Wondering WHY I did it!

[catwoman7 10,856]

21 minutes ago, IAmGrace said:

My sister and I are dieting together. I had a gastric sleeve performed on February 26.

My sister did not have weight loss surgery.

We are both ingesting approximately 600-700 calories per day.

We are losing at the same rate.

Go figure.

Grace

well, yea - that the two of you would lose at the same rate doesn't surprise me. But how long will she be able to keep it up? And how long she will be able to maintain her loss? That's not to say you definitely will - but it'll be MUCH easier for you to sustain and maintain it.

I lost 50-60 lbs a gazillion times before surgery. But it'd eventually all come back. And I had over 200 lbs to lose. I've lost it all and have kept it off for three years now. There's NO WAY I could have done that without surgery.

[IAmGrace 79]

WOW !!!

You've done phenomenally well!!! BIG congratulations to you !!

WILLPOWER certainly has so much to do with it.

[catwoman7 10,856]

13 minutes ago, IAmGrace said:

WOW !!!

You've done phenomenally well!!! BIG congratulations to you !!

WILLPOWER certainly has so much to do with it.

willpower is a factor, yes - esp as you get further out. But I still could never have done it without the surgery.

[DB in AZ 46]

4 hours ago, IAmGrace said:

My sister and I are dieting together. I had a gastric sleeve performed on February 26.

My sister did not have weight loss surgery.

We are both ingesting approximately 600-700 calories per day.

We are losing at the same rate.

Go figure.

Grace

Grace,It's good to see your post. One thing you have to remember is that we who are older and I am 73 will not lose as fast as those who are younger and a bit more active. Other things that affect weight loss are the medications that you are on and a lower metbolism. I had my surgery about a week before you and I have only lost 15 lbs. While it is frustrating I am okay with that and will be patient. It is a process. I do I'm eating between 6 and 700 calories a day which is where my doctors want me to be. I make sure that I get the prescribed amount of Protein as well as fluids. My stomach definitely tells me when it's full and that's when I stop.So that is the advantage of your tool.Although you and your sister are both losing weight right now here's what's going to be different for you. You have a lifelong tool now a smaller stomach that's gonna help you maintain proper portions to lose your weight and to maintain your ideal weight. We have all experienced the ups and downs of weight loss and weight gain because the body tries to throw everything at us to regaining that weight (Hunger changing metabolism at cetera) And that's what your sister may go through again and you won't if you follow The rules. The surgery Lowers your setpoint For your body weight. Hang in there and try not to get too discouraged. And stay safe through the corona virus.

[ResaRoo 77]

Something to consider:
You will be able to maintain 1000 calories a day quite easily. It might be much harder for your sister to do this once you’ve reached goal weight. You would have to push past full, or eat very frequently. Your sister would be able to eat 2-3 times as much at a sitting before feeling full. So while it makes sense you are both losing the same amount now, since your both eating the same amount of calories, I suspect it will be much harder for her to keep the weight off or fend off hunger pangs .

[ASDMom78 6]

Sounds like you're in the "buyer's remorse" stage of surgery. I'm sorry you are going through this but it's a phase that I went through as well and pretty common from what I hear. Often times we are forced to deal with our issues when we can no longer use food as a crutch to make us feel better so depression is very common. Your body is also trying to deal with a rapid decrease in calories and potentially hormone changes. It doesn't help that we are currently facing a pandemic while you're trying to heal and find a new normal.

One thing I was told many years ago when I started my journey is people who have food addictions must be very careful in making sure they do not turn to a different addiction (alcohol, drugs, shopping, sex, etc.) in an effort to please the same part of the brain food used to.

Take one day at a time. I promise you are stronger than you think and you will get through this. (((HUGS)))

Edited April 4, 2020 by ASDMom78

[IAmGrace 79]

Thank you so much for your response, but what you are telling me is not the case. I simply am losing weight at a snail's pace and that's with STRICT dieting (500 - 700 calories daily since February 26. I communicated with my surgeon to be certain that she did, indeed, remove as much of my stomach as she had told me she would. She reassured me that she did, but she had no feedback as to why I'm hardly losing.

[ASDMom78 6]

Try not to focus on what others have lost. You never know what the variables are within their bodies. Example, I originally lost 140lbs with the Lap-Band. That sounds great but that came at a cost of vomiting everyday, severe pain and pure misery. This is your journey and it won't be the same as anyone else's.

You have your head focused on the game and following the rules. I know it's hard especially this early in your journey when you're still healing from surgery and trying to find a new normal. The weight loss WILL come.

