Amanda131

You look wonderful and so HAPPY! Yay!

I was wondering where you wandered off to... glad it was vacay! Welcome back and congratulations on the wonderful weightloss and transition back to semi-normal eating life!

UPDATE: I just got a phone call and I made it to the final interview with the Superintendent!!!! I am up against one other person. It will be on Tuesday. I have no doubt that all of your best wishes made it happen. THANK YOU! Amanda

Congratulations! BTW I think your hubby is pretty awesome for taking you shopping on date night. That's sounds like a great date!

Thanks Ladies for the awesome words of encouragement. I think they worked because I did, indeed, kick major ass in that interview!!! I was so calm, relaxed and (here's my favorite part!) I sat throughout the interview WITH MY LEGS CROSSED all confident and self-assured. FREAKIN' AWESOME! I have no idea if I will get the position but I am completely at peace knowing I did my part and now God just needs to decide if it's the right position for me. Of course, if I get it, I'll be sure to update! Thanks again! Amanda

While I've never smoked, I have family members who have successfully quit. In addition to Wellbutrin and Chantix prescriptions, I have heard two different family members swear by the effectiveness of both hypnosis and acupuncture in fighting the mental cravings. Good luck to you.

I was given no pre-op diet to speak of... was basically told to eat "healthy" and not gain any weight before surgery. I lost 34 lbs. in the first month and that month included a 10 day period where I lost almost nothing. I would say this loss was well beyond normal since I have lost about 12-15 lbs. each in both month two and three. I would tend to agree that a big pre-op loss is likely to affect numbers in the first month. Interesting thread! Amanda

Yes. I had an orange-sized cyst removed when I was younger. Trust me, you'd much rather have it removed then go through the pain of one bursting. It is a simple surgery that resulted in a small incision inside my navel. Once healed, the only time I ever saw the scar again was in my third trimester of pregnancy. I have also had cysts shrink on their own before, too. So don't completely count out that possibility. I will say that having the lower adominals cut was more difficult for me to heal from then the cuts made for VSG but to be rid of cyst pain was worth it. Hang in there. Ovarian cysts are no fun. Good luck! Amanda

I'm pretty relaxed- to a point. I track EVERYTHING I eat and allow myself to fluctuate on calories... I actually believe that it's best to change up calorie intake. My calories run anywhere from 700 -1200 but generally average 1000 (keep in mind that I am 5'9"). My biggest focus is to stay over 80 grams of Protein and under 100 grams of carbs. I am losing quite well and satisfied with my progress on this current plan. If/when the weight loss stops, then I will re-evaluate. For me, it's is very important that I not make any foods 100% taboo because I have the personality type that will then be drawn to that food. I generally though do not eat bread, rice, or Pasta. Carbonation is another no-no for me. Hope this helps. Amanda

It can also be completely unrelated to WLS... vertigo called Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). I went through it last year. Basically, a little "crystal" (what the doc called it) in the inner ear can become dislodged and cause major dizziness havoc. It will eventually self-correct. In severe situations, they'll even do phyisical therapy to correct. Just another possibility.

Welcome, Banker53! You've already got the answer to #1 (Non-scale Victory) so I'll jump to #2. I was sleeved almost 3 months ago and I honestly have no regrets. Do I wish I could have controlled my weight without surgery? Absolutely. But I couldn't and I am now really proud of myself for seeking out a viable solution and following it through. If I had it to do over, the only thing I would do differently is take the pre-op diet more seriously. I think my head would have been better off right after surgery if I had done this. Now, I have had zero complications and fantastic weight loss thus far so it's pretty easy for me to lack regret. Best of luck to you! Amanda

Like Kelly, I went with the cheaper version of the bullet from Walmart and I have been really happy with it. I actually used it yesterday to make spaghetti sauce from scratch with tomatoes from our garden.

Misty- nailed it- you didn't lose 45 lbs. from your face alone! You really do look remarkably slimmer. And, I LOVE that you have that same killer smile in both pic!

So, I have had no complications with my uvula- I really just clicked on this because I was curious what exactly the "uvula" is. Since the post didn't answer, I googled it. And, did you know it can pierced? I learn something new every day! Sorry, I offered you zero help, but I found that so fascinating that I had to share. Good luck in getting answers! Amanda

Ah Vixen, you're post is especially touching for me. I have my own 3 year old mini-me that was a major influencing factor when I decided to jump off the cliff that is weight loss surgery. Like you, I am slowly discovering the joys of being able to give her more by simply being in a smaller body. I don't know that I'd even realized the full scope of it until I read your post. Thanks for that!

My package was submitted on Monday and I found out that Wednesday with Aetna. I had to do the 90 day supervised diet. My first appt. was in the last week of October and I was approved the first week of February for surgery that happened on March 1st. Aetna really was a breeze for me- I was impressed. Good luck!

