PorkChopExpress

They'll wheel you in, get you on the operating table, they'll start getting you situated...and then you'll wake up in the recovery room with people saying your name, asking you to wake up. It's over before you even know what happened. And then you'll have drugs that ensure you don't feel much (if any) pain. Use 'em!
It won't be fun, but once you're not groggy anymore and you're clear-headed, start walking. Take it slow, but just take a lap around your ward, then lay back down. Take sips of Water as they instruct. An hour or so later, get back up and take another lap. Keep up the walking, and keep adding to your laps each time out. It's CRUCIAL to working all the surgical gas out of your system and you will heal much more quickly. You're not going to want to. Do it anyway.
And when you're tired, sleep. sleep is when your body rebuilds itself, it's important. But when you're awake, sip Water and WALK. By the time they discharge you, you should be getting around without much trouble and ready to start adjusting to the "new normal." And when you're out, KEEP WALKING. It may take 4-5 days to get all that gas out. But the adjustment behaviorally and mentally is the REAL battle...the physical recovery is the easy part
This is my third abdominal surgery and it pales in comparison to the gauntlet I had to run through with my gall bladder, several years ago. I had some pretty bad complications on that one. VSG was a cakewalk, by comparison.

The thing you have to keep in mind throughout this whole process is that while you had the physical issue addressed, you haven't addressed the mental issues...and the two things go together, with obesity. The weight is a byproduct that ends up becoming part of the problem, but the vast majority of the issue is psychological. That's what got you to the point where surgery was needed.
So evaluate what you're feeling, in light of that decision. Right now, you aren't feeling hunger. Your body isn't aching for food, your stomach right now, frankly, doesn't care if you put NOTHING in it. What you're going through is 100% psychological in nature. You are mourning food, mourning your old lifestyle, and your brain is desperate to hang onto the "old you." But you need to really dedicate yourself mentally to the idea that this change is good for you, it will be for the rest of your life, and better to get through this mourning period and find peace with it, than have your brain struggling against it for the months to come.
I just had the sleeve two weeks ago and for the first 6-8 days, I found I was preoccupied with food. What I wanted to eat, what I would be able to eat in X number of weeks, etc... Part of it was the mourning process, part of it was having had nothing but liquids for like 3-4 weeks. But I really did some self-analysis and realized that it was just my mind coming to the sad realization that everything it knew before September 23rd had been thrown out, and it was never coming back...and my mind may have wanted things to stay the same, but they couldn't.
It's a little like breaking up with someone. Sometimes, some part of you misses the familiarity and comfort of being with them, even if things were super unhealthy. But eventually, over time, all of that fades and you start to realize that it was very good that you broke up, and you're way better off now. That's what you gotta go through, with food.
So don't screw up on this. Follow your surgeon's instructions. Enjoy the little food that you do get to eat and make sure that you're eating stuff that you like...don't make it torture. But also don't break the rules. Re-train your stomach and re-train your brain, it's REALLY important...because it IS possible to screw this up and not lose weight, and after all that you've been through, is that really where you want to be in six months? A cautionary tale?

I went through over a year of education and various hoops, and then just waiting for a window of opportunity to get the thing scheduled, and a TON of issues with the California insurance exchange screwing up my Blue Shield policy, over and over again. By the time I was on the pre-op diet and all signs were go, I was just totally ready to have it over with. I'm two weeks post-op now and feeling good, and just so glad to have the entire thing behind me, with the journey of weight loss ahead of me. Persevere, you are almost there and the next month is going to pass quickly, with all the pre-op appointments and various things they make you do.

Halfway through my 40s, I had the surgery two weeks ago. Very happy to have it all behind me, and be on the road toward getting this problem sorted out, once and for all. Should be interesting to see what I look like at 46, in July of next year!

Well this one went off the rails quickly lol

Well this one went off the rails quickly lol

The reason men burn fat faster is purely due to muscle mass and TDEE. The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn. Most women believe that if they lift they'll get "bulky" so they just do cardio, which creates a very negligible amount of muscle. In the process of losing weight due to extreme calorie deficits like we're all doing, your body also loses muscle as it attempts to find energy. Consequently, over time your body's ability to burn calories slows down (hence why weight loss slows as your calorie intake gradually goes up, but your body's ability to burn it goes down).
The only answer, really, is to do everything you can to maintain as much of your muscle mass as you can...and that means weight training and a lot of protein!

