samelton68

I would say yes, instead of shopping from older woman's type clothes in the big section I can now go into any store and find clothing so I tend to wear age appropriate but more trendy

I am in the same place @@moveandgroove I document everything I put in my mouth, I wear a flex to track my steps, UGH

Sounds like a lot of starch which I do not believe would work well for me

I am 47 I was sleeved almost two years ago, not at goal, not an easy road but slow and steady I guess

Years of diet plans, programs and books make most WLS patients nutrition gurus.
Much of that information is great to have but it's important to separate out the unofficial diet 'rules' that might be unsafe to practice after bariatric surgery.
Today, bariatric dietitian Elizabeth Anderson continues her series on 5 of the most dangerous dieting myths for weight loss surgery patients.


salad. The food most synonymous with the word ’diet.’ Many people LOVE salad. Others eat it because they feel like they should if they’re on a diet.
Nutritionally, the darker the greens, the more brightly colored the vegetables—the healthier the salad.
High volume, low calorie salads make a lot of sense for the average dieter. You feel full on very few calories, provided you skip the high calorie dressing.
But there’s one ingredient many people forget that prevents salad from being a balanced meal---the Protein.< /p>
I tell my weight management clients if they really enjoy salad, it’s a great meal AS LONG AS there is at least 3 ounces of a lean protein included in, on or with the salad.
The protein piece is vital because it helps the meal digest more slowly. This leads to less hunger between meals. The protein is also important to protect lean muscle from being used for fuel when calories are cut.
I tell my weight loss surgery clients, the need for protein is more than just a recommendation, it’s an absolute must.
At least 3 ounces of lean protein (about 15-20 grams of protein) with your salad. I urge you to actually measure out the chicken, cottage cheese, beans....to ensure you are hitting the mark.
A bariatric salad ‘meal’ should look like protein with a little salad on the side rather than a huge bowl of greens with a sprinkle of cheese or half an egg.
As we’ve seen with the other diet myths, standard operating procedures for dieting do not translate after WLS.
Tomorrow, dangerous diet tip #5: It’s all about the calories.

for me I can't think of one specific food but being raised by my grandparents who had survived the dust bowl and those times, you had to clean your plate. I still have not been able to break this habit but now I take a lot smaller portions.

Making the decision to have weight loss surgery is a very big deal. It seems obvious to say that when someone agrees to weight-loss surgery they're desperate for help to change the way they're living, or not fully living their lives. Everyone goes into the procedure ready and willing to surgically alter their anatomy hoping for a better future.


