JennieDK

I love it! Go you!

Today marks one year since I had my gastric sleeve surgery. It's amazing to see how far I've come, and I know that the journey is just beginning. I updated my video blog, so there's a link here: And here's a link to the video blog that I created a year ago today, the morning of my surgery:

I hit a stall at exactly this point after surgery. Hopefully it's just that. And when you say you're "probably" eating too many calories, does that mean that you're not keeping track? I would suggest using a nutritional tracking tool like fitness pal to count your calories. That should give you a better idea of whether it's just your regular stall, or if you are actually taking in too many calories. Good luck!

I'm SO glad your daughter is alright. My oldest son is in his first semester of college, and it's so scary to have them far away, so I can imagine how terrifying this must have been. Good for you for staying on track, even in such a scary situation!

Congrats on taking such a great step in your life. I had my surgery on 12/11/12, and I'm now down about 110 pounds. I can't tell you how much my life has changed, mostly just in the way I feel and think about myself. It's hard work-- you won't lose much if you don't exercise and stick to the program, but it is SO worth it! Enjoy your new tiny tummy!

I haven't posted in a while. I used to find these kinds of videos really helpful, so I decided to chronicle my own journey through this process. Here's my 10 month update-- I've now lost over 100 pounds! I also included some before and after pics!

Thanks, ladies! And yes, RAGBRAI is such a blast! I only did a couple of days this year, but I'm going again next year for sure. I love the Spirit Lake area-- my grandparents had a cabin on the north shore of East Okoboji for many years.

I used to completely ban myself from candy, and I am now going back to that policy. It's too easy to have 1, and then another, and then another. . .

Congratulations! You'll be fantastic!

Nevermind. I think I was just having a bad day. Things are looking better as the week goes on, so I'm going to stay positive and keep my eye on the ball. And I'll start running again! Thanks to those who responded for not being judgmental.

Well, as I said, I've dealt with anxiety issues in the past, and so I can recognize some red flags. I made an appointment to go and talk to someone later this week, so that's probably going to be helpful. It's just such a huge change in self-image over such a short people of time.

My doc is totally okay with my decaf coffee. Because it doesn't have caffeine, they are even allowing me to count it toward my fluid intake. I, too, was a major coffee drinker before, and I think I need it even more now, possibly because I don't get that many "treats". And I love my coffee in the morning. So go with a good decaf-- that's my advice.

I haven't posted in a while. I used to find these kinds of videos really helpful, so I decided to chronicle my own journey through this process. Here's my 10 month update-- I've now lost over 100 pounds! I also included some before and after pics!

Good luck! By this time you're probably already in recovery. You're taking control of your health and your life. You can do this!

I hadn't heard much on this forum lately, and I wondered how it's going? If I remember correctly, there were a couple of people on the LGBT forum that were sleeved at the end of last year or the beginning of this year. (I had surgery in December.) I'm down 70 pounds as of right now, and while things are slowly a little now, I'm extremely happy overall. I hope everyone is doing well!

Lookin' good! Go get 'em, tiger!

Today I reached a couple of important milestones, so I wanted to make sure that I wrote a little about it this morning: I have lost 75 pounds (which I can hardly get my head around!) and I got past a number that was kind of out there, stalking me: 186. I haven't seen that number since I became pregnant with my oldest son, more than 18 years ago. The lowest I've been since that time was 187, and that was for a brief time about 15 years ago. While I felt confident that with the help of my sleeve I would get past that number, it was still a major emotional and mental hurdle that I had to jump. There was a tiny part of me-- a little voice in my head, if you will-- that kept asking, "Can I really get past that? Maybe that's as far down as I can go." But now I know that I can go all the way. I'm now 36 pounds away from my doctor's goal for me, and 46 away from my own personal goal. And I completely believe that I meet and perhaps even surpass those goals. I'm so happy right now, it's obnoxious! But I'll take it!

Thanks, gals!

Last weekend I ran my first 5k and I rocked it! What an amazing experience this has been. It's so cool to find out that I can do things that I never dreamed I'd be able to do. I feel like I'm going to break my arm patting myself on the back, but it's nice to be proud of myself again!

