WorkinOnMe

I put myself on a modified "liquid diet" ... I had a Protein drink for breakfast, a greek yogurt for snack, a cup of soup for lunch (pureed, all liquid like tomato, cream of broccoli, etc), a Protein Drink for snack, and whatever protein and vegetable my family ate for dinner. I also filled the rest of my day with Water (crystal light flavors or Powerade zero flavors) .... at least 64-76 oz per day. I stepped up my walking to 2 miles every other day. I lost 26lbs pre-op. Good luck!!

179 today ..... ugh! Sent from my SM-G900P using the BariatricPal App

I am at 127lbs lost and 10 months post-op with my sleeve. I agree with @@JamieLogical that either is a tool that will help you achieve your goals. I also think it depends on where you start for pre-op weight ... I've lost more than my friend, but she is at a lower weight than I am in a shorter time. They key is that I also started almost 90 lbs heavier than her too. Talk to your surgeon, see what s/he says. I trust my team implicitly and know they helped steer me in the right direction.

Hiya Dub! Things have gotten somewhat better on the home front. The hubby & I are talking more and I know a lot of the stress is coming from his new position/promotion that starts next week. We honestly don't have a whole lot of relationship stress, but like you said, other things muddy the waters and makes it so no one wants to swim ... let alone hang out at the watering hole! I still want to give away my youngest child some days (any takers?!?!?), but I think she has really begun to see things from our perspective recently. I can't say she "gets it" yet, but hoping someday (soon) the light bulb goes on. I'm still stuck in a stall ... which is just pissing me off now. It seems like I barely get past one and another hits. I've been able to get out walking more though, so at least it clears my head. I love my "me" time when I head out for 4 or 5 miles of solitude. I get lots of thinking done and most times this helps reduce the stress as well. Now, if the body would just cooperate a little ....

My WLS was in May and we left work (school) for the summer in June, so I had only begun my journey. Although family and close friends saw me over the summer, most knew about my surgery and were very encouraging. It was really when I returned to school at the beginning of Sept that I encountered that "WOW" factor. I hadn't seen my colleagues for almost 3 months and I was 4 months post-op with a significant loss. One person didn't recognize me and thought I was a new staff member at first! Most people just assumed that I had spent my summer dieting and exercising. My WLS was in May and we left work (school) for the summer in June, so I had only begun my journey. Although family and close friends saw me over the summer, most knew about my surgery and were very encouraging. It was really when I returned to school at the beginning of Sept that I encountered that "WOW" factor. I hadn't seen my colleagues for almost 3 months and I was 4 months post-op with a significant loss. One person didn't recognize me and thought I was a new staff member at first! Most people just assumed that I had spent my summer dieting and exercising.

My NUT has me take 500 in the am, 500 in the pm, plus what is in my multi. It has to be calcium citrate. This does not take into account what I get in my food intake throughout the day.

Woohoo!! Congratulations Feels great, doesn't it!?!?

I'll be honest ... I lost a sh*t ton of hair after month 2-3 and it lasted through month 6. HOWEVER, it was not very noticeable on me because I had very thick hair. I could see a difference and it came out in handfuls everyday in the shower, but other people didn't see it. After month 6 post-op the loss started to slow significantly and it started to grow back. I am now 10 months post-op and although it is not thick like it used to be, I have almost no additional loss. That said, I did not take any kind of supplements or additional Vitamins to try to combat it. But a family member had her WLS 2 months before me and she began taking something with Biotin, niacin (B3), and Vitamin C in it prior to the hair loss starting. She saw only a little difference and she felt her hair actually grew more while taking it. I have heard mixed results with the biotin supplements, but might be something to try if you are worried. Good Luck!!

179 today .... at least we are moving in the right direction this week! Now let's see if the trend will continue!?!?!? Have a great week everyone!

Thanks guys! The week seems to have gotten a bit better as it went on. My husband & I have a great relationship and good communication ... usually. The stress from his job & the added stress from mine seemed to all hit at once making us more irritable than normal and less likely to talk it out. The daughter, well, I still want to give her away most days but she's at least helping a bit more after daddy & I threatened to cut off her tuition for extra curriculars. I think she realized I am serious. Work is still stressful & will be for another week or so, but it is at least a bit more manageable and my colleague is now up for conversations/video chat so that helps. The only thing that still has me down is this stall... again. I am pretty good about what I eat & getting my fluids and Protein. Lately I just haven't had time for the exercise so I know deep down that is hurting me. I have a 5K in a week that I know I won't be ready for, but there just aren't enough hours in the day this month. I am hoping to start my training for a half in April, so I am optimistic that the routine walking will help. Silver lining ... I haven't had to buy new clothes in almost 1 whole month!!!

