scoutmom

@@jaterika
I am very sorry to hear you don't have the support you need - and you did the right thing to reach out here. Wishing you the very best during this difficult time. Having the surgery is plenty of emotional work already.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but not to lash out at you. Take your time and continue to let your body and mind heal.

@@jaterika
I am very sorry to hear you don't have the support you need - and you did the right thing to reach out here. Wishing you the very best during this difficult time. Having the surgery is plenty of emotional work already.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but not to lash out at you. Take your time and continue to let your body and mind heal.

My prayers are with you. And just for the record, not everyone regrets having an abortion for the rest of their lives. It was the right decision for me at the time and my biggest feeling was relief.

Oh, nooooooooooo!
Well, then....what's done is done. Time to start over. Just as a refresher, here are the basic concepts again:
While you are hanging out here for support, you can initiate the following steps that most of our plans have us do for our pre-op preparations.

Drink no calories.

Drink Water until your eyeballs float - 64 - 80+ ounces per day.

Don't eat anything made in a factory. You can do this by shopping the perimeter of the supermarket and avoid the aisle unless you need a spice or paper towels...that kind of stuff.

Eat at least 60 ounces of Protein per day, and at any meal, eat your Protein first - then veg - then fruit.< /span>

Dessert should be something like an apple, not apple pie with two scoops of ice cream.

Avoid sugar, grease, and salt as much as possible. Eating clean will help you discover the real taste of natural food. If it weren't for sugar, grease and salt, McDonald's would have no business. When I gave up candy bars and started eating dark chocolate, I realized that it wasn't the chocolate I missed - it was the sugar.

Try to wean yourself off of soda and diet soda. Most bariatric plans discourage soda pop and anything with bubbles post-op.

Reduce starchy carbs like bread, flour, sugar, rice, noodle, biscuits, white potatoes, macaroni, spaghetti etc.


So what is left to eat? meat, eggs, cheese, Beans, Peanut Butter, yogurt, cottage cheese, nuts, and fresh fruits and non-starchy veggies. You can adjust your current recipes to reduce carbs. The World According to Eggface is a good place to start. Check out the forum here for recipes, also Sparkpeople.com and Myfitnesspal.com.

Many of us use Myfitnesspal.com for logging our food every day. It is really an eye-opener if you are honest with yourself about what you eat.

Weigh and measure your food to accurately acknowledge your actual portion size. There is a scientific principle that says, "You cannot control that which you do not measure."

Exercise where you can. Move your body every day. Don't become part of the sofa.
Hugs for a new start. Now, off you go!

Hey there - I am feeling really good, a bit sore on the belly and still some shoulder pain from the gas. My doctor pumped tons of liquid through my IV so the discharge nurse suggested not weighing until tomorrow morning to give the Water weight time to dissipate. Getting the Water in will forever be my challenge. Unfortunately, my doc has me on full liquids for another week. I'm dying for yogurt or something substantial. Head hunger has me a bit cranky.....but I knew that this would be my challenge. food is a major source of entertainment for our family - so re-training my brain is the focus! Glad everyone is doing well!

Don't get into this you will drive yourself crazy. This is your journey, no body else's. Some people lose lots in the first few months and others less. You don't know what people's starting points are. Someone might lose 50 lb and their target is 150 so hey have lost 33%. In the same period another person might lose 30 lb and their target is 100lb so their lose is 33% too. If someone posted a 50lb loss and another 30lb who has had the most success? You don't know unless you know people's starting and finishing points.

Tried some Tomato basil Soup for lunch. Ate 3 oz and it tasted amazing and was so satisfying. food does taste great when it's only a taste! Anyone else try something yummy? Outside of Protein Shakes, my taste buds were getting bored!

Man all those people who said day 3 is the hardest I sure hope you're right because today was a bit of a bi**h

I'm right there with you! Got home today from the hospital and or getting the meds through the IV is killing me! I'm not having fun with crushing up the pain meds but I have to because of all the pain!

I am having my surgery on Tuesday, 5/26 - and I have to admit this topic has me nervous and concerned. More nervous than when I first read this thread. Did I not choose the right surgery? But some of these expectations feel so out of the realm of possibility (I would kill for for a 10lb weight loss in a month!).
I have a fabulous surgeon, a wonderful support system and I am going to trust that this surgery is the right choice for me. I will get what i put into this process.

Arriving at the hospital too. Good luck everyone! Talk to you when we are all done!

I am having my surgery on Tuesday, 5/26 - and I have to admit this topic has me nervous and concerned. More nervous than when I first read this thread. Did I not choose the right surgery? But some of these expectations feel so out of the realm of possibility (I would kill for for a 10lb weight loss in a month!).
I have a fabulous surgeon, a wonderful support system and I am going to trust that this surgery is the right choice for me. I will get what i put into this process.

Well, I called that. You are starting out a MUCH lower weight than so many others! So 18lbs in a month is beyond amazing!!

@@JustBeth13
Congrats on your surgery date in June!

I like big butts and I cannot lie!

