Murni

I'm so very sorry for the loss of your Mom. AND congrats on your smaller, pretty bra!

I'm so very sorry for the loss of your Mom. AND congrats on your smaller, pretty bra!

I have been looking forward to posting these for a while now...


It has been 9 months since surgery and I have lost 101lbs (as of this picture, a little over a week ago). I have a lot more to go, another 50 lbs, so I am keeping at it. I am sooo sore from Gardening all weekend!

So funny. I had the same experience as a morbidly obese woman with my friends and colleagues! I could not understand how that was (we are health care professionals) but they just didn't put me in that same bucket. Must have also been my other lovely and impressive qualities that blind-sided them

I got into a big fight about this surgery when I told someone who I thought would be supportive... His idea was that instead of the surgery , go on a diet like the people in Auschwitz ...only eat a gram of bread a day....
Ok.. He's Russian and has a rather hard life when he was younger with starvation after the fall of the USSR... but that shocked me...
I told him too bad he doesn't understand because I'm doing it anyhow.. He went on to tell me of one guy he "knows" who only lost 5 pounds after getting this surgery... uhm.... liar,liar... pants on fire!

There is no educating people who have a prejudgemental idea of this. Let them stew.. They just care about you and are ignorant but don't want to listen to reason.

I had my sleeve done on March 16th.. and the fact I've had to already go buy much skinner clothes is enough to visially prove my naysayer wrong.. I just don't talk much about it so he can save face, but it sure feels cool to be right..and that it SHOWS.. Haha!
And yeah, he's still a dear friend . Auchwitz diet... smh...

I have been a lurker for a few months and feel like I know some of you almost well. This is my first post. I am 64 years and have been overweight since I was a child. I've lost and gained back hundreds of pounds, the last two times more than 80 and 100 lbs. This is my last resort. I am so hopeful that this will help me lose, and more importantly, keep the weight off. I have been in my bariatric program since early February but I'm still appealing my insurance who pulled the rug out from under me after first approving and then changing their tune. I've done what I need to do including starting on a Cpap, doing the psych evaluations, have gotten enthusiastic letters of support from my endocrinologist and cardiologist, etc. I have a BMI of 41, diabetes on insulin for more than 23 years, hypertension, and have had a stent put in my coronary artery because of a 97% blockage. I feel my health will no longer carry me through what should be the rest of a long life. I'm desperate to be approved. I have a very loving, supportive (slim & handsome) husband, an excited for me daughter, and six supportive siblings. I'm ready for this! I've lost 15 lbs since I starting seeing the NUT in February. I can't wait until the day I can finally announce my surgery date to my future new friends here in this forum. Thanks for listening! I feel better already.

Wow, I cannot believe this was posted today! I am in your boat with you girl.
I told me husband this morning about what I had been thinking and researching about bariatric surgery, HIS comment to me? "Well, I think that this would be a last resort." WTF!!!!!!!!??????? Where does he think I'm at?? I have dieted and lost and fought weight problems my entire life! We have been married for 45 years, where has he been?? Yes, this IS a last resort, MY last resort. I have to do something, NOW.
Sorry for yelling, but I just got SO frustrated this morning with his comment. He has never supported me, never. All the times I've tried to lose weight, he never says a thing. In the last 2 years he has complimented me twice, two times.
Ok enough ranting. Like you, I am going to have to find support elsewhere, and will. I'm 66 years old and weigh 215 and have borderline diabeties, high BP, high choles. and sleep apena. I HAVE to do something and soon because I want to see my two beautiful granddaughters grow up.
I hope we both find the support we need to get us through this battle.

It's so close and so far away at the same time!

I saw my surgeon on Wednesday and am now scheduled to be sleeved on May 8th. This is a huge step and I'm excited, nervous and impatient. WhoooHoooo!

