I am scheduled for February 18th. I will be first in. Wow, this process takes forever.

6 hours ago, Everythinganna said:

That’s me now - my stomach. I can’t even enjoy my weight loss because I can’t stop focusing on the one imperfect thing. Lumpy, scars.... Only time will tell what more weight loss makes it look like. I’ve never been able to show my stomach my entire life and I was really looking forward to it....

Hey Everythinganna--

I just don't see what you're seeing. All looks great! I get it though, I keep complaining about how old and wrinkly my neck looks now. My husband doesn't see it, but to me it is REALLY crepe-y.

10 hours ago, Recidivist said:

I reached 150 this morning, which was my original goal weight. Before surgery I thought 150 was unrealistic and that I would be satisfied with 170. Now I've adjusted my goal weight down to 140 and am quite confident of reaching it. (I weighted 127 when I went into the Army!)

In reference to the body dysmorphia comment, I still think of myself as fat, and I'm shocked every time I see myself in a mirror or a shop window. I wonder whether that ever goes away.

Congrats on reaching that AWESOME goal weight! I've got 35 to 40 lbs to go. You must feel super great.

On 7/19/2019 at 3:25 PM, Goody222 said:

I am in a stall too! I think I need to weigh everything. I suspect my problem is grazing. I really want to throw a straight temper tantrum cause I still need to lose 70 pounds. No time for stalls??. good luck with the final 20 pounds.

I finally started losing a little faster the last week. These stalls are stressful! I have 87 pounds STILL to go to my Dr's weight. I think if I lose that much, it will get a good weight, as I suppose I will have extra hanging skin that will weight a bit. Good luck to us all in achieving our goals. Please check in!!

Good morning gang!
I haven’t weighed myself in over a week now and I think I might try to tomorrow.
With many of our group seemingly in another stall and my recent weekend vacay, I’ve been hesitant to jump on and see where I am. The problem is that I’ve been stuck between 185-180 for over 3 weeks and want so desperately to make it into the 170’s by August.

Vacay went well, but I pretty much ate/drank what I wanted. Honestly I bet I drank way more calories than I ate (hello frozen daquiri drinks!).

Yeah the portions were very small, but I just went with the flow. Was able to get right back on track on the drive back Monday and by Tuesday afternoon it was almost as if I had never eaten off track. No carb cravings and my sleeve felt as small as ever.

Anna if I had ever had your stomach at any point in my life I’d be wearing crop tops every day! ??

I was also reading about how so many of us have dysmorphia issues and I can so totally relate.
Here is a pic of me and hubs in NOLA and I feel so fat when I look at it. Even after losing 70 pounds I’m shocked at how big I look in pictures vs how I think I really look.

Funny part is when I post the pics, everyone tells me how great I look while the entire time I’m cringing because I think I look soooooo much larger in the pics than I do in the mirror at home so now I’m seriously doubting my ability to objectively judge my own size.

Ugh, so frustrating and not at all what I’d expected.

Overall though, I’m going to remind myself that I’m still almost 50 pounds heavier than I was in high school/college so I still have 3-4 clothes sizes to lose.
Maybe eventually I won’t feel like I’m taking up tons of space and will actually know what it’s like to be attractive (heck I’d settle for not feeling hideous) again.

So because I like to end on a positive rather than a negative note, I will also post that I flew solo Friday and had to sit in the dreaded middle seat and for the first time in over 22 years I didn’t spill out into the seats on other side and I was actually able to not have the arms rests digging into my hips! Major victory!

Pic posted with hubs and I’m horrified that anyone that loves me let me leave the condo with shorts on. Goodness but I hate having such a pear shape with thunder thighs and heavy legs.

Look! You can actually see that my hips aren’t in serious dislocation from the armrest and that there’s quite a bit extra on the seat belt!

Good morning gang!
I haven’t weighed myself in over a week now and I think I might try to tomorrow.
With many of our group seemingly in another stall and my recent weekend vacay, I’ve been hesitant to jump on and see where I am. The problem is that I’ve been stuck between 185-180 for over 3 weeks and want so desperately to make it into the 170’s by August.

Vacay went well, but I pretty much ate/drank what I wanted. Honestly I bet I drank way more calories than I ate (hello frozen daquiri drinks!).

Yeah the portions were very small, but I just went with the flow. Was able to get right back on track on the drive back Monday and by Tuesday afternoon it was almost as if I had never eaten off track. No carb cravings and my sleeve felt as small as ever.

