tomi71

I find checking in on BPAL and attending support groups a big help. I'm not saying I never ever touch those old vices but I most defiantly have much better control. Changing a lifestyle isn't easy but it's well worth it. You guys will do a-ok! ☺️

About a week after I was sleeved, I found myself on Pinterest salivating over "food porn." I must've looked at 50 different kinds of donuts DAILY. I told my dr & nut and they said I was experiencing the withdrawal from those carbs I used to chow down on prior to this experience. I liken looking at food porn to being in mourning because for as long as I can remember that kind of food has been a big part of my identity; one day I was able to eat it and the next day I was not and I had to come to grips with the fact that I had to change my mindset and attitude. That's a hard thing to do sometimes. Don't feel sad. Feel good that soon you'll have such masterful control over what goes in your mouth, you'll feel empowered. Just wait until you really see results! It gets even better. I still venture into cupcake territory on Pinterest but it's not nearly as bad as it was. I also love to bake so I'm always looking for ideas but the fact that I have the upper hand on what goes into my body.....I never thought I'd be stronger than those sugary, carb-laden treats but I am. And you will be too..you'll find yourself impervious to your former triggers. Best of luck and good health to you!

My fitness pal. I used to track daily but now I do it 4 weeks on & 2 weeks off. The two weeks I don't track forces me to be extra mindful.

When I first saw your PAL name I thought it was a hoot! But I read it right the first time tho. I didn't think the site admins would let you keep a name that was considered vulgar. I say keep it as is. Congrats on your success and new found confidence! Have fun!

Certified, licensed complainer here. I think it's perfectly fine for people to say they "can't" do this or that. Who knows? Maybe they really can't! I know I can't take living through winter and snow storms for too much longer but I also can't imagine living so far from Manhattan....so I'm finding a happy medium. Same thing for those who "can't" do their vitamins or water. If they really want to be healthier they'll find that sweet spot. Maybe they say these things not to be self defeatist but in hopes to get new suggestions? Not sure. I do know I kept saying I can't take this fat anymore.....

YOU noticed, right? Then the most important person noticed. Sometimes people don't like to say stuff because they may feel apprehensive in implying someone needed to make a change. I know when I've seen someone whose lost weight I almost never say anything other than how good they look. If I'm close to them & they've shared their goals to lose, I'll say something more direct. 50lbs is awesome and you should be jumping for joy that you did it. Compliment yourself daily. Remember how overwhelming 50 lbs seemed like prior to help? Look at you now! You kicked 50 lbs of fat in the stones. Keep on doing that. Someone is going to notice.

So, I drink Dt. Pepsi. One 16 oz bottle lasts more than a week and since it goes flat I really don't drink that much. I actually find it helps in digestion. My NUT said a little bit is ok but only as a once-in-a-while treat. So that's how I work it. Water is my "bae" as the children these days say.

Oh how I loved Mounds bars pre-surgery. Add your idea to my cache!

That sounds delightful. Going to have to try that flavor.

Hi I eat Dannon 80 cal Light and Fit. It has fructose and sucrolose. I don't like them as much as Chobani but I'll eat it and keep Chobani as a treat. My fav Dannon is Strawberry Cheesecake.

I'll keep the theme going....I shun simple/refined carbs like sugars (table sugar, brown sugar, and even honey....not a fan of honey as it makes me itch) and white starches and flour. Once in a blue moon I'll have a bite of something but that's all...just a bite. I bake a lot so the chef has to taste. I do plan for the "tastes." I eat low-carb veggies and fruits only because I know that even the healthiest high carbs like quinoa and steel cut oats will put weight on me faster than I can blink even now when I do a lot of weight training! Eating right also keeps one from being "hangry" lol and thus less likely to buy those stupid vanilla cream sandwich cookies that are in the vending machine constantly staring at me. ????????????????????

First thing in the morning I have coffee. I started back on it around week 3. About 4 oz. now I'm back up to 1 cup a day. I am a lover of coffee. But I also get in my water through the day. I don't restrict myself from much. I just plan for healthy foods and a daily treat. Those treats would be my coffee and a low sugar dessert like Dannon sugar free yogurt or sugar free jello, Popsicles, or even berries with some Splenda on them. Yum! I couldn't imagine life w/o a cup of coffee first thing.

Days 2-4 were my worst days. On day 2 I felt as bad as I did when I had the hysterectomy. This is all normal; you just had part of your stomach amputated. Once you get up and start moving more you'll probably begin to feel better.

