RainbowBrite57

I don't think this is silly. In fact, anything that motivates you and will help you does not seem silly to me at all! I think it's great that you're thinking ahead and coming up with ideas outside the box (or closet, for that matter) to help yourself. Unfortunately, as I gained weight, I also kept moving across the country. Two cross-country moves fairly effectively purged me of my bigger clothes, but that just meant that I instead raid my girlfriend's closet as I'm losing weight! 😂

Great idea! I wish I had thought of doing that.

That's a great idea! I wish I still had my old "skinny" clothes!

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So, I've come up with a silly plan to encourage myself as I lose weight. I just had to share the idea with somebody because I'm excited about it! I have a ton of clothes in all different sizes, from 26 all the way down to a few size 6's. I'm wanting to buy a few of those rolling clothes rack and set up a little "shop" for myself in my basement. Each rack would contain a different size and would only include clothes that I'm really excited to get back in to. For X number of pounds I lose (enough to make a difference in clothing sizes), I'd reward myself with a shopping trip! Sounds fun & encouraging, right??? 😃

So, I've come up with a silly plan to encourage myself as I lose weight. I just had to share the idea with somebody because I'm excited about it! I have a ton of clothes in all different sizes, from 26 all the way down to a few size 6's. I'm wanting to buy a few of those rolling clothes rack and set up a little "shop" for myself in my basement. Each rack would contain a different size and would only include clothes that I'm really excited to get back in to. For X number of pounds I lose (enough to make a difference in clothing sizes), I'd reward myself with a shopping trip! Sounds fun & encouraging, right??? 😃

So, I've come up with a silly plan to encourage myself as I lose weight. I just had to share the idea with somebody because I'm excited about it! I have a ton of clothes in all different sizes, from 26 all the way down to a few size 6's. I'm wanting to buy a few of those rolling clothes rack and set up a little "shop" for myself in my basement. Each rack would contain a different size and would only include clothes that I'm really excited to get back in to. For X number of pounds I lose (enough to make a difference in clothing sizes), I'd reward myself with a shopping trip! Sounds fun & encouraging, right??? 😃

So, I've come up with a silly plan to encourage myself as I lose weight. I just had to share the idea with somebody because I'm excited about it! I have a ton of clothes in all different sizes, from 26 all the way down to a few size 6's. I'm wanting to buy a few of those rolling clothes rack and set up a little "shop" for myself in my basement. Each rack would contain a different size and would only include clothes that I'm really excited to get back in to. For X number of pounds I lose (enough to make a difference in clothing sizes), I'd reward myself with a shopping trip! Sounds fun & encouraging, right??? 😃

So, I've come up with a silly plan to encourage myself as I lose weight. I just had to share the idea with somebody because I'm excited about it! I have a ton of clothes in all different sizes, from 26 all the way down to a few size 6's. I'm wanting to buy a few of those rolling clothes rack and set up a little "shop" for myself in my basement. Each rack would contain a different size and would only include clothes that I'm really excited to get back in to. For X number of pounds I lose (enough to make a difference in clothing sizes), I'd reward myself with a shopping trip! Sounds fun & encouraging, right??? 😃

Thank you and same to you! It's really nice to get up in the morning and after a long trip in the car (I have a long commute) without pain.

Update: CT Scan done with and without contrast. It APPEARS that the tumor like mass that is the size of a golf ball (round too) is some ugly scarring! I still need a Urology consult so the urologist can look at both scans closely to confirm, but I am no longer thinking Cancer (YAY!). But again... if he looks and decides it IS Cancer afterall... I now also know that it doesn't appear to be a problem anywhere else. I do have some "prominent" lymph nodes... but small enough to not be alarming. So... I have bad scarring on my Left Kidney and some kidney atrophy indicating kidney disease... but my kidney related labs are pretty decent so it is probably a mild form of kidney disease (but with lots of scarring). I am guessing it was caused by many frequent UTI's throughout my life. Still, I don't know what kidney testing my mom had me do as a kid, she somehow doesn't remember me going for some testing (I certainly do). But she is a person who doesn't "remember" anything negative lol. I guess I will never know if I was diagnosed with a kidney problem as a kid or not. And the CT scan did get a look at my heart... and everything appears normal from a CT scan perspective, confirming my cardiologist view that my heart is much healthier already!!! And again... my liver, gallbladder, pancreas, spleen, Right Kidney, and what they could see of my digestive tract etc etc etc all look good.

this really isn't an issue with RNY if you keep on top of your supplements.

