RJ'S/beginning

I am allergic to Latex. And banana's have latex in them and so I can't eat them because of reaction..( bad)..But I could eat them if I wanted too!

I wish i had one inkling about the emotional, mental and physical stress we would endure even if everything went perfectly. I feel so a lone a lot with my feelings and no one really understands all the changes unless you have traveled this road. That is why for me this forum is extremely valuable. Even when I get kicked in the butt with tough love!!! And you all know who you are... People who have been there, done this know and can identify with your travels.....Stay close to those who have been there and seek out those that will graciously help you over the many hurdles yet to come!!! OKAY!

I think that if I poured ketchup on the uneaten part I would throw up what I had eaten of it...I have the perfect garbage disposal..Two gorgeous Golden Retrievers who stand ready to eat what ever I do not eat. Yes they are expanding but they are my go two guys when it comes to leftovers...lol I too spend a lot of time at the grocery store reading labels and always look at Protein and carbs, sugar and salt. Ingredients if I can't say it I put it back...lol But at times in moderation I do eat a treat..And I never feel bad! But it is occasional...The only reason I even posted this is because my hubby said I had to. That everyone would yell at me. Otherwise I would not have said anything and life would have gone on... What makes me happy is that a lot of folks on here do not treat the sleeve as another failed diet. But are learning to eat in the real world. Like real lean people do. that I think and feel is the road to success...

Bah ha ha ha it didn't work this time......lol oh nuts! @RJ'S/beginning

Just make sure you use spaces between the mention and it will work every time! @enjoythetime

This is so personal but I am going to share anyway... I have had a drain in my side for a few weeks and the darn thing is right at my bra line. So if I have to get dressed I need help to get one on because if I do it myself I twist it around my body and look out..not interested in that much pain. So I called my daughter into the room and asked her to hook me up in the back on the last hooks so it would not be tight to my skin. Well I diligently packed the girls in the bra and she set out to fashion the clips. When i was done she said there you go all set... Pause.....Mom you have not put the girls in there yet....They are still out and on the loose she said. I was sure they were hidden away..But no they were peaking out of the protective armor I had put on...I should have been horrified like I always am..But the two of us laughed ourselves silly at the thoughts that were running through our heads..... Body image is just that. Even if we were older without weight as an issue we would be sagging somewhere... You know the expression ( gravity works ) well it is true in all cases of the human body...I am not even thinking about plastics for my girls because I can roll them up and tuck them away hopefully. We are who we are. Remember when you were twenty and you wished you were smaller, had a rounder or slimmer look to you or a smaller nose...We will always have that surrounding us because that is life the new way society depicts us....I loved this little story, which I will share... A very popular make up artist who has done thousands of famous peoples makeup said that every woman who sits in her chair speaks negatively about her face, hair and looks. They apologize to her before she even takes up her brushes and begins to work with them. She said there is only 2 types of people who do not beat themselves up when they sit in her chair. That is a over worked mother who has no time to look at herself and spend time degrading herself or a client who is maybe a 90 year old woman who comes in and says I got a gift for a makeover I am so excited... She said is this what it takes to make you happy? She said she never makes them into something they are not but brings out the beauty that they already possess. You already have wonderful beauty it just has to be found and looked at in a different way then we are taught to see ourselves..... Remember what your mamma always said.. (Beauty is skin deep) But a great person who gives in life and focuses on what they can do to make things better lasts forever....... I am not saying that I won't get surgery eventually. But I will do what I can and see myself as someone who can try to change the way people view WLS..Ring some bells and make some cracks in the walls of abuse....Me I can wear spandex until something else comes along...... Jane

There is a no bullying policy in the education system. 0 tolerance. you sought help from the educational system. Noe you need to call the police and get them to assist you....You may find that your child will have to change schools again... But don't lose it. Be strong and state how you feel and how you are going to respond to this..You are her mother and protector. Be firm and take no prisoners....

