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The first three weeks - I won't be coy here.... were really really hard. Having bones sawed off, and replaced and drilled into place is really painful; at any weight. However, once I got to being able to move around more - once the 34 staples were removed after just over 2 weeks; I was able to start moving around more. I totally gave up on the narcotics by the end of week two. I couldn't hold them down well, and the only thing I could eat was.... basically toast with a bit of jam. I finally at about the middle of week three could start walking a bit outside instead of around my dining room table - and progressed from taking 300 steps a day to over 1000 in that third week. At week 6 I am now able to walk for about 10 minutes with a cane, twice a day, and am able to take care of myself, the house, a flock of chickens (less any heavy lifting), the dog, parrot and reptiles. I weigh basically almost half of what I did at my heaviest. With this surgery,.... right before it, I was very limited in my ability to walk. I had gained 8 pounds from my lowest. After surgery at week 2 I was up another few pounds - Surgeon told me this is normal from how much IV fluids I was getting to keep me going. I am frankly eating A LOT of healthy foods right now. On dr's and nutritionist suggestion to build back muscle, nerve and bone loss. I am told that in another couple weeks I will start to lose the weight again. I am not worried, and I can hang with the process. I am walking about 4,000 to 5000 steps a day - over what I should be for my age and where I am post op.

Haha! I love this comment. Honestly, if she weren't my boyfriend's family, I would have used all manners of vulgar language as a response! I don't know why people just see fat people as easy targets, as if it is their right to inform them that 1) they are indeed fat, 2) they are lazy, but also 3) they should lose weight, but only in a socially acceptable way. Makes my blood boil!

@BlueParis you're looking great! I'm impressed you can stand in those shoes. I think I would end up in the hospital if I tried. And congrats on finally getting below that magical 70kg marker. I'm happy to report that after 7 weeks of very pokey weight loss in which I only lost 4 lbs total and stalled out completely for 2 of those weeks, I have now dropped 4 lbs in 4 days. I cannot begin to express how relieved I am. I know it will slow again soon enough as a pound a day isn't sustainable, but I plan to enjoy it as long as it lasts. NSV for me this week! So, I had gotten down to around 205 lbs back in 2017 through my hospital's nutrition program. Naturally, I bought some clothing back then, though unfortunately I regained steadily over the years. Because I had moved house 4 years ago, I purged most everything in my closet. This included almost all the smaller clothing, plus the remnants of my old "professional" wardrobe that was also in smaller sizes from a good 20 years ago. (I should say, I don't regret that too much as the clothing was way out of style and I never have cause to wear suits these days anyway.) But I did happen to hold onto one springy sort of dress that I guess I must have thought was too nice to get rid of, just in case it ever fit again. Well, I pulled it out of the closet the other day to wear to my daughter's special event at school and not only did it fit, it was loose. I honestly struggle to see the difference when I look at myself in the mirror sometimes, but there's no denying how clothing fits, and I know this dress never fit me loose back then like it does now.

Saw my GP yesterday and happy to say I was taken off almost all my meds @10 1/2 months post-op. One of my biggest goals met along with 100+ weight loss. I never imagined it possible a couple years ago. I thought I was destined to die from being morbidly obese and from kidney failure from all the meds I've been on for so many years. My bloodwork was perfect with no red flags or abnormal readings. With my hiatal hernia repaired I can breathe again, and exercise is a pleasure instead of an I'm out of breath nightmare. My next goal is to get my BMI into the 20's. I wish much success for all of you. Keep at it. Don't give up. If you work the program it will work for you too!! {{hugs}}

Hey yall! Anyone else in my shoes??? So it’s been about 15 months since my vsg! Maybe 6-8 months ago I started having irregular cycles, very painful cramps and odor. I have never ever had these issues prior to my vsg. I clean my private very well so when I started noticing an odor it instantly had me scratching my head. I haven’t changed partners, std free, same soaps and laundry detergent as well. My cycle would be between 2-3 times a month which is stressful and alot to deal with. The cramps have been painful to the point I'm bent over in pain or balled up in bed- neverrrr ever had this all my years of menstruation. So of course I mentioned it to my surgeon who said oh give it some time your body just went through a major surgery blah blah- cool. Well time turned into more time and decided to see gyn. Who ran std test which came back negative for everything, she did the endometriosis test which came back normal as well. So now I have to get a D&C done tomorrow for more “diagnostic” testing. They have yet to do an ultrasound hmmmm. I have a friend who had the same surgery vsg as me and she is also experiencing the sameeee exact symptoms as me. She has found out that she have cyst on her ovaries and need to have them removed. Have you or anyone else you know that have had weight lost surgery have any of these complications? What was the findings? Any success stories and or updates? Freaking out and stressing over this bc of course they are making it seem like it’s no big deal when it is to me!

