FitandFreeEmily

Don't be embarrassed! You'll be SO glad you took care of it right away in the long run. They're used to seeing ALL kinds of people at all different stages. Many of them probably wait until it's too late. You can do this!

I should probably keep my comments to myself regarding not following your surgeon's plan for post op. It seems just incredible to me to disregard medical advice and start eating solid food just 2 weeks after having most of your stomach removed. If radical surgery isn't an incentive to follow the plan, what IS an incentive?
But I digress.
Regarding the emotional rollercoaster, fat cells were previously thought of as sort of stagnant (it was at one time believed that once fat went in, it stayed there until it was burned created "old, dangerous" fat).
That is totally debunked. Fat circulates in and out of your cells all the times, constantly rearranging and being replaced with new fats. It has also been discovered that fat that is extremely hormonally active.
All kinds of fat soluble hormones end up stored in the fat, inside the cells. Estrogen is one of them. In men, estrogens stored in fat cells often result in some "feminizing" features, such as developing breasts or "manboobs" and softening of chin lines.
In women, a sudden abdundance of estrogen is equally disturbing. But in different ways.
Excess estrogen greatly diminishes sex drive in men and women.
Estrogen dominance in women is linked to extreme rage, sometimes violent behaviour and extreme emotional volatility or becoming emotionally labile.
Estrogen dominance can mimic the symptoms of some personality disorders, like Borderline Personalty Disorder and antisocial tendencies.
It's important to have someone to talk to, and activities to distract while your hormonally active fat cells are being depleted and all the pent up fury within is being released as well. It can be very overwhelming, and not just for the patient.

my family and close friends know. My boss and the HR person also know (because they approved my leave of absence from work). Other people didn't really start noticing I'd lost weight until I'd already lost about 60 lbs, and by then, I was only losing about 2 lbs a week, so they believed me when I told them that I'd been working with a dietitian and exercising like crazy (which is actually true....). I doubt any of them would be unsupportive, but I just didn't want people to know.

I turned 30 in June! I have a long term boyfriend, no kids.
I decided on surgery a few weeks before my birthday so at my annual birthday Breakfast (Where I invite all my friends and eat pancakes), I announced it to everyone. I've never been one to keep things from my nearest and dearest. Also, I thought it would keep me accountable if I told everyone.
Everyone is pretty supportive, lucky for me. But my boyfriend is a little less so for reasons he can't seem to articulate. He just doesn't want me to do it.

I'm 38, married, a mom etc.
My advice, tell the select few you know will be supportive, or at least willing to learn about process with you.
I told my husband I wanted surgery, he asked why and said ok. I told my sister's, (1 who had WLS) we are close so I knew they'd be supportive. My Mom has a tendency to be a negative Nellie, so I didn't tell her until a few days before surgery. Told no one at work. I feel that because I kept who I told to a minimum, I don't deal with negative comments. All feed back has been positive.

I'm 34, about to turn 35, and I completely emphasize with feeling like you're in an "in-between" stage in life. I continue to wonder when I'll feel like I'm truly a "real" grownup!
A lot of people on both sides of my family struggle with their weight, and I lost an aunt almost exactly a year ago to complications from diabetes and morbid obesity, so talking about surgery to my family wasn't an issue. My mom was the one who brought up the idea to me in the first place (which, yeah, I didn't take well initially).
As far as friends, though... my husband and my circle of friends mainly consist of super-healthy people who do triathlons and ultra marathons and stuff. I felt weird about telling them because, like your dad, I felt like they just wouldn't get where I was coming from. But honestly, they surprised me by being very supportive (we went to the shore with them a couple weeks after my surgery, when I had just started puréed/soft foods, and I couldn't get my incisions wet in the ocean yet, so obviously something was up). So, the people in your life may surprise you--and if not, keep reminding yourself that you are indeed a "grown-ass woman" and don't need anyone's permission to do what's best for you! Good luck!

I just turned 30 in October. I started this journey in August.
I literally just put it on my Facebook and I started a blog.
This is how I knew that like 5 people care about my posts on Facebook.
I think it's easier that people know. I get a lot of questions, but I also get support and people always ask what I need to eat and drink, etc.