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From personal and similar experience, I would tell you to love the new you and closely protect the muscles you still have. They are a really heavy part of you and your body loves to eat them up in famine unless you prove you need them. It takes huge strong muscles to support 400+ pounds and rapid weight loss is largely rapid muscle loss. Less muscles eventually leads to less calorie burning and you will inevitably slow down. My first huge stall hit me at exactly 317 pounds. A very precise number I know! My body clung to this zone for nearly a month and a half. The scale is moving again. I didn't have the change my eating at all. It just happens. I feel like I sound like a downer here, but I'm learning this the hard way and maybe you don't have too. I focused so much on building my endurance and doing cardio to speed the weight loss, but really didn't care or do much about strength building or maintaining. If I could go back in time I would be on a weight bench more than on the elliptical.

It's been two years since I was able to get out on my kayak and today my husband and I got back in the water. I love my kayak and it felt so good to paddle again. We did seven miles and this picture is taken from Hollywood Beach not far from my home. (Not in Hollywood!) The sea lions were everywhere and we even had some pups following us around. That's the break water behind me at the mouth of the Channel Islands Harbor. It's good to feel good again! And yes!!! It's a pink kayak! I love it! My paddle is pink too, but the picture got landscaped and cut off when I attached it. Bummer!

Don't panic about the food part! Just drink. Warm drinks helped me. Herbal tea and so forth. Your tummy is very swollen but that will improve. Your hand should have a drink in it at all times taking a little taste every min or two. It's the only thing you have to worry about. Chin up! You got this. Call your doctor if you feel really bad though. You should be having a post op appointment very quick right?

I am six months post op. I've seen my weight loss begin to slow and it scares me. I'm eating way better than I ever have and the surgery has helped me to do this so much, but I worry about how it will be next year and the year after and so forth. At the moment, my mind and habits feel solid and I want to believe I will be able to do this, that this is the new normal for me, but what if it isn't? Ahhhhhh!!!! I want to hug you and tell you it will all be okay...for you...for me...for all of us, but I can't say that with absolute certainty. I watched my father fail with his bypass surgery and other friends have failed as well, or so it seems. I can tell you this though...my father would have ate himself to death and I think I would have too. He's a big guy, but he's still with the world today and 74 years old. He didn't get exactly what he wanted from surgery, but that is still success in my book. Maybe I won't be my dream self, but I don't think I'm going to expand beyond 475 lbs ever again. My dream is to get to 200 lbs. and consider some skin removal surgeries at that point. I might not ever get the exact self that I want, but I'd like to adopt a different look on eating. Even at my current weight which is still very high...I can tell you I don't hurt anymore and that thought alone makes me cry a little with joy. My kindred friend: you may not have your dreams full filled exactly to order, but there is still success to celebrate. If you could love yourself for that, forgive yourself for slipping up, you can move forward in the direction of your choosing. It is so scary, humiliating, frustrating, demoralizing to not be the YOU that you ordered up in your mind when you signed up to butcher your body, but it's never ever too late. You have options and choices. HUGS! Look for and embrace support where ever you can find it.

Eeekkk!!! Stephen King wrote a book about this and a scary movie! "Thinner!" I do like the suggestions already of adding a few nuts to your diet. It does work and not a terrible deviation from being healthy. Raw almonds. You can even experiment with soaking them first. Supposedly it makes them better for you.

The microwave and oatmeal HATE each other. I've done this too! Oats every where but in the container I put them in. I do over-night oats now. Basically you add the liquid to it the night before. I use little canning jars with lids. Next morning they are perfect! Just google recipes for over-night oats. Don't know the products from this site at all. But you can just get rolled oats and add Premier protein (vanilla) for the liquid and there yat go, protein and energy in one little cup.

You are both so sweet! It's the phrase I tell myself anytime I feel a little case of the "ickys" coming on. And darlin', my struggle is no harder than yours or anyone else. It's just different and I have a super great attitude about it all (most of the time ). It only gets better e'ery day.