Stories from the other side (i'll be 6 yrs post op this Oct): Sleep: about 1 month after surgery, i was able to sleep through the ENTIRE night without getting up to pee or waking myself up with snoring for the first time in YEARS (decades?). it was (and still IS awesome). I am always well rested and have seemingly endless amounts of energy during the day. the only thing that is a bit of a downer is that i can no longer sleep comfortably on my stomach (which was my previous preferred sleeping position), i've long suspected my lack of stomach padding now seems to contribute to hyper-extending my lower back when i am on my stomach. so its back and/or side sleeping for me now. no biggie though, i've got used to it. Activity: as per my aforementioned endless amount of energy, i am like an energizer bunny during waking hours. i've become a bit of an exercise addict (who me???) and am probably stronger and fitter than i have ever been in my whole adult life (and i'm 52 yrs old for effs sakes). i also LOOK the fittest i have ever looked in my entire adult life...and i was already fit-ISH up until my mid-30s. it's funny and mind-blowing (and ridiculously ego-boosting) when the young 20-30 yr old girls in my Pilates and yoga classes come up to me after class and tell me that they aim to be able to do the things that i do in class, and, wait for it...want to LOOK like me. cray. zee. Fashion: don't even get me started. even before i ran out of "skinny" clothes to wear during weight loss phase, i was already in the throes of being an over-the-top-clothes-buyer (and shoes, and purses, etc lol) i've calmed down a little bit compared to those first couple years, but i do admit i could probably calm down a little bit more. i have way too many clothes in my closet (some of which i haven't even worn in public yet). not sure when i will cure myself of this habit, but i'll enjoy it until i do, ha! one last thing not on your list the deserves mention: 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).

Well just got letter from insurance company...surgery is approved...paperwork says Jan 2,2024...tried calling surgeon and weight loss center...no answer..maybe took extra day off for holiday.... Totally excited been long time coming...thank God finally.!!

Hello all, my name is Cyd. I am 53 years old and have battled my weight all my life. 15 days ago on February 5th, I had Gastric Bypass surgery. I am still having a problem swallowing. Every time I swallow, I feel the gulp going all the way down. It makes me nauseated. Which then in turn makes me not want to swallow anything. I am no where near the 64 ounces of liquid a day that I am supposed to have. I have an appt with the surgeon tomorrow and I will tell him all about it. Starting to feel depressed. Just looking for some understanding of what I am experiencing from people who have been thru it. Thanks in advance. This is the day before surgery. So far it looks like I have lost 13pds.

You need to call your team. The dietician will give you some really great guidelines and hints if you are loosing too slow. As we do not know your weight and height we can not really say..

Congrats!! I'm sure you feel relieved! I'm at the point where I've been in a stall or at least a weight loss slow down stall for a few months myself. But I've only lost about 3 lbs the last month..21 over 3+ months and I'm only at 5 months post op! As annoying and worried as I'm sure you've been.. I hope it helps some knowing you made me feel relieved knowing it might only be temporary. Again, congrats and you're soooo close to your goal now - you've got this!

What do you mean. Did you reach your goal and start to regain or is it something else? I see you are about 40 pounds from your goal now so it certainly seems doable to turn it around if it’s regain. My first piece of advice as someone who regained all their weight and just had revision surgery a week ago is to reach out to your team. My second step would be to reach out for support here or otherwise and you have already done that. I did neither because I was too embarrassed and you can see where that led me. When I finally did reach out to them I wished I had done it sooner because they treated me with nothing but compassion and just wanted to help. For me the only real option was revision but you should have plenty others. My guess is their first plan of attack will be to go back to the basics. Reading labels, Logging your food and counting macros. Protein first, smaller portions and reaching your fluid goals. Seems like from your profile you are pretty active anyways but trying to Incorporate more activity if that has slipped a little. Just go back to it like you are just out of surgery. Well past the staged return to eating I guess but fairly early out anyways. Some people even start with the “pouch reset” Of a liquid diet for a week or two although most say that there is no real evidence that does much to reset anything. Make an appointment with your team now and start logging what you are doing for a week or so giving them a starting point and let them advise you of what you need to work on. There are other options now if diet alone is not enough but if you enjoy healthy eating anyways its likely portion size has increased a little more than you realize and that’s something you should be able to change. Once you do figure it out try to make changes one at a time if necessary to make them more manageable. Set lots of small goals to keep yourself motivated But most importantly keep reaching out to your support networks such as posting here as well as keeping in touch with your team. Your sleeve is still there. It will be a little harder than it was the first time but people have certainly done it. You have already taken the first steps Of recognizing the issue and reaching out here just keep taking steps and before you know it you will be losing again. Keep us Posted on any ups and downs so we can cheer you on. You can do it!!

