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It can be part of a whole negative feedback loop. You’re depressed, spend more time in bed or on the couch or self soothing with food, so gain weight, which makes you feel worse about yourself so you isolate more. There’s a big study out of the UK that says the initial prescription for depression should be physical activity rather than medication (although meds are often necessary). It doesn’t have to be rigorous exercise, just getting out for a daily walk is a great start, or even just gentle stretching. (I’m a psych nurse)

I have bipolar disorder and WLS hasn’t really decreased the frequency or changed my severe depressive episodes but losing weight has certainly made me happier on regular days. I get out more and am able to enjoy things more outside of those episodes because I feel better about Myself (more comfortable in my own skin). As a result I feel even better at the end of the day having accomplished things. I agree that exercise helps with depression and if you are really depressed even getting outside and just sitting there helps some. They actually make lamps to simulate the sun for treatment of depression and SAD. Yoga Is a great idea.

Many people think they are a "slow loser" but in fact they just have unrealistic expectations from shows like My 600 Lb Life, which features people who lose "fast" because they are much bigger than your average WLS patient. You may still be a slow loser; I can't tell how much of your 33 lb weight loss was before surgery, but I lost about 9 lbs on average per month for the first 6 months after surgery, and my surgery center said I was doing great!
Try to focus on things you can control, like eating and drinking and exercising the way your surgery center recommended, and don't worry about the scale. You might also focus on how your clothes fit or other "non-scale victories".
You might also consider reaching out to your surgery center to make sure you're on track, and consider seeing a bariatric therapist.
Good luck!

I had my surgery postponed in March just two days before it was scheduled (positive Covid test). It was devastating. I've literally never been more depressed in my life than I was during that period. The mental prep for the surgery day was hard and I had finally gotten myself to the point where was 100% ready to go. To have it taken away destroyed me for a while. My new dates is almost here - surgery on Tuesday. I'm once again 100% ready.
I think what you feel is normal. And I think you'll come back strong.

a week is nothing, really. Lots of people on here had theirs postponed for months because of COVID. That week should go by quickly...

So I just got the call today that my surgery was going to have to be postponed a week due to the surgeons availability/schedule. Instead of July 6th, it will be July 14th.
I didn't realize I was so attached to the original date. I'm sitting here silently crying because it got moved a week. When I was speaking to the scheduler on the phone, I literally felt my stomach drop when she said it. Instant depression.
Can one grieve a literal DATE for something like a surgery??? I'm all kinda in my emotions and it feels really weird because of the reason why. For anyone who might have experienced a postponement - is this normal?

This is what i take... You will need to experiment and see what works for you because for many of us Vitamins cause us to be very nauseous. For most its the Iron in the Multivitamin so some may do better with a lower dose of iron in it. Also making sure to have food in your stomach.

I take these once a day. once in a while it will make me nauseous. but overall no big issues.

Get in touch with your surgeon to make sure everything is ok. Nausea isn’t uncommon & many are prescribed anti nausea meds to begin. Plus your tummy can be pretty sensitive for a while as it’s healing. And Multi Vitamins can make you nauseous & because you’re not able to eat much there wouldn’t be much in your tummy to help soften the effects of the Vitamins. This all improves but it can be frustrating & demoralising.
Once you’re able to eat more you’ll feel a lot better too with more energy.
All the best.

I eat desserts out (part of a dessert, mostly on vacations) but I don't bake at this stage (9 months out). I used to bake as a reaction to stress, which means that if I were stress baking, I'd likely be stress eating, too. I live alone but during the pandemic used to bake loads of bread and sweets for my town. I gained 20 lbs just from the amount that I didn't give away! Granted, this was before surgery, but I know that I can eat sweets too easily even now, and I don't want to have that stuff around even while I'm getting it ready to give away.
It's okay not to bake. There are plenty of ways to show your family your love that don't involve food, and this will set them up for better habits anyway.

Update: I found a recipe for no sugar added Breakfast Cookies. They have oatmeal, natural Peanut Butter, bananas, raisins or sugar-free chocolate chips, etc. With Protein powder added, they are not too bad for 2 cookies. And they smell wonderful coming out of the oven, which I think is the emotional aspect being satisfied. If I don’t use artificial sweeteners, my Littles can eat them, too!

the food aversion isn't uncommon - that goes away over time.
I agree with Arabesque that it could be a stricture. They happen to about 5% of bypass patients (can also happen in sleeve patients, although it's much less common) and you're in the right window for it - they almost always occur 1-3 months after surgery. I'm really shocked your surgeon's office would respond the way they did. You CAN live without food for awhile (but not forever..), but when it gets to the point you can't even keep fluids down, that's a huge problem. People can't live without fluids for long. If you can't keep fluids down, I'd go to the ER.
if this is a stricture, it's an easy fix.

Like @kristieshannon, I didn’t eat much either for a while. And food smelling or tasting awful isn’t uncommon either. But because you are experiencing pain on swallowing I wonder if you have a stricture. They do happen & can be repaired quite easily. Demand an appointment with your surgeon. They need to see you to diagnose that. If you track your food intake, take that information with you so they can see what you are actually consuming.

