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@@AnnaValenka There are a couple of things that I would do if I were you to ensure that you remain on track. 1. Absolutely stick to the no drink with food at least 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after you eat. You could be flushing what you are eating right down causing you to feel hungrier although at 6 weeks it is very unlikely you are feeling real hunger. It is likely head hunger and you have to learn to distract yourself. 2. 1 cup of food is a lot for 6 weeks post op. I am 21 months post op and unless I am eating salad, I can't even eat 1 cup of actual food. When eating dense Protein, I am luckily if I can get 3 oz. in. Dense protein will also keep you full longer. 3. You have to find a Protein Drink that works for you that has both low sugar, low carbs and high protein. It took me several weeks before I found one that works. I use Premier Protein ready made shakes which has 30 grams of protein in it. I understand we don't absorb much more than that at any one sitting. 4. When you wrote your post I got the impression that you are guessing how much you are actually eating? I may have got the wrong impression but if you are not measuring and tracking, calories find a way of sneaking in. One of the best habits I built for myself was tracking my food every day, good or bad. That way I know exactly what I put in my mouth. As time goes by you will get a good sense of what 1/4 cup or a 1/2 cup is. My diet did not allow for a full cup of food until I was a year out and honestly I rarely am able now at 21 months post op. There are a lot of mixed write ups about where a pouch actually stretches or not. The reality is the first 8 weeks you are very swollen, when the swelling goes down, you have more room. At or near the year mark, you actually get more comfortable with filling your pouch and so it may seem like you can push more in or that it stretched. That is why measuring is a really good thing to do. I am glad to hear you are meeting with your nut because it sounds like you just need to get back to basics. At this stage your body really doesn't need a lot of food, it's needs hydration, protein and Vitamins to do well. Also, your weight loss is actually great! Be prepared that it will definately change in the coming months and if you are not prepared mentally for it it can be demotivating. I was a slow loser, losing about 100lbs in my first 9 months. Then it took me another 10 months to lose the remaining 50lbs. If you can, take advantage of the honeymoon period where you will lose the most weight. That is typically the first 6 months before your real hunger kicks back in. Best of luck to you!

Congratulations on your initial weight loss. That is not easy to do, especially the older we get and the more screwed up our metabolism is. Remember obesity is a metabolic disease. I lost weight so many times in my life from different diets and exercise. At first it was easy. I tried a low fat diet and lost 60lbs and got back to a normal weight for my height. I gained it all back and added more. I then tried Jenny Craig, Atkins, Slimfast and trim spa. I lost 60 to 80lbs each time then gaining it back and adding some more until I weighed 310. By that time my metabolism was so screwed up that I could not lose anything. I was never a big eater but it was about eating a crappy diet. I was actually a 310lb malnourished adult. Crazy isn't it? Anyway, I share this simply to get you thinking about the reasons why you were even considering it in the first place. If you think you can lose it and keep it off then great! You should do that for sure. If you think you will revert back to old overeating and eating the wrong diet then you likely need a tool to help you to not gain it all back. Either way, you really have to change the way that you eat forever to get healthy. I do not think there is any way around that and for me, I knew I needed a helping hand. The best of luck to you, I hope you find the healthy life you are looking forward to.

The answer is yes absolutely but you have to work hard for it. I am 21 months post op. I have lost about 150lbs and am currently at a normal bmi for my height. I started at 310 and am currently 160. It took me longer than most because I had 3 major surgeries starting at about 9 months post op. 2 spine and one shoulder. This meant that after 9 months I had to control my weight loss specifically from diet alone after the initial 9 months. Incidentally I never I a million years thought I could do it and was scared to death that I would really screw it up when I found out I needed a 3 level cervical fusion last June. I was scare I would gain it all back again because up to that point I had been doing about an hour of cardio a day and had lost about 100lbs up to that point. I had 50 more to go and let me tell you after the first 6 to 8 months you have to be truly diligent because things slow down. I lost at about 3 to 5 lbs per month after that reaching my goal early this spring. You have to do your part but I am telling you if I could do it anyone can. Best of luck to you and feel free to reach out with questions. I also have before and after photos if you click on my profile.

