Sunnyway

Pre-surgery, I am down 3-4 sizes on bottoms (size 26-28 from size 32). I'm wearing big baggy tops for now. I've stitched up the size seams of all of my underpants and bras and swimwear so I won't have to buy new during the immediate transitional period. Surgery is just a week away, so I will have to buy more soon and also take a trip to Goodwill to buy pants and tops. I think can get by with my winter sweaters and coats.
Best NSV of all, I went out to lunch last weekend and sat in a booth, with room to spare between my belly and the table. That hasn't happened in years.

I started at 373. I was asked before surgery where I wanted to be, and I said "199" - which at the time sounded like a pipe dream - so I was shocked when I was told that was totally do-able. When I got to around 210 or 220, I said I wanted to shoot for 170-ish. They said it would be a challenge, but if it I really worked hard at it, I could get there (I eventually got down lower than that - although I've bounced up a bit in the last few years - but still OK..)

First treat BMI as a suggestion. Same with any goal you may choose. Body type, your build, age, lifestyle, health, genetics, etc. all influence what is the best weight for you & you can’t put a number on a scale against them. The other factor which you can’t do much about is your body’s natural set point. This is the weight at which your body seems to naturally settle.
My surgeon did ask if I had a goal. I chose a weight which was the lowest I reached during my weight loss & gain cycles. It put me at about a 23 BMI. He thought it was sensible & achievable. I reached that in 6 months but continued to lose as I tried to find my maintenance balance. Initially my surgeon & doctor were concerned about my lower weight but it turns out I don’t have a larger frame as everyone thought! As one doctor said you’re actually quite a tiny person aren’t you & they all stopped worrying. Plus I don’t have bones protruding - I have plenty of flesh (fat ha!) on my bones. I’m about 2kgs heavier now than where I had initially stabilised for a year. (I believe an necessary increase in my HRT dosage & protein intake contributed to the sudden weight gain - all happened in the same month.) and I’ve been stable here for a good 7 months. My body seems happy at around this weight & so am I (except for those 2 kgs 😉).
You’ll settle at a weight that is healthy & works for you and it’s okay if it ends up being more or less than you initially thought. My food choices & the way I eat to maintain my weight doesn’t restrict me living my life as I want. It’s been a sustainable way of eating for 2.5yrs now. I might make slight changes in the future but for now it’s working. I guess that ‘s the real goal. Being at a weight you can maintain in a healthy, sustainable way that allows you to enjoy your life as you want.
PS - the slowing down of your weight loss is perfectly normal. It slows as you get closer to your body’s set point & your calorie intake is nearer to what your body needs to function effectively & healthily. Can you lose more if you want? Sure if you reduce your calories & intake your activity but can you maintain that without impacting your health or your life?

My goal was to be under 200 pounds since I started at almost 400. I am at 187 now and while that is still about 40 pounds over ideal body weight for me, I feel great and all my labs are good. I'm happy with the way I look too, but I was never in this for a perfect body, just healthy. I just started maintenance and I don't know if I'll lose anymore. I'd like to weight 150 or 160 which is my lowest weight an adult, but I'm OK where I am too.
I have a ton of loose skin and I feel like that accounts for some of this weight too, but maybe but a lot. Either way, I'm very happy!

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I set myself an arbitrary goal of 120 lbs, which was right in the middle of the “healthy bmi body weight range” for my height (5’2”). I was 235 lbs at the start of my 2-wk pre-op diet.
But by the time i got to 127, i decided to call it cuz i felt i was getting a little too thin for my liking, and started the process of upping calories to find my maintenance level.
I ended up losing more weight anyway over the following 5-6 months and eventually settled around 115lbs +\- a couple pounds (but did get as low as 109 at one point).
Surgery was almost 4 years ago and this morning i weighed in at 119.5
Whats interesting to note however, is that while I weigh less now than I did when I stopped with weight loss efforts, i don’t look as skeletal as I did back then….which is a roundabout way of saying the number on the scale is just a guide, and can change based on your body composition; perhaps go with how you feel/feel u look? If you feel great and are satisfied with what you see, then GOAL ACHIEVED!
Good Luck! ❤️