Anna if I had ever had your stomach at any point in my life I’d be wearing crop tops every day! [emoji23][emoji23]

I was also reading about how so many of us have dysmorphia issues and I can so totally relate.
Here is a pic of me and hubs in NOLA and I feel so fat when I look at it. Even after losing 70 pounds I’m shocked at how big I look in pictures vs how I think I really look.

Funny part is when I post the pics, everyone tells me how great I look while the entire time I’m cringing because I think I look soooooo much larger in the pics than I do in the mirror at home so now I’m seriously doubting my ability to objectively judge my own size.

Ugh, so frustrating and not at all what I’d expected.

Overall though, I’m going to remind myself that I’m still almost 50 pounds heavier than I was in high school/college so I still have 3-4 clothes sizes to lose.
Maybe eventually I won’t feel like I’m taking up tons of space and will actually know what it’s like to be attractive (heck I’d settle for not feeling hideous) again.

So because I like to end on a positive rather than a negative note, I will also post that I flew solo Friday and had to sit in the dreaded middle seat and for the first time in over 22 years I didn’t spill out into the seats on other side and I was actually able to not have the arms rests digging into my hips! Major victory!

Pic posted with hubs and I’m horrified that anyone that loves me let me leave the condo with shorts on. Goodness but I hate having such a pear shape with thunder thighs and heavy legs.

Look! You can actually see that my hips aren’t in serious dislocation from the armrest and that there’s quite a bit extra on the seat belt!

Yup!!! Dysmorphia Sheribear!!! Because you look absolutely beautiful and slender and I can't even relate to how you see yourself in this adorable picture!!!!

Congratulations on the NSV on the plane!! I can only imagine how fantastic that felt!!! Well done!!!![emoji175][emoji175][emoji175][emoji175]

Yeah that was a flattering picture. I’m too embarrassed to post the real thing at this time. Maybe later.

3 hours ago, Deedee12 said:

Yup!!! Dysmorphia Sheribear!!! Because you look absolutely beautiful and slender and I can't even relate to how you see yourself in this adorable picture!!!!

Congratulations on the NSV on the plane!! I can only imagine how fantastic that felt!!! Well done!!!!

Sheribear! Wahooooo! You look great!

Hey everyone!

Interesting hearing the talk about ssris... I'm intolerant to ssris (I get some fairly extreme side effects, like sleeping 18-20 hrs a day. I attempted suicide while on an ssri -- thus why I'm so hesitant to muck around with any drugs) *but* I've had hit a couple of seriously rough patches lately and I'm in talks with a doctor about trialing medication.

I think they're hesitant to put me on anything because ssris are, like 'the first line of defense' in NZ, and GPs usually won't prescribe anything else. That and my GP isn't comfortable prescribing anything because of the surgery. *shrugs* I guess until they figure it out I'll just have to cope with, like, not being able to function like a normal human.

I had the same 5-month weight loss slow down/stall as many did, but in the past week I've lost 4 pounds! I really do think my body was still a-changin' even when the scale wasn't, but have to admit that it feels nice seeing the scale move a little

Hope the GI goes well, froufrou! Sorry to hear about your problems ? Here's hoping they figure it out!

After my tests I went back to soft foods and proteins mixed with gravy/moisture of some kind. I don't have as many problems with throwing up now. Though my husband bought some duck home the other day and it really did not sit well with me! Lesson learned!

14 minutes ago, EmzBee said:

Hey everyone!

Interesting hearing the talk about ssris... I'm intolerant to ssris (I get some fairly extreme side effects, like sleeping 18-20 hrs a day. I attempted suicide while on an ssri -- thus why I'm so hesitant to muck around with any drugs) *but* I've had hit a couple of seriously rough Patches lately and I'm in talks with a doctor about trialing medication.

I think they're hesitant to put me on anything because ssris are, like 'the first line of defense' in NZ, and GPs usually won't prescribe anything else. That and my GP isn't comfortable prescribing anything because of the surgery. *shrugs* I guess until they figure it out I'll just have to cope with, like, not being able to function like a normal human.

I had the same 5-month weight loss slow down/stall as many did, but in the past week I've lost 4 pounds! I really do think my body was still a-changin' even when the scale wasn't, but have to admit that it feels nice seeing the scale move a little

Getting the SSRIs just right is always a challenge. It seems we have a lot of options in the U.S. but none of them seems to come without some downside. Your extreme side effects are definitely scary. I hope you find something that works just right so you feel better. So great to hear about the vanishing 4 pounds!

