vanessak8

I need a belt...that's a NSV

I need a belt...that's a NSV

Morning.
I was in a size 4x pants/shirts for scrubs
28 for jeans
4x for regular shirts.
NOW
L to XL on shirts depending upon material
18 for jeans
I am estatic about this ..........
Annamarie

Don't feel like a failure... Weight loss is complicated. Just keep doing what your supposed to be doing and it will come off. I had a 3 week stall starting my 3rd week. I'm currently 9 months post op and it slow going, but I feel great. I've lost 146lbs since I started. While I'd like to get to below 200 I'm starting to feel like I'd be ok if I stayed where I'm at.

My starting weight is 223.... My goal weight is 199

I thought that getting WLS was going to be hard. Turns out, it was pretty easy. I had great insurance and got approval and had surgery six months after starting my process.
I thought losing the first 100 pounds was going to be hard. Turns out, with my LapBand, it was pretty easy. My body cooperated with my band and when I ate right, the weight came off.
I thought leaving my emotionally abusive husband was going to be hard. Turns out, once I took control of my food and my body and got out of my food coma, leaving him was pretty easy. Logistically tricky, but with reliance on friends and family and a good lawyer, leaving was only temporarily difficult.
I thought the divorce process would be hard. Turns out, it is stressful and emotional, but the actual tasks put in front of me, although tedious and time consuming, are just tasks. I am blessed with a good job and resources that many women don't have. The slowness of it is harder than the tasks in front of me.
I thought walking for exercise was going to be hard. Turns out, it is the one exercise I love and have not grown tired of. I can walk for miles with ease.
I thought asking for help was going to be hard. Turns out, like exercising a muscle, the more I do it, the easier it gets.
I thought being kind to myself was going to be easy. I was wrong.
Oh, was I wrong.
Oh, I've learned it's okay and necessary to treat myself to little things, like a manicure, or a foot massage, or a movie. But then there's the other things.
And I can't help wondering if these other things have a lot to do with why I overeat and stayed obese for so long.
Like saying no to people. I say no. But then I go into "shoulda woulda coulda" and feel guilty about it.
Like reaching for comfort food or wine once in awhile. And then I start the tape in my head that says I'm bad, I'm lazy, I'm never going to get to my goal weight because I don't deserve to.
Like going out with friends and holding my head up high because I feel pretty for the first time in years. And when a musician in a band notices and makes a sweet comment about the "beautiful women in the room tonight" and points directly at me, I find the next opportunity to gather my things and call it an early evening, because to flirt would be bad, and I don't deserve that kind of attention.
Like getting a strong lawyer who is fighting for my financial rights and future, but crying at night because this divorce would go so much faster if I just didn't fight for the college money for my girls or maintenance for myself; because if I wanted out so bad, shouldn't I just cut my losses and end this?
Like not losing any weight for the last six months even though I have fifty left to goal, and telling myself it will never happen because I've never followed through on a goal weight before and what makes me think this time is any different?
Like standing up to my mom's criticisms in person, but in private wondering if she is right about me -- that I'm making a big mistake doing this or that or the other thing, and remembering how judged I felt my whole childhood and adolescence and wondering if she was right about me all along?
This is what is hard. Calling bulls!# on these thoughts and patterns and habits.
My higher self knows it. But it's so DAMN HARD to stop the negative thought cycle, that shi##y committee in my head.
Attitude is everything. I just turned 54 over the weekend and birthdays make me reflective. I have what may prove to be my best year ever ahead of me. God willing, I may see divorce papers signed in 2015. Maybe. I'm 100 pounds lighter than I was a year ago and healthier than I have been in decades. I may be moving into a new home by the end of the year. There is every reason to be hopeful.
So why does my sick brain still gravitate toward self blame and misery? Why, why don't I believe I deserve happiness?
I may never know why.
I'm a practical person. I believe in results. So what I'm planning to do about this is purely practical. It may or may not have any basis in psychology, but it seems reasonable to me.
I plan to abort those thoughts the second I sense them in my head. Literally catch myself and interrupt it with the opposite thought.
I do deserve joy. I do choose healthy food and I will meet my weight loss goal. That person that said I was beautiful was telling the truth. I choose to believe my older daughter who just told me I am strong and a role model. I believe my younger daughter who just told me I've always got her back. I am deserving of financial security and what is rightfully mine. I am deserving of a slim body and to feel pretty. Accepting attention is not shameful. I make good decisions. I take care of my loved ones and I am a good mother. I am smart and strong and pretty and nobody's fool. I am precious in God's eyes and I will live my best life.
This is the hard part. This is the only hard part. The head is always the hardest part to change.