I had RNY in 1990 and regained all I lost. I always blamed myself but now know that the surgery failed due to a fistula between pouch and stomach. I didn't know that revision was even possible until 2020, just before the pandemic struck. I started the bariatric program in early 2021. I discovered that I am a food addict with trigger foods: sugar, wheat flour, rice, white potatoes, and processed food. I cut out those foods and the result was fantastic! I lost 70 lbs prior to surgery. Despite this success, I went ahead with laparoscopic revision surgery on 12/21/21 at age 73. I weighed 247 at the time of surgery, down from 317.
Unfortunately, I fell in that very tiny group of bariatric surgical patients that develop serious complications. Ten days after my revision surgery, I was airlifted back to the hospital with peritonitis and sepsis, caused by a rupture of the jejunum below the anastomosis. I was hospitalized for 7 weeks and underwent three endoscopic procedures and two open surgeries before they finally found and corrected a residual abscess. I left the hospital with a 15-cm long open surgical wound, which took 8 more weeks to fully close.
I am now fully recovered and am back to exercising daily. The endoscopic procedures stretched the new anastomosis so I have no more restriction than I had pre-surgery, so I still have to be very careful about what I consume. I typically go through month-long stalls and then drop a few pounds. I do lose inches during the stalls. I've dropped from size 32/4X to size 20/XL and now weigh 214 lbs., just past the 100 lb loss mark.
After being on a restricted diet for over 16 months I struggle with near-irresistible cravings in the afternoon and evenings. The clinic wants me to limit intake to 800 calories. 😱 It is daunting because I know I will never be able to go on a "maintenance" diet and must continue to avoid my trigger foods forever. Even when I choose Protein Snacks in response to cravings, each snack adds 100 or more calories to the daily total so my daily calorie count is between 900-1200 calories. (I will gain weight at 1500 calories.) I've done a trial of weight loss drug Contrave but had to discontinue due to side effects.
This is a horror story, but don't let it dissuade you from your revision. Complications are extremely rare.

Today is my 2-year surgiversary. I've lost 200 pounds from my highest weight -- a staggering amount when you think about it. I'm literally (less than) half the person I used to be. I should be on top of the world, right?! I don't want to dismiss the many scale and non-scale victories I've had, but it's not all rainbows and butterflies.
When I catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I'm taken aback by two things: how small I am, and how freaking ugly. I was certainly never beautiful -- not even "pretty for a fat chick" or "would be cute if I lost some weight" -- but now, I look downright scary. I probably look 10 years older than when I was fat. My hair was already fine and flat before surgery, and now I've lost a lot of it and it hasn't grown back and it's a mess no matter what I do. Ironically, people often tell me I look great, which is obviously code for "not fat anymore." Sometimes, before saying I look great, they ask me if I'm sick or if I lost weight on purpose. I don't know what the point of that is; if I said I lost weight because I'm sick, would they instead say, "You look like $h!t"?
When I imagined my life after surgery, I thought I would be the same person, but smaller. The same person, but able to wear non-plus sized clothes, fit into an airplane seat without a seatbelt extender, not have to check the weight limit on furniture and ladders. The same person, but without hypertension and diabetes.
I guess, deep down, I knew that wouldn't be the case, because that's a big part of what held me back from having the surgery for so many years. I didn't want my life to revolve around my pouch. I didn't want to give up my favorite foods and think so hard about everything I eat. I definitely didn't want to turn into one of those boring a-holes who never shut up about their diet and exercise regimen.
But here I am, and I feel like weight loss has taken over my life. I spend so much time and energy preparing and eating healthy foods, working out, keeping up with my supplements, that I don't have room for anything else. There was a period of time after my surgery when I felt great and full of energy, but now I'm tired all the time, and despite being in the best shape of my life, I feel weak because I no longer have 300+ pounds to throw around. People used to be surprised by my strength, but now I struggle to open pickle jars and heavy doors. (Yes, I've had my bloodwork checked and everything is great; the working theory is that the bradycardia due to rapid, massive weight loss is what's causing these problems.)
I used to be incredibly devoted to my job, and most people would describe me as the hardest worker they knew (maybe a workaholic), and now I just don't have the same drive that I used to because I'm so focused on my weight. I feel like I'm letting everyone down because I'm no longer up for spending all my free time working. I think I was a better human being when I was fat.
If I -- with the benefit of the hindsight I have now -- could go back in time to two years ago, when my morbidly obese self arrived at the hospital, and still had time to change my mind, would I still go through with having the surgery? 100% yes, without hesitation.

