ChaosUnlimited

Thank you all for the advice, I was able to find plenty of things to eat pretty much anywhere I went. I hardly had to dig in to my stash of protein bars. Europe seems to be more health conscious than the US, while there were decadent and rich foods everywhere, there were always healthy alternatives offered as well. Not sure if this was because we were in a lot of tourist type areas or not. Some advice for people who are traveling far enough to have meal service on a plane - request a gluten free diet. The meals are so much better and healthier, I got chicken, vegetables and salad for dinner when others had chicken, pasta and bread, and for breakfast I got a fruit and cheese plate when others were served a croissant.

We're flying in to Glasgow, then going to a place near Kyle of Lochalsh, then Inverness, and then to Edinburgh where we fly home from. Things on the tour include several castles: Doune, Stirling, Eilean Donan, Dunvegan, Urquhart, and Brodie. We'll be going to a visitor center for a 3D show, Isle of Skye, a Lochness cruise, a steam train ride, a whiskey tasting, and visiting a sheep dog farm and the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Those are the highlights, there is some free time with suggestions for what to do in each town, so it appears we will be pretty busy. My parents booked this trip. They typically like to have every minute of their vacation specified on an itinerary. Two weeks of constant movement from experience to experience. I hope it will be fun, but if I booked the trip I would have done less touristy stuff and more of just soaking in the local culture.

I have no regrets about this surgery other than wishing that I had taken this step sooner in my life rather than waiting so long. My surgery went pretty smoothly, and I am now no longer taking blood pressure meds or diabetes meds. I used to have a lot of back pain and body aches, but now I feel so much better and just more comfortable in my own skin. I can do so much more. I missed out on a lot when my kids were younger because I couldn't do all that I wanted to at my weight, or I was too self-conscious to participate in the fun. I'm not trying to push you one way or the other, just relating my experience. I agree with orchids&dragons, on boards like these you tend to see a lot of posts about problems or issues, but I don't think that is representative of most surgeries, people just don't tend to post that all is well and going smoothly.

Reach out to your surgeons office and see if they can recommend a therapist for you. It sounds like you need to dig down and work on some deep issues. In the meantime, try putting together meals and snacks for the day ahead of time. Sometimes it helps to have things pre-prepared so you know what your "food allowance" is for each meal, or for each day. You can space out snacks accordingly - if you're looking for more right after a meal, ask yourself, "can I wait another hour before reaching for this next snack?" Consider that if you eat your allotted snacks too early you will be hungry later and try to space them out. This is just something I do to help when I am feeling like I am not satisfied even though I have just eaten. Get rid of trigger foods that are in your cabinets or refrigerator. Having them readily available is just setting yourself up. When you feel a craving coming on, maybe go take a walk instead. Remove yourself from the places where in the past you had the habit of over-eating. It takes approximately 21 days to change your habits. Set this as a short term goal - when you have a craving, take a walk instead of reaching for food. Tell yourself that if you take a 20-30 minute walk and are still hungry when you get back, you will have a protein snack. Think of all the reasons that made you come to the decision to have this surgery. Maybe try journaling what you're feeling. It can be hard to lose the comfort that comes from food, it's like losing a friend. Find ways to keep your mind and hands busy - look for a new hobby that piques your interest. You can do this. You are strong, have faith in yourself. Reach out to those in your life who support you.

@sillykitty Are you going in August for the Military Tattoo? I would have loved to go to see that! So do you think the whey protein would count as dairy? I didn't even think of that, hopefully it wouldn't since it is in a different form. I was planning to pack some individual protein powder packets and protein bars just in case I can't find what I need right away, I'll have a few handy. We are doing a tour, so going to several locations for a few days each. We're starting out in Glasgow so I should be able to go shopping there, but from what my mom says of the itinerary we're going to be fairly busy most days. We're actually leaving tomorrow, I'm so excited! @Frustr8 I will try to post the fun details when I get back!

I wasn't a big tea drinker before, but I have been looking for different decaf drinks to enjoy. I have tried several herbal kinds since surgery but the store bought ones don't have enough flavor, or don't have good flavor. I'll have to look these up to try. When I was in the hospital after surgery they had a brand called Rituals decaf orange pekoe tea, it was so good, but I can't find it anywhere. The funny thing was when I googled it I found commentary from other people who were also looking for it and had also tried it while in a hospital, lol. It must be a hospital cafeteria thing.