The reason men burn fat faster is purely due to muscle mass and TDEE. The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn. Most women believe that if they lift they'll get "bulky" so they just do cardio, which creates a very negligible amount of muscle. In the process of losing weight due to extreme calorie deficits like we're all doing, your body also loses muscle as it attempts to find energy. Consequently, over time your body's ability to burn calories slows down (hence why weight loss slows as your calorie intake gradually goes up, but your body's ability to burn it goes down).
The only answer, really, is to do everything you can to maintain as much of your muscle mass as you can...and that means weight training and a lot of protein!

Part of the reasoning for the slowness with introducing foods is to allow the staple line to heal, and for the stomach to sort of "normalize" again, before you start taxing it with harder to digest foods. It takes about 6 weeks for those incisions to heal completely (both the abdominal ones and the stomach) so try to be disciplined in following your surgeon's instructions, to give yourself the best recovery possible. You probably aren't hurting anything if you're chewing to pureed consistency, but I wouldn't risk hindering your recovery or creating a complication.
That said, my surgeon has advanced me to "mushy" after two weeks (surgery was 9/23), which includes things like chili and scrambled eggs and the like, just chewed to puree consistency...so some of it is how the surgeon thinks you're recovering, I think.
Also, as I understand it the remaining stomach tissue in a gastric sleeve is not as elastic as what they remove, and so it's harder to stretch out. Not that I'd TRY to stretch it, but I've spoken with people years out from their sleeve surgeries and they report that they STILL can't eat that much in a sitting. So I wouldn't worry that you've stretched it. I suspect the stomach is going to enforce your portion sizes pretty well, right now. You'll know, if you put too much in...

There's never going to be a convenient time, most likely. This is the kind of thing you just have to find a window of time that will work for it, and do it. You need to do it at a time where you can take off several weeks from work, just in case you have any complications. I was back at work after one work week, but everything was super smooth with my recovery and I had no real issues (and I have a desk job, so I could come back with no strain on my healing abdomen/stomach).
My wife said, "Just get it done." There was just never going to be a convenient time...but ultimately, I was fortunate not to need a ton of recovery time and I worked out nicely. As for not being able to help out around the house...it's temporary, and given that you're a father I suspect you can point out that there were MANY months when she was pregnant (and after giving birth) that you picked up the slack for her, to some degree. If all goes well, this really won't put you out of action for THAT long. I can get up and down and around no problem, do all my normal stuff after two weeks of healing. I am just not supposed to lift anything heavy, but I carried grocery bags no sweat. Give me a couple more weeks and I'll be pretty much back to normal. Just feeling a little weaker nowadays because of lack of nutrition, but it's not terrible.
Anyway, I think if your work schedule will allow it, set it up and follow through. Then just be very diligent and on top of your plan with the surgeon and nutritionist, so you can get the maximum out of your recovery and minimize any risk of complications.

I agree, don't rush it...the body loses how it loses. Everybody's is different. It holds onto Water prior to flushing out the fat cells, so at any given time that you step on a scale, your body may be pounds heavier than it actually is, due to Water alone. Don't sweat it so much.
Do you know roughly what your body's TDEE number is (total daily energy expended)? Calculate it (calculators are available online), then subtract the calories you're consuming any given day. The difference is your caloric deficit. Then remember that one pound of fat is the equivalent of 3500 calories. I think it's quite likely that you aren't exceeding 1000 calories a day right now, two months post-op. Starting at 301 pounds, you're probably at a deficit somewhere in the neighborhood of 2000-2500 calories a day. Figure 17,000 calories a week in deficit. Divide that by 3500 and you're looking at a probable loss of five pounds a week (though the body does what it does, and it may be more or less at any given weigh-in date). And the TDEE I guessed at there doesn't really include a decent amount of cardio, which will boost your TDEE another 100-200 calories a day.
5lbs lost each day like that ends up looking like 100 pounds after five months. At my BEST dieting and exercising without the help of surgery, I managed to get around 50 pounds off in that amount of time...and that was a seriously disciplined effort (which stalled, as always). So just let your diet, exercise and sleeve do their thing. If you want to add to your weight loss, be on top of your exercise.

