kristieshannon

Absolutely worth it for me. My only regret (and you’ll hear this here often) is not doing this sooner. My highest known weight was 286. Today I’m 140.2. My life has changed so much for the better. I’m happy, healthy, and fit. Off all meds and my CPAP. I can hike, bike, kayak, dance with no pain. I can go on any ride at an amusement park, fit comfortably in airplane seats, and walk in to any store and buy clothes that fit and are in style. I had very little post op pain, and progressed my diet as expected. I can now eat anything, but in much smaller quantities. I’d say I follow the 80/20 rule, probably more like 90/10 of mostly healthy foods that I love with the occasional treats. Best of luck to you as you make your decision!

Sorry to say, but no skin care product is going to keep you from hanging skin after massive weight loss. Genetics, amount of time spent overweight, and amount of weight to lose are all factors. If you are young, have good skin elasticity, and haven’t been overweight very long you may not need PS. If you’re older, have poor skin elasticity, were significantly overweight, or overweight for many years you will likely have loose skin. I had my sleeve surgery at 49, was overweight for most of my adult life. After losing 140 lbs I had lots of loose skin. I had a tummy tuck, breast lift & augmentation, and arm lift in January. I’m planning on a thigh lift next year. I’m so glad I had these surgeries, but even if I hadn’t would still be glad to have lost all the weight.

New dress for a wedding next month. I’m thinking sparkly silver sandals to go with it, and a silver clutch if I can find one.

@ChubRub and @Kris77 were awesome support buddies and are now rockin totally hot bods 😍😍 I highly recommend a MMO after WLS!!

My husband and I separated a couple months ago and are just waiting on court availability to finalize our divorce. I’ve just started dipping my toe in the dating world. It’s fun on some levels. However, I can’t help but feel a little (probably misplaced) resentment. Suddenly I’m a bit of a hot commodity. While on dating websites before my marriage, when I was 140 lbs heavier, I had few show interest. Now I’m overwhelmed with messages. It kind of messes with my brain to go from someone seen as undesirable to someone desirable. I’m still the same person, just in different packaging I guess. It’s frustrating to realize how much my value as a person was minimized due to my weight 😡

For sure follow your plan provided.by your survival team! To me it sounds like you aren’t getting near enough protein. Can you tolerate protein shakes? Constipation is a common issue for WLS patients. Stool softeners and/or miralax may help, but for any of those meds it’s important to stay well hydrated. How much water are you getting in each day? Walking helps too, as much as you can tolerate at this point.

Head hunger is real! We’ve lived for many years eating beyond our physical needs due to emotional eating, cravings, etc. Therapy to work through these issues is great! Also, no reason to avoid ice cold drinks as long as your stomach tolerates it. My team allowed coffee right away. I mix my morning protein shake with cold brew coffee. It’s delicious!

Congrats! Happy healing ❤️

Ah, I assumed by your name that you are in Seattle. Swedish is a hospital there :)

Hi @SeattleLady-I had my surgery done by Dr. Sara Martin del Campo at Swedish. She was really great, I’d recommend her for sure.

Yum! I love cottage cheese with fruit with a tiny sprinkle of cayenne.

Love it!

Congratulations! Such a great feeling, isn’t it?

I chose the sleeve rather than RNY in part so I could continue to use NSAIDS as needed. I take ibuprofen a couple times a month with no issues. I guess it varies from person to person!

This. And to those who think otherwise, kindly just move along.

Not weird, but an NSV for sure. I have always loved kayaking. However, pre op I could hardly squeeze my fat *as in to one anymore. Now I can, comfortably and paddle all day long ❤️ This was today on the Charles River in Boston.

As an RN working in public health I have to comment-the VAST majority of people receiving the vaccine have few to no side effects. And right now about 99% of hospitalized COVID patients are those who have chosen not to get vaccinated. While early on it was older, sicker people dying with the Delta variant our hospitalized population is much younger, and we are seeing younger people dying or having long COVID syndrome. Please get vaccinated.

My kind of meal! A new place opened up in Boston called Kured-a build your own charcuterie box place! This made several meals for me.

It was about 20lbs per size until I dropped from 286 to about 220. Then it was 10-15 lbs per size until I hit about 175. Now it’s about 5lbs per size at about 140.

My surgeon and I decided the sleeve was best for me. I was concerned about the potential for long term nutrition deficiencies with RNY. I also get headaches that respond well to ibuprofen but not Tylenol, and with RNY they say you can’t take NSAIDS. I also didn’t have problems with GERD so no concerns there. I’m glad I went with VSG, it’s worked well for me. I’d definitely work with your doc through, and consider which will be best for your particular medical history!

For sure! I remember a few potlucks at work early on-it was a challenge for sure. I always brought something as my contribution that I would be able to have, and always packed my snacks & drinks for the day so I had “safe” foods on hand. Once you get back to being able to eat normal foods it’s much easier. Just a few weeks to push through and you’ll be there!

Time goes by quickly, I can hardly believe I’m hitting two years. Stay on plan-you’ll see the benefits rolling in soon, which is super motivational. Some of my really early benefits-before people even noticed I’d lost weight-were getting off BP meds and getting rid of my CPAP. It really does get easier over time.

Congrats on your surgery! It truly gets better. Hang in there! At two years out I’ve hit goal. From 286 down to 143. I can eat nearly anything at this point, but am satisfied with small amounts. You’ll get there too, and will win back your health along the way. Nothing is sweeter to me these days than going to those parties in a cute outfit showing off my slim body ❤️

Give it time. Early on, when I was heavier, it took 20-30 lbs for me or anyone else to notice a loss. The last 20lbs or so to my goal it seemed even a 5 lb loss would change my look, clothes size, and got lots of comments.

Sometimes it’s trial & error to find foods that work. I still can’t eat much of an egg, and pork is too dense for me at nearly 2 years post op. Go back to soft foods like refried beans, yogurt, soft fish, and cottage cheese. Eat the things you can, supplement with protein shakes, and keep up with taking your vitamins. Every couple weeks try something new, and go back occasionally to foods you couldn’t previously tolerate. Something I had to learn the hard way was to SLOW DOWN! I was always a really fast eater. I get sick and vomit when I eat too fast now. It’s a process, hang in there!