Suzi_the_Q

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

It all sorted itself out. Guess it was just my body healing?

No matter how small your pouch/sleeve/stomach is, it stretches when there is food in it and contracts when there is no food in it. Also, liquids go right through it. Also, restriction is strongest in the first year. It's up to you to limit what you eat to ensure you do not regain weight. For example, it's possible to gain weight if you are "grazing" all day. Like, your smaller stomach will only accommodate a small amount of food in 30 minutes, but it will start to pass through, and if you are eating all day long, you will end up eating more calories over the course of the day than your body needs and you will gain weight. That's why it's best to have 3 small meals along with 2-3 small Snacks. Also, drinking liquids with your meals may "push" the food through and allow you to eat more that you need, that's why they recommend you wait 30 minutes after eating to drink. I would recommend finding a bariatric nutritionist in your new state, or ask your old surgeon to recommend someone you can see to find an appropriate eating plan/number of calories per day.

FWIW, I'm Bi and coming out in the 90s was a b***h. I've never examined particularly how this has affected my weight/ body issues throughout my life, but then my ACE score is pretty high. I'd be happy to have a LGBTQIA-specific forum, similar to "the Gals' room" or The Guys' room," I think it could only help more people have a place to ask questions or rant on topics particular to us. Generally this page is more of a "everyone in the same boat of WLS" place, all are welcome though. I'm sorry that this has been a chilly reception for you, I haven't found it to be so, generally. Most everyone here is pretty nice.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

One of my best friends is getting WLS (sleeve)! She has some health issues that would be reduced a bit with weight loss and hearing me go through it, (we're in different states), she was inspired to do it! I'm so happy for her and she's making a great choice for her health! She'll be getting it in about 5 weeks. We're pretty close in BMI, so we've decided to be plastic surgery buddies and go to the Dominican Republic together in about 1.5 years. Knowing that she's doing this too is really helping me get back on track now that my stomach has healed and I don't get sick (much) anymore. (I was kinda in a slump for a bit there.) Plus, I just got this new squat machine that really kicks my ass (and my thighs and core haha!) ALSO- yesterday, for the first time in YEARS I was able to walk 8 blocks- And stand at a counter in between for about 5-10 minutes- WITHOUT HAVING TO SIT!!! Seems trivial, but I have major back injuries/ chronic pain issues (which is how I got fat- doctors refuse to prescribe medicine needed for pain management = being nearly bedridden). Months ago I could only be on my feet for about 5 minutes before I had to sit because of the pain in my back. Things are looking up!

I wouldn't smoke after surgery. Just due to coughing and it putting the risk of damaging your suture/staples/incisions inside and out. Try doing tinctures for now or if you want to smoke, just dont inhale deeply or hold it in long enough to make you cough. One thing I have found that works EXTREMELY well is Delta8 CBD vape. No cough. Takes just a little. Get it at most any vape shop and same effects. They do cause munchies though. So watch out for that.

Yes. A Tummy Tuck, arm lift, breast lift & augmentation.

Best to ask your doc. No one here knows what's safe for your specific medical history. Hope you feel better!

UCLA is excellent.
Having surgery will not solve a lifelong issue with obesity. It won't fix your relationship with food, and every single surgery can fail and you can eat yourself fat again if you don't address your past relationship with food and make the needed changes.
Cutting out your stomach doesn't fix your brain. But it really can help you to work on your behavior, your choices and your future eating habits.
Expect to work harder than you ever have, and use a clinic that works closely with therapists who can help you along in the process.
Beware clinics that make it sound like a quick fix. It isn't.

Did you diet for one month before May 5? Otherwise, you need an appointment in August. You will have dieted in May, June and July, so you will need to go in at the beginning of August for your final weigh-in.

yes - maintenance is/was new to me as well. Prior to surgery, all I ever did was gain and lose weight.
I give myself an acceptable range, knowing that fluctuation is normal (because of Water levels, how full your intestines are at any given point, hormones, etc). So having maybe a six lb or so acceptable range is good. The high end of that is my drop dead level - the point at which if I go over it, it's all hands on deck until I back comfortably within the range again.

Congratulations on losing your re-gain. I can't really offer any suggestions since I haven't even had surgery yet, but I know that some people increase by 100 calories every few weeks till they stop loosing.

