catwoman7

I'm five years out and I still obsess over everything I eat - plus my weight. The dietitian at my clinic says I'm obsessing about my weight and calories too much and keeps suggesting I look into "intuitive eating", but I know myself too well. "Intuitive eating" for me would put me right back up to 300+ lbs. I am not "normal" and probably never will be. So the only way to keep my weight where it is is to weigh myself several times a week and track everything I eat. I spent a month in India last fall and, although I certainly was no where near stuffing myself silly, I was eating normal-people-sized portions, plus snacks. I wasn't tracking and of course, I didn't have access to a scale. And then I came back just in time for the holidays (I didn't gain any more then - but I certainly didn't lose it, either, with all the holiday events). So I ended up six lbs heavier which have been a BEAR to get off. So I think I'm just one of those who has to be obsessive about weight and calories or I'm going to naturally gain weight. People are all different...so they have to do what they have to do. re: getting too small: many WLS'ers never get all the way to goal - studies say about 10-15% of us get to a normal BMI. But for those of us who do, our lowest weight usually isn't our "permanent" weight - the majority gain 10-20 lbs after hitting bottom (actually, the majority of ALL WLS'ers gain 10-20 lbs during years 2 or 3 - not just those who make it to normal BMI). So I wouldn't worry too much about your sister at this point. Yes there are some who do develop eating disorders - but getting "too small" and obsessing about food can also be normal behavior for some of us, and it's not necessarily indicative of any eating disorder. And she may very well bounce up 10-20 lbs in the near future - it happens to an awful lot of us.

^^^ I totally agree with this. The whole "starvation mode" theory is pretty controversial.

congrats on finishing your doctoral degree! I was headed in that direction at one time, but gave up that dream. But I have two masters degrees, so I sort of get grad school stress (although I know a gazillion people with PhD's, including family members, so I know that is WAY more intense!!!!). So yes - I totally understand the stress eating!!

It seems to be pretty common for people to be active on forums (and in post-op support groups for that matter) for a year or two and then disappear. They've just moved on with their lives and don't feel like they really need it anymore, I guess. I stick around because it keeps my head in the game - and there are a few of us still around here, I'm guessing for the same reason - but most people do disappear after awhile. And not just on this forum - I've seen it on others and....as I mentioned...in post-op in-person support groups, too. I'm battling with losing a 10-lb gain. I've always monitored myself really closely (weighed myself several times a week and track every bite of food that I eat), so I just cut back on calories by about 200/day and increased my exercise. It works, but it's S-L-O-W going. But then, I'm 4 lbs overweight (according to the BMI charts), so I wasn't expecting any huge, quick drops. One-two lbs a month was about what I expected - unless I was willing to drop to sub-1000 calories or something, which I wasn't... regain once you're a few years out is pretty common. The trick is to catch it and deal with it before it gets out of hand. There are some vets who've had success with programs such as WW, Keto, and IF - so you could always try one of those if your current method isn't doing the trick. Lots of people have managed to re-lose their regains, so it can be done!

should be fine to put it on ice, as long as you can tolerate it (some people can't tolerate temperature extremes after surgery - but others can)

a lot of women complain about moodiness the first few months. I'm not sure if there's actual medical research to back this up, but many people have said it's because estrogen is stored in fat cells, and when you lose weight quickly, a lot of that is released. Many women also report screwed-up menstrual cycles the first few months, so I suspect the hormone theory is probably correct. It should all work itself out though - it doesn't seem to last more than a few months - so you may be near the end of it. 45 lbs in 3 months is pretty good. It takes many of us about a year to lose 100 lbs, so you're doing just fine. as far as baggy, saggy skin - some of that will look better eventually because things seem to re-distribute a bit over time - but after a 100 lb weight loss, you'll inevitably have some saggy skin. I had a ton of it. I could easily hide it in clothes so no one knew it was there, but *I* knew it was there, so I had it removed when I was about three years out. So that's an option if you decide you can't live with it..

that pretty much nails it. Yep - it's our life now. Grrrr. But for me it's either that, or eating my way back up to 300+ lbs again...(and unfortunately, it does happen to some of us!)

