sleevedinseptember

Thank you for sharing - I've been looking for something like this!

This is a timely and helpful discussion for me as stopping before that full sensation is something that I am actively working on. I measure and track everything I eat but my restriction is still really high right now since I am only 5 months out. I usually have to stop at about 2 ounces of dense Protein and by then I am already experiencing that sensation. But I have noticed that I get frustrated by this because my brain and my eyes have still not fully reconciled or maybe even accepted that this is the new normal and in fact, this was the whole point of the surgery! I personally also need to be better about sticking to a schedule for eating because I usually wait until I am experiencing some sensation of hunger to eat (and it's not true hunger that I experience more like acid) and that could be too many hours after I wake up and get started with the day. So then I also feel a bit of pressure to make sure I get enough protein in. I am also reminded that I too used to eat until the point of fullness. Therapy helped me to stop being an emotional eater so I did eat due to hunger but always went overboard because I liked the sensation of fullness. I felt very comforted and satisfied by that feeling of almost heaviness in my stomach. That's what I relied on to assure me that I had eaten, was satisfied and happy. Even when I was eating mostly healthy foods, I was a heavy volume eater and that was my main contributor to gaining weight. Now I am trying to do the work of re-training my brain, my body and my stomach in how I approach food - mostly as nourishment, that in post-surgery time I need to give myself adequate nutrition and that I need to be responsible with my choices as they will facilitate better health and of course weight loss. So tl;dr for me is that I am not always trying to eat to the point of being full but am having trouble sorting this aspect of wls out.

This is such a great question and I don't know if I have a good answer for it. I thought I would be happy to receive compliments and have people notice my weightless but so far whenever anyone has mentioned it, whether friends or family I have been deeply uncomfortable. And not because of how they have said it or anything like that - I think I'm struggling with some mental and emotional stuff around this weight loss thing (and the loss of protection that my fat provided me) which is surprising me. Ideally, I think I would like people to not say anything but if they feel so moved then a simple it's good to see you and you look great would do.

I just want to put in a plug for Nordstrom as well. They are pretty pricey if you're buying at full price but if you catch a good sale you can get some really great quality pieces for decent prices. Also check out Nordstrom Rack where they sell all their overstock. I loooooooove Nordstrom. The quality of their clothes is for me worth the money and they have a fantastic returns policy - up to a year.

Just wanted to say your post really touched me. It sounds like you are really doing the best you can given the emotional and mental struggles you're enduring. Along with everyone else's suggestions, I wanted to add the suggestion to try to come up with small and meaningful ways to show yourself kindness. It can be as simple as painting your nails or getting s book you really want to read from the library. Or treating yourself to a cup of tea out or walking in your favorite part of town. It's important that you assert your value and self worth to yourself at this time when you're feeling unattractive and you've been knocked down by the job situation. Sending you virtual hugs! Congratulations on the wonderful success you have had so far with WLS. Now to develop others goals and joys outside of that regardless of how you feel your body looks.

Congratulations on a truly amazing accomplishment. Amazing work.

@@VSGAnn2014 thanks! Funny enough sometimes reading posts here makes me think maybe I'm not...panicked enough/stressed enough/aggressive enough about losing weight NOW, NOW. NOW! But then I remember that I gained weight over a 10 year period...and I really want to make overall change in my life and I am okay

This is a great topic and thanks OP for starting it. Before I had my surgery I really struggled with setting a goal for weight because I knew if I didn't reach that ultimate number I was going to shame myself and call myself a failure. And I dont want to do that. I no longer tune into the ugly voice inside my head. I also have an all or nothing personality but I was able to reconcile it with doing a mix of big goal and mini goals like others. My first goal was just to change my eating habits 6- 8 weeks before surgery and then to actually have the surgery in the first place. Then I wanted to heal as well as possible without causing any issues. Then I wanted to resume drinking a lot of Water and getting Fiber into my diet. I am at this stage now and I am also taking on tying to develop a number of go to foods for each meal that I know i can have without issues or worrying about effects. Interestingly, I have been observing my weight loss almost as if it isn't happening to me. There have already been fluctuations but generally the trend is downward. I feel good energy wise but I am more concerned about with shaping this aspect of my life in a way that feels active but comfortable, aware yet not obsessed and most of all healthy. I do have a goal weight in mind - 165. My mini goals have been to get under 250 then to 225 then under 200 and then I'll see.

Congratulations, you look and sound amazing. I am especially in awe of all your muscle. I'm excited to start rebuilding my workout routine and to eventually start lifting. You're a wonderful inspiration.