<----- leaving with @@LipstickLady

Being nervous is perfectly normal. The days leading up to surgery were exciting and scary at the same time.
I almost backed out of surgery the night before and the morning of surgery. On surgery day, I sat in admitting thinking "I could leave right now and I'll only be out $500." Then I looked over at my husband who was equally scared as I was. We didn't say anything to each other - I don't even think we made eye contact. I just looked at him and knew this was something I had to do. I made the choice to walk down the hall and get things started. I am so thankful I didn't let fear win in that moment.
I'm 18 months out and am finally living the life I was meant to live. My weight and food no longer rule my thoughts and my world. I'm happy and content. I smile A LOT now. I am active in my own life and not just in the physical sense. I'm more engaged with my family and friends. I'm a better wife, mom, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, etx. I got a promotion at work - I don't think because I'm skinnier, I think because I carry myself a different way - I'm more confident, I'm not pissed off at the world all the time and I am more calm. I feel better physically - no more aches and pains. I do hot yoga 4-5 times a week, I hike, I work out at the gym, I like being active. I have a goal to do a 5K every month until November and I made a goal to log 1000 miles in 2015. I feel attractive to my husband - he never said anything about my weight, but one time I remember asking, "How can you possibly find me the least bit attractive?"
Was it all sunshine and lollipops the past 18 months? Hell no! It was hard work filled with anxiety, second guessing my decision to have surgery, tears, anger, frustration, etc. It's been hard - I was not emotionally prepared to make this journey; I had not addressed my emotional issues towards food. I had to address those issues while recovering from surgery which was very hard. There are still days where I wish I could sit down to a bowl full of Pasta and awesome crusty bread slathered in butter and just go to town, but those days are fewer and farther between than they used to.
This surgery is a life changer...for me it was one of the biggest decisions I had ever made in my life. Now, 18 months later, I know that short of marrying my husband and having my son, it was the best decision I could have made for al of us.
Best of luck to you. You're down the home stretch! Let us know how you're doing...

Lol, your post made me chuckle a bit and I mostly agree with you. I think people post about cheating because like you said, they want to be justified by a group of strangers, yet also because they want to know they aren't alone. A good portion of us "cheated" somewhere along the way. I personally had a few Snacks (smart puffs and a granola bar) on one day of my pre-op diet, and the rest of the time I was compliant. I didn't cheat once after surgery because I was too worried I'd kill myself, not because I'm overly a rules follower person. If every article or blog post I ever read told me that no one else in the world had messed up a little on their pre-op diet, I would have felt exponentially worse, very much alone, and terrified that I had just ruined my chance for a complication free surgery. Most of us screwed up, so I don't have a problem with people talking about how they cheated a little (emphasis on a little- a steak dinner is not a little) and I try to let them know that I messed up a little too and it turned out ok.
Once I was out far enough where I could eat and drink whatever I wanted, I make choices everyday that some people might think is cheating. I had 1/4 of a blueberry muffin for lunch today, I drink with straws, I drink with meals, I drink diet soda, and I didn't have a single Protein shake for a good portion of the time it took me to get to goal. I think some people post about cheating when, like you said, it's not cheating, it's just making a choice. We make the choice to eat crap we shouldn't and honestly if we don't do it often, then my feeling is more power to ya. Sometimes I want a few bites of cake, I like SF Red Bull for Breakfast, and I eat grilled chicken sandwiches from fast food places. I think people need to know that once you're at a certain point, it's ok to not be 100% compliant with the diet. Life is about living- not choking down chicken and eggs without any drink at every meal because a doctor told you that you had to the rest of your life.

You need to write a letter. Now, while you are one step removed from the situation but while it is still fresh in your mind.
Detail what you've been through, what you advised the providers, the reactions you perceived and how it made you feel.
You deserve an apology and they deserve to be informed of how their reactions affected you. Do this for yourself and for the next patient who comes in with a less than perfect body.
Deliver that letter personally to the office manager so they put a face to it. Seriously.

Love this topic.....keep it coming, folks! I can't wait to see what my new addiction will be after surgery in May.

@@JustBeth13
I got my approval in just 3 days and the official letter came in the mail a week later. I was very lucky to have a proactive insurance coordinator. Scheduled for surgery May 26th and doing EGD this morning.
Good luck!

Congrat!! That's is my surgery date as well!!!

Question: What have you replaced your "food addiction" with?
Me.... I can't stop buying sexy underwear.... I know it's crazy. But one of the first things i did was threw out all the un-sexy white high-wasted cotton draws..... Now i look forward each month to getting the coupon in the mail from VS. My underwear drawer use to be a sea of white ugliness..... now it bright and cheerful....
I would have said sex... but i don't think "by yourself" counts.... lol

I was so doubtful I would get an approval and had almost given up. However - my fabulous insurance coordinator was awesome and we received the call in 3 days!
Excited.......scared......nervous......happy and so grateful to finally get started!

I was so doubtful I would get an approval and had almost given up. However - my fabulous insurance coordinator was awesome and we received the call in 3 days!
Excited.......scared......nervous......happy and so grateful to finally get started!