bellabloom

Carbs are sliders. There is practically no restriction with those. You've just discovered why many people don't have success with this.

I'm sorry you are going through this and I'm sorry to say it may get worse from here.

I hope I can help- maybe not now but down the line.

The reason you ate those things is because a person and a body can only white knuckle dieting for so long. Our bodies don't like being under fed. Your body took advantage of the situation to get some much needed fuel. You've lost so much so fast- you are in starvation state. That's what your bodies knows. Your body doesn't know you are under feeding it on purpose.

I know you will go back to your post beach day diet. That's fine. But if you continue to have this issue I hope you will pm me. I can hopefully help you.

I miss my big butt

Please don't. Seek therapy etc. it's not worth it.

I am sure you are missing the oral fixation that smoking satisfies but smoking is incredibly dangerous and can truly damage your new stomach.

Vaping is largely unstudied but I imagine still better than light up a cigarette.

Hi.

So.

Yes hunger comes back. That is a fact. Some sooner than others. Wls starves your body down to a lower weight. Eventually your body will want to fight that. This is why maintaining is the hardest part for most people.

You can read my story and see what I went through. That may help you.

When my own hunger returned it scared the hell out of me. I put on about 15 pounds (which was actually good since I was underweight) but I was afraid it would never stop.

When my hunger returned I began to emotionally over eat again. I found myself right back were I started, living on a diet and binging out of guilt. I was right back in the loss/regain cycle.

I had dieted my way up to being obese so I knew this was not what I wanted to happen again.

I had to get real. I said to myself - has dieting ever worked for you?

What has been the result of trying to deny your hunger? What has happened when you have eaten less than your body clearly wanted?

Well- I gained weight. Lots of it.

I wasn't about to let that happen again.

I got real and discovered intuitive eating, sought eating disorder therapy, learned to practice mindful eating, I got into a healthy routine for exercising, and I decided to honor my bodies hunger and always eat enough to satisfy it.

I gave up dieting and weighing myself. I decided to love myself at any weight my body chose to be. I decided to step out of the cycle of hunger and guilt.

There was NO way I was going to be able to be happy hungry for the rest of my life.

I now maintain my weight within a healthy range and I eat whatever appeals to me. Life is good. My weight isn't what I plan my happiness around anymore. If I gain, so be it. It's okay to take up space in the world.

Feel free to pm me anytime.

Water is a huge struggle. Eventually you will be able to drink it in large amounts again. Right now your stomach can't handle it.

Sips is all you can do throughout the day. It will get better.

Always. Always always.

And as I lost fat from my but it only got worse.

I'm sorry. Try to limit sitting.

Errrrrr. How far out are you? I had this and it was gallbladder stones.

I ate them all the time while I was losing. Salsa barely has any calories. Hot sauce has almost no calories.

Ketchup and BBQ Sauce can add up... just keep it in moderate amounts.

Condiments are my life!!!

This didn't go well at all for me, it was my first time eating out and I thought I could eat a mozzarella stick. I think 15 minutes later I was in the restroom vomiting cheese sorry for tmi
I was sweating profusely and was hot and everyone was eating like normal.
Oh never again and lesson learned probably avoid eating out or continue to make healthy choices.
How do you order when you're out?
What do you order?

Just search youtube it is full of food addict cry babies who are unhappy with their surgery and still eating Pasta. Or you can search regret here and find lots of thread of unhappy people who can't pig out on pizza of chug liquor like it is Spring Break anymore.
Although most of those claims are just click bait, when you watch the actual videos, you will see they are happy with their results even if they never got to goal.
Forums are a skewed representation of life after WLS. First of all it is mainly newbs. I had surgery almost 2 years ago and basically no one that had surgery the same month as me posts here. Even at the one year mark they were all gone. 3 kinds of people post on WLS forums, newbs, successful people and failures/regains.
I'm thrilled with my surgery results, my health improvements were almost immediate. The weight loss is just icing on the cake.

Good morning lovely people,I read all these success stories and that's great, it's motivating and helps me stay on course. I'm about halfway through my qualifying process for the sleeve.In the interest of getting the whole story though I was hoping to hear from people who regret having done wls?

