livvsmum

The surgery will work. But you have to work too. It does not fix everything, including the unhealthy eating behaviors/emotions that got you where you are in the first place. That has been one of the biggest things I have learned. I think I now (9 mos post op) am just starting to fully understand what is meant when it is said that surgery is a "tool" and will work when you work with it. I'm not just talking about working in the sense of making good food choices, exercising, etc. For me, I have to work even harder at the underlying emotional reasons I ate to excess and carried the weight I carried before surgery. For me it was not just because I liked food and the way it tasted. It was very complex and I need to unravel that to be truly successful and keep off the 125 pounds that I have lost.

DO take the time to work on the reasons you had an unhealthy relationship with food before surgery. Surgery is awesome and amazing and will help you lose weight, BUT you also have to work on what goes on on the inside as well. That is what will keep the weight off in the long-run.

Yes, a resounding yes. Every day I feel like I am still obese "faking" being thin and one day I will wake up and be 30 or 40 or 100 pounds heavier and say "See!! I knew I was faking it"..... Total imposter syndrome. I have actually started to work with a therapist to figure out my eating and body image issues because I want to not only fix the way I look on the outside (which is pretty much accomplished) but also have a healthy perception of food and myself on the inside. So far I can't tell you enough how incredibly insightful and helpful the therapy has been.

That is amazing! Welcome back and congratulations!!!

Interesting post! I definitely feel like my surgery and weight loss has kind of overcome my identity in the past 1-2 years as it is the focus of a lot of my thoughts a lot of the day. There is kind of a "now what" feeling once you get a little further out from surgery. Now who am I? Now what is the new "normal"? Now how do I keep the "new me"? I also had that thought as we hired a new person at work a couple of weeks ago. I don't know what made me think of it but I realized she will never have known I was obese before, just by looking at me. That is so weird to me because I feel like everyone just "knows" that the real me is fat. I still kind of feel like I'm faking "thin"...... There's a lot to be said of identity issues through this journey for sure.

You look amazing! congratulations on your success thus far! I am also 9 months post op and in this past month I have only lost 5 pounds. That is getting kind of discouraging to me as well, but it is my own fault I think. I've let some of my old habits creep back in and I think it's my exercise that has kept me losing at all. I agree with the others, get back to basics. That is what I have done the past week or so and the scale started moving again.

Alright, friends. What is the secret to getting insurance to cover skin removal? I am starting to really have some issues with the excess skin on my tummy and under my arms with all the running I do. It's really not just about how it looks (although that sucks too), it's making it difficult for me to train the way I want to..... Thoughts or tips on what worked for you if you successfully got insurance approval, recommendations for getting surgeons to code it for ins purposes, etc? I have Highmark BCBS if that matters, although general suggestions are welcomed.

Right now I'm training for the Hershey Half Marathon in October in Hershey, PA :-)

The pre-op "before" pic is super painful to take. But TRUST ME....you are going to be SO glad that you did. Now my favorite thing is when I take my monthly progress pic and do my monthly before/after comparison. You will be so glad in the long run. Also, be sure to take measurements. I didn't and So wish that I would have!

I completely know what you mean. I had my first appointment in January of 2013 and was sleeved in September of 2013. What I did was start a blog to keep track of things, work through issues/thoughts I was having, made a "bucket list" of things I hoped to do after surgery, etc. It is kind of like being pregnant. You have something super exciting coming up, but you have to wait and wait. I would say just do as much as you possibly can to prepare yourself emotionally, mentally, and physcially for the changes so that you are as successful as you possibly can be. Hang in there!

I had to have one before surgery as part of the pre-op requirements. It was super easy. The hardest part was getting the IV. Otherwise I was in and out and I remember my hubby and I even took advantage of having a sitter and went to lunch after....lol

A couple of things...... First, congrats on your upcoming surgery! My username on myfitnesspal is livvsmum. I've logged my foods and exercise religiously on there for nearly 200 days now, so feel free to add me. :-) Secondly, I would start weaning off the caffeine now. I did not and it was TOUGH going through caffeine withdraw, sugar withdraw, carb withdraw, and recovering from surgery all at once. I would recommend doing as much as possible ahead of time. Thirdly, I developed some constipation issues too after surgery. I little milk of magnesium does the trick for me!

That has been the hardest thing for me. It seems the smaller I get the more "fat" I feel. It is a strange thing because when I was morbidly obese I didn't feel "that" large and when I saw pictures I was sometimes taken aback at how large I actually was. I am actually going to my first appointment this week with a therapist to start to work through these and some other "food" issues that I have. Good luck to you. You have done an amazing job so far and I'm sure that you will continue to get used to your new body.

You are welcome to add me too. I log everything religiously :-) My username is livvsmum

Yes, definitely! It was downright painful to take my "before" pictures, but now, it is my favorite thing when I get to take my monthly comparison pictures. I also would agree with taking your measurements. I didn't do that and that is my only regret.

Just did my 8 month post op comparison pics & seeing the drastic change has given me the encouragement I need to push through & lose the last 12.6 pounds. It seems like the closer I get to goal the harder it is! Anyhow here are my numbers... Starting weight - 8/5/13- 278.4 Surgery weight - 8/12/13- 270.6 Weight @ 8 mos- 8/12/14- 157.6 120.6 pounds lost & 90.55% of excess weight lost. Hopefully this can encourage someone who is struggling! :-)

Ok, sorry !! I'll post in the powder room! Didn't know that existed :-)

154.0 for today. That is a 1.6 loss this week. Not what I would have hoped for, but I'm out of town for work & don't have as much control over food choices as normal, so I guess I will take it.

It was difficult at first and getting in all the water was something I built up to. Now I have no problem drinking water pretty much like before. But for the first few months it did make me feel really bloated. Right now though I drink constantly (except right before or after eating). For instance, yesterday I got in 112 ounces without trouble. Just keep a tumbler full with me wherever I am. :-)

I can't say I remember specifically at 2-3 months post op, but it was definitely still including a Protein shake, greek yogurt, chicken, fish.... If you are already on myfitnesspal you can add me and go back through my logs if you want. I've been keeping them since about 2 months post op. My username is livvsmum

....and I feel amazing!! I finished my first 5k today in 35 minutes, no walking. It was totally amazing given that this time last year I could barely walk a block, let alone run 3.1 miles! After losing 123 pounds in the past 9 months, I feel like anything is possible! On to 10k and a 1/2 marathon next!! :-) Here are a couple pics of me & my daughters who ran with me (the 2 older ones)

Thank you all :-)

I finished my first 5k today in 35 minutes, no walking. It was totally amazing given that this time last year I could barely walk a block, let alone run 3.1 miles! On to 10k and a 1/2 marathon next!! :-) Here are a couple pics of me & my daughters who ran with me (the 2 older ones)

Starting challenge weight today: 155.6 Goal weight for July 4th: 145

So I managed to adjust to the gross heat & humidity & I finally feel ready for my 5k on Sunday :-) How's everyone else doing??