sleevedshereen

wow lol such similarities with us!!

YUP! I had shingles in November!! It was very minor and went away in 2 weeks because I caught it early but yup! Started out with severe shoulder blade pain into my chest and I thought I had severely done something wrong, went to a chiropractor...the pain mimicked a "slipped rib" so I thought I could get adjusted and feel relief but nope! Then I noticed a couple red spots that were raised on one side of my shoulder blade a day or two later then on my neck and chest and went to urgent care and they confirmed it was shingles! That whole area is shared by the thoracic nerve so the high volume of stress I dealt with the surgery, work, personal life all affected me and I had shingles at 26 years old. Then I got the flu because my immune system was at an all time low from the surgery and shingles...lol it was not a fun month or two for me from november to december! Best of luck to you! @alcn1derlnd

I wish I never commented on this post now...

I don't get why everyone is being so hard on him? Just because we had this surgery doesn't mean it resolved our issues with food, etc. He sounds like he's doing a lot better than me because I still struggle with eating bad foods - while it's much smaller portions, I still struggle every day. We are human beings, and not all of us can be so immaculate post surgery as others and it's hard to see sometimes. He sounds like he's eating pretty decent to me though. But I do realize just how scary it is that if I don't get my sh*t together, I could gain the weight back and I've been working on making my eating habits better. I enjoy a glass of wine or two like once a month and I'm not fearful of developing an addiction.

LOL how annoying! My boyfriend got mad at me on Sunday for putting on makeup and wanting to look nice to go to lunch. He wants me to look like crap because it's quicker lol I enjoy getting dolled up. Men! lol @Sosewsue61

Thank you all for your positive feedback and compliments! It means a lot! xo

You're not doing anything wrong. You started out at a lower weight. 11lbs in one month...that's a lot. I lost the same amount in my first month and we started around the same surgery weight. I've lost about 52 lbs since surgery and while others have lost more than me after 6 months, my body is different than others as is my journey and I would have never been able to lose 52 lbs on my own in 6 months if it weren't for the surgery. Your weight loss will be slow and you will hit plateaus but it's not a magic surgery that the weight will fall off every week...it doesn't work like that. I've learned throughout this process to have more realistic expectations of how this weight loss journey will work for me and i'm very happy with my "slow loss". Best of luck to you!

Your weight will constantly fluctuate. This past week I was 177 then 178 and at one point almost 179. This morning I stepped on the scale and was 175.9. I wouldn't be too hard on yourself. I have moments where I don't lose anything for weeks, and then I step on the scale and i'm 3-4 lbs lighter.

I honestly never asked. I had a hiatal hernia and ulcers and suffered from heart burn and nausea every day before surgery even when I wasn't eating anything. It was really bad. Since surgery, I hadn't experienced heartburn til this month and I'm 6 months post op. I'm really grateful I did the repair.

I struggle with a heavy flow (TMI to some idc). When it's that time of the month for me, I take ibuprofen. I hated the side effects of birth control and while I still have my hormones go out of whack and get insanely emotional or crazy during this time of the month, taking ibuprofen daily helped slow things down for me dramatically. Oh and buy overnight "ultra" tampons for the first few days that it's the heaviest. Good luck! It's a really hard thing to deal with, I know! @TheNewGiGi

No. I was out the next morning.

lol I guess I'm on the opposite end of everyone in this discussion. I've been addicted to soda since before surgery and still drink it here and there. It's THE WORST habit and I need to break it because it is hindering my weight loss and my healthy lifestyle. However, I drink it and experience no problems. However I can't even finish half a can anymore because it's a lot

I own it. Doll myself up at work. Walk down the hallways like it's a runway and when ppl compliment how good I look or say wow you have lost so much weight. I say THANK YOU! I've lost 51lbs. I'm awesome right?! lol I just own it. I am more confident and proud of how much i've lost and how i'm looking these days! Obviously, everyone is different and others are shy or uncomfortable because we've hid from everyone and ourselves for so long in our old bodies. But now is the time to practice self love and own that you look great! xo

@coyote @JupiterSky thanks for the replies back guys! I'm going through so much and have given up. I eat a protein bar in the morning, and drink a protein shake but everything else throughout the day I eat and drink whatever I want. My weightloss could have been so much more by now but oh well! I can only try to be better today and moving forward. We cannot let OTHER PEOPLE in our lives dictate how we feel anymore. Whether personal relationships with partners, family or even at work...we have come way too freaking far to let them make us feel like **** about ourselves to the point where we revert back to our old habits of eating like crap to make us feel better. We can't do that anymore. It's so hard and easier said than done but I know we can do it. Good luck! xo

You all sound like you're doing amazing. I've lost 51lbs since surgery but you guys, I must say that I have been the worst. I eat whatever I want and don't exercise. My addiction to soda has not stopped either. I've been dealing with some stressful personal things in my life and I eat fast food and drink soda to make me feel better. I keep thinking that if I lost 51lbs and I haven't changed my habits, imagine how much I could have lost or still could lose if I eat better and worked out just a little. I don't drink enough water and I don't eat enough protein. I told myself starting today I'd be better so I had a protein bar with 30g of protein and a protein shake with 30g of protein and it's about lunch time for me. I'm gonna be better this year. I will reach goal in a few months, I know it!