I have not seen any teens on this site for the most part. I do have mixed feelings about this but mostly I would support it. Honestly so many folks that are obese and super obese have been suffering since they were young children and the child obesity rate continues to soar. I say this all the time, if I could have done this when I was young I certainly would not have all this damage to my body. I had surgery at 51 and wish I would have done it in my early 20's. I just didn't know enough and honestly did not realize the sheer damage one can do. For me, my spine is a complete disaster. I have had to have 6 spine surgeries and I am permanently disabled. I have also had to have shoulder surgery for the same reason. Osteo arthritis. Too much wear and tear on my joints. Not not mention that being younger might help with things like excess skin and building longer term good habits at a much younger age. While I do understand the issue about exploiting children, the damage to them from everything that results with child obesity might be even worse. If a documentary show helps even a small number of children make better life decisions then honestly I am for it. I do understand that this might not be popular with others on this site but so be it. My opinion comes from my personal experiences and I think that something like this would have educated me at a much younger age. I will say that I was overweight in my teens and became obese in my early 20's. Had I been obese as a child it would have been absolutely devastating and my head would have been more messed up than what it was. This is just my opinion.......

@@beccaconaty87 I am glad to see you are reaching out and doing some research before plunging forward. From all the responses you have received you can see most of us would not have chosen to move forward if the death rate you quoted was true. What's funny is most people don't understand how much safer these surgeries are given how dangerous staying obese actually is. Your best chance of getting to a healthy weight, keeping it off and extending your life is by choosing one of the WLS tools like RNY Bypass, Sleeve or even the lap band. I am not sure of your current statistics like weight, height and age but I can tell you, the longer you stay obese the more long term damage you do to your body. Everyone always asks me if I regret having RBY Bypass. My only regret is waiting until I was 51 to have it. I damaged my joints, my spine and my kidneys by staying obese so long. I am now 53, 5'10" and I weight a slim 161lbs. I look fantastic and aside from my severe spine arthritis, I am healthy!! I no longer have diabetes, high blood pressure, anemia, sleep apnea, high cholesterol. My stage 3 kidney disease is in remission! I used to wear a size 24 jeans/26 slacks and 26/28 tops. I now wear a size 8 jeans/10slacks and Large or 10/12 top! I would not use death as the reason not to have this surgery. Focus on the reasons you are considering it. Do all your research and follow all of the instructions and you will do fine. People have complications and even die when they don't do what they are supposed to. Getting up and walking after surgery is critical to your success. Drinking all your fluids, Protein and Vitamins is critical to long term health following any weight loss surgery no matter how much you don't like the taste of protein. I promise you, every ounce of work you put in is so worth the end result! This decision was the best thing I have ever done for myself. Best of luck to you!!!!

