Kat410

Yesterday not long after I posted in here, I went for a drive in my newish sports car I purchased this summer. I would have never been able to fit comfortably in that car before surgery.
I have been lusting after a luxury sports coupe for years and I finally got one this summer.
When I am driving that car, getting in and out I NEVER feel fat. I small and sexy like my car. I LOVE that car and I have so much fun with it. When I am in it, it is a constant reminder of how far I have come.
I was thinking about what I posted in this thread while I was driving and I realized mostly in my day to day life I don't really think about my weight or how I feel about my weight. I just enjoy my life. I am having a ton of fun with my new body by focusing on what it can do, and not what it looks or feels like. That is the only thing that got me over my body image issues last year.

If you're quick to heal and rebound (like I am), you will probably be fine physically, but you will need to plan your meals. You will most likely be on liquids (maybe pureed at that time depending on your plan) which can be challenging in certain environments. If you will be staying in a home - no problem, if you are staying in a hotel you'll need to think through how to manage your nutrition.
Also, most people find that while they are physically fine, there are repercussions that they are dealing with (less stamina as your body adjusts to a longer term calorie deficit), soreness, mental and emotional fatigue, irritability, etc.)
Also you may want to consider how "food centric" your vacation will be. Some things (and some people) are heavily oriented around food/eating. It really supported me in the first 6 weeks not to be around what I considered food oriented activities. While on liquids I just MISSED EATING. I missed the taste of food, I missed chewing, I just missed it.
That did pass after the first two months, but I also had very little of those kinds of activities in my environment and that really worked for me and let me keep my mind focused on other things.

I did my surgery in Cancun with Dr. Hector Perez. The surgery was coordinated through Ready4Achange.< br />
A couple of things - I chose Cancun because I live in NYC and the flight/travel was just a lot easier and I wanted to ensure I had an easy trip home. I paid a deposit through the coordinator. The full payment was due at check in in the clinic, but I chose to pay in advance.

Also, I did all the bloodwork/screening with my local PCP before travel to ensure there were no surprises (and I did it before starting my 10 day liquid diet). I then did follow up blood work 6 weeks after surgery - mostly to check my A1C and Vitamin D which were the only 2 issues that showed up pre-surgery.
The coordination provided by Ready4aChange was mostly seamless, however the quality of hotels was just terrible. My dad came with me and (god bless him) he ended up getting us rooms at the Ritz Carlton instead. I stayed an extra day, which was nice just to rest and nap (I did a lot of napping - my energy was very low.)
The clinic in Cancun was clean, the staff were friendly, Dr Perez was great and the Anesthesiologist was also great. The nurses and support staff did not speak much English and we had a good time with my horrible Spanglish. There was a coordinator on site for English speaking patients in case I needed anything, but I was able to communicate my most important needs ("Dolor!")
I stayed overnight after the surgery and was discharged the next day. Surgery went well, they also cleaned up some scar tissue from an open surgery to remove my gallbladder that was done 3 years prior.
There are two things I did that I was glad about - coordinating this with my local PCP who was very supportive and bringing someone with me. While I didn't NEED to bring someone with me, it gave me tremendous peace of mind to know my dad was there if anything went wrong.
I would recommend Mexico to anyone for whom insurance doesn't cover this. The total cost of my surgery (not including airfare and the Ritz upgrade) was $5400.

One other thing I haven't given up yet - I have gotten rid of MOST processed foods from my diet. However, AMERICAN cheese slices are still in.

This weekend I had grass fed, organic 90% lean ground beef. I weighed it into 3 oz patties and made 5 for the week. The quality of the beef was fantastic - and what did I top it with? Half a slice of American cheese :-)
But it's really amazing to think about what I have given up - bread (MAJOR TRIGGER FOOD), rice, Pasta, sweets, chips - no problem.
I don't have an issue with it - I just think it's kind of comical what has stayed in the diet.