I agree ... salad goes down waaaaay too easy for me! If I am going to have salad with my meal I always start with 3oz of protein (chicken, tuna, steak) and then once I finish that if I can tolerate it, a few bites of salad. If I try to eat it AS my meal, I can eat more than I am comfortable allowing myself.

Been "one of those days" for close to 2 weeks now ... just can't seem to shake this funk that is pulling me down. The hubs & I have been a bit off lately and nit picking at each other. The daughter has hit the "I'm 18 and want to do nothing" stage, making me understand why some animals eat their young. Work is getting more stressful than usual with the other half of me out for medical procedure (not WLS or related) and now having to extend her leave. I haven't been able to get my usual walking in due to an over full schedule. Annnddd to top it all off I seem to have hit another stall. What I really want to do is lock myself in my room and have a good cry and a full on pity party, but I just can't justify the damned time!!! Tomorrow things will start to get better, right?!?!? Someone just lie to me and tell me it will.

180 today .... Grrrrrr!! Wrong way scale. Wrong way!

First, I don't know your program and you should probably check with your NUT to see what they want you eating at this stage. Everyone's program and stages are somewhat different. That said .... At 8 weeks I was eating soft foods such as Greek yogurt (my favorite was the Dannon Triple Zero banana and coconut), sf Jello & pudding, cream of wheat, scrambled eggs, chicken salad (mixed with plain greek yogurt instead of mayo), egg salad, and Laughing Cow cheese wedges. I still had one Protein shake per day just to make sure I was getting my full amount in, but I started to get most of it from foods at this point. I stayed away from nuts, Protein Bars, and fruits until pretty close to 4 or 5 months. Even now I limit how much of those things I eat anyway.

Hello fellow May Sleevers! As the pages on the calendar turn, I am constantly reminded that my one year Sleeviversary is quickly approaching. I have enjoyed looking back over the past months & seeing all the changes .... both positive and negative. I am curious how everyone else is doing and would love to hear from you! As you approach the one year mark, what are some things that have stood out to you?? In general, how are you fairing??? Here's my top 5: 1. I am constantly shocked by the amount of energy I have. I am thoroughly enjoying it though. I think I noticed it most when I took my 3 1/2 year old nephew to an indoor bounce house playground and I was actually able to keep up with him. Not only that, I was able to BOUNCE!! And I had a blast doing it!!!! 2. I don't miss foods as much as I thought I would. I haven't eaten bread, Pasta or rice for over a year and I limit the number of carbs I eat. And it doesn't bother me. About 6 months out I went out to eat for a celebration with some friends and I ordered my own app instead of sharing with the others so I had more control over what I ate. Someone asked me if I wanted a potato skin and I declined. The funny thing is, I said "no thank you" but I realized after that I wasn't just being polite ... I really DIDN'T want it. It didn't bother me in the least that they were eating all this fried food & carbing out while I ate my 2 little burger sliders (without the buns). 3. Shopping still isn't any fun! I had this mistaken thought that once I could buy "real" sizes and not fat-lady clothes anymore then I would enjoy shopping more. Nope. Still hate it. Avoid it at all cost ... until my co-workers tell me I have to stop wearing something because it is too big. Then I will bite the bullet and go shopping for other clothes. Not sure why I don't enjoy it more, but I guess I still see myself as bigger than I am when I look in the mirror. I try things on & have to ask someone else for their opinion because I am still "meh" about it all. Oh well, saves me money, right?? 4. I am both proud of myself & discouraged. 7 months ago I began walking in 5k races. I have done really well & am proud of my achievements. Every race I finish is one more than I ever thought I would do. A year ago I would have told you you were CRAZY if you even suggested I sign up for a race! (I have a spine injury & 3 years ago couldn't finish 5 minutes on a treadmill without severe pain.) But, here I sit ... I have completed 7 races in 7 months and just did my first virtual race which consisted of 30k over 5 weeks. Pretty damned proud of me!!! But .... I am also disappointed. I began the C25K program to try to increase my stamina and improve my pace, but I am not doing so well with it. I had hoped to be somewhat running-ish by this point, but it just ain't happening. My knees hurt when I run, and my lungs don't want to cooperate even using my inhaler. Why won't my body just cooperate already!?!?! UGH! I will keep plugging away, and maybe some day I will be able to run, but in the meantime I keep walking and keep racing each month. 5. My relationships are soooo much better! Well, not all of them. But I have eliminated those from my life who were toxic and emotionally sucking me dry, and there are some that I just don't care either way. As for the ones that are truly important to me -- my husband, my kids, and my best friends -- these relationships are stronger than they were before WLS. That's not to say everything has been peachy. Quite the opposite actually. The Hubs & I went through a bit of a rough patch right around surgery. It was scary to think that with all the changes in my life that I could have potentially lost the center of my universe. Luckily we worked through it and as a result our communication is now 10x better than it was before. He was my rock to get through all the nastiness of this process and I wouldn't have been able to do it without him. That said, the counseling we went to also helped me with my other relationships too. I talk to my kids so much more now and my Bestie, well she always has been awesome!!! I have come to realize how wonderful my life is with all these people who care about me and I am so blessed to have the kind of support I did going through my journey. All in all .... a pretty great year! How about you??????

