Losing hope

[jessridge 8]

I am 6 months post op and I’ve only lost 62 lbs. I’ve struggled with Hair loss and I’ve slipped with all the sweets this holiday season. Nothing too crazy though, just enough to be disappointed. Have I wasted my time and money at this point?

[Arabesque 6,445]

No, you haven’t wasted your time or money. So you ate some dessert & other treats over Christmas. It’s not Christmas every day & if you’ve recognised it for what it is (a special occasion exception) & gone back to eating as per your plan you’re fine. You’ll always be faced with these type of dilemmas (travelling, dining out, holidays, etc.). Over time we learn how not to beat ourselves up about it, make the best choices we can in the situation, accept it & move forward.

Part of the weight loss process is learning about your eating, what foods you can or can’t eat (or are or are t willing to eat) & how much or how often you can eat some foods. I described it as discovering what foods I could eat regularly, occasionally, rarely & which foods it was best if I avoided. I don’t eat sweet foods except at Christmas & certain special events - rarely. Some people work out they can have a small serve of say pizza with the family or they work out healthier ways of eating old favourites like a bun less burger - occasionally. I don’t eat high processed carbs like bread, Pasta & rice - avoid.

Oh, and I’d lost about 68lbs at 6 months so not much difference. Seems like you’re pretty much on track. And the accelerated loss of the hair you would naturally be shedding usually lasts about 3months +/-. Your new hair is still growing just at it’s usual rate. Losing some hair, which regrew, was a small temporary price to pay for my weight loss.

You’ve got this.

[Hop_Scotch 1,625]

Only lost 62lb in six months? Nothing only about that, I would say it was pretty significant.

Hair loss is common after any surgery, and for the majority of the people, the issue resolves itself in time. Sweets well tis the season and all that, what matters there is ensuring that you get back on track.

You've lost 62lb how can that be a waste of time and money. Surely your health has improved? Surely you are walking lighter and breathing easier?

While the end goal maybe a much healthier weight, sometimes its useful to focus on non scale goals. Improved health and fitness...lower blood pressure and cholesterol, able to walk faster or jog, fitting into smaller clothing sizes, able to play with children/grandchildren easily etc etc

Well done, keep up the great work!

[Smanky 743]

62 pounds in six months is a totally decent rate of loss. I had lost around that much at that stage. Hair loss is normal and most of us go through it, and I daresay all of us have had a day or so of going over the calorie allowance due to a birthday, or Christmas, or a holiday.

There's absolutely nothing to lose hope about here - everything you've described is perfectly normal.

[Possum220 222]

6 hours ago, jessridge said:

I am 6 months post op and I’ve only lost 62 lbs. I’ve struggled with Hair loss and I’ve slipped with all the sweets this holiday season. Nothing too crazy though, just enough to be disappointed. Have I wasted my time and money at this point?

Wasted all your time and money? You will have if you let this small bump in the road take you back to where you started. New Years Eve. Time for another reset to health. You got this.

[summerset 5,261]

7 hours ago, jessridge said:

I’ve slipped with all the sweets this holiday season.

You will "slip" again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Get used to it.

Quote

Have I wasted my time and money at this point?

Only if you don't learn how to handle the food world (including situations like the ones you described). Then there might be a not-so-low possibility that you're one of the people who're gung-ho during their first post-op year, then "something" happens, the weight first stalls despite "still wanting to lose these 25 lbs" and finally the weight gain starts, maybe gaining until they reach their starting weight again.

That "something" seems to be some kind of burn-out after having gone full throttle for some months. Other people say that "life happened" (however, I think burning out and "life happening" are related closely).

[Sunnyer 131]

8 hours ago, jessridge said:

I am 6 months post op and I’ve only lost 62 lbs. I’ve struggled with Hair loss and I’ve slipped with all the sweets this holiday season. Nothing too crazy though, just enough to be disappointed. Have I wasted my time and money at this point?

Sixty two pounds in six months is a job well done. I've lost nearly 47 pounds in four months and three weeks, so almost four months. I'd be very happy with 62 pounds in six months, although most likely I will lose less than that.

I ate a little bit of Cookies and candy during Christmas. It didn't make me gain weight. The key is to stop in January, and make sure the sweets are just a seasonal treat and not an everyday occurrence. Start the new year with a new exercise routine and stop being disappointed in yourself. You're doing great.

Edited December 30, 2022 by Sunnyer

[catwoman7 10,845]

I agree with the others - everything you said is completely normal. The stalls, the Hair loss (and that will grow back), and the occasional slip-up. It's only a problem if you don't know how to recover from it - that is, forgive yourself, learn from it, and get right back on plan. And 62 lbs in six months is totally normal. That's about where I was at that point.

