Frustr8

My largest was 28-30w, now in 20s just about ready to go down to an 18, 20s are getting loose, especially the slacks and jeans. My Goodwill just remodeled and moved into a new facility. They are going to gave a drive-thru drop off. In the old store you had to bring donations in the front door. People shopping could look and sneer at what you were bringing in. Never liked that! This way as I undergrew each size I ,packed it in a box so I have 5x,4x and 3x items as well as the corresponding in mens, often I bought my sweats in that department. All nice and clean , mostly Wal-Mart but a few from Lane Bryant or Added Demensions and one church outfit with Catherine's label. Really okay stuff. Kinda like not wearing the largest size each store carry. And pants slipping down and nearly falling off, "Oh Yeah Baby", to channel Austin Powers. And day by day I look less like a salami and more like a Human Female. Nobody will as me any more whether I'm Male or Female, my figure will end the controversy. Attempted to sell some of these on our local Buy- Sell- Barter- Trade radio show called Tradio. Put a reasonable low price, got 2 calls, one wanted 5x mens instead, sorry the man items I had were 3x-4x, the other claimed she would be buying them for her mother, gave her directions to my house but she never showed up. Wasted half a day waiting on her. Some bariatric Facilities have a Clothes Swap Area , you bring in what you have outgrown and exchange them for the same # in a smaller size. Wish mine would do that, but they don't seem interested or have the space to devote to it.

And I , my little friend, am 8 months a week from Monday, a RNY bypass, and I have not dumped even once. Oh perhaps I have led a charmed life that it hasn't happened. But I used to have an appetite that knew no bounds. I would watch TV with a Family sized bag of Conn's. Honey +bar-b-que chips and eat them all. Conn's is one of our Central Ohio brands, cheaper, thinner chips, no saturated fats in their oil. Head office I believe is Zanesville Ohio. The fact that are so well made does not excuse the fact I ate too many at one sitting. At any rate I do not have a raging appetite any more,in fact I truly have no desire,to eat. Nothing really sounds good, oh I do have my soups, varying from bone broths clear up to my cheesy soup. Usually make it with potatoes, last time I put broccoli in it instead. Made my dietician groan but my pouch and I like that kind of stuff. I add Genepro protein to items I think don't have enough naturally. And depending on next blood draw, we will see if I have any deficencies vitamin -wise. I had an Iron infusion in March, need to see if that's holding or will I require another? PCP said I might have them every 90 days, but it all depends on how. blood levels are.

OMG Sandra, you just reminded me of something. I have always put 250 as my weight on IDs, I'm now SMALLER than I said! Wow ee Wow wow!

But who to better invest in!

Ain't it just wonderful! You got all the old memories still inside but you've packaged them in a new container! And it still has more time to go, you are gonna be a wild Momma before this is over!

And I believe you'll do much better now frou frou !

Should still be some active on here, perhaps they will see your post and answer back. I'm only a bariatric cousin myself, a 73 year old RNY bypass last September 5th.

And end up where you are ccomfortable, if it is less, so be it! They're giving you their best and/or advice, up to you what you do with. the info. Be proud of yourself no matter what!😝🌻🌈

Are you taking a good half hour to eat,? laying down your spoon between bites?, and they should not be bigger than a dime. You never can bolt down food like you once did. Pretend you are at the Dolls Tea Party. What still works for me is the 2oz cup of fluid every 15 minutes, that makes 8 oz in a hour. If you keep up for the 8 or so hours you are awake you will have fluid enough (64oz). I still. often will even do my protein shakes in that manner. Your tummy may not want the solidness of eggs, you can step back down to liquids, clear and murky soups, thin puree, see if that will stay down better. If you continue doing this you should bring your bariatric team into the loop. You could end up like me , 8 months out, still battling a strictured stoma to my pouch and multiple ulcers in my jejunem, the part of small intestine my pouch is supposed to empty into. And I still vomit,3 times this week, tried to introduce some tender ground chicken, Precious Pouch would have none of that so up it came. The next was trying to drink,instead of ladylike sips, and the 3rd? Don't really know why it happened just that it did. I still have pain over the location frequently. But I realize for me, it is what it is, and might as well accept and still move forward with peace and 😂 joy.

