Elaine The Great!

I knew I wasn't crazy... the water thing is real! It nauseates me every time I drink it! I can drink anything else but plain water. I keep trying and some days it isn't horrible, but I still get mild to strong nausea. I have no idea what that is all about. I add flavor drops and it's fine; it is only plain water that makes me nauseous. Weird...

I am so glad I came across this! Just ordered a non-enhanced nutritional yeast on Amazon. No artificial Vitamins...they are no bueno. I have become "digestively intolerant" to both whey and dairy based Proteins. (sorry for that personal info) My hair has started to shed at a very alarming rate. I have to find something that works! I can't eat enough to get in enough Protein. I'm taking my supplements, all kinds of them...but, my hair!

I'm in Houston, we haven't hit 100 yet...it's not that hot. Right now it's 81... you don't have to worry about 100 degree heat until July/August. Sent from my SM-N910T using the BariatricPal App

I hate all of the Protein powders! H.A.T.E. them! I just ordered GENEPRO on Amazon... hoping for the best. I'm three months out and starting to have hair loss... because I haven't been getting in the protein. Hoping that this one does the trick. I have a vast collection of protein powders right now. None of them are tolerable. I have started forcing them down and am having very unpleasant run to the ladies room episodes. It's not just my palate that doesn't like that Damn Protein! Disclaimer: I haven't been tracking my foods, and I'm getting back on track with that too. It seems impossible to get enough protein just from food when I get full on such a small amount, but I'm sure I can get there.

Oh how I love this thread! I don't agree with everyone, but how boring would it be if we all agreed on everything? I HATE the term "Fat Acceptance". I refuse to participate in that. I've been part of numerous conversations with various groups of people, and those who have adopted the "I'm FAT - get over it!" attitude. Fat is a label, but it is far more than just a descriptive like having blonde hair or long legs or blue eyes. It is NOT the same, at least not to me. I refuse to embrace something that is universally accepted as derogatory. Now, talk to me about Body Acceptance, and I'm all over that. I have been a part of that movement, and it did me far more good than chasing after that imaginary perfect workout regime or fad diet. It validated for me that it's ok to be imperfect and to take pride in how I look. I've always been a hair and makeup girl, but that was really based on the idea that if my hair was fabulous and my green eyes were glowing, maybe they wouldn't notice or care that I was 100 lbs overweight. I realized that it is ok to just love myself in the moment, and do the best I can with what I have, and to never look away from the people I caught staring at my stomach. I can now catch their eye and give them a big friendly smile, and most times, they smile back. I hope that they remember my smile and not my big fat droopy belly. I have also had countless debates with people on social media and in person about the fat is unhealthy topic. I have never had any weight related illnesses, and I'm 52 years old. No Hypertension, no high cholesterol, nothing. Perfect labs every year. My doctor has told me I am healthier than she is many times. So yeah, I'm not going to jump on that bandwagon and toss statistics around like I'm an expert on obesity related conditions. Of course I KNOW that they exist, I work in healthcare and I see it all the time. However, being fat is not always a precursor to dropping dead of a heart attack or stoke. These days, my hips and back cause me pain. This is not caused by my weight, it is caused by arthritis and the natural aging process. I'm hoping that my weight loss will alleviate some of that, and it's part of the reason I had surgery. I also need to get my ass out of this big boy office chair and move around more. I'm working on that. I've followed a lot of Plus Size bloggers and models, and of course I don't agree with some of the crazy things they say, but most of them are realistic about their issues and know that eventually, being overweight is going to take its toll. But for now, they are loving themselves in the moment and enjoying the fact that there are millions of people who consider them beautiful and deserving of the attention they are getting. I was reading one of my favorite bloggers pages yesterday and it linked me to a recent discussion about the use of the term "Plus Size". One designer's comments really moved me: "I remember the ballet instructor telling me that I would never be small enough to be a ballerina and even if I was, It would kill me to force my body to be something it never wanted to be. That was the first time in my life I ever felt ugly and ashamed of my figure, I think I was 8 yrs old. I remember crying to my Grandmother that I needed to tape my breasts down and get my body thinner so I could be a ballerina. My grandmother said, ‘Girl, these big bones and full bodies are the strength of the women in this family; they were passed down to you in your blood.’ She told me the story of my body. She talked about how I had her mother’s eyes, her sister’s broad shoulders, her cousin’s hips, and the breasts of every woman in the family. Something about that talk made me so proud that I was connected in this unique way with the women in my family." THAT is the message that I get from these "movements". We need to be encouraged to love ourselves and do our best. If your best is having WLS and getting healthy, then that is awesome. I think that if we are having surgery in order to love ourselves, we are going to find that being overweight wasn't really the problem to begin with. I loved myself just as much as when I weighed 327 lbs as I do now. It took me a while to figure that out, but I am glad that I did, and I have a huge appreciation and admiration for these Plus Size women who have taken on the fight to be accepted as they are, in all their big fat awesomeness. Here's the link to that article, if anyone is interested. http://www.plus-model-mag.com/2016/04/keeptheplus-keep-using-term-plus-size/

