Creekimp13

These are terrific questions! I think everyone's answer will differ, so I don't want to speak for everyone's experience but I can tell a couple of my own experiences. I used to absolutely love Egg McMuffins. 300 calories, 17 grams of protein, 12 grams of fat....they're really not even that bad for you. I used to joke that they were my personal perfect comfort food....I loved the taste, felt accomplished that I had a favorite that wasn't that bad....and just generally was happy about them. I remember starting solids again after surgery and taking a little bite of one....expecting that wonderful feeling. It was like (pardon me) sex with no orgasm. Zero pleasure. It didn't taste gross or anything, but it wasn't wonderful anymore. All of my EggMcMagic was GONE. I wasn't angry, I wasn't relieved. I was sad. It was a weird loss. The better part of my brain was happy and proud I no longer had such an intensely happy feeling about them....because I know that's disordered eating and I wanted to get away from that. But the nostalgic part of me that was still busy coping....felt the loss deeply. Most days, I was happy and relieved that food seemed to be losing control in my life. It felt good to say no, to throw things away after a few bites. It felt good when I had that crazy moment and bought something terrible like a box of little donuts....took one bite and had the strength to say....What the hell am I doing? And throw them all away. I'm proud I can do that now. That I can have a screw up, get something really awful, and have one or two bites and throw the package away. We're not perfect. We'll have moments. But the ability to pull up sooner and right the course sooner...has been a welcome and wonderful change. And as the years have gone by, I'm getting even better at this. I buy a lot less stuff to throw away now. LOL. Some people have a lot of emotional upheaval after surgery. Marriages can get worse, relationships can change. Be very aware of and use caution with cross-over addictions. Watch alcohol, gambling, flirting, over-spending, substances. Anything that gives you a pop of pleasure and distraction....keep a close eye on. Lots of data to show those things can bite you in the butt. The struggle is real, but so are the rewards. It is WONDERFUL to be able to walk five miles a day and get things done. It is wonderful to find cute clothes that fit, and like how you look in pictures. It is wonderful to inspire folks you love to make healthier choices. Lots of stuff is so nice. I remember the first time I could shave my legs and breathe at the same time. LOL! I remember the first time I tried on a swimsuit and went...holy ****! this looks great on me! The little victories are so lovely. About acid reflux... I have had almost no problem with it, with one notable exception. If I eat and lie down, I can end up with very nasty acid. If I wait an hour after eating before laying down...zero problems. I just need to be careful not to snack right before bed, which is a bad idea anyway, so the reminder isn't even that bad. I get a little bit of heart burn laying down maybe once every month or two now. I take a swig of Pepto and it's gone in a few minutes. Wishing you the best.

Lots of people here, among other places. LOL:)

Have recently taken a comprehensive nutrition class. I am 5.5 years out of sleeve and have maintained my loss. I wish I had taken a decent nutrition class in my teens or 20's. Not a *weight loss* nutrition class...but a general nutrition class where you learn to read labels, learn about dietary effects on disease processes, aging, inflamation. I had no idea how ignorant I was about the different kinds of fat, the effects of sodium and refined sugar, appropriate portions, recommended fiber and its effect on propogating good gut microorganisms, malnutrition in fat people, ect. I learned a tremendous amount in class about so many blind spots and feel so much more informed to make better dietary choices. I highly recommend a good general nutrition course for folks starting out in this process.

I'm five years out. Slipped on ice, chomped my teeth and fractured the root of a tooth previously root canaled....needed an implant. Implant process was long because I needed a bone graft on the outside to strengthen the socket. It was perfectly successful, though, and it has been my only major dental issue. I think I had one other filling, too. Neither of these dental repairs, in my opinion, had anything to do with the surgery....just bad luck and age. All my teeth are in great shape now. I get them cleaned twice a year and that's it. No special concerns.

