Indigo1991

After over 2 months of steadily losing hair, washing it today I realised that single strands were coming out, not little groups of hair. It wasn't blocking the bath and when I brushed it out, there was way less hair coming out... I know, that was today and tomorrow might see more hair loss. But I will take every little victory and today, I am smiling :-))))))

Oh I so get where you are with your meds. I took years to tell people about my arthritis because I didn't see myself as an ill person and didnt want others to view me like that. Stupid, huh? Once people realised how bad it was, my life got easier because people understood why things were happening, why I was exhausted, why I couldn't stand for long periods, why I couldn't walk any distance andI got the support I actually needed. Glad you took the shot - it takes nothing away from you being a strong, courageous woman, you are still the same just now not in pain :-))))) So much has happened to me in recent years, I am not sure I have any self-destruct traits left - I think for the first time in 52 years I like me, respect myself for coming through some tough times and finally feel able to be who I am, warts and all...

Woohoo! Well done, you deserve to be successful. Now for your next goal - banish the word "only" from your vocabulary!!!! You haven't lost "only" 30lbs - you lost 30lbs that ain't coming back. Here's to the next 30lbs :-))))))

Lol, it makes complete sense! I had a set of clothes that I relied on to make me look presentable and feel comfortable. But trust me, by the time you get to next winter, you will be glad to see the back of these old friends. I was sleeved at the end of April and I am 5 sizes down since then.... so think you can safely say you will get your wish not to have your capris resized Good luck come the time for your surgery. In the meantime, it's great visualising how life will be post sleeve. For me, the reality is even better than anything I imagined I terms of my health and how I look. Hope it's the same for you!

Laura-ven is right, talking to the right counsellor might be the best place to start for you. There's so much you raise in your post that you may need to address before surgery. The sleeve helps us lose weight but its not a sticking plaster for our issues. The mind is a powerful tool. It can work for you - or against you. Getting some support to sort out what's in your head, rather than reaching for antidepressants in order to cope, might let you get to the bottom of your anxiety around the sleeve and other matters. But good for you posting this - being aware that there's a problem and recognising that it needs to be dealt with is the right place to start rather than rushing headlong into surgery and possibly creating a bigger problem. Good luck ....

At 5 months out, I can eat most things (except what's on my forbidden list - alcohol, gassy liquids) but choose not to eat certain things such as rice, bread etc. I still find that if I forget to really chew food fully, it can be uncomfortable but that's my fault, not the food's. For me, it's not so much about what I eat, it's about how I eat and mindful eating certainly helps avoid discomfort.

Beautiful dress - beautiful girl! Congratulations, your husband to be will bursting with pride when he sees you on the day :-)

OP, great thread and other posters, great advice that I am going to hang on to. There are a few quotes that have helped me to keep a perspective on life including this one: "I have had a lot of worries in my life, most of which have never happened" Mark Twain How true! And the older I get, the more I realise that being positive or negative is down to me and how I react to what life throws at me. It takes the same amount of energy either way...

My nut - here we call them dieticians - is a tall, slim, healthy looking guy. But years ago, apparently he was morbidly obese and reduced his weight through good nutrition and exercise, things he still lives by today. I was reassured by his professionalism but I also knew that he had been where I was but made no judgment on how I chose to resolve the issue for me. That might have been a problem if I had felt otherwise... We don't know the backstory to the people who help us, it all comes down to whether you believe in their professional competence. If this has impacted on your confidence in her, you need to tackle this - otherwise, take her advice and focus on you :-)

Beccakatherine, one thing at a time, lol. As Arts137 says, focus on urself and everything will follow as it should. Don't give anyone the power to mess with your mind - but so what if someone who you were invisible to before suddenly sees you? Does that make them a bad person? No, it just makes them human, maybe ill informed, maybe shallow but don't rush to judgment - we have all had that experience when fat, being judged for the wrong reasons, but two wrongs don't make it right. Anyway, if someone does that, you can choose not to have a relationship with them. But don't start on your new life by setting false standards based on how you felt in your old life. Trust me, you will change, your attitudes will change. I am more than twice your age and, yes, I have found some guys now interested in me who wouldn't have looked at the ground I was standing on before. In the early days of weightloss, i was probably grateful to be noticed. But now, as my confidence has grown, I smile and think what a shame it is that they won't get the chance to get to know me !!! Good luck, relax, a great life is heading your way and I bet there will be more to it than guys :-)

Yup looks perfect!

Oh yes! What to do is not to panic. Stick with getting your protein and fluids in, along with exercise. Keep doing what you are meant to and don't get down about it - your stall will eventually break. I had a stall that went on for a few weeks, I kept going and eventually the scale plummeted! Good luck....

