JanineVSG

Wow, that's so sad! I can relate to that... my mom took me to Weight Watchers from a very young age (at least 8 years old). She would constantly complain about how fat she was, even though she was probably only 175 at her heaviest. It made me feel so bad when she would talk about how fat she was, when my highest weight was 456 lbs. My dad is similar -- he's overweight but he'd just tell me to stop eating, as if it were that easy! You're right. It's a blind spot. But as a lot of others have said, each journey is intensely personal. But people should be aware of that and sympathetic to others. "Fat-compassionate" is a GREAT way to put it!! We've all had the struggles, we shouldn't judge others for their starting weights. There's a great poem about how your parents can influence your life. Look up "This Be The Verse" by Phillip Larkin

Whoops, double post!!

You're right. Perspective is everything. You've given me a lot to think about.

It's weird, because we with higher BMIs do have a big loss (though mine's not so big because I lost 45 lbs preop) but it feels like a drop in the bucket sometimes I didn't really have people noticing until I dropped 50 lbs, either. Thank you for the reply.

"Vanity pounds" is a great word for it. It's crazy because someone with a low BMI would look drastically different with a 20 lb lost. But I can relate to you. Everytime I see how much more I have to go on my surgery ticker my heart feels a little heavy! We all have to work hard on our journey. I'm not trying to discount that at all. I have to try harder not to make kneejerk judgments on people with lower BMI. No one wants to be a bitter ex fatty lol! Thank you for the reply.

Great replies everybody. I want to be clear that I don't think that people who started with a low BMI have it easier! What I'm saying is... people need to be cognizant that there a lot of people who start off with really high BMIs. So when you talk about how fat and disgusting you were at a certain weight, you might be talking about someone's goal weight. Does that make sense?? It can just be hard, PERSONALLY, to see someone talking about how disgusting it was to be, say, 50 lbs overweight when you have over 200 lbs to lose. You know?

This is just a little rant about my number one pet peeve.... People mentioning their starting weight and talking about how disgusting it is really bugs me. Like, when people are saying they started at 250 lbs and putting a shocked or vomiting emoji (??) or whatever. I get that it was a lot of weight to you. But a lot of us have starting weights of 400+ lbs. It would be a DREAM for me to weigh 250 lbs!! I haven't weighed that much since I was probably 17! I know that this has like absolutely no real effect on our journeys, but it was bugging me. And what's a rant and raves forum for if not posts like this one? Be nice to yourselves!! You had feelings at your SW too! Don't put yourselves down! Let's keep working hard!

Today, I got a cobb salad with no pecans. I didn't ask for for them to not include croutons... but it didn't come with any croutons. And I was legitimately sad that it did not have any croutons. I just wanted one! Just wanted to nibble on ONE. Your post is very timely today... thanks for sharing. We can do this

I've started exercising since I'm 8 weeks out. Trying to do an hour 5x a week. So far, so good! Doing weights 2x a week.

How are all my January 2018 buds doing today?

Hey everybody, I was sleeved on January 15, 2018. Feeling a little depressed this week. I know I should be proud of my loss so far, I just worry that I'm going to fail like I always have. Even worse is that my therapist was telling me last week I didn't look depressed anymore - I told him it was probably just the makeup I was wearing, lol. But honestly, my mood just goes up and down... and the downs are HARD. Sigh. It's really hard to deal with your emotions when you can't just cover them up with food, you know? HW 456 SW 417 CW 388

Thanks guys!! I've followed everyone who's posted so far

Thank you so much! We connected on instagram and you seem pretty cool; can't wait to see you succeed on your journey

Congratulations! Best of luck on your journey!

Anxiety is totally normal. I felt very strange for the first few weeks out of surgery. (warning, a little graphic) I kept having this really strange reoccurring thought/daydream of being able to just pull out my stomach and throw it away. Those weird feelings pretty much subsided by 4 weeks out, though. (I did make a strange animation of the thoughts that kept coming back, but it's too weird to share anywhere lol)

I picked up a box of the Cookies and Cream flavor, since my husband loves the chocolate flavor and I thought he might like the new one. He liked it, but we both said it was super sweet (way too sweet for me - I've never had a particularly needy sweet tooth or anything). Looks like a lot of y'all like the peaches flavor, so I'm definitely going to try that next time!! For right now, I just alternate between vanilla and chocolate. The strawberry was too sweet for me, too...

Hi guys! I recently started an instagram to track my VSG progress. I'd love to follow some of you guys. You can find me at gobefatoutside. Post your instagram links so we can connect!! It's so inspiring to see everyone's progress I love reading the posts here, but I also LOVE visual motivation. Thanks!!!

I promise you that it goes by much quicker than you might think. If you have a smartphone, download an app or widget to help you count down the days . . . it's going to be tough, but the reward is SO worth it. And I say this only 6 weeks post op, like you spotted! You're going to be amazing!

I agree with Sandra - 400 calories is super low. My nutritionist said the #1 reason for stalls is not getting enough calories. Try upping your calories to 800 (high protein of course) and see if the scale begins to move again.

My mom was similar, in some ways . . . she supported me having WLS, but she kept saying things like, "Well, of course I'd prefer it if you could lose it on your own." I always put it this way... "What's the most weight you've lost? Okay, how long did it take for you to lose it? Did you keep it off? Chances are, I have at least 2-3 times more weight to lose... and I can't afford to not keep it off." If she waffles on it again, use a talking point like that. Make sure to highlight the absolute plethora of information that shows that WLS is the ONLY choice for long-term weight loss. Good luck on your journey!

I completely understand what you mean. I actually tried on a pair of pants I'd manage to squeeze into over 40 lbs ago, but they didn't fit. I had thought, surely if I'd been able to wear them before, they must actually look good now. Reader, they did not look good. Not at all. I really am stubborn and am just keeping on the same stuff I've worn for weeks, even as it gets baggier and baggier. I don't want to be disappointed by trying on tighter stuff prematurely. So I totally can relate!

There are a lot of good replies here. Obviously, you need some comfy loungewear and some supportive slippers (my sister bought me Tempur-Pedic slippers and they were a Godsend)... however, the NUMBER ONE thing I loved the most during my recovery, and the one thing I used the longest, was a compression pillow. I kept that little sucker tucked into my pants for at least a week and a half post-op. It helps you get up and out of bed (you brace against it to help your tummy) and it just makes everything so much more comfortable. Seriously -- get one! Mine was less than $15.

My nutritionist told me that spouses can often sabotage WLS patients unconsciously. Essentially, they see that their spouse is losing weight, and in a way, it's like they're losing the person they love. It can really take toll mentally. I think a lot of WLS patients realize they were unhappy but had settled because of their size. If you and your spouse are good at communicating, I don't think it will be a big issue. My husband is so supportive. He's my number one fan. He and I have been together since we were 17, and we're 26 now

Hi guys, I'm only a week post op but I'm down 15 lbs since surgery and 55+ overall. I told my nutritionist I was kind of struggling emotionally because I don't really feel proud of how much I've lost. I know 55 lbs is a lot to some people but I have SO MUCH more to go and I feel just kind of numb about it. She told me that I needed to put my scale away and that I should only be weighing myself only every 2-3 weeks. Really?? 2-3 weeks? I think she has a point, though -- I've been recovering in the guest room, which is where the scale is, and I end up weighing myself like 3+ a day . . . Anyone else struggle with this?

I already have a podcast, so I think I could do it! I'm thinking I might make it a season in a personal podcast project I was interested in starting.