Stephanie Stroup McIntosh

I know what you mean. I have always been overweight. Even as a little girl, I was always the biggest in my class. I even ran track in high school and weighed over 200 pounds. I have lost over 50 pounds since I started the process and already feel so much thinner. I don't mind looking in the mirror. I am still wearing clothes that were in my closet from a few years ago, when I felt very fat, but my mindset has changed. I am losing weight. I am getting healthier. I am getting smaller. I am still 241 pounds and have a long way to go, but I am on my way. You can do it too!

I feel like I am pretty successful in my life. I have been able to do everything that I have really wanted. I am happily married and have a good job that I like. I have great friends and consider myself to be a happy person. But you know what the one part of my life that I couldn't master was? My weight. I tried. I did everything I was supposed to do. I even when to the doctor, joined a gym, met with a dietitian. I gave up fast food and soda. I worked out 5 days a week. I completed 6 5ks. Guess what happened... I gained weight and my blood work numbers all got worse. How was I doing everything I was supposed to do and still failing? This was new to me. Most things have come fairly easy for me in life. Here I was actually trying...and i was failing. That't when I decided that I needed help. I couldn't lose the weight on my own. That's when I realized that I NEEDED to have surgery. Sure there were days that I felt like I was taking the easy way out, but I was wrong. The easy way was continuing the path that I was headed on before. The process for surgery approval is a pain in the butt, but its all worth it. The surgery is just a tool. YOU have to be ready to change your life. You are choosing to make a life-long commitment. That's not an easy thing. I know you don't really want to tell anyone, but honestly telling other people is what has made my life better so far. I have a huge support system. I have lots of people holding me accountable and keeping me on track. If you choose not to tell people, that's fine too. You can just let them know that you were having some medical issues and had to have surgery so now you are on a very restricted diet while you heal. That is usually enough to satisfy people. Its your life and your decision. Admitting that you need help is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength. Good luck and feel free to reach out to me if you need someone to talk to.

I hope your consult goes well. You can do it. Cheers to you and your new life!

First off, congrats on opening up. It takes a lot of nerve. I personally found it freeing. 7 months ago, I would never have told anyone my weight. Today, I practically shout it from the roof tops and I am still morbidly obese. You know what has changed the most...my attitude. I found that when I opened up to people about it, I found so many other people that were also struggling. I found that I had a lot of support and that really helps to make everything else easier. Its hard to pass up the pizza and pepsi, but the compliments I get from people satisfy my so much more. I think its important to get to the root cause of your initial weight problems. Why do you turn to food? Take a deep look at this and see the real reasons. It may even help to talk to a counselor about it. So many people struggle with food issues and don't know it. For me, it was a control issue and the fact that I grew up poor and couldn't have things, so as I earned my own money, I could spend it. I could justify spending it on food, because we had to eat. That problem continued into adulthood. When you figure out why you have a problem, it will be easier to move on. Also, you need to really ask yourself why you want to have surgery. Why now? Be honest with yourself (and others if that will help you) and make sure you are ready to change your life. Most insurance companies require a supervised diet program. Take that time to make sure you are well informed on all the aspects of your surgery. Also use that time to start changing your habits. Ween yourself off the fast foods and sugar now, so you don't go into a state of withdrawal or shock. Start exercising now. It will make everything easier for surgery. I am not trying to sound harsh. I weighed 295 in September, possibly more before, but that was the first time I got on the scale in almost a year. On the morning of my surgery I weighed 263. Now at 23 days post-op I weigh 241. We all got overweight for a reason and we have to really be willing to change for surgery to work. I am here if you ever need to talk. You can do it.

I didn't even think of getting one. I guess I would put on it that you can't have certain meds.

