Creekimp13

Fluff, OMG...I would so dress like FRANKIE! In fact...I kinda do:) LOLOLOL. I think Frankie's earthy weirdness is beautiful. That said, Grace is definitely stunning.

Fluff, I was telling hubby yesterday...it's a damned good thing I HATE this season's clothes. I really kinda do...lot of weird looking tops and ice cream colors and really ugly Mom Jeans are coming back! OMG! By the way, I noticed those extra couple of pounds you just dropped. Go, girl, go!

Red Cabbage????!!!! LOL (I love her, btw...just struck me funny...that whole scene did)

My goal for the week: to be happy, healthy and not sweat the little crap:) Scale is moving slow....but it's moving, and there's plenty of time. The rest of my life, in fact. My diet has changed so much in the past year. Really proud of the forever changes I've made. And I feel like I can live with them forever. This is a big change from other diets...where I kept telling myself....someday when I'm at goal I can eat how I want once in a while and work hard to make up for it. I'm not doing that this time around. This time it's all about the forever diet...and I'm excited about that. Looking really forward to spring and being able to be outside more! Looking forward to mowing lawns, putting in a veggie and herb garden, and waking the pool up. Am really proud that I haven't had any soda. Am really proud that I still haven't bought the glazed donut that I know won't be the same. Am really proud that I get up and walk without even thinking about it when I'm brewing a cup of coffee, talking on the phone, commercials come on TV, when I'm playing Candy Crush..lol...and before I go to bed when I need to meet my goal. Walking is hugely integrated with my routine now...and its made a huge fitness difference. My goal for the week: to be content and not worry about this shite so much.

I had exceptional luck with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Very fast approval, bills paid quick, reasonable copays.

Yasso frozen greek yogurt pops. The fudge one is amazing. 80 calories, 6g of protein! So not even really that horrible for you. https://yasso.com/products/bars/chocolate-fudge/

Shite happens. Full speed ahead:)

When I have steak, I chop it up into teenie tiny pea sized bits...and then I chew the heck out of it. Works well for me:)

All minutia aside....you had... An egg, 1/4 cup of beans, and little bit of yogurt. Looks fine to me:)

https://www.barilla.com/en-us/product-results/pasta/range/proteinplus/?sort=alpha

To expand on your rant....(and I loved your rant by the way, spot on!) It makes me nuts to see heavy moms talk about themselves in derogatory terms....with their overweight children standing right next to them. (this happened at a group support meeting I attended recently...saw the look on daughter's face and felt so bad for her) Every time mom says....I'm so fat, I'm disgusting... What does that kiddo think mom thinks of them? Mom of course would trip all over herself and say.....Oh, but Honey, YOU'RE not fat, you're not the person I was talking about! But in reality...if the kiddo is struggling with their own weight issues...as often is the case....I've seen kids metabolize it that way....that mom's self loathing means she dislikes them for the same reasons. And I hate to be sexist....this can go the same way for overweight Dad's comments, too. It's a blind spot of a lot of people have. They're upset about the fat, and want to lash out at the fat....but they really need to be mindful of others who are struggling with the same issues....getting hit by friendly fire....particularly people who are close to them. Don't be a self loathing fat person. Be a fat-compassionate healthier person:)

A lot of people avoid carbs. Fruit has a lot of carbs. I follow the Mayo Clinic Diet...which is a slightly modified Mediterranean diet. I eat a metric feck ton of fruits and veggies, and a lot of complex low glycemic carbs. You will find people following many different diets after surgery. You'll find that different surgeon's groups have vastly different recommendations. Find a group that will work with your preferred healthy diet. There are a lot of ways up this mountain. Keto is very very popular right now. Hands down...it will give you the fastest results. Many people feel wonderful on this diet, but I don't. I prefer to eat a mostly vegetarian diet with meat consumed only occasionally..and my group is completely on board with this. What nearly all groups will require: 60g protein per day. (I get a lot of mine from plant sources..but I get 60g daily) 64ounces plus of water per day. 1200 calories or less per day after surgery. Vitamins.

My program had me drinking 5 Premier Protein shakes a day for presurg liquid diet. (we were only allowed this, and clear liquid) They're closer to $2 each here...but I didn't know about Sam's at the time. Wish I had!

I love naked anything:)

Exercise = health/youth/stamina. Took me a long time to learn this, but I'm a believer.