Awesome post kindle! I will be a year out from surgery on April 16th. My biggest regret over the past year is that I focused too much on what the scale reported versus how my body look or more importantly, downplayed the things my body now allows me to do that I couldn't do before! I didn't exercise much this past year because I noticed every time I did, my weight loss would slow down on the scale. I'm now paying the price as I think I've lost a lot of muscle mass the past year. I'm now focused on toning and that may just add some weight on the scale and I'm okay with that. My goal is to look good naked at this point!
I agree that the endless posts about stalls on this site do become kind of annoying to read. They happen people!!! It's part of the process! I think all of us come in to this process with such a huge fear that we will fail like we have so many times before and then it becomes an obsession. The weight WILL come off! Just follow your doctor's plan. Heck, rebel a bit and the weight will still come off! So here are some of my NSV this week: 1) I continue to steal clothes out of my teenage daughter's closet daily (size 6/8) AND she has now started stealing my clothes. If anyone knows how picky teenagers are, this a huge compliment! 2) I wore my daughter's size 6 lululemon leggings to jog and considered NOT covering my a** for the first time ever because it looked kinda hot for a middle aged woman (lol, I crack myself up but I will post a picture below to prove I have no shame! ????) 3) I ran farther than I ever did before and actually enjoyed it!

I'VE WORN 24 FOR LITERALLY YEARS. I WENT SHOPPING TODAY BECAUSE MY JEANS ETC ARE FALLING OFF. I GOT 18 PANTS. I COULD HAVE DONE 16 BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE ANY AND I WAS LEAVING THERE WITH SOME PANTS! ANYWAY I SEE NOW WHAT PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT HOW WEIRD IT IS TO LOOK FOR SMALLER SIZES AND ITS FUNNY THERE WERE MORE SIZE 24S IN THE STORE TODAY THAN I HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE WHEN NOW I NEED 16/18. IT WAS FUNNY BECAUSE IT WAS ALL MOSTLY THE BIGGER SIZES. BUT MAYBE BEFORE LONG I CAN SHOP IN JUST MISSES INSTEAD OF PLUS TOO. BUT ANYWAY, ALMOST EVERYONE I HAVE RUN INTO IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS IS COMMENTING OR ASKING ABOUT MY WEIGHT LOSS. I REALLY TRY TO SHRUG IT OFF BUT IT IS SO FUNNY TO ME BECAUSE OTHER THAN MY CLOTHES BEING LOOSE I DON'T SEE IT YET, AT ALL. BUT I KNOW IT'S HAPPENING. I DON'T LIKE ATTENTION SO THIS IS THE PART I WAS SKIDDISH ABOUT IS WHEN PEOPLE START NOTICING. BUT I GUESS THAT MEANS IT'S WORKING!

kndoster, Just like probably you and everyone else on here, many times have dieted and lost and have had the usual conversations about it, including what exercising I was doing like going to the gym almost everyday and walking. So now I just say that I made up my mind that I wasn't giving up this time and sticking to it. When people make comments and my husband is there he speaks right up and says, "she's working hard at it and I help her by walking with her as much as I can" . We also says that its not as much dieting as it is cutting way down on my portions and not snacking, cutting carbs, cutting out soda, ect. . So when I'm around people and we're eating and I only eat a little, it all fits. Every once in a while my husband will say "I can't believe we're getting away with this " lol. Maybe someone suspects, I don't know, but unless they are really rude they're not going to bring it up. All I know is if I had told people I would also feel self concious thinking they were judging me in a negative way behind my back. As hard as I have worked in the past to lose, only to see it creep back on, I feel like I deserve to feel empowered by a sense of accomplishment.

I had some pre-op bingeing (food funeral) What have you. I may have been a different type of case in the fact that on my insurance mandated 3 month "diet" I couldn't lose weight or else I would be disqualified. (Weird I know) so I didn't feel too bad about it. In fact my "last food splurge" before my two week liquid diet was a McDonald's Big Mac large fry and large coke (I don't even like soda) I think it's a common fear for some to think they won't be able to eat or enjoy food ever again. That couldn't be farther from the truth. Of course A lot of us love food, that's why we are where we are now. It's not easy, it takes a ton of willpower and a complete mind change. Just because you have surgery that doesn't mean you forgot what food taste like. They operate on your stomach not your brain. It's not always a easy process, you have to make adjustments and change your life style. I'm thankful for my surgery and I'm glad I did the amount of research that I did prior to having it. I don't have hunger still so it helps but I still make a conscious decision everyday on what I will allow to pass these lips. Surgery won't take the urges away.