Take a deep breath and try to relax. Its easy to stress yourself out. Ask your self...Why do you want to lose the weight and have the surgery? Do you think you are really ready to change your lifestyle. Why are you leaning towards the sleeve over the bypass? What happens if you keep living the way you are now? What do you want your life to look like in 1,2,5, 10, or 20 years? What do you want to be able to do that you can't do now? The only way this surgery works is if you are ready to make a life long commitment. The people who don't lose the weight or who gain it back, are the people who really didn't change. You will probably never be a size 2, but you can be a healthy weight. I recommend talking to your surgeon and pcp to get their views on which surgery they think you should have. I also recommend talking to a counselor about how you got to be 400 pounds in the first place. For me I ate because I could. I could justify it. I usually didn't need to eat, but i could, so I did. Now, I can't eat. At least not without feeling ill. Try not to listen to all the horror stories. Its usually people that have bad experiences that put it all out there. Those of us with good experiences, dont have anything to complain about. Take your time and make sure you are comfortable with the whole process. I was required to do 6 months of pre-op stuff. I grumbled at first, but I am really glad that I had to do it. It gave me time to really make sure that this is what I wanted to do. I don't mean to sound harsh with anything that I wrote, but I can't sugar coat anything either. I wish you the best of luck and am here if you need anyone to talk to.

I am still in the honeymoon phase, but I can be supportive. Its time to get back on track. If you keep making the same mistakes you are only hurting yourself. Get better one meal or one day at a time. No one is perfect. The important thing is that you realized you are going in the wrong direction. Get back to basics and get some more exercise in. You can do this.

It gets a little better every day. I am 3 weeks out and typically don't have any pain. The more you walk the better you will heal so keep that in mind.

I use the Arc Trainer at my gym I love it. It works similar to an elliptical, but you can put it at an incline as well.

I have no experience with that, but I do recommend you take the 3-6 months. It will help you to transition to your new lifestyle. I read so many posts about people that didn't have to wait and are horribly unprepared. They all thought they were ready, but really weren't. I suggest taking that time and using it to research everything about the surgery and post-op life. Good luck.

I was also required to do a 6 month process. I used the time to make sure I knew the ins and outs of the surgery and the new lifestyle. I worked to gradually cut down on my sugar and fat so I wouldn't be in shock when I had the surgery. I also kept it in my mind why I was having the surgery. I would talk to myself about it. Every night I would sit on the computer and research. I would watch videos. I would read blogs. I did whatever I could to be prepared. That being said...It is hard to pass up my favorite foods and I wish I could eat bread, but I know that eventually I will be able to eat bread again. It will be smaller portions less frequently, but I will be able to have some. It will all be worth it in the end. Stay strong and remember why you had the surgery. You can't go back and change it, so you might as well just start looking to the future. Good luck

Its the fluids. I gained 8 pounds in the hospital.

What kind of surgery is that Panniculectomy is a skin surgery that removes the excess belly skin below the belly button. Many insurance companies will cover it if you are having problems like rashes from the excess skin.

As a young child, I grew up poor. We rarely ate out or got special treats. As I got money of my own, I spent it on the foods that I wanted but could never have. I am sure that this was a large part of me becoming overweight. Everywhere I would go, I would think about food. Where would I eat? What would I eat? I almost felt like I needed to eat everywhere that I went, even if I wasn't hungry. I think it was because I could eat in these situations, where as a child/teen I would have never been able to eat. Fast forward to my 3 week post-op experience... I went to a baseball game last night for a buck night special. Hot dogs, beer, pepsi, and popcorn were only $1. Its a good thing I am still so close to surgery, because it was hard to refuse these items that really are on the top of my favorite foods list. It rained, which I think helped too. At least that way I didn't have to smell the popcorn. Food has such a hold on so many of us. Its a daily effort to remember why we had surgery and why we are changing our lives. Let's all drink a Protein shot to our successes and move on from our failures.