I've got vascular reflux...a nasty little situation where leaky vein valves can cause edema and crappy circulation in my lower legs. Probably the thing I most love about my recent weight loss....other than my stellar labs and being off almost all my meds.....is my feet and ankles. My calves used to have horrible pitted edema. Like...stick your thumb on my shin for a minute... and it would leave a dent you could put a grape in. Was pretty ghastly. I was a prime candidate for lymphedema legs, cellulitis, and lots of other problems. My legs hurt all the time. If I was on my feet too much, my ankles would be tree trunks, and my feet would swell to where the tops would dome up where you tie your shoes and be mushy edema...and my toes would kinda poke out from under the dome. It looked awful. It hurt. It made wearing shoes a pain in the arse to get a workable fit. And I thought I was stuck with it forever:) Ever since I hit about 220...my feet have been gorgeous. No more domes. You can see the little tendons working when I wiggle my toes again. My ankles look like ankles...not cankles. There's very little edema in my legs now and i couldn't be more grateful. I just ordered some sandals and got a bunch of colors of toe nail polish. My feets are coming out:) They're pretty average feet, really....but I think they're gorgeous. If you've got lower leg edema....you're gonna be so happy when this happens for you. Love, love, loving my new feets and ankles!

Agreed...C section is MUCH worse. I took as little pain meds as the nurses would allow. Told them I didn't want any, but they talked me into a couple shots. One soon after surgery, and one before going to sleep that night. Next day I was off them:) (Did take over the counter liquid Tylenol for a couple of days) C section was a bear for me. Sleeve was cake. I've had dental work that was much worse pain wise. Experiences will vary, though. I've never experienced anyone's pain but my own...so how other people handle and experience pain is very individual.

Best wishes!

For the most part, I'm picking up stuff at Goodwill and other thrifty stores....but I've decided that once a month, I'm buying something new. Something that fits perfect, even if it doesn't last long. Just one new thing that makes me feel great. Last month, I got a pair of freaking fantastic skinny jeans from Marshalls. And this Tuesday I got a very cute fitted hoodie from Kohl's. Both of these things I'll wear the crap out of in the coming months...and both make me feel smaller than I am and like i've made terrific progress. I totally get not wanting to blow a lot of money on stuff you can't wear long.... ...but don't we deserve a couple of things that fit great and make us feel super amazing and accomplished? I think we do:)

I eat brown rice, protein pasta and low glycemic breads (sourdough, pump, whole wheat) pretty regularly. I don't eat white rice. Brown rice only in small quantities. Never more than a quarter cup. Protein pasta is wonderful, but I eat about a half a cup and have to call it quits. Bread, I eat half a slice at a time. No white bread, italian, french, etc.

You are precisely average. People typically lose 18% of their net excess weight the first month. If you're a 350 pound person and lose 18% of your excess weight... you might lose 40 pounds. But you're not. You're 5'6". You have a normal BMI at 154 pounds. (I get that you'd prefer to weight a little less) 206-154 = 52 pounds of excess weight. 18% of 52 pounds is 9.3 pounds. You've lost 9 pounds....the exact average amount of weight someone your size is expected to lose. Congrats:) Should you be worried? No, you're doing perfectly. Is there anything you can do? Yes. Be patient and have realistic expectations. You're not going to lose weight like you weigh 350.

Overall....chewing on stuff and spitting it out...is a huge no-no.....food disorder wise. You're also running a risk if you accidentally swallow. Ouch. That said...I did the same thing with a piece of steak at about two weeks. LOLOLOLOL Chewed it up, savored the juice, tossed the "pulp" to my doggo. I'm back on regular steak now, and regular everything...and as of yet I don't have any weird eating disorders. So maybe this is just something people do who are dying to chew something. It's been talked about at my support group meeting in real life too:)

I wish I could be more helpful here....I feel bad. I had an extremely easy recovery. I got used to drinking very fast. I never missed getting in 64 ounces per day. I felt incredibly good, had little pain, and was dying to eat. I've had no problems at all following the reintroduction of food phases. I know this isn't helpful. I hope your difficulties resolve soon and you'll be more comfortable. Time helps. Try to be patient and keep your chin up. Best wishes.

Ask if you can do an over the counter option for your pre-surgical diet. There are many available. If they refuse, ask them to justify the expense and explain why an over the counter product works for other surgeons and why they feel their product is superior. You can say...I want you to do the surgery, but I don't want to use your product. Please find me an alternative. It's that simple. That said...my over the counter shakes cost about $140 for 14 days. Less at Sam's Club.

Kakatlady...you need an advocate to go with you and explain how your previous reasons for denial were an error. If you go in by yourself you'll hit the same wall again. Doctors will take the word of other doctors and put you on the defensive...and it will not go well from there. You need a doctor in your corner saying surgery can work for you. Please consider holding off on more appointments until you can find a mental health advocate to help you explain your circumstances and advocate for you.