bellabloom

Awww. I bet you feel amazing! Cute baby too.

So pretty both before and now.

All these photos are so great. It’s so nice to see people changing their life and fighting for their health and hopefully mental well being as well. here I am 3 years after my sleeve.

Just an update on this old post.. I was struggling with this same issue when I commented but my weight began after a couple years to normalize on its own.

Hey, I’m a vet about um 4 years? I guess 4 in December. I lose track. I check in on these boards now and then. I don’t spend much time on here for a couple reasons.. one being that I’ve just moved on with my life and weight really isn’t a big factor for me anymore. The other is that for some reason in my generation of 2014-2015 vets there were some serious assholes. Mean, snarky, judgmental, all or nothing, never eat again etc jerks. But I do like to check in now and then and help people out. I’m always up for a pm and I will get back eventually! [emoji6]

My photographer friend asked me if I would model for her boudoir portfolio. I said yes because I thought it would be a good way to Celebrate myself now. Still, it's shocking this is me. I still feel fat sometimes and I admit these make me feel really good!! Me before:

Hugs

Mine got saggy and sad and loose and my tummy tuck surgeon lifted them and it looks a lot better. be hopeful.

I care about my shape sure but it doesn't make or break me any more. Plastics is about dealing with loose skin and feeling comfortable in my skin. It's not about being super skinny. In fact I had plastic surgery to make me look wayyyy more curvy than I was before. Investing in health and fitness is way better than a number on the scale and I invest in those things also. I love feeling fit and strong, but I also don't go to the gym and stare at how many calories I've burned any more nor do I feel terrible if I choose not to go. It's awesome that you can see that the number is irrelevant if you aren't healthy or happy!

I wasn't being rude it's just I don't understand why it matters? See heart face emoticon. Anyway hahaa my post is anything but negative!! It's amazing how people can attach a tone to someone's voice in these threads that isn't there.

I also want to add something that I have found to be true based on my experience. At first Intuitive Eating was really hard and scary. I thought I was going to blow up huge for SURE. I had to be so brave to even try it. At first I was negotiating with myself a lot. Like... I will try it for a week so I can enjoy my vacation.. or I'll try it but if I gain weight at all I will resume dieting. In the beginning I only managed short periods of time eating freely and then would restrict again. And it was like that for some time. But!! But. What happens is ... as you continue, the times where you let go- they are sooo good. You aren't overeating or binging, you are just eating enough.. and it feels soooooo good in your mind and body, that after awhile it feels more worthwhile than being super skinny or pleasing society or some stifling ideal. Being fed right is an amazing feeling, and it becomes harder and hard to go back to restrictive food behaviors. Over time my stretches became longer and longer and as I sought out more support and also saw my body remaining in a stable weight and started working on my body dysmorpia... everything just fell into place more and more. Suddenly you start to realize, wow I haven't thought about food intake or dieting in awhile! And wow what a freedom that is. Lifting that oppressive mindset and hunger out of your world is like coming out of a cloud. Life is so full and beautiful. Weight isn't what defines your happiness- health is. Mental and physical health. Food will make or break you for sure. Too much and your body and mind will suffer. Too little and your body and mind will suffer. It takes the right amount to be truly happy and ONLY YOUR INDIVIDUAL METABOLISM AND BODY can determine what that amount should be. I'm not writing these feed to threaten or undermine you. I'm not bragging about my success or weightloss. I'm offering out a hand to those who feel they want or need to try something different. If dieting works for you for now, great. But know that should you want something else, there is this. I want to give others what I have found and share my experience. I truly believe, in fact I KNOW dieting cannot be a sustainable practice for lifelong happiness. With dieting there will always be the highs of weight loss and the deep lows of weight gain. With intuitive eating, there is just consistency and underneath that freedom and joy.

Sigh. I get tired of answering this but okay. I've had both bypass and sleeve. Long story. Read back. [emoji7]

