Indigo1991

Ps Suko67, you look AMAZING! I am 9 months out on Thursday - no regrets at all...

It's early days and I found the first couple of weeks were the worst. It will get easier drinking, your stomach is numb, raw and swollen and I promise it will ease off as it settles down. Persevere with getting water in, Protein second - and try to keep moving. Congratulations on the surgery, hope it goes well for you :-)

MississippiQueen, rant away! As I have lost weight, my confidence has come back and I have new expectations of anyone who comes in to my life - including my ex! You do whatever you think is best for you... Good luck!

Thanks, was curious if you found other benefits to super hydration like better skin quality etc. Agree re diet, especially in the early days. Whilst I have had to work hard to keep on top of avoiding constipation, I'm glad I never got hit with diarrhoea or vomiting!

You would think staying well hydrated would solve it, but it doesn't. I'm an RN, so I give myself IV hydration every week on top of my oral fluids to make sure I'm super duper hydrated and I'm still constipated. I know some people have the opposite problem. I think it's an adjustment period also. Either way I make sure I stay well hydrated orally and intravenously. Hear what you are saying but, as an RN, you will know that, without resorting to medical intervention or drugs as the cure, the prescribed advice for avoiding constipation is increasing fluid intake,and fibre, combined with exercise.. Not saying water is the cure - but being hydrated is a good start for most folks. . If you super hydrate and it's not in relation to constipation, are there others benefits you get from doing the I'V?

Girls, one of the causes of constipation is not taking in enough water. So make sure you keep that up, it really will help...

Oh no, you're not, been there, done that and got the t-shirt! When we start to lose weight, we shake up how people see us - and where they think we fit in their life. You might have always been the fat friend - so what are you when you're no longer playing that role? I have one friend who, when she saw me after a couple of months, said "I have 19lbs to lose" - and that was before she said hello. It's been a bit awkward because she obviously felt better about herself when she wasn't the fattest of us. Don't let anyone throw you off course as you lose weight. The problem is theirs but how we respond to them is our choice. Good luck!

Can't help with specific advice on bypass -I am a sleever- but I can tell you you are not disgusting and you are not alone. We all have our own stories and many people have been where you are and come through. You are worn down by pain, house bound, scared and lonely - that's why you feel like you do. Please remember, you are a worthwhile human being who deserves more and I am glad you are considering WLS because one way to get back your sense of self-worth is to lose weight, everything else will start to fall into the place on the back of that. You also sound defeated before you start - but I get why. All I would ask is that you keep an open mind about surgery. Yes, it is about limiting intake but it's also about helping us to understand what we need to eat make our bodies work healthily. Whilst amount is important, quality is everything. It is also a great tool that supports us in a way that no diet ever did. I could lose weight before but just couldn't keep it off. But now I truly believe I can because of my sleeve -and that feels amazing, I am not doing this alone. I can hear the fear and the upset you feel about where you find yourself today. But the darkest time is just before light dawns. Take your courage in your hands and starting researching WLS options and what might best suit you. Because, in doing so, you might just save yourself from a life of more of the same misery. It will also help with your ill health - can you imagine life without pain, diabetes? Surgery could help with all of that. It's not easy. But it would give you your life back. More control over how you live. Give you choices about going out or staying in. Having friends and a social life. Being yourself. Having fun. Not a decision to be taken lightly but one worth considering but only you can make it. Keep talking on the site. We are all here and you have something important to say. So we will be listening... Just don't give up on yourself, there's still hope and much you can do to transform your life is a way you would say isn't possible. But I promise you it is....

Yup, spot on in terms of giving your stomach time to heal. You sound like you don't have confidence in the docs who did your surgery but the diet they have given you is what you need. Pat answer or not, you now need to follow it using the principles of Protein first and getting your Water in...and keep moving. Best way to get good results.. Good luck, hope it goes well for you :-)

Thank you - I feel like I've become the shape wear queen, but I was thinking more along the lines of when one wants to inject a little romance into the situation.... Ha ha I am so practical... But I have used mine with a well fitted, sexy bra and looked very Jessica Rabbit. The lucky recipient had no idea it was shape wear, he just saw a hot (curvy) woman :-)))) but I will be watching to see what the other suggestions are....

Not so weird ... Your stomach has just undergone major surgery and is adjusting. For a significantly smaller thing, I was always shocked at the noise it could make! However, the spasms and the loud grumbling noises did pass. It's early days, it will settle down....

Yup, had that. For me, I couldn't drink anything too cold, warm drinks sat better with my new stomach. It's trial and error to begin with but it sounds normal. Congratulations on your surgery and good luck!

Good luck, how exciting! Keep breathing, life is just beginning again :-)

Get measured for a good bra - can take inches off you. I also bought a shape wear slip to wear under clothes which gives me a much smother line (banishes lumps and bumps) and you wear it with your own bra...

