sarsar

I used a straw after surgery while I was in the hospital and have used one ever since. My surgeon said nothing at all about not using straws but a lot of surgeons tell you not to use one.

I'm not sure how you feel about this but the whole BMI thing drives me crazy. Maybe it's a woman thing. lol I am still over weight according to the BMI charts. I wear a size 6 or 8. This was the goal I wanted to get to, I didn't have a weight goal just a size of clothes where I felt comfortable. I don't feel overweight but in my head it still bothers me bc the BMI charts call me overweight. In my head I also know that I'm not supposed go by the BMI charts but the rest of the world does!

Body fat is tricky for me bc of the excess skin. Does anybody else have this problem? Last time I measured at 23% body fat. I still have a lot of skin that hangs over the muscle, so I am wondering how accurate measuring body fat is??? I'm not a bodybuilder by any means. I enjoy lifting weights a few times a week. I also do various forms of cardio. I worked out a lot before surgery and have always enjoyed strength training so I had quite a bit of muscle before the weight loss.

Good thoughts! I was going to second the "muscle weighs less than fat" comment. 5 pounds of muscle and 5 pounds of fat are both 5 pounds. The muscle takes of less room than the fat. So you will weigh more but look thinner. I have quite a bit of muscle and I believe this is why I weigh more than most that wear the same size as me.

I do this, too. I bake a few times a week and I love it. I give it away or send it to work with my husband. It's so much more enjoyable now than it was before. I let myself have a few bites of whatever I bake.

My PCP did all my follow up care.

At first there were times I felt like that bc I was so used to using food to deal with my emotions. Once I figured out how to get past that, I was good with eating little amounts of food. There are still times my emotions get the best of me and I eat a lot of popcorn. Usually I can stop myself bf this happens but once in a while it still happens.

You get used to eating less and it becomes your new normal. I used to be able to eat a TON of food bf I was sleeved. Now, I can just eat a little at a time and I am used to it and I actually enjoy eating a little at a time. It's been almost 2 years for me and I haven't thrown up once since I was sleeved.

I had to look in the mirror to see if I could find my scars and I am almost 2 years out. Mine are very small, I could hardly find them and I had forgotten where they were. Like others have said, my stretch marks and excess skin are much worse than the tiny scars.

No. Surgery can't fix thyroid problems. We are stuck with those for life! I did have to adjust my medication and now I take less of it. Currently I am having more symptoms so I need to go and get blood work done because I have a feeling I need to have my meds upped again.

I agree. I think too many people have this or any weight loss surgery thinking it's going to be a quick fix. When you first have the surgery you can't eat or drink much and you lose weight. As time goes on you can eat a lot of the junk foods that made you obese in the first place. If that's what you decide to eat you will regain weight. If you don't realize there is a problem and fix it before or at the beginning of surgery all of the old habits creep back in. It's best to just admit there is a problem and fix the problem. As many have said before, this surgery doesn't fix the head issues many of us have!

This is the way I eat. If I want something I have a few bites of it and then I don't feel deprived. I decided to do this from the beginning so that I learn to eat like a regular this person, I didn't want this to be a diet where I couldn't have this or that. That never worked for me in the past. I have had to work on my food addiction and emotionally it was so difficult at the beginning when I couldn't eat and had head hunger. I had to learn how to deal with my emotions without food. Now that I am almost 2 years out and my addiction is much better. I still have times where I eat when I am emotional but those times are few and far between and I can now stop myself.

Yes, I suppose it is. Interesting, there are all kinds of emotions but I usually think of emotional eating when one is sad or upset. I have used food with all emotions!

I have a thyroid issue that makes it harder to lose weight but that's not how I became obese! If I had not worked out so much when I was fat I would have been a lot bigger than I was. How can you be almost 300 pounds and not be addicted to food? To me being addicted to food and being an emotional eater is the same thing. Maybe it's really not, but, in my mind it goes hand and hand.

