MichiganChic

Great job, congrats! Such a great feeling to realize success!

Good thread. I always sit on the fence about labeling myself an addict, but whatever you call it (or don't call it) the behaviors were destructive enough to allow me to get up to 300 pounds. I used to say cake is like crack to me, and it still is. I weighed 140 pounds when I met my husband, and he enabled me to gain that weight. He would offer and go get whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted it. Now he enables me to lose weight by not doing that, and encouraging me every day to stay on track. I never blamed him for my weight gain - that was all on me. He couldn't stop me from gaining now if I wanted to. So I know I have to monitor myself and my habits and intake all day, every day, forever. I'm not perfect, and don't even care to be, but at least I know what I'm consuming. If I had to point to just one thing that I've learned and feel has contributed to my success so far, I would say that it is tracking and being honest with myself about what I eat - ALWAYS. Even when I don't want to, and even when I've eaten too much, I force myself to face it.

I like Moscato wine, but rarely drink. I wasn't much of a drinker before surgery, and even less so, now. The few times I've had a drink, I didn't even finish it, though I don't think it made me tipsy or drunk in any way. Probably a good thing I'm not into it, because I'd be drinking a lot of it, lol.

Great job! What a great feeling!

I was on full liquids for 17 days post op. It was rough, but I felt a sense of accomplishment for sticking to it. It gave me the confidence and courage to continue to make good choices. Success begets success...with weight loss, that was new feeling for me! I suggest you follow your docs plan, whatever it is. If you have identified you are making bad choices, I suspect you might know what good ones are You can do this!

Probably a whole lot of plastics.....

I'm 51, and up until 5-10 pounds ago, I think I've been looking better - neither younger or older. However, my neck is really looking bad, so I think that makes me look older. The only fix for that is a knife, and I'm going to have something done. In the past 5-10 pounds, I've been starting to think I look like what I call a "weight-loss victim". Slightly deeper labial nasal folds, marionette lines around the mouth, and fine wrinkles around my eyes. I had botox this week for those fine lines, and I think I'll be getting fillers for the mouth and nose. So, I guess that's a really long answer to the question - I look older than I want to, so I feel the need to intervene, lol. But even if I didn't have anything done, I still think I look better than before

Hi Everyone, good to see this thread still going, too. I just hit 125 lost, and still have about 20-35 to go. Not sure where I want to end up yet, but as long as I hit 160, I'll be satisfied. I think I look thinner at 180 now than I did when I was 25. IDK. I too have days where I am hungrier than others, and I can eat more than the 1/2 cup they want me to, though I try not to. I do keep my calories around 800-900, and though my weight loss slowed, it's still coming off. I plan to stay with this plan until I'm at goal, whatever that might be.

It is sooooo easy to gain weight. It's how we all got here to start with. I did it by ignoring the scale, ignoring the need to go up a size all the time, and not sticking with any weight reduction plan for the long haul. So now I KNOW the key to success for ME is diligence. I have to log every bite, even when I hate to admit to myself what I ate, and I weigh daily and record it. It can and will get away from me if I let it. I'd be delusional if I thought I had this beat enough to just watch what I eat and make sure my clothes aren't too tight. The only way for me to beat it is to aggressively manage it. I like the outcome and so it works for me. It's my new life, and I've accepted it. I only hope I can always stick with it - I know myself well enough to know that's where the challenge is!

Well done, and well said. Congrats on your new life, you look fantastic!

I love oreos. I haven't had one in 10 months, and wasn't thinking about one until now! I always said cake and cookies are like crack to me. I'm going to have suppress this vision of a fresh bag of oreos and a gallon of whole milk. Sigh. I remember those days....

Like the others said, they didn't mean wide awake to be extubated. In this case, awake = breathing on your own. I've been a recovery room nurse and have extubated lots of people. The tube comes out as soon as you start to arouse and demonstrate you can breath independently and are not tolerating the tube. You still have enough amnesic drugs on board that it's not likely you would even remember that. I never had a patient say anything about it when they actually woke up.