So last week I had to have an imaging test done. The tech had to line up the machine where it needed to be over my abdomen, usually they feel to see where your ribs and hip bones are for landmarks. She walked over to me saying "I need to press on you a bit to line this up", then she looked and said, "Oh, never mind, you're so skinny I can see where it needs to go." And I was wearing jeans and a thin t-shirt! She had no idea how strange that was for me, I still can't believe I was referred to as being skinny!

Wow, congrats!

Glad it helped!

Check with your doc or nutritionist, but I know it took me about 7-8 months to get to where I was eating more than 800 calories. It was fine as long as I was getting my protein and hydration. I was eating very low carb, a few months ago the nutritionist said I could increase my carb intake, and now I don't have any issues getting in 1000 calories, sometimes I have to watch that I don't go way over. Carbs are less filling and I find I can eat more of them, but eating them also makes me crave more so it's a double edged sword. It may just take some time time to able to eat more, and the whole point of the surgery is calorie restriction. Take advantage of it while it lasts, don't try to force more, the restriction eases when you get closer to a year.

I bought a few things as I went down in size so I could feel good about how I looked. Once things get baggy looking, you start to feel frumpy. I just went to places like Ross so I didn't spend a lot while losing rapidly.

I haven't read through the post so I may be repeating what others have said, but I have so many things on my list that I love about the now vs then! Walking (or even running) up stairs without getting out of breath or feeling excess stress on my joints with each step Fitting in any chair with arms, not worrying about if I'm going to "overload" it Shopping anywhere, and having more plentiful choices in clothing Crossing my legs when sitting feels natural instead of difficult now Shoes fit better, I didn't realize how much weight I'd lose in my feet alone! I can wear the cute strappy shoes without them cutting into my skin. And soon, I'm going to get my drivers license photo redone!

How many calories are you eating and how many does your doctor/nutritionist want you to have?

I have no idea if I had single or double.

I haven't seen these flavors yet but I will now be on the lookout!

I'm about an hour south of Raleigh. Had DS at Rex.

I find it interesting how everyone has such different diet plans. I have a friend who had surgery 3 months or so after I did, hers was at a different facility, and her plan is so different from mine. My plan is pretty strict with no bread, pasta, white rice, white potatoes. Her plan allowed her to have mashed potatoes for her pureed stage and they didn't stress to her not to have the processed carbs like pasta, white rice, and bread. My nutritionist recommends getting carbs only from legumes, fruits, and veggies, and some whole grains. My doctor has stressed since pre-surgery that the rapid easy weight loss phase lasts around 1 year, +/-. You have to take advantage of it while you can, because then it does slow down, so good food habits have to be established before that happens. During that early phase, you may be able to get away with eating things you shouldn't and still losing weight, but once it slows down, it becomes fairly easy to out-eat the surgery and gain weight back. I'm almost 9 months out and have experienced more lengthy stalls in the last 2 months, so I feel like it is already slowing. My last follow up I was given an exercise goal because I slacked off in that area and lost some muscle mass, and that is important in calorie burning as well. Good luck to all, it continues to be a struggle most days, and I can only hope I can maintain the losses I have made so far.

Where in Costco do you find it? I might have to give it a try!

Good luck Fluffy, I'll be thinking 'bout you tomorrow!

I've never seen it, maybe they have a sample you can try

The pizza commercials still get to me sometimes, because it's one of my favorites. If I make something pizza-like, such as cauliflower pizza or pizza casserole, it helps cut my cravings down and makes them tolerable. There are ways to make substitutes for your favorite foods so you still get a little of the flavor you want. I have eaten pizza, but it doesn't make me feel too terrible, it just gives me gas later, and I can eat more of it than I thought. Not much of a deterrent, so it's just something I have to stay away from or find a sub for because it is definitely a trigger food to overeat. While I won't say I will never eat it again, I definitely want to save it for special occasions only and not fall back into the habits that put me at such a high weight in the first place. The only other commercial that gets to me is Taco Bell, but I know that stuff never tastes as good as TV makes it look, so no loss there! I think after your surgery, you will find that your tastes change so the same things may not bother you as much.

Great option for when a time saver is needed, I'll keep my eyes open for these!

I have such a hard time figuring out what size I am now, I think I am between a C and a B cup. None of them seem to give me a comfortable fit. I decided to order two sports bras from Under Armor so I could have some decent supportive bras to work out in, and I am so disappointed in how they fit and the lack of support. I could have spent a lot less money to have an odd fitting bra that gives me side boob spillage and another that is baggy at the top of the cup.