STLoser

I had my yearly pulmonologist appt. the other day. I've been seeing him for about 10 years, since I got diagnosed with asthma. I had suspected I had it for a long time before that, but when I got up to almost 400 pounds it got a lot worse. That year I was sick 10 months out of the year. It was awful.
Well, at this appointment the other day he said my lung function is better than normal for a woman my age (51). Like, WAY better than normal, and he doesn't need to see me anymore unless I have a problem. He also took me off my controlling inhaler with the long acting brochodilator in it and put me on a regular one that is just a steroid. I had originally had to go on the one with the brochodilator because we couldn't get my asthma under control with just a steroid.
Actually, I love this doctor and he's the best doctor I've ever had so I will miss him, but I'm so happy. I NEVER knew the impact my weight was having on my ashtma until I lost the weight. I just can't believe how much better I feel. I can't believe after struggling to get it under control for a long time, now it's like I don't even have asthma. It's amazing!

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I had my yearly pulmonologist appt. the other day. I've been seeing him for about 10 years, since I got diagnosed with asthma. I had suspected I had it for a long time before that, but when I got up to almost 400 pounds it got a lot worse. That year I was sick 10 months out of the year. It was awful.
Well, at this appointment the other day he said my lung function is better than normal for a woman my age (51). Like, WAY better than normal, and he doesn't need to see me anymore unless I have a problem. He also took me off my controlling inhaler with the long acting brochodilator in it and put me on a regular one that is just a steroid. I had originally had to go on the one with the brochodilator because we couldn't get my asthma under control with just a steroid.
Actually, I love this doctor and he's the best doctor I've ever had so I will miss him, but I'm so happy. I NEVER knew the impact my weight was having on my ashtma until I lost the weight. I just can't believe how much better I feel. I can't believe after struggling to get it under control for a long time, now it's like I don't even have asthma. It's amazing!

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

Edited to add: Oopsies, OP was asking about RNY…i was sleeved. My response anyway:

4 years out next month.
On average I can eat about a cup of food (solids) in volume at one sitting comfortably. More if its salad or chips, less if its meat or fluffy bread. I can drink seemingly endless amounts of liquids (so long as i dont eat anything solid before or during).
This is quite a bit more that I was able to tolerate comfortably in the first year or so (i ate very little at a time…i was a grazer by necessity…ate a few bites and i was done for a couple hours)
But compared to how much I ate pre-surgery, i would say I eat about 1/4 of what i used to eat at a sitting pre-wls.
I aim to eat to a point just before my full feeling, cuz i know from experience that reaching that full feeling is uncomfortable and i just prefer not to be.

I have about the same restriction as I did about 6 months post-op, 19 years ago.
There are meals when I can only eat a bite or three, others when I am able to eat my (small) portion completely. I rarely push the actual limits of my pouch. Rarely being vacations with some gourmet meals and even then not every time, it has to be something extraordinary.
I don't think my experience is the norm but I am happy with it, usually.
Good luck,
Tek

I probably eat about half as much as I did pre-surgery. I could do a small turkey wrap (or half a large one) and maybe a side dish for sure.
raw carrots can be hard on my stomach. In fact, I sometimes eat some of them when I'm at risk of binging on something. They tend to irritate my stomach, so it stops a binge in its tracks (usually....). Long way of saying - raw vegetables like that can still irritate our stomachs even after being years out - so that's not uncommon...
I tend to go more by calories now, since I still count them. Pre-surgery, I was probably eating 3000+. Now I eat somewhere between 1600-2000, depending on how much exercising i'm doing. On holidays I've been known to eat more than that - 2300 or so - but eating that much makes me feel like i just ate an elephant, and I feel like crap that day and the next. 2300 would have been nothing when I weighed over 300 lbs.
P.S. yes - I sometimes do feel restriction - but not like I did the first few weeks & months after surgery.

