healthyme1963

Congrats, Sarah! You look fantastic!

Woohoo! That is fantastic! You look great and I bet you feel even better. Keep up the good work!

I had very little pain afterward. I was up and walking a few hours after surgery and only used the pain meds they gave me for about a day and a half. Used liquid Tylenol for a couple of days after that. Most people I know that have had this surgery laparoscopically experienced minimal pain. One friend who had to have an open surgery experienced a bit more pain and was on pain meds for about five days.

Good luck to all of you! I hope your surgery goes splendidly and you have very smooth recovery!

Well, I did it! I hit 199 today. My surgery date was March 18, 2014, so it took me about 4.5 months to reach this point. I have about another 50ish pounds to get to my goal and now have the confidence to know that I can do it. I couldn't be happier with my progress. This surgery has been such a blessing for me. I am healthier, so much more active and feeling better than I have in years. This forum has been a wonderful place for support. I have plenty of support from the few family members and friends that know I had the surgery, but having this site has been extremely helpful. Thank you everyone! I'll post pics eventually. . .

Onederland is a slang term for the scale going below 199 pounds or less.

Thanks, everyone! It feels great to see the scale show a '1' as the first number! To answer your question tsangia - I'm down a total of 83 pounds since I started the process (including the weight lost during the pre-op diet phase). I've been averaging about 11-13 pounds per month since surgery. You may lose faster or slower depending on your height, starting weight and how much you exercise. A lot of people lose faster than me because I was considered a 'smaller' patient to begin with, plus I don't work out heavily. I do work out 4-5 days per week, but having arthritis and fibromyalgia, my workouts are not very intense. Good luck to you!

That's fantastic! Keep up the good work!

Great work! You look very fit and healthy!

unjury makes an unflavored and vanilla Protein powder that are pretty good. I mix a scoop with watered down 50-calorie orange juice. You can sprinkle a few pinches on your s/f pudding, Soups and other liquids. Before you know it, you've used a scoop (20 grams) over the course of a few hours and got some protein in without having to drink those thick Protein shakes. If you like the shakes, then, Premier Protein makes a decent ready to drink shake, which gives you 30 grams of protein per drink.

Good to hear you're doing well! Keep up the good work and keep us posted on your progress.

Thanks!

I would have a long talk with my family members and explain why they can't eat 'my' food. Then, slap an 'OFF LIMITS!' sticker on anything that they aren't allowed to have. You may have to keep dry goods that don't need refrigeration in your bedroom closet or dresser. Good luck!

I can now walk into any department store and buy regular size clothes! Seat belt issues are a thing of the past. I have the confidence to wear clothes that actually fit properly and not hide behind big, loose tops. Yup, life is good!

This would be best discussed with your nutritionist or surgeon. Each one has slightly different criteria. I know that with my plan, in the early weeks after surgery, I was told 1-2 oz of meat and a couple of tablespoons of veggies at each meal, no more than 2 small servings of fruit a day and minimal carbs. After the first couple of months, my Protein size increased to about 4 oz per meal and 1/2 cup of veggies, 2 servings of fruit a day and still minimal carbs. I eat 3 small meals a day and 2 Snacks. Each snack also includes some form of protein. If I don't meet my protein goals through solid food each day, then I'll mix a scoop of unjury vanilla or Unflavored in 8 oz of 50 calorie orange juice and Water (half oj and half water) in the evening before bed. Good luck!

Woot woot!! Congrats!

I really didn't like any of the Protein shakes on the market, so I buy unflavored and vanilla Protein powder from unjury and mix a scoop with diluted orange juice (4 oz. of 50 calorie orange juice/4 oz. of water). The unflavored powder doesn't take away from the flavor of the orange juice and the vanilla makes it taste a bit like orange cream (which I love!). I drink this first thing in the morning when I get up to get a 'protein jump' on my day. I haven't tried these powders with any other juice, but I imagine you could mix the unflavored powder with any low sugar juice. It's also handy to have at the end of the day if you haven't met your protein goals. Good luck!

Most surgeons have an information session where each of the procedures are reviewed and explained in great detail. I would suggest taking your husband to one of these meetings. He can also research the different procedures online. There's a lot of good information on the web. If your surgeon's office or local hospital has a support group for bariatric patients, this would be an excellent resource. You and your husband can actually talk to people who have had the different surgeries and hear their stories. I know my husband was nervous about me having such a major surgery, but he was also incredibly supportive. I did my best to educate him about the different options, which helped alleviate his fears. These boards are also very helpful. There are so many helpful people here. Good luck to you both. Keep us posted on your progress.

You are doing great! You can still feel hunger. For most, you don't feel any hunger for the first couple of months after surgery as everything is healing. I started feeling hunger about 3 months after surgery. Usually, I only feel hungry if I go more than 3 hours between meals/snacks. If you are getting enough Protein, you shouldn't feel hungry too often, as long as you eat something (something high protein) every few hours.

Congrats! So good to hear that you're doing well. I'm just over 4 months post-op and doing very well myself. Take care and keep us posted on your progress.

That is fantastic, Lawanda. Congrats! You are an inspiration to the rest of us!

Don't get discouraged. You will find many, many more people who are thankful they had the surgery than you will find people with major regrets. I am four months post-op, and occasionally have a fleeting moment when I question my choice to have the surgery, but 99% of the time I am very happy with my choice. I am healthy, off all my medications and have plenty of energy. As long as you really educate yourself about the complete lifestyle changes you will have to make and are committed to make those changes, you should be happy, healthy and much slimmer in a few months. Good luck to you!

Good luck! I hope you have a smooth recovery!

I feel your pain (literally!), shmily. I hit the same barricades because of my fibromyalgia and arthritis pain. I still go to the gym, but some days I may only be able to do 15 minutes of really light stuff. Hang in there and don't over do it. As a former AZ girl myself, I know how the heat can take the wind right out of your sails, which doesn't help getting the exercise in, that's for sure. Be kind to your body; this too shall pass.

I only told a few family members and very few close friends. As far as co-workers are concerned, the less they know, the better. They knew I was going to have surgery; I just never disclosed exactly what type of surgery. Plus, since I was losing weight before the surgery (to meet the pre-op requirements), no one really questioned my weight loss after I came back to work.