7 Bites_Jen

What amazing news!! Congratulations on both!!

BREATHE!! Don't freak out - you have a long road ahead. Sometimes your body has to slow down and take a breather and catch up with your weight loss. It's normal and actually healthy for this to happen. If you think it's something you're doing/not doing, try tracking for a week or so. You might be taking in more carbs than you think or less Protein than you need. Hang in there!

The stretchy part of the stomach is what is removed along with a portion of the gland that causes hunger. While it's not IMPOSSIBLE to stretch what we have, it is highly unlikely as it is the muscular portion of the stomach. What will happen, like most doctors will tell you, is that the food will go upward rather than outward and will cause you to vomit. Depending on the doctor and the size of the bougie (the sleeve guide), you might have some part of the looser portion of the stomach remaining. If this is the case, then it makes it more possible to stretch. That being said, why would you WANT to overeat to begin with? The entire point of the surgery is to prevent that entirely. Purposefully putting yourself into a potentially harmful or at least uncomfortable situation is kind of silly IMHO.

Mine did! She said that Protein was more important than vegetables ... I'm starting to re-think that strategy ...

You are dumping. Sounds like it's mostly with dairy products so it could be the natual lactose causing it. Go dairy free for a while. You can find yogurt and cheeses made with soy and nut milks that are actually really good. It's not uncommon to become lactose intolerant after surgery.

We are writing our next few episodes to be filmed in November - what would YOU like to see in an upcoming episode? Do you have any topics you'd like to see discussed? Any recipes you'd like to see made sleever/bariatric friendly? Sound off! We're here for YOU!! If you have NO idea what I'm talking about, feel free to go check out our YouTube channel - the link is in my signature below. Thanks everyone!

Slow down and take smaller bites. Even smaller than you think you need to. The tightness will go away, sooner rather than later.

Same!!

I definitely had a mourning period. I think we all do, to an extent. You'll be able to eat those things again, just not in the huge portions you remember.

Thank you!! Just a note - it won't work on Chrome either :-) I've already surpassed the 65% - I think more people lose more than the average they give. It's the select few that don't do what they're supposed to and don't lose ANY weight that drag the average down, LOL.

I LOVE beans - we are working on a few recipes for baked goods using them as a substitute for flour! There's also one coming up with an easy crock-pot recipe for beans. I make them at least once a week, sometimes twice and eat on them all week long.

There are a few of those coming, In fact, our Halloween episode will have a couple of great recipes for that!!

Love this. We have a few recipes in the works for just that issue!!

GREAT idea!

There's a lot of contestants that have had WLS before. A couple seasons back one of the contestants had had the bypass and gained back all his weight. So it's not really that uncommon - I'd be willing to bet that a lot of them just don't talk about it ... I love the show though, and was so excited to see Ruben on there this year!!

Yep!! I think everyone does. I went through periods of excitement, anxiety, worry, elation ... The whole thing. And when it was all done, I was floating on cloud 9!

Amen to that!!

That I had never reintroduced things like carbs and soda into my diet. Now I'm having to wean myself off them to lose this last 50 ... I also wished I'd known how important eating REAL food is rather than relying on Protein supplements. eggs, meat, fish, cheese ... those things are so much better for you than a shake or Protein Bar. Fewer chemicals and you can pronounce everything on the label ...

I used to say that my clothing size resembled a porn rating! LOL There are so many things that I take for granted now that I didn't realize I couldn't do until I COULD do them - ie. crossing my legs, moving quickly when I need to, bending over to tie my shoes ... Those of you that are about to have surgery, or have just had it - you have SO MUCH to look forward to!!

BREATHE!!! I was TERRIFIED before surgery. But I did it anyway. Those videos are designed to scare the ever-living-crap out of you. There are risks, yes - but they really are minimal and don't happen very often. And, the benefits SO outweigh the risks. And, honestly, what is riskier - NOT having this surgery, or remaining at your current weight?

Hope this helps:

Yo ho ho... In all seriousness, though - I am so sorry! I am honestly surprised that more people don't get it b/c of the lack of vegetation in most of our diets. Glad they caught it and hope it all clears up soon! PS - You could always find a good peg leg and hook for Halloween ...

It really depends on the one you find. The first one my mother went to had a table set up with food and Snacks - including "no-no" foods like soda and cookies!! The one that we'd been going to together was OKAY, but really they didn't share a whole lot that we didn't already know, and a lot of the people there were uppity and had the attitude of "no one should ever mess up on their diet plan ever". The last one we'd been going to was great, but was, sadly, an hour away.. I guess what this rambling post is saying: if you can find one that suits your needs they are awesome!

My mom's cousin was like this with me as well. But for the most part, most everyone in my life knows that I'd had these struggles since high school, so everyone that knew me was on board with what I was doing. And if they didn't, well, "sorry, but this is what I've chosen to do and I am comfortable in my decision."

????? WHAT are you TALKING about?? Don't bother ... don't think I'll be responding to your crazy anymore ...