I also will have to have back surgery at some point. My L5-S1 disc is badly deteriorated and was causing me a great deal of pain. I decided to have WLS first and the pain has greatly subsided. It's still there but not nearly as severe, and my weight loss journey just started. I think I made the right decision.

I'm glad you asked this because I am in the same boat. If I avoid the trigger foods then I don't have heartburn. I'm not sure what I'll end up doing, but I'm leaning towards the sleeve. At least it can still be revised to RNY if necessary.

I have to really look/study myself to see the weight loss. It's easier if I focus on certain areas. For instance, I can see my clavicle. But I don't really "see" it in my face or anywhere else for that matter unless I look at my before pics.
I took a photo a day or 2 before surgery and I take regular photos almost every week. I wish I'd taken one at my highest weight and/or before I really started focusing on the 6 month diet before surgery. Maybe it would have been more apparent to me? I can see the difference when I look at the photos side-by-side.
This sounds weird, but I can "feel" the weight loss even though I can't see it. EX: If I'm laying in bed before I get up in the morning and I brush by my abdomen or rub my shoulder, I can feel my bones closer to the surface and/or feel the smaller size.
I am also in the same boat as Diana_in_philly (above). I go to my closet or dresser and I pick out items to wear. I'm picking out things that are too big because it seems weird to me that I wear that size. I fully expect items that are my size to be too tight/too small.
Funny story that happened to me this weekend: I got my hair cut, really short and really different than I've been wearing for the last 5 years or so. I passed through the bathroom and didn't turn on the light. As I passed the mirror, I did not recognize myself. For that fraction of a second that it took me to realize that person in the mirror was me, panic set in that some stranger was in the bathroom with me!

HEY EVERYONE! I feel much better I Went to kroger Thursday and bought Gatorade Zero so ive been drinking That My Water And Vegetable Soup and I’ve Been eating Silk unsweetened vanilla almond Plain Yogurt And I Put my own Fruit(Black berries, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and bananas) In A Blender puree It and Add It to the Yogurt because My surgeron office told me last monday start with sugar free yogurt, sugar free apple sauce, and cottage cheese and after 2-5 days if I can tolerate that I can advance to soup with veggies in it, or crushed bean soup so Today i was able To Advance To Vegetable soup With Veggies and it felt so good to be able to chew. I Definitely feel much better and im Plant based for all that wanna know why im doing silk yogurt and adding my own fruit.

First, so sorry your having this issue. I literally feel your pain as I have these issues. I’ve had 3 lower back surgeries, epidurals, disectimy, PT. You name it I’ve had it with my back. This was all done before my sleeve surgery. In 2014 I was able to have the sleeve and while I knew my back would never be normal I was hoping to at least get some relief from losing the weight. I was 252 lbs before surgery and 5 yrs out I’m currently 155. I can honestly say it has helped with my back pain. While I am never pain free(I expected this), it it’s much more tolerable. However, I will not lie and say I don’t still have issues. About 2yrs after surgery, I was walking in my driveway and my legs just went out from under me and I felt tingling and numbness. An MRI was done and the result was that my L4/5 & L3/4 disc were now bone on bone and the little bit of disc I did have left at L4/5 was herniated which is what caused my fall. My only option is to have a fusion. There is nothing else that can be done. I was about to have the surgery, but something in my gut told me to wait. That was in 2016. I still haven’t had it done and my doctor cannot explain it, but my pain is very manageable. They honestly don’t know how I’m walking around, but I am. I do have sone pain and I watch everything I do. From time to time the bones will hit and it takes my breath away, but so far I can handle it. I know it eventually will lead to a fusion, but I’m holding off as long as I can. Sorry for rambling, but in my opinion your back problems will still be there after your sleeve and I honestly believe if you lost the weight your recovery and success would be better when you have back surgery.

I have a lower back fusion and still have chronic pain in my back and neck. I decided the wls made more sense before I had any more surgeries on on back.
Oddly enough, I had my wls last week and ever since I woke up I had zero pain in my back and neck. I'm sure itll come back but a nice surprise.