So why is it that so many will fall short of losing the optimal amount of weight for their health and will actually regain within 3 years much if not all of the weight they lost? Some studies say 1/3 of patients will regain most of their weight post-surgery. I think the number is actually higher because many people who regain simply fall out of contact with their bariatric surgeon and support staff because they feel ashamed, so the statistics do not include these people. So, why do most people regain the weight? What can you do to help insure that you will be one of the successful long-term losers of your excess weight? By examining why people fail you can create a plan for how you will succeed.
The government agency, National Institutes for Health (NIH) defines weight-loss surgery as "merely a tool that helps people get a new start toward maintaining long-term good health. The surgery alone will not help someone lose weight and keep it off. Together with a reduced-calorie and low-fat diet and daily exercise, surgery will help an individual lose weight and maintain the weight loss.” Please read that a few times. That is how important this quote is! The surgery alone will not help someone lose weight and keep it off.
We as weight-loss surgery patients have a history of seeking comfort, happiness and pleasure through food. We wouldn't be here if that weren't true. Me included. The process of surgically altering our anatomies does nothing to remove from us the tendency to seek comfort in familiar ways but assures there will be physical suffering if we do. Post-surgery we will still have the same brain that is used to comforting us with food, and we will still have the fingers and the arms that are used to lifting food to the same mouth to find comfort and pleasure. It is critically important that the WLS patient seek out new ways to soothe, comfort, and find pleasure in their world other than by eating.
ONE main reason patients regain their weight is they search for ways to get around the surgery, still thinking of food as primarily a source of pleasure, not a source of fuel that can be pleasurable. This is often done relying on liquid calories, which may pass more easily, like high calorie coffee or juice bar drinks or alcohol. This is also done post-operatively by trying to maintain the presence of “trigger foods” in their lives. “Trigger foods” are often foods from the patient's past that helped cause obesity, do not satisfy hunger but instead create a craving. Many are high-calorie and highly processed, not nutritious. Trigger foods can include chocolate, chips, crackers, bread, Cookies, ice cream, pudding, lattes, frapuccinos and alcoholic beverages. Really, any food can be a “trigger food” if there is so much pleasure in the “mouth-feel” or taste that repeating the pleasurable experience takes on more importance than actually feeding hunger. Very successful patients cultivate a mostly trigger-free post- surgical life. Bariatric surgeons and the NIH know the most common reason for regain and the most common post- surgical complication is “noncompliance.” Non-compliance is a fancy word that means the patient is not eating and exercising the way he/she agreed to before surgery. These people “talk the talk.” The successful patient “walks the walk” after surgery and changes how they eat and move.
A SECOND reason people often regain beginning in the second or third year post-op is that the “honeymoon” is over. The “honeymoon” generally encompasses the first 12 to 18 months post- surgery. During this time many patients will say, "I could eat all the chocolate and ice cream I wanted and still lose weight. I didn't have to try and the weight just came off.” This is often true because the body has been through such a shock after surgery that it takes months for the body to reset itself and learn to function with its' new physiology. Patients who regain their weight often believe that this “honeymoon period” is the new way that it will always be and don't adopt healthy eating patterns. So when their “honeymoon period” ends as it will they believe that the surgery has somehow failed them. In reality they have failed their surgery! During the first 12-18 months post-op it is essential to develop healthy patterns around food and exercise. This is the time when it is actually easiest to do and to not do so wastes a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to begin a great new life with positive momentum.
A THIRD reason many patients regain much of their lost weight is a lack of support. Humans are social animals and we desire and need the support of each other throughout our lives. For thousands, if not tens of thousands, of years people coming together as a family or a community over food has been a way we connect with each other. Post-surgery, when the patient isn't able to eat what others are eating or in the quantities others are eating, or others are eating their 'trigger foods”, life can feel very stressful and lonely. This can be compounded by being around unsupportive people or people who want to be supportive but don't know how. Patients fail by not surrounding themselves with supportive people in a safe environment where they also must be accountable for their actions and behavior with food and their bodies. It is key to have a community of professionals and non-professionals who understand the challenges and hardships faced by those carving a new life with a new anatomical structure. There are online and in-person support groups. Even patients who've gone abroad for weight loss surgery can often use the support services available with their local medical group's Bariatric department. Creating relationships that support and assist you in becoming a healthier person and that hold you accountable for making healthy choices are key.
These are my top three. What would you add to this list? What plan will you create to deal with the items you add to this list? Who will support you on this journey of your life.....for your life?

First of all, I am a Family Nurse Practitioner. I have worked in the medical field since I turned 18 years old. I have struggled with obesity since my early 20's. When I found out my SIHO insurance would not pay for Gastric Sleeve or any other type of obesity surgery, I was very upset. My friend who is an RN started looking at surgery in other countries. I was not sure about trying surgery anywhere except in the US. We both did a lot of research and I finally settled on somewhere I had already visited before. Puerto Vallarta is where I visited on a Cruise. We arrived at the airport on June 8th, 2015, my best friend Sarah the RN and I were met by the cab service that Dr. Hidalgo and Jerald the p.t care coordinator set up. The very nice man took us to our hotel and told us when our driver would meet us the next day to take us to the Hospital. The hotel was beautiful, our room was very nice. The next day when we got to the CMQ Premier hospital I could not believe my eyes. It was so new and modern I was in shock. In the back of my mind I was scared that it would be some type of a sham. Dr. Hidalgo met us down in the lobby and welcomed us. English was never a problem anytime during my visit there. My surgery was excellent. The hospital was so clean and the staff so friendly I would go back there anytime. For you medical professionals. They even did a "time out" in surgery to make sure who I was, the surgery I was there for, reviewed all my medical HX, allergy's, and asked everyone in the surgery suite if they thought there was any reason the surgery should be canceled. After my surgery if I needed anything, my call light was answered in a minute or less and not by someone though and intercom, but my nurse in person. Never seen that in the US hospital. I was up an walking by late afternoon and did so well I was able to be discharged home the next day after I passed my leak test and ate my first liquids. I was back to work in 3 1/2 weeks. I am doing great and have lost weight at a safe pace. 37 lbs. so far. I eat a very small amount and I am full. Not like before when I tried to diet and always felt hungry. I am taking Vitamins as required after surgery and doing better now 2 mts. after surgery getting enough Protein down. My energy level is so much better. I had terrible GERD before surgery and coughed all the time. I blamed most of it on my Asthma. I am coughing about 75% less now and do now wake up in middle of night with acid in my throat. I believe if I had not had this surgery with a BMI of 49 I would of not been able to live a long life, my BMI is now 43 and I feel great. I have not had any problems at all. If you decide to do this, just make sure you read all their before and after surgery information pages. Try to find someone who also has had this surgery so they can be your surgery buddy you can talk to after. This always helps. I can just not say enough about the TEAM of Professionals, that took care of me. Thank you so much and God Bless You All.

