njlimmer

Total scale Victory and Random Observations: I now have lost more than I weigh. I have lost 190 lbs. from my highest weight of 374. The first 50 was using Victoza for Type 2 diabetes. My bariatric program has my starting weight as 343. SW=325. CW=185. My program doesn’t give goal weights. For my own satisfaction, 174 would give me a normal BMI. I’d like to end about 170 knowing that some gain/loss is possible as things settle. I’m 5’10”. I have gone from a size 30/32 to a 14. I haven’t been this size since early high school. I look forward to doing things rather than dreading them. I’ve been off all diabetes meds since surgery. I am still using my CPAP although I’ve had the pressure lowered twice. I see the sleep program in December and we will re-evaluate then. I suspect I will still have a need for it. My cholesterol medication will be re-evaluated in December as well. My doctor thinks it likely I will remain on that med due to family history. That is the only medication I take other than my Vitamins and supplements.
I track in LoseIt. I track every bite, every day. It keeps me accountable to myself and I foresee it as something I will need to do forever. Today is the first time I ever exported my progress to a spreadsheet. On other groups, I see so many questions that ask how much someone has lost at a given point. I honestly never knew what I did. These are my totals lost from first to current month: 16, 19, 17, 15, 15, 18, 4, 9, 17, 10. I exceed my liquid goals every day and never tracked that after the first week. I’ve never had any trouble with liquids and I know roughly what I drink each day as I know what my mug holds. I also ran my macros for the first time. Since surgery, I’ve kept Protein to 40-50% of my diet with fat and carbs 25-30%. I’m still at 800-1000 calories per day. My program has said that is relatively low at this point but as long as I am losing and not feeling hungry, it was fine. My hunger has not returned. I am grateful for that.
I’ve tried to build successful habits that will serve me for the long haul. I’ve been walking since coming home from the hospital. I started at 5-10 minutes per day. Now, I try to walk 45-60 per day at a moderate pace. I use 5 lb. weights and do toning exercises for 10-15 min. most days. I’ve started seeing virtually a therapist recommended by my program. I don’t have a history of trauma or eating disorders but I didn’t get to my weight by having a healthy relationship with food. Plus, I was very moody and short-tempered following surgery.
I feel great and have more energy than I have in years. But This. Is. Work. I’m ok with that and try to keep my focus on progress and health. I follow what my program suggests and make my own decisions within that framework. There is no short cut to this. There’s no pouch reset, fasting, diet pills and how soon can I eat at McDonalds. I ranted on here one time about hating the word “pouch.” I still do. I hate pouch reset even more. 🙄😫 I don’t believe in it. We don’t need to reset. We need to make the best decisions and choices we can without needing to be perfect. Sure, you lose weight with it, but it’s simply because you are going back to not taking in many calories….and most of us have been down that road before.
I continue to absorb the wisdom I get here from those who have gone down this road before me or are on it now. I still hate shopping even though it is not as difficult as it once was. I’m still not sure who I see in the mirror and am uncomfortable with focus on my weight loss. I could eventually benefit from plastic surgery, but I don’t know if that will be in the cards. Enough for now……thanks for reading.

I had my Interstim (bladder pacemaker) removed yesterday. Most all of my weight was in my belly and breasts, by losing the weight my urgency is manageable. Not to mention the Interstim was becoming painful due to the weight loss when sitting down.

I would do the gastric bypass again, no doubt! I should have done it earlier. ☺️

I just noticed this this morning lying in bed! I was confused for a second.

I’m a month post op and I can see my girl parts again from my stomach shrinking… Hey there hey

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

I had a vein procedure done and they had to remeasure me for compression socks since my first pair were from 120lbs ago... I am now an AVERAGE size!!!

-jumped right up on the tailgate of the truck today!
-fit in the space between the stairs and the wall in the barn to chase baby chicks. Always had to call the kids before.
-RAN from spot to spot at my son’s cross country meet
-couldn’t move a heavy piece of furniture that I’ve always moved by using my weight. Just stood there confused until I figured out the why.....then I started grinning.

