RobertaMSN

Going into this surgery I knew there would be head work but am surprised at a change I've decided to make: shedding or discontinuing one-sided relationships with some family members. It's as if as I lose the weight and become healthier I'm looking much closer at what's really going on with all my relationships. As I feel better about myself I will no longer tolerate indifference and lack of caring from others, or continue what I was doing - trying to buy their love with gifts.
I'm the maiden aunt who had been sending Christmas and birthday presents to family kids until they turned 18. In the past I've at least received photos of some of them in return and one niece was good about thanking me. But this past year - nothing except a different niece's wedding announcement via my brother - not even directly from her and no invitation just a bid for a gift, which I sent.
My sister is the only family member who is in frequent contact and clearly cares about me - and the only one who knows about my surgery. No one else has ever inquired how I am doing, if I'm well, or showed any interest in my welfare. I'm sure they're good people - they just don't know me or love me.
So rather than feeling sad that they don't care about me, I'm accepting it for what it is and shedding them from my life as well as the pounds. I'll simply stop sending gifts (and am changing my Will) - they probably won't even notice. It feels great! Is anyone else reevaluating relationships post surgery and deciding to shed those that either are one-sided or bad for you?

Wow. You look awesome!!!

I wanted to share a "time lapse" of pictures of my transformation over the past 3 years 7/2017 - 5/2020. I have lost weight, exercised and I have my life back and I am living it again. All of us are here to fight this demon and I wanted to show my pictures as encouragement to show it can happen. Will I be a size 2? Probably not, but I am happier than ever with my life and myself. I am currently pursuing removing my stomach skin with my original surgeon due to recurrent abdominal and navel infections. We shall see what the insurance says about it all.
💗

I'm 16 months out. I started maintenance at about eight months and experimented with different levels of calories and carbs to stop losing weight but avoid gaining.
I noticed a direct correlation between more carbs and weight gain, more than calories. When I got about seven pounds above my goal, I started limiting carbs to the extent possible. Since then, I've stayed at my goal weight for about six months.
The bottom line: 20g of carbs is great during weight loss but very unrealistic during maintenance. I avoid carbs where possible, but I probably get about 40g per day, which has enabled me to stay at my goal weight. It would be difficult to go much lower than that while trying to eat "normally."
(I'm at about 1,600-1,800 calories per day as well.)

This liquid diet before surgery is very hard but so far so good.
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My BMI was 34 when I had my gastric sleeve surgery December 2, 2019 - absolutely no complications and I'm thrilled with my progress. Did have a recent 4 week stall but they are to be expected; made some minor adjustments and now I'm back on track with slow, steady weight loss. My health has improved tremendously, and all my blood work is now in the normal range whereas before surgery I was pre-diabetic, labs indicated stage 1 kidney disease, and the beginning stages of fatty liver disease - no more! Good luck!

I had VSG three days ago. The big surprise was my doctor told me to quit taking 2 of my blood pressure meds and my statin on discharge instructions. Thrilled about that. Am taking my BP regularly to be sure it doesn't get high again. So already reaping benefits from my weight loss presurgery.
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I'm not shy

Thank you guys for your kind words

Hello there hope everyone is feeling well and getting ready to return back to normalcy after covid-19.
Here in Australia things are starting to get back to normal with opening more businesses and stuff.
It's my monthly check in for those that are interested in my journey.
I count from the day I began my diet and my new way of life which is 9 months to the day but my surgery was 7 months ago.
Everyday I wake up and I'm amazed how far I've come this year. I look in the mirror and I still can't believe how good I look now after losing all the weight.
I spent half my life obese most of all my adulthood actually and I was always known as the fat friend or the one to be in the friendzone ONLY!!
I'm finally starting to gain some confidence in myself which I've struggled with on top of rejection from the opposite sex and I'm starting to engage in some counselling to help deal with the anxiety that comes with social interactions with women.
Um I'm regards to my weight looking back in my diary I've been in maintenance pretty much the same weight range now for 2 months.
My highest weight this year before surgery got up to 322LB and I've been in maintenance sitting between 165-168 pretty consistently these past 2 months.
I don't log my food as much but still keep a mental note of the calories and still have a habit of checking my weight most days just to keep focused and to remind myself to not get complacent!!
I will admit I've had some treats since in maintenance and it has not affected my weight which is great so I feel the bypass I was given has definitely changed the way my bodys metabolism works.
It feels great to be called skinny and people using that adjective when talking about me 😛
I'm no longer the fat friend I'm now the skinny ONE.
I just want people to know it is possible to reach all your goals and to be successful.
At my lowest weight of 165 I've lost 157lbs from my highest weight in just 7 months which is amazing.
I know I'll need to tone up and build some muscle eventually and that will add some weight which is fine.
Thank you all for your kind words throughout this journey.
Mikey.

I’m ready to go! I was a little nervous last night but feel good now. Surgery in 30 minutes!!!!