This sucks, but it sounds like you have some poison in your life. Set a goal in your mind to get out of that mess, someday. Not today, or tomorrow, but eventually you need to strike out on your own and get away from these negative influences. Even if they're family. Maybe especially if they're family.
Regarding the boyfriend, this may be the unfortunate byproduct of deciding to get your weight under control. Sometimes people are friends with us, or close to us, for reasons other than us. They include us because we enable them in some way, or we make them feel better about themselves, or whatever it may be...ultimately, it's selfish and unhealthy. So if he left you, rest assured that you are better off without him, because he was probably no good for you to begin with...even if you thought he was. You are going to start thinking of yourself differently as the weight comes off, and I suspect he wouldn't be on board with the changes.
Take this time to focus on yourself, and your goals. Tune out the negativity as best you can. This is a good community of people helping each other get through this difficult transition, lots of support here...and if your surgeon's office puts on a support group, or if there is one you can find locally (there usually are), attend them when they happen. Support groups help a lot.
Your success is not dependent on your family's support or your boyfriend's, it's dependent on YOU. This is all happening within you, and your mind, and your thoughts, and all of that is under your control. You can't control the external stuff, but you can stop letting it have too much of an impact on you. Set your goals and put your focus on them, in spite of what anyone else says. You will get there, and you will get away from those negative influences and created a positive, happy life for yourself. Just stay focused...and DRINK YOUR Water
Kevin

There's never going to be a convenient time, most likely. This is the kind of thing you just have to find a window of time that will work for it, and do it. You need to do it at a time where you can take off several weeks from work, just in case you have any complications. I was back at work after one work week, but everything was super smooth with my recovery and I had no real issues (and I have a desk job, so I could come back with no strain on my healing abdomen/stomach).
My wife said, "Just get it done." There was just never going to be a convenient time...but ultimately, I was fortunate not to need a ton of recovery time and I worked out nicely. As for not being able to help out around the house...it's temporary, and given that you're a father I suspect you can point out that there were MANY months when she was pregnant (and after giving birth) that you picked up the slack for her, to some degree. If all goes well, this really won't put you out of action for THAT long. I can get up and down and around no problem, do all my normal stuff after two weeks of healing. I am just not supposed to lift anything heavy, but I carried grocery bags no sweat. Give me a couple more weeks and I'll be pretty much back to normal. Just feeling a little weaker nowadays because of lack of nutrition, but it's not terrible.
Anyway, I think if your work schedule will allow it, set it up and follow through. Then just be very diligent and on top of your plan with the surgeon and nutritionist, so you can get the maximum out of your recovery and minimize any risk of complications.

There's never going to be a convenient time, most likely. This is the kind of thing you just have to find a window of time that will work for it, and do it. You need to do it at a time where you can take off several weeks from work, just in case you have any complications. I was back at work after one work week, but everything was super smooth with my recovery and I had no real issues (and I have a desk job, so I could come back with no strain on my healing abdomen/stomach).
My wife said, "Just get it done." There was just never going to be a convenient time...but ultimately, I was fortunate not to need a ton of recovery time and I worked out nicely. As for not being able to help out around the house...it's temporary, and given that you're a father I suspect you can point out that there were MANY months when she was pregnant (and after giving birth) that you picked up the slack for her, to some degree. If all goes well, this really won't put you out of action for THAT long. I can get up and down and around no problem, do all my normal stuff after two weeks of healing. I am just not supposed to lift anything heavy, but I carried grocery bags no sweat. Give me a couple more weeks and I'll be pretty much back to normal. Just feeling a little weaker nowadays because of lack of nutrition, but it's not terrible.
Anyway, I think if your work schedule will allow it, set it up and follow through. Then just be very diligent and on top of your plan with the surgeon and nutritionist, so you can get the maximum out of your recovery and minimize any risk of complications.

You took the step over that line, that's the biggest move. Now it'll be a lot of little moves that add up to weight loss I had mine done on Sept 23rd, I'm almost two weeks out now and starting on the mushy foods (thank goodness). After nearly a month of nothing but liquids, I was going nuts.
Be prepared for your mind to take you for a ride, because you just robbed it of a lot of its comfort and removed a coping mechanism from your toolbox. There will be a mourning period, but don't sweat it. It's getting easier for me, and everyone who's been there says it passes, and you come out stronger. But this thing is at least as mental/emotional as it is physical.
Keep walking, every day walking...get your pedometer going so you can track it. It'll help get the gas out, and it'll help you heal better. Really focus on that Protein, try hard to meet those goals because it really helps speed healing if you're getting enough. Good luck!

