NeonRaven8919

1 hour ago, MrsFitz said:

So unfair isn’t it?? Does your LA offer anything health & fitness-wise? Ours has something called Better Living and offers free 12 week courses for such as keep fit, various diet programs etc. I had to do one of the slimming world nonsense things through them before I could be referred for WLS. My GP told me about it all so maybe your GP could point you in the right direction should there be something similar where you are?

I've done a few of the "weight loss workshops" that they offered, but it was yet another weight loss diet attempt that failed. I think it was called "apples and pears" and they weighed us, gave us a few tips on healthy eating and criticised the slightest and then left us to to run around the gym for an hour. It was more like a creche for fat adults and very patronising. They offered some counselling, but she didn't want to listen to me talk about anything but food, which isn't really helpful if emotional eating isn't really about eating.

3 hours ago, Gypsy_Life said:

Hi!

I'm new to this forum but definitely not new to this journey! I'm a mum of three adult kids from Newcastle region in NSW Australia. I'm an RN and have gone back to University for more torture (learning lol)

I was sleeved in August 2021 and was successful in losing weight for 6 months before I plateaued and then stopped.

After extensive investigations from my surgeon and other surgeries, I was booked for a revision and underwent my mini bypass with single anastomosis on 19th August 2024.

I'm recovering well and would love to provide support (but not medical advice) to others who are considering undertaking any kind of weight loss or bariatric type surgery.

Welcome! I was approved for the sleeve back in May so I am new to the journey, (still Pre-op) It's always nice to have new perspectives here.

1 hour ago, MrsFitz said:

I’m lucky as I’ve just re-joined my local authority gym at £23 per month. This entitles me to use any of the LAs gyms, pools, fitness classes etc. My local gym is at the bottom of my road (it’s a very steep hill!!) and has a fully equipped gym, pool and fitness studio with lots of different classes. I just wish the gym part was bigger as it can get crowded at busy times but I can’t complain re the cost

No such scheme in my LA sadly. London is really expensive.

I took up cycling about two years ago. It's exercise and a cheap method of transportation. I got an e-bike as I don't have the fitness levels (yet) for an "acoustic" model. I found it's good for knees as they can go a full rotation but without putting weight on them since the saddle takes the weight. I also agree with Water aerobics. My gym used to have a class I went to, but I can't attend since it's at 11am on Monday now and I have to work.

1 hour ago, MrsFitz said:

Eek! Had a voicemail left from the Bariatric team saying that they had been notified by the dietitian that I would be happy to take a cancellation and that they have one on Friday 6th September at 4pm 😮😮😮 They have booked me in for it but would appreciate a call back to confirm. I’ve called back and left them a voicemail saying yes please. I’ve had to rearrange some family plans but I have to be selfish and think of me. I’ve called the family and explained and they understand so I’m happy about that.

So, what questions do I need to be asking of the surgeon? Any advice? This has thrown me and I don’t know why - strange huh??

Oh that's really soon! Congrats!

I felt the same way when I got called to arrange the surgery date so soon! I think I felt really thrown is becaus the first thing they did was out me on a 12 week diet very suddenly and I didn't have time to prepare and had to throw out good food and buy new things for the diet. I think also it was the fact that getting that call means it's finally happening! Especially as you've been on the NHs waiting list for a long time. It's not just a vague idea of soothing that will happen on the future anymore but a real thing that you have to prepare for. It's scary and exciting!

I didn't think to ask any questions, but since my mother went through it back in 2008, I knew already about the surgery and the complications.

Well done!! You look amazing!

2 hours ago, MrsFitz said:

Had my dietitian appointment this morning and it went really well 🥳 I’m a healthy fat person, which was good to hear. All my tests have come back good, no issues with diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease etc. We had a really good talk, told her about this forum and the ongoing support everyone receives, showed her my two food diaries - one pre-watching what I eat and one for now. She was very happy to read both, laughed at some of my comments regarding how I was feeling when I was eating, and congratulated me on the changes I have already made. She asked if I had a surgery in mind and why. I explained that I felt that a bypass would be more beneficial for me due to not feeling full, snacking etc, and she agreed.

