Arabesque

So pretty. And nothing wrong with comfort dressing in these times. Recently saw a guy in his 30s at my local supermarket wearing navy pyjamas, a matching robe & slippers carrying a bottle of milk & a couple of other essentials. It was 10:30am. Thought that was taking relaxed, casual dressing a bit far.

Our humid summer day temps are 35+, so when we get winter days of 18 or less it’s freezing for us in Brisbane. I always shake my head at how people dress for the cold - wearing parkas with thongs. I love our springs & autumns. Just glorious days.

Losing 10lbs in three weeks is worth celebrating. You’re doing well. Some people will lose more but it’s often because they have a lot more to lose to begin (that’s why those on my 600lb life can lose 25-30lbs a month to begin). Losing 2-3lbs a week is great. It is likely you’re experiencing a stall or slow down. It’s very common in week 3 (though it can happen in weeks 2 or 4) & you’ll experience more along your journey. I think of them as your body playing catch-up with the changes - to diet, activity, etc.

It was extremely worth it. The whole journey has been. I had little pain from the incisions, gas or from the surgery. I did have trouble swallowing initially due to swelling & consequently had a lot of salvia. No nausea. No vomiting. No hunger. I took a month to go back to work but still struggled because of low blood pressure & I’ve always been slow to recover. By that stage I was on soft foods which was easier to manage at work. We are all different & our recoveries are different. Some do have more pain, some feel hungry others don’t, some take longer to get their energy levels back or return to full time work. Take your time. Listen to your body. Don’t push yourself to meet stages or goals if you’re not ready.

I never hated myself when I was overweight. My weight struggles began when I hit puberty. I would gain 15-20kgs & lose it but when I hit menopause I put on more than I ever had & reached 91kg & just couldn’t lose it. To be perfectly honest I didn’t truely realise how overweight I was. I thought a lot of photos of me were just ‘bad’ or unflattering photos. (Body dysmorphia I know.) I knew I needed to lose weight for my health. Not that I had any major issues but to prevent any developing & to be generally fitter & have more stamina. I also wanted to look better. I enjoy ‘dressing’ & was nearing the end of the size options where I could purchase unique & stylish fashion. (I know this might seem superficial to some but for me it is a way of creatively expressing myself.) I was almost 54 when I decided to have wls & it was an easy decision. I have overweight friends (two of whom have had the surgery too) but they don’t hate themselves either. They’re confident, outgoing, active, successful women. Like me, the two who’ve had the surgery did so to become better versions of themselves - internally & externally. I know for many though, being overweight is rooted in emotional pain. That losing weight is extremely challenging, even with support & therapy. For them, the journey begins in understanding & accepting who they are & that they have value. I’m happy you’ve made that journey & came to discover your true value & sense of self. WLS is not an easy way out. It’s not an easy fix. I’m frustrated by people who say this. I feel pretty confident to say, everyone on this forum works hard every day to make the best choices (what to eat, to exercise, etc.). I like to say the surgery is like a gym membership. If you don’t go to the gym & take advantage of the equipment, the trainers, the classes, make new habits & routines, ... nothing will change. Same with the surgery. It won’t work if you don’t take advantage of it, put in the effort & make the changes. For those of us who’ve always struggled with our weight, we will have to work hard at this for the rest of our lives. (Sorry, I don’t mean to sound preachy.) Personally, I want to reach that time & place when I’m not defined as someone who was overweight or had wls but that I am just me. I hope you can find your place. Good luck.

Thanks Sophie & greentealael. The Avengers comparison made my day. Just call me Miss Peel. Oh, I wish my legs really were that long. Welcome @VSG_Barbie. An amazing transformation. Hope you post more pxts. That cobalt blue is a stunning colour @Cheeseburgh. So fresh & summery.

We never have snow here. Queensland is too far north so not cold enough. It’s about the same distance from the equator south as Florida is to the north.

Made a big pot of chicken & corn chowder (not authentic) yesterday so we would have something a little more nutritious & warming than nibbles with our drinks last night. It looks more stew-like but I added a more stock before serving with diced crispy bacon, chives & a swirl of cream. Though I asked everyone to take all their leftovers home, I have a fridge of cheeses, dips, homemade Japanese curry sauce & boxes of cracker biscuits.

