LadyIvy

Great advice. Hopefully these 30 some ideas will give you a place to start.

Hi all, I just needed to bounce this off some people. I am obsessed with the idea that I will stretch my pouch. I stop before I overdo it and although I have felt full quite a bit, I have never really felt pain. How can you tell if you are stretching your pouch? I am only 3 weeks out and am on mushy food, but I have found that means about anything moist that you chew well enough. I can't stop thinking about ruining my surgery. I am averaging 600-800 cals daily and really have to work for those. I have also been doing plenty of fluids. If I forget and don't give it a full half hour, mixing food and drink will make me vomit. That has happened twice and I fully intend to pay more attention for the future. I know I am not the only one that is paranoid about this, so any thoughts or advice would really help. Thanks all!

I started baking and cooking again. I have the new challenge of making everything healthy, yummy and full of protein while keeping calories as low as possible. Also, since I can eat so very little, what I have had better be REALLY good!

Congrats! We will make room for you on the losers bench!

That is a no no. It is not because a drink would have too many calories, it is so that you can get the proper amount of food in before you are full. Some people say it also stretches your stomach (jury is out on that one though). However, it does flush things through faster so you are hungry again sooner.

OMG, not only do I love the title of this post, but the post itself is amazing. I LOVE the way you handled it!

I haven't worn a costume in years and I really miss it! It seems that unless you make an outfit you are expected to be a "sexy something" for Halloween. I can't wait to dress up again. I wanted to dress up as princess peach to my sons Mario this year, but will not stuff myself into those costumes.

My husband thinks its funny that I will eat my food and only have a bite or two left and push it away. I stop when my body tells me, one bite in or one bite from the end. I keep giving my husband the last bites of whatever I have left. He somehow is still losing lots of weight too

This is something along the lines of what I was thinking. However, I am not far enough out to be able to use my experience as an indicator.

You need more fluids, and insoluble fiber in your diet. Even if you are getting your recommended 64 oz a day, that is obviously not enough. I have noticed that I only go every couple of days now (just not enough food to go daily). However, so long as I keep my fluids near 100 oz a day, I have no issues at all. I live in a warm climate and am outside and working out frequently. 64 oz just does not cut it.

It is my understanding, that when you hit the "normal" range, your ratio stays the same even if everything is smaller. The reason so many women complain about sagging is because the ligaments hidden in your pectoral muscles have adjusted to handling a certain amount of weight. In many, many cases when you lose a lot of weight, the ligaments do not adjust well. Keeping the pectoral muscles in shape will help, but it will not completely fix the problem. I have gained and lost weight so many times, I have this problem to some extent. Honestly, I would rather it be something I can strap up then have it being an issue somewhere I can't control!

How far out are you?

Really glad you posted on this one. You want to lose fat not just weight. You would have lost fast but had lots of skin and no muscle tone. I'm a little concerned how many people he told this to that just said ok and went along with it. Wow.

Oh, that is certainly not the same hospital. I wonder why they chose to keep the name. That explains the confusion around here in TX. Some people were saying it was closed and some saying its still open. I bet the ones saying it was still open don't even know the old one existed. That is so sad. That was an amazing hospital and the darn media ruined it with their outlandish stories because one small building was in disrepair.

Yeah, I believe you just typed my story out for me. Sounds exactly like my life just a few months ago!

Unfortunately, the only people who could have done it without any family or friends knowing was the US Army. She was one of the 50% retired who lost their records to the big fire in the 80's (I think it was the 80's). It destroyed something like 20 years worth of records, which included both my parents. If I could access them I would, it would be nice to know.

You should start looking into crockpot cooking. Some days its the only way I can manage it. I cut up everything the night before (less than 10 minutes), put it in a bag and dump it into the crockpot in the am with some fluids. Good luck finding a NUT, I'm not sure how you go about that.

You aren't alone in that belief at all.

6 weeks at least. You have to wait for the muscle wall to heal completely or you could give yourself a hernia. Some docs say 8, but I started at 6 doing Zumba and Pilates with no problems.

I have only had 2 vomiting issues and it was when I forgot and drank right after I ate. Even then, it was only a couple of tablespoons of vomit each time. Also, there is a foreign body in you when you get the sleeve. It is the titanium staples that they use. However, the staples themselves are much smaller and much better attached then the band. I hope you make the right choice for you.