+1
Last year I consciously upped my arbitrary “red-line” weight by a 5 measly pounds. Its made a difference: i find i don’t have to do “reign-ins” anymore when i start to approach it, because i just don’t with a higher number.
So thats just one less thing to worry about.
AND, in my opinion (which is really all that matters), i still look and feel fabulous lol.
Win-win.
P.S. but I totally get it, i went through a short period of panic/anxiety in the immediate months of maintenance. As time goes by, hopefully you’ll learn to trust yourself and accept things as they are, or change them if desired, and know when to do either (yeah, i ripped that off of some invocation, lol)
Good Luck! ❤️

I'm very late to the party but this struck a chord:
What if a good deal of these people gained weight back not because they stopped "watching it" but because they burned out "watching it"?
I don't know what number you're referring to when you say that "the weight starts to creep up". 1 kg? 2 kg? 5 kg? More? From what I can see you're at a BMI of 25.
At some point you might have to ask yourself if the (often) tremendous additional effort necessary to weigh maybe 3 or 4 kg less is really worth it. Life might be more relaxed when you accept a slightly higher weight. Especially when you weigh that against burnout.
Would I like to have some % BF less to get more muscle definition? Yes, I would. I like that look. However, I don't want to experience nagging anxiety over the question if I should eat that additional banana or not. I also don't want to have a near-panic attack when something gets in the way of my workout regiment.
I decided that's not worth it. You (or someone else) might decide differently though.

I finally did get fillers about 4 weeks ago. Found a cosmetic physician with almost 20yrs experience & had a long conversation about the concern with my allergy. I felt very confident with her so we went slowly - 1ml one week & a 2nd ml the next. She filled the two depressions in front of my ears which were almost void of fat. Happy with what she did. Very subtle. In fact no one has noticed except if I point it out which is what I wanted.

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!!!

Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

Now, I must say, I'm still 250 pounds, so I have at least 60 or 70 pounds to go to get to goal and actually more than that to not be considered overweight for my height, but I was almost 400 pounds, so this a huge difference and I'm feeling amazing.
My wedding dress is a size 24. I got married in 2006, and I have not been able to fit into it since 2010. It is now too big! I had to get something notarized the other day and when I got out my driver's license I noticed my weight said 350 and realized I am 100 pounds less than that weight now, which was a lie anyway. Lol That is an amazing feeling. I have never, ever weighed less than what my drivers license said. Even back when I weighed around 150 I never thought I was thin enough and always lied. When I renew it, I will tell the truth, because I accept myself now at any weight. It's been a long journey to get to that point.
I got a new dress the other day and thought it needed a belt and the only one I had was from my highest weight and I can wrap it around me twice. It's crazy!
This might be dumb, and maybe tmi for some, but my belly was so big before I couldn't use a squatty potty, and now I can. I just bought one and it really helps with my Constipation. Lol



Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

Rewards for weight loss? 🤔
The weight loss is the reward.

How much is from pre existing conditions? Or hadn’t been picked up previously like the dentist who said his x rays are more detailed now. If we’re honest for many of us our diet before surgery wasn’t the best & potential for dental issues as a result is great. (The stats on children who drink lots of soda & tooth decay is frightening.) And many don’t regularly see their dentist for many reasons.
Genetics is a big factor. My brother has never had a filling in his life. He’s 52 & also obese (always battled with his weight just like I did). His dentist tells him he’d go broke if every patient was like my brother.
Acid from reflux or gerd will cause damage to the tooth enamel not fillings. I was diagnosed with reflux more than 20yrs ago admittedly not a severe case & I managed a lot of it with dietary changes. Mind you I know I experienced reflux symptoms from a teenager so 40 odd years ago. I often get my dentist to check extra carefully for any acid damage & none has been found yet though he did say I had a little wear recently but said it was more like what occurs with age. (Yeah that made me feel great.) If you do have issues with reflux & gerd you need to speak with your doctor or surgeon.
I think you need to find a new dentist @Erin18. One who is reliable.
I immediately thought of the Dr Who episode too (Partners in Crime) with the space babies formed from human fat @Nepenthe44. Remember thinking when I first saw it if only those Adipose pills were real. 😆😆