It’s not uncommon to have heat or cold intolerances post op. Some can only tolerate ice cold things, others only warm. It’s ok to have everything warm! Warm water/tea counts as Fluid intake. Can you tolerate broth? Bone Broth is nutritious with a good amount of Protein. Some of the unflavored protein powders will mix in to a hot beverage. sugar free hot chocolate might be a good option for you. As long as you are staying hydrated at this point you’ll be ok. Just keep trying new things in TINY amounts, your tolerances should increase as time goes on. If day after day you can’t meet your hydration goals reach out to your team again. I went many weeks in the beginning only getting in about 300 calories/day. I’m now 3 years out, have met goal, and can tolerate most anything. It gets better!

You are still pretty early out so it will take a while to start to lose your belly but just so you know As we get older we carry weight more around our midsections so even if you are a size you have been before, assuming it has been a few years, your belly may be bigger this time that it was before.

I have never suffered in my career due to my weight. I make a great salary and have never had trouble going from one company to another when I felt like the team I was on (or the manager) was just no longer a good fit. And I would always get a raise when I did that. I'm extremely well suited to my career and it's very demanding. Prior to COVID, I flew 2-5 flights a week to cities all over the US working on cancer trials. Since COVID started, it's been a slower pace with less travel, but I still make the same salary.
For me, I always had confidence in myself as an employee and a person. I had no confidence in dating or sports, but to me, those were more about my weight. To me, my ability to be a good employee is about my ability to communicate, solve problems, and be dedicated.
I'm hoping that losing weight will help me have more energy for the short nights and long days on the road and when I travel for fun. Also, I might eventually like to date again... or not.

I get a call yesterday from hospital where I’m having bypass done saying that I missed my 8am COVID test appointment. This is the first that I have heard about said appointment. I had just talked to my place the day before too and it wasn’t mentioned. Apparently my inept scheduler made the appointment and didn’t tell me. Last month she also let too much time go by with my pre-op bloodwork so I needed to do it again.
I got rather salty with the person who said that I missed my appointment and the person I had just spoken to yesterday and the day before. I told them that everything I have been asked to do I have done right away without delay.
Well it’s all sorted now. I went right away to get my test and do my pre-anesthesia check in. That RN was full of bad advice regarding nutrition. I asked if I need to bring a Protein Water because I’ve read of people being asked to bring them. She goes on a rant about how people are consuming too much protein and how it’s better to not have any more than 15g of protein per day. There was no point in arguing with her.
Please let my surgeon not be inept or stupid, amen.

dang lol. So where i got my surgery you h ave to get a covid test 4 days prior at your pre anesthesia appointment. But because i had covid about a month and a half prior i was not required to since you get test positive for up to 3 months after. When i got the hospital for my surgery, IV put in, Medications given a nurse comes in and ask "Did you get your covid test" and i was like no. She was like we cant do the surgery. I was like BULLSHIZZZZ... and showed her my positive test from February and then she chilled and left lmao.

food for thought 💭 🧐

Yes there are plenty asking for help and advice on here. Me included. If you read the back pages of the forum [it goes back 20 years] Some people get away trouble free but about 1 % [ my guesstimate] have small hiccups at the start. My incision line swelled and took a long time to go down, so going through the stages of re introducing foods was harder for me. By 4 months things began to be easier. I have zero regrets

I understand. I get days that I am really hungry and I feel like I want to eat all day. That there is no restriction. Like if I let myself go, I could eat the house lol. But then the next morning, I am not hungry at all till evening. Sometimes it is related to how well I slept the night before and I am eating for energy or perhaps something emotional.

I think we tend to blow things out of proportion in things like this, and not give ourselves credit enough for all the days we have done well.

As you said, tomorrow is a new day. You're doing good. Hang in there.

Sent from my SM-S908U using BariatricPal mobile app

Agree with others, it will decrease in size with time. You may eventually have areas that are still bigger even a year out, but a lot may be skin that can be minimized with good undergarments.

I had a trainer once describe losing weight as undressing. The first layer you put on is the last layer you take off. So most of us probably have had belly fat issues for a long while before we decide to have surgery, so that is likely the last place that'll start to give up it's excess.

I recently had a conversion surgery from the lapband to the sleeve. I was told that Crystal Light was okay to drink and was drinking a gallon a day. I hit a weight loss stall and got to thinking about something that I had heard before about the aspartame in Crystal Light is bad for you and can stall weight loss and well as cause health issues. I did some research...google searches and read doctor's reports and other patient's posts about it. I decided to stop the Crystal Light and switch to lemon Water. It is true for me at least...every person is different... but I feel much better and the weight is dropping again. I was getting hunger pangs when drinking the Crystal Light throughout the days and I have noticed that with lemon water that is not happening. As I said everyone is different and biologies are different but getting off of the Crystal Light has been a positive for me.

I'm a CRA! Was it that obvious from my posts LOL? I am unfortunately not a fan of eggs, sausage, and bacon, and usually the yogurt has sugar in it. I usually can buy Protein Shakes at the local CVS/walgreens. It's really a lot better now, in terms of hunger. I try to eat a lot of fish - finally in the last few weeks I started being able to eat salad, at least mixed greens, if not romaine/iceberg lettuce. So, that opens up a lot.