Mike is completely correct here. Also, are you getting enough sleep? It has been repeatedly shown that those that get less than 7 hours of sleep a night have higher cortisol levels. This directly correlates to more belly fat. I had a stall that didn't break until I started getting at least my 7 hours. It didn't matter what else I did. Give it a shot. It couldn't hurt.

I understand that everyone has different reasons for needing weight loss surgery. We also all have very different problems and triggers. In my case, I am a very A Type personality who lives in a world of black and white. This surgery (and some therapy) is helping me find the grey areas. I am not saying it is easy. I struggle with lack of "perfection" in the things I do every day. However, I think I am doing this in the most healthy way possible. Some of the people that I have seen and spoken to scare me. I asked my NUT yesterday how our bodies respond any different than that of an anorexic. I have asked her this question 3 times and she doesn't like it because she cannot answer it. Yes, we do not have the same mental issues to deal with, but our bodies have been anatomically altered, not physiologically. Due to this, I find that it concerns me when people who can only get in 700-800 calories a day workout so hard that they are running in the negative. Again, I ask my NUT how this can be healthy. Our bodies need both nutrients and calories to function properly. While I understand that our bodies will force us to function at a deficit, how do you sit there and tell people that it is okay to have a daily net that is negative? Calories are how we get energy. I don't mean empty chocolatey calories, I am talking about making healthy choices. I do not understand how people can look me in the face and tell me that it won't have any effects. If someone was eating exactly how we are forced to without the surgery, people would tell them about hair loss, amenorrhea, lower cognitive functioning etc. Yet, people can look me straight in the face and tell me it is ok for me because I am anatomically different now. Can someone please explain this to me? No one else has been able to, and I just am trying to wrap my head around this. Don't get me wrong. I understand the definite need for exercise. Unfortunately, so many people take on this surgery and don't realize they are treating it as though it is yet another one of their DIET attempts to lose weight. I hear about perfection, perfection. I won't ever touch a candy bar, ice cream, cookie, white carb etc. etc again. I completely understand that everyone has a trigger that they may need to avoid permanently, for me it is soda (which I can never have again), but I am talking about every single thing that may not be perfect for your health, but you enjoy. Also, I have seen a lot of people that seem to start off telling themselves "I will work out for an hour a day 6 days a week for the rest of my life" and take no consideration for life happening around them. Not only does this sound like a recipe for disaster, but to me, it just sounds like another diet. I chose this surgery because it is not a diet. As previously mentioned, I struggle for moderation not an all or nothing attitude. I may not have lost 50 lbs in my first month, but I feel as though I am making permanent changes that will serve me (and eventually get me to weight) in the long run. If I did great all week and I want a cookie, I might eat half a cookie (truth be told, I used to be a cookie monster but I don't really like them anymore, but you get the point). If I decide to take my son out for frozen yogurt one Friday, I don't feel guilty as I have made a huge lifestyle change. The choice of frozen yogurt over Baskin Robins is a huge step and I don't feel jilted. I won't sit and eat 16 oz anymore. I might have 4 and I feel satisfied. I have made a lot of friends that have also had this surgery. It really worries me that they treat it like another diet, they never give themselves a break and begin to disturbingly obsess about every single calorie they ingest (again, not saying you don't need to pay attention, but if you accidentally go 10 calories over, so what??). I feel that little changes add up quickly. Walking your child to and from school instead of driving, using your bike to make a run to the corner store, playing outside with the kids, swimming a couple laps while you are out sunbathing on the beach. I feel like I am running a lifelong marathon, not running a sprint to goal weight. It can be frustrating sometimes, watching those around me that had the surgery about the same time lose weight faster. However, I have no extra skin to contend with and I am certain that I am losing a lot of body fat, not just body weight. My struggle is to keep telling myself this. My struggle is to find a lifelong change that isn't necessarily as quick as I may like, but teaches me the moderation that in 32 years I never learned.

I was told 6 weeks to allow your abdomen to heal. If you like zumba you should try the bollywood workout too. It works different muscle groups and is so much fun!

I totally vote for #4!

I have always been a big girl. My mother on the other hand was 5'1" and weighed about 100 lbs soaking wet. She had a major napoleon complex, which I grew up with. What that means is that you now have a very large girl with a napoleon complex personality. This = intimidating (even though I never meant to be). My biggest fear is that I am going to be much smaller, but have the same personality and expectations. I'm afraid of just the sort of thing you mentioned (maybe not exactly, but you get the point).