Arabesque

Sadly, the surgery only takes away part of your stomach not the part of your brain that tricks you into thinking you’re hungry. That’s one of the battles we have to deal with ourselves. And unfortunately we don’t ever really beat head hunger just learn to understand what it is, why it is & how to control it better. The surgery does take away some of the areas in your stomach that signals you really are hungry. This is why many of us, but not all, don’t feel hungry for some months. Mine disappeared for ages. Felt it once around 7months and then not again until well into my second year. I still have times when I’m not all that hungry - wish I had them a little more often 😉. But everyone is different. Real hunger feels different than head hunger but you will have to work out what those signals are for you. I get restless, know something is wrong but takes a while to realise it’s hunger. If you’re craving a specific food, flavour or texture that’s head hunger. Is there a logical reason you’re hungry like you missed a meal then that’s real hunger. (In the beginning you may think I must be hungry I don’t eat much but between what you are eating & your stored energy - fat - your body has ample to burn to function.) And you can’t distract real hunger away like head hunger. A rumbling, grumbling tummy are usually not a sign of hunger but a sign your digestive system is working. And often ‘hunger pangs’ aren’t hunger either just excess stomach acid. A PPI will help manage this excess stomach acid. All the best.

Wonderful post & message @KimA-GA. I often say celebrate every pound lost too. You’ve worked hard to lose it & it heralds a brighter future. So many things are worth celebrating. Big & small. And remember those successes & happiness on days when things don’t go as well as you hoped like when the scale doesn’t move.

Not all carbs are the same. It’s not that you’re not eating carbs, it’s just you’re not eating certain carbs - the higher processed, nutrient poor ones. You’re allowed vegetables & legumes & likely fruit - all are sources of nutritionally dense carbs. Even milk has carbs just not many. When you do introduce those other carbs look for whole & multi grains which are lower processed & more nutrient dense. I’m still pretty low carbs at 3.5yrs out. Partly by choice & also because bread, pasta & rice tend to sit heavily & are too filling for me. Don’t really miss them either & I used to eat a lot of them.

I thought those meals looked pretty flash for economy @sillykitty 😉. Do some people actually properly measure ingredients??? Even if I follow a new recipe I rarely follow the measurements exactly adding extra ingredients, not adding others or reducing or increasing how much they say to use. I’m one of those ‘that looks about right’ cooks. Dinner last night. See just my usual vegetables & protein - honey & soy chicken lovely legs. Reheated leftover dish too. I added some teriyaki & oyster sauce to make them a little more moist. Back when I was losing I could barely eat one med/small leg.

Did you just eat the patty or the roll too? Bread can be very filling & you may have taken a much too large bite resulting in you bringing up what you ate. Think a level teaspoon size bite. Are you eating slowly? Like a couple of minutes between the small bites? A conversation with your dietician may be helpful as it sounds like you’re not making the best food choices (chips, burger). Focus on protein only then a few vegetables if you are able. You may need to keep to softer proteins for a little while longer too - we all heal differently & may struggle with certain foods for a couple of months. Also contact your surgeon just to be sure there’s not another cause.

Don’t know if it’s vertigo as with vertigo, the room spins & you feel nauseous & it usually lasts for a while. (Even with meds, mine can knock me about fur a day or two.) It could be low blood pressure but equally likely that your centre of gravity has changed with your weight loss. You’ve been holding your body in a certain way to counter balance your weight & now you don’t need to as much. You may even notice aches & pains in your joints & muscles as your muscles, tendons & joints readjust to your new & better posture. I had upper back pain but new bras that actually fit helped with that a lot.

It could be too early for you or you may be like some of us for whom a lot of the more processed carbs like bread, pasta & rice just sit more heavily in our tummy. Plus, they can fill you up very quickly which could set off vomiting. Maybe leave them for now & try again in a month or so. There are some high protein, vegetable-based pastas so maybe try those instead of traditional pasta.

Don’t forget those very unsexy, badly fitting, disposable bloomers they give you to wear under the gown. 😁 Give your surgeon’s office a call or the hospital & ask what the process is if you’ll likely have your period when you have your surgery. It’s a pretty common thing plus any stress you’re feeling about the surgery may bring your period on early too.

I don’t post often cause it would be pxts of the same food over & over. Oh, look, another pxt of lamb cutlets & vegetables. Or another pxt of barley & chicken/beef soup. Or I simply forget to take a pxt. 😂

While you’re losing it best to keep to the 30 mins before & after rule. After you may not have to wait as long just like you may be able to have more than just sips. But how long & how much is very much an individual thing. I can have a couple of slow sips up to about 5 minutes before I eat. If I do more than that my restriction kicks in & that stops me eating. It’s the same if I sip straight after or do more than 2 good swallows at a time when not eating - uncomfortable tightness in my chest.