Well I have been debating on posting this or not because of a lot of the harsh comments I've read. I am scheduled for vsg April 8th, my pre-op starts April 1st. I have been living it up these past couple of weeks eating all kinds of things because I fear that I won't be able to have them again. I've seen posts about people cheating on their pre-op diet and looking for encouragement, instead (certain posters) end up telling them if you don't do it pre op what makes you think you will do it post op... And so on.... And so on.... I mean I don't know who some of you people were before surgery, but did you not love to eat? Is that not how we all got fat? I really want to be healthy but I really want to be skinny too. So am I alone in what I'm doing before I start my diet? Another poster added that if we all could have done what we were supposed to have done before surgery, we wouldn't have had the need for surgery at all. Amen!!! We all have a problem right? Sometimes I think these "fitness junkies" shouldn't be commenting on posts that don't necessarily pertain to them. Just because it's easy for one person doesn't mean it's going to be easy for another! Maybe I just want to see if this was anybody else pre op, and if so, was the surgery enough to change your mindset post op?

Quick follow up question if I can tag onto this post... I keep reading about food tolerance issues and I'm starting to worry. I go back to work next Monday, That's the day I start pureed food and I'm worried about what happens if you are out and find out you can't tolerate something you tried to eat? I'm not planning anything insane, I'll be making and taking food to work. BUT, what "happens" if you can't handle it? Is it going to be pain or is it going to be something embarrassing?

I recently found myself biting my tongue when watching a family w/young kids coming out of a grocery store. A little girl, maybe 5 years old, was slugging back a 20-oz bottle of regular Pepsi. I wanted to roll down my window and scream "do you know how much sugar is in there?? and what this will do to her health-wise and weight-wise??" -- But of course, I did not.
I feel like the stereotypical reformed smoker who now tells everyone how awful smoking is and why they should stop. I cringe when I see people stuffing themselves like I used to do (and still mentally want to do sometimes).
Sigh, it is a battle -

Yea....It really is my own fear to return back to the way I was....I see myself in them...
I see my reflection in their faces when I see them.....It is nothing personal but I see
fat people as ghosts......Hauting me from the past......
I have got to get more serious and lose more weight...

What's stopping me is that the diet talk and fake foods is so prevalent that I keep thinking I must be missing something. Plus my NUT really pushes all this diet stuff too, tries to make me feel like I'm not serious about this if I'm not willing to get with the program.

Congrats! It's so very hard to 'start over', but you have shown great courage in the changes you've already made. Maybe moving out on your own will be easier than you think. Best of luck to you on your continuing journey. ????

I am addicted to this. I watched the Pauline's story and it was making me so mad!

Congrats! It's so very hard to 'start over', but you have shown great courage in the changes you've already made. Maybe moving out on your own will be easier than you think. Best of luck to you on your continuing journey. ????

You won't believe this (I didn't) but right after WLS you won't miss those foods you are thinking about having with your daughter. Instead, you will be overjoyed to simply drink a glass of Water or eat a vegetable/fruit. My first divine food after surgery was steamed broccoli; it was nearly orgasmic! Honest