I agree. If the training is something that you can only do now, I would delay the surgery until after training. Assuming you have been with your employer long enough to take FMLA, you should be able to have your surgery and your job as well. I switched positions during the process and just let me knew boss know that I already had surgery scheduled. Good luck

My flavored greek yogurt has 12-15 g Protein and under 15 carbs. I often take plain greek yogurt and add flavored Protein powder to it making it over 40g protein for only about 8 carbs.

Brushing my teeth helped me. By this point you should be close to having your swallow test and assuming you pass that you will be able to drink. I found that tea and juice helped me the most that first day after surgery.

You can do it, but remember you want to be at a stable weight before having skin surgery. If that means you need to wait another month or 2, so be it. You dont want to lose 10 pounds before surgery to just put it back on and start stretching out the new skin.

Well the first step is admitting that you have a problem and need some help. I have a few suggestions. - Exercise first thing in the morning. I know it seems crazy to get up any earlier than you already are, but it will give you energy. Also it will probably help you make better food choices because you will be able to look at the calories and decide if the extra time working out is worth what you want to eat. - Pack a snack for your commute. I know when I get out of work I am really thirsty so I want something cold and went. Ice cream was always a favorite. Freeze a banana and puree it or freeze greek yogurt. Also freeze a Water bottle so it will still be cold at the end of the day. If you have these things with you, it will be easier to drive by the 7-11. - it seems like a lot of your trouble comes from your commute. Write a list of the reasons you had surgery and of your accomplishments. Tape that to your dashboard or steering wheel. Put it inside your wallet on a post it attached to your bank card. Put it wherever it will remind you that food is not the answer. You had surgery so you could grow old with your husband and spend time with your children. Don't let food stop you from doing that. - I know your time is limited, but maybe you should talk to a counselor who specializes in food related issues. It will probably help to talk it out with an expert. We can all give you the tips that help us, but you may have better success with a trained professional. Good luck. Keep in touch with your NUT and Surgeon too. That will help to keep you accountable.

During the pureed and soft foods stages I am supposed to gt 500-800. After that I am supposed to get 800-1200. I do have a very physical job and work out frequently, so my doctor wants me to be towards the higher end when I return to work. Right now, I am getting about 500-600 per day and burn about 500 at the gym. My blood work all looked good, but my doctor did tell me that I could have more calories since I am burning the same amount as I am eating at the gym each day.

You actually appear to be on track. You don't have as much to lose as some of us, so it will probably come off a little slower in the beginning. Your body is also adjusting to having less calories. It wants to store some. Change up your routine at the gym. Make sure you are getting Protein and Water and avoiding sugar. The weight will come off, but it takes some time.

That sounds crazy. I just had a post-op appointment today and she reminded me to get my Protein. It helps you heal. Your body needs it to rebuild your muscles. Was she concerned that you were having too many calories? I told my doctor today that I have 2 Protein shakes so I get at least 60g and then add additional high protein/low carb items as I need to eat. If I only ate when I was hungry, I would only eat once per day and would be lucky to get 100 calories in. Your NUT sounds like she gave you some misinformation.

Based just on where you are at in relation to your surgery date, I would stay away from those foods. At this point, its not even about the calories, but your digestive system just can't handle them yet. As you get farther out, its ok to have have a bite of something that you want, but keep it in line with your calories for the whole day. Remember, you got overweight by eating unhealthy foods. Avoid them now while you are adjusting to your new lifestyle. Your friend is probably just trying to help, but I can see how it came across wrong. I have a friend who was sleeved a few years ago, and she is always there to remind me how to be better. Hopefully, your friend is just trying to be supportive. Try not to give into the cravings though. Remember what your goal is and ask yourself if the food you are craving will help you reach that goal.

Somethings just don't work as well as others. I have a problem with eggs. Try again sometime. Just take it slow.

Everyone is different, so don't be too harsh on yourself. I would talk to your NUT or surgeon to see if they can help you. Are you weighing your food? I know a lot of people who are off on their portions because they guess at what they are eating. When are you eating? What are you eating? What is your exercise routine?