It will, it will, I am 73 , a gastric bypass of less than a year, have lost 130 pounds from my highest weight, 97 pounds since surgery last September 5th. And I would have sworn it would never happen, I just couldn't diet and keep it off, Lord a Mercy, I did try, should have been awarded an Effort Trophy. But I am sure doing it now, don't even look like me anymore since I lost my round moon face. But I will be something special when I am through, no big thing if I start resembling my dead relatives, they are in no state to complain. So June will be the Wonder month for you all, and we will all cheer you on!

I'm making it, you will too Sandra, oh there are moments I get a little down but they are getting fewer and farther between. Hoping for good news about my intestinal ulcers, it and my stoma stricture have been altering my life since last October, but I have great hopes by a year I will be so resolved it will be but an distant memory. This too shall pass, sorrow is only limited for me! So on to my finale, haven't made it to where I want to be, but the fact. I am now at 224, down from my high of 365+ means I could break into Onderland close to my one year anniversary on September 5th. Can anyone guess how happy I will be put 1 at the front of my weight? If I had a tail I would wag it from side to side and up and down in joy! I can almost see it on the horizon!😝🌺🌸😝

For me it's my armpits, but your suggestion has merit, I think I'll try and see if it makes a difference. Thanks Green Tealael!

Don't worry , I'm the Endoscopy Kid, had 11 lifetime now. I had an endoscopy exactly 6 weeks after surgery, I told them 2 weeks in there WAS SOMETHING WRONG. And I got poo-pooed, I was inpatient, I wasn't giving myself a chance to heal, I didn't know what I was speaking of. Acted like I was feeding their Dear Granny Poison. Finally , I suspect to try to shut me up, an EGJ was scheduled. See as kangaroos with pouches out duodenum can no longer be visualized. When I woke back up afterwards, Dr Noria, my surgeon's partner shook my hand. Admitted ,yes Frustr8, you were correct and we were wrong. There is definitely something going on. I had 2 ulcers within my pouch, the opening was structured to the point only liquids were getting through and those at slow rate. And I had 5 evil-looking ulcers in the back wall of my jejunem, and we are still fighting the battle to get better. I was so bad the 28th of November I got rehospitaluzed, I had dropped 15 pounds the wrong way, dehydrated and protein anemic. So they interceded, the next day I received a PICC line and received 12 hours daily of TPN, this insured a sufficient amount of protein coming in,more than I could ingest, and it gave my beleagured g.I. system a chance to heal. Had it for 3 months, just when I had got used to its limitations they took it away. I actually cried because I feared I'd regress again. But I am still chugging along, losing 2 pounds a week, now at 224, sounds like a lot to many people but I started 365+, so it's a Dream coming true for me. Maybe in a couple or 3 months I might go into Onederland, can you understand how thrilled I'll be when there is a 1 beginning my weight? When you have your endoscopy, and I would say from what you describe, you'll be a candidate. They will attempt to stretch that opening, if you are not on Carafate they will start it. I take it 6am,noon, 6pm, midnight, my Medicare part D drugplan are cheap cheap cheap. Thanks to Silver Scripts I get the big white horse pills to dissolve in warm water and drink down the slurry. About as appealing as flour paste, it comes also in a liquid but that's not budget efficent, so they sit in Phoenix Arizona and snicker at me. One of my problems is my stricture does not like being stretched so it won't retain an enlarged opening. So we keep retrying, I think they should stent it open but I'm only the patient and not the doctor. You know how that goes. Not sure if barium will show it, although it is pretty heavy. Sure hope you get answers, but I'm almost within reach of my smartphone at all times. If you need to talk more,just pull my chain. Like the Hunchback of Norte Dame, I almost always aswer the chime or bell! Love and prayers🙏Frustr8