I didn’t count calories (wasn’t a lot, probably close to @ms.sss’s <800 a day) but was very aware of portion size. I consumed about 1/2 cup of food three times a day. Predominately protein (about 60g of meat) with a small amount of steamed vegetables ( couple of green beans, a tablespoon of shredded cabbage or a cauliflower floret). I kept everything very simple. I couldn’t eat a whole egg until I was almost at goal. To up my protein, I would eat a high protein yoghurt or drinking yoghurt most afternoons and a little fruit like watermelon which upped my fluid intake.

Live the white @Dtrain84. Yep, winter here in Australia @GreenTealael. My darn outdoor gas heater wouldn’t work last night so we had to cuddle together on my deck under many throw rugs. Funny we never chose to go inside though. Wore my over the knee boots, & put a cashmere blend hip length fitted cardigan over the top & belted it for extra warmth. Found my old three barrel curling ward so put some messy waves in my hair. Looks a bit fluffy though.

Did you have a puréed stage? This usually follows the liquid stage. Give it a go & leave the soft foods for another week or so as your tummy probably isn’t ready for more dense foods yet even if they’re soft. Don’t worry if you move more slowly through the stages. We all heal differently & can eat different foods at different times as we progress through our weight loss. Listen to your tummy - it will quickly let you know what it can or can’t tolerate as you progress.

Am having friends over for drinks on the deck tonight. No worries about mosquitoes here at the moment so you’d be safe @GreenTealael but frost bite is a distinct possibility. Brrrr. Not an OOTD, more a NSV I wanted to share. Yesterday I was putting on some opaque tights & I realised I was standing & bending over to put them on. I used to have to sit down & physically lift one leg up & place it over the other just to pull one leg on. Happy dance.

For the first few months you will find it challenging to eat many fruits & vegetables. Sometimes because of the taste or texture, sometimes because your tummy won’t be able to tolerate them. This will change & you’ll find you will be able to eat them much as you did before. In this interim period, you will most definitely get the nutrients & vitamins you’re not getting from fruit & vegetables from your multivitamins. Once you are eating more & a healthy, balanced diet the multivitamins aren’t as necessary. Multivitamins should be seen only as a supplement if you’re not getting enough of those vitamins through a balanced diet or you have malabsorption issues. I stopped taking my vitamins about 7 months ago (they made me very nauseated) & my blood work shows all my levels are very good so I don’t need them but I do ensure I have fruit & vegetables every day. However, we are all different & while I get my enough nutrients through food, you may not & will have to take vitamins to boost your levels.

I don’t miss my sweaty thighs rubbing together or breathing heavily walking up a flight of stairs. And I certainly don’t miss having to wear flat or low heels because my feet ached & burned - bring on the 4inch heels again.

The protein bar I usually eat a couple of times each week did it earlier this week. Pressure in my stomach, vertigo, pain across my rib cage, hot flush & so wanted to vomit to relieve the pressure but didn’t. Tentatively ate one last night & no problem. Our stomachs just like to keep us on our toes.

We have a similar story. I’m an inch taller, weighed 49.6kgs today, wear a US size 2 & have to work at maintaining. I lost more than my goal weight (another 10kg) while trying to find the right balance & combination of food to maintain. It takes very little for my weight to drop & a lot to gain it again. Not that I really manage to - last month I sat between 50-50.5kg, this month it’s 49.2-50. I feel I eat all day too. I added snacks with multi/whole grains & continue to focus on portion control & healthy food choices. I often eat a meal over a long period of time (50+ mins at lunch) so I can consume a little more & then have to fit in snacks. It can be a challenge. On Tuesday a doctor on my surgeon’s team said I need to put on 4kgs but I’m conscious of the strong likelihood of the year 2/3 weight gain @catwoman7 mentioned. I’d rather stay at this weight with a possibility of a 5kg gain in a year or so than put on 4 now & then another 5+. I just want to be able to stay where I am now cause I’m happy, feel fine & my blood work is very good.

I used to carry around a bottle of diluted hydralite (found it too sweet full strength) to give me little boosts of energy for months after surgery. But 14.5 months out if I don’t keep my fluids up I can still get weak - jelly legs, cold sweats. Felt that way yesterday after I’d been rushing about shopping all morning & had to sit down for a few minutes. For me I think it’s a combination of low blood pressure & Gilbert’s.

I did keto as my 2 week pre diet but found it challenging because I’ve never enjoyed foods high in fats. They used to upset my tummy & reflux so I’ve been low fat for decades. I was also told keto should only be followed short term not as a long term lifestyle choice. I presumed the low fat recommendation post sleeve was because of the potential for gall bladder problems after surgery. Also my cholesterol went up to 6.9 during my weight loss as it was released from my fat. Thank goodness it’s back down now with a good balance of HDL & LDL.

