ms.sss

same for me. no food or water after midnight and my surgery was at 8am.

One of the few standing-full body pics I have of me on recent vacay (weird). This was me taking a pic of a skirt i was trying on in a changeroom in Italy. Mr. says it was too expensive to consider buying...at €540, i have to agree, lol...but it was super fun trying on all the clothes!!! even more fun that they all fit! (in this particular case the skirt was too big. and there was only one size/item of every piece, so i was all, to the shop assistant, "oh too bad its too big, and i'm leaving tomorrow, so i can't wait for it to be altered..." hahhahaha)

agree with poster above...you don't look too small at all....just right IMO. AND your boobs look very much intact..still good sized, yet higher up than your before pic! (sorry for objectifying you...you look fab!) ...also the lighter hair colour in the after pic suits you better!

congrats! (despite the sleepy mood lol) i spy with my little eye: a drug store level of supplies on the shelves back there1 lol...AND the cutest little kitsy cat that is a replica of mine ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

+100000000000000000000000000000000

i absolutely ADORE this dress!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

this is not the first time, but it happened again...and i think it's happened often enough now for me to consider it a "normal" thing: I. Lost. Weight. On. Vacation. it still fascinates me when this happens because the norm prior to wls was to GAIN weight during vacay. Every. Single Time. (even when i was not overweight) Went on vacay 20 days ago, and came back this afternoon. I did not count calories, track food, weigh myself, nor perform a lick of exercise (besides walking) all that time. And lo and behold, i lost 3.1 lbs. which is very unexpected, because me and Mr. basically ate and drank ourselves across a good part of europe, and i fully expected the scale to show a good sized weight gain when i got home (he says HE gained almost 4 lbs). honestly i felt like i ate (and drank) more in the past 3-ish weeks than i ever have since WLS 5+ years ago...but maybe i am mistaken? maybe i should have tracked my food intake after all... anyway, yay! i may just have to fully accept that i got this maintenance thing down pat. i didn't think about calories or portion sizes or whatever...just ate (and drank) what i felt like, in amounts i knew i could handle. yay!

when i first started getting the "you are too skinny" comments, i was annoyed...because i was still considered overweight for my height and i thought the people saying this to me were blind. or stupid. then i started to feel secretly good about it, cuz i felt i looked great and was super proud of my weight loss and thought people saying this were just jealous. or stupid. THEN i started to doubt myself and be self-conscious about my looks as i began to take these people's comments to heart. i thought these people were mean. or just well-meaning (this was the worst stage...luckily this phase didn't last long...maybe a couple months). after a little more time, the comments began to just get boring. i finally knew i looked and felt awesome. so those people went back to being stupid. now, no one makes any comments at all (despite me weighing LESS now than when all their "concern" started showing up). almost all the people that knew me as fat are now used to me being skinny. others never even remember knowing me as fat. i'll be six years out in October. so long story short. eff all the people and their comments. so long as YOU feel great, you're golden. try not let others' opinions change your own good opinion of yourself. ❤️

my NUT wanted me at 1500 cals (if i remember correctly) by my 3 month mark. ha. ha. i was at like 300-400 cals a day at my 3 month mark. even less at my 2 mnth mark. i don't think i reached 1500 calories regularly until AFTER my 1 year post-op mark (and i was already in maintenance since the 7 mnth post-op mark) 🤷🏻‍♀️

i dump. and its always from ingesting too much sugar (for me), or eating something with sugar on an empty stomach. sometime it's from ½ a ice of cake, sometimes from 2 spoonfuls of ice cream, sometimes its from a single sip of a high-sugar-content cocktail. it always starts with an increased heart rate. from there it may progress to lethargy, dizziness, nausea and/or sweats. could end there or even progress further to vomiting and/or diarrhea. the final boss stage it can get to is me just passing right out. which i honestly prefer because then im not suffering at all. but not so much fun for Mr. as he's the one that has to carry me to bed (which he has done a few times in the past almost 6 yrs). luckily much of the above doesn't happen as often as it used to cuz im better at regulating my sugar intake. but sometimes life happens, and i'm presented with a beautiful slice of pie or something...and well, u know. lol. p.s. im a sleeve