GOOD: All of the other great apes eat their sugar with lots of fiber. They rarely eat meat, they eat lots of plant fats, and eat tons of fruit, figs, and unrefined carbs. They don't keep livestock, milk cows, or eat cheese. Over 90% of their diets are plants, fruits, palm nuts. BAD: Eat your children's vitamin for dessert. Fruit is pure sugar and should be avoided. You should only eat protein and non starchy veggies! Also... GOOD: Nearly everyone with morbid obesity suffers from food addiction. They deal with the constant stress and background noise of food, hunger and craving..... in a ways that people of typical weights don't. Obesity has a tremendous psychological component that must be understood for longterm success. BAD: Trade one form of obsessive disordered eating for another if you want to be successful.

Never once did baby food. Not horribly against it or anything, just never had the need. Chewed everything well and was able to eat a most things. Chew Chew Chew.

You need to talk to her doctor about her diet. People in end stage kidney disease are often on restricted protein diets because their kidneys can't handle extra protein. It's important to know specifically what kind of proteins will be easiest on her with her poor kidney function and how much protein is too much for her. Please talk to her medical providers about a good nutrition plan for her specific concerns.

5 years out. My guts STILL sound like an octopus orgy in a washing machine under a waterfall during a taping of the farting preacher. It's not painful. I do NOT have excessive or nasty gas or belching issues...(thank Christ) But my guts are still incredibly loud. Every so often some stranger sitting next to me gives me this alarmed look like they're expecting an alien to burst from my body.

Some good stuff being brought up about "big boned" being another denial. Being honest is important. That said...there ARE different frame sizes, different statures, different body styles. My bestie and I are both 5'6". She has size 6 feet, I have size 10. She looks great at 150 #, I look great at 170#. She has teenie little paws and can wear itsy bitsy rings. I have large hands that completely cover hers with an extra inch. Boob size can turn a size medium girl into an XL shirt wearer. Boobs are a wildcard, too. I definitely support not lying to yourself that "you're just big boned"....but also want to to balance this. There's a different body style inherent to being a fit Dutch girl, a fit Asian girl, a fit African American girl. Individual differences, too. We are not all the same....which is why Arnold Schwarzenegger had an obese BMI when he won Mr. Universe. Bodies vary.

Five years out. I wish I'd known how significant food addiction is...in the puzzle of obesity. All the diets and exercises in the world don't treat food addiction, and in fact, can exacerbate it. Charting longterm food choice behaviors, triggers, circumstances linked to bad choices....is something I wish I'd done sooner. I might not have needed surgery. Not saying I have any regrets (I don't). Not saying the surgery isn't an amazing life saving tool (it is).

5 years out from sleeve. Breakfast:) Avocado toast on focaccia with pickled onions, feta and red pepper flakes. Some salad topper pecans, pepitos and cranberries, tomatoes and cukes...and a mini glass of powerhouse super juice. Yum!

I started drinking with meals about two months after surgery. People will be all authoritarian about it...and they mean well. But if you press your doctor (not the staff...your DOCTOR) about the difference between "eating" soup or protien drink, and having something to drink with dinner...the doc will admit it's nonsense. They just don't want you to push the food through constantly and continue to eat before you digest enough and feel full....this can make you gain weight and give you digestive upset. Also, reflux can be worse with more fluids if you lie down too soon after eating. I have a drink with every meal. I dont worry about it and I dont have issues.

I'm also recovering from rotator cuff problems on both sides. This is interesting!