Plateaus can be demoralising. And yeah, I’d tell that person to feck off too! I think @catwoman7 is correct & you are consuming enough calories to be in maintenance. At 3 & 4 months I was still barely eating 1/2 cup of food three times a day (took me three days to eat 2 eggs) & was probably eating 300 - 500 calories. Check your portion sizes, ensure you’re meeting your protein goals & avoid carbs & sugars.

Oh, I’m not brave enough to do a Jake style parachute jump. I was actually chasing some of those Olympic style all-in-one swimmers & thought I could pretend I was a gold medalist swimmer but then I found out how much they cost - yikes! Damn humidity has ruined many a hair style for me too @Sophie7713. It’s why I have a hair band on my wrist at all times to rescue a deflated ‘do’ & covert it to a pony.

No bread, pasta, rice, alcohol, caffeine, root vegetables or carbonated drinks. Reduce fats, carbs & sugar as much as possible. I slowly tried different foods over time to work out what my tummy could tolerate. The only vege I could eat for months was microwaved cabbage & cauliflower but didn’t have issues with any meats. Best advice is follow your surgeon’s plan & slowly introduce new foods when your ready. I can eat most things now. I follow what I call an avoid, reduce or limit eating plan. I still avoid bread, pasta & rice. I reduced my alcohol to maybe once a month & limit the sugar I ingest (only naturally occurring sugars like in fruit where possible & no sweets, cakes, etc.). The only carbonation I have is the odd tonic or soda water & only caffeine comes from green tea (which I’ve drunk for years). Limit carbs to small serves of multi or whole grains. I keep my protein up & eat vegetables, salads & a piece of fruit each day. Good luck with your surgery. I love my sleeve.

RYou look fabulous @Dtrain84. And Jake, you always look great. So lovely to welcome our new comers too. Hope you’ll become frequent posters. By the way, has anyone heard from Angiebear? I hope she’s ok. Because we had to cancel our girls’ trip to Spain, we’ve decided to do a weekend away at an upmarket retreat in the mountains here in Queensland in September. We’ve decided to go all out & will be helicoptering up & back (45min trip). The views will be spectacular & we’re very excited. Anyway, our private lodge has a spa on the deck so I’ve been forced to buy some swimwear - first time in 18yrs. Thought you’d be amused by my choice - ain’t no one seeing my saggy baggy skin & I am very fair so there is some sensible logic in my choice.

Congrats on your weight loss so far. The itching at your incision sites means they are healing - it’s the nerve endings that were cut twitching. The left shoulder pain is possibly still from the gas they inflated your abdomen with during surgery. It can take time for your body to expel it. Go for short walks every day slowly increasing your speed & distance as you feel stronger. It will help with the cabin fever & also with the gas pain. Did the pudding have any dairy in it? Lactose can be a problem post surgery & will cause diarrhoea. Don’t what was worse in the first 6 months - the constipation or the diarrhoea. There’s a lot of learning about what your tummy will & won’t tolerate in the first few months. Sometimes what you eat one day without problem will upset you the next. Sometimes the taste, texture or smell can turn you off. Just take your time. Goid luck.

An extra pair of pjs, or sleep wear, & knickers in case you have to stay an extra day or accidents. (At my hospital they make you shower & put on your own pjs on the second day.) My friend swears by incontinence pad knickers. Not for incontinence but for the not uncommon & totally unexpected attacks of diarrhoea. As her surgeon warned her: you may think you’re about to pass wind but it will be way more than that (apologies if tmi). Non slip slippers or slides for your laps around the ward. I couldn’t stand anything pressing against my incision wounds so soft waisted pants/skirts that you can fold down at the waist to wear home or a dress. Good luck.

The section of your stomach that is removed is where most of your hunger hormone is produced. This is why we lose our hunger and also why we will regain it (at various strengths). At 14.5 months out I have days I don’t feel hungry at all but I still try to eat though not as much & try to meet my minimum daily protein goal. I also have days when I feel hungry but it’s a much gentler feeling like a reminder it must be about lunch or dinner time. (It’s been stronger lately because it’s damn cold in Australia at the moment & I’m a walking ice cube.) If you tend eat much the same things, maybe add something different to your diet. Try a new recipe, use different spices or add new protein sources, etc. It may stimulate your appetite a little. I used to eat a lot of chicken for lunch now I’ve thrown in fresh prawns a couple of times a week & I look forward to eating them. Good luck with your appointment. I hope they can identify what’s causing your pain.