as you know, cheese is fine as long as you work it into your daily calorie budget, but snacking on it mindlessly can be dangerous (same with nuts) - both have a lot of calories. Are there other things you like that you can keep in stock for snacking if you can't control the urge? (and of course the preferred option would be to control the urge by doing something to keep your mind off it - but I know that doesn't always work!). I always have grapes and cut-up raw vegetables in my fridge (usually with something like a light ranch dip for the veggies. Carrots, especially, can irritate my stomach if I eat more than a few, so the ranch dip part of it usually isn't a problem...). If I'm feeling even more out of control, I'll eat something full of fiber, like a big bowl of naked air-popped popcorn or a bowl of bran cereal (both have more calories than grapes or cut-up veggies, but they're also very filling - esp bran!). Sometimes I just have to get out of the house and take a long walk. I'm not eating while I'm walking - and often by the time i get home, I'm feeling really healthy and don't really want to eat mindlessly to kill that feeling. anyway, I know it's tough - I bet a lot of us are dealing with this right now 😞

you just have to white knuckle it. A lot of us have been there.. I was allowed to eat sugar free popsicles and sugar free Jello (everything else was liquid), so I ate both of those with abandon since they were the only things that somewhat resembled real food. I remember making Jello and then eating half of it (or more!) in one sitting. As someone else said, it does seem to get better by about day 4.

Congrats!!! BTW - I kept losing during year 2 (another 40 lbs, actually). It was slow going, but I didn't stop losing until month 20. So there's still a chance you could get to goal!

I read about something like that on this and other bariatric forums once or twice a year. So it doesn't seem like it happens very often, and certainly not to everyone, but it does happen. Sorry it happened to you. And yes, people who've had WLS are at greater risk of stomach ulcers - which is why they advise against NSAIDs and other things that could irritate your stomach and possibly cause them (that's not to say you were taking any of this, because ulcers can happen regardless - just saying that that's why they advise against them because they're known stomach irritants, and we're at higher risk of ulcers than the normal population is).

I have reactive hypoglycemia, so I can relate! I'm so sorry you're going through this - my heart goes out to you..

Yay!! I'm so glad to hear it's GONE!!!!!! (and I know how you feel - been there!)

true dumping syndrome is pretty rare in sleevers - it happens when too much sugar hits your small intestine at one time. It's more rare in sleevers because you guys still have an intact pyloric valve. Only about 30% of RNY'ers dump - I don't know about the percentage of sleevers, but it's very low. Dumping can be controlled by limiting or avoiding sugar. I'm not a dumper, but I know people who do have it experience severe diarrhea, sweating, flushing, and rapid heartbeat. I know it can go on for a long time. if you're just vomiting, there may be something else going on. Are you eating too fast? Does everything make you vomit, or are there certain food triggers? I'm guessing that's why the nurse is having you track everything that makes you vomit, so they can see if there's some sort of pattern there. If not, I wonder if there's something like a stricture (those are a lot more common in RNY'ers, though). Otherwise, boy - I don't know. I hope they'll be able to figure it out - you must be miserable!

it's definitely been the best health decision I'VE ever made...

actually, bloating CAN by a symptom of constipation - you could have a lot of trapped air in there (trapped behind the...you know...). But there are other things that can cause bloating - some artificial sweeteners can do it for some people - or certain foods like beans and cruciferous vegetables.. Just got back on here to add that it might not necessarily be constipation - it could just be you have a lot in there. Have you been eating a lot of fiber lately?

stalls are a normal part of weight loss. They typically last 1-3 weeks, and you're likely to hit several more of them on your journey. I didn't cut or increase calories - I just stuck to my plan. It'll eventually break, even if you just stick to your food plan. My first stall lasted two weeks, and once it broke, I dropped like 6-8 lbs in a couple of days. I didn't make any changes at all - just tried to stay off the scale for a few days so I wouldn't be frustrated by it!

