MichiganChic

I-O! LOL, I've never said that before! But, I live on the Michigan/Ohio border and work in Ohio, so I see and hear it a LOT! Glad you got a laugh from my post. But it is quite a strange phenomenon that so many of us who are fully grounded in reality find this same issue. I always say I've had worse problems, though! I have to remind myself that it's more than a pass/fail or win/lose situation. Incremental, partial, and ongoing steps in the right direction are part of our success.

Beth, I am feeling for you! You might not be ready for work since you are feeling so light headed. You don't want to pass out, fall and hit your head. How many weeks ago was your surgery? Those seromas are miserable. I've read that they are as common as 35-40% in surgeries like this. Mine encapsulated, so that's making matters worse for me. I had a couple of open areas after my lower body lift that were slow to heal, and one in back that split. They left red wide scars. However, even with the minor complications and all the scars, I still think it was worth it! I hope you feel better soon!

I know the feeling. I thought every pound I lost would be my last. lost about 140 pounds, so I'd say don't stress too much. It didn't help me at all and I still lost the weight.

LOL. we are soul sisters. I can see the change in myself, but have had a hard time assimilating what I see, too. I also wonder if I am being too hard on myself to get to a normal BMI. Or maybe I'm being too easy on myself to take the easy way out, so I can stop fighting to get to a weight that seems unattainable. Do I look fat? Blah, blah, blah, on and on the loop has gone in my head. So, to answer your fundamental question, does it ever go away? I think it depends on you. We are in charge of our own happiness and thoughts and actions. In the past week or two, I am starting make peace with it. I know that a size 8/10 and sm/med is not fat. I have just had to come grips with the fact that the number on the scale is just an indicator to monitor over time, to show a trend. It's not the be all, end all to determine success. I'm healthy and not taking any meds, (other than vitamins) and I'm feeling great. I have a great wardrobe, can shop anywhere I want, and I'm smaller than the average American woman. I am a success.

I'm still with you, girls. Just not fasting for the moment. Just as soon as these surgical spots are healed, I'm coming back Keep up the good work. And really, in what life time were we EVER able to eat 600-700 calories? That's success! Perfection is a myth, I'm sure.

I don't have this issue, but I'd say don't despair yet. As you lose weight, your blood sugar could normalize.

Aleve has always been an NSAID. Better take a look at the list of drugs to avoid.

I chose the sleeve because I wanted to be able to take NSAIDS and steroids if I ever need them. I wanted to avoid dumping that can be common with bypass. I didn't want malabsorption associated with bypass. I also had a BMI over 50, and I'm a grazer. Both of things would have made bypass a better option for me, but the benefits of the sleeve were worth it to me. I can't seem to get the last 10 pounds off, and sometimes I wonder if I would have with bypass, but I'm still not sorry I chose the sleeve.

I wanted to be able to take NSAIDS, and to avoid malabsorption. I wanted to restrict my intake, but not be sick (dumping) if I ate something sweet. At two years out, it was a good choice for me.

There is no guarantee either or any procedure will result in weight loss, short or long term. Agreed, there is not long term data about the sleeve, and RNY is still the gold standard in WLS. However, there is data to support it's effective as a stand alone procedure. I chose the sleeve because I knew I'd need NSAIDS and I didn't want to deal with the malabsorption issues. I've never been sorry I did, either. I've lost about 95% of my excess weight and kept it off for a year. That's better than I've ever done before. There is no way to know how much you'll lose - That's largely up to you.

What is your height and weight? Your head might be screaming it's crazy for good reason. Know way to know without more detail.

I really think there is nothing we can do to prevent it all together. I do think there are things we can do to encourage regrowth, and that includes adequate Protein intake and Vitamins. I started losing at 4-5 months post op, and at 12 months post op I looked very thin. It started growing back, slowly after that, and by 2 years post op it's mostly all back. I had a lot of weight to lose and it took more than a year, so I kept my calories very low all that time which I think contributed to the slow return of regrowth. My hair didn't start looking better until I got my calories over 1000 for a while.