Hey all! Update on me. (And thank you all who have been supportive by the way) I'm doing AWESOME. My weight is extremely stable. I don't weigh myself if I can avoid it (I find numbers upsetting and triggering and pointless) but my clothes all fit and my measurements are the same. That said it's honestly a non issue because I don't care if I get smaller or bigger or whatever because weight just isn't what defines my happiness anymore. I've just finished my second round of plastic surgery in Mexico. I had a lower face lift (for a slight turkey neck and early jowling) and a Brazilian butt lift and I had fat added to my hips to give me a more womanly shape. I LOVE the results I am seeing. In my eating disordered days I always wanted a stick straight and boy like model body. I have changed that mindset and am embracing my Latina heritage and embracing what my body is more inclined to look like. Through the surgery I continued eating intuitively and my recovery has been wayyyy easier this time. I feel it is because I am much healthier and my body is well nourished and strong. I have repaired a lot of the damage dieting did to me. I'm in a new relationship and he has been super supportive. In my dieting days I would tend to pick abusive assholes. This time I have picked someone who supports my choices and builds me up. It's amazing what a well fed mind can do!! I don't live on the edge any more and I don't keep people around who encourage my self esteem and body image issues. My eating behavior has not changed. Once in awhile I will loosely tally up my calories (sadly I still have every single item of food calories burned into my brain) and I find I eat around 2000-3000 calories a day. Usually right around the 2500 mark. I don't do this by thinking about it. That just seems to be what my body needs to be satisfied. What funny is I actually TRIED to put on some weight for my Brazilian butt lift and I FAILED. I don't have much fat in my body, which they needed for the surgery, so I tried to eat more by adding in breakfast and higher calorie foods for about a month before my surgery. I didn't do anything that felt harmful or excessive- just encouraged myself to always eat breakfast, a lot of avocado, adding cheese and mayo more, that sort of thing. And.... Nothing happened. No weight gain. In fact it felt like I LOST weight. [emoji23] In my dieting days with a wrecked metabolism I was able to put on 5lbs in 3 days!!! My body is now at its set point and it just won't allow me to change that so easily. God knows what I would have to do to gain weight at this point. Anyway my butt lift isn't as big as I would have liked it but it still looks great! A few weeks ago I also went on a cruise with my kids. It made me extremely sad to see all the people on the boat gorging themselves and looking so miserable. I've been on 3 cruises in my life. The first one I was 27 thin and bulimic- I threw up everything I ate on the ship and was super sick. The second one I was 33 and obese. I ate till my stomach was going to pop and was super miserable and depressed. This time I'm 37 and a healthy intuitive eater. I ate whatever I wanted to satisfy my hunger and tried not to worry about the food at all. And I was happy. Roughly what I eat: Bagel with avocado for breakfast (Or something like an omelet with tons of Ketchup my favorite food) Maybe some Thai food or tacos or fried calamari for lunch, or salad and sandwich (usually eat out for lunch) Dinner I eat out a lot too or at home rarely. I like all kinds of restaurants. I don't like too cook, it takes up too much time and I work a lot. I like Italian, Mexican, sushi, salads... whatever. [emoji4] so I get a salad and an entree. Entrees are so crazy huge, I almost always have leftovers. Big snack at bedtime. Either the rest of my dinner or a burrito or sandwich or something. This is probably my largest meal of the day. Sometimes dessert. I eat chocolate a lot at like 3 am. I dunno why but my body craves it. And wine. I love wine. All though I have been cutting back lately because it does make me tired and not sleep as well. I'm attaching some fun photos for you all and much love and many blessing to you in your journey!!! It's a journey worth taking to get healthy with food. My life is 1000000x better. Trying to get that booty haha!! Bahahahaa. Cruise photo. All of these are taken within the last month.

It is true I did not begin Intuitive Eating until I had read her my goal weight. But I wish I had began it sooner because of the hell I was going through. I do believe that Intuitive Eating is a a way to lose weight if you are above your bodies natural set point and I do believe that if I had begun sooner I would have eventually reached the weight I am now, which I feel is likely my set point. If I had begun I Intuitive Eating sooner I would have spared myself quite a bit of misery and torment and probably have avoided having to go into treatment for anorexia ed ect and put my life back on track a lot sooner. When I was obese I went through treatment for bulimia. They taught me Intuitive Eating and I tried it for a few months. I lost an entire clothing size and That was the only time in my life I ever lost weight without a diet. But eventually I became impatient because it is a slow process, and because the ritualistic addiction I had to dieting and the coping strategy I used was restricting my food inflame, I went back to dieting and I regained all the weight I had lost and then some. DIETING made me fat. Not the other way around.

Excellent post and very correct. My program (dieting) or a program of any kind made me as miserable thin as I was over weight and was inevitably going to cause me to regain the weight. By letting go of food rules and eating to satisfy my hunger and cravings, I have freed myself from that torment and also found a sustainable way to maintain my weight around a place where I am happy with my body and have energy.

Yes I have had plastic surgery with Dr Carmina Cardenas in Mexico. She gave me a tummy tuck and breast lift (so far in that photo anyway) I had a bit of loose skin on my belly and hated my breasts anyway so I had her fix that. I never got a lot of loose skin but I only lost about 110 lbs.