You’ll get a wide range of responses to this. Personally I used them for a few weeks. Found they helped me keep my sips small. Mind you that was back when you could use plastic straws. Those paper ones start to breakdown faster than you can drink & water that is paper flavoured or has bits of paper floating in it is not pleasant. Maybe try a metal straw instead or pour your shakes, soups, water, etc. drinks into a drinking bottle with its own straw (camel back bottles or cups).

If you’re in a stall you won’t see any weight loss. The first often begins around week 3 & usually can last 1-3. Some people are just slow losers too & that’s okay. Some pre existing conditions can slow your rate of loss too as can certain medications. As @oldsalt asked: what does your surgeon say? Also check with your dietician. Maybe something is missing in your diet or you’ve misunderstood something in your instructions or food list. Can be easy to do with all the information overload. Don’t give up. It may take you longer than you hoped but you will lose weight. And those yoga classes will get easier. You’ll be surprised what you’ll be able to do in as little as a month if you stick with it.

I agree with the suggestions to distract yourself, clean tired teeth & snack on your leftover dinner, a protein or nutrient dense food. You can try having something to drink too - water, warm milk, a herbal/green tea. And, yes, most traditional late night snacking foods are nutrient poor sliders which are easy to overeat. I’d also ask myself why I want to snack. Is it an old habit, an emotional need, are you craving a specific food, flavour or texture? These are all head hungers not real hungers. Recognising them & discovering what to do to manage them is part of our weight loss process. Not easy but worth the effort. If only the surgery removed that part of our brain too. PS - try not to eat too close to going to bed (leave a couple of hours) especially if you’re eating a dense protein like meat as it can cause GERD symptoms.

And you’ll likely experience a couple of them as you’re losing. Stalls are all very normal & very common. They usually last 1-3 weeks. Think of them as your body saying what the hell are you doing to me: less food, change of diet, change of activity, weight loss, … It then shuts the door & tries to come to terms with the changes. Some find that while the scale doesn’t move, a tape measure may show some changes.

You’ve done amazingly well so far. Congratulations. Ok, breathe. Weight loss is never a straight downward line. It goes up & down, plateaus, goes faster at times, slower at others. As long as your general trend is downward you’re golden. We all have a natural fluctuation too from hormonal changes, water retention, constipation/diarrhoea. It’s just how our bodies function. Don’t let the scales rule your life. You know best how to manage it - weigh every day or less frequently. I weighed every day until I stabilised now I weigh every second or third day but that’s what I need to keep myself honest & on track. Don’t forget to that what you weigh on your scales will likely be different to your doctors. Different scales, you’re weighed at different times, after eating/not eating, dressed or not, etc. Also scales are not 100% accurate all the time. A few weeks ago my scales said I weighed 136.2kg & that was after I changed the batteries. It initially read 151kg - about three times my weight. Yes I did have heart palpitations for a second or two. Since it wasn’t the batteries, it may have been the days of extremely high humidity or that it was just time they went to God. I bought a new set … which weigh about a pound heavier than the old ones. ☹️

As @SmolGojira says, there are lots of factors that will influence how much loose skin you have on your face & your body. But there are non invasive & minimally invasive things you can do to help to a degree if you aren’t happy. First, give your body a chance to resettle after you’ve lost your weight. It can be quite amazing how your body almost reshuffles your remaining fat after you’re reached your goal. In maintenance you’ll be eating a broader range of nutrients including more carbs (multi/whole grain low processed carbs) which help too. Initially I had lots of fine lines running down from under my chin. I did a series of RF treatments & with time & a broader diet most disappeared. This year I had some filler into the sides of my face in front of my ears where I had hollows totally empty of fat & that gave a slight & natural looking lift to the marionette lines around my mouth. I’ve also had one session of derma pen to help with acne scarring but will be transitioning to the combined dermal needling & RF instead which supposedly is more likely to provide skin tightening. I also have dysport/Botox but that’s for my vanity wrinkles - LOL! You can try taking collagen & silica. But like derma needling, topical or ingested collagen will still take about 3 months for you to see any effects (the natural skin cycle). Topical skin products like hylaurinic acid, Vitamin C, collagen oils & such can help make your skin, brighter, plumper, even out skin tone & texture & generally give you a healthy glow which will somewhat distract from any laxity you may have. I believe the effects of many of these will depend on you - your genetics, how your body processes/absorbs them & how much your skin is in need. One bonus of the weight loss was the deep lines that encircled my neck (fat creases) are barely visible in some light. Best is I have a jaw line, cheek bones & visible eye lids (hooded lids no more), my neck is longer & thinner & I look like me because my face isn’t distorted by fat. Before you do anything though, educate yourself. Be informed on the possible benefits & side effects. Don’t get caught up with what a beauty therapist is selling, influencers are promoting or latest fad. I started seeing a cosmetic physician this year for my treatments & I appreciate her honesty & straight talking about treatments & products. She often says don’t waste your money doing that. Sorry for the long post.