So I have experienced some good NSV's like many of you during these past few months. Stuff like fitting in restaurant booths better, fitting clothes better, not having to worry so much about weight limits on certain things, the car seatbelt not making that dreaded sound cause it was pulled out too far.........lol.......etc. But this weekend I had something else happen that took me by surprise.
So since surgery on May 19th I lost 62 lbs and since March the total is 81 lbsl! Even though those numbers sound good and I can see some changes in me, whenever my husband says stuff like, "Wow, I can't believe how thin you've gotten!" etc. I always reply with how I don't see it and how I still have lots to go. He always says I don't give myself enough credit, etc.
Anyway, this weekend we were out and about and we decided to stop and have lunch and as I approached the restaurant door, I was taken aback by the figure/person I saw in the reflection. It was almost as if I didn't recognize myself for a split second. It was strange. I usually wear my old baggy clothes still but this day I decided to wear leggins that actually fit and were NOT baggy, I had my heel boots on, a nice sweater, etc. I was feeling really good about myself.
Well, the next day we were out again visiting a lake/park. This particular lake has different boat rentals like kayaks, canoes, etc. Things I could never do cause of my weight. So we went inside to inquire and, low and behold, I was actually UNDER the weight limit!!! I was so happy I could barely contain my excitement!! So we walked outside, me in front of my husband, and he again commented on my weight loss and how I've been looking and so I told him to take a few full body pics of me so that I could see what he sees. He took one of the front and back. Now, taking a photo of my whole body has always been a HUGE NO NO and everyone knows it so I was scared to see the results. Well when I looked at the pictures I actually burst into tears!!! It was such an unexpected reaction from me that it caught us both off guard. My husband was asking and hoping they were tears of happiness and I told him YES! That it was the first time in decades that I could actually stomach seeing a photo of myself that I was Ok with.
I cried some more and hubby comforted me and told me how proud he was of how well I was doing and how happy he was that the surgery was finally helping me lose weight when so many things I tried never did. He said he was happy I was getting healthy, that I was off some medication, and my labs were coming back great. He also reaffirmed that my weight was NEVER an issue for him and that he loved me always, no matter how big or small I am and I told him that I always knew that but that it was always an issue for me. Which is why I had the surgery.
I guess it was the combo of the catching a glimpse of myself in the reflection, the better fitting clothes, learning I can now kayak and then seeing myself in the photos that it just really hit me. I have a ways to go still, like I always tell him, but I am FINALLY starting to feel happy with what I am seeing. It feels really good!!

Love that sweater dress! Amazing job!

I have a tough time finding before photos. I never wanted my photos taken ever…
tnis was one of me not even at my heaviest…. I had actually lost a good amount of weight in the striped shirt photo…
and then another of me now.
before: size 26/28 now: size 16 and going down
before size 44 G bras now: size 38DD
most of the change is in how I feel.. I was walking with a cane and was wheelchair bound. Now I can walk without problems

I echo the need for a long cord. The plug is typically on the wall behind the bed so there's a pretty big gap if you want it plugged in while you're on it.

You want to make sure your stay hydrated if nothing else because dehydration = constipation and if you're already constipated, that'll just make it worse.

Hi everybody,

Sorry I didn’t update sooner, I had a little bit of a harrowing experience. But... it’s done!!! The surgery is done!!!!

Friday morning I was the second surgery of the day. While I was in pre-op I heard the nurse telling another nurse that they were diverting the rest of the days surgeries because of no more beds. I barely eeked through. And my heart goes out to those who were canceled on, I know that devastation and anguish.

I woke up from a fairly quick surgery in a TON of pain. I had spine surgery this year, I had sterilization surgery last year, I’ve had meningitis, broken multiple bones and I’ve birthed two babies. This easily hurt more than all of that. I had iv pain management for about the first 12 hours, then was switched to oral tyelenol and norco. The second day, they noticed that my heart rate would spike every time I stood up and my blood pressure was dropping and they determined that I had a staple-line bleed. So, I needed a blood transfusion and they stopped the blood thinners that they give you to prevent clots and started me on vit k. Right around this time I started dry heaving (I had been nauseous since waking up), and I spent the entire night trying to vomit up whatever wasn’t actually in my stomach. The next day was better. My surgeon discontinued the norco because he wanted things to get moving and I was refusing oral tyelenol because I didn’t want to throw up. Even with absolutely no pain meds on board, the pain was SOOOOOOOOO much better. I was able to start eating my 1 oz portions. They kept me one more day because all of that blood that I bled had started to “pass”, don’t ask 🤢 and they wanted to check another blood count the next day. So this afternoon, after four nights in the hospital I got to come home!!!

So, it was NOT an easy process, but I would absolutely do it all again. Now I’m just settling down to recover, hydrate, and learn a whole new relationship with food.

I echo the need for a long cord. The plug is typically on the wall behind the bed so there's a pretty big gap if you want it plugged in while you're on it.

Did it happen??? I feel like this is a cliffhanger!

I echo the need for a long cord. The plug is typically on the wall behind the bed so there's a pretty big gap if you want it plugged in while you're on it.

I posted back in August about my surgery getting canceled because of a covid surge in my area. I was devastated and facing losing my insurance. As luck would have it, I got to keep my insurance another month and was rescheduled for tomorrow. I have been trying really hard not to get my hopes up, but I just had my pre-op appointment and so far everything is a go. I’m crossing every appendage I have that tomorrow goes off without a hitch. I’m supposed to check in at the hospital at 10 am.

Yesterday was the 5th anniversary of my sleeve surgery. I am so glad I did this, and wish I'd done it years ago! It hasn't been without struggles, and I had hiatal hernia surgery in June 2021 because my sleeve had "slipped" up into my chest cavity. Still... all is good, I am SO MUCH BETTER since having the hernia repair, and I have kept all my weight off. I am just happy, and want to say to those with doubts... YOU CAN DO THIS!!

I’ll just say I had a wonderful time and my worries were for nothing ❤️

I have BCBS of TX and I paid my out of pocket of $2400 and the rest of covered. It's nice having my out of pocket met, and I'll be having some other things done next month to take advantage of it. My insurance only needed a month, but since I needed it around spring break and I started in the fall, I decided to stretch it out to 6 mos but that was my choice.
Every insurance is different even with the same company - I think it depends on what your employer included in the package so you should definitely call your insurance and just ask if it's covered and what they require.