Today is my one year bandiversary. I am at the lowest weight I have been in decades. I started at 302 and today weigh 194. I've lost 108 pounds and have just under 50 to go. Almost all of the weight so far was lost in the first 7 months. Then I bounced around with the same five pounds up and down for the next five months.
This past two weeks I became energized again and I now believe I will make it to my goal weight this summer.
Life with the LapBand is incredible. Although the band doesn't stop me from overeating (that's my job) or from choosing high calorie foods, it does help me to stay satisfied on less food for several hours. In other words, the hunger that always derailed all of my previous dieting attempts is solved. The band takes care of hunger between meals. All I have to do is ... everything else.
Everything else means choosing solid Protein and passing up carbs. Limiting alcohol which is pure sugar and has the added side effect of allowing me to feel it's ok to nibble while I drink.
Everything else means no snacking between meals. Snacking wakes up my hunger.
Everything else means no tv eating. Ever.
Everything else means walking. Taking the stairs. Every day and lots of times a day.
Everything else means saying no to helpful people who suggest just one bite won't hurt. I know better.
Everything else also means ...
... Working on the reasons I turn to food instead of to people.
... Seeing a therapist twice a month.
... Going to OA and to CoDA.
... Believing in success and never letting go of the goal.
I didn't get WLS to be prettier or sexier.
I didn't even really get it because of all of my health problems -- high blood pressure. sleep apnea. GERD. Debilitating osteoarthritis. Swelling in my feet and legs. A dozen different medications to take each morning. Horrible lower back pain.
I got WLS because my life had narrowed to unbearable dimensions, where I found myself at age 53 in an emotionally abusive marriage with a raging narcissist. Marriage counseling failed. I ate every night into what I call my food coma. If I had my food, all the chaos around me would temporarily go away. Until it didn't.
I knew that I could never get myself and my college age girls out of that environment while I kept eating. I had to stop. I couldn't stop. But I had to stop.
I looked into WLS and started the process. My husband was coldly critical but didn't say much. I didn't ask permission. My daughters were very supportive.
I got my surgery. I started exercising. I dropped weight quickly and felt better immediately.
A few months later, when his rage escalated, I took my girls and the dog and left him. I haven't looked back. My divorce is in process and it's the most painful thing I've ever done. He continues to try to manipulate the three of us from afar and has stalled the divorce at every turn. It's costing me a fortune. It's worth every penny.
I stopped losing weight five months ago. Last week my divorce therapist and I talked about this. My identity as a wife - poof. My identity as a mom - fragile with my girls away at college. They don't need me every day anymore. My identity as a daughter - in extreme flux since I'm living with my mother right now. She has control and anger issues herself, and that's a daily struggle. I spend a lot of time outside of the house. It's time to focus on my new identity.
My head is back in the game today. I'm making better choices. I'm making new friends and finding social things to do instead of living like a hermit. I'm working on the underlying psychological issues that allowed me to live for years as if I didn't matter.
I know that without WLS I would have never stopped eating. If I'd never stopped eating, I would still be on that couch, waiting to die.
I am proud of the changes I made in the last year. It is so much more than going down in size. I have truly recovered my self. The self that I buried under food all of my life.
I'm scared witless about finding a new house and starting over. I'm scared to make decisions for myself. I was told my whole life that I didn't know what was best for myself. I don't believe that anymore.
Today I know better. I know that I made a good decision getting my LapBand and I made a good decision leaving and filing for divorce. I will make good decisions when it comes to a new home and taking care of my new body.
I see threads on here often asking if WLS changes a relationship or harms a marriage. I'm one person who got WLS because I needed the strength to do what I knew I had to do.
Happy surgiversary to me. My whole life has changed and I couldn't be more grateful.

I'm 57 and waiting for my surgery date ~ I never once considered being too old. Never crossed my mind! Could be I've just never been ready until now.

Maya Angelou said it best:
"People will forget what you said, they will forget what you did.
but they will never forget how you made them feel."
I used to manipulate my husband early in our marriage, just to get him to say what I was feeling in a given moment. Example: Honey, I promise I won't get mad, but be honest...you don't find my weight attractive do you? I know you love me regardless and are attracted to me but you'd find me even sexier thin right? Then if he said yes...I'd say, "I knew my weight bothered you!" Incisions aren't sexy...drains aren't either...but you heal and it's just a little scar. You will feel so much better and look great. You will however, likely remember those words and be more self-assured...then look out husband! This is for you and not him...:-)