Hiraeth

Yes! The pain was bad in my left shoulder! It felt like I was bruised and that someone had hit me as hard as they could with a hammer. o_o Oh I love you for saying that! I've been told that she is jealous of me and she's mad that she can't have the surgery because she's too scared to. So many people have said this. I guess you're all correct! Haha! Congratulations on your success so far! <3

Thank you for your response, Alex! I am almost certain that the noodles were just a bad idea because of an intolerance for them. When I drink Protein Shakes and other things, I sometimes feel a little nauseous; but I think that maybe I'm getting ahead of myself and drinking too fast. It's challenging, but I am quickly learning about what I can and can't do. I've noticed that Powerade Zero is not like it used to be. When it first hits my tongue, it tastes amazing. But once I swallow it, and let it hit my stomach, it's just not as pleasant as it used to be. It's hard to describe how it makes me feel, but mostly I think it's making me feel a little sick to my stomach. I bought a ton of them for me to drink after surgery, so I think I'm just going to stick with Protein shakes, Crystal Light, and Diet V8 Splash for my liquid. eggs are such a life saver right now!

Thanks Hun! That's a challenge for me at the moment because I'm so used to being a gulper, lol! But I am doing better. Thanks so much!

It really depends on the person, I think. My friend didn't have this surgery but she lost 100 lbs in 1 year, which is fast considering she dieted without having this procedure done. Most people I see here lose 100 pounds within at least 7 months. It really just depends.

I haven't lost that much yet. But I have lost 20 pounds in just 2 weeks, if that helps any.

I actually have a Sam's Club. I wonder if they have good deals on protein drinks? I may have to swing by there today and check. Thanks so much!

Well, I bought a ton of liquid stuff before the surgery. But my hospital pulled a fast one on me and told me that my stay would only cost $150. I only get paid $640 every 2 weeks. Well, when I arrived at the hospital, I found out it was actually going to cost me $350. I had no choice but to give it to them. That left me with only $70 because the rest went to bills. So I bought nothing but liquid to last me for a week. Protein drinks are not very cheap (they are about $8.00 for a pack of 4). I bought 3 packs which cost me about $25 plus tax). The rest went to broth and medication. I now only have $7.56 in my account and I don't get paid until tomorrow. So, it was impossible for me to buy anything else. Once I get paid, I am going to buy soup and eggs and more protein drinks.Greek yogurt is pretty inexpensive, especially if you buy it by the larger container. Do you have a store like Aldi nearby? They are pretty inexpensive. I do have an Aldi that is about 10 minutes away. I'll go there today. Mmmm greek yogurt! I do have a store close by. I usually stock up on protein shakes and soup. I never get things that seem iffy, lol. Thanks for the advice.

Actually, the ramen I eat has 4g of protein in each pack, lol! But you're right. Besides the protein, they aren't very healthy. I had eggs this morning and I wasn't able to finish all of them but they were so good!

I was very bloated after the surgery. It's a mix of IV fluids and pain meds. Have you had a normal bowel movement? Because pain meds will make you so constipated. I hope the pain goes away. When I was constipated, I hurt SO MUCH in my lower abdomen. I thought I had kidney stones because it hurt so much! Prayers for you sweetie. <3

You're right. I was eating noodles because it's the softest thing in my house, lol. I still live with my mom and she eats a lot of chips and such. So, I figured noodles would be ok. I won't be eating them anymore, at least not for a while. Thanks for the advice. I will definitely eat that. I love cheese! I am concerned that you don't seem to be prepared for post-op nutrition and that your home environment may not be a very healthy place. Why not make an appointment with your NUT and/or see if you can come up with some strategies for making sure you have the nutrition you need and that you have the tools you need to succeed. Can you talk with your mom about providing you with a cabinet or shelf in the kitchen and refrigerator that is yours, so you can have the foods you need on hand? Your NUT and/or your post-op food plan would be a good guide for a shopping list. I thought I was prepared since my hospital told me it would only cost me $150 for the stay. That would have left me with $270 for groceries. Well, since they told me wrong, I ended up paying $350 for my hospital stay. I was pretty irked because all I had was a week's worth of protein drinks, soup, and Water. Now I'm on my last Protein shake and I don't get paid until tomorrow. :/

I was not told I couldn't have soft noodles. But, now I know! It makes perfect sense. I was told no rice or bread. I guess they assumed I knew better, lol! Thanks for the response! <3

Well, I bought a ton of liquid stuff before the surgery. But my hospital pulled a fast one on me and told me that my stay would only cost $150. I only get paid $640 every 2 weeks. Well, when I arrived at the hospital, I found out it was actually going to cost me $350. I had no choice but to give it to them. That left me with only $70 because the rest went to bills. So I bought nothing but liquid to last me for a week. Protein drinks are not very cheap (they are about $8.00 for a pack of 4). I bought 3 packs which cost me about $25 plus tax). The rest went to broth and medication. I now only have $7.56 in my account and I don't get paid until tomorrow. So, it was impossible for me to buy anything else. Once I get paid, I am going to buy soup and eggs and more protein drinks.