I never did do a 5-yr anniversary post (which was like 3 months ago, oopsies). Here is a reply I made to someone's thread about being newly sleeved. I had alot of fun composing it - despite it going off an a total tangent - and thought it had a five-year-sleeve-anniversary type of feel to it so I'm putting it here! Am also adding my requisite swim suit shot, but this one is from vacay last month, and its NOT a full body shot, AND I'm half in the water, lol. Its too cold around here for me to change into one now and take a pic. Plus I'm lazy. So i give you: "5+ YEARS IN 1000 WORDS OR LESS": #### Begin #### Day 0: YES!! I'm alive! Weeks 1-2: Ouch, this kinda hurts. I detest all food and water! I'm sooo effing tired, im just gonna lay down here and be found in 3 weeks, half-eaten by wild dogs. Weeks 3-4: Oh wow, I LOVE water! Eating is such a chore. I don't want to do it. I lost HOW MUCH weight?? Whoa, this thing is gonna actually work! LET'S DO THIS! Those dogs will be very disappointed in eating me. Months 2-4: Am I ever going to eat like a normal person?? It taking me for-EVAH to eat my tiny cup of food. I am sick of people commenting on how I eat. Exercise is so much funner/easier when I'm not so big! Let me sign up for EVERYTHING! I LOVE new clothes! I am losing my hair! Who knew salad is my favourite thing on earth? Months 5-7: If one more person tells me to stop losing weight or asks if i have a disease I'm going to sic my wild dogs on them. I guess this is life now: eating tiny bits of food all day long...I guess I can do that, small price to pay for looking HAWT and feeling A-MAY-ZING. I wonder if anyone knows how full of myself I really am.... Months 8-10: OMG.I CAN'T POSSIBLY UP MY CALORIES TO MAINTENANCE LEVEL! HOW AM I GOING TO STOP LOSING WEIGHT! I AM GOING TO WITHER AWAY AND DIE! Month 11: Oh. So THAT's my maintenance calorie level. That's not so hard. I'm not going to die after all. Ok, Ok, I'll just take this ONE cigarette from you, handsome Italian guy in Italy...even though I quit cold turkey 10 years ago...it can't hurt, right? Month 14: Plastic. Surgery. Month 15: *cries* Month 16: Whoa, I'm looking even HAWT-er than before. How is this even possible? I wonder if anyone has ever exploded from being so full of themselves.... Month 17: Why hello carbs, I've missed you. bread, Pasta, Rice, we shall never be parted again! Oh, nice to meet you for the first time COVID! How long are you staying? Month 18-21: All skinny and plastic-ed up and no where to go. Eff you COVID. I guess I'll just do a little online shopping for stuff to wear when I am finally allowed out of the house. Sure, I'll have that martini for Breakfast. Hey, my hair is back to normal...and its even nicer than before. Go figure. Years 3-5: Huh. I stayed below goal weight this entire time and I am the picture of satisfactory health...does that make me awesome? I dunno...my closet is bursting with clothes...most of which I've worn maybe once or not at all. How am I still smoking??? It was only supposed to be one cigarette!!! I think I may have developed high-functioning alcoholism? Food intolerances? Who me? Nah, I can eat anything and everything, EXCEPT large amounts of sugar at one time cuz, you know, I may pass out on the couch. I may not eat as much as everyone around me, but I don't want to anyway, so there! But let me cook for you, bake for you, make copious amounts of food for you! And no, i AM NOT finished reading this menu in it's entirety...I'm about to order enough food for 5 people...you better be hungry! Today I take no medications other than for my acid reflux (which unfortunately came on due to my sleeve surgery). I eat carbs and (small amounts) of Desserts, I drink alcohol. My last physical/labs 6 months ago produced no concerns - other than an abnormal thickening of my uterine lining, but that has since resolved. I have ridiculous amounts of energy, I rarely fight with my husband, I handle stress and annoyance like a grown up. I'm digging life. Oh, and I still look HAWT. *mic drop* P.S. i also finally quit smoking 5 months and 14 days ago. yay me! hopefully I don't meet another handsome Italian with an extra cigarette in the future. Edited to add: P.P.S. sorry..i meant to just reply about the first few weeks after my sleeve surgery and food progression, but my fingers got a life of their own as I typed out my reply. plus it was kinda fun writing this. I may cut and paste this into a more appropriate thread if I find one Good Luck! ❤️ #### END ####

pro tip: for those JUST entering maintenance, you *may* want to hold off off on resizing your "important" rings...as you will most likely go through an "upswing" in the weight/size department. you also may not, but who knows??? my engagement/wedding rings where a size 6 and 7 respectively. when i hit my lowest weight, i was below the lowest of the ring measurement paraphernalia i had....so i actually dont know what size i was. at around 3-4 years post op, i was a 4....today, (almost 6 yr pi) i am aaaaaalmost a 5. i still haven't had my engagement/wedding rings resized, but mostly out of laziness...but i figure someday i will. anyway....long story short: maybe wait a year at most to do the deed and resize the important rings. unless u dont care about having to likely resize them again later, go for it! i myself am going to look into those resize bead things.... 😊

i see what u did there, ha!