here's my personal anecdote : when i called goal, i looked skeletal and gaunt. many people told me so (which i found annoying), but more importantly, *i* thought i looked gaunt and skeletal. fast forward about 1.5 years after that, and while i actually weighed 10+ lbs LESS than when i called goal, i looked waaaay healthier...and, dare i say, HOT. lol. i was exercising regularly and my body didn't have that frail look to it, and my face gauntness filled in. granted i did also have plastics done: tummy tuck, breast lift and arm lift, but those procedures only took of 400g of weight off me, so says my doc. fast forward another couple years (im 5+ years post op now), and while i still weigh 10+ lbs LESS than goal, i STILL look healthier now than those early days of maintenance. Mind you, i do look a lot "softer" now as i only exercise a fraction of what i used to do before. I do think rapid weight loss does a number on one's looks in the short term, but i think most people will find that as time goes on, things move and settle a bit so we dont look so sickly. (and yes, i can see my bones in places, lol)

I would advise you to get rid of the scale. I say this a lot and it's difficult to say it in new and interesting ways. Let's see... We don't need the scale to follow our plans. We can follow our plans to the letter and stall or even gain a pound or three, as is very common. In such a case it's easy to start considering "changing things up" to get the scale moving again. in the first several months we could completely abandon our plans and still lose weight. Looking at the scale will give many of us confirmation that we are doing well when in fact we aren't. Again, the scale is a poor guide. We should measure our success on how well we are following our plan. Are we feeling better? How is our mental attitude? Are health issues resolving? How about those clothes? Are you more active? Is it getting easier? There are all sorts of measures of success without a number on a scale. I was too large for a home scale so was only able to weigh in at monthly follow-ups. I'm confident I had stalls or even days where my weight was higher than the day before. I never actually experienced them. Every weigh in was lower than the month before. Never a temptation to "get the scale moving." You are at the beginning of this adventure. Focus on the things you can control. You can't control a number on a scale. Damn it, not new. Let's see if next time I can come up with a Hanzal and Gretel fairy tale where the witch is a scale... Good luck, Tek

I have had more friends/family tell me now that they were worried for my health etc etc. Of course only a couple close friends told me they were concerned before I started losing weight. It is what it is, fat jokes etc don't bother me, I made them when I was at my heaviest. I know people talked behind my back, it is human nature.

I dont know what weight you are so its really guess work. I did a 3 week pre op diet and with 2 months post surgery weight loss, I dropped 40 pounds. If you do the same and bought your outfit, maybe your clothes would not fit. I really had a struggle with food after surgery. At 2 months I was just about getting the hang of it. I would not have eaten regular food. Soup, milk, yogurts and cheese were my staples at that time. If I had to go to a function I would pack myself a emergency pack, just in case. I had massive drops in energy and needed lots of little meals to pick me up. I still carry protein bars and a drink.