You're right. I was eating noodles because it's the softest thing in my house, lol. I still live with my mom and she eats a lot of chips and such. So, I figured noodles would be ok. I won't be eating them anymore, at least not for a while. Thanks for the advice. I will definitely eat that. I love cheese!

LOL! "Let's call her B" I see what you did there! I do try my best to kill her with kindness, but it's hard to not let her cold ways get to me. I will try harder. Thank you. <3

I actually clapped my hands when I read this, LOL! It's because you are 100% correct. I believe that maybe she knows she needs to change and she is afraid to get the surgery. She also has a mechanical heart valve and having this surgery is way too risky for her. So maybe she's bitter because she envies the fact that I was able to have the surgery with minimum risk? She says all the time, "I need to change. It's a mind thing. So, when you have this surgery, you'll have to change your ways. But you can do that without this surgery." I have to disagree with her on part of that. Yes, you do have to change your bad eating habits. But, this surgery was designed to help people change their habits. They make your stomach smaller so you don't feel as hungry as you did when your stomach was big. That alone can help people make the right eating decisions. I myself think of fattening food now, and I think GROSS! I already want to eat better. I agree completely. When people say black people are mean because of who they are, I try to tell them otherwise. It's culture, not color. I have so many black friends that I would take a bullet for without hesitation. One of my best friend's, Nick, is of mixed race and gay. So that's why bashing gay people is such a sensitive topic for me. If they only knew him and would give him a chance, they would know that he is not a horrible person, nor is he "dirty". He is wonderful and I love him dearly. He's so fun to be around and I am blessed to know him! LOL Meany Weenies! That made me laugh! XD

Thank you so much! I am actually worried that she will poison K into thinking I'm a bad person. D and K are both black women, and where I live, there's a lot of racism going on. K is more a solid person than D is because she doesn't allow much drama to pierce her life. But it still worries me because she may convince her that I'm prejudice. And the reason I think that is because, in the beginning, D and the other coworker who recently moved out of the room, were being VERY prejudice towards me. They would say "This white girl this, and this white girl that..." And I was shocked! So, I told my superviser about what they said. He talked to them, which made them even more angry. So now it's like they're trying to make me look like the bad guy. I grew up thinking that only white people were prejudice because of what I learned about the time of MLK. I actually sympathized with the black community. I mean, I was a huge supporter of giving the run-down neighborhoods a chance because I thought they were being treated unfairly. But, as I grew up, I realized that I was hated by so many black people. I was bullied relentlessly by them. I was verbally and physically abused by them, as well. Anytime I was bullied, 80% of the time, it was because I am white. I was so hurt to know that no matter how many times I spoke up for them, they could treat me this way. And I STILL to this day am not a racist. One of my best friend's is black. And he has accomplished so much in his life. God knows I'm proud of him. He's actually far more intelligent than I am. I guess the people who hated me were just raised badly.

Thanks so much! I will check out the app right now! <3

I had my sleeve done on August 4th, and I've lost 17 pounds in just a week and a half, which is awesome! I have finally hit the dreaded stall. I haven't lost a single pound in 3 days, which is fine because I knew it would happen. 3 days doesn't seem like much, but I know my body and it's definitely a stall. My question is... Is there a scientific reason behind why stalls happen? Is it the body getting used to the weight loss or something else? I'm just curious.