@ Congratulations on your progress. I am sorry that you have gotten there with a stricture and hope that they resolve that quickly for you so you can get back on track with getting your Protein mostly from food. I myself still drink one premier Protein shake per day which gives me 30 grams first thing in the am. My protein tests have been great so far but 21 months post op I still have a pretty tight restriction only able to eat a few ounces of dense protein. I can certainly eat larger portions of veggies or fruit but dense protein fills me up fast and keeps me full and I cannot eat enough of it to get all of my protein from only that. Thankfully my team is comfortable with my having one protein shake per day. In terms of your goal, you are probably right. As you lose the next 35 you will likely reassess. I have done that several times now thinking I would be way too thin at 165 which is the high end of the bmi chart for someone my height. I am currently at 161 and I certainly will begin to worry if I go much below 155. Mostly because in places I am very thin and the weight seems to still come off of those places instead of where I know I still have fat. It's weird the way that works. I definately would prefer to stay somewhere between 155 and 165. It feels good to me to stay in that range. In terms of maintenance I feel like I still do not have that figured out. I reached my goal in early spring and I seem to gain when I think I should be ok and lose when I adjust. Recently I started weaning off some medications they were using to try to control chronic pain. As soon as I started taking them I started gaining and almost immediately as I started to wean off I started losing rapidly again. For example.... I gained 5lbs about 6 weeks ago. I started weaning about 4 weeks ago and in the last 3 weeks I have lost 8lbs. I really haven't changed too much except the medications so obviously I need to make a adjustment to my diet. Maintenance is going to drive me insane until I figure it out. Best of luck to you and I certainly hope that your stricture is resolved soon. I also wanted to let you know that 21 months out and I do get hungry but it is quickly taken care of with a few ounces of something good for me. Also, it seems to come in waves where one week I will be hungry and another I have little to no appetite and have to really work hard to get 1000 calories in me. Those weeks I am hungry I consume between 1200 and 1400 which is enough for me given my very limited exercise routine.

Ummmm, yum. Good for you! The hardest thing for me in that first 6 months was trying to get things flavored properly for my family. I am an excellent cook. My granddaughter who is 12 calls me the family chef and comes to stay with me for a week at a time just so she can enjoy my cooking and cook with me. The problem of course is I cook from memory and taste and Lordy was my taster broken!!!! At first I did not taste at all, I would have my son or hubby taste because I wasn't eating what I was cooking most of the time. Then, I started cooking differently for my whole family so I could actually taste things. Now I cook all the time and I still love it but I really have to be very careful because I have found that my tasting causes me to be full before I even put food on my plate. It is especially bad when making things like mashed potatoes! (LOL). I find that I have to really watch it. I also find after 21 months that dinner is my toughest meal. I really cannot eat much for dinner at all. And if I don't, I am then hungry later at night so I try hard not to taste much, to avoid snacking on anything before dinner. Also what I cook has really changed a lot because I don't like to cook more than one meal for the whole family. Only once or twice a week do I even make a starch. Mostly we have become a meat and veggies family...... And no, I don't miss all the pastas I used to make......pasta makes my pouch hurt. Good luck with your cooking!!!!

@@beccaconaty87 Hi there and welcome! I think almost everyone has initial fears of what could happen. The reality is, what will happen if you choose to wait and do nothing? I know for me, I waited way too long before taking the plunge and moving forward. I had RNY bypass and I thank god every single day that I decided to move forward. I was 51, 5'10" and weighed 310lbs. I had numerous comorbities and had just been diagnosed with stage 3 chronic kidney disease as well. My kidney Doctor is the one who suggested that I do something now or would be looking at a dialysis and possibly a kidney transplant down the road. All because I was obese. The answer to the question is yes, you will have loose skin but let me tell you, I would much rather have loose skin that carry around almost another whole me! I have lost 149lbs. I weigh 161 which is a healthy normal weight for my height. Before my surgery I was 310lb and I was actually malnourished!!!! I did not eat a lot. In fact, my family could not understand how the heck I was overweight. The reality was I ate a carb heavy crappy diet. Now, my body craves quality Protein, vegetables and fruits. I don't get sick, I pretty much eat whatever I want in small quantities. I simply don't care for the crappy junk foods I ate previously. Please try to get yourself in to see a nutritionist and a physcologist before you wait way too long. My only regret is that. I caused my bones and muscles a lot of damage that cannot be undone. You are young and have your whole life ahead of you. Get yourself some help to work through this along with your partner. My husband is thrilled with how I look. He found me beautiful before but now he says I am hot too! And other men have noticed me as well...... I will have some plastics to take care of my extra skin on my arms, tummy and to have a breast lift but because you are young you may have better results. I would also just mention that of course someone losing that much weight looks crazy thin and may even initially look sickly. The reality is, we as a country are so used to seeing overweight and obese people that we no longer understand what normal looks like. I am slowly getting used to how I look and so are my family members. Many times I have had people tell me I am too thin but I know that is not true. The reality is they have only ever known me as fat or obese and it can be shocking but they get used to it. When I meet new people and they learn I was once obese, they are shocked because I look fantastic now. I have had several tell me they never would have know that I was once fat. Which means that loose skin I have is more about me knowing it is there than anyone else. I don't wear compression garments either because I have such bad arthritis that they are too hard to get on and off. I hope sharing some of this eases your mind a little bit...... Best if luck to you!