Thanks for your input.

I have been asked many times if I regret surgery and would do it again, because of the difficulty I went through. The answer to that is still yes, I would do it again.

I don't think it's as simple as saying, do I regret it. I think it's more about realizing this is a hard process and it's also not a guarantee of weight loss.

If someone does wls and does not lose or regains- you BET YOUR ASS they will regret it. Omg. To think of living with the stomach I have now and also being at my heavier weight. Wow. That would suck. I live with complications but being at a lower weight makes it worth it.

And you can't know for sure if you will lose. I know a lot of people who did not lose much. Our bodies are all different. Our bodies fight back hard against weight loss through dietary restriction. They don't like to be starved. If someone doesn't lose it's because their body is really good at preventing starvation. Or it's their mindset- they cannot break the need in their mind to continue their learned habits. They don't know how to stop the process of guilt eating. It's not their fault.

My suggestion for you is to really consider the cost of this surgery physically, the potential you won't lose, your other options for weight stabilization, how much your weight really matters and effects your life, and wether there are other problems you need to face in your life that could be more helpful than weight loss.

I highly recommend therapy before and after wls from an eating disorder specialist.

[mention=235696]bellabloom[/mention]

nice to see you and your smile again

glad maintenance is an ongoing success

i have 3 questions.....

how can i add 3 inches to my height??

how can i become a cutey and a youngun

again like you?

can i eat pizza on the way home from hospital

you look maaaarvelous!!!

Plastics - what did you have? painful? cost etc?

you said "Bariatric surgery was very complicated for me"

(continued Protein, Water? etc)

what was/is the hardest part of the journey and maintenance??

inquiry minds want to know!!!

keep up the good job

kathy

congrats

Hi beautiful!!

You're so funny. I wish I could help you with your height and age goals but I think that's out of my reach. I'm sure your amazing and lovely just the way you are. Plus being tall isn't that great, I'm taller than all the men I want to go out with!!

Pizza on the way home from the hospital... depends on why you went to the hospital. If you were there having wls surgery hahaha no. If you were there visiting a sick friend than yes by all means!

I had plastics in Mexico and paid 13,500 for a neck lift, breast lift, and Tummy Tuck. It all came out absolutely amazing. My surgeon was the best of the best. Worth every penny.

My bariatric surgery was complicated because I had to have my bypass reversed and converted to a sleeve. I had seven surgeries in all. Bypass, gallbladder removal, exploratory, reversal and conversion to a sleeve, stricture dialation, granuloma in my belly button, and plastics. I couldn't eat solid food for almost a year and became extremely malnourished. During the course of the early surgeries I became physically addicted to narcotics. I had to go to detox to get off of them. Also wls triggered anorexia for me and I had to get treatment for that. So yeah. Complicated. Not to mention the huge life altering experience weight loss can be.

The hardest part for me has been maintaining without continuing to diet. I realized I could not continue to live in a diet mentality or I would either remain anorexic or regain all of my weight. I had to get therapy and learn to eat intuitively. I also had to let go of trying to have the perfect body and obsessing about my weight. I had to decide to allow my body to choose its desired weight without interference from me and to be body positive and embrace health at every size.

I would say thank you to keeping up the good job... but this isn't a job. This is life. Weight is not your "job". We weren't out on this planet to be skinny and perfect. There are a million other more important things in life than what size ones body is. It's wonderful to have a good relationship with your body- practice self care and self love. But treating your bodies shape like it's your job to make it perfect and it's something that must be done in order to be a valid person... no. Life is so much more than that.

I am very happy with my body right now but I have accepted that I am so much happier letting go of perfection. If I gain some weight back... that's okay. I deserve to be happy, nourished, and my body deserves to be healthy.

[mention=307767]bostongary[/mention], Would love to track with you and support each other.

However if what you said is actually true, then I think I am a girl. : ) (But I am not that cool or smart.) As I have obsessed about food most of my life. I don't think it is gender based as much as it is individual. I believe everything you said, but I think that is also unique to you.