Don't feel like a failure... Weight loss is complicated. Just keep doing what your supposed to be doing and it will come off. I had a 3 week stall starting my 3rd week. I'm currently 9 months post op and it slow going, but I feel great. I've lost 146lbs since I started. While I'd like to get to below 200 I'm starting to feel like I'd be ok if I stayed where I'm at.

I'm reading these NSVs and I'm like yep I've experienced that one and that one and I've enjoyed everyone I have had.... But as I was reading I realized its 930 pm and I'm still dressed and I have been dressed all day in my bra and everything . This is a NSV because before losing 146 lbs I could not stand to be dressed. If I was at home I was in my lounge clothes and no bra. Wearing a bra was the devil... Uncomfortable and I hated it so to be dressed all day when I haven't even left the house is a huge NSV for me!!!!!

Congrats on your job in the NICU....
However, please don't think it's not hard work. I went from being an adult ICU nurse to the NICU and yes our patients are smaller but some of the hardest and most demanding days I have ever worked as an RN have been in the NICU. I have been a nurse for 20 years and the last 12 have been in the NICU. When I first started as a NICU nurse the demands on me weren't the same as they are today. I currently do charge, transport and place PICCs in our tiny patients which often makes getting lunch at a reasonable time unpredictable and infrequent. (I work in a level 3, 94 single room NICU... That can hold 124 patients. We have multiple rooms).
My point is there is not many places in hospital nursing no matter what size your patients are that does not require some planning when you have barbaric surgery. I would drink Water on my way to work and a Protein drink. I also packed string cheese and deli slices in a lunch bag that had freezer packs so they would be convenient to access in my work area as our lounge and my locker were not close. I also carried a Protein Bar in my pocket or kept in work bag. As for Water I just always kept it with me.
I also did not go back to work for almost 9 weeks after I had my surgery. I took full advantage of my surgeon requiring the full six weeks off and I already had some vacation planned at the end so by the time I went back I was back to eating a regular diet.

I've been a nurse for ~20 years the last 12 in a level III NICU...in STL, MO. I was sleeved 7/14/14. I'm 5'6", I weighed 360. I'm 38 years old. My BMI was 58. I am currently 214 with a BMI 34.5. While that is still obese I feel great. I had no comorbidities at my highest weight thank God, but I was tired and miserable.
I have lost 146 lbs since the start of my journey (that started 2/6/14 with my first surgeon's appoint) 45.5 of that was prior to surgery and about 22 was my 2 week liquid diet.
Now that I am 8 months out I lose slower, but I still lose I would like to get to 165, but if I don't I'm ok with that. I had this surgery to change my life and more importantly my participation in it and I have. I'm happier and enjoying doing things with my boys(all teenagers)and my husband. I have ice skated, went snow sledding which I hadn't done in years. I went dancing with my husband which I also hadn't done in years.
Good luck to all!!! And especially to those who are just starting and wondering and worrying if it will work for them cause I know that I worried if this would be another thing to fail at. Even at 8 months out it still early in my journey, but I feel it is really the best tool possible to be successful and stay successful.

I'm reading these NSVs and I'm like yep I've experienced that one and that one and I've enjoyed everyone I have had.... But as I was reading I realized its 930 pm and I'm still dressed and I have been dressed all day in my bra and everything . This is a NSV because before losing 146 lbs I could not stand to be dressed. If I was at home I was in my lounge clothes and no bra. Wearing a bra was the devil... Uncomfortable and I hated it so to be dressed all day when I haven't even left the house is a huge NSV for me!!!!!