I considered wls for many, many years, but never seriously. When I was a new RN in 1997, it was fairly new and I saw people die from it, so I was always scared of it. I also never had insurance that concerned it, so I knew I'd have to pay out of pocket, and I was overall healthy, so I figured I could do it on my own. I had my son in 2010, and that's when I really started to gain a lot of weight. I had done WW before I got pregnant and had lost 45. I was down to 263. After he was born, the weight started piling on. I was sick all the time and got diagnosed with asthma. I was in pain all the time. My liver enzymes increased slowly year by year, until 2020 when my doctor decided I needed to see a liver specialist. That same January, I had my gallbladder removed and that surgeon offered to biopsy my liver and it showed Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis, with hepatic fibrosis. As a nurse I had seen people die of liver failure and it is awful. This scared me to death. That surgeon recommended wls, and he was one of the only doctors who had ever acted compassionate and non-judgmental about my weight. He told me I had very little chance of losing it and keeping it off on my own. I took his advice and made an appt. That day with a bariatric surgeon. I saw him in March and he recommend gastric bypass. I started getting the required testing and had just had my EGD when the hospital decided to let a bunch of staff go due to COVID. That surgeon was one of them. I decided to go to a different hospital and surgeon and this one recommended Loop DS. I had not heard of it, but he said I was a perfect candidate with a BMI of 69.9 and since I was paying for it myself, as it was a newer procedure that insurance didn't usually cover. I researched it and decided to go with it.
My high weight was 393 pounds. I am 5'3". I was 368.8 on the day of my surgery, July 23, 2020. As of today I am 226.4. I never thought I'd be even close to this weight again. I am hoping to lose at least 200 pounds total. I am getting close.
I was close to borderline diabetic, had just been diagnosed with hypertension, and had liver disease. I could barely get around or keep up with my active 10 year old son. My hypertension is gone, my blood glucose is normal, and my liver enzymes are now normal, so I have reversed my fatty liver disease. I turn 50 on August 2nd and this will be the best birthday ever! I am so happy I had this surgery!
I can't get my befores to post right now but I'll put them here once I do. Here is me today.  
Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I can totally relate to a lot of this. I was 48 when I had surgery 2 years ago and did not look my age. I have also lost over 200 pounds. Now I definitely look my age or older and I don't recognize myself sometimes. I did not have wrinkles before and now I do. That bugs me. But I just try to remind myself why I did this, and it was to get my life and health back. I do have energy now, so I'm lucky there. I probably have a more relaxed eating approach than a lot of people. I do not believe in good or bad foods. I have no forbidden foods. I pretty much eat what I want. Luckily, even before I did this, I preferred healthy foods like veggies and did not like things like fast food or fried food. I am proof you can be fat on healthy food. Too much of a good thing is still too much. I have "junk" like ice cream when I want it. Like, I am not a chocolate person except during PMS, and then it's like I NEED it and I have some. I just keep my portions of everything much more reasonable now.
I do track food just to make sure I get my Protein and keep my carbs reasonable but I'm not completely militant either. It certainly can be exhausting tracking everything, but I can't promise that I track every single taste. I just make sure to track all my meals and Snacks. For 2 years, this has worked for me. I have eaten this way the whole time. If something changes, I will adjust, but for now it's working. I just started maintenance so we will see how that goes.
I am lucky that I don't work at the moment. I am an RN, but when my son was born I stayed home with him (11.5 years ago! [emoji15]) and I've been planning to go back but something always happened to keep me home. I really do plan to get another job soon.
I know what you mean about work t extra hard as a fat person. I always felt like I wanted people to see that I wasn't lazy just because I was fat, because all fat people aren't lazy! It will be nice not having to worry about that when I go back. I became a nurse in 1997, and I was fat the whole time I worked, so that will be a first.
I do live in fear every day of gaining all my weight back, but I hope that if I keep eating like I'm eating I will be OK. That is all I can do.
When I look at all the loose skin, it can be discouraging sometimes. It's really bad on my arms and legs, but I know how hard I have worked to lose weight and even if I didn't have a weight problem, skin does tend to sag as you get older, and I am going to be 51 in 2 weeks. I would love to have it all removed, but it's just not in the budget right now since I paid out of pocket for my surgery. Maybe it will be when I get a job, but I refuse to be ashamed of my body. I'm proud that it carried me through being so morbidly obese for so long and it's still here carrying me. It has put up with a lot of stress and it has been strong for all of it. I'm definitely weaker than I was but I'm working on strength training now.
I know I'm rambling here but I just want to say you're not alone in your feelings.
You have accomplished so much. Just try to remember that!

