jenondaway

I JUST realized that I have already reduced my BMI enough to get out of the Extreme/Morbid Obesity category. I am now "just" obese. Did I ever think I would celebrate such a thing? No! But here I am absolutely thrilled about it! My body may not yet "show" what I've done, but it IS making a difference.

Hi All, Hoping to join up with you as I'm a February sleever. HW 257 SW 231.5 (Surgery date - 2/12/18) CW 216.8 Has definitely been a roller coaster ride and I know there's more coming my way, but I stand by my decision to do this and have an opportunity to truly LIVE my life from here on out. Today was my first day back to work (took 4 weeks off) and it went well, but my tummy is sore from sitting upright fully clothed for eight hours. It's probably not appropriate to wear pajamas to work is it?

Thanks everyone! I also really appreciate the wishes for a speedy trip to "Overweight"! I haven't been THERE for at least 15 years, so that will be cool.

Congratulations! Now walk, walk, walk and get yourself out of there quick.

I burp a lot (sleeved 2/12/18) and also get hiccups more than I ever used to. I also get up and walk around if I start feeling uncomfortable, sometimes even a sip of water can cause discomfort but it does help to stand. I also have a ridiculously loud tummy now. I'm hoping it will quiet down eventually. LOL

You look fabulous! What a great way to spend your stall.

My surgeon has a very strong aversion to drinking alcohol. He spoke at one of our support group meetings about how it has been proven that weight loss surgery patients have a significantly increased risk of developing other addictions. If you've "medicated" yourself with food and can no longer do that, it's natural for some people to look for new "medication", be it alcohol, drugs, shopping, etc. It has kind of made me hyper-aware. You are so incredibly strong to share your story and it's inspirational that you chose to do this in an effort to help other people who may be facing the same struggle. THIS is what a support group page should be. Thank you and very best wishes for full recovery!

Congratulations on your loss, that's awesome! I'm down 40 lbs and all my clothes still fit me almost as if I've lost nothing although some of them are more comfortable. It's quite frustrating actually but it also makes me realize just how tight my clothes must have been before I started this process which then makes me feel embarrassed. I'm hoping that soon I'll start to feel some difference. I have started exercising which will probably help. I agree with the others, you should definitely try some of those smaller clothes.

LOL - I hadn't even noticed the ticker. Our numbers are quite similar as well. Your ideas are solid. Thanks for the pointers. I used to be a pretty hardcore drinker, however back in 2010 I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. When that happened, I cut back my drinking a LOT, so cutting it out completely wasn't that difficult. Those closest to me already knew I was quitting for other reasons so that should be easy. My boss and two closest coworkers know about my surgery so that's not a problem. It will be clients and brokers that will notice, so I like the idea of ordering a normal size meal. Heck, if I do that I'll have leftovers that will serve as multiple meals for me over the next couple days anyway. LOL Keep in touch!!

I chose Mondays as my weigh in day because my surgery was on a Monday and I thought it was a perfect way to keep track. I’ve been really good about just weighing myself on that day. Not that I haven’t given in a couple times here and there, but have been much better about staying off the scale than I ever have been in the past. Anyway, I stepped on the scale today only to find that I lost less than two pounds this past week. Today marks the completion of one month since surgery. My first month post op and I didn’t even lose 15 pounds. I lost 14.7 which I know is still good, but compared to other stories I read, really sucks. I’m really disappointed and of course all the feelings and fears I had about failing at this too are back even though overall I’ve now lost a total of 40 pounds. I know I shouldn’t be comparing myself to others, that each journey is different, but I really WANTED the big kick off loss. ANYWAY…I just have to keep doing what I’ve been doing and sticking with the post op diet guidelines and have faith that my body will adjust to this new mode and start really losing. I’ve reviewed my food journal that I am keeping religiously and I am falling short on some key things - calories, fluids and protein. I need to get back to basics and do better at hitting those goals. JUST.KEEP.GOING. I had my first family dinner at the in-law’s house on Saturday. It was awful. I felt like I was some kind of freak show and their choices for food only made it worse. They know the phase of diet that I’m in - currently restricted to pureed foods. What did they have? Raw vegetables with ranch dip, pepperoni and salami slices, hard cheeses and crackers. For dinner, pizza and wings. And of course since someone had a birthday, cake and ice cream. There was not one single thing they had that I could eat. So as not to make a big deal of it, I just chatted with people. My FIL all of a sudden realized that I wasn’t munching on anything and went bananas, which of course cued my MIL to begin a big production. They had half of a baked potato in the fridge, so offered that to me. I put it in the microwave to heat it so I could smash it up, and when it came out it was so dry that it didn't mash so much as it crumbled. So, my MIL dumps a big spoonful of full fat sour cream on it to “give it moisture” UGH! Everyone makes their way to the table with their pizza and wings and I have my little murdered potato. One of the nieces looks over and sees I’m not eating pizza and starts laughing and asking me why I’m not eating pizza which gets the attention of all the kids at the table who start giggling and pointing. Nice. Laterm she realizes that I haven’t finished my half of potato. So that became the next chapter of the horror that was this evening. Finally it was time for cake and ice cream. I really thought I’d be ok with being there and not being able to eat it. I’ve been fine around all kinds of food. THEN, the cake(s) came out and they were my all-time favorite specialty cakes. (I have a deep seated emotional issue with cake - long story) I had the biggest rush of anxiety I’ve felt yet and almost jumped out of my chair to get away. We said our goodbyes and went home. I know it will be easier when I’m on solid foods because it won’t be QUITE as obvious that I’m not eating in the same way as others. Meanwhile, I have now vowed NOT go out to dinner or to anyone else’s home until I’m at the phase, which is still a month away. I can’t tell you how embarrassing it was to be made to feel like a freak show. I’m not in a good place today at all. Tomorrow I go back to work and I don’t think it’s going to get any better. I stopped into the office last week to let my co-worker know that I would be back this week and she made some stupid comments about how she expected me to be all skinny and that my clothes should be hanging off of me by now. Is that what people expect? That I had weight loss surgery a month ago so magically all of my extra 100 lbs just fell off? If that’s the case there will be a lot of whispering going on that I’m a failure. I’m having a day where I really wish I hadn’t even done this. It will pass. I’ve been riding this roller coaster for a month - it just really sucks in the moment. I'm keeping my eye on the prize and reminding myself that even slow progress is progress.