Sorry to hear you're facing such opposition to having the surgery. When I told my family and friends, they were all very skeptical and unenthusiastic about it as well. But I eventually won them over so to speak by showing them that I had really done my research on my surgeon, the procedure I was having and what I would have to do afterwards in terms of taking care of myself. I listened to any dissenting opinions but I told them that I am the one who has lived in my body with my weight problems all my life and I am comfortable and confident in my decision. I told them I understood if they were worried for me or scared but that I had every reason to believe I would be okay. Make sure you find a good surgeon - some one you can talk to before you go for your surgery, who will answer any questions you have and who will tell you what to do after the surgery. Make sure you are okay with your decision to do this and then other people's opinions wont bother you as much. Dont give up - no one else can live your life or knows what it is like! Good luck.

Just wanted to add my experience here. I had my surgery in Mexico with Dr. Ramos Kelly and it was a great experience. I was nervous about going outside the country but my insurance does not cover bariatric surgery at all. I have managed to find a dr and bariatric center here at home that is doing my follow up care - so while it might be difficult, it can actually happen. The team that I am seeing is affiliated with a teaching hospital/medical school. I had to provide them my op-report from Dr. Kelly and then I was accepted. So far I have had no issues whatsoever and my meetings with the nurse practitioner have been great. I will also say that I have seen a number of people who had their surgery here in the States and still had horrible experiences. Regardless of where you have your surgery, it's important to feel comfortable and confident in your surgeon and the team caring for you. I was provided blood thinners in Mexico and I made sure I walked as much as possible in the two weeks after surgery. I was also in good health before surgery and so I think that helped a lot. Good luck with your decision - I would just say that it is possible to find surgeons, nurses etc and facilities in Mexico that are just as good as here in the US.

I had my surgery in Mexico and at first I was going to go alone as i felt confident that I would be fine. My friends and family were very unhappy with that idea and two of my close friends volunteered to come with me. Only one came with me in the end and I was really grateful for it. I didn't need her so much for physical support but the emotional side of things. Going to Mexico was absolutely the right thing for me but it is a serious undertaking. From the flight, to checking into the hospital, to the surgery itself it was really wonderful to have someone with me who I knew was there for me and only me. I could talk to her about all my anxieties and she updated all my loved ones once I was out of surgery. if you can have someone come with you I highly recommend it. If it is not possible you will be fine for sure - physically and probably even emotionally. I just appreciated having my friend with me - and she was the right type of person to bring as well. Don't take anyone who will make the whole experience about them or who will be overly anxious.

I asked my nurse practitioner about this very same issue as it can frequently take me an hour or so to finish a meal. She said that right now at 1 month out I should not worry about the 30 minute rule and just focus on getting my Protein in no matter how long it take me. She also said that the 30 minute rule becomes more important at 6 months or more out when I will have an increased capacity as taking a long time to eat can lead to grazing and overeating. So for now I just take my time so food doesn't get stuck and so I can get enough protein in. I also measure and track what I am consuming so I know how much I've had.

Joining so many others in wishing you all the very best. Thank you very much for sharing - there are so many aspects to this experience that go beyond the actual physical weight and it takes great strength to wrestle with all of them. My prayers and best wishes for good, compassionate and helpful treatment.

I'm early in my sleeved experience but attend a support group where a few members are struggling with regain. One gentleman had regained close to 40 pounds, another 50 pounds (out of 175 pounds lost) and a lady who is about 7 years out had regained close to 60 pounds (out of 200 pounds lost). The reasons why included big life blows as @@VSGAnn2014 noted but also moving away from the nutrition and activity guidelines. They shared that there is a point in this experience where one might feel or decide that they just want to eat whatever they want, Protein needs be damned. They also stopped tracking and exercise stopped being a priority. In the case of the guy who gained 40ish pounds, he adopted a vegan diet and has since lost 67 pounds. He also has started tracking, planning and cooking again. The others did not share how/if they are doing anything differently. what i found interesting was the amount of shame and self-disgust that people expressed. I was really struck and pained by it because to me, they are not failures. they have not failed their weight loss efforts or surgeries. they still have the tool and can develop/resume the habits needed for success.

@@OutsideMatchInside I have felt pretty much the same way as you regarding my own fatness. I have had a pretty great life overall and certainly in the last 5-6 years I never let being fat stop me from fully living. I went on vacations, I wore bathing suits in public, I exercised at the gym and even went to yoga classes. I went after promotions at work. I felt that I was interested in those things and wanted to try them. I felt worthy of them. I think I will continue to have that zest for life even if I am much smaller. The one thing I am realizing that I might have done that falls into "overcompensation" is that I have always been the friend that listens and puts everyone else's stories/experiences and needs above my own. I have always put myself in the background, insisting that I didn't have much going on in my life even though that was not the case. I do think that in the future I might insist on taking up a bit more room, so to speak in people's lives even though I will literally be smaller.

