Dawnislas

20,000 mg of Biotin + minoxidil has helped me. One to slow the loss and the other for regrowth.

Decided to color my hair again since Grey hair is showing already... and #5 is the best color for my complexion as per my friends... what do you think?

My nephew was born in 2013. At the time, it didn't occur to me but I'd like to live to see him grow up, especially since I'm on the fence about having kids of my own.
My estranged father died of a heart attack in April 2014. He was in his mid-50s. On the way back from his funeral, I received a call stating a close friend had also died. He was in his mid-40s.
I'll be 36 in a few months but in the past couple of years, I've started to feel older than my age. My joints ache in ways that I know they shouldn't in my 30s.
I've never been on a plane. Mostly (80%) due to fear of flying. The other 20% is fear of being charged for two seats or having to use a seat belt extender. I would feel horrible spilling over into someone else's seat space. I would love to travel and be able to do all of the things I'd like to do without being out of breath and out of shape.
I haven't ridden amusement park rides since high school. Minor motivation, but motivation all the same.
I'm tired of paying more for larger sizes that aren't nearly as cute nor flattering as smaller clothes. For some reason, the fashion industry thinks obese people look great in hideous prints. And while plus-sized fashion is starting to come around, it would be nice to wear cute clothes and get rid of my wardrobe of blacks, grays, and blues.
Finally, I want to prevent (or at the very least delay) diabetes. It runs on both sides of my family. My mother has it as does her mother. I fear spending the rest of my life on medication for something that is mostly preventable.

My Dr said I could use up to 20,000 mg of Biotin safely. I use Niacin, minoxidil, and the biotin. After heavy Hair loss mine has finally stopped. I think the extra 10,000 mg of biotin did the trick.

My plan: "Thank you! I'd love one, they look delicious! But I'm going to have to take it home for later, because I'm stuffed right now."
Then, I'll find someone who looks like they need a treat and pay it forward:)
I don't have to eat it to accept it graciously and comment that it's a lovely gesture and looks yummy. Bonus: I get to give ti to someone else and make them happy:)
Have never met a homeless person who didn't want a cookie. Bonus points if I can pick them up a cup of coffee to go with it.

“No excuses!” That mantra may have gotten you through some tough times on your weight loss surgery journey. There are “no excuses” for not exercising, for not making that phone call to your surgeon, or for cheating on your diet.
But it’s the holidays…so we say…go for the excuses! Here is why. You are almost sure to be bombarded with offers for food when people pressure you to eat food that you know you shouldn’t. Another reason to use excuses is to “excuse” yourself from too much pressure, such as going holiday shopping when you know you need to rest. Arm yourself with some grand excuses, and you might have a much better relationship with the scale this holiday season.


What’s the Big Deal?
First off, why do you need to worry so much about excuses now more than ever? Well, the rest of the year may present challenges, but those challenges can grow at this time of year. You may be under a lot of pressure from friends and family to do unhealthy things during the holidays. You will not only be offered or served weight loss-unfriendly fare, but probably also feel pressure to give up healthy habits, such as working out or taking relaxation time, in favor of socializing or cleaning the house. The consequences can include:
Eating too much and gaining weight. Skipping workouts and feeling sluggish. Overcommitting, feeling stressed, and gaining weight. Overextending yourself and getting run-down or sick. You do not get to make excuses very often, so you might as well take advantage of the chance to do so now. Just make them good so they work!
Iron-Clad Excuses
Your excuses need to be iron-clad so nobody can argue with them. In general, simpler is better because the longer you make it, the more they can find to argue with. For example, if you say that you cannot eat that fudge because it has too many calories, they can say that a little can fit into your diet. Instead, consider saying that you are not allowed to eat fudge. Period. Stay away from wishy-washy refusals that include, “Maybe,” or, “I don’t think so.” They open the door to the last thing you want – further offers!
These are some additional iron-clad excuses:
“I cannot eat that.” “My doctor says I cannot eat that.” ”Thanks, but I am not hungry.” “I would love to go with you, but I need to be home at that time for my family.” Keep It About Yourself
In an effort to be polite, you might decline an invitation by saying that you think the person who invited you might be too busy, or you do not want to inconvenience them. Unfortunately, that only opens the door for them to say that it’s okay, they still want to go. Instead, they cannot argue if you keep it about yourself: “I’m too busy,” or, “I have another commitment at that time” indisputable (and more polite than the possible truth: “I don’t want to!”).
Little White Lies
White lies are okay if you are using them for your health. If you are a bad liar, make it true.
Instead of saying, “I don’t like fruit cake,” say, “Fruit cake does not agree with me” (perfectly true, since your goals along with losing weight may include avoiding dumping syndrome or saving room for protein-packed foods). Instead of saying, “I have other plans at that time” when you don’t, make other plans – even an appointment with yourself to relax. Then your “other plans” excuse will be true. If you do not want to do it (go out to dinner, for example), you can say, “I can’t do it because I don’t have the time.” You can make that true by coming up with something to do during that time, such as working out, planning meals for the next day, or reading a book with your kids – all truly more important than committing to an engagement that may be stressful or unhealthy. Keep those excuses coming this season so you can keep yourself healthy and focused. Make sure your excuses are strong and on point so they work. And, have fun with them!