You said it @@girliegirl (When are you going to hold yourself accountable for some of your weight loss.) Seems to me you know the answer. You just need to own it and find the strength to do it..Somewhere inside is a person who is trying to take a step forward and fix your trouble but you are responsible for it like I am. We are given the tool and we use the tool whether it is slow or fast or it takes 1 year or 5 years to get it together. That is the point we have to put it all together like a puzzle... we have a gift of the surgery to help us with portion size and time to get started. but it what we put into it that will make the difference. For me , for you, for all of us.... This is about your success, one day at a time, one foot in front of the other. You are the boss of your body and what you do to it. Your in control...That is how I see it..But I am not foolish enough to think I got it all together. Never will I ever be able to relax..Or I may find myself back at the beginning struggling with the same questions......Do this for you, you count, you are important and you are worth it......Okay hun! Jane

There are so many things I want to say to you but I will try to keep it as minimal as I can hun....First of all. You were never on a race. Whether you lost 1 lb or 2 oz's you were still losing. You were using your tool as it should be used to learn how to control your brain and how you see food. Second just because you can eat a plate like you used to doesn't mean you should. retaining the old habits are the worst thing you can do with any of the wLS's. your sleeve relaxes,but it does not stretch much. It is still there... What you have done is formed a pocket under or above your sleeve that is allowing you to eat a lot again. Basics. back to basics. Measure your food. 1 cup or 4 oz. no more no less. Learn to read your sleeve. Take the time to really examine your different sleeve behaviors and use them as a guide line. You body gives you signals that you have eaten enough to sustain you. But unless we change how we see food or why we use food as a comfort. You have the constant fear of gaining it all back. The surgeries are the easy part of this entire journey. The rest is work and diligence to succeed and keep it up forever. You most likely have reverted back to old eating habits and are not drinking 64 oz of Water each day. You are not putting dense Proteins in first. Followed by veggies, fruit and last carbs. You must start at the very beginning. Giving up is not an option. Your options are get it together or let the weight engulf you for the rest of your life. You have to use tough love on yourself and believe me you are worth it.... Mind set and relearning to eat to live not live to eat is a whole difference in success of your sleeve. Keep us up to date and ask whatever you need to ask to become successful. It won't matter what surgery you have if you don't treat it like a tool and learn to fix your brain....

Your fortunate..My first experience with ice cream will be my last. At least you know how much you can tolerate before you get ill. you'll never forget that. That is so scary passing out in a random toilet stall. How horrible for you hun! yikes!

That was my most severe dumping attack to was with ice cream..I am never even eating ice cream again..It is off the list of food for me forever.....Can't go through that again over ice cream... yikes!

Sorry @@MichiganChic that was never my intention....

I bought several flavors of pop tarts recently (I had a coupon) and when I was unpacking the groceries, I realized I haven't eaten one in over a year. Instead of trying one (I looked at the carbs and decided not to have one) I packed them up and mailed them to my daughter in Korea (she has 5 kids) I do treat myself once in a while with a goodie but find that I pay for it with dumping. Just yesterday I had a sample size (2 oz) of ice cream (double chocolate fudge) and dumped the rest of the evening. I hate the racing heart, hot flashes and nausea. I am obviously still learning what I can treat myself with and what I should skip all together. Ice cream is the worst thing for me to eat as well. i can't even take one bite then I spend the rest of the night in the bathroom like you. There are other things as well that do not sit well with me and I stay clear.... Not interested in paying that price. I have never had a problem with staying away from things that do not sit well with me....I tried a red velvet cupcake once and I was not even able to swallowed the first bite. Out is came and that was the last time I tried a piece of that. I am not promoting sugar intake or treating yourself as a form of reward..But that we have to use balance in everything we eat. If it does not work for me I never touch it again.....I wasn't worried about the back of the box. I did not even look at it. It is part of real life to have a treat just because you want it. Not because you deserve it or need to have it....

Yeah he's a hoot! I posted the picture of the deed...I did enjoy it and it was good. Now days later they sit abandoned in my snack cupboard. Oh yes I have one...It is all nutritionally sound foods....And pop tarts!!!lol

It is wonderful that you are already doing the work to change your brain and not just your food thinking. Oh boy is it work but it is so worth it if you can put it all in order and come out the other side successful. So far I am enjoying it but will always try to stay on guard against relaxing for more then a treat or two...

