brightfaith

I was just recommended a gentle strengthening and stretching DVD called Posture and Pain Relief that has two 30-minute workouts to help strengthen my back and posture. Just did the Posture workout for the first time yesterday and I woke up sore and stiff this morning — a sign to me that I actually did something even though the workout was gentle. Something like this could help.

Aw, thank you so much. That was just what I needed to hear tonight. One more nutrition appointment to go! I wish you all the best as well!

I’m 5 feet even. No goal weight for me, and I don’t think I will set one. I’m starting very high (362, down to 293 and still pre-op), and I think it’s highly unlikely that I would ever get to 125ish, which is around the top of the normal BMI range. I think I was last about 10 years old when I weighed that. I would be disappointed if I didn’t get under 200, though.

Count me in as a cat lover. I have one beautiful boy, Bodhi. I am loving the male cat people in this thread!

Wow, great!

Thank you both so much! I’m feeling good. I hope to have surgery in May...we’ll see how long it takes me to get approved after my last nutrition class on March 21..

I just wanted to share my happy news. For the first time in almost 20 years, I am under 300 pounds (299.2 to be exact). I am still pre-op with my fifth of six nutrition appointments next week but have lost 63 pounds so far since the surgery consult. And, even better, I have gone from 160 units of insulin per day to 20 units per day. It would be wonderful if I could drop to 0 units after surgery. Thanks to everyone here for all of your support!

I’m wondering if you have any recourse with your insurance company and whether it would consider enabling you to go out of network given your experience with the surgeon’s office? I’m not sure how likely it is, but I would try. I can’t tell which surgeon you’re with now, but I am in Maryland with University of Maryland Medical Center, and the staff there have been very helpful and responsive. I am still pre-op so cannot yet speak to the surgery experience.

During the 6-months of pre-op nutrition visits with my surgeon's office, my program requires at least 30 minutes of cardio activity 3 times per week (they recommend walking) and 30 minutes of strength training or other anaerobic activity 30 minutes 2 times per week. They also require you to track steps and encourage increasing them by 500 each week from your personal baseline. I have been doing 60 minutes of water walking 3-4 times per week, 30 minutes on a recumbent stepper twice a week, and about 40 minutes of strength training 3 times per week. My progress with improving mobility and endurance seems slow, but it's certainly better than it would have been otherwise. Walking is still very rough for me, so increasing my steps is difficult.

Good! And good luck. Please let us know how things go,

I would consider going to the emergency room.

Congratulations! My recent A1c came down to 6.0 from 11.6. You can definitely do another .3!

My goals are to continue working out in preparation for surgery--currently going to the gym 5 or 6 times per week--and then to heal and head back. I have promised myself a few personal training sessions after surgery to help me design a really good workout routine for myself. By the time I have surgery (May-ish), I hope to have worked up to walking 2 miles so that I can walk everyday while I heal--walking is still a bit rough for me right now, but it's getting easier.

For those of you who experienced depression after surgery, when did it occur? I have depression and am on a good regimen of medication and weekly therapy now, and things have been better for me these last 18-24 months than they ever have in my adult life. (I'm 43.) My mood does dip down, far down sometimes, but I am able to bounce back much quickly and keep positive habits -- eating well, exercising, etc. -- while I'm down. I'm worried about what may happen with my depression after surgery, especially assuming I will need to take my medications in a different form. I'd appreciate any insight on timing so I can prepare.

I understand. I am really uncomfortable with people commenting on my body, and it makes me feel self-conscious. I try to simply smile and casually say, "Oh, thanks," as I know people are trying to be kind and supportive. Then I shift the subject. I imagine it will die down and things will go back to normal. When I had lost about 35 pounds, I got a flurry of comments in one week from different folks, probably because I started wearing some pants I had that hadn't fit before. Since then, it happens once a week or so and always catches me off guard, but I try to just go with it.

I had to do the echocardiogram and nuclear stress test for the exact same reasons -- diabetes and history of heart disease in my family despite not having any symptoms of heart disease. I got nervous about the stress test results (my father died young of a heart attack), but all turned out normal, and the cardiologist approved me for surgery. I bet you will be fine as well. Good luck!

Thank you, Tealael! I hope so!

Thank you so much for the encouragement! It really means a lot!

I understand the fear, Chandni. The risks is not zero, but it is low. And if you decide to move forward, you will do everything you can to prepare and take care of yourself after surgery to minimize any possible complications. I also have mobility challenges due to size/back pain. I have been losing weight pre-op, and I notice improvements. It's helpful to read here people saying things like, "I'm able to walk for miles without pain" after being a few months out from surgery. May we both get our mobility back!

Good luck to you, MomtoKaitlyn! It sometimes feels slow, but we're getting there.

Thank you for the opportunity! I am pre-op and halfway through the supervised nutrition visits and as of today have lost 50 pounds (I am a high BMI-er). I wish I could tell, but I don’t look any different to myself in the mirror. I am down a couple of sizes, though. Three more nutrition visits to go!

Congratulations! 3 down, 3 to go for me. Hope all goes well with the approval process.

Happy New Year, everyone! I really appreciate all the information I’ve learned from you all over these last months. May the new year bring peace, health, and happiness to all!

Wow, so many gorgeous folks on this site!

I'm so very sorry you lost your sister and your best friend. How tragic. I can't imagine how terrible that would be. I hope that you are better able every day to take good care of yourself and treat yourself well as you work through her death and all of the challenges of the surgery/weight. I am having a good experience now with mindful eating, focusing on hunger and satiety, enjoying my food, and giving myself nourishing food (proteins, fruits, and a small amount of whole grains and foods like dark chocolate--I hate vegetables, unfortunately), and this has really helped me not to eat for non-hunger reasons. I don't know if that is a challenge for you, but if it is, focusing on mindfulness could help.