Double_Me

Looks delicious, I make a very similar sauce to eat with salmon too. So good!

HW: 250+? SW: 245 CW: 141. 4'10", 31 years old. 1st pic was in 2016, I was at 250+, 2nd was last month. I'm around 145. I still have a ways to go. Haven't dropped by in a while but this place is a godsend for pre-op and post-op questions and concerns. Thanks to all here for the support.

I had 2 major fears. 1) Like many others, dying on the table. This was especially bad as I could not say goodbye or hug my loved ones due to COVID quarantine. 2) Saying goodbye to how I used to eat, permanently. I had an abusive relationship with food and I was afraid that I wasn't ready to change my relationship with eating. It was hard at first... I spent some time mourning food, right before and during my pre-op diet. But through therapy and with help from the surgery I've been able to reduce my reliance on food for comfort. My body seems to enjoy healthier, simpler meals more than complex/fatty ones, so the comfort I used to find in chicken nuggets I get from some good soup.

Glad to hear everyone is doing well! I had a big scale victory the other day- I'm now over halfway to my goal! As for NSV, I'm in the same boat as @BigSue, where my formerly 'too small' clothes are now mostly too large. I've had to buy a couple of pieces and punch a couple of holes into my pants. I can also feel my feet getting looser in my shoes. Not looking forward to replacing my footwear collection.. hopefully I can get away with wearing larger shoes if I have fuzzy socks on.

I feel you. I’m about 50 lbs down and still in the same clothing as I started with. I take pictures every 10 lbs I’ve lost, and in the first couple pictures it doesn’t look like I’ve lost that much. But as I’ve lost more weight each lb lost is a greater ratio of your current weight, and the sizes should start dropping quickly. Especially once you get into straight sizes, which seem to be much closer together than say a 3x vs 2x.

I'm in the same boat at about 9 weeks out. Fall soups would be great for puree stage, like a blended roasted butternut squash soup with some yogurt mixed in or on the side. You could probably mix in a spoonful of unflavored protein powder too once the soup cools. Maybe you could also try some yogurt with a no sugar added cranberry sauce? Cook down cranberries with a little orange zest and nutmeg, blend, sieve, and stir into yogurt or ricotta. Good luck!

Agreed with @ms.sss that it'll be hard to find denser protein than meat/seafood without supplementation. I do a lot of chili/taco style one-pot dishes to eat for dinner throughout the week. If you like beans, Alison Roman has a really fantastic (and easy!!) chickpea stew recipe that uses coconut milk and leafy greens. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019772-spiced-chickpea-stew-with-coconut-and-turmeric I tried it and think some chicken thighs would go well to bump that protein up. Id also ignore the advice about full-fat coconut milk and go for the lite, or change the ratio of chicken broth to coconut milk since this dish is really hearty!

I've been making some tasty meals but my phone is dead and I havent been able to take pictures! 😭 Come on pixel 5/iphone 12... My recent fav has been shiozake, japanese salted salmon. Cut salmon into 2 oz filets, marinate in sake for 10 mins, pat dry and coat in salt. Line a tupperware with paper towels and stick it in the fridge. Broil on a sheet pan for 5 mins, no need to flip. I do this for breakfast every morning these days, so easy and good

Echoing Tek, what was the guidance given by your surgeon/nutritionist post-op? I'm only a couple of months out so I am not out of the honeymoon period by any means and my advice may be off-base. But maybe looking at eating habits that are coming back into your life may shed some light on regain. Could be lots of snacking, ordering out, not tracking, rewarding yourself with food, etc... This journal is adorable 🤩

I hear you, I was sick of the protein shakes during liquid/puree phase too. Home made chicken stock was a lifesaver if you have the time to make it. If not, you could take a store-bought chicken stock and heat it with some knox gelatin to give it some body while you eat. You can also try out savory versions of soft food prep, I enjoyed ricotta with plain ol salt and pepper many times over my puree phase.

I had my surgery 7/27 of this year. Due to COVID-19 my practice didn't allow guests into the waiting or recovery rooms, so I don't think it will strike them as unusual at all. The nurses and surgeon were very busy getting prepped for surgery so I doubt they would care if nobody was around with or without COVID restrictions. I will echo loridee's comment- Having my cell phone on me was able to help distract my mind while in the waiting room. I didn't end up using it much post-op.