So the beginning of my 12th week I started having pain in my right side. It would not get better. Saturday morning I called my doctor and she said let's do a quick test and see what's going on. I show up at the hospital and they admitted me immediately. I was surprised by that. They did blood work a CAT scan and ultrasounds. The blood work came back immediately with my potassium at 3.0. I don't know a lot about that kind of stuff but I learned that anything 3.6 and under you are admitted for. Apparently you can have a heart attack. My kidneys were at stage 2 failure shutting down from dehydration low electrolytes and potassium. Hence the right side pain. So they started me on the drips and the potassium and kept me Saturday through to Sunday afternoon. By Sunday at 6:00 a.m. my kidneys looked better and my potassium was at 3.6. how did this happen That's the question. I was on blood pressure medication that also had a diuretic included in it. My doctor knew this, my doctor and I discussed this before surgery and immediately after surgery. She put me on a regular blood pressure med with no diuretic for one week after surgery and then told me to continue with the regular one with the diuretic. Why would she have done that. You're already struggling after this kind of surgery to get all your fluids in only to have a diuretic move all of them out of you quickly including all your electrolytes. So for 3 months I have been fighting a diuretic and my kidneys have been working overdrive to make up for it. I'm very angry. I live in the Central Valley in California and in this next week our temperatures will be upwards of 114°. In the hospital they told me if I hadn't come in I would have come in in an ambulance within a few days simply because of the heat and how low my potassium was. And who knows if I would have made it. I'm still tired it will take awhile for me to fully recover from this and it was completely avoidable.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

A lot more space between my tummy and the steering wheel, much roomier chairs.

Girllllll it's WAY too early to start freaking out. First off, you often GAIN anywhere between 5-15 lbs from the fluids they pump into you and swelling. That can take a couple of weeks to shake off, plus your surgery involves a lot of sutures- so again SWELLING. Secondly, your body has just been through what it perceives as a trauma; it's a whole lot of chaos as far as it's concerned and it may take a little while to get with the program you have in mind. Lastly, there's that damned 3 week stall thing... Mine came at about 2 or 2.5 weeks... and lasted more than 3 weeks from there. It was very disheartening, but it did break eventually! (And I've had smaller stalls since, I've learned to live with it.)
It's not a race, it's a marathon, and really this is a lifestyle change.
RE: when you "get to look ok"? WLS patients have a lot of body dysmorphia issues. In your mind, you may get to your goal and still not feel like that. It's something to address with a counselor, setting your expectations realistically. (I may be wrong, you may have realistic expectations but are expressing it as part of this general frustration.)
Generally, I think you are being too hard on yourself and need to be a kinder to yourself during this process. You're doing all the right things. Everyone who goes through this is afraid it won't work for them. Give it some time and keep doing what you're doing. Maybe contact your surgeon about what your expectations should be; this type of surgery is pretty new, so it may be a little different.
It'll be ok, just give it time.

I somehow missed this thread when it was first started. I just found it and enjoyed reading everyone's NSVs! I have a lot of similar ones, but here are a few of mine:
I used to have to keep the steering wheel in my car raised to make room for my belly, and it blocked my view of the clock and temperature. Now I can put it low enough to see the whole dashboard. The other day, I climbed 12 flights of stairs like it was nothing. Didn't even have to stop for a break. Amazing how easy it is without carrying a whole extra person! I used to leave a lot of extra time when going to work, meetings, etc. because walking to another building or up stairs would leave me sweaty. I used to carry around a fan and small towel so I could cool off/dry off after getting sweaty. I also liked to be super early to meetings to make sure I wouldn't have to squeeze behind someone to get to a chair. Now I can just get there on time like a normal person and not worry about any of that. I was taking a walk recently (which is crazy in itself -- I never used to just go outside and take a walk!) and I had to move off the road while a car passed, and I tripped and fell in the grass. When I was 300+ pounds, a fall like that would have hurt and it would have been hard to get up. This time, I just jumped right back up like it was nothing. I no longer dread meeting people in person for the first time as I used to when I knew they would think less of me once they found out how fat I was.

We bought this house 5 years ago. Our last house I had heavily landscaped, because I was much smaller and in better shape when I bought it it in 1999. I have barely done anything to this house and probably never would have. I could barely plant a few annuals without feeling like I was gonna have a heart attack Today i landscaped the whole front yard and I wasn't winded at all. I am so happy!!!

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Nope 😂 paint stained pants, DC fandom tshirt, goggles and face mask

I went to the big island of Hawai'i. I did a two tank dive out of Hilo then a few days later another two tank dive out of Kona.
Last time I went diving, I was probably slightly over 300lbs and I needed 26lb of lead. I'm about 60lb lighter now so in Hilo I tried 24lb - way too heavy. I dropped like a brick and had to keep a considerable amount of air in my BCD. In Kona I tried 22lbs and that was better but still a little too heavy. 20lb is probably my sweet spot right now but I am still losing so I expect that to change. I am tentatively planning a trip in November, so we'll see where I am then.
Getting in and out of the boat with all the gear on was noticeably easier too, but still no picnic!