BlackBerryJuice

I was showing off in front of the camera this evening and took a pic where the loose skin on my side was quite visible...so I got the idea to take some pictures that specifically emphasize it. I certainly would've found it helpful if I saw something like that when I was embarking on my VSG journey. There's a lot of pictures of loose skin that you'd get if you were losing 200+ lbs, but not much for us relative lightweights. The first pic is the one where I accidentally pushed the skin so it became really obvious, and in the 2nd and 3rd, I specifically made an effort to show it off.

Hey guys, I saw that one of the recommended books for those considering the surgery is The Exodus from Obesity: The Guide to Long-Term Success with Weight-Loss Surgery, by Paula Peck. Unfortunately, neither the public library nor my university library have them, and it's over $90 on Amazon (with shipping) for a used copy. Would anyone be so kind as to lend it to me? I will cover the shipping cost with Paypal (or a check, if you are in Canada) and mail it back to you after. Please PM me if you can do that. Thanks!

Hey team, I was thinking of doing a short Paleo experiment for a week. For those unfamiliar with Paleo, it's a certain type of eating that's believed to mimic the way our ancestors ate before the advent of agriculture. In its strictest form, it's the raw food diet; the mainstream form is basically lean meats/fish + eggs + veggies + fruit + nuts and no grains of any sort, no legumes, and no dairy; and the least restrictive form allows dairy (albeit organic only) but still eschews legumes and grains. Of course, you are not allowed any sugar or artificial sweeteners, and no processed foods. But there's no limits on fat intake, no calorie counting, and no portion control (not that it's an issue for sleevers!). I was thinking of trying this for a week just to see how sustainable it would be and to see how it'd make me feel. There are all kinds of claims as to improvement in your sleep, digestion, energy levels, loss of cravings, disappearance of afternoon crashes, depression, etc etc, and I basically just want to test that. Anyone with me? I'm thinking of doing the modified version with dairy - just because I'd like to continue with my whey Protein shakes. I'll be using almond milk instead of milk in my shakes, though, but I'll let myself have an organic Greek yogurt or two here and there if I feel like it. I would like to start on Monday, just to make things easier and give myself the weekend to prep some meals, and hopefully find a few people to do this with me for support and exchanging experiences!

I've been really waffling on the issue of boobs lately, mine are still a DD (albeit 32), but they are very flat when they are not in a bra. They are not so bad that my nipples are pointing downwards or anything, but they are certainly saggy, and while they are decent when I'm standing up, they look awful when I bend down. I've trolled the web for info, but I really don't want to get a breast lift. I don't want the scars, and I don't want the extra risks associated with a 2-part operation and extra skin being cut, especially since I may choose to have children and breastfeed in the future. Has anyone here gotten JUST implants and no lift? Or has anyone here gone to a plastic surgeon and was told it's not necessary to have a lift in addition to implants? It just seems that all you see on Google images post-WLS is implants + lift.

Holy crap, forward it to me next time, yo.

I always find myself saying "please, no sides" or "please replace the mashed potatoes/fries/whatever with some vegetables," only to receive my meal with the sides and/or the aforementioned fries or whatever. It's irritating, since I think wasting food is stupid, but I usually just roll my eyes and ignore it. I've never been charged for a bigger serving, thankfully! That sounds EXTREMELY annoying.

I feel you, I remember one time I responded to an ad on PlentyofFish saying they were desperate for another female soccer player for some community team and "appearance and skill level didn't matter." I never heard back after sending my message, but I could see my profile had been viewed by them, so obviously, I wasn't "hot enough."

No one at school/work knows besides a very limited number of people who I've told. It's only hard to keep it a secret from people who you eat with every day. These days, I can eat so much that even when I tell someone who's known me for a while about my surgery, they will often act surprised, because they haven't noticed that I eat a small amount of food. It was tougher the first few months, but even so, when going out you can get around it. Order a lot of things to share and then no one will notice whether you had 3 nachos or 6.

I mentioned something about my boobs looking like deflated balloons to my new guy and his response was, "Whatever you say...but they are MY deflated balloons." Cool.

Sorry to hear that you had such a rough experience. It will be just a distant memory before you know it!

Yeah, I have some waist cinchers and stuff, but I'm finding there's no use for them these days. I haven't worn Spanx in forever, either - so long, in fact, that I don't even think I have any in my new size.

SICKOS. :ph34r: Anyway, yeah, it looks way nicer now. Also, the skin in that general area, including my inner thighs, is not weird and dark from rubbing all the time anymore, that was also a bonus.

Just an update....first off, last week I logged into Plentyoffish, and saw my ex on there! WEIRD! It really made me wonder why he was acting the way he was, if he thought it was appropriate to go back on a dating site 3 weeks after our breakup. Either he was also not really into me anymore or he's looking for a major rebound! Anyway, that was pretty awkward. :ph34r: Secondly, I've been getting tons of messages online - very different from when I was 200+, I must say - and have gone on like a dozen first dates, but there's only one guy I've wanted to see again after our first date. I've had some doubts about his level of interest in me last week and thought that maybe that was it, but then things seemed to pick up again after. In fact, today we're going on a road trip out of town; I think this is like our 5th or 6th date. We'll see how it goes, it's a 3-hr drive one way, so it'll definitely be the longest we've spent together to date - and without an opportunity to assume a horizontal position if we run out of things to talk about, so there's a challenge, lmao. BTW, sex when you're not fat is awesome, hehe, I'm doing all kinds of crazy stuff that I would never dare to do before (handstands, you name it - thanks, Crossfit!).

I know where you're coming from, I had my surgery at just under BMI 35. I actually told my story to a bariatric surgeon who I briefly worked with and when I mentioned being at 34.5 or whatever I was, he exclaimed "But you didn't even qualify!" Uh, so 5 lbs above and all of sudden I qualify? I would've gained that 5 lbs in a week if I had to, but WHY do I have to?

Do the primal diet with me! I've been sticking it to it over a month now. I have a thread about it in the Food subforum, might be a few pages back.

I wouldn't do Crossfit until you're 3 months out.

Or have low blood sugar

So I've got a fella coming over here in a little while to do some man chores around the house for me, and I've been thinking of how to amuse him while he's painting my bathroom....so I threw on a nice black lace corset, some black thigh-highs, and high-heeled leather boots in front of the mirror and for the first time in my life thought "Man, I kinda look bangin' in lingerie!" Thanks, Dr. Aceves and Crossfit!

LMAO, I don't roll like that....I would just make myself laugh.

Sorry to hear about your dog. Sometimes I think about one of my cats dying and start bawling at the thought. Good job on making a sensible choice given your craving!