So the last 5 months have been a journey for me, and as the year ends, I just want to share some progress pics. My heighest weight was 228lbs and I am 178lbs 5 months post op - 50lbs down. I am going to be taking this weight loss journey even more seriously going into 2018 and making fitness a goal. I want to get in the best shape of my life in 2018. I still struggle with body issues and insecurities and feel absolutely terrible about myself a lot of the time, but I'm learning confidence and self-love during this process and here's some pics from before surgery at my biggest and current selfies I've taken of my progress...

I wish I could lose the weight but keep my booty! lol @goldenbarbie you look great! congrats on such a huge accomplishment

I eat fast food for lunch a lot. chipotle a lot. or get a lettuce wrapped burger and eat a portion of it. I go to taco bell, panda express I get teriyaki chicken - no sauce and steamed veggies , when I go to restaurant's I get a medium rare steak and end up losing weight the next day lol I guess these may be bad habits but I get my protein in and enjoy myself. I've lost 49 lbs, I'll be 5 months post up in 9 days... I'm averaging 10lb loss a month - 50 lbs in 5 months seems good to me...it could probably be more if I ate a little better and worked out more but i'm happy.

Congrats!! What was your longest stall? I'm almost at 5 months post op and I've been in a stall for like a month...

I'm struggling guys! I've been in a stall for like 3 weeks now. I am 4 months post op today. I struggle to eat, don't drink enough water and don't get enough protein in. I think because I'm not eating enough each day, my body is like now in starvation mode. Over the weekend, I barely ate anything and all I did was sleep. idk what's going on with me but super frustrating that i've been stalled for this long. I know I need to start drinking protein shakes since I can't eat much. Has anyone else gone through this?

SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME! HOSPITAL WAS IN NETWORK AND SURGEON AND ANESTHESIOLOGIST TOO but because the assistant to the surgeon was out of network they billed a crazy amount and want me to pay! They lied to me. They said I had a max out of pocket of 5,000 for the year and I only had to pay 3,000 out of pocket for my surgery. My insurance company is filing an appeal and said I would most likely not have to pay it since the doctor's office lied to me and I have the paperwork to prove it. I let my surgeon and his office have an ear full. I don't understand how they can do that. The coordinator said they verified benefits and they are in the network. They should tell us that their assistant in surgery is Out of network but they didn't. So messed up. I was in tears when I saw my portion was 42k because they were out of network. I threatened to sue my doctor and he said that they would make sure I don't have to pay it and they were sorry for any miscommunication....miscommunication?! You mean misleading, lies! I was freaking out. Very unethical to not tell the patient that someone in the surgery room is out of network. No w I know for future surgeries, verify who will be in the room, get a list, call my insurance company directly and verify benefits and each person who will be in the surgery room prior to having surgery and DO NOT trust the doctor's office when they said it's in network or what my out of pocket cost will be, etc.

I honestly didn't rely on my boyfriend. lol when I was in the hospital I was nauseous and in so much discomfort, I didn't even want to talk or anything. I'm the type where I just like to be left alone. I made sure before surgery that all my liquids were set up in the fridge and easily accessible, same with the broth and stuff for my liquid diet. I got everything on my own when I needed to. Getting in and out of bed was the hardest for me the first week. Just some stuff to think about. Everyone is different though. If you need that support and help and it's there, then that's awesome. My boyfriend was there but not much help lol

Thanks lol

Yeah, they haven't been affected much. I see them going a little deflated but my bf isn't complaining lol I was a DD and I'm wearing a D cup right now but it's a little small. I should still be wearing DD maybe lol

@ChaosUnlimited I know exactly how you feel! In 2014 I was maybe 150lbs...guys used to open doors for me, approach me, give me attention. Fast forward to 2017 when I was 228 lbs, guys did not hold the doors open for me, did not approach me, no attention. It was a really crappy feeling. Once I started losing weight, 43 lbs...i'm starting to get that attention back and it's actually really messed up that guys wouldn't show a girl who weighs a little more the same respect to hold a freaking door open!! It makes me angry. It has been interesting to see just how differently I was treated as a plus size woman not only by men, but by society when it comes to shopping, what's on tv and social media...it's sad that we're treated as second class citizens because of our size. It really affected me seeing the difference in how I was treated at my biggest, vs at my smallest.