Maisey

I am 5'10" and have always been tall and solidly built. Even in high school when I was athletic, I weighed 160-170. My HW was 374. I lost 50 lbs on my own prior to surgery and 80 since. I had RNY in December 2020. I had a follow up appointment last week and asked a question similar to yours of one of the program doctors. I asked what my goal weight was as I didn't recall ever being given one. I said I realized that to be considered normal BMI, I would have still have to lose a considerable amount. I said that while I still am actively losing, if I never lost another pound, I would consider the surgery a success given the improved health and ease of movement that I've regained. The doctor stated that my program does not give goal weights nor rigidly follow BMI guidelines as every individual is different. Improved health and wellness is what the goal is. If I ever see 199, I'll be thrilled just to say I was once again in the 100's. I can't imagine being 150-155. I don't aspire to be that just so I can be considered a success in someone's statistics. It IS my body. I am 100% working the program provided to me. Even during preparation classes, questions were answered with what the best practice is for any situation but they also addressed the questions from a realistic standpoint. Coffee and alcohol were examples: the advice was not to consume but the realization was that we make our own choices and provided suggestions on how to manage if we were to consume.

My surgeon told me to follow the guidance of my GP regarding medication. It was my GP who told me to stop taking all diabetes medication and lisinopril.

I'm 4 months post RNY and hair loss has kicked in. I hate it. My hair also seems dry. But I'm also adjusting to no longer coloring my hair and the gray is a different texture than it used to be when colored. Luckily have a a lot of thick hair and the loss is not noticeable to anyone but me. My WLS team said the same thing as Catwoman did. My GP suggested Rogaine for Women. I haven't tried it.

Lately I've seen a number of posts where people are questioning if they are too sensitive to comments and questions from others or what should be said in reply. Take this for what it's worth and it's only my opinion. YMMV. We CAN help how we feel. No feeling is automatic. What we tell ourselves in response to a situation (in this case a comment or question) creates our feelings. That self-talk results in feelings that lead to actions and then consequences, both positive and negative. If you want to change your feelings, you have to change what you tell yourself. The problem is that is hard to do. Our experiences color how we see events. Many of us have spent years telling ourselves narratives about our self-worth as it relates to our weight. I don't think it's a stretch to say most of it was negative. It takes a lot of effort and practice to change how we think. But how we think is all we really can control. Husband made a comment in response to others?? Someone commented on your weight loss?? Someone said you look so good?? Your feelings are coming from what you are telling yourself. Who knows what the intent was. Even if you did know the intent, you can't control what someone else says or does. Examine what you are telling yourself and choose a response and go from there.

I would see a doctor ASAP.

I initially thought I wanted the sleeve. I had a history of occasional GERD symptoms controlled by OTC medication. The surgeon advised bypass for that reason and others. He said if I wanted the sleeve, an endoscopy would be required first. I opted for bypass. I have been happy with my decision and have not had any GERD symptoms since surgery.

Popsicles were life savers. The crunch alone was worth it! Unjury makes some savory flavored soups--chicken and chili. There may have been others. That was a nice break from the usual sweet shakes. I also bought some canned gumbo and strained it just to get a different flavor. I made my protein shakes in the blender with fat-free Fairlife milk. It whips up completely frothy--much better than shaken or stirred protein drinks.

My surgeon suggested bypass over sleeve for me. If I chose bypass, no endoscopy was necessary. If I chose sleeve, he required one as I had a history of GERD even though it was not severe.

Last minute jitters are completely normal. But when I read what you wrote, I hear you saying you are not yet ready. If so, that's ok. Slow the process down until you are ready. This is a life-long change not to be entered into lightly. I worked through insurance so I had a several month preparation period that was lengthened by Covid. I hated the idea of it. But in hindsight, it was the best thing in the world. It gave me a chance to be absolutely certain. Take your time.

Blender of some sort and/or food processor. Measuring cups/spoons. Scale. Smaller plates/bowls. Child size spoon. 2 (or more) drink bottles. I bought the 2 oz. plastic cups with lids and never used them.

Remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. I understand your frustration. I was able to fast-track my preparation and was set to go when Covid hit. I made the decision not to proceed with any surgery as I work in a profession that had/has an extremely high potential for Covid transmission. One of the doctors in the program kept reminding me to use the time to practice eating as if I was two years after surgery. I didn't want to hear it. But it was the truth. I was thinking that she was only referring to eating the amounts I could have after surgery. In reality, having to chew thoroughly and wait to drink have been the hardest. I should have practiced that more. While I have worked the entire time during the pandemic, you will soon have the availability to travel. Keep the faith and stay mindful of your desired results. You can do this.

Unjury makes protein powder soups. They are not great, but they are not horrible.

My understanding was that this is related to PCOS. I'm not sure if weight loss alone will help if PCOS is still an issue.

I take 2 Flinstones Complete. I have also taken Centrum chewables but they have been out of stock at Walmart for several weeks now. I was told no gummy vitamins. But I was also told to take supplemental B12 and D beyond the regular vitamins. Those are chewies. I also use a chewy fiber supplement. My recent labs were all good.

I don't know if a cold infusion is the same as cold brew tea or not. I've seen both. The Twinnings cold infusion were more of whatever flavor was on the label (didn't taste alot like tea). The Biegelow tasted nothing like the listed flavors and way too much like herbal tea. I agree Hint is expensive. I found it at my local Aldi but it still isn't cheap.

I drink a ton of Crystal Light Iced Tea, or store brands. I always have and I continue to do so. It tastes good and I get my fluids in with no problem. I like some flavors of Hint Water. Have you tried cold infusions? I tried a flavor from Bigelow and hated it. I've tried Twinnings and like those. I can't say that I notice that drink mix has made me pee more.