A pillow is very helpful for the car rides to and from airport, home, and probably even on the plane.

Congratulations on your loss. You look amazing. Just know that it takes our mind a little longer to readjust to the changes in our physical appearance. I remember thinking the same as you but then one day I passed a mirror on a store and had to stop and take a closer look. This journey is psychological as well as medical. Everything in us needs time to readjust. Just keep going.

Congratulations on your loss. You look amazing. Just know that it takes our mind a little longer to readjust to the changes in our physical appearance. I remember thinking the same as you but then one day I passed a mirror on a store and had to stop and take a closer look. This journey is psychological as well as medical. Everything in us needs time to readjust. Just keep going.

It seems many people had the “what did I do” thoughts right after but most change to “ why did I wait so long” not long after. To not only lose weight but have more energy, ditch meds, and just all around feel better sends any regrets out the window.

I am 1 year out today. Head down, no distractions, do not talk about it to others, only close family and I advise not too much. You have to get your head wrapped around the journey you are about to begin, I spent a lot of time on the Gastric Sleeve website reading about others journey. I can now wear 6-8 pants, off all medications and feel great. The hardest part of the journey is the head games. Keep your focus. Good luck. I will pray for you

Or take them to the post surgery bariatric group in your area as 'incentive' clothes, they could probably really use them as well.

I am 1 year out today. Head down, no distractions, do not talk about it to others, only close family and I advise not too much. You have to get your head wrapped around the journey you are about to begin, I spent a lot of time on the Gastric Sleeve website reading about others journey. I can now wear 6-8 pants, off all medications and feel great. The hardest part of the journey is the head games. Keep your focus. Good luck. I will pray for you

Congratulations the sky [emoji292] is the limit now.

(Disclaimer before I begin: I am not "losing" weight, I am deflating. The word lost gives meaning that some things are found, and i don't want to find any of the lost weight, I know, so sounds weird right..lol)
My name is Tonya, and I am a 43 year old mom of one and wife. I have been clinically morbid obese all my adult life. My "normal" weight should be 155lbs, but I have carried 250lbs, up until August 2015, when as a smoker, I ended up with sever pneumonia, and diagnosed with stage 2 COPD. My treatment consist of a lot of prednisone, and I quite smoking. My weight sky rocketed to 327lbs. I have always tried to lose weight with any new type of medication on the market, fad diets, nothing worked. I am not going to sugar coat anything, I was not motivated to exercise, and I was always exhausted. Since my illness in August of 2015, I have been on oxygen therapy 24/7, my desire for anything that would move me was gone.
I found out that my work insurance would cover bariatric surgery, and after some research I decided to go for it. I talked with my pre certification department with my health insurance and they stated I would need to have 6 month of weight loss management with my PCP, for approval. With this my doctor and I decided to contact Wesley Weight Loss Center to start the process. So September 2016 those monthly visits with the PCP started. They finished in February 2017. WWL Center required a list of other things, to complete the approval process. I had a few bumps in the road with thyroid issues, but I was finally able to schedule my Gastric Sleeve Surgery for June 20, 2017.
June 6, 2017 I started the two week pre op liquid diet. It was very challenging. Not so much of the diet itself, but because I still had to fix meals for my family. they are not heavy, and they did not need to eat broth, or sugar free Jello, Protein Shakes, or sugar free popsicles. Of course with their support they ate out most of that time. Those two weeks I rid 17lbs to shrink my liver and I was so proud of myself, because prior to this decision, I hated the way I looked, felt, I hated that I could not even reach comfortably enough to clean myself after using the restroom, if I am to be honest with whoever is reading this. Surgery day came, I powered through it, It was well worth it. This journey is just beginning, but I will say well worth the struggle. I am starting to love myself. I can comfortably reach where it is important and I have a lot more energy than ever. I find it so fascinating how a few bites of something, can make me feel so full. My only draw back from this whole experience so far is an infection where they put my JP drip. Nothing antibiotics can't handle. I am one month post op and down 40lbs!!!!
HW: 327lbs
SW: 310lbs (June 20, 2017)
CW: 287lbs
GW: 190lbs
Dr. Nicholas Brown, Wichita, Ks

