Nikasio

Oh my god...men with body image issues <<insert evil laugh>>. Seriously, I have always had body image issues. What kept me from overreacting or feeling depressed about not liking what I see is that I had two female relatives with real eating disorders and body dysmorphia. It is a very serious issue that sadly leads to sufferers starving themselves to death. I say had because they have both died from cardiac complications from their eating disorder. So when ever I have the misfortune of looking in the mirror and not liking what I see, I remind myself to get over it and live my life as best I can. P.S. Though women seem to suffer more from eating disorders, men and women both suffer about equally from BDD Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

It is reassuring that it wasn't just me that was experiencing this. It was like emotional "hot-flashes." One moment I am watching a good movie and the next moment I feel like I might need a tissue. As well, some people I normally ignore at work had me fantasizing about putting their heads through the wall.

I recently hit a plateau where I lost nothing in the last two weeks. I blame myself for eating too many Kind bars and not keeping a good log. Using FitBit to keep track of things and it seems my body must have gone into some serious starvation mode, because I am always under my calorie count and average a deficit of about 7,000 calories per week, but my body still holds onto the additional Protein calories I eat. Since I was advised to increase my Protein intake to 120 grams a day, my body just refuses to give it up. I will probably go back to a liquid and low carbohydrate diet to see if that kicks off the weight loss again. Even with all the Water I drink I am always hungry. Oh well, live and learn on this roller coaster ride.

Way better than finding a twenty in your pocket on laundry day.

@@gowalking Good to hear that your joint replacement surgery was successful. I am at the point where I have to decide whether to replace a knee or a hip first. My orthopedist has done thousands of both and he keeps telling me that I have a high tolerance for pain, because he has had to do hip replacements on better looking joints than mine. Sooner or later, I will have to break down and go for it.

I neither deny or confirm trying any of the aforementioned crazy diets or programs. When I was younger, bicycling helped me keep off the pounds. As I got older and arthritis kicked in, looking at a bike made my knee whine. After every failed or temporarily successful diet, my body's Set Point would go up. 200, 225, 250, 275, 300 and higher. It was as if my body was punishing me for having made the attempt. Finally my body robbed me of my joy of walking to the point where going down a flight of stairs was a cost benefit analysis in pain. Hopefully this WLS takes care of this.

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Happy that nothing makes me sick and I can eat whatever I want, but on that same note, it makes me sad.... I wish I threw up every potato chip, chocolate, candy....

So far, nothing has really made me sick. Had a hamburger and beer too early, but even that didn't make me hurl. Even increasing Protein and calorie intake per dietician instructions, has not taken away my mental appetite.

I hit a plateau and haven't lost weight in two weeks. I've increased my exercise and now force myself to put in my 10,000 Fitbit steps.

I can drink, almost chug, Water all day, but I stop myself from overdoing everything for fear of experiencing vomiting or injury to my little pouch friend.

Was on topiramate for Migraine headaches. Never experienced the appetite suppressant side effect my doctor claimed would happen. Qsymia (Phentermine and topiramate) which is a schedule IV drug is supposedly more effective. One of my friends is on it and says it works despite Topomax alone not having worked for him in the past. Not to sound like a commercial, but the drugs only seem to work along with diet and exercise.

Medical Tourism is big business in Mexico. Check some of the links on this site and you will be surprised how many doctors and staff are bilingual. When it comes to Medical Tourism, English is the lingua franca for services. Several of my American born doctors studied abroad, whether it was Guadalajara, Grenada, Italy or Spain. As for affordable care act issues, the compromise for what individual states consider essential health services was to appease states with low levels of acceptable public services. A lot of compromises were made and the winners were the insurance companies. When I was a kid in Florida I use to hear horror stories of uninsured people being discharged from hospitals as soon as they were stabilized.

Affordable Care Act weight loss surgery guidelines require insurance companies to provide coverage for all individual, family and Small Group plans (plans with 50 or fewer full-time employees) only in states where bariatric surgery can be called an "Essential Health Benefit". So basically, the state of Florida does not consider it to be an essential health benefit, so the affordable care act does not cover it. So they will pay for counseling, medication, and the complications of the comorbidities, but not necessarily the bariatric surgeries. You might want to re-check with your surgeon because some states just have high requirements for BMI and the need for several comorbidities like diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc. But from what you are saying, you already discussed it with them.

@@jazma As a guy, I am into gadgets. If it gets me to eat my veggies it will be worth the investment to try this. There is even a cook book called Inspiralized. They'll make a cook book about anything. Thank you for this topic.

@@par1959 That statistic got me thinking and I can't find the source. It makes no sense. Just a personal observation and not from some survey, but chunky couples tend to stay together more so than skinny couples. Chunky guys tend to stick around with their wives and girlfriends through sickness and health. So why would weight loss change a personality so much? Recent articles suggest that cheating women have caught up, if not surpassed, cheating husbands. Sorry, but had to put in my 2 cents because the thought is disconcerting.

85% the married women that loose the weight from surgery dump the current spouse and move on. Us guys get to be choosy.

Found this question fascinating, so I trolled the bodybuilding.com site, which appears to have plenty of topics from guys who had WLS.

The following is brief summary made up from several posts:

1. Quality Carbs before a workout AKA complex carbohydrates.

2. Bananas to keep you from cramping.

2. BCAA supplemented drink just before a workout.

3. Protein to repair muscle after a workout. Don't depend on just liquid proteins: fish, poultry, boiled eggs. The more complicated the food the more your body works digesting it.

