Jugido64

I am so proud and pleased with the decision I made to save my own life by having WLS! I'm my own hero! I've been sharing my surgery with those who inquire and I have made announcements to family and friends. I'm very happy to share my decision with others. As with any other part of recovery (I've been clean/sober for 19 1/2 years) I have chosen to keep no secrets. I talk openly about having had this surgery to free myself from the grip of food addiction. I don't keep my decision to myself, I have also spoken to my employer and my coworkers and they are very supportive. Everyone I've told about my decision has been extremely supportive. Coming forward as a champion for my right to choose a healthy life has empowered me in so many other ways. I am able to remove people, places and things that are no longer serving a higher purpose within my life. Shedding the fat has taken on a whole new meaning.

I do carry a card in my wallet that indicates my status as a GB patient and my surgeons office etc. I guess I don't feel the need to know as it feels to me like it's one more thing possibly to use as a reason I am or am not losing weight. I understand the idea of knowing in case of an emergency however I also know scars indicate placement and if you had your surgery at a local hospital records are available. I'm very fortunate as my surgeon is local as well as my hospital, I feel that I am responsible for what goes in my mouth....my band only slows the flow therefore I am still ultimately responsible for my own weight loss/gain. I am grateful for the feeling of being full without over eating.

I thank you all for the input. I am very much enjoying the simplicity of Protein and hydration. For a food addict like myself the challenge on a daily basis is to find enough variation of protein without ending up eating something I don't need. I love albacore tuna, sushi wrapped in sea kelp, calamari, fresh Dungeness crab, scallops wrapped in bacon and simple chicken breast with fresh herbs. I love the simplicity of protein 3-4 ozs at a time in a measured cup. I love the idea that I can truly eat nutritious food that tastes good. I am over the carbohydrate binges and the insanity of hurting myself through food abuse. I feel free of the insanity and it's so good.

I find it strange and again somewhat frustrating to see so many of us speaking about the deprivation we're suffering with. I admit I felt a bit of buyers remorse in the first month following banding. I wasn't sure if I was "fat" enough. Did I really need a surgical intervention? Now I couldn't be happier! Forget about how you ate pre surgery. You're never going to eat garbage like you did before. Not if you're smart. This surgical procedure was designed to aide your brain into a feeling of being full. It's not the "magic" bullet. I sincerely hope and pray each and every one of you will do as I did: make a conscious decision to eat for nutrition not pleasure. Eating for pleasure is what got us to ill health. This is our chance to treat our bodies with respect.

I don't feel deprived at all. That's the point I was making. I just don't see the psychological advantage of keeping the mindset of food being pleasure. It's necessary nothing more nothing less. At nearly 51 years of age I'm beyond fooling myself about my food addiction. It's been a long time coming for me....I'm happy eating for sustainability not pleasure. I'll get my pleasure elsewhere. I severed my love affair with food the day I admitted I have a food addiction. You may not suffer from this.....I do so I'm dealing with it head long and swiftly. It's not a bad thing for me. It's a life saving measure.

I don't feel sorry for me not wanting a "feel good" experience out of food. I'm getting my feel good from exercise and freedom of movement without pain due to the lowered weight on joints. I'm a different kind of WLS patient because I want to change everything about how I previously used food. Before banding, food was poisoning me with fat, preservatives, sodium and god only knows what else. For me it has to be a new way to get to a new happiness.

It's probably still the gas they put in your body cavity to make your skin puff up out of the area they're working in.

My favorite gift to myself is riding horses and scuba diving.

It's different for everyone. It also depends on how heavy you are and how much abdominal fat/muscle you have. Most people honestly don't even know their stomach is barely below their sternum and not behind their belly button. There's a lot of gas a surgeon blows into your body cavity to be able to access the stomach. It takes a few days for that gas to be eliminated and at least another couple of weeks for everything to settle back into place. So 3 weeks to a month is the norm. Which is why they want you on all liquids until the area has started healing and the swelling/irritation goes away.

It took me about a month to feel "normal" as opposed to painful, odd, unsure. I'm 3 1/2 months post band and it's getting so much easier. My first 3 days were spent quietly contemplating my life choice...followed by returning to work the 4th day after banding. I still use protein drinks/protein bars if I'm in a hurry or if I'm not following a reasonable eating plan. You'll figure out what's healthy as you go along. I don't eat chips, or bread of any kind. I have had a spicy tostada with beans, cheese, tomatoes and hot sauce. It's taken me 3 months to be able to do that. I also don't eat potatoes, rice or pasta as it's useless food. I'm into albacore tuna, chicken breast tenders, salmon and dungeness crab. Salads with mainly romaine lettuce and vinegarette. Boring perhaps but it surely beats the horrible feeling of being bloated from eating as a food addict does.