@@JennyJennJen Good luck to you with this approach. It is not something that I would choose for myself but to each his/her own. I did want to ensure that you understand that you can always enjoy the "yummier" foods as you call it with bypass or sleeve. You simply only find yourself wanting to indulge once in a while and very small portions. I honestly eat what ever I want at this stage being 21 months post op. The funny thing is, because the first year of my post op I built really great eating habits I simply don't want what I used to think was yummy. For example.....I used to eat out at least once per day and a lot of that was fast food that I thought was delicious. I used to eat a lot of candy and sweets and junk food for that same reason. I still find that there are foods that I love and can have but for the most part my body craves healthy Protein, delicious vegetables and succulent fruits. Had I not built those excellent behaviors during that first year, I probably would still be a malnourished obese person like I was. I was 5'10" 310lbs and yes, I was malnourished among other things. Now I am 5'10" and 161lbs and I wear a size 8! I have a closet full of beautiful clothes, food has become not so important in my life anymore and I am so thankful for it! I truly mean the best of luck for you. I just know without these major life changes I would not have been successful and I know that if I tried something like the aspire assist I would not have gotten here.

Congrats on your surgery and your new friends! You do not need people like that in your life while you are going through such a significant life change anyway!

First I will say, if you are following the plan you will continue to lose the weight. Second, stalls suck. Get used to them because there are many more the closer you get to your goal weight. Third, if you follow the plan you will get to your goal. Believe me......I never in a million years thought I would ever see a normal weight again and yet I am here. It took 18 months for me to hit my goal. I was slower because I had 3 major surgeries shortly after my bypass which left me unable to exercise for the last 12 month. Prior to that I was doing and hour of cardio every day. I still do pt exercises daily but nothing that is going to cause me to expend lots of calories. I stuck to the diet and still lost everything I wanted to and even a little more. Take a deep breath and get off the scale if you can't handle the stall because I promise you will stall. Your body absolutely has to have time to rest in between. That last 20lbs I lost....I would lose a pound or two in a month and stall out for a few weeks then wham I would lose a couple more and stall again. That is simply the way it goes. Don't be in such a rush to lose it all fast because your body adjusts better the slower you lose. This is just my opinion......

I think I spit Water out of my nose while reading the OP! Love the rant and especially the funny that you brought with it. I do think many many people have sub par medical support. It just isn't the same for everyone leaving many unanswered questions. This is the place that people come and that's great. It seems you can always vett out those that simply don't want to listen to their medical professionals. They are usually the folks drinking alcohol soon after surgery or going right back to old crappy behaviors.

Amen to that. The people that spout off the most know the least about metabolic disease. It feels great to rant and get it off your chest and this is just the place to do it. Now, just get it done and stick it right up her A$$! I have what I used to call a friend do the same thing to me except she was just and big as I was. Since having surgery and watching me work my plan and get to goal, she never ever ever comments about my weight loss unless someone else does first and then you can see her become severely uncomfortable with the conversation. My husband saw her last week (it's been about 3 months since I have seen her). He said she has gained no less than 25 to 30lbs more. She is soon entering the super obese but apparently she knows everything. Oh well, to each his own.....right! Best if luck to you!

