fernandfj

BEST: No more meds, knee pain, back pain, CPAP and feeling better than I have in years! Trying on clothes in sizes I had forgotten about. Seeing the appreciation in my family's eyes for taking the steps necessary to be around longer to share life with them. WORST: My spikes of anger for no reason My obsessive need to weigh myself everyday - and the negative feelings when the scale does not move What I feel when I eat too fast or the wrong thing. It has been an incredible six months where I feel much stronger physically as well as emotionally. I am even getting used to that new guy I see in the mirror. I admit I am worried about keeping things going with my tendency to drop new habits and revert to past bad ones, but I know I will work to make sure that this does not happen this time.

We've all passed the six month mark - how is everyone doing? I'm very happy with my results and my goal that once seemed a pipe dream is now within reach!

Congrats This type of NSV definitely shows the hard work pays off! I also tried on some clothes I had hoped would be good in the future yesterday (36 waist pants) and they all fit!!!!! In fact I returned the 38 waist pants I ordered with them! Considering I started at a 50, it feels great!

I've lost quite a few favorite foods. I used to love crab and shrimp and they just don't agree with me anymore. I try once a month to see if I can bring them back, but so far no luck. I loved grilling meats (that's why I love your bbq photos @dub) but just an ounce or two of meat feels like lead in my gut. Same is true for chicken. Luckily fish and some raw or smoked meats are still ok. Eggs were tough for a while, but they are ok now. I tried a bit of pizza a while back and won't try that again for some time. Hopefully now that I passed the six month mark some of these issues will fade.

Fantastic! Keep up the great work!

Congrats - and the fact you went walking instead of snacking tells you all you need to know. Also, stalls do end. You are human, and you may slip up. You have proven however that you can choose a healthy alternative. I have tried to walk the straight and narrow path and have been successful for the most part. It was hard for me to accept when I slipped up, until I realized that I was just adding too much pressure on myself. Now I make every effort in the days following a slip up (successfully, thank God) to avoid starting a pattern. You are doing great!

Congratulations! Your success is really inspiring for those of us following behind you.

I have been lucky as well. Not a day goes by that my co-workers do not encourage me with positive comments. I have also been blessed with an amazing wife that has supported me without hesitation. She has really been incredible, and I appreciate everything she has done for me. I really thank her for her patience in dealing with my moods as I sorted things out. I could not have come as far as I have without her constant support.

I have lost more in the past six months than I thought possible and I am starting to really comprehend how deep the changes have been regarding my health and habits. But, I am pissed at myself because i have stopped exercising! It's been about two months now that my exercise activity has dropped from almost daily to four or five times a week, to two or three times a week and now less than once a week. I am still losing, although my weight loss has slowed to about 2 lbs a week (which is still awesome!!!!). I am only 20 lbs from goal, and I know I will make it. Yet, I am still angry about not exercising and not finding the motivation. Actually, I seem to be angry about everything. I just get pissed all the time at the littlest things. My family is walking on eggshells around me, worried that they will upset me. What the hell is going on? I have achieved something I am proud of. My body doesn't hurt anymore. I feel like I can tale anything on. YET, there is this seething beneath the surface that just won't quit. I recognize that the anger exists (yeah therapy), now I just have to get to the bottom of it. Could I really be so upset that I can't eat as much or as many things as I used to? Am I really missing food that much? I have to get over it, because I have not come this far to not enjoy this new opportunity!

I'm a week shy of six months since surgery and have lost 112 pounds. Stick to the program outlined by your doctor (protein, water, exercise) and you will see results. Don't obsess about the numbers - you will stall, move up and down - and if you expect a linear, steady drop, you'll go nuts (I speak from experience here). Good luck!

Congrats on making an important decision. Stick with the program and you will see great results - you get back as much as much you put into this. This surgery is a wonderful tool, but like all tools it sis only effective if you learn to use it correctly. Good luck!

TheRealMeISHere - THANKS!! These recipes look fantastic. I will try many over the weekend!

I'm a big fan of Fage 0% with fruit. It's tasty and has lots of Protein. You could also have Fage o% plain and add a mix of nuts and splenda.

We share the same surgery date and I 'd like to congratulate you on your achievement. You know how hard you have worked and the results show it. Don't fret about what others who are ignorant of what you have been through might say. You did this for you and you have done great.

Just over fIve months post op, down 107 lbs. WOHOO!!

Excellent news on dropping the meds! Leaving meds behind and just feeling so much better physically are wonderful NSVs! Dropping clothing sizes, while getting expensive, is also surprisingly fulfilling!

This is my go to thread for encouragement! Great job everyone and I wish everyone even more success in 2016!

Congrats! Keep up the hard work and that goal is yours!

@@CowgirlJane, good luck in fulfilling those goals!! My aim in 2016 is to get to goal and maintain while adapting to my new lifestyle featuring healthy eating and exercise. We are also expecting our first grandchild and I hope to be healthy enough to play with them! I also want to find peace and calm after going through a few troubling years of personal and professional anguish. These past few months have put me in a position to make these goals achievable, and I am most thankful for that!

Thanks to everyone for your responses. I will talk to my DOC about getting my hormone levels checked ASAP and will up my Water intake (a detox won;t hurt either!). I am most hopeful that I will work through this and get back to balance! Thanks again for the advice and support!

My family really opened up yesterday about how rough the transition since surgery has been for them. Bottom line, the last few months I have been a royal pain in the butt to live with. I seem to be permanently seething. I don't blow up, I just seem to hate everything happening and never am happy with anything. My responses are sharp and I seem to have completely lost my sense of humor. Worst of all, I didn't really see it. But when my wife and son laid things out by chapter and verse, it was pretty clear. It also turns out that all my friends have been asking my wife about my irritability. I know that many speak about the excess testosterone form the fat melt off and its effects, but how do you deal with it? I love my family dearly, and I know that things must have gotten really bad for them to raise the issue. I am making an appointment with a therapist to discuss this, but any tips on what I could do from those who have passed through this would be very much appreciated!

Wow, this thread is a god send. I'm in the same boat - I only recently (YESTERDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) internalized the changes that have taken place physically since my July surgery. I looked at a picture at the beach taken two years ago and one taken last week and I did not recognize the guy in the second picture. My wife must have thought I was going nuts because I just kept staring at the two pics side by side on my tablet. I've lost over 100 lbs but I never really saw it until yesterday. I still saw myself as the same guy I was before my surgery. Conversely, when I was so much bigger, I didn't see myself as that big, either. It was only when I saw the pictures from my son's wedding in late 2014 that I realized how large I had gotten. I am hoping that I will now begin to really see the changes that have taken place!

@@Dub - your cook out pictures rule!