Get containers with the ozs marked on them. Easy peasy. Screw all of the extra stuff.

I'm not going out this evening but it was casual day at work so I wore my black Fila workout tights and a hoodie. No makeup and hair pulled into a bandana. I'm lucky....losing slowly and consistently my skin is behaving even at nearly 51 years old Got more complements today than I have in a while. All I can say is sexy is an inside job. I worked it 270 (at one point) and I'm working it at 220+. Go with what's comfortable as its the person who makes the outfit....not the clothing.

Cream of Wheat with butter and brown sugar. You had surgery! You didn't give up food entirely Instant single packet, 1 pat of butter and a spoonful of brown sugar. Just like a "normal" serving (not like how much we ate pre surgery ).

I did the week preoperative liquids. It prepared me mentally for the ability to "feel" again Food just like any other substance can be used to numb out. Get ready to recover your feeling because once you have surgery you can no longer "eat" your way through them.

I actually gained 4 pounds between Oct & Nov check in appts. Amazingly enough from Nov to Dec visit I lost 14 lbs of fat. My body is doing its own thing at this point. The only thing that changed was me adding some fiber ie bran, organic prune juice and organic applesauce. I know it's possibly TMI but constipation happens sometimes with high protein diets. I've added 2 ozs of the above described mixture every 2-3 days and I feel marvelous and no more bloating etc.

I'm craving that 200 lb mark too but I'm happy with my band allowing me privilege to lose with comfort and predictable results. You didn't put your weight on over a few days, weeks or months. The slow and steady gives your skin and muscles the best chance to recover. I've been over 200 lbs for over 5 years. The fact that I've successfully come down 30 lbs since surgery is a freskish event in itself. Give yourself a break! Feel this experience fully and know you can be all you are!

Very newly banded but I go with what the experts say...get back to basics. Protein....water for hydration and a quieted mind. Your body remembers this regime. Your head will resist it. Take the time to confront your fears and run headlong into your good health and fabulous choices.

Oh sista it's a long and winding road. Want to burn fat? Do cardio. Want to gain muscle? Lift weights. Want to do both? Hang onto your hat and start doing HIIT work outs. High Intensity Interval Training works for even the most out of shape person. It's tough and if you're doing it right....you'll feel like puking but that will quickly pass and your fitness and clarity of purpose will come full circle. Usually the HIIT workout is 11-15 minutes and you're done. Check em out.

Just be aware what you put in your mouth are still calories. The richer the soup the higher calorie content (usually). A simple study of regular soups at the supermarket will give you a big heads up. I love crock pot cooking my own veggies and blending them into my own creamy soup. It's easy and you know what's in it....usually not even 10% of the sodium of packaged soups. I think the idea behind 3 weeks of fluids is so that we don't tear or further traumatize the area where the band was placed. It's major surgery your body went through. Let it heal.

If you want your band to be a punitive reminder....you probably had the wrong surgery. The idea of the band controlling anything is crazy. It's there to allow food to stay in that upper pouch longer....that's it. What you eat must still be quality food not junk. Green zone or no green zone....you control what goes in your mouth the band doesn't.

I had my surgery on a Thursday and returned to work the following Monday. You know your body and your activity level. Choose wisely.

Oh yay!!!! So glad to hear people talking about their health related reasons. I think it's so sad that all people seem to say anything about is the other aspects of this surgery. I'm down 25 of the 75 I need to take off. Actually I'm down 30 now from office visit on 12/17. I've yet to do the post op blood work. I'm so very hopeful to lower my triglycerides and continue to lose fat not muscle. My last check in was 14 lbs of fat lost not one ounce of muscle. My BP was 110 over 70 and I felt great. This tells me my food intake is good, my exercise is good, my progress is slow and steady. I am alive and feeling excellent. I'm grateful for the health that is being restored.

Julie, I don't know about the loss of a spouse but yes Christmas has challenges. It is two days after the holiday that my mother passed away after a very long illness. Being a caregiver for all of my adult life created it's own issues but what I know is that we all cope in our own way. I used food and other substances for years. I've been clean/sober for almost 20 years and here I sit with 90 plus days into being banded and still struggling with the food addiction. The new year will be here soon enough and then it's one foot in front of the other as it always has been right? I hope you find freedom from this sadness that dwells within you right now. I hope the new year brings you a new freedom and a new happiness. Juli