5 months post-op today and down 72 pounds. It feels a lot better and I'm having more energy. I'm having trouble with my stomach. I can't really explain it, but is lower and possibly a burning feeling. It comes and goes and only lasts about 30 seconds to a minute. My 6 month follow up is in exactly 4 weeks and I will speak to my PA. We discussed it before and she said she would do a scope if it continued. So, I will be asking to do the scope. I take protonix daily, although I have missed it a few times. I sure hope it stops and won't have to do a revision. My Dr wanted me to do the DS, but I said no. However, I guess I might consider if this continues. I still have to lose 84 pounds to get to goal, and definitely will need plastic surgery on my arms, stomach and breasts.

Hope everyone is in a good place and may we all continue to do well! Love this group!??‍♀️

Edited July 26, 20197 yr by gabybab

7 hours ago, gabybab said:

5 months post-op today and down 72 pounds. It feels a lot better and I'm having more energy. I'm having trouble with my stomach. I can't really explain it, but is lower and possibly a burning feeling. It comes and goes and only lasts about 30 seconds to a minute. My 6 month follow up is in exactly 4 weeks and I will speak to my PA. We discussed it before and she said she would do a scope if it continued. So, I will be asking to do the scope. I take protonix daily, although I have missed it a few times. I sure hope it stops and won't have to do a revision. My Dr wanted me to do the DS, but I said no. However, I guess I might consider if this continues. I still have to lose 84 pounds to get to goal, and definitely will need plastic surgery on my arms, stomach and breasts.

Hope everyone is in a good place and may we all continue to do well! Love this group!??‍♀️

So proud of you Gaby! Can you believe how far this group has come? I remember reading post of groups that were six months out and thinking, I hope I will be like that. Now here we are ... not quite six months but really successful. I did have a NSV...I went to see my hair stylist and she did not recognize me at first. c-r-a-z-y. The last time that happened to me, it was because I had gained so much weight. This time when it happened I was happy as opposed to beating myself up for letting myself get that size. So proud of us!

On 07/26/2019 at 06:03, Goody222 said:

So proud of you Gaby! Can you believe how far this group has come? I remember reading post of groups that were six months out and thinking, I hope I will be like that. Now here we are ... not quite six months but really successful. I did have a NSV...I went to see my hair stylist and she did not recognize me at first. c-r-a-z-y. The last time that happened to me, it was because I had gained so much weight. This time when it happened I was happy as opposed to beating myself up for letting myself get that size. So proud of us!

Awesome story!
Today I got back on the scale again for the first time after my mini-vacay and I’m finally finally finally in the 170’s.
179.0 to be exact, which is simply amazing considering the setbacks I’ve had this month with the broken toes and thrown-out lower back. I had to shelve working out for over 2 weeks and was getting pretty antsy about it.

So this means that for the month of July, I’ve lost almost 4 pounds, but I consider that a victory all things considered (especially with my trip to NOLA where I drank and ate considerably worse than I’ve done in the last 5 months cumulative).

Anyway, I’ve been back on track with a vengeance since Monday and I’ve got a massage scheduled tomorrow to see if I can get the kinks and pain from my lower back/hips worked out so I can get more active soon.
Part of me is a bit disappointed that I’ve lost over 75 pounds this year and worked hard on strengthening my core and I STILL threw my lower back out again—it usually happens 2-3 times yearly and I was desperately hoping that would improve, but no.... broken toe causing me to change my gait for a few days and predictably the lower back went out yet again. ???

On a positive note, at least there’s 75 pounds less of me to haul around when the back does go out. ???

5 hours ago, Goody222 said:

So proud of you Gaby! Can you believe how far this group has come? I remember reading post of groups that were six months out and thinking, I hope I will be like that. Now here we are ... not quite six months but really successful. I did have a NSV...I went to see my hair stylist and she did not recognize me at first. c-r-a-z-y. The last time that happened to me, it was because I had gained so much weight. This time when it happened I was happy as opposed to beating myself up for letting myself get that size. So proud of us!

Congrats! So nice to feel better and not being recognized, that is amazing!!! Goody, did you have surgery on 2-25? That was my date.

4 hours ago, gabybab said:

Congrats! So nice to feel better and not being recognized, that is amazing!!! Goody, did you have surgery on 2-25? That was my date.

4 hours ago, gabybab said:

Congrats! So nice to feel better and not being recognized, that is amazing!!! Goody, did you have surgery on 2-25? That was my date.

We are surgery twins!