"Bariatric Surgery is probably one of the most effective interventions in health care." - Laurie K. Twells, clinical epidemiologist at Memorial University of Newfoundland [2] Are you lurking on these forums debating whether or not you should have surgery? Unsure about making a permanent change to your lifestyle and body, or thinking that since you lost x number of lbs before, you can do it again? Heard about all the horror stories of complications and regain? This was me, one year ago. I want to tell you about the study that changed my mind. This study[1] looked at three groups: 418 patients who sought and underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (surgery group), 417 patients who sought but did not undergo surgery (primarily for insurance reasons) (nonsurgery group 1), and 321 patients who did not seek surgery (nonsurgery group 2). They performed clinical examinations at baseline and at 2 years, 6 years, and 12 years to ascertain the presence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Let me highlight a couple images from their study. These charts graph the amount patients lost as a percentage of total weight (NOT excess weight) at 2, 6, and 12 years relative to their baseline. First, this graph is the individuals who did not seek surgery. This group lost only 0.9% of their total weight 12 years after the study began. Those empty triangles? Those are people who ended up getting bariatric surgery anyways. Lets look at the second group, people tho sought out surgery but couldn't get it. So at least we are aware that this group is invested in losing weight. This group fared slightly better, as patients lost a mean of 2% of their body weight at 12 years out. This excludes patients who got surgery (they lost an average of 10%). Lets look at patients who did get the surgery. Patients lost an average of 26% of their total body weight even after 12 years. I found this difference absolutely remarkable. To reach that average 26% body weight loss without surgery, you would need to be in the top 5-10% of losers. Think about that. I used to see getting the surgery as an admission of my own personal failure at willpower and dieting. But this study makes it clear that the probability of success for non-surgical options is astoundingly low relative to bariatric surgery. Studies [3], [4], [5] reinforce the positive impact on health that bariatric surgery has on patients who choose to go through with it. Reading these helped put my mind at ease. Bariatric surgery is one of the best decisions I could make for my health. I encourage you to skim through the studies to see other benefits I didn't outline here. The NYT[2] article is also a great read for seeing why bariatric surgery is so effective. It distills a lot of the studies into facts that you can use to arm yourself when speaking with family and friends who aren't supportive. Sources: [1] https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1700459 [2] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/13/well/why-weight-loss-surgery-works-when-diets-dont.html [3] https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11695-012-0718-9 [4] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/oby.21322 [5] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamasurgery/fullarticle/2546331#Introduction

I went to sleep last night at 195 lbs. This morning, I wake up, I drink a protein shake, and the scale is at 190!! Same spot on the floor, it's a digital scale so I make sure to zero it every time. But still... this scale!! This evening I'll probably come in at 200! I've been trying to weigh myself less and enjoy the NSVs but... damn. Anyone else see HUGE fluctuations in weight overnight?

lunch today, 2.5 oz of chicken salad with diced red onion, sweet mini peppers, pickles. 10g of roasted/salted pistachios tossed on top

I'm doing well! Getting into the rhythm of getting all my protein in without relying too much on shakes or powder. Continuing to have a variety of foods. Had some people over last night, and had a bit of dessert/real sugar for the first time since surgery. Kept it all within my calorie limit, and didn't have any dumping symptoms. I don't plan on making dessert a habit, but good to know whether or not I'll get sick. My weight is pretty inconsistent as well. I stay the same weight for 3-5 days, lose weight the next few days and repeat. I do feel a difference in inches lost though!

14.6 kg is fantastic for one month! I had a 7 day stall as well a couple of weeks after surgery. Then I lost 5 lbs within a couple of days. Just keep at it and you'll be fine. Has your body continued to show changes? While my weight was stalled, I still was noticing physical changes to my body (had to swap out for a smaller belt). As for portion sizes, what did your dietitian advise? I usually eat about 60g of protein per meal with an additional 30g of a side food if I have room.

Lots of people like to make claims about how effective or ineffective surgery is with anecdotes about success or failure stories they’ve experienced in their lives. So it’s great to have some studies with concrete, long term results 😁

Thanks all. I think scale "torture" may have been overkill- I’m not obsessed with it and don’t let it get in the way of my life or my program. I just find it surprising that such big swings can be seen overnight... The fact that 5 lbs is gone just from using whatever waters leftover in your system & burning reserves while you sleep is fascinating to me. I do like to track my weight as I photograph myself every 10 lbs lost. I usually take photos at night, and this is part of why I track my end-of-day weight even if it may be less consistent than my morning weight.

I took a week but ended up needing an extra couple of days before returning to my desk job. As others have said, it wasn't pain preventing me from returning, it was fatigue.

Thankful that the only nausea I've experienced since surgery was the evening of my first day. Thankful that I was able to slip into a size 12 skirt that once belonged to my grandmother. Thankful that I don't mind moving to a 3rd floor office since I'm not afraid of walking up 2 flights of stairs anymore.

I got my hands on a loaf of the zero carb bread the other day and tried making a sandwich with light mayo and deli turkey, but I don't think my stomach agrees with it yet... darn! The same thing happened with low-carb tortillas. I'll try again in a month or so... I got the variety pack of Magic Spoon cereals last week, and I've tried a couple of bowls since then. One 1 oz serving plus 4 oz milk comes to about 15g of protein. The texture is pretty good and crisp, and it holds up pretty well sitting in the milk if you eat slow like I do. Flavor is good but I'm not sure if I'll buy them again as they are a touch too sweet for me. I also can't shake the fact that seems like a 'fake' food, but I think that criticism is a little unfair.. the protein shakes I drink every day aren't any more 'real' 🤷‍♀️ Anyways, here's a picture of the frosted variety!

I tend not to record my weight until I'm sure I'm below it in the evening... my thinking is that it's more similar to how it'll be at the doctor's office post-op. I weigh myself occasionally in the morning just to see the change throughout the day. I do realize it's less consistent... but this is the first time I've seen a 5 lb swing overnight!

Right now I'm taking calcium x3 during the day, then multivitamin, iron, and b12 at night. Stool softener if I haven't had a movement within the past couple days. I also take biotin, but after a discussion with my surgeon he mentioned that there isn't any evidence that it aids in preventing hair loss. Apparently the shock of surgery simply causes a lot of your hair to shed at once, not break... It isn't related to the strength of your hair itself, where biotin/collagen may help. My plan is to finish off the bottle and not continue to take any.

Noticed a test picture I took during pre-op... decided to take another one. Bye bye double chin!

Damn girl!! You look incredible. Your after pic gives me hope for my waist coming back too 😝