This sucks, but it sounds like you have some poison in your life. Set a goal in your mind to get out of that mess, someday. Not today, or tomorrow, but eventually you need to strike out on your own and get away from these negative influences. Even if they're family. Maybe especially if they're family.
Regarding the boyfriend, this may be the unfortunate byproduct of deciding to get your weight under control. Sometimes people are friends with us, or close to us, for reasons other than us. They include us because we enable them in some way, or we make them feel better about themselves, or whatever it may be...ultimately, it's selfish and unhealthy. So if he left you, rest assured that you are better off without him, because he was probably no good for you to begin with...even if you thought he was. You are going to start thinking of yourself differently as the weight comes off, and I suspect he wouldn't be on board with the changes.
Take this time to focus on yourself, and your goals. Tune out the negativity as best you can. This is a good community of people helping each other get through this difficult transition, lots of support here...and if your surgeon's office puts on a support group, or if there is one you can find locally (there usually are), attend them when they happen. Support groups help a lot.
Your success is not dependent on your family's support or your boyfriend's, it's dependent on YOU. This is all happening within you, and your mind, and your thoughts, and all of that is under your control. You can't control the external stuff, but you can stop letting it have too much of an impact on you. Set your goals and put your focus on them, in spite of what anyone else says. You will get there, and you will get away from those negative influences and created a positive, happy life for yourself. Just stay focused...and DRINK YOUR Water
Kevin

Part of the reasoning for the slowness with introducing foods is to allow the staple line to heal, and for the stomach to sort of "normalize" again, before you start taxing it with harder to digest foods. It takes about 6 weeks for those incisions to heal completely (both the abdominal ones and the stomach) so try to be disciplined in following your surgeon's instructions, to give yourself the best recovery possible. You probably aren't hurting anything if you're chewing to pureed consistency, but I wouldn't risk hindering your recovery or creating a complication.
That said, my surgeon has advanced me to "mushy" after two weeks (surgery was 9/23), which includes things like chili and scrambled eggs and the like, just chewed to puree consistency...so some of it is how the surgeon thinks you're recovering, I think.
Also, as I understand it the remaining stomach tissue in a gastric sleeve is not as elastic as what they remove, and so it's harder to stretch out. Not that I'd TRY to stretch it, but I've spoken with people years out from their sleeve surgeries and they report that they STILL can't eat that much in a sitting. So I wouldn't worry that you've stretched it. I suspect the stomach is going to enforce your portion sizes pretty well, right now. You'll know, if you put too much in...

Been maintaining in the low 190's for a couple of months now. Over 150 lbs lost. Hard to
believe I used to fit in those pants!

This +1... found the binge/food funeral to cold turkey 2 week liquid diet was a huge mental boost going into the surgery. 2 weeks of all liquids is one of the hardest things to do, but it is such an important mental step. Here's me the other day (Oct 1st) on my first surgiversary... from over 400lbs to around 215lbs. Even if I don't lose another lbs, I'm already a good 30 lbs lighter than when I graduated high school 18 years ago.

I actually decided a couple of weeks before the two week pre-op diet that I was going to indulge my various cravings, as a sort of "last blast" before everything came to a stop. I must have eaten at Buffalo Wild Wings like four times, had various favorite dishes at different local restaurants, ate junk...just indulged, basically. Not the healthiest move, no...but I knew I was never going to do it again. That was going to be THE END.
I was going to save my favorite sushi place for the last day. As the end of my splurge neared, I started finding that I had kind of "burned out" on it. I wasn't really craving anything, just eating routinely, and I started to come to the realization that by needing to do that splurge, I was acknowledging how great food's control had become over me. It was at the wheel, and not me. I started asking myself, why did I feel the need to do that? Was what I was giving up so important, in light of what it had done to me?
I didn't go to the sushi place, my last day. I went to a Subway and had a turkey sub, chips and one last Coke. The next day, I started the liquid diet and no matter how hungry I got (and I got REALLY frickin' hungry), I never once cheated. Not once. I just buckled down, got serious, and dedicated myself to the change. The hunger was only temporary, I knew it was only two weeks, and after that I wouldn't be feeling it anymore. Sure enough...I don't. Surgery was 9 days ago, and I don't feel hunger at all. I'd be lying if I said I'm not going through my own mental process right now of sort of "mourning" food, and my old lifestyle and stomach size, but none of that did any favors for me...it just made me obese. If I list the pros of eating whatever I eat in one column, and the cons in the other, I easily fill the page with cons...and get maybe three pros. It's all in the mind.
So for me, doing the pre-diet binge was helpful in clearing a mental hurdle and sort of preparing myself for the process...but again, not a real healthy thing to do. Still...upon weigh-in before surgery, I had lost 35 pounds from my high, a month earlier. So it didn't do THAT much damage

