Jaelzion

I prefer plant-based Protein Shakes and these are some of my favorites:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09NP4XY96/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PJ181KP/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 (these have an odd flavor, so you'll either love or hate them. Don't be mad if you don't like them, LOL)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08FKRYPRT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Evolve-Plant-Based-Protein-Greens-Mixed/dp/B07P8J45JG
Some people find it super hard to do a liquid diet even for the short term. If it turns out not to work well for you, you can try going back to how you ate during your weight loss phase. You're much further out from surgery than I am, but I find that still works (and is a bit easier than all shakes).

It was shopping for me. For a good 6 months I spent way too much on clothes. I really did need to replenish my wardrobe after losing 130 pounds, but I was buying more than I needed. It took me a while to recognize what was going on and stop doing that. I have a couple of friends for whom the weight loss itself became their transfer addiction. Instead of stabilizing once they reached their goal, they kept dieting and losing. Eventually they were both emaciated and skeletal. In their 50s, both of these ladies developed full-blown anorexia. Fortunately, with treatment, they both recovered and they are at healthy weights now. But it just shows that literally ANYTHING can become problematic if you use it to self-medicate. It's like whack-a-mole.

140 calories, 22 grams of Protein and 2 grams of carbs. Lots of flavors to choose from and they don't need refrigeration until you open them, so they're perfect to take along with you. They're filling too, one cup gives me a lot of satisfaction. Just passing along a good th
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DDFCWF6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

140 calories, 22 grams of Protein and 2 grams of carbs. Lots of flavors to choose from and they don't need refrigeration until you open them, so they're perfect to take along with you. They're filling too, one cup gives me a lot of satisfaction. Just passing along a good th
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DDFCWF6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

140 calories, 22 grams of Protein and 2 grams of carbs. Lots of flavors to choose from and they don't need refrigeration until you open them, so they're perfect to take along with you. They're filling too, one cup gives me a lot of satisfaction. Just passing along a good th
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DDFCWF6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

140 calories, 22 grams of Protein and 2 grams of carbs. Lots of flavors to choose from and they don't need refrigeration until you open them, so they're perfect to take along with you. They're filling too, one cup gives me a lot of satisfaction. Just passing along a good th
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DDFCWF6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

Having the doctor say "You're overweight" out of habit and being able to say "No I'm not." 😂

Having the doctor say "You're overweight" out of habit and being able to say "No I'm not." 😂

Humph. I'm 56 and I'm pretty sure plastic surgery is in my future, LOL. You are by no means too old.

Having the doctor say "You're overweight" out of habit and being able to say "No I'm not." 😂

I'm in maintenance and there are times when I'm going to eat snack food. So it's important to me to find less destructive alternatives. But that's a personal call we all have to make.

My hair was pretty much a casualty of WLS. I lost most of my hair and it hasn't grown back. My surgeon speculates that my hair fell out due to the normal telogen effluvium that comes with drastic weight loss. Then it didn't grow back due to age-related Hair loss I would have had anyway (I'm 57). So the surgey sped up the hair loss and I lost it all at once, rather than gradually over a couple of years. But my experience is unusual and I wouldn't take back the 130 pounds I've lost to get my hair back!

My hair was pretty much a casualty of WLS. I lost most of my hair and it hasn't grown back. My surgeon speculates that my hair fell out due to the normal telogen effluvium that comes with drastic weight loss. Then it didn't grow back due to age-related Hair loss I would have had anyway (I'm 57). So the surgey sped up the hair loss and I lost it all at once, rather than gradually over a couple of years. But my experience is unusual and I wouldn't take back the 130 pounds I've lost to get my hair back!

My hair was pretty much a casualty of WLS. I lost most of my hair and it hasn't grown back. My surgeon speculates that my hair fell out due to the normal telogen effluvium that comes with drastic weight loss. Then it didn't grow back due to age-related Hair loss I would have had anyway (I'm 57). So the surgey sped up the hair loss and I lost it all at once, rather than gradually over a couple of years. But my experience is unusual and I wouldn't take back the 130 pounds I've lost to get my hair back!

My hair was pretty much a casualty of WLS. I lost most of my hair and it hasn't grown back. My surgeon speculates that my hair fell out due to the normal telogen effluvium that comes with drastic weight loss. Then it didn't grow back due to age-related Hair loss I would have had anyway (I'm 57). So the surgey sped up the hair loss and I lost it all at once, rather than gradually over a couple of years. But my experience is unusual and I wouldn't take back the 130 pounds I've lost to get my hair back!

Agreed. I didn't want to wait until I was dealing with multiple comorbidities of my obesity before addressing it. I was willing to assume the risk of surgery, but not the near-certainty of obesity-related diseases as I progressed in age.

