Hello fellow May Sleevers! As the pages on the calendar turn, I am constantly reminded that my one year Sleeviversary is quickly approaching. I have enjoyed looking back over the past months & seeing all the changes .... both positive and negative. I am curious how everyone else is doing and would love to hear from you! As you approach the one year mark, what are some things that have stood out to you?? In general, how are you fairing??? Here's my top 5:

1. I am constantly shocked by the amount of energy I have. I am thoroughly enjoying it though. I think I noticed it most when I took my 3 1/2 year old nephew to an indoor bounce house playground and I was actually able to keep up with him. Not only that, I was able to BOUNCE!! And I had a blast doing it!!!!

2. I don't miss foods as much as I thought I would. I haven't eaten bread, Pasta or rice for over a year and I limit the number of carbs I eat. And it doesn't bother me. About 6 months out I went out to eat for a celebration with some friends and I ordered my own app instead of sharing with the others so I had more control over what I ate. Someone asked me if I wanted a potato skin and I declined. The funny thing is, I said "no thank you" but I realized after that I wasn't just being polite ... I really DIDN'T want it. It didn't bother me in the least that they were eating all this fried food & carbing out while I ate my 2 little burger sliders (without the buns).

3. Shopping still isn't any fun! I had this mistaken thought that once I could buy "real" sizes and not fat-lady clothes anymore then I would enjoy shopping more. Nope. Still hate it. Avoid it at all cost ... until my co-workers tell me I have to stop wearing something because it is too big. Then I will bite the bullet and go shopping for other clothes. Not sure why I don't enjoy it more, but I guess I still see myself as bigger than I am when I look in the mirror. I try things on & have to ask someone else for their opinion because I am still "meh" about it all. Oh well, saves me money, right??

4. I am both proud of myself & discouraged. 7 months ago I began walking in 5k races. I have done really well & am proud of my achievements. Every race I finish is one more than I ever thought I would do. A year ago I would have told you you were CRAZY if you even suggested I sign up for a race! (I have a spine injury & 3 years ago couldn't finish 5 minutes on a treadmill without severe pain.) But, here I sit ... I have completed 7 races in 7 months and just did my first virtual race which consisted of 30k over 5 weeks. Pretty damned proud of me!!! But .... I am also disappointed. I began the C25K program to try to increase my stamina and improve my pace, but I am not doing so well with it. I had hoped to be somewhat running-ish by this point, but it just ain't happening. My knees hurt when I run, and my lungs don't want to cooperate even using my inhaler. Why won't my body just cooperate already!?!?! UGH! I will keep plugging away, and maybe some day I will be able to run, but in the meantime I keep walking and keep racing each month.

5. My relationships are soooo much better! Well, not all of them. But I have eliminated those from my life who were toxic and emotionally sucking me dry, and there are some that I just don't care either way. As for the ones that are truly important to me -- my husband, my kids, and my best friends -- these relationships are stronger than they were before WLS. That's not to say everything has been peachy. Quite the opposite actually. The Hubs & I went through a bit of a rough patch right around surgery. It was scary to think that with all the changes in my life that I could have potentially lost the center of my universe. Luckily we worked through it and as a result our communication is now 10x better than it was before. He was my rock to get through all the nastiness of this process and I wouldn't have been able to do it without him. That said, the counseling we went to also helped me with my other relationships too. I talk to my kids so much more now and my Bestie, well she always has been awesome!!! I have come to realize how wonderful my life is with all these people who care about me and I am so blessed to have the kind of support I did going through my journey.

All in all .... a pretty great year! How about you??????

Thanks for sharing, my name is Kathi and I too was sleeved jn May 2015. We share some similiar thoughts, I dont like shopping much, friends often tell me when its time to buy something new too, my weight loss has been stalled for several months now because of a back issue, wish i could move more without pain. Everyone tells me i look great but i would be more excited if i could be more active and pain free. Would love to have a buddy to chat with and share all the things that others cant understand about this process, if your interested please let me know..

@@WorkinOnMe - we are about the same stats, how are you doing getting towards those last few pounds?

@@Kathi66 - I also stalled for about 3 months and just started seeing the scale move again. What kind of back issue are you dealing with? Impending surgery?

Hi, ty for your reply.. I am talking with a surgeon about having a laminectomy, have had painful sciatica have a herniated disc, been in constant pain for 13 months