If you're quick to heal and rebound (like I am), you will probably be fine physically, but you will need to plan your meals. You will most likely be on liquids (maybe pureed at that time depending on your plan) which can be challenging in certain environments. If you will be staying in a home - no problem, if you are staying in a hotel you'll need to think through how to manage your nutrition.
Also, most people find that while they are physically fine, there are repercussions that they are dealing with (less stamina as your body adjusts to a longer term calorie deficit), soreness, mental and emotional fatigue, irritability, etc.)
Also you may want to consider how "food centric" your vacation will be. Some things (and some people) are heavily oriented around food/eating. It really supported me in the first 6 weeks not to be around what I considered food oriented activities. While on liquids I just MISSED EATING. I missed the taste of food, I missed chewing, I just missed it.
That did pass after the first two months, but I also had very little of those kinds of activities in my environment and that really worked for me and let me keep my mind focused on other things.

I have an intense desk job in a fast paced environment with 15 direct reports who manage large teams.

I have to be mentally on point 60-70 hours a week. I took 6 days off and was fine physically but mentally and emotionally I did not have the same stamina.

I had to deal with irritability (I am usually very even keeled), mental fog and fatigue and a whole lot of emotional stuff that is not normal to me.

I think the rapid weight loss temporarily changed my hormones and my body took time to adjust to the calorie deficit.

On the flip side there were tremendous benefits to not being home and bored with nothing to do but think about what I couldn't eat.

I did tell my boss and some of my senior direct reports. I am glad that I did so when the going got tough I had the room to be transparent about what I was dealing with and they were very supportive.

Even if people haven't gone through this I find that there is a tremendous appreciation for what it takes to deal with a lot of change in a short period of time.

Others on this board have shared about the difference it made for them to take an extended period of time off to handle their headspace.

As with anything, have it work for you.

You look gorgeous!!!! Congratulations on the hard work. It sure has paid off

I did end up almost finishing one of them! For context, this is one large egg puréed and split between two mini muffin cups! And it tasted great, went down easy, stayed down. Might have the other one for breakfast tomorrow!

If you're quick to heal and rebound (like I am), you will probably be fine physically, but you will need to plan your meals. You will most likely be on liquids (maybe pureed at that time depending on your plan) which can be challenging in certain environments. If you will be staying in a home - no problem, if you are staying in a hotel you'll need to think through how to manage your nutrition.
Also, most people find that while they are physically fine, there are repercussions that they are dealing with (less stamina as your body adjusts to a longer term calorie deficit), soreness, mental and emotional fatigue, irritability, etc.)
Also you may want to consider how "food centric" your vacation will be. Some things (and some people) are heavily oriented around food/eating. It really supported me in the first 6 weeks not to be around what I considered food oriented activities. While on liquids I just MISSED EATING. I missed the taste of food, I missed chewing, I just missed it.
That did pass after the first two months, but I also had very little of those kinds of activities in my environment and that really worked for me and let me keep my mind focused on other things.

If you're quick to heal and rebound (like I am), you will probably be fine physically, but you will need to plan your meals. You will most likely be on liquids (maybe pureed at that time depending on your plan) which can be challenging in certain environments. If you will be staying in a home - no problem, if you are staying in a hotel you'll need to think through how to manage your nutrition.
Also, most people find that while they are physically fine, there are repercussions that they are dealing with (less stamina as your body adjusts to a longer term calorie deficit), soreness, mental and emotional fatigue, irritability, etc.)
Also you may want to consider how "food centric" your vacation will be. Some things (and some people) are heavily oriented around food/eating. It really supported me in the first 6 weeks not to be around what I considered food oriented activities. While on liquids I just MISSED EATING. I missed the taste of food, I missed chewing, I just missed it.
That did pass after the first two months, but I also had very little of those kinds of activities in my environment and that really worked for me and let me keep my mind focused on other things.

I am not sure what you mean by "big meal." My preop diet was 10 days with 2 shakes and one meal of veg and lean Protein.

I had a couple of slips and the last 3 days prior went full liquid. I lost 16 lbs in those two days and the liver was in good shape.

Are you loosing weight?