Had my follow-up with the surgeon today, and they advanced me to "mushy foods" which is tremendously exciting after almost four weeks of doing virtually nothing but drinking.
I get to have 1oz of meat, 1 Tbsp of fruit and 1 Tbsp of vegetable, per meal. Apparently, I don't have to puree anything...I just have to chew it to that consistency. They want me starting with ground meat consistency (beef, pork, chicken, turkey, etc...) and then gradually moving into pulled or shredded consistency, before trying whole pieces. They suggested cottage cheese (which I hate), meatballs, thin deli sliced meats, seafood, scrambled eggs and chili. So I went to the store and picked up some small frozen meatballs and various kinds of chili to try out. I also got some squeezable pureed fruit mixture, which I can just squeeze out onto a spoon. Otherwise, I got a small tub of mashed potatoes and a can of green Beans to try. I don't much care for other types of cooked vegetables.
Also started on my Vitamins today, which is good because I have started feeling like I needed the boost. Multivitamin, Iron with Vitamin c, Calcium, B-12 once a week, and Vitamin D (I have a deficiency, according to my bloodwork). I set up alarms on my phone to help remind me to take them, because I'm sure I'll forget.
So three weeks of the mushy foods, gradually increasing the difficulty of the meat, and then as of week six I will be able to try anything, and see what works.
I have to say, I actually find that I'm a little scared to eat, now. I just don't want to cause any issues with the sleeve, most definitely don't want to throw up or get sick...and it feels like every new thing I introduce is a potential danger. But at this point, I'm so craving flavors and chewing that I'm willing to risk it!
Also down to 341.5 from my surgery date weight of 351.8 (and that wasn't fully clothed), which amounts to 10 pounds in 11 days. Quite a pace.

Well, the surgeon had to make the decision to switch me from Roux-en-y to vertical sleeve gastrectomy, but the surgery was done successfully yesterday and I'm at home recouperating now. Still trying to get rid of the last of the very uncomfortable gas, but I feel okay. Not very interested in putting anything in my stomach right now, but I'm trying to get fluids and Protein Shakes down...it's just VERY slow going. I get at most maybe 2oz done per hour right now. As the gas pain and general discomfort subside, I'm sure it'll get easier. Unfortunately, apparently the mesh that a prior surgeon used to repair an umbilical hernia was the wrong type, and resulted in my intestines scarring into the mesh such that he couldn't do anything without risking damage to my intestine, so he made the judgment call. I'm glad for that, I don't want complications if I can help it. It's just a bummer because that's what I've been feeding my brain with for over a year and I haven't really read up on VSG, though I imagine it's going to be much the same, behavior-wise.
Anyway, I'm glad to have it behind me and now I just want to make a full recovery and get on with this business of losing weight and getting fit.
On a side note, my pre-surgery weight was 351.2 - I lost over 35 pounds leading up to surgery. Not bad!

One week down and things are going well. I have good energy levels, I finally managed to hit 90g of Protein via shakes, pain is almost all gone and wounds are healing. The antibiotics and some unpleasant squeezing have the site with the seroma healing up now, as well. I have a whopping eight scars across my abdomen, evidence of the surgery team discovering my hernia mesh and switching gears, I guess.
My mom (a retired career nurse) has been out here helping me recover, and it has been great not having to think about anything. I love my wife, but she isn't a caretaker in this way. She heads home tomorrow morning and on Monday, I go back to work.
I find that it is easy to identify a lot of my eating triggers now. My mind isn't clouded with hunger. I am really jonesing for carbs, I find. Probably the all Protein, no carb diet I have been on for almost a month. I want crunchy, chewy, tangy and spicy...sweet and sugary aren't registering at all. But as with a couple of days ago, it isn't driving me crazy, I am fine. I am just looking forward to getting some variety, and actual food.
I have gradually upped my walking every day, till I reached 2.5 miles today. Next week, I will start on the elliptical at the gym.
If any of the lifters here can weigh in, if you read this...how long did you wait, before you incorporated weights? I won't start before I feel fully healed, but was four to six weeks post-op good enough?