600 kcal a day at five years out is REALLY low. Maintenance for most people is somewhere in the 1200-1500 range (fortunately, for me it's more like 1700). Have you been eating 600 calories all along? Most of us just eat at that level the first year post-op. I can lose if my intake is 1500 or fewer calories - but of course that's going to be different for everyone. Weight loss is supposedly 80% diet and 20% exercise, so losing is going to be more impacted by food choices than exercise (although exercise helps somewhat - and it's GREAT for general health). I wouldn't necessarily cut back on strength training. It doesn't burn many calories, and some people gain a few lbs when they first start (usually less than five lbs - and that's usually temporary), but in the long term it does increase your metabolism. When I want to lose, I try to go back to the basics - protein first, then vegetables, and then if I have room, maybe a small serving of fruit or whole-grain carb. I also figure out how many calories I'm averaging a day (and you can do this by tracking your intake for a few days, if you're not already doing that), and then cut back about 100 calories. If after a couple weeks nothing happens, then cut another 100. Rinse and repeat. But if you're truly only eating 600 kcal a day, I would NOT cut back from that. That's too low as it is. are you getting enough protein? Drinking enough fluids? also, keep in mind that if you're at or near a normal BMI, that last 20 lbs can be a BEAR to lose. I've been on a mission to lose 10 these last couple of months, and I can only manage to eke out about 2 lbs a month. That may be what you're dealing with as well..

you would have had to have eaten an extra 28,000 calories (i.e., above and beyond what your body needs) over that time period - or roughly an extra 1650 calories a day - to gain eight lbs of true weight. So unless you were doing a ton of bingeing, a lot of that could just be water weight - or constipation (I've read most people can carry up to six lbs of "crap" in their intestines). Try drinking a lot of water and watching your salt intake the next couple of days and see what happens...

stalls usually last about 1-3 weeks. If it's been more than that, double check your food intake. Are you weighing/measuring things? Are you logging everything you eat? Is it in line with your clinic's requirements? If no, that's where to start. If yes, then as you said, make sure you're not getting enough fluids - maybe step up the exercise (although as they say, weight loss is 80% diet and 20% exercise). Or if you're already doing all of this, maybe you're just in an unusually long stall. But if this thing drags on more than a month or so, double check and make sure you're doing everything you're supposed to be doing. Weight loss DOES slow down quite a bit the further out you go, but you should still be able to lose if you're currently at 191 (the last 20 lbs can be a real bear to get off, but you're not there yet...). It could be that your calorie level is a bit too high for you - but double check all of these other things first.

most insurance companies won't, but if you have a flexible spending account, I've known people who've gotten vitamins covered if they have a prescription for them - which your bariatric clinic might be willing to do. Vitamins have to be considered medically necessary to be eligible under FSA - and in our case, they kinda are. I don't know if anyone's ever gotten protein covered under FSA, though (maybe they have - but if so, I haven't heard..) although you might want to check first - the rules on FSA's can change from year to year (that is, if you even have an FSA...) P.S. i Just checked the FSA rules for 2020. It says vitamins may be covered if you have a Letter of Medical Necessity and a prescription. But again, this is for an FSA or an HSA. Having regular health insurance cover it would be unusual, but you never know. It'd be worth it to ask them.

I've heard of it starting up as late as six months post-op (mine started up at five months out), so don't get too complacent if you've made it the first two or three months with no hair loss - it could still happen. I don't know that there's much you can do about it other than stay on top of your supplements so it doesn't get any worse than it already is going to be. Some people claim biotin works for them, others say it didn't do a damn thing (and some get facial hair from it - but it didn't do much for the hair on their head). luckily, most people just "shed" rather than lose clumps of hair, so you're likely the only one who will notice the loss. Yes - some people do lose a lot - but majority don't loose enough for others to notice.

1) hair loss is pretty common, but temporary. Mine started in month 5 and went on for about three months. It'll grow back. 2) weight loss slows down quite a bit after the first month. I lost 10-12 lbs per month during months 2-6. At about the six-month mark, it dropped down to about 5-8 lbs a month. So that is normal. I started out at 373 lbs and lost over 200 lbs, so a decrease in weight loss the further out you get doesn't mean you won't ultimately get to your goal. Just stick to your plan since your level of commitment will have the greatest impact on your final results.

1) hair loss is pretty common, but temporary. Mine started in month 5 and went on for about three months. It'll grow back. 2) weight loss slows down quite a bit after the first month. I lost 10-12 lbs per month during months 2-6. At about the six-month mark, it dropped down to about 5-8 lbs a month. So that is normal. I started out at 373 lbs and lost over 200 lbs, so a decrease in weight loss the further out you get doesn't mean you won't ultimately get to your goal. Just stick to your plan since your level of commitment will have the greatest impact on your final results.

the OP will probably need one regardless. Not because they might possibly need to list it as a co-morbidity - at that BMI, they won't. But they need to know if a person has sleep apnea before a major surgery - the anesthesiologist will need to be aware of it.