LisaPunkinHead

Not sure the OP will find this helpful, but here goes anyway ....
I've seen many posts on online WLS forums from people who have gained considerable amounts of weight (40-50 or more pounds).
In many instances they've suffered pretty bad life blows -- became widowed, became seriously ill, had family members become very ill, had grandchildren move in with them to be raised, had to move in with other family members due to financial problems, etc. In these instances they report they've just been overwhelmed by life, not had the energy to support their own health, gone back to "bad habits," etc. These are people whose new circumstances have just consumed the resources they might otherwise have used to build and sustain a healthier lifestyle.
Some who've gained also report that they're now drinking a lot of their calories. In one instance I recall, a woman had become "addicted" (it seems there's really no other word for it) high-calorie coffee drinks from McDonalds and over months of posting about this problem could not seem to kick it. (She was also someone who had suffered the loss of a beloved spouse from cancer after losing her weight.) Needless to say, she also wasn't getting much Protein or other nutritional food that WLS patients need to be successful long-term.
I've seen people cite drinking lots of sweet tea (there are several of those in my WLS support group), Mountain Dew, wheat thins (yes, wheat thins) as the villains in their WLS tragedies. Grazing and all-day munching is also implicated in these regain situations.
Yes, the physics of weight regain (too many calories eaten, wrong foods eaten / drunk, too little exercise) are obvious. But the real question is ... what's behind the inability to create a new lifestyle that would sustain long-term weight stability and better health?

I think talking to those who have only experienced a 5-10 pound bounce would be extremely beneficial, personally. While I value everyone's experience, I would rather stop any regain before it gets to 15, 20, 30 pounds.

I keep seeing advertisement for those Dole? frozen chocolate covered strawberry and banana bites that look amazing! Cupcakes would be a slippery slope for me. sugar free candy is good but if you eat more than a few, you might have a fecal incident.... It's horrible lol Good luck!

My father who died 2 years ago, and my mother-in-law who was one of my biggest supporters in life. She passed away from cancer 5 years ago.

Broke my stall!! Onederland............FINALLY!!!!

Gotta left the arm way up over and behind your head like a yoga master to get to the pit and shave it.
The bony butt, the bony hips. And this morning I saw two weird growths between my neck and shoulders. What the heck are those things? OMG, they're clavicles!!!

Gotta left the arm way up over and behind your head like a yoga master to get to the pit and shave it.
The bony butt, the bony hips. And this morning I saw two weird growths between my neck and shoulders. What the heck are those things? OMG, they're clavicles!!!

Just noticed that my boobs can out us blobs on well forget to say that the nipples are in constant conversation with my toes

Surgery went well and she is home now resting.. Ty all

When she advised me I just needed better cookbooks, instead of weight loss surgery (seriously, I was TWICE a normal weight/size) I decided my primary care doc no longer met my needs. This was not the first time she was incredibly unhelpful and unsupportive but it was the last.... changed and never looked back.

I so appreciate all of the feedback you all are giving me, it makes me feel so much less abnormal. It seems there are a good number of commenters that would say "oh I have no appetite, I ate a crouton last Thursday and it will satisfy me for the next month" Ok, yes I'm exaggerating but you know what I mean! Thank you for the support I greatly appreciate the positive, understanding feedback. XO

I think it can be normal time to time. Some days I forget to eat and other days I feel like I'm grazing all day like I haven't eaten for days. I noticed on the days I graze its kinda my fault cause I'm eat really cruddy foods and not eating things that are high in Protein and good fats that keep me satisfied for longer periods of time. Or its around the TOM when all when are a lil bit more hungry and going through a hormone fluctuation. My suggestion? Don't sweat it and just make yourself Snacks to keep on you or in the pantry or fridge already prepared. This way they are healthy and not carb or sodium laden. You'll be fine! Good luck!

Those first two weeks post-op I realized just how many hamburger commercials are on TV. I just wanted to chew. But I didn't -- I stayed on the full liquids and advanced my diet according to my surgeons's instructions. Just tell yourself that you did this to make that major lifestyle change, and that you WILL get through this time.

53 when I had my sleeve in February. And I'm not too old -- I just bought myself another 10 years!!! And I am happy to be able to walk through it!