I guess your referring to it helping with the hair loss while you are losing weight. This hair loss is just an acceleration of your natural hair loss cycle (hair that was going to fall out anyway) in response to the stress of surgery, reduced calories, restricted diet, weight loss, etc. It’s temporary. Your new hair is still actually growing but just at it’s usual rate. The hair loss tends to start at around months 3 or 4 & lasts about 3 months +/-. (It seems to be the same length of time for those who take all the hair growth vitamins & supplements like biotin too.) It seems to stop around the time you’re eating more & a broader range of nutrients & you’re not as stressed. It most cases, the only person who really notices the loss is you (& your hairdresser 😉). A lot of us cut our hair if it was long during this time. I did it so it wouldn’t take as long for the new growth to reach the length of my shorter existing hair. Plus shorter hair usually looks thicker, bouncier & healthier. But you can always try something like Nioxin if you want. Can’t make it worse.

First, stalls happen. They’re part of the weight loss journey. Some have more of them. Some experience ones that seemingly last forever. The thing to remember is they do break. Secondly, the further out your are the slower your rate of loss which make you think your stalling too. If it persists, chat with your dietician. Maybe a tweak to your diet or activity will help. And yes, track or monitor your food. It can be easy to eat a little more than we think or eat something we think is okay but may not be the best at this time. And I’m with @kcuster83, I often find I weigh a little more after I break a couple of days of constipation. It usually doesn’t show until the following day. I wonder if it’s because I’m retaining extra fluid at the same time??? How our individual bodies work can be fascinating (& frustrating).

OMG. Every plate looks majorly delicious. I would’ve eaten the entire scallop & the tuna too - love a scallop. Actually don’t think I could have passed on any thing (except the bread & the dessert 😉).

Nausea after taking vitamins is pretty common. Try taking them across the day so for example if you have to take two multi vitamins, take one in the morning & one in the evening. Make sure you take them after you eat not with. Iron is often a cause of nausea so if you take a multi with iron & a separate iron as well you may benefit from dropping the iron alone or reduce it to every second day but check with your medical team first. I found a spray vitamin D & K - simply squirt under the tongue so super easy to use & one less tablet to swallow. Maybe look at patches too & avoid your tummy altogether.

This reminds me of an old family story of this happening to an aunt but it was her knickers. She was in a busy department store when they simply fell to the floor. She apparently just stepped out of them & kept walking … straight to the lingerie section where she bought new smaller knickers. 😂

You’ve probably bought it up now but likely have bruised your healing tummy/throat hence you thinking you can still feel it. You’ll be okay but best to stick to liquids (shakes, soups, etc.) for another week. That ‘s one thing about the surgery, your tummy tells you pretty quickly, though not in the nicest way, it’s not ready for something yet. Puréed cheese??? Do they mean cream cheese? I would think even that would be too thick at one week. Probably Hold out on cheese to you are on solid foods & then soft cheese (processed cheeses like string cheese or cheese slices are a good place to start though I found jarlsburg easy to tolerate), though you could melt some cheddar in an omelette during soft.

The change in our taste buds, & sometimes our sense of smell too, is just temporary. The flavour, texture or smell of some foods almost turn your tummy or taste disgusting. While being extra sensitive to sweetness is pretty common, other flavours, textures & smells can be individual. I remember the first time I was able to eat vegetables as a side & sat down to my favourite asparagus & sugar snap peas & blah!! Just awful. Took a couple of weeks before I could eat them. Strangest one was smoked salmon. I often found it too rich pre surgery but suddenly I could eat it & had it every second day with cucumber & a little cream cheese. Then one day nope, couldn’t stomach it & haven’t been able to face it since. PS - Personally, I embraced the sensitivity to sweet & never really reintroduced sugar, sugar alternatives or sweeteners back into my eating.

There are temporary side effects of losing larger amounts of weight like we do through this process. One is hair loss & some lose more or less than others. Another is looking drained, wan, tired or even gaunt. There are other individual things too. But most of these are temporary. Once our weight stabilises & our eating changes to include a broader range of foods & nutrient sources & our portion sizes increase these things change. Over time our hair regrowth is more noticeable & our remaining fat seemingly resettles. Well it did for me & my friends who also had the surgery. Around the time my weight loss had almost stopped, my uncle told my mother I looked like death. My hour glass shape had gone but I felt good in myself & very pleased with what I had achieved. Within a few months of my weight stabilising my curves returned (hello waist - though I still don’t have a butt). My uncle told me I looked great & others commented on my glowing, healthy skin. My hair was thickening as the length of the new growth was nearing that of my existing hair. A short time of not looking my best is nothing. Happily pay that price to feeling & looking how I do now which is way better than I have in forever. I don’t even really care about my saggy, loose skin - I’ve earned it - it’s a reminder of where I was & what I did to get where I am now.

I’m certainly glad you’re still about @GreenTealael & your very wise advice. ❤️