You are living my worst nightmare! Having reached my goal weight a few months ago, I am still learning how to maintain. Gaining and losing over and over. As most WLS patients I too got rid of all of my heavy clothes including clothes even one size up from where I am because I never want to go there again. I gained 7lbs last month and my size 8 jeans became snug and I panicked. I am and have been unable to do serious exercise for over 1 year now having had 3 major surgeries in the last 12 months and that did not include my bypass. I was still successful in losing all of my weight but had to be very very strict on what I consume. Prior to these surgeries I did cardio for an hour a day. Obviously you already know what you need to do. Until you can begin to gain more exercise momentum you may have to give up some of your beer consumption. I think you already realize this...... I do hope you get back on track soon and get back to where you are comfortable both with exercise while able to enjoy your hobby. Also keep in mind that after that first couple years it really does get harder to maintain. That happens with age as well.

The toughest part post op is managing all of your fluids and Protein. This is mostly because you could honestly care less about eating or drinking anything. You are simply not hungry! In the first few weeks/months following surgery the most critical thing is Water and protein. WLS patients get into trouble when they are unable or don't understand how important this is to not only weight loss but staying healthy through the weight loss phase. I used simple tricks to help me through. I would use cups that measured my fluids so I really knew exactly what I was consuming. I also used Myfitnesspal to track exactly what I consumed including my liquids. I learned very quickly to literally hold my water cup in my hand constantly. I would sip sip sip every few minutes until I got to the minimum water. I really did get to the point where I would be well hydrated first thing in the am which then helped get me to a full 64oz by 6 or 7pm. Of course my first two weeks post surgery I really struggled thinking I had to eat and drink everything on my surgeons post op diet only to learn that in the first month it is hardly possible. They would simply tell me to do the best that I could. So that is what I did. By 8 weeks post op I was finally able to get all of my fluids and protein in. Measuring and tracking is important but in the beginning you likely won't come close to eating and drinking absolutely everything on that menu. I ended up with tons of little containers of food like turkey or chicken purees that I never even used because I simply did not tolerate it during the purée stage. I learned to simply measure as I needed it. I remember a container of yogurt lasting me 4 or 5 days. LOL. I simply could not eat much at all. Setting timers also will help you.

@@BrookeM07 First, congratulations!!!!! Isn't it crazy that once we make the decision to move forward and hit road blocks it causes such distress? I can remember crying when things would get held up because of some stupid mistake that was made to hold me up along the way. I am not a cryer! It is a crazy roller coaster but so very worth all the effort to get through the process. I think it is made difficult to ensure you are very serious about moving forward. In my opinion this is mostly because the hard work has to come from each patient. WLS is not a miracle cure for obesity. It is simply a tool that with very hard work from us, will create a miracle. Never in a million years did I think I would lose all of my weight through the process but I did. I look fantastic, feel even better and all of my comorbitities are gone. I wish you the very best of luck and hope that all of your dreams come true and ultimately you are able to conceive! You are on your way to a whole new life and let me tell you life at a normal weight is grand!!!! Congratulations for working hard to get through this first hurdle.

There are only a few things that are on my never again list. The most critical one is soda pop. Drinking anything while eating is a no no permanently and NSAIDs. Now keep in mind that if you have severe arthritis your Bariatric team will work with you on an NSAIDs program that will protect your pouch. I have severe arthritis in my spine and several other joints but I choose not to risk a potential ulcer. Alcohol after year 1 is fine in small amounts but realize you are drinking your calories. I have been eating raw celery once 8 weeks out, it has never bothered me. I just chop it in salads and Soups small. I use a straw everyday! It helps me drink all my liquids. You simply have to learn not to gulp. I am now 21 months post op and have tried just about everything else I once did. I just don't like things like greasy foods, sweets or heavy carb foods. I crave good quality Protein, great fruit and veggies.

Sassy peguins make me giggle. Every time i see this clip it makes me happy!

Um.....yum! I wasn't hungry until I saw all that lovely protein! I eat bacon and cream cheese regularly. Bacon is my new favorite. The key is......don't eat too much of it.