I'm so proud of you! My best friend runs 5-8 miles every day and I want to run with her sooo bad. Too heavy still, but I'm pushing my endurance on an elliptical stepper right now. I hope so much I will be able to put my footies on hard ground and run some day soon.

I had my sad moment just like that the day after the surgery. It came out of no where too! I thought I was over that harsh self blame. I felt so profoundly sad and I would try to reason with myself, tell myself it was just the medications, the pain, hormones anything but what it really was--feeling bad and sad about what I let happen to myself. I watched it, lived with it, suffered it, and I didn't fix it until it was nearly too late. I couldn't do it alone and never could all the 43 years of my life. I was shy of doctors 'cause it seemed like every time I saw one for anything at all I would get that serious stare and a reminder that I was fat, very fat and "I" should do something about it. I wish just once a doctor would have said, "Let me help you!" But, I needed to advocate more strongly for myself and I never did because I was so ashamed and so lost in myself about eating. "YOU SAVED YOURSELF!" How wonderful that is! You, all on your own, decided you wanted to live and be pain free, active, excited about waking up, working, reaching out to new people and making new friends and letting go, once and for all, to your suffering and self loathing. You just need to take that one last little step where you forgive yourself and move on. Maybe you do need to seek the help of a psychologist or maybe you can wake up and see things a little different, but one way or the other, you should not suffer mentally over it for any length of time, any longer. Support groups can be very useful here too. Chin up!

I was amused to read through all of these comments. Honestly, what I really read about was a bunch of people being "normal!" A little wine at a wedding, a diet soda here and there, "a" slice of pizza, a square of cake at a party! Handful of Goldfish. You reckless beast! This is okay, right? We didn't get to be morbidly, sickly, obese behaving this way. It was whole bags of chips consumed without thought, large slices of sugary deserts, giant plates of restaurant foods consumed with ease along with endless breads and appetizers, buffets, fast food trips on a daily bases, half a pizza in one sitting (whole pizza?) Oh, the awful things we did to ourselves that brought us to this point in our lives. I've spent so much of my life feeling bad about my choices I don't want to anymore. I actually feel good about myself when I walk away feeling just fine about having a taste of a treat my husband is having. Once a week we light a fire outside in the pit and we make a s'more. I enjoy the whole process, get it all ready and take 1 maybe 2 small bites and hand the rest of it off to my hubby. We go to dinner a couple times a month and I order up a drink..(something lite on sugar). I take responsibility for it, I watch my calories, I savor my indulgence and if the scale isn't moving than I know what I have to do. I guess my point is...don't hate yourself for doing normal things. What you did before wasn't normal. My confession! I had my best friend over, she brought a bottle of vanilla smirnoff. I had some sugar free orange junk to add into it. Tasted like orange creamsicle. We have a lovely spa out back so her and I marinated in it all evening sipping our drinks and laughing. Next morning I found my clothes laying on the grass and our husbands were telling some ridiculous tales about us. The fire department even showed up because apparently our fire pit was burning a little too bright that evening. It was fun! I felt normal. I didn't turn into a raving drunk or eat like a maniac there after. I woke the next day, did my work out, cleaned my house, ate all things healthy and had no regrets. Well, finding my clothes laying about the yard was not a happy discovery. Don't forget to still have fun!!! Cheers!

I got to put my wedding ring back on--it fit! My husband put that on my finger when I was 19 years old and we had a whole life in front of us. We will have our 25th next year in June!