I drank a ton of diet Mt Dew prior to surgery. It was my only form of liquid. When I quit drinking it... It took 4 weeks before I really quit wanting one. It was torture. Now I don't even think about it.

I'm reading these NSVs and I'm like yep I've experienced that one and that one and I've enjoyed everyone I have had.... But as I was reading I realized its 930 pm and I'm still dressed and I have been dressed all day in my bra and everything . This is a NSV because before losing 146 lbs I could not stand to be dressed. If I was at home I was in my lounge clothes and no bra. Wearing a bra was the devil... Uncomfortable and I hated it so to be dressed all day when I haven't even left the house is a huge NSV for me!!!!!

Looking around and realizing I'm not the biggest woman in the room.

I'm in.....

I am 129 today. I reached my challenge goal weight. I am also under my surgeon's goal weight of 130. Yay! I have my one year follow-up appt on 4/8/15. I am so ecstatic

213

213

I was pretty honest with people in my life that I was having surgery. I am a nurse and work in a very large NICU so I have a large work family. I have always been active at work I wear a lots of hats so most of my coworkers obviously could see I was fat but I didn't work like a fat person. I was in charge, placed PICC lines and did transport for our unit. Anyway they have all been so supportive. Even before the surgery I lost 35lbs. I always lose in my face and boobs first. They all noticed and now that I'm down a total of 135lbs I am constantly hearing how much have you lost, you are so skinny (I appreciate that but I have 75lb to lose still). Every pound I lose these days is noticed which I think it's easier to notice when you are smaller. I drop pant sizes with every 10-15 pounds lost when it took me 50lbs it seems before I went down my from my beginning size of 26.
My family notices for other reasons.., I'm happier and more active. My three boys have never had their mother participate in all their activities. I get asked a lot about what my husband thinks about it. I was thin when he met me and never made me feel bad about being overweight. He does not say much one way or the other, but I told him that people have been asking how he felt about my weight loss and he said "I love you know matter what, but if you want to know the truth I think I missed some things that I didn't know I missed. He wrapped his arms around me and said like this. I didn't know I missed it but now that I can do it again I realized that I did." Oh and I let them take my picture this year at christmas!!!

214

I'm 214.5.... I've not met my goal the last two challenges, but here it is 3 weeks in to this one and I've met it. I picked this weight because it's exactly 100lbs lost since my surgery date (it is 8 months today). I have lost a total of 145 lbs since I started this journey Feb 6, 2014. Today I wouldn't even qualify for surgery (BMI 34.6). My BMI when I started was 58. Lots of emotions... I'm also only 4 lbs away from the weight I was when I went to my first OB appoint with my son who will be 17 this month. (I went on to gain more than 80 lbs during that pregnancy, which obviously I never lost).
What am I doing different this challenge. I am doing a whole30 with a friend. That is it. Since I haven't been eating a whole lot of sugar and carbs prior to this not a huge change, but I am eating cleaner and I have been enjoying fruit and green smoothies.< /p>
I can taste wonderland... My goal for
My surgery is 165 (my surgeons gaol 260... She is super conservative and that would have been 100lbs lost total and 50% of my excess weight lost. Needless to say she is beyond thrilled with my progress)... I hope to get there by July 8...my 39th birthday and 6 days shy of my 1 year surgiversary.

I'm 8 months out and I eat 1200-1500 cal. I have lost a total of 146 pounds since my highest weight and 100 since surgery. I am still loosing and I just lost 7 lbs in 9 days.

I'm 8 months out and I eat 1200-1500 cal. I have lost a total of 146 pounds since my highest weight and 100 since surgery. I am still loosing and I just lost 7 lbs in 9 days.

I'm 8 months out and I eat 1200-1500 cal. I have lost a total of 146 pounds since my highest weight and 100 since surgery. I am still loosing and I just lost 7 lbs in 9 days.

I've lost 146 lbs as of today.