ANY addiction can be a transfer addiction after a bariatric surgery messes with your food addiction. About a year after surgery, I noticed I liked to go gambling more. (not an insane amount, but instead of going maybe once every three months or so and taking $50, I was going maybe twice a month and taking $100. One month, I went once a week) I'm thrifty, so I noticed the casino losses in my budget right away and said....oh, hells no, this has to stop. So, I quit gambling entirely. Dodged the bullet on that one, thank goodness. But....of course.... that void looked for another way to rear its head. I started buying way too much **** on Ebay and Amazon. Late night purchases. Ugh. When I identified that issue....I quit, and promptly started hitting thrift stores and buying too much crap. Just kept swapping out one source of instant gratification for another....kinda like food. Addiction is a real thing. And finding healthy ways to deal with that need for instant gratification (and the hidden **** that drives it) will always be something I deal with. Very often when I hear people talk about regain... they will beligerantly insist that they don't have problems with food addiction or disordered eating. And I always think....oye. This ain't gonna end well for you. Admitting you have a problem is the first step, imo. And I know that sounds cheesy...but it's true. You need to get your head around your blind spots and confront them. Understand the behavior so you can change the behavior. I'm 4.5 years out, maintaining my weight loss (very proud of this)....but more aware than ever before how food addiction has impacted my life and my habits. Also, more aware of what drives my addictive behaviors. Still workin on it, man it's hard! Parts get easier, parts get harder. Just gotta keep fighting the good fight:)

Crap, I don't drink...so maybe I'll just take a hit of pot each time someone on My 600 pound life says: 1. Miserable. (ie: my life is miserable) 2. Switches out "my size" for "my weight" 3. This is my last chance. 4. "Dr. Now doesn't understand....." 5. "Weightloss Journey" 6. "Progress" And TWO everytime Dr. Now says: 1. "What happened?" 2. "you are killing yourself." 3. "Eating habit!" 4. "How you all doing?" 5. "If you need anything, let me know." 6. "I'm proud of you!" Take off one article of clothing each time the patient fails to meet a weight loss goal. If it's the Penny Sager episode....just smoke the whole bowl, take ALL your clothes off, and watch in stunned silence with your mouth hanging open.

Drives me crazy when people call every kind of hunger "head hunger." Head hunger is when you've just eaten a balanced full calorie meal and you see a donut and think you want it. THAT is head hunger. Or you've just eaten the last of your maintenance calories for the day....and your husband is eating ice cream in bed and you think...damn some ice cream would be good! That's Head Hunger. Or you have a carefully balanced small piece of pizza and a salad, and you think...damn, another piece of pizza would be better than this salad....that's head hunger again. Your nutitional needs have been met, but you are craving something that you don't really need. When you've just had surgery and you are subsisting on less than 1000 calories a day....you are HUNGRY. Like, really genuinely hungry. So hungry, in fact, that your body's needs are NOT being met by nutritional intake, so it is consuming itself. Anytime you are losing weight, by definition....your body is genuinely hungry. Your body is so desperately hungry, in fact.....that it is eating human fat (and hopefully not muscle) to meet its fuel needs. Lack of food and consuming body=HUNGER. Most of us are hungry. A lot. Being in denial about it and telling people they're lying to themselves about being hungry isn't helpful. Hunger isn't a dirty word. It's ok if we're hungry. We've got a lot of stored calories and excess flesh to consume. But YES, I am HUNGRY when i'm losing weight. And yes, hunger sucks. Sometimes, I think this lie worsens the pathology of food addiction. We already have enough issues with a history of lying to ourselves about food. Sometimes honesty is healthier and better. When I lose weight...I'm freaking hungry. It sucks to feel hungry, but it's necessary. It feels good to be thinner, it feels good to be healthier, and good health is worth it. I can handle feeling hungry. Enduring hunger is part of the work. Resisting cravings is another part of the work. Two different things. Both are tough. Describing this honestly...is a hell of a lot easier to swallow, in my opinion, than "No, you're not hungry, your head is playing tricks on you." We know better. Lies don't help.