Here’s my story. On 4/25/22 I weighed 281.8. A few months later at a Dr appointment for reflux the topic of having endoscopic gastroplasty was mentioned and eventually the surgery was scheduled for September 2022. I reported for the surgery and was going thru the pre-op process when our son called to let us know that he tested positive for COVID. The doctor advised us to reschedule. The next opening was a couple of months off, so it was rescheduled. I reported for the rescheduled surgery but after at check-in we were greeted with the news that the ventilation system for the operating room was down and we would have to reschedule again. This pushed us into 2023 and required navigating a new health insurance provider. Finally On 1/24/2023 I had my surgery and by 5/1/2023 my weight had dropped to 224 then “stabilizing” at around 235. 2023 had lots of ups and downs: - 4/25/2022 – weight 281.8 – bmi 38.2 - 1/23/2023 my last coke have gone over 1 year without a coke. Was typically drinking 1 – 2 20 oz bottles per day of regular coke. - 1/24/2023 - surgery. - 3/31/23 got laid off from work. - 4/6/2023 – robotic hernia surgery - 4/26/2023 – kidney stones - 5/1/2023 – weight 224 – bmi 30.3 - 7/11/2023 – procedure to evaluate hiatal herniaI - 1/18/2024 - COVID. - 1/25/2024 - big disagreement with boss and resigned. - 1/29/2024 - received ontingent job offer but significant pay cut. Job won't start for a month so I have time to think abiut job or seek other opportunities. - 1/30/2024 - weight 234.4 – bmi 31.7 Things to work on: - Eat better and exercise long term. I’ll do ok eating and exercising for a week or two and then I start stress eating, not feeling like walking. - Eating – there are times when I don’t feel hungry but want something to eat. - Regularity – I’ve always been irregular and at times have IBS with uncontrollable BM and then other times go days ( 3 – 4 days) between BM. - I have a goal of going on a couple of long bike rides 10 -15 miles but need to start getting in shape for them. - Decide to retire or find new job. - I rarely feel full. I think that I’m eating less but feel hungry or feel like eating even if I’m not hungry. Looking for advice on healthy things to eat between meals and limiting appetite here is a list of things that I like to eat . - - I like Kind Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew bars (170 cal, 22 g carbs and 6 g protein) - addicting - Inspire Square Protein Wafers by Bariatric Eating (200 cal, 13 g Carbs 15 g protein) - addicting - BariatricPal Protein Shake or Pudding – Chocolate (6 gm carbs 15 gm protein) - Lunches - Dole Sunflower Salad Kit - 350 calaries (40 gm carbs and 9 gm protein)

I love how supportive you have been of your wife (and am sorry to hear her diabetes remains an issue). I honestly think the relationships that most often fail post-surgery are the ones that are not healthy to begin with. The effects of the weight loss just shine a light on the problems that were already there and being ignored. Society sends the message that being overweight equals being unattractive, that you'll never find a partner unless you're slim, or that you're darn lucky if you do have someone, even if that person treats you poorly, and you'd better put up with it because you won't get anything better. None of that is actually true, of course, but sometimes losing weight is the thing that makes a person realize it and start believing they deserve a happy life. But if a spouse is one of the "good ones," they'll take your advice to heart and end up with an even better relationship. I'm so glad that's what has happened to you and your wife!

My final FINAL moments were last year. I saw a photo of myself at Thanksgiving, and I resembled a potato. I was round, just like a circle. At that time, when I would sit down, I noticed that the way that my stomach would land on my thighs was only about 5 inches from my knees. I had the distinct thought that the weight gain was going to continue unabated if I did not make a radical life change. First appointment was almost one year ago, and *everything* is SO much better.

Today is 8 days post op. It seems like my innards are awaking and they don't like me right now, but that's nothing new. Yesterday I made breakfast, took a half hour brisk walk on the treadmill, went grocery shopping and made my little 2 oz food containers, baked a cake and made dinner, then folded the laundry. All told, I'm feeling much more normal again, feeling antsy to get moving and I'm having more difficulty limiting myself than motivating myself. Before the surgery I was used to either a one hour lap swim with drills, or a one hour fast walk on the treadmill with hand weights. For the liquid diet I shortened both to about 40 min and slowed a bit, no hand weights. My body still wants to move but I know that I can't get too worked up right now, I need to heal more first. I have my first Post-op appt on Tuesday, hoping I can go back to swimming next week if my incisions are healed enough? 🤞

Hi Sleeve to Bypass. good to know I never got the bypass. I was so worried cause of you saying the weight loss and all. I ended up in Emergency NYE as I couldn’t intake anything. I was in so much pain and extremely dehydrated. They went in and found I had to perforations. One just above the fundoplication on my oesophagus and the other in the stomach. A week in hospital on intravenous meds and now 1 week home and I am feeling so much better.

That does sound like the basis for the diet I'm on. They told me to work on getting 64oz of water per day as top priority, then around 60-80g of protein next. Next it was to prioritize some unsaturated fats (fish, poultry, and lower carb veggie protein options). From there, they told me to keep carbs under 10g per serving, and under 55g total for the day (not quite as low as keto). Then try to keep saturated fats low where possible. I'm a 6'1" male, so they had me try to target 800-1000 calories per day during the weight loss phase, and work toward 1200 after about 6 months. You may want to check with your doctor or nutritionist to see if they have a recommended range to target. I learned the hard way while I was sick with Covid over the holidays that its really easy for excess calories to be hiding in small things. But overall, just keep up with what you are doing. There will be a stall within the first couple months, and a second stall a couple months after that, so just mentally prepare for it. Both will last 2-4 weeks and will likely have a slight regain in the middle of it. It doesn't take much fluid retention to make the number on the scale go back up. Remember that a 16oz bottle of water is literally 1lb. It's not fat, so it doesn't count. if you're drinking a half gallon / 2L of water a day, that's 4 lbs sitting there, but it doesn't count as "fat weight". It is jarring to see a 4lb fluctuation on the scale, but you're not losing progress, it's just water that your body isn't done processing yet. Think of the weight loss more like stair steps rather than a straight line. You can push through it!