I’m 95% sure I want to move forward with sleeve surgery but, I’m scared. The bulk of my fear is that I’m going to do irreparable damage to my body... or that I’m going to go through all of this and nothing will change, I’ll fail and still be this heavy (or will lose very little weight).
1. Did you feel the same way?
Absolutely. I really didn't have confidence that the surgery would work for me. I wasn't overly afraid of complications, but I did fear that I would have the surgery and lose only a few pounds.
2. Are you glad you did it?
I'm super-glad I did it. I had no major complications. I haven't had any real problems adjusting to my new way of eating. Best of all, I lost all my excess weight, reaching a normal BMI for the first time since I was 10 years old.
3. Do you have any regrets?
I regret waiting so long. However, for various reasons, I know the time was right when I did it. I might not have been as successful earlier because my circumstances were different.
4. What’s one thing you wish someone had told you before you had surgery?
"Hey, it's really going to suck for the first week or two after surgery. Don't worry, almost everyone has a tough time at first. But your tummy will heal and before you know it, your new way of eating will be second nature."

I'm sorry you're going through this. It sounds like your surgical team definitely failed you. The surgery does change your relationship with food forever. While your surgeon may have overstated things by saying the effects of the surgery only last 18 months, it is true that over time your sleeve will be less intrusive. The restriction eases somewhat and you get to the point where you can eat a small but regular-sized meal with no problem. I'm 2 and 1/2 years out from surgery and I don't have to take tiny bites or sips anymore.
As far as eating "normally", that's not something most bariatric patients aspire to because that's what got us obese in the first place. If you really did go back to eating exactly how you did before, you'd simply gain all the weight back. My program had so many educational requirements that it got irritating, but I can see from your story why they are necessary. I hope you find some peace, particularly as time passes and your sleeve matures. God bless!

In addition to the rigors of feeling crappy in the immediate post-op days/weeks, post-surgical depression is pretty common:
https://www.healthline.com/health/depression-after-surgery#causes
Hope you feel better soon!

In addition to the rigors of feeling crappy in the immediate post-op days/weeks, post-surgical depression is pretty common:
https://www.healthline.com/health/depression-after-surgery#causes
Hope you feel better soon!

Had you never tried diet and exercise previously? If not, you're right, it might have been premature to leap right to surgery. But most of us who have had WLS have tried for years to permanently lose weight via all kinds of eating plans and all kinds of exercise plans. And many of us HAVE lost hundreds of pounds over the years (or decades), only to gain them back, plus extra. You know the quote about the definition of insanity? There comes a point where you know in your bones that "one more diet" or "one more workout plan" is not going end any differently. If you really believe you can lose the weight on your own, then it might be too soon for surgery. Most of us were long past that point by the time we had our procedures.

This is something that the surgery really changed for me. Somehow having most of my stomach removed cured my food obsession (maybe due to reduction of ghrelin production). I no longer find myself focusing on when I can next eat. I still have the occasional craving, but they are manageable now and not overpowering. Not everyone has this experience, so I'm not predicting it will be the same for you. Just saying that things may change post-op. Best of luck!

Yes, it's happened to me (both before and after my sleeve). I don't pretend to really understand the science, but many people have experienced this.

I was exactly in your shoes two and a half years ago. I researched both surgeries and I had decided on the bypass because I read that bypass patients tend to lose more of their excess weight. But the bypass turned out to be medically contraindicated for me and I had to have the sleeve. Like you, I was never one to eat large volumes of food, so I wasn't sure the sleeve would be effective. But it was. I was one of the lucky ones who completely lost my appetite for the first year so it was possible for me to eat 600-800 calories a day for months. As my appetite slowly returned in year 2, my calories increased to 800-900. My weight loss slowed down but it continued and almost two years from my surgery date, I hit my goal of 130 pounds for a normal BMI. I continued losing and at this point my weight stays between 120 and 125. When I see it creep up to 127, I find myself immediately cutting back until I get it back down to under 122.
It wasn't just the restriction of the sleeve that helped me lose. The surgery changed my relationship with food (I'm guessing due to the hormonal changes from having most of your stomach removed). Even today, my appetite is about 65% of what it was presurgery and I don't have unmanageable cravings. I still like sweets but I eat mostly sugar-free things like popsicles and pudding, yogurt, etc. Once in a while I'll have a treat of some kind, like cake or pie or Bailey's Irish Cream, but it's rare and it's always one treat and then back on plan. I feel like I still have the capacity to be a sugar/carb addict, so I'm careful with those foods. I also keep my carbs relatively low (although not keto-low) because that helps me maintain.
So, statistically, bypassers do lose more on average. But your individual results can vary a lot.

I did Keto for a good bit of my weight loss period (with the full support of my Surgeon). His plan was low-carb anyway, so he didn't mind when I took it to keto levels.