Miss Mac

At two months out, I do not have gas problems now. The only belching I get is that Tupperware burp when my tummy tells me to stop eating / drinking. I did not have a tube, so sorry I cannot answer that one for you.

Oops, I should clarify. I meant to ask is there an FAQ or help menu for technical things concerning this website / forum? I cannot find a way to retrieve or edit my post from today concerning my update pictures. In one pose there is an abstract piece of artwork on the wall behind me, but I did not think of it until I pulled up my post. Like the Rorschach ink blots the interpretation of it may vary from charming to disgusting. How I can I pull back or edit that post?

Seriously folks, does this site have FAQs or a HELP menu anywhere???????

Sorry about art in background of pics. How can I retrieve a post????????????

Here are my midway pics. The ones in my purple shirt are from last August before I started my program. Gastric sleeve was 12/23/2013 The pics in my brown top and black pants are from my halfway point at minus 49 pounds / 51 to go, Taken on 2/23/2014, exactly two months post op. Belly is still resisting, although 3" smaller, but you can tell that my face, arms, and chest and thighs are smaller And I am starting to get ribs and a waist. The wedding picture shows you how thin I was in 1970 (108 pounds on my wedding day). Look at those too thin bony arms! My goal weight is 135.

Hey Puddinpie....there's a bunch of us around here. I am a retired federal employee living in Alsip on the south side, I had my surgery at Loyola University Medical Center two days before Christmas. DR. Chand did my surgery. There were no complications and my recovery and weight loss are going well. Where is your surgery going to be?.

I did well with the pre-op diet (lost 23 pounds in 3 months). Day of surgery 12/23/2013 weight was 212. Four weeks weight was 197 (so, 15 pounds). Had a 2 week stall at week four. Just finished month two with another 11 pounds down. Total to date - 49 pounds with another 51 to go. I am stoked that at two months post op I am halfway already, I do not regret this surgery at all.

My hospital did not provide Bari-bears to its WLS patients, so I bought one of my own on-line. They are a good sized teddy bear with a hard back. It can be held against your belly when you cough or sneeze, and I also used mine for an arm rest for my IV arm. Really any teddy bear would do, or a firm small pillow. For home, I bought a pair of white skinny jeans in size 14. There is a funny thread on this forum about the inherent naughtiness of white skinny jeans. I started out at 22/24 and am doing my second closet flush tomorrow to bring out my 16s. So my 14s are not too far in the future. The non-scale victories are coming along quicker now. It does get better,

Just walk on past the soul suckers. A year or so from now, the joke will be on them.

Just gently suggesting to go as low carb as you can.......no junk.......hydrate...try to time it so you have a good hearty BM before your appointment (might be worth close to a pound on its own!)

Not given a limit - just waited a week.

Call your doctor. It should not hurt to eat.

My hospital does not release surgery patients to a cab. I agree with the previous post that you would best be served by having someone to advocate for you and look out for your best interests. This procedure is not a manicure. It is very serious life-changing major surgery with unpredictable variables. True also, that you will need someone to haul stuff around for you and catch you if you get woosey, since anesthetics and pain killers are involved. I would not wish it on anyone to go through this alone. I hope you can find someone to help you out.

My program materials say that 18 months is within the normal range of losing 60+% of what you are going to lose. However, at my nutrition visit yesterday it was mentioned that 10% a month is a reasonable goal to reach for. I was to to not be disappointed if it takes a year to lose 100 pounds Everybody is different. Compliance, circumstance, emotions, illness, plateaus, exercise results....lots of things factor in.

My man and I are having a little contest. When my weight finally dips below his weight (which is healthy for his height and age), then we will have a non-food celebration of some sort. The good news is, I am within a pound or two of that point on the scale!

I was allowed to start light weights (Max 5 pounds) at 4 weeks. I am at 2 months now and the incisions have healed nicely, though still very pink. Wednesday, I was able to lay on my belly for 15 minutes for a spinal procedure. I am fully exercising at will....no problems other than keeping the weights low.

That's an outstanding weight loss! Have you been running or hitting the treadmill? If so, you could be pounding your heels which can lead to plantar fasciitis. (You could try Vibram Five Finger Shoes - I just bought a pair for walking barefoot in my back yard and in the park. They make several kinds for running, athletics, and walking. Expensive, but I got mine on clearance from TravelCountry.com. I have neuropathy problems in my legs and feet. I take Lyrica and my Vitamin D levels are monitored by the neurologist and my PCP and the Bariatric physician. The connection to D levels and neuropathy is well documented.