I don't think intuitive eating should be practiced fresh out of surgery. The body simple wouldn't allow it and there are many foods that can't be tolerated right away. Wls is a whole mother boat of fish than conventional dieting. I certainly didn't use intuitive eating to lose my weight! Never said I did. Newbies should follow their doctors advice as their body has structural limitations that need to be respected. For me intuitive eating is what I came to when I realized that losing weight did not make me happy because living with a diet mindset made me MISERABLY UNHAPPY. I got to a 17 bmi and was still deeply unhappy. I realized that I would rather be overweight than spend another day obsessing about being thin and controlling my food intake. Jesse said it well/ she knows a lot about my history. I'm sure many of you can related to the hell of an eating disorder as most overweight people have some form of one. I have chosen to be free. I pick foods that make me feel good. This naturally keeps me healthy. I have accepted that I no longer wish to judge myself based on my size. I have embraced a body positive attitude. I've let go of being a certain weight/size. I focus on health and energy instead of weight. I no longer weigh myself. My thread here is geared towards those in maintenance or at least healed enough to eat a fairly normal diet, especially for those for who perhaps wls is not working or are still unhappy. It is meant for those longer out than the first year of surgery. I didn't begin Intuitive Eating until I had reached and surpassed my goal weight.

What does it mean for something to "work" for you? You felt free. You felt happy. But you still felt you had to change because of your weight. It's so unfair we live in a society that in-spite of someone being happy they still feel they are wrong for having body fat. I fully encourage you to find this freedom again one day when you are ready.

If it's so terrible why aren't I gaining weight? Carbs are both healthy and delicious. Bread is a huge part of my diet and I am thin as a rail. Sugar is not something I worry about any longer. I eat what makes me feel good. I do not consider the large majority of food to be junk food. If I eat a lot of sugary food I will feel ill and maybe dump too so I don't but I do not consider bread or carbs to be junk food. I could never spend my whole life on a diet. There is more to life. Anyway no one is forcing you to live my way. Do whatever you want. I'm just presenting another option for those people here who want to try something different and I am the proof that it does work. And most of all, what I am saying, is that WEIGHT is not a measure of worth. And being thin will never mean being happy if one must constantly diet to get there.

I never said I eat "junk food." I eat a lot of healthy quality food. My definition of what that is and your definition probably differ. For those that are wondering my usual diet right now is as follows: Breakfast: Skip it or maybe some eggs Lunch: Thai food Or Sandwich with avocado and lots of cheese Or Sushi ... I eat out a lot for lunch Snack: Beef jerky or maybe a nibble of chocolate Dinner: Salad with cheese Wine Little bit of meat Veggies Late night snack: Usually another dinner- big sandwich Or Tamale Or quesadilla That's basically what I eat. I never over eat. I never binge. I don't have to have cheat days. Intuitive eating basically helps me not really care about food and I am not hungry that much... I just eat when I'm hungry and stop when I am full. I naturally gravitate to healthy fresh foods because processed food makes me feel crappy. I eat food that makes me feel good- not food I am supposed to like according to some diet. I listen to my body. I have not gained weight doing this and I have great energy and feel amazing. Best choice I ever made for myself. The best part! I don't CARE if I gain some weight back because I am actually happy and it isn't what matters most to me anymore. Lots of body types are beautiful. I'm fine with letting my body decide what is a healthy weight for me. A couple days ago. I would be fine with putting some weight on. Doesn't seem to be happening though. Anyway f**k it!! Who cares what I weigh. I'm eating all the foods and living a great life.

Did you ever think, maybe it's time to give up the diet mentality? I have personally decided to let that all go and embraced Intuitive Eating, which finally gave me my health back and I have been able to maintain my weight well and no longer obsess about it all. You say you are exhausted. Have you considered you are not giving your body enough fuel? No to mention the mental energy it requires to think about weight and constantly worry and judge yourself. When I dieted or restricted my food intake I was EXHAUSTED. all the time. Because that lifestyle- it's tiring as hell.

You won't need much of anything. The recovery house has a lot- even shampoo!! I didn't wear night gowns- wore my garmet the whole time. Bring comfy underwear. Something that will go over your garmet for the trip home or to the doctors office. Bring a book to read maybe or something to do for boredom but mostly you will just sleep.

Update- still doing great. Intuitive eating, happy, healthy. Have not regained weight.

Weight loss surgery vet lol. I was in Tijuana with dr carmina cardenas. Best ever

Hi all- I'm a vet, had my wls in 2014. Lost to goal and then some and have successfully maintained. I have also had all my plastic surgery and am just living a happy life now. I am here because I want to be supportive of others. Bariatric surgery was very complicated for me and I feel I have a lot to contribute no matter where you are on your journey because I have really struggled myself. I want to be there for newbies and other vets who may need support down the line. This surgey changed my life, almost cost me my life, and gave me back my life. If you want to talk I am here and never going to judge you.