My co-worker, and very good friend, went through the same experience a year and a half ago. Her son was shot and killed and the murderers got away with it. They said it was self defense, and who knows, maybe it was, but it doesn't matter. He was 17 and my friend had to bury her son. She was lost, just as you are now, in the shock and pain of it all. Those first weeks and months were awful. Watching her grieve was heartbreaking. She went to his grave all the time and would put huge bouquets of flowers out there on the 12th day of each month, because that was his monthly anniversary. It was terrible to watch her go through all of that and I asked her why she was having another funeral each month, and she just said because she needed to do it. At the one year anniversary of his death, the family gathered at the cemetery and they had a celebration of his life and she finally decided that it was ok to start to move forward. I reminded her that she has her daughters and that they lost their big brother and they needed her to focus on them, and not the ghost of their brother, because that is what she was doing. Her grief was heartbreaking, and it is absolutely true that nobody can imagine that kind of loss and pain unless they experience it. Give yourself time and do what you need to do to make peace with what has happened. All of this is still so fresh for you, I know that you can't see how life will ever get better for you. My friend tells me that the best advice I gave her was to find a new normal. Life will never go back to the same way it was before this horrible thing happened. But that doesn't mean that you can't find peace and acceptance at some point in your future. One day you will be able to sit with your granddaughter and tell her funny, happy stories about when her daddy was a little boy, and you can talk about what happened and then work on putting the bad memories to bed, and replacing them with the ones of happier times that you will always have. I'm so sorry that this has happened to you. I will keep you in my thoughts, and I've lit a candle for you to try to help keep you out of the dark places. Peace & Strength to you.

@@Crochet Queen - I'm the same way...sit down next to me and you get my life story, and if you're lucky, you get the short version. I haven't posted it on social media, but anyone who asks about my weight loss gets the truth. I can't be bothered with trying to keep up with what to tell to whom. My filters don't work like that. I live my life out loud and I refuse to be ashamed of the choices that I make for myself. Mr. Wonderful wasn't totally on board, but he is now. My family, friends, and co-workers are excited for me and we are all looking forward to what the future holds. If there are haters out there, they know better than to throw that shade at me!

Awesome post! Good luck with your consultation and next steps! Oprah is always gonna have the struggle, she is a food addict and her "taking the high road" about WLS is just a crutch. I will have to gently disagree with the "rant" about fat acceptance. Plus Size women have made huge progress in the fashion industry and just in general. I follow a lot of plus size bloggers and models, and they take a constant beating from people who are so cruel; the health "experts", the fitness fanatics, and just mean people in general. For a long time, I was one of those BBW in all my glory. I found my confidence, decided to love myself, and made peace with my body. I wear two piece "fatkinis" (can we just do away with that stupid word?) at home, and have a vast collection of swimwear and assorted accessories. My reason for surgery was because of the increasing pain in my hips and back that are mostly weight related. I'm looking forward to there being less of me physically, but I'm keeping the lessons being obese taught me, regardless of what the numbers on my scales and clothing say. That being said, I'm really looking forward to buying smaller "fatkinis"!!!

I'm just past four weeks out of surgery and I can not get the Protein powders down. They literally gag me. I have unjury, Isopure, Pure Protein, and another one that escapes me right now. My nurse recommended the New whey shots, which I now see aren't the best thing on the market, but at 42g of protein, I'll do them for now. I have to mix them with ice, Water, and Crystal Light to mask the protein smell and flavor, but they don't make me nauseous. I'm going to try the Syntrax Fuzzy Navel. Has anyone tried it here? I didn't see it mentioned.

I had my revision on 3/8/16 and I'm down 30# since initial weigh in at the first appointment. Not sure what I weighed on the day of surgery. I've had a few times when I had a "starving" feeling, but if I just drink something or eat something it goes away and I move on. I am struggling with finding things that I want to eat. Nothing really appeals to me. I had something with more sugar than I thought it had because I wasn't paying attention, and it gave what can only be described as the dumping syndrome. I won't ever do that again! I'm not a sugar/sweets person anyway. I'm finding that my go-to food is turkey chili and avocado, with a little cheese. I know it sounds crazy, but it satisfies me and I get enough Protein out of it. The shakes are a struggle, and I have not been able to finish one in the last couple of weeks. I just can't get past the smell and the taste. My nurse says that will get better and my nut says to get away from the shakes anyway. She's not a fan and I'm desperately glad to hear it! I just need to use My Fitness Pal to track my eating to make sure I get enough protein. I have bought some of the New whey shots, which I understand are not favored by all, but I've done my research and I'm ok with them. They are small, pack 42g of protein, I can stomach them, and they were one of the sources of protein recommended by my doctor's office. All in all, I'm feeling very good about my surgery and recovery. I had my follow up appt. today and was released to return to full activities and instructed to start exercising. It is a struggle that I have yet to overcome. I did buy some new workout shoes, now I just have to put them on and get to steppin'! I go back for my next visit in six months. That's not until the fall. I am really looking forward to what summer brings!

That was only part of the conversation that we had. I am fully aware of the nutritional values of everything that I consumek, and I assure you that my surgeon is not lacking in education or knowledge. In reference to the watermelon martini, my recipe involves muddled fresh watermelon and cucumber, vodka, a little Water and some Splenda, shaken with crushed ice.

LOL! I too was one of those girls.. and I am going to miss my wine! I committed to giving it up after having this conversation with my surgeon. He explained, which I already knew, that wine has carbs and sugars that will make you fat. Liquor, on the other hand, will not ever may you fat on its own. The body converts alcohol to ketones, which are either burned off as energy or eliminated. He told me that he doesn't tell people not to drink, because he understands that it's just what some people do. His advice to me was to choose top shelf liquors because they are made from superior grains, and mix them with zero calorie mixers. He also said that if I do decide that I want a glass of Chardonnay once in a while, buy a nice bottle of it and savor it, rather than knocking back a big bottle of Barefoot. All perfectly agreeable alternatives as far as I'm concerned. I'm only seven days out...so it will be a while before I have any adult beverages, but when I do, I am considering a nice fresh watermelon martini!

I'm seriously considering going... I just asked my sister if she is interested. We were both banded in 2008 without much success on either part. Are you already scheduled?