catwoman7

I can eat popcorn. I have to watch it, though, because it's easy to scarf away A LOT of it (it's mostly air so it shrinks down to nothing in your stomach). I rarely indulge because of that, because I often end up eating a lot more of it than I intended to.

I wonder if he'd even notice the incision scars. Mine were so tiny I really didn't notice them (I think they're gone now - since I had a lower body lift - but if they're still there, I sure haven't noticed them). You're far enough out from surgery that he probably assumes you're just a light eater. Nothing unusual about that - a lot of my women friends who've never been obese eat lightly - they'll either order an appetizer or, if they get an entree, they'll eat half of it and put the other half in a to-go box. I do that, too, now. I'm sure no one suspects I've had WLS at this point. Also, you're not the only person who doesn't care for sweets or doesn't tolerate ibuprofen. I'd say whether or not you tell him is up to you. You already told him you'd lost a lot of weight, hence, the skin issue - as far as the rest, I'd be a little surprised if he put two and two together. I wasn't in the same situation since I was married when I had surgery (still am), but if not, I personally probably wouldn't have mentioned it unless the other person brought it up in conversation (and then I'm not sure how I'd respond - I guess it would depend on how serious I was about the relationship). But then, I'm me and you're you. I was always pretty private about my surgery - very few people know.

I changed mine a few times. When I first started the program, I told them 200 lbs. I was so shocked when they said that was entirely possible, since weighing 200 lbs was a pipe dream for me at the time. When I got down to about 220, I told the dietitian I wanted to shoot for about 170. She said if I worked really hard at it, I might be able to make it. When I got down there, I said now I wanted to shoot for 150. They told me that was pretty unrealistic, because only about 10-15% of their patients get to a normal BMI (150 is in the normal BMI range for my height). Not only did I hit that, but I kept going until I hit 138 (I've since gained back about 20 lbs - but I was more-or-less expecting that since I know most people do have a 10-20 lb rebound after hitting bottom)

I started at 373, was 313 the morning of surgery, hit 138 lbs at 20 months out and yes, your weight loss slows down the further out post-op you are. After year 1, it was often an excruciating 2-3 lbs a month. p.s. since we were around the same weight on our surgery dates, I thought I'd check to see what I was exactly one year out. I weighed 187 lbs on that day.

I was the same. It took about eight weeks before I fully back to normal energy-wise.

I still have my high-capacity Escali scale that I bought when I weighed almost 400 lbs. I considered buying a new one and "gifting" my Escali to a morbidly obese friend, since it's hard to find scales that go above 300 lbs, but the thing is so accurate and ended up keeping it.

I didn't have any of those issues, but I had bypass and love it. I'd make the same choice if I had to choose today. Bypass is typically a bit better at improving some of those things you mentioned - like insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes.

happens to a lot of women. Estrogen is stored in fat cells, and you're going to be burning through fat pretty quickly the first few months. It releases those hormones - which can cause irregular cycles and mood swings for some. It'll stabilize after awhile.

I didn't puree any meats. I had a lot of hummus, fat free refried beans, Greek yogurt, pureed cottage cheese - I forget what else. The thought of pureed meat kinda grossed me out.

27 lbs down in five weeks is better than I did in that time. If you stick to your plan, the weight will come off, whether fast or slow.

I was in the same boat - but I put on 20 lbs in year 3 with no effort on my part. Most of us do experience a 10-20 lb rebound after hitting our lowest weight, so you might want to wait awhile before trying to intentionally put on weight. I thought it would never happen to me, but it did...

if it's all liquid, then no. If the soup has chunks of things in it (like meat and/or vegetables), then I eat the liquid part first, then the solids. And after that, I wait 30 minutes before drinking anything.

dumping can sometimes involve nausea - but it's usually chills or sweating, heart palpitations, dizziness, and diarrhea that, as I recall, can last a couple of hours. It happens when you eat too much sugar or fat at one sitting. It's more common with bypass than sleeve, but only about 30% of bypassers dump. I never have - although I kind of wish I WAS a dumper since that would definitely cut down on any sugar binges!! You may just be overeating - I've also vomited at times when I've overeaten.

