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My one year story

ReneK

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ReneK    107

ReneK
Posted

One year. 110 pounds.

As I sit here munching my egg beaters Breakfast, the first thought that pops in my head is thank goodness I love eggs and they agreed with me after my surgery!

When I started this journey, I intended to blog about it. That never really materialized. I guess I expected to need to write down everything that happened. But it turned out just to be life. And normal life. That was totally unexpected.

Anyway, I know this is going to be a long post and if you indulge me by reading it, thanks. If not, I'm ok with that too.

I started at 275 pounds. I couldn't walk for more than 10 minutes without my back hurting. I was on medication for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes. I was honestly afraid that I would not live to see my grandkids. (I was 55 years old at the time of my surgery). Today, I am off of all medications.

Today, I weigh 165 pounds. I want to lose another 5 to 10 pounds but my doctors are happy where I am. Everyone I know tells me that I'm thin enough. We'll see.At the beginning, I was wearing size 24/26. Today, I wear size 12. I haven't been a size 12 since I was in junior high.

I know how blessed I am. I had zero complications of any kind. This honestly seems like a miracle to me. The biggest blessing has been my family. Not only did they completely support me, but my husband went high Protein, low carb and started working out with me. (He has lost 60 pounds!)

My biggest NSV was in November in Las Vegas. My husband and I were walking through a shopping center on the strip. I spotted these gorgeous party dresses in a store and decided to walk in. A sales girl told me that i should try one of them on. The largest size was a large and I thought "no way this will fit me". But, I decided to try. I went into the dressing room and slipped into the dress. I was stunned that it seemed too loose. So the girl brought me a Medium. It fit beautifully. So, I bought it. (It is the sequinny dress I wore at the Christmas party in the attached photo). After my hubby and I walked out of the store, I broke down in tears. Never in my wildest dreams would I have been able to wear a size Medium designer dress.

Just a couple more things. The weirdest thing for me has been that I don't recognize myself in photos. The attached photo of me looking at my phone in the snow was taken last week by a friend of mine. I didn't realize it was me when I looked at her photos!

My biggest challenge -- finding jeans that fit. I've settled into skinny jeans because they are the only ones that don't sag on my butt and thighs.

How are things different? Well, I can't eat much and I know better than to overeat. I get drunk easily. I love going to the gym. I ride a mountain bike. I don't worry about dying. I can walk for hours. I could run if I didn't hate running so much.

For anyone who is considering this journey....it is not easy but it is completely worth it. Be patient with yourself. The only way to be successful at this is to have your mind in the right place and commit fully.

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Joules007 reacted to this

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Redmaxx    740

Redmaxx
Posted

Congratulations! You look great. Your story is inspirational. I have just started my journey and I can't believe the changes for the better. Keep up the great work and again, CONGRATULATIONS!

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Djmohr    6,965

Djmohr
Posted

Your story is absolutely lovely! Thanks for sharing it, it is inspiring!

As I was reading the part about trying on dresses in Las Vegas, it brought tears to my eyes. Every single time I go try on clothes, it still shocks me and makes me feel exactly the same.

It takes a very long time for your brain to catch up with your body. I still catch glimpses of myself in the mirror and sometimes I don't recognize myself and other times, I still see the fat me. I think seeing the fat me is fear of regain so I am critical of what I see. I never want to be sick and fat again, I feel like I lost too many good years to let myself get back there.

And life today is grand! Isn't it!

Congratulations on your new life and continued journey!

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jenndogg    23

jenndogg
Posted

Thank you for sharing! Amazing!

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ReneK    107

ReneK
Posted

Your story is absolutely lovely! Thanks for sharing it, it is inspiring!

As I was reading the part about trying on dresses in Las Vegas, it brought tears to my eyes. Every single time I go try on clothes, it still shocks me and makes me feel exactly the same.

It takes a very long time for your brain to catch up with your body. I still catch glimpses of myself in the mirror and sometimes I don't recognize myself and other times, I still see the fat me. I think seeing the fat me is fear of regain so I am critical of what I see. I never want to be sick and fat again, I feel like I lost too many good years to let myself get back there.

And life today is grand! Isn't it!

Congratulations on your new life and continued journey!

@@Djmohr You have been one of my inspirations since I've been on this forum! Continued success and happiness to you!

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Go To Topic Listing Weight Loss Surgery Success Stories

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    • Aunty Mamo

      Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
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    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
      · 0 replies
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    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
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    • ChunkCat

      ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
      · 0 replies
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    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Still purging all of the larger clothing. This morning, a shirt that I ADORED wearing ended up on top. Hard to let it go, but it was also hard to let go of those habits that also no longer serve my highest good. Onward and upward!
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