Yes! You still plateau. But! Due to physical restriction and easier hunger and craving control (this may not be true for everyone) you can pass the plateau and keep on going. Lots of people have posed the question you have about "couldn't I just keep losing without surgery?" Sure! But, if you have considered surgery than you have also considered that you might not be able to help yourself entirely on your own. I would count up all the yo-yos you've done in the past, consider your age, any health problems, how much you have to lose and begin to think about where your heart and mind is from there. I always believe that surgery is a last resort which was the case for me when I finally pursued it. Four separate times over the last 24 years of my life, I lost as much as 100+ lbs and regained plus more. That doesn't include all the half ass attempts where I lost 30-50 lbs on 3 month crash diet fads. I wanted a tool to help me change for good. Do you think you need a tool to change for good?

I clogged my drains and had to have a plumber come out! He pulled up all my hair from the old pipes in our house 'cause I'm dummy. Brush your long hair before the shower until the hair loss stops or you'll have a plumber bill too lol. I miss my lush locks. It was the only thing I liked about my appearance and now I twist my hair up and try not to think about it right now. I'm not quite ready to chop it off, but as others have said, I notice it more than anyone else. I take biotin everyday and I know it will grow back.

I was a high starting weight. September of 2017 I weighed 475 recorded by my PCP. My surgeon had a very aggressive goal for me to lose to 380 before surgery so out of desperation/necessity, I counted calories, ate little and did what I could. On surgery day I was 386, nearly 5.5 months later. I'm fast approaching 6 months post surgery now and have had lots of issues with my tummy that have prevented me from eating and or keeping food down. I weighed yesterday and was 308. Somewhere in my day dreams I entertain the idea that I've lost too slowly. My expectations were crazy though! I thought I would lose 20 lbs a month until I was slim! I thought I would be well into the 200 lb range by now. Time is so antagonistic! I've waited so long to get the help I need and I just want to blink my eyes and see a new body each time! I know it's a day dream though. When I see the nutritionist she does this "in body" check and can calculate a fairly good estimate of my BMR and my metabolism is super crap now. So...I try my best to eat good things, to eat reasonably to move more and to be honest with myself and I know the weight will come off. I try to think of things I'm proud of all the time. This helps me to refocus and not sink into despair about the speed at which things are moving for me. Lately, I've been cooking lovely dinners for my husband and son that are healthy and delicious. It makes me happy to see them eat better along with me and I feel like I'm being a better person. I don't make them suffer or anything lol. The challenge for me is to actually make something they like and I'm so proud of this. I think if you can find something that is hobby-like that supports your new life change, you might be able to deflect some of the worries you have. Cheers.

Oh the gastric distress this stuff causes! Be careful, try with caution.

Keep a lil journal for a week or so hopefully longer and try to let your surgeon know if he is still part of your care team which I hope he is. An urgent care unit isn't really gonna know what to do for you. You're doctor is gonna wanna know what you ate and or, your activity at the time when the pain started, how severe, and how long it lasted. I would be cautious trusting an urgent care to my well being for this situation unless it is your only option. Good luck and feel better.

I had the same procedure as you with my sleeve. I did have pain from the hernia repair and it was quite unpleasant, but the pain referred into my left collar bone and left shoulder area. It worsened switching to solid food stage and happened during digestion. It was a pretty yucky problem for me for at least 3 months and then I had to go back on liquids for other reasons so I didn't feel it much anymore. But I'm at 5 months now and I still feel a twinge in my shoulder when I take a deep breath. It's not so very troublesome with eating and I can't even be certain it has to do with the hernia repair anymore, but I just had to be scoped and the doctor saw the hernia returning! Erggh...He said it was small right now, whatever that means I guess. Any pain you feel should be brought to the doctors' attention right away especially if it is persistent or hard to ignore. Be safe :)!

While I was so sick with a stent I was barely getting any nutrition/protein. I expected I would MELT away but in 7 weeks of yucky...true starving, I only lost 10 lbs! Now that yuck is out of me I try to get about 800 cal in good protein and veggies and in 1 week my body kicked 7 lbs. My surgeon told me you have to eat to lose weight faster. Mind bender for me, but true!

