ColleenErin1974

I'm in Copperas Cove, TX. Hey neighbor!

My surgery date is June 15th. I start the fast June 1st. Nervous but excited to start this next chapter of my life!

We are so close! I can't wait. We should keep in touch and keep each other posted on our progress! It's great to have cheer leaders that know and feel what you're going through! I'm following you on here. Wow that sounds like I'm a freakin stalker! LOL! It will let me know when you post. Take care and prayers and good luck to you!

The middle is my starting weight, the sides are the current me.
I am down 74 pounds so far!
I am starting my workouts this weekend because I honestly haven't been! I still eat properly so I am still losing but of course I would lose more of I worked out.
So I'm getting up off my butt and doing so!
Wish me luck!

Hey y'all! I'm in Copperas Cove, Texas. I'm not having the sleeve, but I'm having the RNY. My surgery date is June 21. I'd love to have people to chat with about our WLS lives in Texas!

Mine is scheduled for June 26! Good luck and good health to you too!

I can't believe it's less than one month away. 😊

There's a lot to unpack in this post.
First, let's talk about your screen name, "hatemyreflection". That jumped out at me because I used to feel the same way. One of the ways I got past that was to stop telling myself that. Beating yourself up doesn't help you lose weight. It just makes you feel bad. Consider a new screen name more fitting of your new direction.
Tell the haters that the real failure would be not addressing your weight & dying before you should.
Is it possible to keep visible weight loss from people long term? No. Nor should it be. Don't hide it, Celebrate it! Show it off! I'm nearly 3 years post surgery & in all this time, I only found one person who had a negative reaction to it. Ironically, she needed WLS surgery too.
You plan to take a week to recover? That's nice. If you're a nurse practitioner, you know sometimes people recover quickly & sometimes they take longer. Be kind to yourself & take as much time as you need.
Regaining weight is unique to every person. Some people do it easily, some keep it off for longer. If there was a magic formula that worked for everyone, we'd all use it.
Careful of the term "eat normal". You're going to have a new normal. Then another new normal. Then another.
I know this is your first post & you have lots of questions. Good! Keep asking. But be prepared to leave some preconceptions behind.

Yay!! My RNY isn't until 6/21/17, but I've been thinking the same thing!! It's very exciting. Good luck to you! Take care!

Keri...I know this is hard but try and take it as a blessing they found it before things got worse for you. I'm a cardiac nurse and many of my patients I receive are ones who were having a workup for another type of surgery and discovered they had a serious cardiac issue that they had no clue they had. Basically allowing us to save their life. I know how disappointing it must be you weren't able to get your surgery but honestly this too could have saved your life. I will be praying for you. I hope you'll stay in touch and let us know how you're doing. [emoji847]

As we head into the long, lazy days of summer, why not get a little lazy yourself? It’s all in the name of weight loss, of course. Here’s why kicking back can help you lose weight, and ways to chill out for maximum benefits.


The Right Mindset for Smart Decisions
It is no surprise that you are at your best when you are rested, relaxed, and confident. That goes for almost every aspect of your life, and it holds true for weight loss. Thinking clearly lets you “weigh” the consequences of the hard-boiled egg versus the French fries for a snack so you can see the benefits of choosing the egg for weight loss outweigh the benefits of choosing the fries for a few minutes of pleasure.
Self-confidence also lets you make the right choices. When you are confident, you know that you have the power to choose. You realize that are not a victim of circumstances, and you do not need to eat something just because it is available to you. You know that you have the power to say no to the things you should not eat, and the power to find the things you should.
Better sleep, Better Choices
Sleep is not just a luxury to feel guilty about. Adequate sleep may be the missing key to your weight loss program. When you get enough sleep, you have lower levels of a hormone called ghrelin. Ghrelin makes you hungry, and less ghrelin helps keep hunger in check. Getting enough sleep also lowers carb and sugar cravings and gives you the strength to make rational decisions. Think Protein and veggies, not potato chips and Cookies.
Stress, Hormones, and Your Weight
In addition to your daily choices, there are behind-the-scenes factors that can cause weight gain when you are stressed. Hormones affect your metabolism and can cause weight gain when they are not balanced. Too much stress, for example, raises levels of a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol increases raise your hunger levels, which can lead to you overeat. It also affects your fat storage. You might gain more fat in your abdominal area, which is a health risk for diabetes, heart disease, and more.
Tips for Chilling Out
The first trick for relaxing is to get over your guilt. It is not only okay to kick back, but it is healthy. It may be surprisingly tough when you are out of practice, though. Here are some ideas for stepping back from your busy life and giving your mind a chance to recover for a healthier body.
Set aside 10 minutes for yourself every day. Meditate, take a bath, read, or do something else that is just for you. Get more sleep if you find yourself waking up tired or struggling to get through the day. Exercise most days. A quiet stroll on the beach or a hike may seem like out-of-reach dreams, but any exercise helps clear your mind. Restorative yoga, a cycling class, and home exercise DVDs all do the trick. Stretch. It loosens your muscles and gives you a chance to think through your day. Weight loss surgery success takes a lot of hard work, but there are some ways to get more bang for your buck without working harder. Take a chill pill, and you might find that the extra relaxation gives you the strength and stamina to lose more weight.