I did carb-sin today, but have been trying to be very good on vacation. It's really hard eating out! I made sure the carbs were good ones. However, that's not the revelation.
Saw myself in a shop window today and thought "ugh - look like fat tourist". But then I realized - the next time I go on vacation, I won't look like fat tourist! I even bought a hoodie in the shop, knowing that as I shrink, I would be able to wear it for a short time. Looking forward to that next vacation, with more energy and less restrictions due to size!

buyer's regret. interesting...
i self paid for my surgery. $23,000ish. which is a truly unfair price that they charged me...
... because i would have paid $100,000.

I just found the little packets of high Protein Peanut Butter. Made with whey protein so each packet has 12g protein. Perfect for the car, even on a hot day. There is a tiny bit of honey in there but it's low carb. Peanut butter is allowed by my nutritionist.
To answer the original question, I've been eating 1-2 oz of granola lately with an oz of milk on it. I made the granola myself from oats and seeds. There is only one fruit, dried cherries, and not very many, but it is so good. I think it helps against constipatin because low carb doesn't give enough Fiber.

Last night after work I went home and did what has now become a ritual.

I made a cracker with chunky Peanut Butter and strawberry preserves.

I know I am not supposed to do this - but this one thing feels like something I am going to hold on to, to keep, like a little prize for all the other things I didn't do earlier in the day and the other things I did do that I am supposed to do.

Now, there have been some changes - instead of a full sandwich I use a very low carb wafer. And I measure the peanut butter out at 20 grams and I now splurge on this very high preserves that are made from these very tiny strawberries in the pacific northwest, etc.

But it got me wondering - what are others holding on to and why do we hold on to it? Truthfully I have the same physical satiety if I ate some carrots or had a Protein Shake or a couple slices of chicken. And I have to admit, I am torn over this PBJ cracker!

I have an intense desk job in a fast paced environment with 15 direct reports who manage large teams.

I have to be mentally on point 60-70 hours a week. I took 6 days off and was fine physically but mentally and emotionally I did not have the same stamina.

I had to deal with irritability (I am usually very even keeled), mental fog and fatigue and a whole lot of emotional stuff that is not normal to me.

I think the rapid weight loss temporarily changed my hormones and my body took time to adjust to the calorie deficit.

On the flip side there were tremendous benefits to not being home and bored with nothing to do but think about what I couldn't eat.

I did tell my boss and some of my senior direct reports. I am glad that I did so when the going got tough I had the room to be transparent about what I was dealing with and they were very supportive.

Even if people haven't gone through this I find that there is a tremendous appreciation for what it takes to deal with a lot of change in a short period of time.

Others on this board have shared about the difference it made for them to take an extended period of time off to handle their headspace.

As with anything, have it work for you.

No problems here with spicy food! Was adding massive quantities of ginger, garlic and sriacha to my Bone Broth.< br />
I think if you're someone who had digestive issues or issues with spicy food prior to surgery, that's a different matter. But if you were a lover of casein, garlic and ginger - you will most likely be ok.

Like all things post-surgery, start slow with what you are introducing to your diet and see how it goes.
I find, however, that I don't crave spicy food as much as I used to and food tastes different (more flavorful).

I also had a very salty palate pre-surgery and now use little to no salt.

I have an intense desk job in a fast paced environment with 15 direct reports who manage large teams.

I have to be mentally on point 60-70 hours a week. I took 6 days off and was fine physically but mentally and emotionally I did not have the same stamina.

I had to deal with irritability (I am usually very even keeled), mental fog and fatigue and a whole lot of emotional stuff that is not normal to me.

I think the rapid weight loss temporarily changed my hormones and my body took time to adjust to the calorie deficit.

On the flip side there were tremendous benefits to not being home and bored with nothing to do but think about what I couldn't eat.

I did tell my boss and some of my senior direct reports. I am glad that I did so when the going got tough I had the room to be transparent about what I was dealing with and they were very supportive.

Even if people haven't gone through this I find that there is a tremendous appreciation for what it takes to deal with a lot of change in a short period of time.

Others on this board have shared about the difference it made for them to take an extended period of time off to handle their headspace.

As with anything, have it work for you.

I have 1/4 C mint chocolate chip Breyers ice cream. Sometimes I have it every day, sometimes I don't have it for weeks on end. That's 75 cal and 9 g of sugar. Before the surgery I would eat a whole pint of haagen das Peanut Butter chocolate ice cream. But I also added in extra exercise every time if you have it. I already exercise at least an hour and a half a day, if I have the ice cream I add an extra 15 to 20.