And I am following a little ways behind you, 30w,28w, 26w, 24w, 22w and teetering now on the brink of 18. And I never thought when I lost weight - that I actually could do it! Sure I'd heard the stories, read the pamphlets, even said" Do it Do it "to my surgeon but thought I would lose a tiny bit and then stall into maintainance. After all, I was 2 or 3 times as old as the younger patients, could an old body be taught new tricks? But by golly it is happening for ME, 2 people did not recognize me, one thought I might be my cousin, and I got 3 wolf- whistles. Yeah most females want to slap the whistler silly, I'm gratified, at least for a little while. Better than the little brat who came up to me in the store, asked me if I were fat, a woman or just ugly? I wanted so bad to tell him to go play in traffic but thought some of his family might hear, of course they should have been supervising the little darling, amazing how many people turn their kids loose like that! Don't they remember what happened to Adam Walsh and the others? I NEVER turned mine loose, I went through too much sorrow and pain to be flippant about responsibilities. Rant has concluded, but sometimes things are not better than they once were!

I want to be able to walk a 1/4 marathon, at 73 I think that would be fine. I have 2 bionic knees and an ankle that should have been surgically repaired but wasn't, so. can't get up on my toes to run and too much chance of me falling in the first placeI When you're on the ground what do you sacrifice to get back up? Last time it happened , less than a month ago, sidestepped a curb and fell on my face. Took 2 EMT , one under my good, well better of the 2 ,arm , the other taking a hold of my Levi's belt, Bless you , dear departed Levi Strauss for making a strong strong fabric! There was no way I could get up from the position I was in. And since it was less than a week past my shoulder surgery I got transported to local hospital to make sure I hadn't popped something or broke that arm because I landed on my still sick arm.All I ended up doing is severely bruising it, that was the 10th, the bruises finally are fading but I looked like I had run it through a wringer washer. Oh well, I have never been "average" or even "normal" but I was created to be a success and that's what I'll do as long as I have breath in this 73 year old body, I was made of strong steel not plastic or fiberglass. I'm a keeper, not easily traded in on another model.

Only thing I might add is you will start looking good to opposite gender/ easy snack and junk foods. They will try to see if you'll weaken and let them back in Your Life. Do NOT listen to them , you have come so far, done so much, and you're happier and healthier now. You can, if you want, say thank you for the compliment but I'm staying faithful for life to stomach. We have too long a history now to throw it all away!👉😝✋

And with the meds in a different room I can't accidently overdose on something while I'm sleepy!

Yeah And now I can cheer even better for others because I'm not an outlier after all! Did I tell either of you I did drop 30 pounds the month of March? Really did, when they removed my PICC line and I was no longer getting the artificially high calories of TPN, I think the count was 1403 daily, I dropped Ka- thud. I had not stalled but I was losing maybe a pound a month, but whooee, when they weighed me April 4th before my arm/shoulder repair,i made them do it 3 times because I disbelieved them. I bet I was the talk of Ambulatory Surgery after I left that day! See I had a titanium plate and 12 screws placed when I severely broke my humerus, my upper arm bone in a Workmans Comp accident 9 years ago. Who would have thought it would become less stable from weight loss? That's something I never considered until it happened to me. Big enough it had to be another open incision, so while Dr Doolittle was in there he decided to look around at my internal anatomy. And surprise surprise only one tendon was holding my rotator cuff in place, didn't want to bring me back in for more surgery in a couple months so did a complete repair and that's what hurts like a son-of-a-gun! With just the simple hardware removal it would have been par with a skinned knee in pain, but this other, well we're allowing an extra month to heal up than usual. So no pushing ,pulling lifting, and arm no higher than straight in front.And I am in a sling for 6 weeks minimum, ever try putting on one, getting it cinched right, the Goldilocks way, not too high on the chest,not too low, not too tight but tight enough it does flip. And I try by myself because I'm a bull-headed redhead who doesn't want to be a burden. And then I get flustered and frazzled and finally let my son help. Age does slow this kind of surgery healing down , normally at a month I should be finger-crawllng up the wall in PT, no PT before it's time, wants to make sure I'm totally knitted back together. Joked with me at my 2-week checkup "When do you want me to do your Left shoulder?" see we had already been putting shots in there, didn't expect the Right to flare up. Told him" Not yet , Kenny- Bob, you play TOO rough!" His real middle name isn't Robert just my pet name for him, he's been with me since 2010, long time so we're sorta friends now. He told me when I was there for my pre-surgical appointment I cried, he said he never saw me cry before, not even with the badly broke arm. Said I seemed so stoic, I could handle anything, well that's how bad it was hurting before this surgery. So it is painful now but I am not praying to die so I don't feel it anymore. And I will get better, sleep at night with it on its own pillow, hurts less and I don't try to turn over in my sleep that way! Still only getting 3-4 hours than I got to get up, go sit in the recliner and pop some Tylenol. Oh I still have Norco in the house, not afraid of it being an opioid, it just constipates me to the INTH degree, and I DO NOT WANT THAT!