Try not to let it get to you. You did this for YOU, right? Not them. You know you are losing and I bet you feel good about it too. You SHOULD! You DESERVE IT!! Now, to be honest with you, I had barely started losing when we went out on summer break, so most of my colleagues didn't notice either. I kept telling myself all those things and more just to feel better. Then we came back to work in September and I had lost a TON of weight. Teachers I have worked with for 15+ years didn't recognize me. It was very uncomfortable and very disturbing. Everyone was commenting ALL THE TIME. I couldn't leave my room with out someone saying something ... even students. I think that perhaps if they had seen me lose over time it would have been easier to take. I wouldn't have had nearly as many questions or comments, and I probably would have been more comfortable with things that were said. I guess the grass is always greener ... Good Luck & keep remember that you notice and that is the most important person!

Totally went through the same feelings at first, however I discovered 2 things: 1. It was liberating to get rid of those clothes. I felt soooo much better after they were gone & I couldn't see them all anymore. I did keep a few remnants of my "old" self just to see how far I have come, but for the most part it all went. It was like a giant weight (pun intended) was lifted off of me!!! 2. I discovered that by keeping those old clothes I was GIVING MYSELF PERMISSION TO GO BACK! That's right, as long as I had those clothes I was mentally telling myself that if I gained it back it was okay because I had clothes to fit into. Once I got rid of it all, I worked twice as hard to make sure I DIDN'T go back ... in fact, I was more determined than ever to buy smaller and smaller sizes, not bigger. Do yourself a favor & give them away as soon as you can. For me, the psychological hurdle was easier to get over once I did.

I left the hospital with very little pain, if any. I would have gone back to work soon after but my boss wouldn't let me. I meant that I had to be ultra aware of what foods were around me & stick strictly to my post-op diet because I didn't have anything like pain to remind me of my change in tummy size either. I cooked dinner for my family & had to mentally stop myself from tasting the sauce like usual, and stop myself from lunch sharing at work like we always do. It was a mental thing for me ... tellung myself to just stick to my diet. The water thing was the one area that I just seemed to "forget" & old habits kicked in ... until that first big gulp hit & I got a pretty good reminder in the form of OUCH!

I only did this with water when I started exercising after surgery. I'd go to guzzle a bottle of water & be like "uh oh! That doesn't work anymore!" Other than that, I was VERY aware of what I was eating & made sure to stick to my post-op diet.

So, cleaning out some older things getting ready for my son & his family to move in with us from out of state and I came across a sweatshirt from when I played MERP Football (girls team) in high school. Just for shits & giggles I threw it on. Imagine my surprise when the damned thing fit me!!!! It's from junior year ... 25 years ago!! Yup, I'm smiling today.

I scheduled 2 weeks off from my job. After 4 days I felt great and wanted to go back at the end of the week but my boss wouldn't let me. Ended up taking the full 2 weeks, but really could have gone back with no issues. Remember that everyone is different though. A friend was down and out for nearly 3 weeks after her sleeve was done. You can plan on lots of things, but your body will ultimately let you know what you can and cannot do.

Welcome to ONEderland!!!

Today's weigh-in = 178lbs. At least it is down ... Slow & Steady wins the race, right?!?!?!?!

Had the same dream reaction to percoset years ago with a major broken arm! Wished they had warned me ... but made me aware for this go round & had them give me something else. Otherwise, sounds like you are off to a good start!! Best of luck!

Post-op from WLS wasn't bad for me, but everyone is different. Keep pushing on and listen to your body. Don't over do it if you feel you can't. You will hit a point where all of a sudden you start to feel better. Good luck!