat". Ouch! Another dagger to the heart about my weight. I replied "well I can fix my problem. But you sure can't fix ugly. All the surgery in the world won't help that face!"... Feeling like I had won that argument, my ego said otherwise and I was deeply saddened. What these two events made me realize is that the person I saw, was what the rest of the world was beginning to see. Someone who was moving fast towards a serious weight problem. My grandmother passed away on December 26, 2003 in her sleep for no apparent reason. She cooked Christmas dinner, played games with us all.. then never woke back up. The doctor's ruled it as congestive heart failure because it was the last pre-existing condition she had. But what I failed to mention was that she was just over 500 pounds and battled with sleep apnea. She use to snore really bad. When I would spend the night with her, the only way I knew she was breathing was when I heard that snoring.. But sometimes there would be long pauses in those snores and she'd begin gasping for breath. The morning of her death I arose to greet her good morning and while combing my hair in her vanity right next to her bed... I noticed, she hadn't been snoring. Then I looked at her arm and it was just hanging off the bed. I knew she had stopped breathing. I honestly believe she suffocated in her sleep and had she been 200-300 pounds lighter, I'd still have her to this very day. She died at only 52. Obesity is a genetic disadvantage in my family and I finally have an opportunity to overcome that. To live life the way it's supposed to be lived. This is something I can't pass on doing. I've prayed to God without ceasing about what I can do to get this weight off and in I stumble across a procedure I didn't even know existed. Literally walked in the clinic to inquire about a lap band and will be walking out tomorrow with a sleeve. God carved a perfectly laid path for me tomorrow. I had no hickups along the way, and have paid nothing out of pocket. Because I have really good health insurance, whatever they cover is all my surgeon says he will be receiving. It can't get any better than that. Aside for paying co pay on my perscriptions, I consider this a free procedure to help me get my life back. This is a gift from God! I am a living witness that if you remain in him and his words remain in you, you can ask for whatever you wish and it will be given unto you (John 15:7). I didn't know how he was gonna do it I just had faith and he did it! I cry as I write this moment because I will never see life through the same set of eyes again. My limits to a happy fulfilled life have just become endless. These are my tears... OF JOY!

Things are getting to crunch time and I have some major issues that have definitely been relived. First and foremost, I was afraid to have a drainage tube and catheter. I was able to ask my surgeon about this directly and he assured me I won't have either. He went on to explain that usually the tubes are for patients with much higher BMIs for safety reasons. Thank goodness. I am now at the home stretch. I know I am going to be kicking screaming on my way in there but dammit I'm going in there in less than 48 hours and I'm coming out a new woman. Pray for me everyone!

So I am only 4 days away from the biggest event in my whole 24 years of living and I am freaking out. I know this is normal I know this is normal, but I am so nervous at this point. I just don't want anything to go wrong. Finals are done, vacation is set to begin this Wednesday so I shouldn't have anything pressing. Liquid diet is getting on my nerves, but hey, it's just one of those things that you gotta do. So I'm a little irritated with that but I'm doing it. I'm down about 5 pounds from my starting weight so the scales didn't let me down at all. But I'm definitely getting rid of the scale as soon as surgery hits. I will not step on that thing until my post op appointments. I just don't want to overwhelm myself with trying to eat right and watch the scale drop pound by pound. I'll be ok I'm sure. Just panic. WOOOOOOSA! I'm ready.