Thankfully she has no issues with me, and was happy to refer me to the surgeon, which was such a relief to hear. Honestly, I felt quite apprehensive and anxious this morning (thanks menopause 🤨) and was definitely snappy with hubby. I went in on my own as I didn’t want him to know what my weight was/is - does anyone else keep their weight secret from their other half? I know it’s just shame that makes me not want to tell him 😕

The dietitian thinks a reasonable target post-surgery for me is around 14stones (196lbs) but reckons I will sail past that as I am fully onboard with it all. I’m glad that she hasn’t given me an unrealistic expectation and I do feel it’s fully achievable. We discussed lowest adult weight plus weights my body had ‘stuck’ at previously. She also went through the post-surgery diet - will be 6 weeks on the purée diet due to having a bypass, and gave me the info for that. She also explained about the bounce back once the body has reached its lowest weight and that it did not signal a failure.

Next steps: appointment with the surgeon, which should be September (eek, next month!!) After I’ve seen the surgeon it’s then the MDT weekly meeting for everyone to agree that I’m OK to go ahead. As long as they agree, I will get my surgery date which is looking to be either Jan or Feb next year. She’s put that I would like to see the surgeon ASAP and will take a cancellation for both his appointment and also for surgery as long as I have one day to get ready for the 3 week liver reduction diet. She warned me that I could be on the LRD over Christmas but I’ve said that it’s fine, I’m truly not bothered in the slightest. I asked about going away next September and she said everything will be done and settled down by then but not to buy holiday clothes until the last minute!

Just to wait for the next stage now. I’m certainly glad I lost some weight pre-appointment though as the weight the Dr gave and the weight I was actually was a 5kg difference, and not in my favour 😮 I’m still 7kgs lower than the wrong weight given and it’s the initial referral weight they go off so I could coast now if I wanted to (but I won’t )

A relief all round!

I was approved in May, and told my surgery date would be maybe summer of 2025. Then they called two month later and told me it would be October of 2024. Maybe it will be sooner for you! Are you NHS as well?

I'm glad it went well for you!

I've been told by my doctor that I'm behind the weight I should be losing. I should be done to 116kg (255 lbs) by now.

I really was starting to worry as the weight on the scale kept going up, but then I suddenly went down to 117kg. I had to stand on the scale twice because I couldn't believe the number. It was so easy the first couple of weeks of the pre-op diet and now it doesn't seem to be working as quickly.

I'm still doing what I need to, but it's not been easy. I've also been told by my doctor that after surgery, I won't be able to ride my bike for 6 weeks! This is more difficult than not being able to eat solid foods for weeks. My beautiful noble steed (her name is Angelique Iolanthe) will have to be in storage for 6 weeks.

7 more weeks until the surgery. I've been reading more articles and doing more research on the sleeve. I'm not sure if that easing the anxiety or adding to it.

Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories! It's one thing to do research and read medial information, but it's so much more reassuring to hear from people who have actually lived it. Even hearing the not so glamourous parts of life post-op.

11 hours ago, ShoppGirl said:

Plus you can frog the old ones and make two more in your smaller size!! For those who don’t do yarn crafts that crochet speak for “rip it rip it” out and start over. My husband refers to it as free yarn. Though that’s usually to cheer me up if I make a mistake and have to rip half of it out.

Good point! I've been working on a jumper for over 2 years (entrelac an complicated) If I ever finish it, would be too big.

On 8/14/2024 at 10:08 PM, MrsFitz said:

Tonight I went to the required education session that my NHS Trust has as a non-negotiable requirement of being accepted for surgery. I will be honest and say I was left feeling completely underwhelmed with it.

There was about 16 of us, all pre-op but at different stages of the required tests etc plus some family members (hubby went with me) There was also a Bariatric nurse, a dietitian and a former patient who had had the bypass in 2022. She explained her journey but it seemed very…I don’t know, sterile? Wrong word I know but I don’t know how else to explain her approach. She’s obviously happy with how it all turned out for her but it all seemed very whitewashed, which I found odd. She only mentioned one case of dumping syndrome but everything else was a walk in the park, which had me internally questioning things. She said she was currently in a months long stall but again, everything was hunky-dory. Someone asked about a typical days eating and it seemed really carb-heavy - toast for Breakfast, sandwich for lunch, cheese and crackers for a snack, sausage and chips or mash for dinner etc etc. I asked about what additional Protein she had - didn’t/couldn’t answer, asked about exercise - some walking and that’s about it. She mentioned Hair loss being an issue but that it all grew back and was great.