When I had my surgery, I was great. No pain. No nausea. Able to hold food down, able to walk and move around without any problem. I haven't noticed any change in my sense of taste, and I can still eat almost anything without digestion issues.

I asked my doctor about this and was told "everyone's body is different. You got lucky."

I say the same to you. Everyone is different. You got lucky and haven't hit any road blocks yet. That's FANTASTIC! You're probably the exception, but everyone works differently, so be happy that things are going so smoothly. And let us be incredibly jealous of you.

Yes, I think those of us who have dealt with obesity for most of our lives know exactly where you are coming from.
I became obese in my late 20s, I was a little chubby in my teens, but also very athletic and played sports and when I look at pictures (while my family told me I needed to lose weight) truthfully I don't see someone who needed to loose weight (shrug). But the recurring "helpful feedback" probably didn't help because I started to identify as fat when looking back, I don't think I was (weight was on the higher end of the BMI range for normal weight range was at full height in high school and wore a size 10 or 12). But I was being related to as fat, I WAS bigger than a lot of other girls and really didn't know any better.
But throughout my 30s and 40s I steadily gained until I ballooned up to 335 lbs. Inactivity was probably the main culprit and then after that turning to food for enjoyment. I started to become more socially withdrawn and less comfortable in my body once I crossed 300 lbs. At 280, I was a confident, dating, plus size woman who could do everything I wanted to do, including kayaking, hiking, dating, etc.
The real kicker for me was at my last physical - my A1C was at 7.0 and I was prescribed metformin. While I knew intellectually that diabetes was an INEVITABLE outcome of my weight, it was a real wake up call to be prescribed metformin at 50 years old.
In addition, moving was starting to become difficult and uncomfortable. Things were starting to hurt. My Achilles on my right heel always hurt. I would get back spasms, neck issues, stiffness. I could not cross my legs when I sat down. I stopped wearing heels because I didn't feel "stable" in them. My feet would hurt after a lot of walking. Climbing stairs became difficult (and this is required if you live in NYC as I do to deal with the subway system - in many stations it's three flights up to street level).
Ultimately what tipped the scales towards surgery was my health.
But you are correct - this is not just a physical journey, this is been a mental/emotional journey has well and this part of it is JUST BEGINNING.
I am reinventing myself.
I am reinventing my life - I am becoming strong, happy and vital.
I am reclaiming my health.
For me this has taken courage, honesty and compassion. And it is just unfolding.
Best wishes to you on your journey and what is next for you.

I thought so too!
I can see chopping it up with some veggies and making a Chinese type stir fry for sure. I need to go shopping at the Whole Foods store. I wish we has a Trader Joe's near by. I am going to try some tofu also. That web site had some recipes using it that looked delicious.

I am not sure what you mean by "big meal." My preop diet was 10 days with 2 shakes and one meal of veg and lean Protein.

I had a couple of slips and the last 3 days prior went full liquid. I lost 16 lbs in those two days and the liver was in good shape.

Are you loosing weight?

It is incredibly freeing to not feel the need to indulge in food. I have been so lucky to not expire either any cravings so far post op. I love being able to go to an ice cream shop with my family and just socialize with them while they have their treat. I know never feeling hungry will eventually fade, but I am encouraged be the healthy habits I have established to date.
HW-292 • SW (6/29/17) 256.6 • CW 230.2

So I've been MIA for a couple weeks due to vacation and staying away from the internet.... I'm an aspiring novelist, so I REEEEAALLLY have to try to focus on my writing if I ever want to "get there." But I just read posts from the past couple of weeks and have seen the ups and downs... I had a couple myself. But as of today I'm 169.6.... within 10 lbs of my goal weight! I'm pretty excited about that. I had to give up 80% of the carbs I was eating, and I've been careful with sodium.... upped the Protein, and 'as for now' it seems to be working. I'm happy, but always scared.
This is the first 4th of July in YEARS that I haven't been embarrassed to take a picture with my family. So I'm sharing.