4. Shock workouts by alternating whether you do cardio or weights first.

5. Continue to take a quality Bariatric supplement to prevent deficiencies.

From there it gets even more esoteric what people do to build mass.

Here is an inspiration story on how a formerly 370 Lbs castric bypass patient: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/body-transformation-danny-figueredo-sliced-his-weight-in-half.html

Hooray. Adding pureed foods to my diet seems to have worked. No more daily green poops from things passing through me too quickly. As with most things in life, it takes time for the human digestive track to recover from WLS.

Made me look!

My upcoming support group topic is going to be "how to grow an herb garden." Which when I was a kid growing up in Brooklyn meant cousins growing mint, lavender, rosemary, and basil in a useless attempt to cover the fact that they were growing pot in the middle of their tiny backyard jungle. I am going to slip and make some wise ass jokes.

@@Bluesea71 I'm jealous I wish I could get that organized. I'm more of a Ziploc freezer kind of guy. The only stuff I ever prepped was meats in individual serving bags. I hope I can get my act together, as I will soon be moving off my Protein only liquid diet. I hate microwaves, but will probably have to break down and buy one if I am going to prepare my meals as well as you.

@@BigHarleyGuy1 Your story sounds a lot like me. I'm 5'6" and was hovering around 305 to 295 by my surgery date. I had diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and borderline testosterone levels. I put off surgery for over a decade. Suffered miserably using my CPAP machine and suffered through knee surgery. Now that I am a little over 4-1/2 weeks post op, I am down to 250 Lbs. My physician took me off all my medications and had to re-test me for CPAP pressure. I am so full of energy I am walking over 6 miles a day. Like John VDB and the other folks said, it is your decision to make,

I'm not a drinker, but at three and half weeks after surgery I decided to try an O'Doul's non-alcoholic beer. This was about half an hour after having an 8 oz white bean Soup. I chewed the Soup Beans so long and fastidiously it might as well have been pureed. Both went down easy. I can't wait until I can have a Guinness or a 'black and tan.' I'm not a drinker, but I do go out at least once or twice a month for a beer with friends.

Oh well, at least I'm not alone either. I am only averaging 4 hours a night since surgery. I can't seem to get rest from my midday naps either. I walk over an hour a day still have plenty of energy at night. sleeping pills not working. Doesn't seem like anxiety either. I feel wired all the time, but my bad knees limit me from walking more in an attempt to burn off energy. Rowing for 30 plus minutes a day at 160 heart rate is not doing it for me either. Bicycling is a chore due to my knees as well. So if someone finds something that works for them, please post. Thank you.

@@byebyedarkpassenger Chub Rub, AKA fire crotch, is why I have to pay extra for suits. For guys, the solution is to get your tailor to sew in a couple of triangles of cloth in the crotch of the trousers. These will absorb the brunt of the wear and tear and can then be removed and replaced as need be. I also get the inside pants liner so some of the friction is taken up there. The problem is that unless you go to a tailor who also makes suits the selection of material for those triangles is limited. The thicker the material or wool blend, the longer my pants' crotch survives.

The alternative would be:

@ Two of my formerly super-obese (400 to 450+) friends say it gets better. One of them had a bypass over four years ago and he insists that it not only mitigated the need for ED drugs, but also made his penis look bigger. Not going anywhere near that subject.

WebMD's warning about these drugs is "If you have suffered from a heart attack, stroke, or life threatening arrhythmia (irregular heart rate) within the last 6 months you should discuss other options with your doctor. It is also advised to avoid these drugs if you have uncontrolled high or low blood pressure or if you experience chest pain with sex."

So I wish you good luck with your weight loss journey 'cause it should bring about plenty of positive changes for you.

Desculpe mi espanol. Siendo que usted esta recuperando de cirugía, lo mas sencillo son sopas. Mis favoritas siendo caldo Gallego y Pasta fagioli. La batidora es mi mejor amigo porque reduce todo a un puré. También te da la oportunidad de añadir polvo de proteína. Agregas el polvo de proteína después de dejar enfriar las sopas. Si Agregas el polvo durante herviendo el caldo te va salir como una espuma. Varios caldos que venden en los supermercados sirven ayudar con la transicion a las comida puré. Me gusta la marca Swanson porque ofrecen varios sabores que son bajo en sodio y sirven de base para experimentar. Buena Suerte.

Lo bueno es que caldo gallego se cocina todo junto y sabe mejor el segundo dia:

http://www.recetaspuertorico.com/?p=2831#more-2831

@@LousPeachy LOL. That makes about as much sense as putting the handicap parking at the farthest end of the parking lot 'cause they need the exercise. I remember taking my mom shopping and the look of terror on her face as she attempted the escalators when the elevators were broken. Her Parkinson's made it difficult for her to walk let alone take an escalator to get to the women's section on the third floor. If women do most of the shopping then why do they make them work for it? Is it cause they think they'll pickup a toy for the child and underwear for the husband?

I am guilty of clumsily trying to be reassuring to people. With men it is a reflexive habit to be supportive to the ladies around us. We'll say anything and then regret it. I am sorry to hear that even medical professionals are guilty of this. The following is a little off topic, but it is meant to reinforce the premise that stupid things are frequently said.

Comedian Brian Regan, "I met this woman, I could've sworn she was pregnant, let me tell ya'. I believe the rule is, don't guess at that ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever. Something like that. I don't have enough evers memorized. I said, "Hey, when's that BABY due?" You ever feel a word comin' out but it's too late to stop it? "When's that BABY due? BABY!" "What baby?" "Uhhh..."