I know I’m being picky but I honestly wanted a more rounded discussion about of lots of different challenges that we could face with WLS and living the life post-op. I’d say out of the group that was there, maybe 5 had done any wider reading or research. I did find out that the hospitals approach to caffeine post-op is you can have a couple of cups of tea/coffee a day but they would rather patients filled up on foods/drinks that added Protein, especially at the beginning. I also found out about the Vitamins they give you and that they put the timings on the boxes to aid patients with timings etc, which was useful.

Something that was bothering me was if my BMI dipped below 40, would I still be considered for surgery as I don’t have any co-morbidities like diabetes, heart issues etc. I need to get it below 40 before I will be considered for knee surgery, and I’m hoping that will happen end of Oct/beginning of Nov all being well. I was reassured about that, saying that they go off the booking weight reported by the GP when referred initially 🙂

I will be completely honest and say that, apart from some very specific questions I had of my hospital, I actually find this forum of much more use and beneficial to me personally. I have found out so much information from people who are further along in their own WLS journey, plus I know I’ve felt really supported by lots of very lovely and helpful users. There is such a wealth of experience on here that I know that if I have a question, someone will be along to answer it!

Roll on the dietitian appointment next week 🤞

I did an NHS weigh loss education session before I was approved for surgery and one last week after I was approved. It was basically the same session twice and most of it was what to eat after the surgery. It's informative, but it's not really new information that I didn't have before. It's very clinical. I agree that hearing other peoples' stories is much more helpful.

1 hour ago, ShoppGirl said:

@NeonRaven8919 I’m curious. Did you give the sewing machine a go? There are lots of videos online but also check your local library or adult school for classes. I always thought I wanted to sew and took some classes but I also started crochet around the same time and that sorta took the main stage. It came easier to me so of course that translates to it being more fun. I bet it would be a very good distraction though because I remember losing track of time when I was working on a pillowcase when I first started. I had to learn everything from how to thread the machine to how to wind a bobbin and change a needle, etc. My husband came home but it felt like it wasn’t even lunchtime yet. I was at that machine all day!!

Not yet. I need go clear off a place for the machine to go first. But I do crochet and knit and make my own jumpers. When there's less of me, I guess will need less yarn to make myself something!

50 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

CONFIDENCE.

i found that i am just bursting with it (maybe too much as i really do think of myself as the absolute BOMB.). but the confidence is not just feeling good about and trusting myself, but it translates also as feeling good about others, trusting others, patience with others and self, calm, peace, courage, all the good stuff!

of all the things, the confidence is the one i value the most. thanks WLS. (and thanks ME for doing what i needed to do to get here).

I hadn't even thought about this! I guess it just never occurred to me to feel good about myself! I've always been the bullied fat girl somintried to keep my head down and stay quiet.

Well done! You look great! Congratulations on your hard work!

14 hours ago, FifiLux said:

• I think I will soon be ready to look at starting to date again. It has been years as I never thought I was worthy, if I didn't love myself why would someone else? But I think I am close to now to being ready to at least dip my toe in the Water, albeit the reality of if all makes me feel a bit nauseous.

I'm exactly the same. Even starting to talk to somebody, I would panic wondering how they could really like me, and delete the dating app.

But this is definitely something I want to do.

I want to go to more concerts and music festivals, too. All the standing is painful and makes me not enjoy the show. Less weight on my knees and I can stand longer and do more

2 hours ago, FifiLux said:

I will be in the US next month for a holiday so I am hoping to hit up a lot of stores there and buy a new wardrobe 😁

I'm going back home to the US in November. (I'll be 6 weeks post-op then) I fully plan to take an empty suitcase and hit Walmart and the thrift stores. And also stock up on Tylenol since you can get bottles of 100 over there and only packs of 16 and only 2 at a time here without a prescription. Always handy to have around.

On 8/13/2024 at 2:37 PM, kristieshannon said:

I was heading home from Bozeman, Montana. My sister lives there. Her family holds a mountain bike race each summer, so I went to attend that. It was super fun, and my nephew won first place!

Off topic, but I'm from Montana originally before I moved to the UK! Nice to meet another Northwest coast person! I know Bozeman well!

You look really good! Congrats!

2 hours ago, ShoppGirl said:

If it was the “easy way out” then people like me wouldn’t need revision surgeries. It’s just a tool and if you don’t do your part it doesn’t work so it’s certainly no magic wand. Don’t wait until your body is in worse shape. Your still young and with a little help you can change you life significantly.

