bellabloom

Here are my stats from my journey. From highest weight of 250 to lowest weight of 119. It's amazing I've really lost half a person.

I thought everyone might be interested in seeing these. I've kept track of my progress throughout my weight loss, with weight and measurements. I'm pretty much at goal now and you can see the difference from start to finish. I literally have lost half my size. I started at 250 highest weight, I would like to stay between 115 and 120 now. I'm 5'6 and 35 years old.

No. There's a patch??

It really trips me out too how much the face can change. My face looks like a complete different person! Even the shape of my brows and nose is different. I wasn't ugly before I lost weight but my skin and face did not look healthy because of the food I was putting in my body. I've never been at this weight before and wasn't sure what I would look like but I'm loving it! And loving seeing everyone else's beautiful faces emerge as well!!

Not everyone slacks off on their Vitamins just because they don't care. I couldn't and still can't tolerate them- they make me horribly nauseated and I throw up over and over after taking them. I can't tell you how many times I've been pulled over on the side of the road on my way to work vomiting from a Vitamin I took. And Protein shakes gave me the runs after a while. Diarrhea galore. So for someone already struggling to get enough food and Water, puking and diarrhea just weren't going to fly. I tried liquid vitamins, gummies, swallowing them.... They all make me sick. Flinstones is so far the only kind. I'm trying to get as much vitamin from my food as possible by eating a wide variety of vegetables and fruits. I even have have sympathy for the op. It's hard to get used to this new regime. It sucks to have to take medication every day. Hopefully they will find ways to make it easier and keep up with it.

I didn't take my Vitamins or eat my Protein for months. Really, ever. They made me super sick. I tried many different kinds. I couldn't eat much of anything and protien was very difficult to get down. I have a Vitamin b1 deficiency and I have lost some muscle. Everything else is okay so far. It's been almost a year. As I eat more meat I don't worry so much about protein but vitamins are still an issue. I've begun taking Flinstones and I can tolerate them. I'm trying to work up to adult vitamins. It's very difficult for me. Unless you have a real reason why your not taking them, you really should be. I literally couldn't, I would just throw them up. If it's just you forgetting, try to set up a better system to remember. It's not a habit you want to get into!

I totally lost my butt. It's so sad. I need a butt lift

Thanks everyone. I like the idea of asking for a to go box right off. It will also help alleviate the urge to "clean my plate" if I can out most of it aside from the get go. Because if I try and clean my plate I am going to be sick for sure!! The nose running and hiccuping thing also happens to me. I need to pay more attention to that. The weight watchers portions sure brought me back!! Those are good. They were impossible for me to follow pre- surgery but now are a great tool, thanks Babbs !

Yes!!! Thank you!!! Ridiculous to be criticized for having self confidence. What am I supposed to do, walk around with my head down all day and out my self down!?? Someone calls me pretty or smart and I'm supposed to say "oh no, no I'm not!" That's so screwed up. I have a daughter I hope she grows up to hold her head high, know her strengths, know her value, and be confident enough to admit to her flaws. We are what we believe ourselves to be In life we have to be our own best friend.

I agree with babbs. Go back to basics. Protein really is the key for us. I can take down significantly more carbs like bagels than I can protein. It's unfortunate you don't have the level of restriction some people do, but eventually all of us may lose that so it's good to get where you need to go regardless. It all comes down to you and your choices. If you decide you want this you can have it! Get back to the gym and get back on track.

I've had a stricture most of the time I've had the sleeve which caused me to throw up almost any solid food I ate. I've only been able to eat solids for about a month, so I'm just getting to know my sleeve. I'm having trouble knowing when I've eaten enough to get full but not get sick. When I eat too much I get brutal nausea and I want to avoid this at all costs, but I also don't want to walk away from a good meal only to be hungry in 30 minutes. Are there any tips for recognizing fullness you could give me? Should I carry around a measuring cup? Getting full with the sleeve doesn't feel the same as getting full pre-sleeve.

My surgeon has a tanita scale and measures it for me. really cool.

You really understood my original post, thank you. You're right. I guess I'm overreacting a little. I can't explain exactly what is happening. All I know is I'm uncomfortable with how certain men are reacting to me. But it will get better in time I'm sure.

Wow. Wow!! I'm so happy for you. You look amazing, love the way you're dressing now and I bet you feel amazing!!

You look so so so good.