[ResaRoo 77]

I had my surgery on feb 10. I had lost about 20lbs on the 3 week pre-op. I gained almost 10lbs from iv fluids and medicines. It took me over 2 weeks to lose those 10 lbs. I’ve since lost another 18lbs - in 5 weeks. I’d love for it to be faster, but any loss is great. I am also eating 600-700 calories a day. But I’m also not quite as active a I was in feb and March, what with the extreme cold weather and everything locked down. Sadly, some of us lose slower than others. That was the case for me before surgery. I always lost slowly, so continuing to lose slowly after surgery isn’t really all that surprising.

[Bastian 458]

I lost 30lbs, sounds good huh BUT I went through absolute hell. I had 2 major surgeries a week apart because my sleeve went wrong so ended up with a bypass, I have had nothing but problems since, nausea/vomiting/bile coming up in my sleep which I inhaled and the burn in my oesophagus was so intense I thought I might die then and there (that was just last week 7 months out), due to inhaling it I now have a chest infection and I am trying to cough hard every 30 mins to prevent pneumonia developing.

So, you haven't lost 30lbs but you HAVE lost! THAT is all that matters. Be happy with what you have it could be worse.

Good luck xx

[BayougirlMrsS 3,933]

On 4/1/2020 at 12:32 PM, catwoman7 said:

willpower is a factor, yes - esp as you get further out. But I still could never have done it without the surgery.

I call is "wantpower"..... I want to be healthy. I want to be at a healthy weight. I want to be able to enjoy life. I want to play with my grandkids. I want to fit on a plane seat. I want to ride the rides at an amusement park. I want to not have to take all the meds.

When i was first banded back in 2009, i felt the same way. I was a slow loser. I said "i only lost"...... hundreds of times. Then some friends said, but chris, have you ever been able to keep them off? Well that was a big NO..... With WLS i was able to keep them off for YEARSSSSS..... Then i lost the band and put back 30lbs. So i had the sleeve. I started at a low weight of 173.5 back August 28, 2020. Today, i'm at 128-129.

A few things that help me. I know it's hard to do, but you have to stop comparing yourself to others, even your sister. We are all different. We all gained weight differently and for different reasons. This is your journey and no one else's. Trust in the process and it will happen....

I wrote on my mirror where i started as a reminder of how far i came.... SW: 232lbs (2009) Size: 18-20 pants 2x-3x shirt 44H bra. Today: CW: 129 Size 4 pants, sm-med shirt 32FF bra.

Then i write words of encouragement on the mirror and on the fridge.... This week's words for me: TODAY IS A NEW DAY, MAKE GOOD CHOICES. (dry erase markers)

I surround myself with positive people. If someone is negative around me, i just walk away... don't need that in my life, don't need that negativity coming into my heart and head.

TAKE PICTURES!!!!! if you haven't already... take them. take your measurements also. Then once a month retake your pictures and measurements. You will be amazed. I still don't see a size 4... I see size 10-12. But pictures don't lie.

[kimasinclair1 2]

I had my sleeve done 1/15/19 and I’m a very slow loser. I averaged two pounds a month for the first year (after an initial 16 lb loss the first month). They told me 2lbs a week would be ideal, slow and steady. As of my anniversary date 2.5 months ago, I’ve lost 2lbs. I’m only 1/2 way to my goal, 273lbs to 216. I battle the discouraging feeling everyday. I’m afraid I’ve reached my maximum weight loss. I tell myself “I’ve never been able to lose this much so think positive”. But I wonder why is it so hard for me. I even stopped coming here because it was difficult to hear the great success stories. When I do come here I look for people struggling like me. It’s hard to find. The PA has no reason other than my body is resisting the loss but I feel a year out it should give up the resistance. Anyway, try to stay positive no matter what rate you lose the weight. I have my internal battles every day trying to keep positive and know “I will get closer to where I want to be”.

[IAmGrace 79]

@ MsMocie:

You're telling me the obvious.

[Lily66 425]

Gracie my Special Pal....Now don’t get ticked at me, we’ve come through way too much together, but let me make a prediction: Initial impressions often end up being the opposite to be true.

Prediction: Six months from now GRACIE will be the most pleased with results of ANY of us! Gracie will be saying SO GLAD I DID THIS! Just wait till that fat melting motor kicks into high gear and watch out!!!😀💃💥💝🚀

Love and Hugs, Lily

Edited April 6, 2020 by Lily66

[IAmGrace 79]

I love your prediction Lily! Why would I get ticked at you? Never! You made me smile!