It doesn't matter if you're 400 or 150, if you don't exercise, walking a mile is intense. My personal advice from past experience if you can walk a mile while having a conversation, then pick up your speed and add another mile or two. Once you can walk five miles easily, then start running. But if you jump right into trying to run a mile, or something equally strenuous when you're out of shape, you're only going to hurt yourself. Take it easy and start with what you can do and go up from there.

I went to the pool tonight. I keep thinking, "By this time next year...." It gets me so excited. Memorial Day 2018 is going to be different than 2017.

I can't wait!

I've been involved in enough Facebook political posts to have developed very tough skin.
I have a lot of empathy but also a short fuse for stupidity. I don't see myself changing so more often than not I just won't respond to a post where someone is clearly attention seeking. People are weird. That's why I live on a farm in the country

June 14th my new birthday lol

Your husband sounds fabulous! You're a lucky lady! By the way, does he have a brother? LMAO! Just kidding! Take care!

Your husband sounds fabulous! You're a lucky lady! By the way, does he have a brother? LMAO! Just kidding! Take care!

Your husband sounds fabulous! You're a lucky lady! By the way, does he have a brother? LMAO! Just kidding! Take care!

Congratulations! You look fabulous! You're a great inspiration!

I had surgery 6 months ago. The thing I appreciated the most was my husband staying with me in the hospital for two days and nights. My program required you to get up and walk every 4 hours. I'm a heavy sleeper so my husband set an alarm, got me up and walked with me. He also helped me keep track of my Fluid intake. This was a huge help for me to stay on course. He then stayed home the first day I was home just to make sure I could manage by myself. I did fine at home and didn't need pain melds more than Tylenol, so he went back to work. My doctor didn't want me to drive for seven days so I didn't. When he would get home from work, he'd walk with me and if weather was bad, he'd take me to A store or the mall to walk so I could get out for a little bit and not go stir crazy. For me, I think the walking helped me heal and get my energy back. I was able to go back to work in two weeks and have not had any issues. I hope this helps, best of luck to you both.

I am currently 10 months post op band revision to RNY . What a journey it's been ! My expectations was to lose weight but I was told I would lose weight extremely slowly and not that much because of previously being banded . Well I hit my 100# loss and couldn't be happier !
HW 285
SW 265
CW 165
GW 140

It's great to know all went well. YAY! I can't wait to see pics in the next few months!
Heal well! You now get to take a seat on the losers bench!
Take care and keep us posted!💖

Sorry you are having such a hard time. If you need to chew something you could crush on some crushed ice. Be creative and make them with flavored water or Protein Water. That might help. Also, get some SF Popsicles. It's a hard road here, but you have all our support and caring. Keep your chin up and remember why you are doing this. Good luck and bless you. You can do this!

Thank you so much everybody for your support and encouragement. My surgery was yesterday and it went beautifully. Although the pain is worse than I expected ( I had had a C-section a few years ago I didn't think that it would be worse than that. )It is and that surprised me. But the nurses and staff are all just so great and meds are very helpful.
There are a few other changes that I wasn't expecting so quickly. Like how Water tastes like it has a hint of sugar in it now. I absolutely adore chewing ice for the first time in decades. And how I could only get through 3/4 of a sugar-free popsicle before I was full. They should be bringing me lunch soon but I still had a Jell-O left over for Breakfast so three bites of that and I was done. The sugarfree Popsicles and Jell-O were so incredibly sweet that it was almost gagging. The Jell-O was the worst only because it didn't turn into a water consistency so it coded your mouth in this syrupy flavor and texture. The one annoying thing is that They've removed my catheter as of this morning and I feel that I have to go but when I said it just hasn't come out yet. Lastly I haven't had this many hiccups come on so easily in my life and the gas pain we all hear about hasn't hurt like I expected. I have some in my belly but it's not bad and taking deep breathes completely took away any in my shoulder within 2 hours.
Everything so far has been so worth it. Not regrets yet. I was told of all keeps going this smoothly, they'll send me home tomorrow morning!


HW: 328 (02/21/17)
CW: 275 (preop 53# disowned)

Wow! I see a big difference in the pictures. Thank you for being brave enough to share this with us. Good luck with your surgery tomorrow and keep us posted! You can do it! You are beautiful! Take care!!

I'm set for 6/21/17 for my RNY.