LisaG72

Lately I've seen a TON of posts about lucky sleevers that drop 100 pounds in six months.
Congrats to them and to their loss. And I would never, ever begrudge anyone the right to crow about a fantastic success. It's part of why we're all here, to share the ups and downs of this surgery!
But frequently, these posts are followed by folks that feel frustrated because they aren't losing at the same pace. All too often, we forget that everyone loses at a different pace. It's easy to lose sight of the real goal (long term maintenance) in the face of the scale goals we set for ourselves. And it's also easy to forget that this isn't a race and that there's no special prize waiting at the end for reaching goal more quickly.
I would like to contribute my loss pattern so that people can see that there is more than one way to achieve a goal. Being successful is about reaching your personal goals, overcoming your personal food demons and maintaining your weight loss for life. It's not about hitting goal in nine months.
I encourage everyone else with a slow loss story to contribute their successes here as well. It's hard to research this surgery and find only the stories about extremes - people completely thrilled with surgery or people that regret every minute of life post op. The same goes for loss. When people search out stories on this, it's too easy to only find rapid loss or stall posts but nothing showing the more realistic and moderate journey many of us take. The sleeve is a permanent tool that does not have a special window of easy weight loss. There is no reason to feel discouraged when you haven't reached goal at one year out, or even two. There is nothing preventing you (short of your own body's natural stopping point) from achieving or re-achieving goal at any point post op.
I lost 60 pounds in the first five months after my surgery.
And I slowly lost 32 pounds over the next seven months.
It took me another five months to shed the final 15 pounds to my goal.
I lost 107 pounds over the course of 17 months. I stalled twice for nine weeks each time. I had months where I only lost one pound. I regularly experienced a gain of three pounds around my cycle, and often only lost weight in the last week to ten days of the month, after sitting at the same weight for nearly three weeks.
I am a success, and at 2.5 years out (and currently pregnant) I still have good, healthy eating habits and maintained my weight loss quite easily. Even 30 weeks pregnant, I am still wearing a size 6/small (in maternity clothes, of course) regardless of how I feel about my expanding body!
I learned what was important on this journey and am in better health today (not just physically, but mentally and emotionally), than I have ever experienced as an adult.
Good luck to those currently on their journey, and I encourage everyone to share their stories here so that newly sleeved folks can see that slow vs. fast loss doesn't really matter in the end.
~Cheri

Hey! *waves*
Just found this and was compelled to post!
Just want to say, thank you to each and every one of you who posted kind words about me! Heart warming indeed!
The reason i don't post that often nowadays is because I feel that many newbies and not so newbies don't think my journey is successful cos I ain't at goal. Often I will post and my comments are over looked... I guess I can't be bothered to be ignored!
However, I do pop on here most days and stay in touch with my sleeve friends!
I am sure my story is not uncommon, the fact that I am still around here is more to do with me being proud of my achievements, regardless of that stupid scale, whereas others might see not reaching goal as a failure.
I have to be honest, I was in that failure place... and believe me it was dark, damp and ugly. I really had to kick my own ar*e - with the lil help of my cyber friends (you know who you are) - and get on with it!!
I've said it elsewhere, so forgive me if you've read this before...
Over the last 2 - 2 1/2 years there has been many 'issues' in my personal life that has really knocked me for six, and only now on reflection can I see that I have come through them as a better, stronger person - with no weight gain - NSV right there.
I was told that I was peri menopausal 2 years ago, but I have had the 'symptoms' a long time before that - I just blamed my weight! I am now menopausal at 41 yrs of age, and although it is not an excuse, I do feel that is part explains why my body has stopped losing and would seem rather comfortable at this weight! Stupid body.Since being sleeved I have also had other health complaints... are they other reasons for my lack of weight loss? Who knows!
The upshot is that I've been in a stall for nearly 18 mths. I've exercised, dieted, done the refeed, taken time out and so on with no results on the scale. Do I stop trying... hell no! My sleeve is precious to me, it has given me a life back that I never thought I would ever get! There is no expiry date on this bad boy!
Will I make goal? Dunno! Do I care... yes!!!
For those of you who know me, you will know that I will keep on keeping on... I've got my eye on the prize!
Oh and to Celebrate my 'failure' *coughs*, I mean success I am getting a TT with uplift this week. And that will only mean one thing... yep! Me rocking a new pair of skinny jeans...lol!
Seriously though, if you consider yourself a slow loser, cut yourself some slack. Take a deep breath and remember the bigger picture.
I used to say that my journey to goal was the scenic route because it is much prettier!!

I just posted on a "stall/slow loser post". If you can see me sig you can see how my lose has been going coming up on my year in a few weeks. I'm not at goal but I just don't feel like I need to "do" anything to make the weight come off "quicker or better". I stick to my plan most days and I'm happy with that. I caution all of the more newly sleeved folks to not even give themselves a label like "slow loser" within the first 6 months. I really didn't even realize I could be considered a slow loser until a few weeks ago now that I have enough months worth of data and weight loss numbers to see my trends. I guess I "dieted" and stressed myself so much prior to being sleeved that for me this surgery really was the savior I wanted it to be. Everyday my body may not being losing pounds according to the scale but my mind is losing its obsession with food and and my spirit feels freer. I hope that this continues for me and when I make it to my scale goal that I don't lose all that I've gained!