This week marks 1 year post op and I am down 112lbs and holding pretty steady. I lost 100lbs the first 6 months and it was too easy. I knew it would not go on forever like that and to enjoy it while it lasted. The past 6 months things have been much more of a grind. Im still not at goal weight but I am happier with myself. To be completely honest I did this without any regular exercise, im not proud of this but I think its important. I know I would be at the goal weight if I were exercising. I removed all obstacles that I thought were in the way but Im still not doing it. Weight loss chart below to give everyone an idea what the rate of loss looks like. I think my results are fairly typical.

ive always had a dream of skydiving but i was always too heavy. You have to be 250 to be able to do it. This was my first goal and this morning i hit it. I should be taking the jump within the next few weeks. i cant wait!!!

Congrats on getting your surgery! Yes, the first couple of days are kinda rough. Get up and walk as much as you can, and be patient with yourself when it comes to your first drinking experiences. You'll feel immensely better each day that passes. It took me five days before I started feeling like myself. Good luck, YOU GOT THIS!!

Yes! These two are especially true for me. I'm retired but when working it was so difficult (okay, impossible) for me to resist all the goodies coworker brought in, and once a month our manager bought a huge sheet cake to Celebrate the birthdays that occurred that month. Amazon monthly scheduled auto-delivery of my Protein Shakes is fabulous - plus they are less expensive than what they charge at my local stores
One more: I'm finally finishing some in-home painting projects I'd been putting off.
Thanks for the uplifting post - love it!

1. The longer I go without seeing people, the greater my opportunity to surprise them with my new skinny self!
2. It doesn't matter that my bras don't fit, b/c I don't have to wear one!
3. By wearing jammies every day, I have no idea what size clothing I wear, so it will be a fun surprise when I finally decide to get dressed again!
4. Working from home, I don't have to worry about temptations from coworkers bringing in donuts, Cookies, etc.
5. Also no restaurant temptations, since I eat every meal at home.
6. I can use all the $$ I'm saving on not getting hair and nails done to get extra glamorous when I break out of here someday.
7. Amazon delivers my favorite Protein Shakes.
8. I have plenty of time to try various free workout videos on YouTube.
9. Plenty of time for weighing experiments, before shower/after shower, before pee/after pee; the possibilities are endless.
10. I can drink as much Water as I want, b/c I can pee every 10 minutes if I have to (which is also fun for #9).

Honestly, I'm not sure. Everyone's bodies are different and their skin bounces back different. I'm 32 and my starting weight was 385 with a BMI of 62. I'm 268 now with a BMI of 43 and a current weight loss of 117 pounds... I have a LOT of loose skin, but that's expected for someone of my size and the fact that I've been over 300 pounds for almost half my life (Literally. I was 303 at 17! -_-"). My guess though is that yes, it'll probably be similar to the post pregnancy loose skin. Though you'll probably have some in different places then before such as some loose skin on your arms (which can be minimized with exercise) or legs (again, exercise) or even where your bra rests under your arm pits (it bugs the crap outta me!). But in the end... I'd take the loose skin over the fat any day of the week!

So I’ve been trying to get pictures every month to allow ME see the progress. I was sleeved 1/7/20. LOOK!

Depends on what Keto you do. I did a version that was low carb, high Protein, moderate fat. You want your body to burn your fat stores, not the fat you are eating. Plans that advocate for eating fatbombs and pouring cream and coconut oil on everything are the ones you want to avoid. You go into ketosis due to a lack of carbs, not an excess of fat.
So keto for me is a lot closer to a normal healthy diet, lots of vegetables and protein and limited processed carbs. Depends if you want to count macros as well. I never did.

I haven't actually fainted, but I come pretty close every time I rise quickly, and often have to stop to steady myself until the spots go away. Like you, I had low blood pressure historically. I'd definitely talk to your doctors, but when I asked mine about it, they weren't awfully concerned. They said to be sure I was getting all my fluids and to try to up my electrolyte/salt intake a bit if possible.

Thanks so much for posting! You are an inspiration to those of us who wonder what things will be like several years out.

WOW! amazing! so good to see a veteran's success story. You look strong and happy!

Today is my 3rd Surgiversary. I'm maintaining my 151lb loss.
HW:334
SW:324
CW:183
GW:190

I have been struggling to stay on track recently. Some of my clothes are fitting better, but I could not "see" any difference. Photo below are 15 weeks apart. Starting weight 228, surgery weight 219 (Jan 8, 2020), current weight 189. Goal weight?. I had a revision to RNY in Jan 2020. Previously banded in August 2008. Lost 60 lbs, gained 30 before revision.
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Congrats, Chubrub!😀 I cannot WAIT till once again I weigh less than mine, too! What an awful journey it has been to creep past his 6ft, 179lb, low body fat self🙄!
It literally took until the night before my surgery that I told him my weight. He knows EVERYTHING else about me after 30 years together, but this heavy weight yoke around my neck was just something I couldn’t verbalize... UNTIL I KNEW I was ready to deal with it, walk away from it, never to return there again!
What totally rocks is knowing he loved me as much at 220lbs as he did when I married him at 128lbs. Forever Grateful to this ultra wonderful guy!💝