Hi everyone - I was wondering if anyone has recommendations for books related to nutrition, metabolism, the gastric sleeve afterlife and such. I have read a few books that were very helpful, some that were so so and others that were a snooze. Here's what I've read: 1) The Emotional First Aid Kit - A Practical Guide to Life After Bariatric Surgery (very good for pre and post-op. Gave me a good reality check before I had surgery) 2) Ultimate Gastric Sleeve Success by Dr. Duc Vuong (also very good, written by a bariatric surgeon. Explains the surgery, what you need to do in the immediate aftermath and beyond. Lots of quizzes so avoid if you don't like those. Good for pre-op) 3)Weight Loss Surgery The Real Skinny by Dr. Nick Nicholson (easy read, very encouraging. Good for pre-op) 4) The Success Habits of Weight Loss Surgery Patients (a bit boring, basic information that you can get elsewhere) 5) A Pound of Cure by Dr. Matthew Weiner (super book about food and how your body metabolizes it, how obesity happens and helpful guidelines for eating. Good for pre and post op and in general). I was trying to get through Robert Lustig's "Fat Chance" but I think I'll have to circle back at a later date. If anyone has any rec's I'd really appreciate them. Thanks.

Here's a youtubeer who started her journey at over 400lbs. She's a few years out now but she I found her videos to be really great: https://www.youtube.com/user/LessofSarah

I was wondering the very same thing. I asked my nurse practitioner and she said at one month out I could reintroduce 1 cup of coffee a day if I want. Like you I used to be a very caffeinated person and I love coffee in general - i love the smell, I love what it represents in my day. However, I don't think I will go back to drinking it for a long time if ever because I had a horrible time when I quit. I had headaches for 3 days and felt slow and out of it for two weeks. Now, I have noticed that I sleep much better, I wake up with energy and I also don't feel that mid afternoon slump. I also realized that I loved the accompaniments to my coffee - milk and sugar, just as much as the coffee itself. I'm not willing to have it black so it's going to be a while before I have it. I had just bought a lovely little Nespresso machine too. Sadness.

I read a paper from the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery that detailed all the supplements we need to take and the section on thiamine deficiency scared me the most. To the OP, thiamine is one of the B Vitamins that you would usually get from food but this early out, you are not consuming enough and a wide enough variety of foods to meet all the Vitamin needs we have. Thiamine deficiency can develop in a very short amount of time - two weeks or less depending on how much your body has stored. A deficiency can led to irreversible neurological damage. Furthermore, in the developed world, doctors are not used to seeing conditions resulting from this deficiency and so very often, they misdiagnose it prolonging the amount of time for damage to occur. Please, please make a serious and concentrated effort now and for the next year to get all your Protein, liquids and vitamins in. Losing weight is great but it is not the only important thing right now. Nourishing you body so that it can heal AND also lose weight is very important.

Congratulations, you look amazing!

I ask myself if this is my only opportunity to eat that food - now or ever. Usually it is not. I also ask myself to remember how I felt the last time I ate it and I remember feeling unsatisfied, physically sick and quite unhappy. Then I decide that it's not worth it. I used to love Hawaiian pizzas but one of the last times I had one many months ago - despite my better judgement, I felt incredibly sick the next day. I don't think I will never eat pizza again but it will have to be really high quality or homemade in order to be worth it. And I will have decided to have it rather than given into an impulse.

Good luck with your race - that's really cool!

I came home from surgery (also in Mexico) 7 pounds heavier than my pre-op weight but a week later I was down almost 13 pounds. I was a little shocked and worried but have been healing nicely. Just 3 weeks today. Best wishes with your continued recovery.

I have read Dr. Weiner's book - it was very informative and I plan on following his recommendations for eating as much as possible. I actually had a Skype consult with Dr. Weiner about possibly doing my surgery even though I ended up going to Mexico for it. Even with the great deal Dr. Weiner was offering, I couldnt afford surgery in the US. I find the book helpful in describing how obesity develops, why it's difficult to lose weight and how certain foods impact metabolism over the long term. The core principle is that we should try to move towards a plant based diet, eating 1 pound or more of vegetables a day including Beans, leafy greens etc. He provides guidelines for how many servings of other food stuffs to have such as raw nuts, fish, etc. It's worth a read. I also just wanted to add that his videos were very helpful for me when I was doing my research on having this surgery. He really explains food, obesity and metabolism in a way that I finally understand what has happened in my body. He is the first healthcare professional I have ever spoken with who showed me true compassion and understanding around my issues with weight and food. Anyway...I am a definite fan and am probably biased but I do think the book is helpful.