[BriarRose 432]

NO ! You haven't wasted anything ! You have GAINED experience, you have gained the knowledge that IF you eat certain foods, you won't lose weight. One of the biggest issues for many people, myself included isn't losing the weight... if I really set my mind to it.... it is keeping it off. I am a dozen years post surgery. Look at where I started and where I am now. About 4 years ago I decided to take some gained weight off.... again... and to stop every so often and maintain THAT weight for a while. BLEW MY OWN MIND !!! I could eat more, or eat treats and maintain my weight each time. Two years ago I got down to about 172 - 173 and decided to stay there and only panic if I got to 177. I kept a 40 pound weight loss for 2 years. AFTER losing 120 pounds 12 to 10 years ago. A while back... a few months I decided that I would just try to get back from an average of 175 to maybe that 172. Took my time, made some small changes. Gained 2 pounds during the 8 days of Chanukkah with some latkes and jelly donuts. And family dinners. Not a problem. Went back to what I was doing before our holiday and lost the two pounds ... (again) and didn't beat myself up over it. As soon as I stopped eating the holiday foods, the two pounds came off and another couple pounds after that...

For me, it is all about getting into the right head space and weighing daily, watching what I eat, and balance. Friends dropped off dinner for my adult daughter and I tonight.... line caught, home made fresh FRIED fish. And french fries. (REALLY ?!) The fish was delicious. I ate 4 fries. And a piece of fish. I have fish for lunch tomorrow, and dinner..... and my daughter has fish and fries for days... I am the same weight now as I was in college... in 1977. From my heaviest weight I am almost half of myself.

NEVER ever say that you cannot. Take a break from being so hard on yourself. Take a week and maintain where you are now. Then go back to where you need to be. You can do this.

[BigSue 1,320]

You’ve lost 62 pounds in 6 months and you’re dissatisfied with that? I think that looking at other bariatric patients can skew our perspectives on weight loss. If you are expecting the same rate of weight loss as the patients on My 600 Pound Life, for example, that is not realistic because you don’t have nearly as much weight to lose.

Your expectations for weight loss may not be realistic. At your height of 5’6”, your goal weight of 140 pounds puts you at a BMI of 22.6. The average gastric bypass patient loses 50-70% of excess weight, which means that the average gastric bypass patient doesn’t quite get to a BMI below 25 (which would be 155 pounds for a 5’6” person). With a starting weight of 270 pounds, your excess weight was 115 pounds. If you lose 70% of that, it’s 81 pounds of weight loss and a final weight of 189 pounds. A loss of 62 pounds in 6 months puts you on track to achieve that in a year (but remember that there are a lot of factors that can affect rate of weight loss, and you may lose faster or slower than others).

Keep in mind that this is an average and not indicative of any individual patient. It is certainly possible to lose more than that. Some gastric bypass patients do lose all their excess weight and end up with a BMI below 25. You might be able to get to 140 pounds, but it is probably going to take a lot of work. The surgery is just a tool, not magic. If you were expecting to shed all your excess weight in 6 months without trying, then maybe you did waste your time and money, but if you are willing to put in the effort and use the WLS to your advantage, then you can achieve more weight loss than you ever have before.

[qtdoll 534]

10lbs per month is still WAY better than the majority of the population. Plus you recognize eating sweets may be a problem. That's an easy solution! Esp now that the holidays are over. Keep at it, you still have 4 more 'honeymoon stage' months

Edited January 1, 2023 by bbykitty

[Sunnyer 131]

On 1/1/2023 at 6:44 AM, bbykitty said:

10lbs per month is still WAY better than the majority of the population. Plus you recognize eating sweets may be a problem. That's an easy solution! Esp now that the holidays are over. Keep at it, you still have 4 more 'honeymoon stage' months

I thought the "honeymoon stage" for bariatric surgery was 18 months, not ten?

I'm almost five months past my surgery date, and I've lost a little more than half of the excess weight. I doubt I will lose it all in the next five months, as my weight loss has slowed down from the first month or two. I'm hoping I will have more time than that.

[summerset 5,261]

Stop putting yourself under pressure. You won't magically stop losing weight after a certain time span.

You stop losing weight when you're in a caloric equilibrium and you start losing again when you're in a caloric deficit (even years out).

[qtdoll 534]

1 hour ago, Sunnyer said:

I thought the "honeymoon stage" for bariatric surgery was 18 months, not ten?

I'm almost five months past my surgery date, and I've lost a little more than half of the excess weight. I doubt I will lose it all in the next five months, as my weight loss has slowed down from the first month or two. I'm hoping I will have more time than that.

Oops I meant to imply that the honeymoon stage lasts 12months, not 10. That's what the Kaiser employee at my program told me at least! If anything, I hope it's 18 months lol

[Arabesque 6,445]

7 hours ago, bbykitty said:

Oops I meant to imply that the honeymoon stage lasts 12months, not 10. That's what the Kaiser employee at my program told me at least! If anything, I hope it's 18 months lol

I’ve seen it described as lasting 18months. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I think how long the honeymoon phase lasts is individual much like most things during this process. There are just averages which you can use as a guide. Some people find their hunger comes back after 6 months which is a signal of the beginning of the end of their honeymoon. It doesn’t mean they’ll stop losing, they just have to work harder. Another signal is when your weight loss slows down considerably which happens to everyone when they get closer to their final weight. Mine started slowing a lot at 5 months when I was almost at my goal. I continued to lose for about another 11 months without meaning to. I lost around a kg +/- a month during that time.