AEdoesRnY

Thanks! I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a way to officially join it!

Dumb question that was maybe already asked - is there a way to "join" the community forum or do we just bookmark it to see it on MFP? Thanks!

My coworker who was my real-life WLS inspiration had bypass when she was 21 or 22. I'm 31 and had mine a few months ago. I think there are plenty of people who get bypass in their 20s!

What are your thoughts on ryvita vs Wasa crackers? Curious if you’ve tried wasa and prefer one over the other!

I just added @greentealael and am hoping to join the challenge even though I'm late to the party! Hoping to help myself get back to tracking because I've been less disciplined lately both in terms of food and hydration. Thanks for setting this up, I've never done a MFP challenge before!

Here's the email I sent with the subject line "Ground Rules (so far)". I sent this email to my sisters and parents about a week and a half after surgery. My family lives far away (I'm in MN, they're in NYC, New Orleans, and Oakland) which is part of why I approached it in email. So these will, I’m sure, be ever evolving, but just a few quick things that have occurred to me so far: - NO commenting on my weight loss unless I initiate. I reserve the right to be prickly about it - it’s a complex thing and if you haven’t read the Roxane gay article yet then do and I’ll keep bringing it up over and over. I will at times send you things like “wow look at the difference” or “wow this fits”. You may respond to these in a celebratory whatever way, but under no circumstances are you to initiate such discussions. - NO “I’m so proud of you” or “you’re a hero” or “you deserve it” or “just think about how amazing it’ll be to be ____”. It annoys me and mildly pisses me off for a variety of reasons ranging from highly legitimate to petty but still there. - NO “oh I’ll have liquids only in solidarity” or asking for dieting advice. I’d love to talk about cooking and food and nice meals or whatever, but my thing is bound to be enormously different from what you are doing/needing/trying and I don’t want to be treated like guru or whatever, don’t want to have to advise. Again, I may initiate this but you don’t get to. Sorry! -FEEL FREE to ask me how I’m doing generally and check in and stuff, just keep it general and not too pointedly about weight loss. That’s what I’ve got for now. THX!

I have a very similar relationship with my parents regarding my weight. There are home videos of me as a smiley 3 year old in which they make that smile disappear real fast by making comments about how big my tummy is and how it's something I have to work on...and it only continued on a similar track from there. I accidentally told my parents about my surgery a few months before hand because I wrote a text to my husband saying "I kind of want to tell my mom about surgery" and somehow mistakenly sent it to my dad instead. Once they knew/as part of the phone call follow up to the text, I set VERY clear limits on any discussions about the surgery. I told them that I was sharing this information with them now but it was NOT an invitation to discuss it, and that they were under NO CIRCUMSTANCES to initiate any talk about it/reference to it/etc. etc. I'm amazed by how well they actually were able to stick to those parameters. My mom actually ended up coming out to be with me/take care of things after surgery so my husband didn't need to take time off work to be home to help me out. After surgery I sent them and my sisters guidelines again. I can find the email and share it here if that'd be useful. The gist of it is that no one talks about my appearance/weight loss/surgery/etc. unless I bring it up first. They needed some reminders every once in a while but it's helped me a lot to set those groundrules with them. I needed that because the history with my parents and sisters is SO fraught when it comes to weight. Don't tell them because you feel guilty, just tell them because you want them to know. If you don't think they can stick to ground rules you set then it might make more sense not to share with them. Best of luck in making your decision about what to share/when/with whom!

Thanks for all of your responses! I look forward to trying out all of these new places, but I know it's going to take a pretty major mindset shift to change how I approach shopping but hopefully it'll be fun and exciting along the way (and not include me spending WAY too much money...).

I definitely had this the first month or so, especially when I was in liquid diet stage/pureed stage and I was consuming protein shakes like premier and basically nothing else except water. My bad breath issue has DEFINITELY become less of a thing. Not sure if it's just my body getting used to things or that I am eating real foods, but it was temporary for me!

The chocolate is the only flavor I like, I can handle vanilla or caramel if I HAVE to but they're way too sweet in an artificial tasting way, so I'd rather avoid them if I can. Costco doesn't ever have strawberry or any of the other flavors, so I just stick with the chocolate which I do like a lot. Haven't noticed any difference with my last case though!

That is SO EXCITING!!! Congrats!! What were your training plans/training routines? Running/jogging and completing races is one of my major goals for post-surgery. I'm three months out now and trying to get myself back into the gym but having some trouble building a routine. I also have a treadmill at home so that should mean NO EXCUSES but since I haven't really formulated a plan yet it's easy for me to just skate by! I'd love to sign up for a race to be looking forward to and training for...any advice you have on plans that you followed would be much appreciated! CONGRATS AGAIN! 36 minutes is AMAZING!!