Try Hint water. I'm a Crystal Light Iced Tea (or the store brands) fiend. It's what I drink all day, every day. I also like Twinnings Cold Infusions. I hated the Biegelow Cold infusions.

As of today, I am down 120 lbs. from my highest weight. My HW was 374 when I had my first appointment with a new endocrinologist in July 2019. My A1C was creeping up again and I was put on Victoza. I made a conscious effort beginning at that point, to maximize the weight loss side effect of the medication. I lost about 60 lbs. by the end of the year. In January 2020, my insurance began to cover WLS. I had my first appointment that month. The process of classes, doctor visits and supervised weight loss was going to take a minimum of 6 months. The insurance and program mandated everything was done through program providers. There was no option to see my local doctor or dietician. Covid slowed down my progression and I also made the choice not to rush to surgery when it first became available again. By the fall, I was ready to proceed. I managed to not gain a tremendous amount back (about 8-10 lbs.) but wanted to stop the trend. I decided to schedule surgery for right before the holidays so I could minimize the time off from work for recovery. I weighed 325 on the day of surgery on 12/14/20. Today, I am 254. Surgery was relatively easy for me. I had post-op discomfort, but no pain. I was able to tolerate and progress through food stages as expected. I’ve not been hungry or overly full since surgery. I do experience old, bad habits trying to creep in at times. I know that is always going to be the case. Surgery did not eliminate my want for food nor the thought of how nice it would be to eat large quantities again. That will also be an on-going battle. The hardest daily thing for me is not to eat and drink at the same time and then to wait until time has passed before I drink again. Eating slowly and thoroughly chewing has been a challenge (with sometimes painful reminders) but I am gradually getting more mindful. I feel better than I have in years. I don’t remember the last time I weighed 250. I would like to get to 180 but don’t know if that is achievable or realistic to maintain. We’ll see. I’m tall so that weight would put me just slightly over normal weight. I recently had 3 month labs run. Everything was normal and my T2 diabetes is currently in remission. I stopped all diabetes meds the day of surgery. The pressure was lowered on my CPAP but there is still a need for it. I’m not done. Even if I never lost another pound, I’m happy with the changes and the regaining of health. One of my primary motivators was the desire to not lose mobility. I’m fortunate that I’ve never had any issues with mobility but I could see the writing on the wall if I stayed the way I was or continued to gain. I did not want to have to participate in any of the pre-surgery preparation. I just wanted to have surgery and be done. I thought I knew all there was to know. And while I did know a lot going in, I really did learn things and have benefitted from listening and following the plan provided. I did not want to weigh, measure or track my food. But I did (and continue to) and it’s paying off. I’m troubled sometimes by questions that I read on this board and it leads me to wonder about the quality (or lack of) preparation that other programs offer. It makes me grateful that for once, I listened and learned. What I take away from this board is the wisdom and experience of others who are going through the WLS process now and those veterans who share strategies that have helped. I try remember that everyone’s experiences are slightly different but I still look for common themes (same process I use when I read vacation/resort reviews).

Coffee with fat-free half and half. I drink my protein shake on the drive to work.

I absolutely did. Light mayo or greek yogurt=plain chicken salad. Taco seasoning=Mexican. Curry powder=Asian. Chicken bullion powder=chicken and gravy. Cajun seasoning=Jambalaya. No sugar added tomato sauce+garlic+onion+oregano=Italian. Obviously, I ate a LOT of chicken. But changing it up all the time made the chopped chicken or puree tolerable. PS-Try Everything bagel seasoning or guacamole seasoning too.

On work nights, I usually don't eat after supper. On weekends, I now have sugar free popsicles. I love them too.

I ate a lot of chicken in the early stages. I baked the chicken breast and then ran it through the food processor to get the consistency I wanted and needed. The variety came from how I seasoned it. Comfort food=a "sauce" of thickened chicken bullion and a tiny bit of mashed potato. Mexican=taco seasoning+plain yogurt in place of sour cream. Italian=a little red sauce plus mozzarella or parmesan. Other options included soy or teryaki sauce or Cajun seasoning. I think you get the idea. I was able to satisfy my taste buds. When I first started preparation for WLS, I was of the mindset that I was not going to weigh food or track intake. Although I already had a pretty good idea of what portion sizes were supposed to look like, tracking and weighing have made a huge improvement in making sure I'm getting the suggested amounts of food. I use Lose It for tracking. The basic version is free and used it for months. I upgraded to premium during a sale but I don't really use the extra features. I think you'll get many opinions on what people choose to use. It's just a matter of what you like.

My surgeon advocated for bypass over the sleeve due to my being menopausal (among other reasons). He said age and hormones definitely impact weight loss.

Mswillis5–I think you described it well. My machine was pushing more air than I needed. But I still need some air.

I don't expect I will get rid of my sleep apnea as I snored even before I was really heavy. I didn't want to admit it, but I'm sure even then, it was sleep apnea and not just snoring. I finally sought treatment for it about 4 years ago. It made a huge difference in my quality of sleep and overall well-being. I thought I would have an extremely difficult adjusting to sleeping with the mask. Through trial and error, I found one that works perfectly for me. It turned out not what I expected I would like best. I'm down a total of 110 lbs. from my highest weight, with 65 of that since surgery in December. I didn't notice any difference in apnea after losing the first 50. After the losing the next 35, I contacted the provider with my updated weight-loss info and described the changes in how I thought I was breathing with the machine. She was able to run my statistics remotely just like they do when the monitor for usage and compliance. It shows up on my myChart as a sleep study. The pressure was lowered after that.