Counting chewing isn't a rule, it's a tactic.
The 'rule' is chew thoroughly. Some folks aren't used to chewing thoroughly, so 25.3 to 32.1 chews is a tactic to learn to chew thoroughly.
Our stomachs now have a pretty narrow opening so you don't want chunks of food clogging it. Trust me. Of course, getting food stuck is another way to teach us to chew thoroughly. 24.7 chews is less painful.
Good luck,
Tek

I usually don't follow that rule anymore either except for certain foods that may cause the foamies (like chewy things like squid, calamari). I had to chew it that much for the first 3 or 4 months or else I'd pay dearly. I do try to eat slower though but just because I really enjoy the meal experience (still). It is still calming to me. I use two food warmers that I eat hot meals out of on a regular basis: Crockpot lunch crock warmer for Soups and the HotLogic mini.

I think I chewed that much when I was an early post-op, but I don't anymore. I do try to thoroughly chew things, though, because a tiny stomach isn't capable of churning food like a full, normal stomach is - so you have to give it some help (by doing some of the digesting while the food is still in your mouth).

Yeah, I never understood that rule either. Fortunately I was never told to do it just to take small bites. I used a teaspoon - just like feeding a baby without the need for a bib 😉. Chewing a lot certainly helps with slowing your eating & being more mindful about your eating but so to does just putting down your cutlery & sitting back from the table between bites. If you keep your food tender, moist with gravies & sauces, eat slowly & take small bites you should be able to swallow without issue (discomfort, food getting stuck, restriction, etc.) which is likely the real reason behind the chewing a lot guideline.
I still eat slowly - 30-60minutes. If it gets too cold I just reheat it in the microwave. Easy.

Maybe talk to your nutritonist or dietician, but I have a feeling they coud be a bit of slider food, go down way too easy and not give you a sensation of feeling satisfied or full.

Hello Melly and welcome in here. To fill in your profile, Go to the top of the page, By your name is a little down arrow. Click on it and scroll down to My surgery. You can then fill it in. On the top left of this page you will see surgeon and below ' progress' This you can update every time you loose weight, which I find very satisfying

Hello everybody,
In March of this year I was scheduled to get my gastric bypass, well long story short I chickened out, and that was a horrible decision for me to do.
Because now I have arthritis in my left hip along with my other issues, so I called my coordinator and she said my insurance would still cover my surgery, I'm super stoked this time, and I am never ever going to put my health at risk again, this time it's different I have a goal, my goal is to have a baby by the time I'm 31, my wonderful boyfriend and I were talking about having a baby and at that moment I knew I was making the right decision, plus I'm tired of being unhealthy.
So LETSGOOOOOOOOOO. :)

For the first couple years I bought special milk chocolate bars from around the world. There was even a Hershey's. Never ate a bite. Filled up our little freezer, until after a couple years my wife gave me an ultimatum... The chocolate had to go. It went.
I still over buy at the grocery.
Good luck,
Tek

Since my revision I've picked up a strange new habit. I still think about food quite a bit, although I still average 970 to 1000 a day. I'm upping it slowly for maintenance. I'm going on my one year revision surgiversary in August. I love shopping online and get all kinds of food but I literally have a room full of food in sealed containers. If there is any emergency, I would have about 3 months of food or more haha. My poor husband has to eat the overfull freezer and fridge food that I buy. I used to have an empty fridge and freezer and eat out all the time (pre WLS srugeries) but not in the last year. Maybe because I've been cooking a lot at home and I want all the ingredients at my fingertips. I was wondering if there is anyone like this out there? Although it makes sense given my long history with my love for food, It's still so bizarre to me.