Not sure if you guys like country but there is a song from years ago by Kasey Musgraves That comes to mind when I think of this chat. Here are the lyrics, but of course you can just google and give it a listen for the heck of it if you want. “If you save yourself for marriage, you're a bore You don't save yourself for marriage, you're a horr-ible person If you won't have a drink, then you're a prude But they'll call you a drunk as soon as you down the first one If you can't lose the weight, then you're just fat But if you lose too much, then you're on crack You're damned if you do, and you're damned if you don't So you might as well just do whatever you want So, make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, or don't Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points If you don't go to church, you'll go to Hell If you're the first one on the front row, you're self-righteous son of a- Can't win for losin', you'll just disappoint 'em Just 'cause you can't beat 'em, don't mean you should join 'em So, make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, or don't Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points Say what you think (say what you think) Love who you love (love who you love) 'Cause you just get so many trips 'round the sun Yeah, you only, only live once So make lots of noise (hey) Kiss lots of boys (yup) Or kiss lots of girls, if that's what you're into When the straight and narrow gets a little too straight Roll up a joint, I would And follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah Follow your arrow wherever it points”

I'm apparently more anal retentive than everyone else who's responded so far, but most are in maintenance so they can and have learned what works for them. My daily intake is very structured because I really don't like cooking or trying to figure out what to eat. Plus, unfortunately I'm a slow loser. Breakfast: Either I have 1/2 cup high protein overnight oats made with Fairlife Core Power milk (42g protein) but only use half of the bottle so 21g for a total number of 30g +- or 2 low fat turkey bacon slices and 1/2 bottle of my fairlife protein milk 30 mins later, either meal with a half cup of coffee 30 mins beforehand. Lunch: 1/2 c homemade turkey chili with 2 tablespoons Fage Greek yogurt 14g+- protein total or Pacifica organic soup 1/2 cup Dinner: Either the turkey chili again with added 1 tablespoon cheese on a low carb high protein tortillas or 3oz chicken (20g protein) cut into cubes with G.Huges chili Thai dipping sauce (low carb - 2 carbs, low calorie - 5) 2 small florets broccoli, 1 tablespoon skim cheese and Fage Greek yogurt on a low carb high protein (7grams) tortilla 32+- total grams protein Snack: 1 no sugar added fudgecicle (40 calories) or 1 tablespoon no sugar added chocolate chips (70 calories) or a fiesta string cheese (70 calories) or Homemade "brownie batter" or "chocolate chip cookie dough" protein balls (neither really taste like the title says, but its what they're calling them on the recipes 😋 This works out to: 80 grams protein 800 calories 50 net carbs 19 grams sugars Fat 16 - 28g Boring I know, but as I said if I think about what I want to eat to much..its not healthy foods or foods I'm allowed to have 6 months in. I'm trying to eat to live not live to eat.. So I keep it regimented so I know where I stand. As far as exercise I was walking 3 miles a day with light weight training..but I'm having hip abductors and hip flexor issues now plus my bum hurts (I never contemplated before surgery losing weight would make sitting/bum hurt) so I'm starting PT on Monday so the exercise has stopped for now.

17 lbs in one month at your weight this far out i think is not the norm. have you lost further weight since august? i.e., what do u weigh now? aside: we are roughly the same stats (tho im 5+ yrs out) and while i have been known to drop 5 lbs unwittingly in a month, i've never experienced a 17 lbs drop in a single month since way back in my 1st or 2nd month post op...but i weighed over 200 lbs back then) hopefully your doc/team has some answers for u now? ❤️ also: are you eating enough calories to maintain your weight, do u know? i have found that i need to eat alot of low volume, high calorie stuff to meet my caloric maintenance needs (and yes, often times this includes items not necessarily on a "healthy" food diet)

I don't know if weight loss has put me in a mind state of "cleaning house" but I have been going through every room, closet and cupboard getting rid of junk and unnecessary items I've held on to for years. Losing the weight and an organized house feels reeeeally good. Even though I haven't tried this trick, it still made me smile. Happy Healthy Holidays everyone!