Ps protein, water and moving are the things to plan for every day...

In the early days, I wrote out a daily schedule of when to drink, when to eat and what to eat. It took away having to think constantly about food and it meant I knew that I was eating the right thing in the right quantities. Don't worry, I promise it does get easier. You are only 3 weeks out and most of us felt the way you do. Take it a day at a time and think about how good life is going to be.... And no one here will think you have taken the easy way out - we know it's not! You had serious comorbidities - diabetes, high BP and high cholesterol - as well as being in pain. You have taken control of your health and well being, that was a brave thing to do and you deserve to do well. So hang in there, there are lots of people here who will share and support you. Keep posting :-)

Yup know that feeling! Cosmetic surgeon looked at me with my clothes on when I went for a consult for breast reduction and lift and raised his eyebrows, indicating that he didn't think I needed much done. Took off my bra and he instantly said it would be the most extensive lift he'd done!!!! Can't wait for the day that, when I take my bra off, my boobs stay where they are and don't unravel like a sock with an orange in the bottom

Hi There what things are you eating now? I'm 5 days post op and feeling depressed like I did the complete wrong thing I did I hope a month out like you I will be feeling better?! Tell me it gets better I can explain why but I want to pop a giant bowl of popcorn I'm glad he can tolerate it! I am almost 9 months out and trust me - it gets better. Day 4 was my day of buyers remorse - the day regret sets in and you wonder wtf you've done!!!! You want a bowl of popcorn cos that's your head talking not your stomach I really started to feel like myself from about 4 weeks out.

Having swapped at least 2 chins for a slightly wrinkly neck, know what I prefer, lol - and I would have a neck lift to sort it if it gets worse or really bothers me. As for my face, I am happy to age gracefully :-)

HumorMe00, I'm with you, building muscle will help. It's no laughing matter, newoutlookonlife, I have problems in long meetings if I am on a hard seat - find myself shifting from cheek to cheek in a way that must look very odd!!! So building up the muscles that have wasted from rapid weight loss might just help. Pilates is good for that because you can target your butt and see good results in a matter of a few weeks.

Won't change my career but it has me rethink the balance between career and life. When I was overweight, my social life wasn't as extensive as it is now - I like to say "yes" rather than "no" when invited out :-) Hiding away at work as an excuse to avoid joining in with life is now a bit redundant. So I am having to consider how to keep my career on track while building a social life. For the first time ever, I have days when I would rather be anywhere than work - and that's a first in a 30 year career!

... believing this has actually happened to me, lol! I look in the mirror and still can't quite believe it's me :-)))))

Lol, our sleeves never fail to surprise us... just when we think we have it all sussed, bang and we get pulled up short. I am almost 9 months out and over Christmas tried ice cream. After 2 mouthfuls, I knew that was all I was going to eat. No sickness, just the feeling that all wasn't right... and I won't do that again for a while! But at least we won't get complacent, lol :-))))

Well, I thought I would dig out old fat pics to do the "before" and "after" post... I didn't realise the effect it would have looking at images over the last 10 years. It reminded me of all that's happened and every picture is tied to how I felt over that time - and in the few pictures I have of me, I am overweight and deeply unhappy. Year after year. It's so easy to forget life pre-sleeve. I haven't looked at any of this since the surgery and it's like looking at someone else but feeling all the pain. I know I am the girl in the photos because it's my ex husband and my son with her. But it's like another lifetime, I no longer recognise her but she is me and I am her... and it breaks my heart to remember that life. I also look at my ex husband and wonder what he saw in me. In holiday pics, I am usually overdressed in an effort to hide my size, which was a futile exercise. I am sweaty and miserable and I had forgotten how big I was. I can't find one photo where I look genuinely happy. So, I will get round to posting the pics in the next couple of days. But I am shocked at the emotion these pictures have brought tumbling out. I haven't cried like this for such a long time (except day 4 post op when I wondered wtf I had done!) ... but I know I will be ok tomorrow. I will also be grateful to that brave girl who, in the depths of a miserable existence, took the extraordinary decision to get sleeved. I have to do justice to her and live life to the full - and have lots of happy pictures that show how much my life has been transformed.

My rheumatologist, who I have been seeing for 10 years walked straight past me, no flicker of recognition, lol. Someone I worked with for 7 years but hadn't seen for 7 years looked blankly at me until I spoke. My mother in law didn't recognise me until I stood in front of her in a store when I went to collect her. I didn't tell many people in advance so didn't have to put up with negative comments. It's only happened a couple of times recently with a couple of friends telling me I shouldn't lose any more weight. Best reason for their "concern"? I might look too old. Lol!!!!!!! You couldn't make it up...