quantity definitely increases over time. Lifetime monitoring becomes pretty important if you want to keep the weight from coming back. I don't eat anywhere near where I used to, but on the other hand, no one would be able to tell I've had weight loss surgery. They just assume I'm a fairly light eater - but that's not anything different from a lot of my other women friends who've never been obese. yes you'll eventually be able to eat salad and veggies. my taste didn't really change in that I didn't like things that I liked before or vice versa, but my sense of taste became more intense after surgery. Sweet things tasted sweeter; spicy things tasted spicier. I don't notice it anymore and haven't for several years. Not sure if it gradually went away, or if I just got used to it. hydration has never really been a problem for me. For me, it helped drinking a 16 oz bottle of flavored water every morning before I had anything else, even coffee. Then I already had two cups of fluids knocked out before I even showered or got dressed. do you know for sure that you dump? It's actually fairly rare with sleevers - although not unheard of.

It's really expensive, so you want to be doubly sure you'd get a lot of use out of it. And that's really an individual thing. I use my instant pot pretty frequently, but some people really don't use theirs at all. I rarely use my air fryer - but some people use theirs almost every day (fortunately, mine was only like $60). Like Arabesque, I also have a small appliance "graveyard" in my basement - which I maybe use once or twice a year, if at all - like my food processor, ice cream freezer, and rice cooker. The first two were kind of pricey - but no where near $2000. Again, it really comes down to how much use you'd get out of it.

I know of several people who've had their lapbands removed and had revisions. Sleeve and bypass are both good surgeries - bypass is the stronger of the two if you think you need that - plus it's the better option if you've had issues with reflux/GERD. I have a "virgin" bypass so I wasn't in the same situation, although I can tell you I've been very happy with my bypass and would make the same decision if I had to choose today. But you'll certainly find others who love their sleeve...

wow - those are only like 20 calories a piece. I don't know what to tell you since fortunately I didn't have to deal with any "food police" when I was a new post-op. Just smile and nod and try to ignore her, I guess. You've already pointed out the carbs and calories to her, so there's not much more you can do using a rational approach. How long is she there for?

I don't know about this company or policy in particular, but many won't approve revisions for weight gain. Some, however, approve them if there are medical issues. Since you've had issues with GERD and high blood pressure, that *might* be enough for some companies -but again, not all companies approve revisions. I wonder if a doctor could have a peer-to-peer review with them. Although your current surgeon isn't in your network, so that might be an issue - is there a bariatric surgeon who's in your network that you could do a consultation with?

some of us get binders, others don't - I never got one - so it's optional. If it's not comfortable, then you don't have to wear it (unless, of course, your clinic directed you to). Gas pains should go away soon...

I've known a few long-time post-ops who've done that. The ones I knew didn't eat anything until 10:00 a.m. (or noon - some people waited until noon). So I guess that would be the 16/8 plan? (I'm not super familiar with IF, other than the version where you eat within a certain window).

not everyone loses hair - and some people lose just a little. I didn't lose very much. I could see extra strands in my comb after coming it out (probably twice as much as usual), but just looking at my hair, I couldn't tell a difference - so no one else would have been able to, either.

most people do lose their hunger for a few months after bariatric surgery. Mine came roaring back at five months out. Enjoy it while it lasts....I wish mine had never come back. It is SO much easier to lose weight when you're never hungry and don't give a flip about food! Things get a lot harder once your hunger comes back. Again, there are days I wish mine had never come back - I found it very liberating, on top of making it easy to lose weight (I'm 7.5 years out now) I wouldn't worry about getting too skinny. For one thing, only about 10-15% of patients make it to a normal BMI, let alone get too skinny. There are a lot more people who never make it all the way to their goal than there are people who get too thin. Plus if you DO get too thin, you can always increase your calories to either stabilize your weight - or gain some back. I wouldn't let that worry me AT ALL.

I lost 16 lbs the first month, so I was probably about where you are at six weeks out. I was really worried about being a "slow loser", but I went on to lose all of my excess weight, over 200 lbs. So don't worry - if you stick to your plan, the weight will come off, either fast or slow.

it depends on the insurance - but most of the time they seem to go by your original weight. And the others are right - I would think once they approve it, it's a done deal.

Leaks are almost always discovered before you even leave the hospital. You should be fine. Your pouch is just telling you that you drank too much or too fast.