It’s just one of those frustrating things that are part of the weight loss journey. Mine started at around 4 months. Most people notice the Hair loss persists for about three months +/- regardless of taking supplements like Biotin. The hair on your head is already dead & you can’t save dead hair. The thing to remember is the hair you are losing is hair you would have lost anyway as part of your natural shedding cycle - it was destined to fall out. It’s just that this cycle has been temporarily accelerated. You still have new hair growing but it’s at it’s usual rate. Supplements may benefit this new growth.
Best thing to do is not stress, take your recommended Vitamins & meet your Protein goals.
I remember my surgeon told me my body had better things to do with the nutrients I was eating then save my hair. A bit harsh but true. When I hit my goal & was eating more & a wider variety of food the rate of the hair loss slowed until it was like it was pre surgery so at about month 7. I took no additional supplements.
A lot of us cut our hair so the loss isn’t as noticeable & it takes less time for the new growth to catch up & be the same length. I cut mine from almost my waist to just above my shoulders. The shorter length of hair doesn’t look as bad in the bottom of the shower either 😁😁.

Get a flattering haircut, check out YouTube videos on flattering for you styles. Use a tinted matte eye shadow to disguise any scalp shine if necessary. Then wait it out. My Hair loss started around 5 months and ended at 10 months. It doesn’t last forever!

I'm just amused at how my own perception of the space I take up hasn't caught up with how much slimmer I am. I still inwardly flinch at the sight of close-packed tables and chairs at a cafe or restaurant before I realise I can slip through no problem now! I still get out of people's way when there's plenty of room and I no longer need to - it's still a reflex. My brain is so used to being spatially aware for a morbidly obese body that it's taking a surprising amount of time for it to catch up to a much smaller me. I'm constantly amazed I can slip between cafe chairs and tables now without a) other folks doing the shuffle so I can fit past, or b) risking my arse moving inches from someone's face as I knock tables on the way through with a chorus of "sorry!"s.
What are some things that have snuck up on you that your mind hasn't caught up with yet?

Talk with your surgeon. This could very well be a stricture, especially if you aren’t even keeping down Clear Liquids.

I went back and forth for a year thinking about if I should have this surgery or not. I was terrified. The reality was that I wasn’t going to be able to do it alone, otherwise I would’ve done it already. I couldn’t keep living the way I was.

Has it been easy? No.

BUT... this has been the single greatest decision I’ve ever made for myself. It’s given me back my life, and I would go through it all again in a second!

-95lbs 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

fish is considered a soft food just make sure you have some sauce on it to make it nice and moist. I would consider Pasta a soft food to but for many pasta doesn't sit well in the early stages after surgery. any well cook veggies would be considered soft too you could mash them up a bit on your plate. you're not going to be able to eat a lot at this point anyway so go and enjoy the company of your family/friends and try not to focus on the food.

Oh yes. I felt that way many times in the beginning. The first several weeks are the hardest because you're still recovering from surgery, you have a lot of restrictions on what you can eat, you have to drink nasty Protein Shakes, and you haven't lost enough weight to feel the benefits of the surgery. Once you get to the regular foods stage and get the benefits of weight loss, things will get a lot easier. I'm almost two years out now, and that miserable newly post-op stage feels like a lifetime ago -- just a tiny blip on my journey to losing 200 pounds. Hang in there!

There are many bariatric cookbooks available on Amazon and elsewhere. These are some of the ones I've gotten:

I had RNY to RNY revision surgery on 12/21/21. I thought I was fine, slowly recovering, until 10 days later when I started coughing up blood. I was airlifted back to the surgical hospital with a perforated jejunum at the anastomosis and SEPSIS. I had emergency surgery and was close to death for several days. I was in the hospital for 7 weeks and in a rehab facility for 3 weeks. I was discharged with a 15 cm long open surgical wound which is still not entirely healed 3 months later (but getting close). I resumed normal activities after returning home and have no pain from the open surgical wound. I have volunteer nurses who come to my home to do dressing changes, now every other day.
Because of three necessary endoscopic procedures looking for leaks or abscesses my anastomosis is stretched and I have no more restriction than I had before the revision surgery. I had lost 70 lbs prior to surgery by cutting out all sugar, flour, rice, white potatoes, processed food. I've lost 25 more since the revision.
I've been told to get 90 mg Protein daily and to limit my calories to 800--which is VERY difficult. To add insult to injury I'm starting to lose my hair, too. I'm really struggling with cravings in the afternoon and night. We are now considering a prescription for Contrave.
Do I have regrets for having the revision surgery? Of course! I wish I had left it alone. I wish my surgeon had aborted the revision when he found I had dense adhesions. However, I'm well now and am approaching a 100 lb weight loss.