1 month post op today and feeling frusterated!!

[Holls06 98]

I had my VSG on 12/29/17. Surgery went really well and recovery was a breeze for me. BUT, i am feeling really frustrated with how slowly my weight is coming off. I am down 31lbs since pre op, 23lbs since surgery, and I know that is a good amount of weight lost for the first month. I have a appt on 2/13 with my surgeon and he wanted me down to 205 at this appointment. Thats 19lbs that I have to lose in 2 weeks! I thought i would already be down 10 lbs these last 2 weeks, but i had a stall on week 3/4. I'm following my diet and working out at least 2 days a week. I work 2 full time jobs basically so getting to the gym is very hard. I guess i'm just needing some advice, words of encouragement or anything to makes me stop freaking out about this goal my surgeon is wanting me at.

Edited January 29, 2018 by Holls06

[Sprinkles1 358]

Honestly, you're doing really well. You should be proud of the weight you lost & 23lbs in a month is amazing! Just stay on track and keep working hard. The weight will continue to fall off

Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

[mamamc32 132]

It sounds like you are doing awesome!! I'm not sure that 205 is a reasonable goal . . . most people (even ones who start heavier than you) seem to lose 20 - 30 lbs the first month. If you are following your eating plan and getting your exercise, you're golden. I wouldn't stress about the numbers - they will follow!

[Holls06 98]

3 minutes ago, mamamc32 said:

It sounds like you are doing awesome!! I'm not sure that 205 is a reasonable goal . . . most people (even ones who start heavier than you) seem to lose 20 - 30 lbs the first month. If you are following your eating plan and getting your exercise, you're golden. I wouldn't stress about the numbers - they will follow!

I should clarify. At my appointment on 1/11/18. i was at 230lbs, and he wanted me at 205lbs for my next appointment on 2/13. So basically 25lbs in a month.

[Holls06 98]

30 minutes ago, Sprinkles1 said:

Honestly, you're doing really well. You should be proud of the weight you lost & 23lbs in a month is amazing! Just stay on track and keep working hard. The weight will continue to fall off

Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

Thank you! I appreciate the kind words

[OscarsMom 9]

You are doing great! I'm on the same schedule as you - same surgery date. I lost 10lbs before surgery, gained 6 back from Water after surgery, and am down a total of 30.5 since before surgery, 25 since surgery. 'How do you feel' is the most important question? I'm down a full size, and look so much healthier already, so I'm still feeling optimistic and positive. My weight loss has been sporadic too - scale stays the same for a week or more, then down a pound or two. My doctor says I'm doing great and told me to expect it to be a slow gradual step down process. It feels like your doctor is putting too much pressure on you for an unrealistic goal - I think because we have a lower BMI number that the weight isn't going to come off that fast.

[Holls06 98]

54 minutes ago, OscarsMom said:

You are doing great! I'm on the same schedule as you - same surgery date. I lost 10lbs before surgery, gained 6 back from Water after surgery, and am down a total of 30.5 since before surgery, 25 since surgery. 'How do you feel' is the most important question? I'm down a full size, and look so much healthier already, so I'm still feeling optimistic and positive. My weight loss has been sporadic too - scale stays the same for a week or more, then down a pound or two. My doctor says I'm doing great and told me to expect it to be a slow gradual step down process. It feels like your doctor is putting too much pressure on you for an unrealistic goal - I think because we have a lower BMI number that the weight isn't going to come off that fast.

Thank you! I do feel great! I can tell a difference. My clothes fit better, and all around feel better. The scale is my enemy right now. I am trying to not weigh my self everyday, because if i do and not see a change then i get discouraged. I think your right, with our lower BMI its going to be a more gradual loss. Which i am OK with that, i just don't want my doctor dissapointed. I'm guessing my doctor saw how well i was recovering and how well the weight was coming off at my 2 week appointment, maybe he thought it would be a realistic goal for me. We will see how the next 2 weeks go, and if i don't make his goal, then I'm not going to sweat it.

[Creekimp13 5,841]

The average weight loss in the first month after sleeve is 18% of your excess body weight. If you had surgery at 255 and want to get to 145...you have 110 pounds of excess weight.

18% of 110 is about 20 pounds.

Sometimes I wonder if some of these surgeons care more about their patient's health and longterm success....or care more about pushing people to reduce as fast as possible to be living advertisements for their clinics to generate business.

I would be very uncomfortable with your surgeon's expectations.

Edited January 30, 2018 by Creekimp13

[BrittneyH 45]

I agree with everyone! You are doing amazing! No need to be discouraged. You are doing this for you not for your surgeon! You need to set realist goals and that is more then most people loose upfront. That is really pushing it! You aren't gaining so I think you are doing great!

[Holls06 98]

41 minutes ago, Creekimp13 said:

The average weight loss in the first month after sleeve is 18% of your excess body weight. If you had surgery at 255 and want to get to 145...you have 110 pounds of excess weight.

18% of 110 is about 20 pounds.

Sometimes I wonder if some of these surgeons care more about their patient's health and longterm success....or care more about pushing people to reduce as fast as possible to be living advertisements for their clinics to generate business.

I would be very uncomfortable with your surgeon's expectations.

Thanks! It sounds like i am on the right track!

[sleevedrose 5]

I rarely have words of advice to uplift your spirits but just to say you’re not alone! I had my surgery 12/27 and I have also lost about 33 pounds for a month and my doctor believes I should have been losing more! Though I am following everything to the tee! I am also frustrated cause I’m on soft foods, can’t eat anything barely but like a small tablespoon and that’s it and get gassy stomach. But you’re definitely not alone on the weight loss 1 month post op

[elforman 234]

I'm not planning for surgery until May but when I had my initial consult a few weeks ago the doctor said that when the time comes he'll be setting all sorts of dates and goals for me. Then he added that it's just as likely that I'll meet them as I won't because it's all a calculated crapshoot. There are so many factors, such as sleep, stress, exercise, nutrition and how your body handles the surgery that as long as I do the best I can, I'll be fine regardless of whether I meet the goals or not. Plus he said he'd rather issue harder goals than easier goals, because if the goals are too easy to meet the patient may not try as hard.

[KCgirl061 1,533]

In my opinion it’s more important for you to keep your stress levels low than it is to keep your surgeon happy. I think Creekimp13 nailed it - surgeons care about what their numbers look like.

Really what is your surgeon going to do if you don’t meet his numbers? Undo your surgery? Take your birthday away? Try not to stress about it and congrats on the process you have made! [emoji322]

[Apple203 1,314]

On 1/30/2018 at 11:42 AM, Creekimp13 said:

The average weight loss in the first month after sleeve is 18% of your excess body weight. If you had surgery at 255 and want to get to 145...you have 110 pounds of excess weight.

18% of 110 is about 20 pounds.

Sometimes I wonder if some of these surgeons care more about their patient's health and longterm success....or care more about pushing people to reduce as fast as possible to be living advertisements for their clinics to generate business.

I would be very uncomfortable with your surgeon's expectations.

Do you have ore percentages you can share? I know that I'll benefit from concrete picture of what to expect month by month.