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Somewhat related - for a few weeks before i had my surgery, I watched what my female co-workers were eating when they were having lunch in the employee break room. There were a couple of them who ate what I would have called at the time a "normal" lunch. For example, and sandwich, a bag of chips, and a couple of cookies. But almost everyone else ate these tiny lunches. A thing of yogurt and an apple. Half a sandwich and a container of baby carrots. Yogurt and half a bagel. I came to the conclusion that this is basically how most normal, never-been-obese women ordinarily eat (unless they're going out for an occasional restaurant lunch, of course), and that those who ate the more substantial lunches were probably pretty active or blessed with great metabolism. It was pretty eye-opening.

I did take all of the advice I've gotten here into consideration, so thank you all for that. One thing I did do yesterday was to reach out to an acquaintance who had gastric sleeve three years ago in a neighboring country. Apparently, she did go through a local doctor who sent her to have surgery overseas but closer than Poland or other countries in Eastern Europe. And it was all paid by the national health insurance. This doctor is an obesity expert and runs one of the two programs in the country that's recognized as adequate preparation for weight loss surgery, if you want to try to get the national insurance to pay for your operation. It's not on an inpatient basis, which is a plus. When my acquaintance did it, the wait between the prep course and the surgery was only three months, but it may be longer now. I did email the doctor to ask for an appointment, but I have no idea if they're accepting new patients or if they have a long waiting list. If they're like other doctors, they'll be going on vacation soon and I may not get an appointment until the fall or later. And I may not qualify for surgery paid by the national health insurance, since their general rule is that they operate on people with BMI 40 or higher, and mine is 37. As I understand it, they may approve surgery for someone with a BMI under 40 if they have enough co-morbidities. I have high blood pressure and the slightly elevated blood sugar test. I don't know if that's enough, but I guess I'll find out. If I don't qualify I probably won't be able to go to the hospital in the neighboring country that my acquaintance went to, since It's not a private hospital. At least, that's what she thought.

Pain is subsiding a little more each day. Walking definitely helps. Feeling up to taking a shower today. From surgery on Monday to today I've lost 5 pounds. Promised myself I wouldn't worry about how fast or slow the weight comes off as long as it comes off. So I'll keep strolling along. Sent from my SM-G981V using BariatricPal mobile app

Going on my first post op date. I haven't dated in 2 years. I am already picturing all the weird things I have to do around food with him. He offered to cook me a pasta dinner and I had to say no LOL so we're going to a smoothie place instead. I looked up the menu and they have unsweetened tea and coffees so I'll be fine but omg how does one explain it? Anyway, wish me luck! And feel free to share your post op date stories too Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

I live right across the water from Whidbey! In Port Townsend! Yes everything is absolutely crazy expensive.

No you didn’t make a mistake, yes you did the right thing! I promise. Now you just have this to distract you from the thing that was making you miserable in the first place that made you want to get the surgery. So you can’t turn to that for comfort now. Give yourself a lot of grace and visualize yoke healing. I walked, sat when I was pushing it too much. I had a heating pad which was heavenly. Tylenol was my friend, the one with narcotics in it lol I chewed on Gas X like sweet tarts. I loved hot tea, sugar free popsicles. everyone is 10000% correct that you are going to feel amazing. Distract yourself as much as you can. I’m 3 1/2 months out and I love my restriction. It helps me focus, it’s reset my hormones. My cholesterol is almost 200 points down. sending hugs and healing your way.

This is true. That’s why therapy & understanding why you eat is a vital component of this process for many people. In the US a psychological assessment is part of the insurance approval process. In Australia, your surgeon recommends pre &/or post surgery therapy sessions. The surgery affords many benefits that dieting &/or exercising alone does. It resets your body set point (the weight your body naturally gravitates to), boosts your metabolism, removes part of the area that produces the hunger hormone (ghrelin) & can affect the glp1 hormone that regulates hunger & the metabolism of glucose. There are also of course physical changes that restricts how much food you can eat. You will have to change how & what you eat. (Many change when they eat too.) The surgery affords you the time to establish new habits, discover new foods & to work out what way of eating works best for you. I’ve tried many diets & I’m pig headed enough to stick to them for months without wavering but I’d always eventually go back to how & what I usually ate. I’ve never been able to maintain my weight like I can now. I made a decision to cut out a lot of sugar (real, artificial, substitutes) out of my diet. I don’t eat highly processed foods, avoid a lot of carbs & never have fast food. This has been what works for me. It may not work for you or complement your lifestyle. I didn’t record my food intake & still don’t. I do random checks of my calories & regularly check nutrients & ingredients. The only thing I watch carefully is my protein. Some people find tracking very helpful but it isn’t for everyone all the time. Though you may be required to do it for a while to ensure you’re getting in the nutrients you need. But you have to be ready to do this. As I said it’s not easy. It was harder than any other diet I’ve done.

Welcome back @acbenford. Just an update from the OP - Still a horrible tracker, but daily weigher. Still working for me and if I vary more than 2-3 lbs I get back focused for a week or more and that settles be back into a better routine for several more weeks. Losing very slowly these days, but still losing so not complaining.

All this stuff is true. I would however like to give a male point of view. Men who are obese are not "given a pass" as some like to say. I too thought it was more accepted until I lost 100 pounds and it is amazing how differently people treat me since I am now skinny. I am asked if I need help more quickly in department stores, I am addressed more quickly in car dealerships or whatever environment I show up to. I am treated more politely at the doctor/dentist office and the list goes on. The weight discrimination is there for men too.

My program has never restricted carbs post surgery, in fact they encourage a balanced diet and higher calories compared to some of the programs out there. I eat carbs on a regular basis, but that is coupled with watching overall calories and prioritizing protein. While I eat carbs, it is also nowhere near what I used to eat. I don't eat a lot of bread. The exception is a light English muffin as part of my breakfast sandwich - for some reason those English muffins don't bloat me the same way as other bread. Rice might be a few spoonfuls, the same with pasta. My tummy really cannot handle carbs in large amounts so pasta is no longer the go to food it used to be.