Awesome, I get so tired of people doing #4, 7, & how soon can I have alcohol. I am like what? I never plan to let any of those things cross my lips again.

I got the call back from the surgeons office....my insurance has been verified. I meet with the NP next Tuesday. I'll get my packet of all the other appointments I'll need to make - psych eval, etc. I'll get my WLS soon enough, totally stoked!!!

I want to be in the 100's

My day is here one more hour for surgery.

I would say yes, instead of shopping from older woman's type clothes in the big section I can now go into any store and find clothing so I tend to wear age appropriate but more trendy

I want to be in the 100's

You will need to call them and find out if there are exclusions to the plan for bariatric surgery and if no exclusions they will be able to send you the guidelines lined out in your plan

I am and have been very constipated despite taking a woman's laxative daily. I thought at first it is due to all of the Calcium I take, then they checked my thyroid (it was normal) so I was thinking I am going to have to live with this. This can't be normal, so I began researching, reading about diverticulitis, and it talks about possible pain in the left side (which I have occasionally) and it says they look at the RBC to see if it is low (which is a sign of to few red blood cells possibly bleeding in the colon ~ which when they checked my thyroid it was low) damn internet allowing me access to all of this information.
Anyone have problems with this? I am 20 months out.

This is normal if you look thru some of the other threads you will see many people go thru it due to the body catching up and hormone changes.

and with no pictures I don't believe him

and with no pictures I don't believe him

Looks like Chuck is no longer a member of the site. Glad to see him gone.

I wouldn't even call it a concern *for me*. I'm just curious.

My only concern was intent.
There are so many people that come to this site that look for support as they make the very difficult decision to have weight loss surgery which could be life saving for them.
Some of these folks are scared and in the moment need help affirming their decision. Many will decide not to move forward not realizing that not doing anything will likely be much worse for their health. In some cases, like mine, I had one foot in the grave and one foot on a banana peel. My kidneys were failing.
When I say having WLS saved my life, It is the truth.
Everyone has their own opinion, I hate to see people lose their battle with obesity. I have had several friends die from complications of obesity including my own Mom. She was only 66 years old.
My intent is only to help others when and where they need it. I am just trying to understand the intent of the original poster.

Congratulations on your weight loss and new healthy lifestyle! It is always great to hear stories like these. I am currently working with my husband to help him do the same and it certainly isn't easy. It also isn't easy for me. I fight for every pound lost.
I lost hundreds of pounds over the years, the most at one time being 95. I would do a fairly good job only to gain it all back and then some.
Now every time I lose a pound I know it will be gone forever because I have a tool that helps me. For me, surgery literally gave me my life back and it was the best decision I ever made for myself. I am the healthiest I have been in my life as well. All of my previous medical issues are gone with the exception of one, I damaged my spine. I would not have been able to lose this weight without surgical intervention and not because of my eating habits.
What I am wondering is, what are you hoping to gain from The folks on this site? Why do you believe that losing weight without surgery is healthier?
If you are assuming that it is because you did not have to have your insides rearranged I would argue that losing and gaining over and over again is not healthy. Although this may have worked for you, I know I could have lost the weight, I simply proved over and over that I could not maintain it.
I know that if I follow the plan, I will remain healthy.
I am just curious why you would post to this site? Are you looking for support or simply a platform to make those that are considering weight loss surgery second guess their decisions? For many that use this site, weight loss surgery will save their lives.
If you are looking for support, that is fantastic and this group will always jump in to help. Please let us know what you are struggling with.

@@LipstickLady was just thinking the same thing lol

Good for you! Any weight loss achievement is to be applauded, no matter the method and no one way is better than any other as long as the end result of better health and fitness is achieved.
I've got to ask, @@Chuckster . You just recently joined this forum (a weight loss surgery support forum), you lost a whole lot of weight non surgically, and both posts you've made since joining have been about losing weight non-surgically. What's your agenda in being here?