The last time I lost a big chunk of weight the male attention made me so uncomfortable that I think that it was a big reason I regained it... It made me uncomfortable to be seen without my "protective" fat layer. I was married so I wasn't looking for a mate and somehow the attention made me feel disloyal- crazy, I know. I've spent a lot of time with the therapist rehashing that so I don't do it again. A bit of advice for discouraging the attention at work: I worked as a bartender through college and dealt with men who not only bared their souls to the barkeep but wanted to date her as well. I started wearing a plain band on my left middle finger that I slid over to my ring finger prior to any shift. I never lied or told anyone I was married but that ring led many of them to assume I was taken. Problem solved.

As I've mentioned previously, I've lost anywhere from 50-80 pounds at five different times prior to my sleeve surgery. Each time, I reached a point where for whatever reason (still trying to figure that one out) I began to sabotage my efforts for no apparent reason. It's almost as if I have to prove to myself that I really can't be successful and that I'm doomed to be a big, fat dummo the rest of my life. Weight loss is the only area of my life I have not been successful and for some reason I am terrified of true success in this area. Anyway, I've evidently hit that point where I started looking for the exit. I noticed today that for the past few weeks I've been sabotaging myself, again. It started with a slight stall which I think subconsciously made me think I was going to fail- I have a history of quitting things before I fail. It's a perfectionist issue. Anyway, I'm aware of it but I thought/hoped I had these tendencies thoroughly in check. Today, I realized, not so much. So, I've called a "Come to Jesus" meeting with myself. This is unacceptable and I owe me far more than I am giving right now. I've backslid on Water consumption, making best food choices, no excercise, you name it. I feel too good right now to start trying to screw it all up just because my brain seems to think I can't succeed even though I obviously am. Alright, thanks for listeing/reading. I needed to get that out there. Out of curiousity, have any of you battled these demons? If so, how do you handle them? Maybe I can pick up a new technique or two.

You're so normal! It happened to the vast majority of us. I think it's a rite of passage. Just try to focus on the fact that you aren't saying goodbye to these foods forever, just for now. I am almost three months out and can now eat pretty much anything I want- just not a lot of it. Prior to surgery I focused on this liklihood, but I was a volume eater and just couldn't wrap my mind around the idea that I would be satisfied by two bites of a cheeseburger rather than the burger, fries, Dr. Pepper and maybe even some nuggets if no one was watching. But, it's true- I am satisfied! Just today, Hubs had an amazing cheeseburger and I took two small bites and was just fine with that and actually almost felt full. No worries- I didn't get my head completely right before surgery either, but it has worked out. In the interest of full disclosure, I should also mention that I have continued to see a therapist for food-related issues about ever two weeks since surgery and that has helped significantly. Deep breath- you're okay! Amanda

Weight gain can cause testosterone levels in men to drop significantly. Pair that with the fact that many blood pressure/cholesterol and depression meds can jack with both sexual interest and equipment functioning and it's a recipe for disaster. I am like you and went through a similar issue with hubs. I finally convinced him to have his testosterone checked and his was ridiculously low. He found that embarassing for some reason but he also felt better knowing there was a reason for the lack of interest. The gel actually didn't work for him and he has to take injections once a week right now. The good news is that testosterone therapy has greatly improved his mood, his energy level and he dropped 50lbs. in three months on it. Oh yeah, that not interested issue cleared up pretty darn quick. FTW!

Hi Tamz! I spent one night in the hospital after a 7:30 a.m. Surgery. I had surgery on a Tuesday and was back to my office job the next Monday. I was a little tired the first week but managed without incident. I did take a half-day after being back three days just to recoup a little rest. If my job could've been done at home in my p.j.'s then I probably would've been back sooner. Keep in mind that I healed quickly without any major complications. Good luck! Amanda

Congratulations! I still have a way to go but I can't wait to join you!

Love it! 1) Being able to cross my legs- I feel so girly! 2) Having lots of energy to play with my three-year-old dynaMO- her name is Morgan and she's FULL of energy so we call her DynaMO. 3) Being taken more seriously in a professional capacity- I swear I'm moving up in my career as the pounds drop. I'm hoping it has more to do with my new-found confidence and not something as ugly as weight discrimination.

I bought an iPad2! Now, I had said I was getting one for 6 months and had foregone a Christmas, Anniversary and Mother's Day present but I kept waiting to actually pull the trigger and make the purchase. Once I lost 50 lbs., I felt I finally deserved it. Do something special, memorable and a little out of the norm for you- this is a big deal! Congratulations! Amanda

I actually had very few people ever comment about my weight and I don't remember any comments ever being inappropriate. I am tall and supposedly "carried it well" whatever the hell that means. But, a little like Tiffykins, I maintained an aura of confidence and it was always inherently clear that I wouldn't tolerate being bullied or demeaned. Now, for my part, what a lot of people saw was an act because I was NO WHERE NEAR as confident as I projected. What I am finding is that as the weight comes off I don't have to fake the confidence anymore and that feels great! As for people who have wronged me, I have always been a big fan of taking the high road. I feel the need to be the bigger person and not sink to their leve- in my ming that make them that much more pathetic. It often helps me to think that something in their life must be hurting them so much that they need to behave this way to make themselves feel better. If the behavior is overt, I would say something in that moment but then give them a wide berth- hurting or not, I don't need those kind of people in my life.