Good thing to know, I have some age spits that look almost like someone slapped me and left marks. Had them 40 years since I was carrying Tomkitten. didbt stand out so bad when I had a fat round moon face, now that my face is slender they are over both cheekbones. Wonder whole what I am going to look like when I finally reach goal. U was that weight at 15, but I dare say I provably won't look the same! As long as I don't stop clocks or frighten children and horses in the street it's okay.

Is collagen peptides a on- line type purchase or is it marketed retail? I am probably the only human alive without an Amazon Prime account. I guess I'm an old fogey but I don't usually order over the Internet et all.

5 happy things: 1 My surgery and the attendant weight loss. I will never be ungrateful for the Tool-RNY- that is helping me achieve such a loss. Diets never did what this has! 2,) The love and support of Tomkitten , my son, he is my biggest cheerleader. I know I am not the easiest person to live with at times, especially when I went first into weight loss ketosis, as the fat started melting and all those hormones and other nasties got released I varied from crying like a broken pipe leaking, screaming and stomping around the house and complainIng there was nothing food-wise that appealed. 3 )Music- I like mostly all kinds, not hip- hop,that's more like disorganized screaming, I relax to Classical the best. 4) Bariatric Pal and the friends I have made here. It is nice to be accepted, even have my advice requested at times. When I came here I was scared,maybe I had but off more than I could chew, wanting Bariatric surgery at my age! But gradually I learned we are not jydgemental, I learned tricks and shortcuts that had worked for others and I grew more confident, when my surgery date came, I could face it with peace In. my ❤for I now knew things would be okay. 5) Nature in all its presentations. There is beauty all around us, waterfalls, flowers , sunlight, there is even beauty in urban settings, look at the buildings standing straight and tall, think of the people with plans that helped build each one. It is such a totally cool world we live in that I never could entertain thoughts of suicide, I want to hang around and see what happens next! Guess I am a curious beast, after all!

Could Be either of those, could also be your center of balance is shifting, after years of a big booty and a slightly smaller but still obese gut, mine is iffy, gonna have to keep learning my new body. But I am happy to see my Fat Shell breaking away and going for good! 224 pounds yesterday, started at 365+ so the 100s my next goal , maybe by this fall? I'm in it to Win it and I Will!

And i, Grady Cat and Dana, have the opposite problem, I have suddenly started losing 2 pounds a week after being the poster child for Pokey Little Puppy, I'm just scared it may not last. What did I suddenly do right to cause this? If I knew, I sure would have done it sooner!👈😋👉

My favorite Wal-Mart flavor is Wild Strawberry followed by Strawberry Kiwi. I think they are a little strong so I mix them in a full bottle of water, but they do take the BLAH out of plain water.

So Shanda, do you now also have a Definite Date? I also have a Shanda in my family tree, my first cousin' s Grandaughter, pretty girl and I'm sure you are also. Oh I am excited for you, be Texas strong, be Texas Proud and I'm sure you'll sail right through. Be sure to keep us updated on all the steps of your journey, you are NOW one of us! Best to you today and in the future!