I'm tboosrn on fitbit. I'm not much of a challenge to beat, though!

I've lost about 140 with the sleeve, or around 95% of my excess weight, depending on end goal. I think it is possible to lose massive amounts. I'd like to lose another 10, but can't seem to get it off. Sometimes I think if had RNY I might be able to get it off easier, but there is no way to know. Either way, I'm thrilled, and I'm not sad I chose the sleeve.

I imagine it's swelling, and will subside. It sure is hard to wait for the end result when we are looking at what appears to be less than perfect results. I decided I can't ever go out in public naked

I've been at the last 10 pounds for about 10 months. I'm not sure it's ever going to come off. I'm getting to the point where I'm thinking about adjusting my goal. Everyone, including 3 physicians, have told me I am not and do not look overweight. That number on the scale may or may not be the thing to strive for in every case....

FYE, I feel your pain. One that occurs to me when I'm eating so little and bouncing/maintaining is that if I didn't have those fast days, I'd be gaining! I also think that sometimes our bodies do not behave predictably.

Better check the definition of plateau, and adjust your expectations. If you expect to lose a pound a day, you are most certainly going to be disappointed. WLS is not a magic guarantee of steady and rapid weight loss. As time goes on, you'll learn how your body releases weight - but a human body can only lose so fast. Thinking that losing 3 pounds in 5 days is slow, a stall, or a plateau is only going to frustrate you. You're doing great - you'll see!

Going back to work is challenging. I'm an RN, and I remember the days people were off 6 weeks or more for this type of surgery. I was off about 2 weeks post surgery, then worked remotely for a week, and was back in the office at about 4. Each time I felt like I could use a couple more weeks. I think we take this stuff a little lighter than we should, sometimes. I'm a director for information systems for a large health care corporation and just can't be away that long, but it was hard to go back. I know it contributes to the swelling. After I had those seromas removed last week, I went back the next day, but in reality, should have probably worked remotely for a couple of days to stay off my feet and prevent recurrence. If they come back, I'm going to be upset!

The first couple of weeks I actually looked heavier. I wasn't prepared for that at all. But after the first 6-8 weeks, I was looking pretty good. By three months, my belly and arms looked great.

Some people do lose. I agree, it defies common sense. In my case, I know some of it water weight filling the spaces where the fat was. However, my measurements are smaller and my clothes are looser. Still happy I did it.

@@CowgirlJane LOL! I am willing to lie to myself just a little to get to goal...I never thought about adjusting the scale! It would be a little like how I set my clocks ahead to prevent being late! I have a confession - I'm actually 5'3.5" - not 5'4". I rounded up to be able to weigh more, getting me closer to a normal BMI. I might be closer to 5'3', haha. You are right about the scale revelation. I seriously think I'm just coming to grips with that concept in the past couple of weeks. I will never stop weighing every day, but at this point, the relevance is just to make sure I am within a few pounds of this weight.

That's so great that you are happy with your results! I was surprised my muscles were separated - I already had a super flat belly, minus the extra skin on my lower belly. It's been 5 months and I'm still sore. Your comment about nit-picking struck home with me - I always have to remind myself not to! Another thing I'm learning is that even with all that plastic surgery, most of us will never have perfect bodies. It's all about realistic expectations and remembering we were far from perfect before. Not sure why, but I don't think I had an expectation of perfect, but I'm almost more critical of my body than I was before.

Georgia, 4 1/2 pounds is great! I wish I could say the same, but I'm just going up and down the same 3 or 4 pounds all the time. I love nuts too - I buy the cashews at costco. Love those! I had to measure them out into one ounce bags to prevent myself from eating too many. So, yep, it's the weekend. My struggle always goes up a notch or two. I have to try to not undo all the hard work from the week. Have a great weekend!

Mine got a little better with time, but never went away fully. I'm 52, was obese 25 years, so I'm not expecting any further improvement.