@@Ashleyconder I would defiantly talk to your bariatric team about this. With RNY mine is 100 percent gone from the very first minute after my surgery. They had me take Nexium for the first 30 days post surgery as a preventative of ulcer while healing but stopped it. I eat things that used to give me such a belly ache that I would walk the floors all night. Now, nothing causes gerd. I am excited for you. You can feel so much better in the near future!

@@Daisee68 So far I have discovered I maintain at 1200 but if I go over that, I begin gaining. If I drop below it I begin losing again. Like you I would love to know how to get to that 1500 because I feel more satiated there.

hair loss is not a given. Mine started right around the beginning of month 3. It was severe and did not stop until my weight loss slowed to a crawl which was around month 13. I lost so much hair that I was shocked that I had any on my head at all. Now I am 21 months post op and my hair is very very thick and it came back very curly. I am having to learn how to manage it differently because of how curly it has become. I spoke with my dermatologist about it because he specializes in hair as well and he said it is common for your hair to change once you go through something so extraordinary. The same thing happens with cancer patients. I love my new hair and it was totally worth every worry. I am slightly below goal at 161lbs down, almost 150lbs. I look great and feel even better.

@@Ashleyconder Hi Ashley! I struggled with my weight my whole life. When I was young I was called horrible names and bullied because I was too thin. String bean, bean pole......the list goes on and on. I am also tall and have been the same height since I was 12. After I had my children (I was done with childbirth at 19). I started to put on weight just by looking at food. I did not understand what was happening to me. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. I remember telling my husband how scared I was that I was going to gain weight. Well I was 51 when I was so sick from comorbitities that my kidneys were actually failing. I had severe arthritis in my spine, knees, shoulders and hands. My kidney doctor suggested I consider Bariatric surgery. I immediately went home and began researching on line. I attended a course on line and then immediately got into a Bariatric program at my clinic. They were a Bariatric center of excellence. Like you I had gerd, mine was severe. I was 5'10" and weighed 310 lbs. as I began gaining weight I explained it to myself that I was simply big boned. I chose gastric bypass because it is known for curing gerd completely. In my case it did and I had very severe gerd that caused me to cough for a whole year all day long. I disrupted meetings at work or movies. You name it I disrupted it with my constant coughing before docs figured out that was what was happening. Well I am not big boned at all. I am now 161lbs just below my goal. All of my comorbitities disappeared very quickly. Unfortunately I waited way to long and did a lot of damage to my bones. So although I am very very healthy now, I am paying for waiting too long. If I can give you any advice at all it would be don't wait start your research and decide to get well again. As far as your sister goes, just remember she does not understand that obesity is actually a metabolic disease. As the disease progresses it becomes harder and harder to lose and keep the weight off with diet and exercise. Also keep in mind that the surgery is not a magical key that changes you forever. You have to do your part to make it work. You have to eat right and exercise. The surgery helps you do that. The best of luck to you!

It comes from a lack of education around obesity. They have no idea that obesity is actually a metabolic disease. And some diseases require surgery. Yes, some people can be successful losing weight and keeping it off through diet and exercise but I believe the long term success is less than 5% where as someone who has gone through WLS has a better than 30% chance of long term success. Let's face it most of did not know that until we started doing our research and meeting with Bariatric specialists.

There are so many points of view on this topic written by physicians. The best thing you can do is not freak out but follow the plan. Stay away from carbonation and eating and drinking together as well as overeating. In the beginning it is difficult to overeat because your body will simply cause you to vomit, in the future you are more apt to push yourself further because something tastes good. We all do it once in a while but it is not good and if you do it all the time for every meal it can become a big problem. Many times people who have had revision from bypass to bypass again it's because they did not follow the plan, learned to eat around or overeat consistently. They did not follow the rules thereby causing them to gain their weight back, they will blame it on a stretched pouch but that likely is not the reason for the revision. To eat around you have to be grazing....eating small quantities all day. I have done it once or twice and boy do I regret it when I do. It's usually a holiday and I immediately get back on the plan.