"I love your smile!" This dude says this to me on my way into the grocery store today. And I'm thinking to myself....ok, that was odd. Then, I get a couple more big smiles and winks and weirdness. I asked my 80 year old mom who was with me today...."What the hell is going on? Do I look odd? Am I missing something? I'm getting strange looks." And without hesitation, she goes.... "It's your boobs." "What?" "You have a little waist and big boobs. You usually don't wear fitted shirts." And she's right...I'm wearing a sort of snug fitted shirt. My bestie made me try it on and she said it looked awesome on me. It's not hoochie or overly tight or anything....just not something I'd usually wear. Ok...this coming from my 80 year old mom was wild enough....but literally minutes later...some dude runs over to help me lift one of those 40 pound pails of cat litter into my cart. "Wait, let me help you!" Mr. Helpful says, dashing over grinning like a madman. And I thanked him. Twice. But I'm thinking to myself.....where the hell were you when I weighed 270 pounds and my back was killing me? Sometimes I kind of enjoy it....but most of the time it's incredibly uncomfortable to not be as invisable anymore. I mean, the sweet compliments and help are incredibly nice and all....but sometimes I feel gross about it. I am still a fat girl on the inside. I'm still angry and hurt that people are shallow assholes. Any of y'all know what I mean?

Most of the veteran posts, lets face it.... are "Help, I've regained!" And the response I see over and over and over and over is... "Go back to basics...starve yourself at 1000 calories a day (or less)...start drinking protien shakes....do keto...blah blah blah" I don't mean to criticize heartfelt advice...and I know some of ya'll are genuinely trying to help. But why in the world would you tell someone to do the same thing over again....that didn't work the first time? It seems nuts to me. My two cents: see a bariatric therapist. Stop the self punishment. Stop the self sabotage. Stop the self harming extremes. Get down to the real reasons you're addicted to food, what you're medicating with it...and work on fixing those issues. If you do....making slow reasonable changes to your diet that have slow but steady results....will work. You don't have to starve. You don't have to do very low calorie diets that hurt your metabolism, your bone density, and your muscle mass. You don't have to be so freaking EXTREME. Breathe. Make reasonable changes you can live with for a lifetime. No crash diets. They don't work. You know this. How many years experience do you have KNOWING that this approach doesn't work? Stop running from the real issues.

Mushrooms! You've gotta blend the crap out of them, or chop them super tiny...but mushrooms are so good. Lots of protien, lots of fiber, low calories. I liked mashed potatoes after surgery. They were on my surgeon's list...I know some programs forbid them...but they were wonderful with olive oil butter and my dietician was cool with them. Sweet potatoes, too. Nut butters without the sugar. Coco wheats and oatmeal were also ok on my surgeon's list. I love coco wheats because they have tons of iron. Soups with beans, potatoes and mushrooms were big favorites for me.

I had a great experience. Super easy surgery. Walked over a mile in the halls in the evening. I think I had surgery at 8am? Woke up the next day at 7am, showered, washed my hair, put on clothes and was itching to go home. Very little pain. Zero nausea. The hardest part for me...was that first week after...when essentially your entire life revolves around drinking little cups of fluid several times an hour...and writing everything down. Pain in the butt and felt like a full time job. Worth it, though! Best wishes. You got this!

Get your crockpot. Get some chicken breasts and clean all the icky stuff. No one wants to run into that later. Ya want nice clean chicken without connective tissue yucky spots, Trim that stuff off. Plot them in a crockpot. Dump in a jar of salsa. Dump in a can of black beans. Dump in a packet of taco seasoning. Dump in a can of corn (if you tolerate corn) Let it cook all day. At dinner, shred the chicken. You can eat this stuff plain, and your family can dress it up with cheese and nachos and sour cream. Everyone's happy. Everyone wins. Makes a great packed lunch the next day, too. (I like mine on a bed of lettuce with some fresh red onion, avacado, and hot sauce....and a little reduced calorie sour cream)

Also, what are your stats? starting weight, low weight, current weight...that kinda thing

Totally ok if you don't want to answer this question, Mandy, but I'm curious....when you lost weight in the months after surgery, did your clinic recommend you eat very low calories or did they encourage you to eat more normally sooner?

Nice work!

Definitely follow up. For all the reasons mentioned. Also..stay off it. You might be making things worse by pushing exercise. Talk to your doctor and take this seriously.