I really like the 10% BMI goal. I'm 5 months out, and I'm still thinking in terms of numbers of pounds for weight loss, while percentage might be more realistic. Of course I'm not losing as quickly as I did in the beginning, but as I think about it, my BMI is quite a bit lower, so that makes sense. Thanks for a very obvious, but important, ah-ha moment.

I haven't blogged as much as I had hoped I would. Tonight, though, I can't get to sleep, so I thought this would be as good an opportunity as any to get some of these thoughts and see what they look like on the screen. I've seen a number of threads where people make their confessions or things like that. I don't know if I'm these will be as dramatic as all that, but as I'm approaching 5 months post op, a lot about me has changed, and a lot has stayed the same. So here's where I am tonight: 1. Losing weight changes so much in your life, but it doesn't change everything. This is obvious, yet something that I need to remind myself of from time to time. I'm extremely lucky-- I am, and was before surgery, very happy with my life in general. I have a great husband, great kids, a great job, and I'm meeting many of my professional goals. But the peripheral problems are still there, nagging: worries about work, paying for my son's college, questioning whether or not I'm doing the right thing going back to school in the fall (I'm getting my doctorate). Stress continues. It's not unbearable, but man can it back up. 2 I'm terrified of gaining weight back. When I go to the support group or read stories on the message boards about people who have reached their goals and then slowly start putting it back on-- it just makes me so scared. Hopefully that fear with keep me focused. I also don't want to be totally obsessed about my weight for the rest of my life. 3. I'm hung up on certain numbers. I've lost 70 pounds and I should be so thrilled, but a big part of me simply won't believe that this is actually happening until I reach some major goals. I'm 4 pounds away from one of them now. 186. I have not seems 186 in more than 18 years. 4. The more weight I lose, the more my husband's weight bothers me. I adore this man; there's simply no doubt about this. But I feel like I'm working hard to make myself the best I can be and to be a healthy role model for our kids. And I'm watching him get bigger. He's picking up my slack. If I make the same amount of something that I used to, he eats his share and the part that I can no longer eat. I'm worried about his health and his self-image. I'd kinda like to keep him around for a while. 5. I'm really, really proud of myself. I am. And I'm not good at being proud of myself. I'm running, for God's sake. I've never been a runner, and I ran a 5k two weeks ago, and I'm jogging 2 or 3 miles on the treadmill 3-4 times a week right now. I want to scream it from the rooftops because I NEVER THOUGHT I COULD DO THIS. I wore a pair of size 12 jeans tonight. I haven't done that in more than 18 years. 6. Some of my friends are getting weird about it. Most are extremely supportive, but others seem uncomfortable with the thought of me no longer being the fat friend. 7. I'm uncomfortable with the compliments sometimes. Especially at work and that kind of thing. I always tell people I had surgery, and I find myself saying it as though that discounts the hard work that I've done. And I feel like the people I work with are constantly looking me up and down, assessing me. It's weird. 8. I'm so worried about extra skin. I've always had great boobs, and they are definitely deflating a bit. My arms are getting flappy, too. I'm terrified that I'm going to look like Jabba the Hutt's skinny sister. 9. Did I mention that I'm terrified about gaining weight? I don't want to look like Jabba the Hutt's fatter sister, either. 10. I still enjoy drinking wine, and I always will. Maybe that's why I'm losing 1.5-2 pounds a week instead of 3, but I can deal with that. I plan on living my life. If I don't work out some kind of balance, I won't be able to do this long term. And I must do this long term.

Wow, I remember the stall! For a week or so I thought I was going to be the only human ever who could have most of her stomach removed and still not lose any weight. It was right at week 3 for me, and mine lasted about 2 weeks, and then my weight loss kicked back in and maintained at about 3 pounds a week for the first 3.5 months and now I'm at about 2 pounds a week. That's fine with me as long as it keeps coming off! I remember how frustrating that was, and everyone said it would happen and that it would pass, and it really does! (I know that doesn't help much while it's going on, but it really is true.) Just follow what your doctor told you, and things will get moving again! Good luck! You won't believe how awesome the next few months will be!