That's the same progression schedule that I had, Bobbie McGee, so it was about 3 1/2 weeks for me. I went straight from the doctor's office to Wendy's and ate Chili with cheese (about 1/3 of the container) and 4 of my boyfriend's french fries. Oh man, that tasted so good. No more fries since then....I am pretty strict with my low carb diet limitations. Not only do I like chewing now, I like the flavor of something in my mouth. When no more calories are allowed for the day, I will go with a sugar free popsicle or sugar free hot chocolate with some lite whip cream.

ditto

Halfway there. I started my program in late August 2013, at 5'4" and 235 pounds, with a goal weight of 135 because that was the adult weight at which I was the healthiest. With that 53" belly you could see that's where a good half of that weight was. Just look at my before pictures. At 48 pounds down, I am halfway there, but I will admit that most of the lost weight is from my upper body. Here's the thing....I am fighting this fat as hard as a 62 year old woman with post-stroke and osteo-arthritis challenges can. I exercise EVERY day, and if I don't feel like it, then I do modified exercises. Two days a week strength training and hips/buns/thighs/abs, five days a week aerobic exercise, and EVERY day walking a mile, even if it is in the house or standing at my walker. There will be no bat wings for me. So, the boobies are holding on for dear life - I imagine toning up my pecs is helping with that. The belly, well, it is down 3" and has shifted downward. Hope against hope, I am exfoliating every other shower and rubbing in almond oil to keep the skin cells active and soft. If nothing else, i will have a saggy SOFT belly. But if I have to become a senior citizen body builder to run interference against flab, then I guess I will do that. I am just gonna fight it kicking and screaming up to the last pound. I am actually starting to see a waist, and I felt ribs last night. One thing I have learned as I go, is that worrying about skin and hair is not getting me anywhere, so I will just keep following doctor's orders and deal with the rest of this as it comes up.

My niece emailed this little item about friends. I don't know the source, but I thought it was worth sharing. Look on this post for a download titled Real Friends.

I had to drop carbs and cheese to rev up my pre-op loss. Maybe just try not to eat anything that comes from a factory - you won't starve.

For something made with milk, I like Unjury Chocolate Splendor. For something made with water or Crystal Lite, I like the Syntrax Nectars.

Yesterday, as I was getting dressed for a doctors appointment, I noticed that my favorite comfortable pants (my yoga pants - whole 'nother story - love, love, love yoga pants) were dangerously close to falling off my hips.....which was not the case just last week while stalling. Also, my favorite blouse just felt sloppy. So, I put something else on, which ALSO felt strangely loose, but was not in danger of causing a social embarrassment. When I went to put my coat on, it very clearly felt like a stranger's coat. So then, I went to my storage closet and pulled out a wool coat that my boyfriend had bought me three years (and 50 extra pounds ago on my already obese body) for my birthday. It was still in the dry cleaner's bag from when I sorrowfully retired it when I could not button it up anymore. Cautiously I put it on, and buttoned it up - with room to spare! OMG - how could my body change so drastically in one week, when I had just come out of an exasperating stall? This morning, as I am getting ready for another closet flush, I have figured it out.......my body has been changing all along. I just could not see it because of my fatty fathead mindset. This sleeve thing and diligent exercise are doing their work even if the scale tells a different non-parallel story. That heavy 53" belly that was throwing my balance and posture off, is finally shape shifting and shrinking. Today, my mind is catching up with this amazing transformation that is happening to my earthly container. Oh yeah, and get this......The aforementioned appointment was at the pain clinic. I have been going there every three months for three years to get lumbar epidural steroid injections for sciatica. Yesterday, as I was getting positioned on the table, as the doctor is going through the patient ID process, he looks at me, and then my paperwork, and asks if they sent in the right paperwork. Have you been here before? They had to make sure, because they can't just give these injections to anyone, right? What is was, was that they did not recognize me. I explained it was for three reasons. 1. I was a redhead every other time I have been in there, but I am about to go through a drastic hair loss event and decided to quit keeping up with my birth red, and just embrace the gray of my mature years as the new hair comes back in. 2. It has been 5 months since I have been in because I had weight loss surgery and my discs have behaved a little longer this time. 3. I have lost 46 pounds and my face is way thinner. (When all is said and done, I will have to replaced my drivers license picture) Needless to say, I am stoked today. The sleeve has been so worth the inconvenience of having to treat my body and life like the precious gifts they are. Deny myself limitless carbs or deny myself inflammation and misery????? The choices are getting easier day by day. What a journey this is!!! It is not just about weight loss. I am discovering a whole new inside me who has been hiding behind a veil of fat and fear of rejection. Did you see the news story yesterday about the woman who was expecting triplets, and when delivery time came, there was a fourth baby who had totally escaped both x-rays and sonogram? It was hiding behind the other three fetuses in the womb. That's as good an analogy as any, I guess. I suppose a lot of us have just been hiding behind our issues and insecurities and are just now coming into or own as the people we are meant to be. Folks, I am just so happy today. What a revelation and huge step in my progress.

Bea, I don't understand the technology behind all this Cloud stuff. My starting weight today is 189. My goal for six weeks is 180. What else am I supposed to do???????? I don't get it.