Currently I am taking a class to become a certified personal trainer. I have had a trainer for 4 years. She trained me when I was fat and trained me while I lost weight after surgery, I still train with her. A trainer telling you that there in no point in continuing is not someone who should be training. What a terrible thing to say, I'm sorry you went through that! I am interested in hearing replies to this because I also have a hard time understanding how people can be obese and not have a food addiction. I'm not talking about those very few who have a health problems that make it almost impossible to lose weight.

Nope, not deciding anything for them and other people being overweight doesn't bother me either. And no, I'm actually not saying I feel they are so fat they need surgery. I don't think anyone needs surgery at all, it's not for me to decide how overweight someone needs to be to "need" surgery. I look at the surgery as a gift that I was given. I can only speak for me and what I feel, I can't speak for others. I am not judging anyone. I will agree to disagree with you on this!

Wanting to tell someone about the surgery is different than actually doing it. I would not go up to people and tell them about the surgery. Most people that know me don't know how I lost the weight. I know the pain of being obese and because I have had such a good experience with my surgery, I always think that I wish they could have surgery, too. I know in my mind that they already know about surgery and know that they have to be ready to have the surgery in their own time. In my heart I wish I could take away the pain. Although, I feel that way about anyone who has any kind of pain, not just because they are obese. That doesn't mean I am judging them at all.

I know this is off topic but I wanted to say thank you for what you do! Being a teacher is a tough job. Having 3 children has made me appreciate teachers so much and I am thankful for all you do. I hope all this gets worked out for you without any issues!

I think that same thing all the time but I don't believe I am judging them at all. I feel so thankful that I was given this gift and I know the hurt and pain that they are going through. I want them to experience the freedom and joy that is on the other side!

Can you schedule everything you can now around work and then do the rest when school is out? It's not too much longer and you will be out for the summer. You could finish your tests and have your surgery during summer break. You said you need the job for the surgery so I wouldn't push it with taking time off if you are already on thin ice. It's not worth it in my opinion, especially since I assume you will be off this summer.

I like to make a protein shake out of it. I mix a couple ounces of skim milk, 4 ounces of water, a scoop of chocolate protein powder, 1/2 small banana, 2 Tbs PB2, spinach, and a dash of vanilla.

Ouch...that hurt! Sounds to me like she is jealous. Maybe she wishes she could have surgery but can't get past her own feelings of thinking this is the easy way out? I am sure it's going to be hard for her to see you losing the weight faster than she will. Hang in there, not everyone will support you in this decision. That's ok, though, you did this for yourself. Don't give up on her. Maybe she will see your success and decide in the future that this is what she wants also! I have said this before and I'll say it again...for me personally, although this surgery is NOT an easy way out, it has been the easiest way that I have lost the weight! I am happy with that!

To me it looks like you have nice definition in that area, especially in the first pic. The first thing I thought when I saw the first picture was that the length between your shoulder and your elbow looks short and maybe that's why that area is more defined??? Do you have short arms? I certainly hope this isn't coming across the wrong way! I'm not trying to be rude at all. For all the weight that you have lost I don't think the loose skin looks bad!

I am sorry you are going through this. It seems to me like you have already made your decision to have this surgery. Stick to your guns! You are an adult and you can do this! Believe in yourself!! They may not agree with you but you said that they both said they would support you in whatever you decide. I am sure they are scared and this is how they are dealing with this. You deserve to be happy and you deserve to be healthy. You are absolutely right that nobody can understand what it's like to be fat unless you have been there. I do not wish this on anyone. This reminds me of when I was pregnant. I wanted to have a natural birth without any pain medication. I had my reasons for wanting this, but whenever I talked about it people would laugh and tell me to just wait, that I would never be able to do it, (even though I had already had one child and knew what to expect). You know what? Instead of letting those negative thoughts in my mind I decided I would show them and I would go through with it because it is what I wanted to do for me. Guess what? I did it, actually, I gave birth twice without any pain meds. This doesn't make me any better than anyone else who decides to have an epidural or pain meds while in labor. I am just pointing out that it is something I wanted and I made it happen and I did it for me! You can do this!

Grammy!!!! You look absolutely amazing! You look like a different person. Thanks for posting the pics, I know it was hard for you but you did it! You have a right to be proud. You look and sound so happy!