Oh! I assumed "against medical advice". Only AMA I know...till now

Little backstory
I was sleeved on March 30th of 2015. I woke with excruciating pain from the start. They did not do a swallow study and sent me home the next day. The pain did not subside over the next few days and I felt I was a wimp for being in so much pain. I had no other problems like fever or BP or heart rate issues. By April 9th I was still in pain and was told to go to the ER. I did and it was there that they discovered a 9cm abscess/leak. I was rushed to ICU and put on antibiotics. In less than a day I went in to 100% renal failure and was put on dialysis. I was in the ICU for 5.5 weeks and went through a number of procedures to fix collapsed lungs, plural effusion and installing various drains. I left the hospital after a total of 6 weeks with a pic line for TPN and a drain. I have gone back in twice for lung issues due to sympathetic effusion.
Now
I still have a 1cm leak. It isn't closing and the doctors want to play a wait and see game still. I have a mesh stent in my esophagus that hurts like hell and I am on two kinds of pain killers just to get through each day. I feel like I am never going to heal. When looking through the Internet it seems so few have had leaks that I can't tell if this experience is normal or if I am worse than others. I just feel like I am never going to get better. Not only does the stent hurt every day (something I can't figure out if everybody hurts from or just me) but the drain bag keeps ripping stitches out and so it fees like a knife is on my side all the time. I am so depressed and frustrated and feel like I am in this alone. Sorry to rant but nobody seems to understand what I am going through and I thought maybe somebody here would.

I will say as a woman whose husband cheated 13 years ago, I truly learned what a broken heart felt like. We separated, divorced, and eventually reconciled. But there are few days that go by that something doesn't remind me of that time in our life. I see my life as before the affair and then after. After I am still a bitter woman and sometimes can't stand him because of this huge betrayal. Some days I hate that I fought so hard to reconcile that marriage. Other days I am fine and see how hard he tries to make it up to me. He has changed but that trust is so broken that it will never be repaired. He knows if it ever happens again, I will be gone and he will be left to pick up the pieces. This time it is just me, before we had a teenage daughter that had to be cared for. I think if you want the open relationship then both sides have to agree. If you married with fidelity being an understood or unspoken expectation of the marriage, it has to be honored or end the relationship and then move on to the next. I hope my weight loss doesn't cause other men to pay attention to me but if it does I'll probably be so oblivious to me I won't even know it.
Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I would think they would have you lose more weight to improve your sleep apnea in order to make you a safe candidate for the surgery. I don't think they would cancel at first just delay until you get the issue better controlled. I remember when I had to lose weight pre- op I put myself in a "zone" of controlled thinking about no carbs, Protein & Protein Drinks. I was able to lose the needed weight to be approved. Good luck to you.

Hi family. I was just sleeved on the 15th of Feb and I'm concerned about getting in my 60 grams of Protein. I can't seem to make myself drink it all. Yesterday was my first day out of the hospital, and now that I'm home, all I wasn't too do is sleep. When I try to stink my Protein Shake, it seems like I can feel it going into my stomach and I just can't drink another drop after that. Please give me some advise on what to do to get in my required daily grams. Thank you [emoji173]

This made me smile. It's awesome you and your mom are doing it together! I'd love my mom to do it, but she's got too many health problems to deal with it. Many blessings to the both of you!

I went from 327lb. - 126lb and I was 28 years old and 5 ft 9 in. Everyone said I looked like I was in my 60's and I was way to skinny. This also happened to my cousin she was 350 pounds and got down to 85 pounds. We both lost all our teeth and I did the Protein shakes exactly like I supposed to. I would never go back and do it again. It's been 12 years and I still can't eat anything and have had 17 surgeries from complications from gastric bypass.
Sent from my XT1093 using the BariatricPal App

Apnea. What sort of physical did the doctor do at your first visit?

Macy's , Nordstrom's, Nordstrom's rack,
Urban outfitters and free people.