Me, me, me, this has been happening to me too!!! I have been give exercises by a trainer that are Pilates based to build muscle tone in my behind to try to replace a bit of the fat I lost and give me a cushion. But relieved to hear its not just me :-)

Ok keke and others, time to change the mindset, people. If you set your mind to "fail" it is so easy for that to become a self fulfilling prophecy. You made a great decision to get sleeved, you are giving yourself the best chance to get healthy and slim. But in the same way you couldn't lose weight without a sleeve, your sleeve can't lost weight without you doing your bit. Protein, fluids and exercise. Do what you have been asked to do and your sleeve will work with you to achieve your goals. Don't start out with failure at the front of your mind - think "fresh start" and the chance to get things right. There will be bumps on the road but you have done well so far. Focus on that and banish the thought of failure.... Good luck :-))))

It is strange that there is a whole range of comment that accompanies each stage in our weight loss. My pet hate was the "you've lost weight, it can see it off your face" when I had lost over 20lbs - I must have had quite a feckin' fat face, lol. Then we moved to "you are looking well - not that you didn't before, but you know what I mean..." Yes I do - u thought I was a sick looking heffalump but didn't care enough to say anything to me.... Then it was the "ooh, you are a little thing/skinny Minnie/disappearing before our eyes" line. Yes but I am still technically overweight at 3/4 points off the top end of my BMI. Now it's "are you sure you need to lose any more/be careful not to overdo it." More of that when I was out tonight. But I am still overweight and not yet within my BMI range. I may look like a yogurt, but I wobble like a jelly.... So like other posters, I keep focused on what I am doing because it's all about my health, no one else's. but I think I am going to have to grin and bear it cos next shock will be the boob job I am having - and that's going to make me look different again. And everyone will have an opinion. But it is all worth it, lol!!!!!!!

Biotin certainly thickens the hair u have and helps with the re growth - but nothing stops the hair loss if its going to happen. If there was something we could all take to prevent it, the ad men would have ads on every page of this site - and I would be at the front of the queue buying ;/)

I couldn't do straight water, it's actually difficult for your "new" stomach to cope with. Put a drop of something in it ( I put a dash of sugar free squash) and it goes down easier. Room temp liquids also seem easy to drink too. As Irs says, there lots of things that count as liquids - use them all!

Practise sipping in advance - it's what will get you through the first few weeks with your liquids. I thought I knew how to do that but when it came to it, I hadn't appreciated how little a sip is until I had a tiny stomach

Yes, this too shall pass! That's been my mantra through this whole process and it is true. You are doing well for just a few days out and these are the toughest. There may be other challenges ahead but these don't usually happen against the backdrop of major surgery Stick with sipping your fluids, the pain will ease and the fog will clear. Your health will improve and your weight loss will kick in. You are at the start of an exciting journey - I had a few weepy moments in the early days but five months out I wouldn't change any of it. Good luck !!!

The awkwardness will decrease but do what you are comfortable with. I tell some people but not others. Not out of embarrassment or shame but because I wouldn't share any other personal info with them - so why this? There's no right or wrong way to tackle this - only you know what's best for you. What works for one person doesn't always work for others. You've taken charge of your life having surgery, what you say about it is up to you and you alone. Congratulations on your weight loss... Time to relax and enjoy the compliments heading your way!

You are doing great for three days post op! More of the same and keep trying to get your Water in - maybe add a little dash of something to it to make it go down easier - neat water is actually hard to drink with a new stomach. I'm not in the US, so other posters will be able to tell you what they used. But hang in there, it does get better :-) - and congratulations

At the moment, might help more to focus on your Protein and Fluid intake as both can affect the rate you lose weight. When my weight loss stalled, I kept doing what I was doing and on alternate days ate more protein and drank more fluid, eventually my stall broke. Since I was sleeved, I haven't counted a calorie. For me, that's the old behaviour that got me into trouble. I now look at eating the right amount of good quality protein every day, as advised by my nut, and drinking the right amount of fluid. Sounds boring - but that works for me. Calories only tell you the calorific value of the food you eat - they don't tell you if it is the right kind of food... Just my view.... :-)

Ps if there was a way to avoid hair loss after surgery there would be products on the market for it. There aren't any, just things to cover up the loss and help the hair as it regrows. Please be realistic about hair loss - it may not happen to you, it may be slight or it may be significant. But it isn't your fault whichever way it pans out, so don't beat yourself up...

It's the surgery that causes it and you can't avoid it, although the amount people lose ranges from negligible to a fair amount. But good food and Vitamins mean that when your hair starts coming back in, it's strong and healthy. Mine's been falling out for a couple of months now. Yes, I don't like it but there's no such thing as a free lunch - if my hair has to be sacrificed for the greater good, so be it :-) This may sound a bit odd, but I thank the hairs as they go down the plug every time I shampoo... Makes me feel a bit more positive rather than sad... You can laugh now I have been using Toppick, which is a very fine keratin powder (order on line from the company). You can buy a puffer to put it in and then you puff it into the areas of hair you think look thin. Won't blow out or get affected by rain. It has made me feel normal again because if I can't see where my hair is a bit thinner, neither can anyone else. As ever, this too will pass - and anyway, stressing will just make it worse so I just keep breathing and focusing on the bigger picture. Good luck all!

Feeling the bones my backside if I sit too long!!,