With my new complication with the sleeve. And repeating several tests and having work done to fix the newest complications. I have become a topic of conversation in my area of the medical profession. I have been asked out of the blue by at least by 6 people who work at the hospitals and clinics how much weight I have lost...Stunned that that is the first question out of their mouths and instead of me keeping it close to my chest I tell them 200 lbs. It is only after that that they ask questions regarding the surgery. The next most asked question is would you recommend it? And then, would you do it again? Most that have found out how much I have lost, scream you must be proud. You should be on a poster in the hospital telling everyone there is hope. You must feel so good about yourself...I have thought about it a lot and I don't think proud is the word I feel...I feel a great sense of relief and a huge weight lifted off me literally. I feel that this is a life long journey for all of us and that pride has nothing to do with it. I did not win a contest or a marathon or the lottery or save millions of lives. I am working to save mine and it won't be done until I breath my last breath. A work in progress. Not to allow myself to get complacent over this new adventure and turn back to my old life... I am thrilled that I finally had the opportunity to get this gift of the sleeve. But there is no inner pride. There is satisfaction that I have gotten this far. But pride no. I still have so much work to do!!!

I'm glad we were able to connect the dots you and I.

Oh no! I didn't mean to say that YOU were saying that! I'm sorry! Someone else said you deserve it and it made me realize that's what I always tell myself, and it's bad for me . :-) glad you enjoyed your treat. Thank you for your reply.. Always good to hear what you really mean......Your a peach!

That is the entire point of the sleeve. To give you time to learn how to conquer the addiction of food. Working out the reasons why in your head, will help you work your body... This tool gives you that opportunity to learn how to eat to live not live to eat.... So I do believe in treats as well. Always have..With balance and moderation....We are never going to totally beat the addiction. We will fight until our last breath. The point of weight loss surgery is to improve your health. By educating yourself about food and all the aspects we use it for. And then changing the way we see it..... I will be a food addict the rest of my life..But I work every day to find the balance and moderation needed to reach my goals and stay there......I kinda like the control in this way now..It used to be I had control of food in my world and nothing else. Now I control what goes in my body...I love seeing food left on my plate and carefully examining how my sleeve is acting toward it.....Amazing machines aren't we all!

For me..nothing has changed. I have been chronically depressed since 2000. When I was in the hospital after my surgery for 5 months..They took me off of my meds during that time and i started to slide back into a dark place. They put me back on them and things got better within a few weeks...Losing weight has made no difference for me... But for now I advice that you go back on them and consider it temporary. Work with your Doctor and let him/her take you off them again later if it is best for you.... Okay!

Oh my goodness another country heard from... I think it depends on who wants to eat it eh!!!! I bought it, I ate it, and I enjoyed it....It was what I wanted and so it met its fate in my presents....now I no longer want one....lol It was good though...But a lot smaller then I remember. That was disappointing..But then if it had been the regular size I probably would not have been able to finish it...

It takes weeks to build muscle and only days to have them go back to the state they were in...Your muscles remember how much you carried and how strong they are. They are going to work you harder then people who have always been thin...But the cool thing is we build muscle faster because of all the weight we carried....That is what my trainer said..And I believe him..lol

Nope it isn't...but remember for a while you were not exercising those muscles and even though they remember that you had muscles.They need to be worked and strengthened again. Not in pain but sore is good. My trainer always says he has done his job if I am sore equally on all areas worked....He is a masochist!

I am a horse of a different color. I now have Reactive Hypoglycemia..So now I eat 6 times a day...I am eating more complex carbs now to keep my sugars settled....I think that my caloric intake has gone up..But I am still losing weight and am getting where it is no longer a good idea..... Everyone is different! But at some point our bodies are supposed to level off and we need to maintain within 5-10 lbs.

You got me sweetie! I am a true believer in learning how to live in the real world of food. Treats included......