There's something very creepy about men who think women's weight, whether it's low or high, is a topic for conversation with no context. To be sitting across from a woman he doesn't know and discuss her, evaluate her, with her is weird, inappropriate and, well, creepy. What happened to conversation that's interesting and appropriate? Your thinking on whether you'd reveal your weight history is off kilter. At one time you were 250. It's a part of your history and your being. As you say it, it sounds as though revealing your truth would be the same as apologizing. You have nothing to apologize for. Why fear "bursting the bubble" of some creep? You'd lose his approval? He's no great prize to begin with. The other side of the coin is: What happens when you decide to get naked with someone? Will he not notice some out-of-the-ordinary features? Loose skin? Scars not only from bariatric surgery, but also from reconstructive surgery (if that's the case)? "The dog ate my homework" won't cut it. Are you clear yourself on what you mean by "skinny?" A very high percentage of obese or formerly obese people equate "skinny" with attractive and healthy. "Skinny" is neither. What's attractive about a sunken chest or something like? "Skinny" is distorted perception. I was stunned to observe many times at WLS support groups or at my clothing exchange events that obese and formerly obese people use the word "skinny" as a barrier against "the other," I'll call it. The best example I recall was a support meeting where a man (a man, mind you) who had never been overweight, did a guest presentation of some sort of exercise program he'd developed. A woman at the meeting, still quite heavy, made some comments which included describing him as "skinny." It was so clear that she was building a wall; that he was "the Other," not quite a "real" person. The moment was humiliating and the man responded by saying that he considered himself at a healthy weight, not skinny. He was accurate. The word "skinny" is an equivalent of thin ice -- a poor foundation, a broad misconception, and absence of a centeredness within. I'll retract all that if in fact you really do mean true skinniness. At this hour, I can't not ramble. All very true!!

This made me laugh out loud. I've never had to worry in my whole like about superficial men because well, I just wasn't the physical type they are looking for. And to have to worry about it now is definitely an awakening! I think I know what signs to look for and I don't think they are THAT common. But they are out there.

Not me. I'm one ugly mofo. But I am pretty damn charming. Sent from my phone, please forgive brevity and misspelling Ugliness is as ugliness does. Thanks daveo. Your always so sweet in your posts.

Thank you Anne for your thoughtful post. I can tell that you care and I thank you for reading all my posts the way you have been. There is no doubt I have been through a hell of a lot this year. My divorce, followed by surgery, from which I almost died and then 3 further surgeries and four months in the hospital. A stricture for 6 months, puking five or more times a day for months, blood transfusions, pic lines, finally settling down and now horrible dumping syndrome. I fell in love with a man who hid his addiction from me and then had to walk away and be heartbroken. I'm a single mom and struggling with my business after being out of work five months. Im also recovering from an eating disorder and trying to keep it that way which is a daily challenge for me as I navigate weightloss and maintainence. I'm lonely and miss having a partner to go through things with. It's been a tough year. This forum has given me a ton of support and I am thankful for that. Your post made me cry in a good way. Sometimes I forget how much has happened. Having this new body and how I relate to men now is just something I'm going to have to take as a series of lessons. With the right guy it won't even be an issue because I'll be upfront about my surgery from early on.

Wow. You look incredible and so healthy!!

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So true!! Good point. Maybe I'm being too sensitive about it.

And modest. Don't forget modest. Hahahha. Nope I'm not one to walk quietly through the world with my head down. Thank god!! I have as many flaws and insecurities as anyone else. But what I have learned in life is no one else will be your advocate- you have to be your own. My insecurities in my youth led me into an abusive marriage for 8 years that almost killed me. I had to decide every day whether or not I believed the things he said to me. I was called a fat pig every day for years and I had children with him so I felt very trapped. It's was so hard to leave. I've come out of that strong and full of love for myself and appreciation of my worth. No one will do that for us. And hating on other people- that's a sign of insecurity if I've ever seen one!! I have no problem sitting with my flaws and shouting out my good qualities. Life is hard enough and if your not going to be your own best friend, who will?????

This is so mean and hurtful. That post was about me celebrating my success and being thrilled about what I've accomplished. It was about self love and worth. How does it help you too tell me my posts suck? I would never say something like that to anyone! I didn't say your posts suck. They do come off as being posted by an insecure person that is attention seeking. People that are secure in themselves do seek validation in others the way you do. The way you responded to criticism in this thread just illustrates it. Wow you are so mean!!! ????. Hurting my feelings.

Thanks cowgirl Jane. I do feel like some people have been rather mean to me. We need to remember what we read on here is just a slice of someone's life. For me I post about fear and insecurities, struggled I'm having. I post about success and happiness too. Those are all in my life!! But you can't read my posts on here and think you know me. Especially because most of them are about hard issues!! It's a biased look at me. I'm am an extremely confident woman who knows what she is looking for. I've walked away from many good prospects and relationships because I'm not going to settle. I love and value myself and know my own worth. If I'm attracting not so great guys it's because the world is full of not so great people. We all know that!! I do not believe it is some shortcoming or lack of worth in me. I am one of the kindest, warmest, and most positive people I know. If you knew me in person, you would know that. I'm a loyal friend and wonderful mother. People open up to me because of my gentle and welcoming nature. I'm a very sweet and accepting person. I truly care about people and their feelings. It's because of this that dating is doubly hard for me. People tend to open up to me right away and a lot of times that's overwhelming! And I don't want to hear some of their truths. Anyway. I am not some insecure self obsessed bitch like some of you ladies seem to have decided!! Take everything I say with a grain of salt because these are my fears and deepest feelings I share on here. I'm extremely down to earth, my favorite thing to make fun of is myself, I am a dorky and friendly gal that people generally really like, and I love being me. And someday a man will come along who will love me too AND he will meet my standards of what it is to be an awesome human being.