There is no way shedding a ton of weight is not going to help your back issues!
Last week me and my two teanage boys were at the grocery store - I handed both my kids just half of what i lost 80 pounds of potatoes and ask them to carry them around the store, They could not do it. That is 4 20 bags and it wore them out after 10 minutes. Now to try and carry 7 20 pounds - That will not be good for the back - Bottom line less weight will help you back out

I don't have this particular scenario, but I see these kinds of scenarios in the type of work that I do and I can tell you with reasonable certainty that your back problems and pain are directly affected by morbid obesity. When you're obese, not only are you carrying around a heavy load and putting stress on all of your joints, but you often alter your posture to accommodate the weight. This can lead to progressive degenerative disc disease, disc herniation, radiculopathy, etc. Also, it's not uncommon for the joints adjacent to the spinal fusion to develop issues like herniation.
It sounds like you're in a bit of a chicken/egg situation. The excess weight is definitely exacerbating the back condition, but it's hard to do anything about the weight because of the back issue. Losing weight will not "unherniate" your discs, but I have seen cases where a herniation sort of retracts a bit and no longer impinges on nerves with proper physical therapy. Of course, the likelihood of that depends on the severity of the herniation.
I would strongly encourage you to have this conversation with both of the doctors. Meaning, the bariatric doctor and the orthopedic/neuro-surgeon who is treating your back. Not just the pain management guy, the SURGEON. Flatly ask them which one they would recommend you pursue first. Then, ask them to explain WHY. Once you understand, you can proceed in confidence knowing the situation, the benefits, and the consequences.
<disclaimer>I am NOT a doctor, but I routinely work with individuals who have had back injuries, degenerative disc disease, herniated discs, sciatica, radiculopathy and the like.

I had severe pain with herniated disc L5/S1, resulting in microdiscectomy, laminectomy, foraminotomy last May. While I cannot tell you what to do, my 4 months of post op PT would have been much easier and more productive had I not had the extra weight to deal with. Additionally, recovery from back surgery contributed 27 lbs of added weight-which I’m told is quite common, steroids, limited activity, hubby getting carryout, etc.
Any way you schedule the 2 surgeries presents a challenge. Personally, if I had it to do over again I would likely prefer the order you are, WLS first. You will just have to be extra diligent in trying not to regain weight...they will likely use steroids, etc. In that sense, there’s merit in getting back surgery done first?
Big help I’ve been, eh?😏 If nothing else, I truly feel your pain. Have you talked with either surgeon about it?

I started out at 263. I was so pumped up with fluids and constipated that I did not really start losing until week 3! At 7 days, i was only down 6 lbs. I am now at month 11 and have lost exactly 100 pounds. Don’t give up hope!! Just keep doing what you’re doing and it will happen. I totally understand where you’re coming from. There have been so many times that I kept thinking that it’s not working or it has stopped working but since I’ve been sticking with my plan, the weight is still coming off.

Breath in and out. When you first have surgery, you are pumped full of fluids and all that, so you actually go up in weight. And it comes off. It all didn't come on overnight (but I know how easy a gain is, compared to a loss). My best advice - don't look at everyone else's numbers and stats, or you're going to drive yourself mad. I did that in the beginning. But everybody (emphasis on body) is different. It will work for you. You started at 250, so you may lose slower than someone who started at 450 (that's more fact). Every pound is great and when was the last time you lost 8 lbs in 13 days? That's an AMAZING accomplishment. Don't stress yourself out and keep working your program. You'll do wonderfully!! ❤️

I found that after I had lost about 60 lbs, all of a sudden all my work friends were saying "Whoa you look amazing! You've lost so much weight!" I think they had noticed, but it was around then that everyone decided to stay something. They've been consistently cheering me on since. So it's a weird thing.

@CapyCapybara I started out with similar stats as you, and it also took 40-50 lbs for anyone to say anything. Even losing 120 lbs now there have been many people who have said absolutely nothing. Agree with others, it can be an awkward subject that people don't want to bring up for a variety of reasons.
Once you have gotten to goal or close and are feeling confident, it can be sort of fascinating to watch people's reactions. There will be those who introduce themselves to you even though you have known them for years. There will be those who are like "OMG, YOU LOOK AMAZING! YOU MUST HAVE LOST 40 LBS!" (when you've actually lost 100 😂). There will be those that complement your hair or new glasses. I view it like a sociological experiment at this point.

You beat me = Right behind you. I see why you did it! Same here except about 14 years ahead of you.
Congradulations