Orchids&Dragons

I was almost 5 months out.

Congrats on starting your journey! Take your measurements! There will be times when you want to hit the scale with a sledgehammer. It can be very fickle. But when your weight isn't dropping, your measurements probably are. That will help get you through stalls, which can be very discouraging. Take "before" photos as well. They'll help keep you motivated during tough times. Try to connect with a few people who have surgery at the same time as you. It is really helpful to swap stories and encourage each other. Do plenty of research. If you have multiple surgeons available in your area, compare their programs, the support offered (as in continuing access to the nutritionist, psychologist, etc.). Look into (and attend) support groups near you and ask questions of people who've used your surgeon, hospital, etc. Good luck!

Here's my final tally! Thanks for the challenge! Challenge Starting weight: 168.8 Current weight lost: 114.2 Losing or maintaining weight: losing Fitness/exercise goal: To get back to walking 7 days/week Total weight loss at the end of challenge: (Post January 1st 2019): 11.0 lbs. Check in: Tell us how you are doing - (How is your diet and exercise plan going? Any struggles? Stress level? What have you overcome? Any strategies that have helped) Well, working on controlling my grazing. Now that I can eat enough food at one sitting, I have no excuse other than I like it. That will be my challenge for 2019.

Just call the local hospitals. Someone can put you in contact. At least in my area, you can go to any support group. It doesn't matter where you had your surgery. I go to two different ones. Best wishes!

Somebody put on her smart-@ss panties this morning! 😂

Damn! Those look good! Are those corn chips or actual tostadas?

Happy New Year to you, too!

Thank you, @sideeye ! I did an "official" Jan 1 weigh-in this morning. Even though I backslid a bit over Christmas, my official total loss for 2018 is 114.2 pounds. Looking forward to hitting goal in 2019!

It is a shame that you were given so little support back then, but that's history and you can't undo the past. There are a lot of support groups now. Is there one in your area? If so, get to a meeting. You'll find other vets there who can share their challenges and successes. Follow up with a bariatric surgeon in your area, even if it's not the one who performed your surgery. They can help. If you get their pre/post-op eating plan, go on it. Pretend you're doing another surgery, but just follow the plan. Even if you've stretched out your pouch somewhat, it's still nowhere near the size of your original stomach. You can try intermittent fasting. There is a thread in the forums with a lot of information and some people to talk to. If you search, there are several other threads, as well. You can regain control, but don't put it off. Now is the time to act. Good luck!

I'm so jealous that your hair is growing back. Mine is falling out by the handful again, probably because of the second surgery! I'll look like Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future soon!

Nope, you've gotta be dead. It's in the rules 😂 I vote embroidery!

You can also think about how their situations teach you that you can't take this success for granted. Once the honeymoon is over (and for some unlucky folks, that's pretty darned quick), the rest is hard work. We need to remain vigilant or the pounds will sneak back in with our old bad habits. Keep in mind, a 10-20% "bounce back" is considered perfectly normal and isn't considered a failure since the people are still so much smaller than they were.

That was the playlist I was listening to before surgery to relax me, so it coulda happened!

Check out the recipes at Skinnytaste.com! I love them. If you sign up, you can even get weekly meal plans with shopping lists! All the recipes include nutritional information

Big thanks to @Alex Brecher and @Ken S. for all their help, and @sillykitty, too! I'm baaaack!

I did it! Not very low, but it's a start!

I'm curious. When I had my surgery, there was another bariatric patient a few doors down. We had different surgeons (thank God!) Anyway, her surgeon would not prescribe anything other than Tylenol for post-op pain. This is his normal practice, not an unusual case because she was an addict or something. My nurse told me that the woman wouldn't get out of bed to walk or anything because she was in so much pain. This seems cruel to me. My question is: Why would anyone go to a surgeon like this? Do you think that patients just don't know?

You remember way more than I do, but I'm ok with that. I probably don't need to know if I treated them all to my favorite rendition of some FloRida song!

2Shea is right about your husband's issues. They're his and not yours, however, having him behind you makes the whole process much better. This can certainly work for those over 50. I was 58 when I was sleeved last February and I've lost 115 pounds in 10 months. You would likely lose more slowly since you're at a much lower starting weight, but the weight will go. See if you can bring him to a support group meeting where he can ask his questions and meet others who've been successful. Good luck!

I love Kohl's for work clothes. Not too expensive since I won't be in the sizes long.

There are several reasons that you need to share this with your surgeon's team: -They've probably seen this before and can be a valuable resource (we were actually warned about this in pre-op classes) -They track long-term post-op results in a shared database and if people don't report issues, they are underreported for the entire weight-loss community -Whatever doctor is prescribing your iron and other deficiencies isn't a bariatric specialist and there may be other bariatric considerations (or is it your surgeon treating the deficiencies and you just haven't told him why?) Good luck and I hope you can find someone to help.

Not only are the phases vastly different, but so are the post-op diets. Some surgeons are all high-protein, low carb, others want more of a balance with protein/carbs, etc.

I'd find another doc pronto. Surely your lab work was terrible.

Have you ever lost 25 pounds in 1 month before? You're doing great. This is just a stall as your body adjusts. Track your measurements in addition to your weight. Often you lose inches even when the scale isn't moving. It helps to keep you from getting discouraged at times when the scale is being a b!tch. Search for stalls in the forums and you'll see that this is a very common occurrence. Just hang in there!