When it came to explaining rapid weight loss I feigned illness (after all, obesity IS a disease, right?) I mostly told folks that I went to the crossroads at midnight and made a deal. LOL THAT usually stops questions. You bring up such important points because everybody's experience is different and it's so tempting to compare ourselves and while sharing notes and experiences can be helpful it can also cause turmoil if we think we're not making progress. Anywho, Rome wasn't built in a day! Good things take time!

Sleeved on 7/14/14. At about a month and a half I started to get some energy back. The more I was able to eat in terms of variety and volume, the better I felt. Those vitamins help too.

My one year was 7/14/15. I still struggle with indigestion no matter what I eat. I can eat more than I could at 3 mos, 5, mos, 8 mos, etc but not much more. Like everyone else mentioned, eating protein first will fill you up and keep you satiated and won't leave much room for everything else. I do taste here and there but I don't imbibe in the the breads and sweets I used to live off of. Those are my trigger foods and although they don't sit right with me anymore, the struggle is real and I know I could lose all control! I can tell you that while the sleeve helps, this whole experience is mind over matter. It gets easier because you've changed your lifestyle and make time for your health. So long as you invest in your well being you'll be ok!

That too! Now it's "you eat like a bird!" Lol

YES!! The clothes!!!! I tried on something recently in a standard size clothing store and almost cried in the dressing room. Congrats! Isn't that a great feeling? It's like hitting the jackpot. As you get healthier and shrunk more it only gets better! I can actually go to Anne Taylor Loft and Express and walk out with bags of clothes instead of bags of depression! ☺️☺️☺️☺️☺️

Yikes! Hope you weren't seriously injured on the stairs. I had a friend who'd sleep drive! THATS SCARY! Lunesta can cause night feeding in some people too but I lucked out because for me it tastes so do bad that it pollutes just about everything I eat the next day. When I take it I have to choke it down. Ah to be like my old man....head hits pillow and he's down for the count despite the day's events including serving in the Middle East. Meanwhile I'll lay in bed contemplating the space-time continuum and the relative time of traveling through black holes and making chocolate cakes of varying types. I wish we had gastric sleeve for brains....wait that's a lobotomy, right?

I don't have night eating syndrome but I do suffer from ridiculous insomnia and would get up and find myself grazing. Thankfully it's under control right now. I have to take three meds daily and among those are Xanax and now Lunesta. I used to take Sonata but as I lost weight I found it made me crazier than I already am so we switched to the Lunesta. For two days I tried Belsomra but it made me lose all of my faculties and that was the end of Belsomra. Now mind you, both Xanax and Lunesta can be some evil $!!t but luckily I do okay. I don't take more than I should and I never felt a need to and I've been on Xanax and various sleep aids for years. The one down side to Lunesta is the horrid taste but then again...that's probably a safety measure. If it's to the point where you aren't sleeping perhaps a pill might work. If you have a smartphone there's an app called Sleepio that I like. It takes your mind off of preoccupations and talks the user into getting back to sleep. It's free!

If anyone did so I am not sure how they lasted a year. That's starvation. The whole point of this surgery is to get healthy/develop a better relationship with oneself and food/get fit....... Eating that way can cause some serious life threatening issues for most. I knew someone who did this albeit they didn't have surgery rather they had anorexia and her kidneys and heart decided they had enough of starving and they began to shut down. Scary and sad.

In a different post I mentioned that I have served my scale divorce papers! Lol

I didn't have a c-section however I have had a hysterectomy as well as gall bladder surgery and was filleted wide open. The sleeve surgery was by far, in my opinion, much easier pain wise in terms of incisions. This is because I wasn't filleted like a fish! Luckily I had enough time saved to take off a month and a half because I couldn't imagine going back to work after sleeve surgery. Mind you, I have a very low pain threshold. My cousin had a hysterectomy and she was up and at 'em within 2 weeks! But she's a warrior! Lol Best thing to do is do what your body and physician tells you. Don't push yourself too hard. It is important to take time to heal. If you have to go back to work sooner than you'd like, make sure employer knows you have to take it easy. Get a medical note. Where I work, eating in the job is frowned upon but I have a note on file so they must comply. I also rest as needed. But I am lucky in that my job is structured so I can do these things...I am at a desk.

Worrying about what everyone thinks about my weight! Also, not having to worry if my clothes will fit!

I am lucky too in that my surgeon didn't give hard numbers. Mine gave me statistical info so I knew the history of possibilities. I find it better to not focus on the scale because it will not always tell the truth. I fluctuate weekly as much as 5lbs even when I had a bad flu and couldn't eat for days, lol. So I've decided that the scale and I are getting divorced. My new love is how I feel and how my clothes fit and what the tape measure says. I'll visit the scale maybe once every month or so just to annoy it and remind it who's the boss. ????????????