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

This is sort of weird, but today I had an appointment with the surgeon who started me on this whole path. Years ago I went to him for an umbilical hernia, but it was small and not painful, so nothing needed to be done. Last year in January, I went back to him to have my gallbladder removed and mentioned that I had been having elevated liver enzymes for a while and would be seeing a specialist. He biopsied my liver when he took out the gallbladder. At my follow up, he said my liver was really bad (NASH, hepatic fibrosis), and recommended wls. He told me he couldn't see me living past 60 if I stayed that way, at 393 pounds. So I took his advice and had my Loop DS in July. Last week I had severe stomach pain and nausea and dry heaves, and would have vomited if my stomach wasn't empty at the time and I almost fainted, but was able to lay down in time to stop that. I've fainted before so I knew what was coming and was able to avoid it. The pain in my stomach was severe and then I noticed the hernia was big and sticking out and I couldn't push it back in and realized it might be the source of the pain. Anyway, I saw the surgeon today and he said the hernia was originally fat, but since I've lost so much weight,(148 so far), it is now intestine and the pain was because intestine got caught in the hole, and later when I laid down the intestines fell back through the hole and the pain got better.
Anyway, sorry this is long, but now I have to get this hernia repaired, but I got to show off my weight loss to that surgeon that recommended it, and he was so happy for me. It was a great feeling!
He is the trauma surgeon in the ER where my best friend works, and he saw her after my appointment and told her he didn't even recognize me!
It's just a wonderful feeling!

Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

Oh YEAH! These are great ones. And this makes me think of how some things happen that I don't even realize. Like, you just made me realize I don't have to roll over in bed in stages anymore!
So many things are happening, and there was so much I had grown accustomed to and now that it's gone sometimes I don't even realize it!
That in and of itself is a big NSV!

Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

Well, it is not weird but definitely a NSV.
Yesterday I went through my clothes for the 6th time!
I have now donated 10 trash bags of clothes!!! 🤯
I am in a 16/18 from a 24/26, and officially in my smallest size of stashed "skinny clothes".

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I was in costco the other day. I don't know if this counts as a NSV but it was interesting to me. They had Protein Powder on sale and I was looking at it and it was a different version of my usual brand (Orgain) but way cheaper and I said "I wonder how this one tastes" to my husband. Another lady told me they had samples and we got to talking and I said I usually use this brand but a different version and then she was asking me questions about it and I was giving her advice on where I get the other version, how I use it, etc.
I just think it's funny that someone would talk to me about nutrition without batting an eye, not knowing that I ever weighed almost 400 pounds. It feels good but at the same time weird, because I actually was just as into health and nutrition then, I just never could eat small enough portions. I could have given the same advice 2 years ago, but no one would have asked me or believed I could know anything.
Now, I look the part.
I'm glad people aren't able to look at me and assume all the bad things they probably did before I lost weight, but it's sad too. I'm the same person.

Sent from my Pixel 5a using BariatricPal mobile app

I ordered some boots that come up to mid calf (normal width) and they FIT! Like a glove!! 🥹

Just had to reset my phone Face ID….