I was in a recliner for a couple weeks. Had a hiatal hernia repair at the same time though. That tends to refer pain into the left shoulder which is the side I loved, could ONLY, sleep on. Now I can sleep all which ways lol, but yes, recliner for 2 weeks ish. Hug, hope you begin to feel good soon.

Yay! I'm so happy for you! You made it to the top of the roller coaster. Put your hands up baby and get ready for the downfall. Its a fun ride!!!!!

I know it must be so frustrating to wait this long. Funny thing is my insurance had NO supervised diet requirement, but my doctor made me do it anyway. I had goals, milestones to meet and they were huge! But I did it. Before surgery even happened I was so proud of myself. I had to start eating in a way that I would be eating after surgery. It was hard, sometimes I starved myself so I could eat something really bad for me and not have it show in my progress. Looking back, I was struggling with some really huge food demons, but I'm so glad I had punched them all out before surgery. There was no mourning for sugar, no craving for fat garbage, no crying for cake, just a focus on getting better, and eating better and the sleeve helped me take that last huge step which is "true" change. I'm so sorry I just threw all this at you, I guess I wanted to console you for having to wait and try not to waste the waiting period. I bought these cute little pyrex glass condiment bowls before surgery. They hold a measured cup. It will be a very long time before you can ever eat more than what fits in one of these little bowls. In fact, you probably won't be able to eat much more than half. I started eating from these for nearly all things I ate and still do to this day. Probably will forever lol. I ramble on so much! I can't wait to hear more from you though and see you reach your day and all the days after.

I thought I had forgiven myself for getting so out of control. I felt peace with my decision to have surgery. I needed it more than anything. After surgery, laying in bed, feeling pain, feeling numb, feeling excited for all the days ahead, I suddenly and profoundly felt "ashamed" all over again and I cried about it for a long time. I wouldn't say it was regret although I understand that is common to feel as well, but I did feel like such a failure for putting my body in such jeopardy. Those feelings have all passed now. They will for you too! And..if by some chance bad feelings linger, please get yourself help. Don't be afraid to talk to a psychologist. They really are quite pleasant.

Oh yay! I'm so glad for you. Usually the cardiac clearance is the last step. You must be getting very close to securing a date!

Don't tell anyone at work if you can avoid it. Even close work friends have a tendency to forget to be quiet about it. I chose to tell my work friends, my boss, everyone at work and I'm sorry I did. There are a lot of very supportive people, but there are a few who are toxic. I hate it when I wake up in the middle of the night and instead of rolling over to go back to sleep, a nasty comment they made to me pops in my head! Last comment was: "Oh look at you! Getting so much smaller! You are going to have so much skin to remove!" I know this, I think on it enough without someone who cares little about me say it to my face. My feelings were iron clad before surgery--now they are tender and easy to trample. If only I'd understood the mental changes better. So, what to say when people ask how you're losing weight so fast. You tell them, "Everything, I'm doing everything." If you want to elaborate, say you're eating way less, eating way better, and moving a whole lot more. It's simple...and...it's the truth. Good luck!

I would be such a happy little clam reaching your starting weight lol! But I have some inches on you too and I'm not dainty. I have to admit, when I first started going to pre op support groups I kept running into people who seemed so little to me and yet here there were trying to do this crazy scary thing! I didn't know if I should be impressed with their bravery or annoyed with them giving up already! Having said this incredibly insulting thing, I will now say that I understand your decision to have surgery. It's just as valid as mine ever was. Your struggle and frustration is as real and horrible as mine is and you and I have the same goal in the end. To be healthy and to be able to "stay" healthy. You are the one who has to live with yourself and you know better than anyone how deeply this hurts your life. If you are on the path to surgery than you have already dealt with more than you can stand. Weather you have 300 lbs or 50 lbs to lose no one should ever tell you what you should or should not continue to live with. I know you wanted feedback from people like you, but. We're not so very different after all,are we :). I support you! I support you reaching for happiness!