Sorry for the cross-posting. I put this in the general forum then thought, wait a minute! This is a success story...lol. So here I am too.
Today marks 2 years since my surgery. I never, ever would have thought I would be in the 120s when I started this journey. It has- and I have- surpassed my wildest expectations.
I remember vividly the exact day I decided I had to do whatever it took to lose weight & be healthy. I was at Hershey Park with my then-6th grader daughter on a class field trip. I love parks, and since I didn't have the littles, I was excited to ride the roller coasters with my daughter. So we came to the first one, I squeeeeezed myself into the seat & to get the lap bar down the attendant had to step on it to push it past my huge stomach. I was mortified and my daughter felt terrible for me. I was nearly in tears; in my minds eye, I was no where near that big. I didn't ride another ride the rest of the day & swore at that point I would not let my weight hold me back from experiencing life with my family one more day. It HAD TO change.
Don't you worry. Since then I've OWNED that park!! In fact, the next time I went back was not only to ride every freaking roller coaster in that park, but also to run a 1/2 marathon through the park just over a year later. Take THAT!!! Lol.
Anyway, these 2 years have been amazing. I've learned that my body is capable of so much more than I gave it credit for. I've learned I absolute can accomplish even the most seemingly unreachable goals. I've learned that I could not achieve long-term success without overcoming my eating disorder. I've learned that I deserve good things.
So, it's definitely NOT about the numbers, but I feel like I would be leaving out something someone following this might really want to know if I didn't include them so.... I started my journey at 278.4 pounds & 2 years later I am at 128 pounds. That's a loss of 150 pounds :-). What an amazing journey it's been!!! I even rocked my first bikini ever this year! Ha!  

ok, so to the outside world, doesn't seem like a positive headline, lol. but for me and us here this is a major positive milestone! I am 187 lbs currently, down from 308, and a BMI of 49.9. At 185 i will have a BMI of 29.9 and move from the "obese" category to the "overweight", category, so yes, overweight is exciting lol. Now i dont know if agree that just 30 lbs over what BMI says should be a normal weight, labels someone as "obese" as I look healthy now and most friends and family dont think i need to lose anymore weight. Also when the surgeon asked what I would consider a good end goal, i said the 180s and he thought that was a good goal. To be in the "normal" BMI range i need to be 154 or less.if that happens great if not i am happy with myself and progress 10.5 months post op. So yes, i will Celebrate becoming "overweight" lol

First time in 100's since 25 years ago. Feeling proud. Down 109 lbs now since November

@@LisaPunkinHead
tom and i still working on it
we'll get it figured out or my name is MUD
wonderful weight loss
80.8 lbs
kathy
congrats

I want to see pictures too!!! Pretty please!!!

hellllo
DOS 12/15/11
after i started loosing weight, i "found" my neck
june 25th
8 weeks since face lift

doc was putting some moisturizer on my face/showing me how to massage daily
he got to an area, and i was saying "ouch, ouch, ouch"
that hurts what is that??
doc laughed and said "those are your cheek bones"
couple of weeks later, while washing my face i felt a strange sensation
thought it was numbness or something
complained to hubby after a few days
he laughed and said ,"those are your glands"
who would have thought
now i am standing tall with a neck, cheek bones, and glands
who knows what i will find next
kathy
congrats to me

How is your Fluid intake? It could be a sign of dehydration.

When I lost 50 lbs I got a few "you've lost weight" comments and they felt good. I work from home but go in to the office for occasional meetings. One particular woman goes overboard, though, and just goes on and on about how wonderful I look now and isn't it amazing how great I look and generally just gushes on and on. She had no idea I had WLS. All that wild gushing made me VERY uncomfortable and I would rather not hear a word than endure that. It makes me feel like I was quite a grotesque sight before losing weight! Be careful what you wish for. ????

Exactly this for me too. People have seen me in so many different stages of weight loss all the time because of my history of losing and gaining, it really took around 70 pounds for the constant comments to happen. It seems once you hit a certain point in your loss, EVERYONE notices all of the sudden!

I didn't get the "holy cow" comments until I hit about the 70 pound mark. Other people who know I had the surgery commented at about 50 lbs.

Boy! Not in California! You have to beg for a glass of water!