I believe we all have our "real issues" which most of us are unaware of until the weight starts coming off. We also have our own "perceived issues" which are the issues we own and admit to. Sometimes those are the same, but many times they are different. A real issue maybe the abuse you suffered not related to food directly, but is a major influence on your ability to love yourself, or be in a vulnerable situation. Food relationship becomes the "perceived issue or symptom, your abuse remains the "real issue".

What I like most about[mention=235696]bellabloom[/mention] is her transformation from perceived issues by losing weight, to her real issues of her relationship with food and herself. With the honest transparency and vulnerability with how she navigated through both of them.

Some back-ground: This is my second procedure, I was banded 12 years ago. (With a lot of success. 375 to 230) But I can tell you, while I was successful losing the weight and keeping most of it off for 7 years, I was unsuccessful at dealing with the "real issues" during that time. As once the band was removed (for medical reasons), all the weight came storming back.

So while I conquered all my perceived issues and felt secure during those 7 years with the results to prove it, in reality, I failed at addressing my "real issues".

That really played head games with me gaining my weight back, as I thought I was over it. But reality doesn't change just because it isn't convenient or uncomfortable. So I had to come to terms that I needed a medical procedure again(!) to physically help me address my "real issues" which are mental/emotional based.

So now I have the blessing to try and learn and conquer my real issues again!

I can tell all of you who are having success losing weight, enjoy it, love it, Celebrate it, but don't let it blind you from other issues still under the surface. If you don't have them, hurray! I do not wish people to have issues they don't, but I was ignorant to mine because of the success of the surgery. It allowed me to ignore my real issues, instead of face them.

Wow. Amazing and well said!!! Yes of course. Our real and perceived issues matter. Our real issues matter the most. Our perceived issue is our inability to control ourself around food. Our real issue is why do we need to desperately try to conform our appearance to societal standards to the point we are willing to starve ourselves. Why is there so much self hatred.

In addition a real issue is that we have lost the ability to eat based on our bodies needs and instead we are experiencing over eating based on guilt and emotional pain and a reaction to dieting.

You look great! I've already considered Dra. Cardenas for plastics when I need them, but that might be a while yet. From the photos I've seen (including yours) she does some beautiful stitching - I've seen some pretty jagged scars from other surgeons!
How long was your recovery?

Dr Carmina Cardenas was my plastic surgeon. I am beyond happy with everything she did and the cost was half what I would have paid here in the USA. I also had wonderful

after care in Mexico. I feel

so blessed she was my doctor. Feel free to pm me about her. She is an artist!!

she did a neck lift, breast lift and Tummy Tuck for me. I'm going back in a few months for a bbl lift and fat transfer to my face as well.

I adore her. Trust me she is the one you want. She knows how to work with weight loss patients bodies!!!!

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.

Ever think some people left because a lot of you were really mean to them? I've had many many people message me privately about this. Sorry but it's true. Not gonna name names.

[mention=127898]Delta_35[/mention] I keep telling myself I am going to stop posting here because for me the site is basically useless. I want to stay involved in WLS community I think remembering where you came from and helping others is a good support method to stay on track. Yet, I'm not even 2 years out, I don't really consider myself a Vet. I have questions and issues I could use help with but there are virtually no successful Vets to ask. Even fewer that started with a BMI as high as mine (61). My issues and the problems I have are unique to being that large and losing so much. I have no community here I can talk to. It is basically just like being in the real world, alone with a unique experience.

I like answering questions because most responses are from people less than 6 months out that have a really skewed view what post-op life is like so it is the blind leading the blind.

Still with no real active community for WLS Vets, might as well just chill with my Keto friends.

This isn't just a reflection of this board, this is a major long term issue with WLS patients in general, long term, they just aren't active in the WLS community. Everything is just for newbs and I also think this is why so many people fail long term, there is no long term support, just immediate post-op and that is what all information is geared for.

Also, Bella is always trying to take someone to task for what they say but as soon as someone gets on her case, she wants to play victim. She one of the most passive aggressive internet characters I have encountered in a long time.

I feel I have a valuable perspective to contribute. I went through major complications over this surgery and it came at a huge cost. I had a lot of growth to do and I came away loving myself no matter my weight. I'm just trying to encourage that in others.