Aside from the fact that they are wrong scientifically and statistically, so what if it was the “easy way out.” Do these people bear their clothes against rocks or use brooms instead of vacuum cleaners? Do they believe that power tools are the easy way out and refuse to use them? The fact is housework still sucks and carpentry is hard regardless of whether you have the best tools or not.

if you think of weight loss As a task like laundry, surgery would be the washing machine. If you only had one or two loads to do you could probably get it done by beating it on rocks and avoid the need for a special machine but when you are obese and have a lot more loads to do you need a washing machine to make it possible to get it all done.

The surgery is just a tool. Just as you don’t wake up from surgery never having to do laundry again, you won’t be able to lye around and eat bon bons and just lose weight. If you don’t do your part for laundry your washing machine will just be a dusty machine in the corner and your laundry will pile up. And like me if you don't do your part with the surgery, you won’t lose what you should and the pounds will start to pack back on.

Be kind to yourself. You have a very complex disease that requires medical intervention. An intervention that you deserve just as much as someone with heart disease needs medication or surgery. Don’t let the ignorance of others stop you from doing what is right for yourself and your life. You deserve all the help you can get to accomplish whatever goal you set out to do and anyone that says that they wouldn’t do the same thing is not really putting themselves in your shoes.

That's a really good analogy! Obesity is the only disease people seem to think it's ok to comment about "the easy way out" and it's usually people like my neighbour who is thin as a rail, gains 1kg in a month and shrieks about how fat she's gotten. In other words, people who don't have a clue. If you got a hip replacement so that you could walk without a wheelchair, that's an operation that makes your life easier, but no one says that's taking the easy way out!

I think the revision has just kickstarted the weight loss again? I'm still pre-op, but I think if you've had the sleeve years ago, the body might be acting as if it's a new surgery?

But congrats on the new progress!

I had my presurgical assessment and they said I would need lansoprazole. It sounds like a Pasta dish so I was really confused! 😂 I'd never heard of it, although I have vague memory of my step-dad being on it for a short time.

Congrats an all your progress! You look amazing! I really notice a difference between your old profile pic and your new one!

16 hours ago, MrsFitz said:

Does your NHS hospital send patients to a hotel??? That’s surprised me!

I think it's to save beds for people really in need that can't walk the short distance to the hotel. My mother had the gastric bypass in 2008 and the sent her to a private hospital because there were too many people and not enough beds. A problem typical of London hospitals and my hospital is right in the centre. I assume in smaller cities it's not necessary.

13 minutes ago, Bypass2Freedom said:

Don't forget the classic 'cold-shoulder' tops and sequins that they love to force into plus-size 'fashion' 🤢

I don't mind the cold shoulder all the time, but yes it's too much! Either have a sleeve on the top or don't!

15 hours ago, MrsFitz said:

Or bows? Or really badly placed frills?? Or cheap, scratchy lace? Or (and this drives me insane) tops that aren’t long enough 🤬🤬🤬 I’m the size of a house, no amount of spangles, added trim or crappy flowers/puppies/kittens/cute crap will ever disguise that fact 🙄

And yes, I want frigging useable pockets in dresses and skirts 😡

(rant over 😇)

Yes! Pockets! Although lack of pockets isn't exclusive to plus sizes. That's just women's clothing in general. They don't want us to have pockets so we can't carry the tools to dismantle the patriarchy! 😂

16 hours ago, NickelChip said:

Although, I'll caution you now that whatever size you happen to be in when you go shopping as you lose weight, that will be the size they are out of. I used to struggle to find a 2X in things and could only find XL. Now I'm looking for XL and there are only 2X. Like, where were all you 2Xs a year ago?

Of course! That's so typical!

@JennyBeez Exactly! The fashion industry wants all the fat people in muumuus. I guess like a scarlet letter for not fitting the ideal beauty standards?

Just had my pre-surgery assessment chat with the nurse. They did bloods, an ECG and a swab for MRSA. I was originally told that they thought I would be a good "day case". I thought this meant, I have the surgery and then I go home the same day and I was worried. But what this actually means is that I have the surgery and then go to a nearby hotel, but as I'm borderline with my sleep scores, I might stay in the hospital. I'm a little relieved that I'm not going home straight after surgery!