So I just got home from Old Navy where I just bought three fitted dresses in size XL (OMG YAY). As I've been starting to hit the low end of my usual places - Lane Bryant, Torrid, etc. - I'm realizing I have NO IDEA where people buy clothes. I mean seriously, besides Target and Old Navy, where do people get clothes from?!?!? I have shopped at plus size stores since I was in 8th/9th grade (i.e. for just about 20 years/my whole adult life) so I really am at a loss as to where to go to find clothes once I'm no longer in the plus section... Did anyone else have this existential crisis when they hit this stage? Where do you even go to get clothes now?!?!?!? HAAAALLLPPPP!

Congratulations!!!!!!

Okay I guess it is showing up in my notifications now too, sorry!

Not in your notifications, but on phone if you click on the hearts/reactions it’ll show you who reacted. On the computer I thought it just said who reacted at the bottom of the post, but I’m not sure!

I'm just here to whine/vent...my hair is already thinning out CONSIDERABLY and I'm only 8 weeks out. I'm getting all my protein and taking all my multis/calcium/etc. per the instruction of my NUT/Surgery team. I know many people go through it and hopefully it'll be temporary BUT it's still bothering me and stressing me out! If it's already starting now, what's it going to be when I hit month 3-4 when it usually starts being an issue for people??!?! Trying to be optimistic but just having lots of anxiety about it, oh well! I'm going to add Biotin to my routine, not because it can prevent any hair loss but because it'll make me feel like I'm at least doing SOMETHING about it. BLERRGGGG. Rant/whine/vent over!

Here's a screenshot of my "tally" app. The free version I think you can set up to 3-4 items to track, and then for like $0.99 you can unlock unlimited. You set the goals/reminder notifications/colors/order/etc, and it tracks your stats for you of when you remembered & didn't. I started using this months pre-op and have been using it since!

I use and LOVE "tally" to keep track of my water, protein, and vitamins! They have an app for the apple watch too which makes it super easy to track!

Aww, thanks! I’m a worrier by nature and definitely above what my dietician said I’d be “able” to eat, but generally I’m feeling really positive! 38 lbs includes my two week preop, but I’m still thrilled with 38 lbs in two months!

I’ve found that popcorn is a MAJOR slider food for me, so I have to be very very careful with it. I can eat a ridiculous amount of it before I feel any restriction if I end up feeling any at all.

I’m considering leaving behind my long standing Fitbit tradition in favor of an Apple Watch. I tried the Fitbit versa but had to return it after it kept glitching and malfunctioning, even after I got a replacement. I’ve been wanting an Apple Watch for a long time and am leaning toward going for it, and I’d love to hear from others who have one! Do you have an Apple Watch? Are you glad you purchased it? What are your favorite features/functions? Are there ways it helps you with your WLS process? Is it worth springing for the GPS+cellular option, or is the more basic one enough?

I tried the quest pizza (at target) and it’s really good!

One thing that did help with the eating/fullness thing is being much more strict about my water - something my dietician recommended at my last appointment. I have been much more careful about not drinking at all for at least 20 minutes before I eat and at least 30 minutes after I eat. That's helped me feel more full!

My dietician told me all I would "be able to eat" would be 1/4 cup and at 3 months out I will only be able to eat 1/2 cup at most. That has not been my experience, and my dietician was surprised at my 5 week appointment that I was able to eat much more than that. I feel like so much of the literature focuses on "eat until you feel that fullness" but never addresses what to do if you eat your 1/4 cup or 1/2 cup and still feel hungry or don't feel any restriction/fullness/etc. It's been stressful and a frustration. I'm annoyed that I don't have the restriction I thought I was going to have. I understand that some things are going to be more slider food than others, but it seems like I'm able to have much more than I was led to expect to be able to have at this stage, and that I'm feeling actual, legitimate hunger after eating only 1/4 cup or 1/2 cup (not just head hunger) which surprises me as well. I know that surgery doesn't make hunger go away, but I thought it would make it so less food would curb hunger/be filling. Obviously I'm still eating less than I was before, but I've had a similar experience as OP and while trying to still eat closer to 1/2 cup it's really hard to do that when there's no feeling of restriction/fullness.

How have the first few weeks been going for others? I’ve been working on trying to find my rhythm of what I’m eating when. I did better with planning ahead the first week than I did this last week, so I’m hoping to recommit on that front with some meal prep tomorrow! My office mates always have SO much candy around “to share” and there have been so much free food in the staff room that I’ve definitely caved at least a few times. I’m hoping that doing more advance planning with what I’m bringing will make it easier for me to avoid all the bagels/candy/pizza/etc. that’s been around... Energy-wise I can’t tell whether the afternoons have felt more sluggish because of surgery or just because I’m not doing caffeine anymore. I’m hoping it’s just about re-adjusting to school day and that I’ll regain my stamina soon!!