I love this thread and posted to it a long time ago, but have some recent confessions! 1) I love shopping for clothes. 2) I'm shocked at the sizes I can wear 3) I'm shocked at how fast my clothes become too big 4) I'm still pissed that my weight loss has slowed down because as much as I enjoy shopping and getting new clothes because what I have is too big, I do want to get to goal so I can be a stable weight. I always feel like I have nothing to wear because I constantly need to replace things. 5) I lost at least a shoe size, so I have to replace all of them, too. Of course, I always need a new purse to go with everything else! 6) I promise, I do think about things other than shopping.

Way too soon to be frustrated, plenty of time for that We've all been there, and I understand that it just can't come off fast enough! But it's normal to gain a little in the beginning, it's just water weight from the insult to your body from the surgery. Just follow your plan and the scale will drop. And - it's normal to not lose at all for periods of time, and it's normal to see a big drop for no apparent reason. Weight just doesn't come of in a predictable way, but I do think your body is shifting and adjusting all the time. Good luck.

No dumping.

You deserve to be happy and healthy. As the others have said, it is a life style change, and the best advice I can give you is to not underestimate that. I'm and old woman with kids your age, and I think it took me a lifetime to really grasp that concept. The sleeve helped me realize that the choices I make every day, every time, impact the overall outcome. It might mean making new friends, going to different places, getting new hobbies. and of course, you will need to change your eating habits. The nice thing is that as you lose weight, you will gain the confidence to do all of those things! Good luck!

Yeah, shapers do a great job of smoothing bumps (saddle bags, in my case) but they do distort my shape. I'm more wide with flat abdomen, and when I put on a shaper, I become more round. It squishes all the loose skin and hanging fat into places it doesn't usually belong. Depending on what clothes I put on over it, it might look better or worse. I've found that a pair of control panty hose does the job for me most of the time without being wildly uncomfortable.

I want to wear things that are much different than my "fat" clothes. I tended to always wear a jacket or sweater set to work, because I felt like layer "hid" my big ass. Like any type of clothes could actually hide 300 pounds, lol! I'm already making a conscious effort to dress a little different. I still have a pretty big behind, but no where near as bad. I'm on my third or fourth wardrobe, and I have to really prevent myself from buying sweater sets. I wear belts now, fitted clothes, and I never buy anything boxy. I love that I can shop for clothes at regular size shops, and it's official, I'm too small for Lane Bryant and other plus size clothes! It was a long time coming, but it is such a great feeling

My husband of nearly 30 years has actually expressed this once or twice, but only early on. He went to the seminar with me, where they gave the statistics of increased divorce rates after WLS. He was also a huge feeder. If I wanted some absurd food item at any time of night or day, he would actually run and get it for me, lol. I am spoiled. I was 145 when I met him, and while I think this behavior contributed to my weight gain, I blame no one but myself. But, since surgery, he understood my goals, and has been very supportive. He stopped offering food, and doesn't bring much of it in the house. He can eat anything and everything, and will try not to do it in front of me. Anyway, I do think it's a rational fear, given the statistics. If you have a solid marriage, he will quickly learn it's not a risk in your circumstance.

I really, really want the Vitamix, too! I'm mesmerized by it every weekend at Costco....I'm debating on whether or not I would get the good out of it. I am probably NEVER eating kale, but I would drink it

You look wonderful, and so so happy! Congratulations

How many calories? They sound dangerous, but I'm thinking about taking a walk on the wild side Where do you get them?

Sounds like a good problem to have

I would NOT have a surgery I was certain I would regret, unequivocally. I considered WLS for 20 years before I had it. I was pretty sure I could lose weight if only I just tried harder. I'm a registered nurse, brought up in the world of science, and thought I knew everything there was to know about dieting and weight loss. I even knew the statistics about the dismal failure rates, but I thought I could/should overcome that brutal reality. So, while I dieted, lost some weight, gained some more, I went to several surgeons over the years, even went so far as to have the pre-op testing completed, and always backed out. At the time, RNY was the only option, and I just couldn't get on board with the malabsorption thing (and still can't). So, I thought I might regret it, and I never went through with it. Once I learned of VSG, I KNEW it would be the right decision for me, and I have not regretted it. Lots of people say their only regret is not doing it sooner, and while I do wish I had this option 20 years ago, I do not regret having a surgery I knew I would regret.

You will be - it will happen before you know it! I can't believe how fast it's gone!