@Lilia_90 can *I* be a dinner companion???? 😂😂😂

well, i drink it black, but they did also include sugar packets, artificial sweetener packets, and milk/cream on my tray.

they served me coffee in the hospital, ha. that was almost 6 years ago...been drinking it almost daily this whole time.

Ispoure low-carb Dutch Chocolate flavour. found this one to be the least sweet of all the ones i tried (and i tried lots!) blended it up with water, 1 tsp decaf coffee crystals, 2 tsp Benefibre and a handful of ice...yum.

not exactly the same thing, but in the same vein (sort of), which got me thinking just now... The Kid also has a 10 year passport that she got when she was 16 yrs old. which means she'll have the same picture until she is 26. I'm pretty sure she's going to look totally different by then, i mean, she already looks different now. i wonder if maybe official documents with photo identifications really SHOULDN'T have such lengthy validities. or maybe we should start using retinal scans, ha!

why have i only heard of this just now?? this is an idea and a half. *off to google*

Number one: don't base your satisfaction with yourself based on how you compare to others. you will NEVER be satisfied. Number two: don't ask other people if you should be disappointed in YOURSELF. you don't need (nor want) others to be in charge of your own self-respect. Number three: despite the fact that Numbers 1 and 2 above is OBVIOUS and LOGICAL, the reality is basically NOBODY follows them, so don't feel bad if you don't either. Number four: even though i JUST said don't compare, i'm going to give you some data to compare (lol).... at 2.5 months i lost 52.6 lbs (which was 22% of my total body weight...52 / 235 = 22%) and i understand, based on statistical data and anecdotal evidence, that i was a pretty speedy loser, so...yeah.

everything i've eaten today! 1579 calories from food + 2 espresso martinis (282 cals, not shown) so 1861 cals today if i don't eat or drink anything else. and now...my food day in pictures!

i am about 10-15 lbs lighter today than when i first got my engagement and wedding rings, so they are a bit loose, not crazy loose like i've seen others on here... i haven't got them resized though....my engagement ring has a platinum band and i've been told that i need an "expert craftsman" to do it properly. and i don't know any "expert craftsmen" lololzzz. i decided a few years ago that i just want a whole new band/setting design for the diamond but just haven't got around to it. my wedding ring is an eternity band, so again, not the easiest to resize. soooo...until i get around to finding a jewellery i trust to make me new rings, i use ring sizers i picked up on amazon (link below). they aren't the prettiest, but i don't wear my rings everyday anyway so it'll do for now. LINK: https://www.amazon.ca/Adjuster-Invisible-Transparent-Tightener-Connector/dp/B095RGHX4N/ref=sxin_15_pa_sp_search_thematic_sspa?content-id=amzn1.sym.6b94ce8d-9249-4456-acf8-a149db076394%3Aamzn1.sym.6b94ce8d-9249-4456-acf8-a149db076394&crid=2XI9GSWSDBJW7&cv_ct_cx=ring+sizer&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.kLNJn9gNdpqcj-cXDVMYQLz7VYeBR6lL-_z7kIlxdact8cVUYX_zI9gAXG11sGQ6fIq6vXRZ77DtqTIL8IimnA.Bd8eOtQYKs60ybnugdkZl0macAcHrAaTOGIV3aNToyU&dib_tag=se&keywords=ring+sizer&pd_rd_i=B095RGHX4N&pd_rd_r=1f5c08bf-4301-4cbe-8a94-122195d45d2e&pd_rd_w=3ZOET&pd_rd_wg=SqYla&pf_rd_p=6b94ce8d-9249-4456-acf8-a149db076394&pf_rd_r=9JTG0Z064DNYABFAE08Q&qid=1719355031&sbo=RZvfv%2F%2FHxDF%2BO5021pAnSA%3D%3D&sprefix=ring+size%2Caps%2C88&sr=1-2-fce09e81-6c22-4c96-98cd-5f4f4a29a6e7-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWM&psc=1

wow, you really got the short end of the stick statistically. i'm sorry you have all these issues! hopefully you find a way to manage them satisfactorily. while i don't have suggestions for all your ailments (plus i an NOT a medical professional) i can at least offer a possible resolution to your Lactose Intolerance: i was lactose intolerant before wls, but it seemed to get a little worse (i.e., i got a little more sensitive) AFTER wls. taking a lactose pill just before having any dairy works wonders though. good luck!