Yes, I'm 10 days out from my VSG and I'm dealing with this issue. I know it's just my mind struggling to "let go" of the old behaviors, and I have used food as a companion for so many things over the decades that my triggers seem innumerable. I see them a lot more clearly now than I did, pre-surgery. But that knowledge doesn't help, I still feel like I'm going through a "mourning" process with food. I imagine it doesn't really help that for two weeks before surgery and now 10 days after, I'm consuming nothing but liquids. I miss chewing, texture, varying flavors, and the feel of eating. And you know, the killer of the whole deal...that eating made me happy. That emotional component to eating is probably 90% of the reason I became obese, in the first place. It's too much to expect that I'm going to shake that in just a week or so, even though I don't feel hunger and my stomach wouldn't handle it anyway.
This is why I had the surgery. I needed physical enforcement, I needed it to simply not be possible to backslide, or retreat into well-worn and comfortable habits, and let food be my emotional friend again. I find myself overly occupied by what I will be able to eat after I graduate from pureed foods and peoples' experiences are all over the place with what they did and didn't tolerate. Some people can eat whatever they want (just small amounts) and other people say their new stomach enforces restrictions.
It's just weird to have hit the reset button, now. I've been restored basically to the point of infancy when it comes to eating, and have to re-learn everything about it. I'm scared about putting things in because I don't know how much it'll hold, and I don't want to injure anything. And I know that's going to continue for months to come, as I figure out what is okay, what's not, and how much is enough. I never had to worry about that, before...I could just keep on eating whatever was in front of me, most likely finishing all of it, and never give any thought to what my stomach was going through.
I'm with you though...the mental part of this is every bit as big of a deal as the physical. But you know, when I really get to the meat of it (no pun intended), this is probably the process a person SHOULD go through if they're actually making the necessary changes to lose weight WITHOUT surgery...but which they don't. I think that was always a major problem for me...the idea that it didn't have to be permanent, I could stop any time. That lack of 100% commitment is just a set-up for failure, which I did time and time again over the past 25 years or so. That's why I finally decided that the only way I could achieve this goal is if my body enforced it for me, and took some of the load off my mind. But my mind is definitely struggling at the moment!

Yes, I'm 10 days out from my VSG and I'm dealing with this issue. I know it's just my mind struggling to "let go" of the old behaviors, and I have used food as a companion for so many things over the decades that my triggers seem innumerable. I see them a lot more clearly now than I did, pre-surgery. But that knowledge doesn't help, I still feel like I'm going through a "mourning" process with food. I imagine it doesn't really help that for two weeks before surgery and now 10 days after, I'm consuming nothing but liquids. I miss chewing, texture, varying flavors, and the feel of eating. And you know, the killer of the whole deal...that eating made me happy. That emotional component to eating is probably 90% of the reason I became obese, in the first place. It's too much to expect that I'm going to shake that in just a week or so, even though I don't feel hunger and my stomach wouldn't handle it anyway.
This is why I had the surgery. I needed physical enforcement, I needed it to simply not be possible to backslide, or retreat into well-worn and comfortable habits, and let food be my emotional friend again. I find myself overly occupied by what I will be able to eat after I graduate from pureed foods and peoples' experiences are all over the place with what they did and didn't tolerate. Some people can eat whatever they want (just small amounts) and other people say their new stomach enforces restrictions.
It's just weird to have hit the reset button, now. I've been restored basically to the point of infancy when it comes to eating, and have to re-learn everything about it. I'm scared about putting things in because I don't know how much it'll hold, and I don't want to injure anything. And I know that's going to continue for months to come, as I figure out what is okay, what's not, and how much is enough. I never had to worry about that, before...I could just keep on eating whatever was in front of me, most likely finishing all of it, and never give any thought to what my stomach was going through.
I'm with you though...the mental part of this is every bit as big of a deal as the physical. But you know, when I really get to the meat of it (no pun intended), this is probably the process a person SHOULD go through if they're actually making the necessary changes to lose weight WITHOUT surgery...but which they don't. I think that was always a major problem for me...the idea that it didn't have to be permanent, I could stop any time. That lack of 100% commitment is just a set-up for failure, which I did time and time again over the past 25 years or so. That's why I finally decided that the only way I could achieve this goal is if my body enforced it for me, and took some of the load off my mind. But my mind is definitely struggling at the moment!