I most definitely consider myself a vet as I maintain my weight without effort and have extensive experience with wls and weight loss and gain in general.

I think this site is wonderful and useful. I like helping new people. The plastic surgery info is great as time moves on. It's a great resource for people with weight loss struggles. It's a good place to discuss a variety of issues.

I too was on this forum and after surgery in 2012, I left. Now I am back and all I can do is smh. I now only post on threads from people who are really seeking advice. Yesterday I read about someone who went from band to sleeve, and said he couldn't stop eating all this food and drink. when asked if was doing the 30 min rule( no liquids before, during, or after) he said, sometime he didn't because he couldn't "stop" himself.
It is very obvious a lot people did not have the psych eval done. I will be honest, I did not have to through Aetna, they approved me without it. I think back and wish they had, but I somehow made it because of the willpower to change my eating habits and the willingness to want to LIVE. I don't think some of the people on here have the willpower or willingness, and it makes me worry how successful they will be in the end..and how they will affect others who are contemplating the surgery.

Anthropologists, Bebe, banana republic, tj max, special
Boutiques in town, urban outfitters is my fav

Hello everyone,
I'm wondering if anyone has had plastic surgery done in Mexico? Specifically Tummy Tuck or body lift. I had my sleeve done in Mexico with great result's but having a hard time gathering information on potential surgeon's. All the reviews seem to be super old, lol.
TIA!!!

I had my surgery in 2014 and things have gone very well. I do have some issues with skin on my arms but it's not significant and I can hide with sleeves. However, my neck is another story. It's the only part of my body that really is driving me nuts. I'm very self-conscious about it. I am in Houston. Has anyone had a neck lift procedure in Texas? It looks like is 7-12K which I think is pretty high. I've thought about Mexico. I am not planning on having any other plastic surgery.

Can a doc outside of the u.s. Sign disability papers for you while you're out of work? I'm considering this surgeon as well but like many of you, the Mexico part is what really scares me. I wondered about the disability part as well though.

Dr Cardenas must have a new hospital and recovery centre since I had my surgery there in 2014

I guess it depends on what your willing to go through to lose weight and how important it really is to you. At a bmi of 30 you're not going to convince me you have major life threatening health problems that you need to have this huge body altering operation to resolve.

I'm not judging. I've had wls. I had a bmi of 38. I stuffed my pockets with weights to qualify lol. I lost 120 lbs.

Did it resolve how I felt about my self image? No. That took a lot of therapy. Did it resolve my back issues? No. That took exercise. Did it free me from yo yo dieting and having to count calories And go on diets and be hungry? Nope. That took eating disorder therapy and learning how to eat correctly.

The effects of this surgery in terms of restriction are temporary. Eventually you can eat again. Count on it. All it will do is give you a break from having to try so hard and get you kick started towards weight loss. It's not magic. And it does not last.

What does last are the effects of having your stomach removed. Dumping lasts. Having difficulty eating things lasts. For me frequent vomiting and pain has lasted.

That said.. would I do it again? Yes. I had a huge amount of weight I wanted to lose. It was overwhelming. There was no way I could accept myself at my high weight. I was at rock bottom. The surgery forced me to get treatment for my issues- my disordered eating and my self imagine and boundary problems. It leveled my life and took me to the core of my problems.

But I had to give up dieting in the end to get healthy and I had to get away from any kind of disordered food restrictions. And now I have to live with my issues physically.

At a 30 bmi, my opinion, is you are WAY BETTER OFF getting therapy for disordered eating and losing weight in a sustainable way because this surgery is not one. My prediction is if you do the surgery you will lose weight and in one or two years end up regaining and again struggling and in exactly the same place except even more frightened of weight and obsessed with food and insecure.

If you do take surgery as your option, please take my advice, which come from a good and experienced place - seek therapy for your food and self image issues throughout.

I also want to say, being overweight is not ugly, it is not a crime, and does not say anything negative about you. Neither does choosing weight loss surgery. Losing weight is hard and it's hard to live in this world where we are judged so harshly. Weight loss surgery can be well worth it. In my case, it was. Just know it comes at a COST.