You are so right. It's just hard to change because this is who I am. I feel bad if I ignore D. She will bring something up and if I ignore her, she will find a way to get my attention. If I tell her I don't want to talk, she will think I'm a bitch because she knows I'm always nice. I will take your advice about turning her into HR. I've had enough of her verbal abuse. Thank you so much! Well, he isn't my dog. D actually has him. I got him for her. I didn't decide to do it without her permission. She was excited about getting him. She even thanked me. It felt amazing to finally have her like me. But it was short-lived. She's back to being cold to me. Thanks! I will look into that book. It sounds like something I need. I did not tell her about my surgery. She overheard a conversation I was having on the phone with my mother, while I was in the bathroom. When she asked me about it, I did open up to her. I thought maybe she was going to be supportive because she had the gall to ask. But dang, I had no idea that she would pry into my business just to bash me! I didn't think someone who claims to be a Christian could be so bitter! You are so right about how she feels better when she makes people seem worse off than her. I know she's insecure. I want to help her, but I just don't think I can. I tried when I got her the dog, but she's still so mean to me. I want to find another job, but this job is perfect for me when I go back to school. I'm going into Nursing and 6 hours out of my 8 hour shift consists on me just sitting at my desk. It's the perfect job to have while I study. And I know she's not going anywhere. She's been working in this job for over 17 years. She's lazy and not too bright. In order for her to move up to another job, she has to take a test. Well, I realized over the years that she can't even spell the most simple words. So I highly doubt she will get a promotion. Looks like I'm stuck in this Hell-job for at least another 2 years. :/

Welcome, Mandy! You sound so much like me; I grew up thin. I started high school weighing 115 pounds. Well, over the years, I slowly gained about 10-15 pounds each year (probably from taking Lexapro). When I was a Senior in high school, I went from 150 pounds to 199 pounds (size 7 pants, to a size 12). I gained almost 50 pounds in 3 months! My mom said I blew up so quickly that she thought I was having a severe allergic reaction. Well, I kinda did. I was put on oral steroids for my horrible sinuses, and they made me retain Water and eat like I was starving. They also had other horrible side effects; they made my knees feel like they were breaking and made my face turn red. Worst thing I ever did! The steroids convinced me that I was hungry even when I felt full. I downed a whole Red Baron pizza by myself in one day! Normally, I used to only be able to eat 2-3 slices in one night. Now, after I gained so much weight, I can down 5 slices in one night! That's enough for 2 people! Before the WLS, I was the biggest I'd ever been, weighing 255 pounds. My doctor said, since my stature is so small, I shouldn't weigh more than 125. Even at 130 I'm overweight! Now that is disheartening, lol. So, my goal is 120. I hope I can even get back down to 115. With my stature, I should be between 98-125 pounds. I can't believe I was almost 3 times bigger than I should be! But, when you eat a lot, your stomach stretches. Once you stretch your stomach out that much, it doesn't go back to normal. So, even if you lose weight on your own, there's a very high chance that you will gain the weight back because there is still an empty void. That's why we eat so much; we are trying to fill the empty void that overeating created in the first place. This is why WLS is so successful. It allows people to start over on a clean slate. Though, many have to remember that, if you're an emotional eater, you have to be extra careful not to fall into old habits. Good luck on your journey!

I didn't tell her myself. She overheard a conversation I was having with my mother. I was even in the bathroom, and she somehow heard me! I don't know if she was listening intentionally, because when I get excited, I talk very loudly. But you're right. People say that since I'm still young (I'm 25), that I will care more about what people think. They say, the older I get, I will care less about what people think. I hope this is true because, I am very extroverted and outgoing. I want people to like me. It's not a common thing for people to dislike me. I'm always so friendly and compassionate. So I guess I'm trying to make sure I'm not doing something to make this woman dislike me so much. Because, if I ever do something wrong, I try my very best to fix it. I guess you could say I put others first. Putting others first has always been something I do. It has hurt me many times in the past. But I just can't stop!

Thank you so much, Dub. Your posts are always so thorough and intellectual. I'll admit, I haven't been exercising like I should. I want to walk, but it's so hot outside and it makes me feel awful; it also makes my Vocal Cord Dysfunction act up (I live where the humidity is smothering). I always want to walk around the pond at the park, but my mother never wants to drive me there. She's overweight, too, and always says she's too tired to even just wait for me to walk half a mile around the pond! The pond makes the hot air around me feel so cool. I would ask friends to hang out and walk, but my best friend has RA, and she's only 26! She also works all day and has a toddler, so she's always too tired. All my other friends live at least 45 minutes away. I live right by the gym, but it's $30 a month, and since I just paid the hospital $350 out of pocket for my surgery, I'm really hurting in my wallet. All of my money has been going to Protein shakes, Soup, and bills. I guess what I'll do is put on a YouTube video about exercising and try to get in at least 30 minutes a day. What do you think? I've already lost 18 pounds in just half a month, which is fantastic. But I can't help but wonder how much more I would have lost, had I been exercising. XD I probably would have already lost 20 pounds!

I somehow messed up this entry... XD I re-wrote my response below.

Exactly! It sounds like her coworker is bitter about the whole thing because he knows he's at risk.

Now that is interesting! Thanks for the response! That makes perfect sense!