Michellemo

This is the trick I use. Hold the camera at arms length in front of you and higher then your head. Point the camera down at yourself but don't hold your face up too high. Just use your eyes to look up. It will make you look slim, no double chin and years younger!

I have lost 144 pounds in 9.5 months with no exercise! I know I should start but damn I hate it. I really am going to start using my elliptical! Really I am! It's going to happen!

I have lost 144 pounds in 9.5 months with no exercise! I know I should start but damn I hate it. I really am going to start using my elliptical! Really I am! It's going to happen!

No regrets for me! Worth every penny!

Im 15 months out and working on not losing any more weight. Never thought I would have that problem!

This is the trick I use. Hold the camera at arms length in front of you and higher then your head. Point the camera down at yourself but don't hold your face up too high. Just use your eyes to look up. It will make you look slim, no double chin and years younger!

Here is one of my arm lift scars. Because of placement, nobody can really see them unless I left my arm and show them.

That's awesome! Had my tt 7 weeks ago and couldn't be happier! Good luck!

Okay, I see all these posts where people freak out because they ate something they shouldn't have. Yes, we are supposed to eat ALOT of Protein, which I do. And, we're supposed to drink lots of Water, which I try to do, we're not supposed to drink out of a straw, which I do, I haven't died or had any more pain than not, we're not supposed to eat bread, which I have a couple of times, it hasn't made me sick, if I have a craving for a cookie, I eat it. The bottom line is even if you slip and eat a little of something you're not supposed to , it's not going to ruin your life or end your results. The truth is you will never be able to sit and eat a whole bag of doritoes or a whole package of oreos again. You're stomach will not allow it. So don't freak out because you "slipped" a little, just realize you're human and you're losing weight no matter what.
Now for all you haters out there go ahead and blow me out of the Water with your drama, I know it's coming. ........lol

Good job )

I eat very few carbs and I feel so much better mentally and physically.

I get that all the time! Some are very nice and say you look great at this weight but I've had a couple say stuff like you need to put on some weight! So rude! Some people have no tact!

I lost all of my hair during chemo, this was nothing like that. It just got a bit thin. Now at nearly 2 years out it appears to be thickening a little, my soft waves are coming back.
Maybe that Fabio look is still within reach.

I get that all the time! Some are very nice and say you look great at this weight but I've had a couple say stuff like you need to put on some weight! So rude! Some people have no tact!

Called me a success today!!
I'm not at my goal but I guess I made some kind of goal for him because he said I'm good, that I look great to him!
my blood work is awesome (Well except that damn iron) I'm a success in his eyes
I know it's kindly corny, but it felt good.
I wanted a certain number going in there today and I didn't hit it and I have been down a bit about it..
It's a stupid number as was pointed out to me (thanks m2g) this morning and I'm going to take the victory lap for now and just keep trying to Work on myself.
Shameless selfie

Not me and I never will again!

Curious... Why do you ask people to pm you for this miracle? Why not share it with all?
And why have the sleeve if it works so good?

Congrats!

That's great! Congrats!

I never thought I would see 135 lbs again. Everyone says there is a bounce back and I was trying to get used to the idea since I could not seem to lose any of the weight I regained.
I've had really good success with the 5:2 way of eating. It helped me from grazing and snacking. I don't know why really, because I could have just given up and started grazing and snacking again. I was so sad though, that there were so many clothes that I loved that I coudn't wear anymore. So I followed the rules of the diet and slowly lost my 15 lb regain.
Now I know that even though I am in maintenance, I have to keep following the original rules of being sleeved. Protein first, veggies and only good carbs if there is room ( and there never is) Treats and Snacks need to be a rare thing not as part of my regular meal plan.< /p>
Thank God for the sleeve. I still have good restriction if I eat what I am supposed to eat and not chips and cookies!

My sleeve surgeon just did a gallbladder removal for me a couple weeks ago. I saw him today for follow-up and he chatted a bit about a bariatric surgeon conference he just attended in Sydney, AU. Just as background, my surgeon does mostly sleeves and the occasional bypass. He used to do a ton of bands but now only does the band if the patient insists. He still maintains a lot of bands.
He said that the band is way down in Australia and whole areas of the country have no band surgeons anymore. He also said that the re-operation rate (for all types of re-operation) is as high as 40% with the band. He said that the band has a lot of potential points of failure, including that the port can flip, the needle can puncture the band during a fill and cause a leak, or lots of other ways that are not really direct failures of the band. He seems pretty down on the band now but wants to give his existing band patients the highest standard of care.
He also confirmed that Allergan has sold the lap band to another company, Apollo Endosurgery. I googled that and found a story in the Wall Street Journal. http://m.asia.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303471004579165961441181356?mobile=y
He said that the sleeve is gaining massive popularity because of the low complication rate, high success rate, and that they are starting to feel really confident about the long term prospects of the sleeve, starting to see some patients with more than 10 years sleeved. He said that the sleeve may stretch 3-5% over time but then it stops. He said it is like taking a t-shirt and cutting off a sleeve. You can stretch the sleeve but it will never be nearly as big as the shirt.
The bypass is going to be around a long time and is still very well regarded. It is the #1 choice for people with reflux or bowel diseases and it is the best salvage surgery for people who have reflux problems after the sleeve.
The DS is very uncommon these days because the sleeve works so well on its own.
This is my surgeon's summary to me about the state of bariatric surgery in Australia today from the point of view of the surgeons.

Hi,
I'm nearly 3 years post surgery. I never did hit my final goal weight, but honestly I am cool with that, as I've lost over 80 lbs. and now wear "normal" size clothes (size 10P). I have had some issues with maintenance. My weight definitely fluctuates over the course of a year; I gain weight in the winter and lose weight in the summer, and it's directly related to eating habits and exercise (in the summer I am much more active and eat much better than in the winter ... like many animals, I just want to fatten up and hibernate in the winter!). This year I started down the road of post-bariatric plastic surgery; I had breast reduction in July and am having a lower body lift on December 9th. I eventually also want to have a neck lift, arm lift, and thigh lift, as my health and pocketbook allow.
To those who are thinking about sleeve gastrectomy surgery, honestly I have to say it is the BEST thing I ever did to resolve my obesity. I know I added many years to my life by having the surgery, and my quality of life is vastly better too.

How awesome is that!!!

I started with a hook up three years ago and now I'm married to him. I think if it's meant to be more, it will turn into more. Good luck!

"Don't you have alot of loose skin after losing so much weight?"
"I'd rather look like a Shar Pei naked than a beached whale fully clothed"