We're surgery twins! We share the same surgery day. Sorry you're also sharing some of the same frustrations though. Having been out of work for the last four weeks, I've already been getting messages from some of my clients that when I'm back we need to go out to lunch, drinks, etc. (They also don't know.) So I'm figuring out my strategy for that.

Good luck!! Stay strong.

LOL - you're so right. The first time I met my husband's grandmother she had been interviewing housekeepers and the aunts liked one in particular and she said no to her. When they asked her why she said that "fat people don't make good housekeepers because they can't fit in small spaces"....yep, that happened.

You made me smile....thank you! My husband has done a pretty good job with support, but yeah I didn't really feel like he had my back on this particular night.

I've not had any hair loss or thinning. I'm absolutely religious with my vitamins though! Here's hoping you don't have it either!

^^ That is an awesome way to think of it. Ironically, in five months I'll be on a "family" vacation with the whole lot of them so if I continue to lose at that rate (or close) I'll be killin' it!! And...since we'll be oceanside, I'll have seafood at my disposal...no more dead potatoes for this chick! Thanks for your reply

That patch saved my life!!

Thanks Allie589 - I think that will be key. Some questions and comments are uncomfortable so I need to practice some responses maybe using my keen sense of humor. LOL...NOT! At this point I'm so anxious to simply sink my teeth into some broiled fish! One more week!! Thanks again for the reply!

Putting a cool damp wash cloth over them helped me a bit.

All the best to you Matt! Looking forward to your next update.

Might be a good time to start a list (if you haven't already) of why you're doing this. Maybe listing out some of the things you look forward to doing as a result of the weight loss. Oh....and just breathe! You'll do great.

Yes, itching is very often a classic sign of healing. Mine started itching after a couple weeks. JUST DON'T SCRATCH!

^^^ THIS ^^^ - I needed to see this. I'm having a very rough day emotionally - this process has been quite a roller coaster ride and I have days like this where I just wonder what the heck I've done. Those days always pass and I know it will be ok. Thank you.

I'm also almost four weeks out (Surgery 2/12). My post op diet seems more rigorous than most I've noticed here. Two weeks of liquid, three weeks of pureed, three weeks of soft and then FINALLY real food. I have to admit that it's getting me down - I know it's important, but I will have gone without anything solid for two months. I'm struggling to get enough fluids and it seems like when I focus on that, my protein goals suffer. I just need to find that balance. Protein powder in my pureed foods help, but honestly I'm over that. LOL I find I'm leaning on protein shakes to do what I need to do. My other challenge right now is that I feel like I'm not losing weight as fast as I thought I would. At three weeks I was down 13 lbs from my surgery weight. I've been reading a lot of people reporting that they've lost 20, 30 lbs or more in the first month. I'm following my meal plan closely, haven't "cheated" at all and I've only lost 13 lbs over three weeks. I feel like at this pace it will take forever to get to my goal weight and that has me seriously bummed. Ok, guess I've vented enough! Sorry you asked, aren't you? LOL

I heard that from another CPAP patient not long ago. She said it took her a couple weeks before she could sleep without it. I guess like anything else when it becomes your "normal" it takes time to get used to a change. I will miss the white noise.