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So, I always use "cross body" purses because when I put them on my shoulder they always slide off and it annoys me. If I am only going from the car to the house sometimes I may just hold it or put it on my shoulder, I don't know why? Quicker? haha Anyway, the other day I put my purse on my shoulder and walked to my house and noticed it never slid off. Didn't think anything of it, then did it again yesterday and again, it didn't slide off. WHAT? Did it slide off because I was fat? Is that really a thing? Does it stay now because my shoulders are thinner? Is it coincidence? Is this a NSV? I don't even know, but I will take it and I am adding it to my NSC bank. haha This is not the first thing that changed and I had no idea it was the way it was because of my weight? For example, moving my seat forward. Even being 400+lbs my belly never touched the steering wheel. I am 6ft tall. I assumed my seat was moved back because of my height, but as I lost weight I noticed I needed to move my seat forward. I guess less back/butt fat allows me to sit further back in the seat which makes me further away from the steering wheel. Scooting forward on the couch before getting up, like to the edge and then standing up. I just always did it, never realized it was because I was fat but just thought it was normal. Never paid attention if anyone else got up like that. But, like a week ago I noticed that I just got up. From my normal sitting position, did not scoot to the edge of the couch first. Then, i noticed it and was like UHHH what just happened. It was not intentional it just happened and surprised me. So then i started paying attention if my thinner friends got up the same way and they do. So, another "I didn't know it was because I was fat" NSV! It is so weird how we (or at least myself) has been so big for so long that things we think are completely normal are really just our normal and we didn't even realize it until suddenly they weren't OUR NORMAL! It is kinda cool; actually it is very cool!

5 months post op: No one has really ever say anything about how little I eat. Maybe because I have only really sat down at the table for a "real" meal with people who know I had surgery. As far as cookouts and group settings, etc. You kind of just eat randomly and maybe stand around or sit where ever with your plate so no one is really paying attention. I haven't had any Holidays yet, we have a huge family Christmas eve dinner every year and only 1 person in my family knows I had surgery. So, I do wonder how that will go. My entire family is obese, and everything revolves around food. But, I have lost 100+ lbs multiple times, so I think it will be easy to shrug off as "just be trying to loose weight again". The flip side, I will likely be pretty close to my goal weight by then. (I hope anyway) So at that point, they will probably be more focused on how much weight I have loss and I can easily explain eating less in result of a strict diet for so long. When I went out for surgery, I told work I was having a haital hernia fixed (which was true and mine was very bad). So I was on a strict diet for that with liquids and graduating back thru stages to normal foods. I kinda played it as well since I couldn't eat for a month it kick started my weight loss so I am just sticking with it and following through to keep loosing weight. So, they just think I am on a diet. They also know I have lost 100+ lbs in the past, so just stated trying to do it again and keep it off this time. As far as restaurants, I never had a server as if everything was ok. My wife and I share a meal a lot, so most of it gets eaten anyway. And so many people are obsessed with these "fad" diets, that I don't think most people even blink an eye anymore to strange requests. Like "no bun" or "no sauce" etc. I went to a sub shop because I was dying for my favorite turkey sub. I said "I am sorry to be so weird but can you dig most of the bread out of the roll before making it" She replied, that's not weird at all tons of people ask us to do that. Then I even took the bottom of the roll off and cut the top in half and added the meat and toppings to the half of a hollow roll to fit my needs. PS, still couldn't eat more than a few bites of the bread but it DEFINITELY satisfied my sub craving. I am allowed all foods, while focusing on proteins first. I eat very balanced, so I don't need to make many requests or have much of a different plate than everyone else. I just have smaller portions and/or eat less of the food on my plate and make the healthier of choices in front of me. Sorry for the long winded response!

Stalls are normal. My teams warned us about them and stressed not to panic. I think everyone has their own preference on who often they weigh themselves. There is no right or wrong answer here, just whatever works for you. I weigh myself every Monday morning, basically in the same clothes. Tshirt, bra, underwear and flip flops. My surgery was on a Monday morning, so that is why I choose that day. I do sometimes weigh myself randomly during the week but only document my Monday morning weight.

There are some antidepressants that can cause weight gain (for example, tricyclic antidepressants are notorious for it). Surely your doctor didn't prescribe an antidepressant that can cause weight gain since they know that you are trying to lose weight. IMO, the best antidepressant for overweight patients is Wellbutrin (burpopion) because it can actually promote weight loss. Sorry, I am a pharmacist so I can't stop myself from making drug recommendations. I know everyone pushes the "reset diet" but I have to say that what made it easy for me to get rid of my regain and not feel hungry doing it was my doctor prescribing me Ozempic. I am a type 2 diabetic and I had been taking Bydureon in the past without weight loss effect then my insurance removed Bydureon from their formulary and I was switched to Ozempic. Weight started coming off within a month of starting the Ozempic and just kept coming off. I have currently lost around 30lbs. If you are not a diabetic, Wegovy has the same drug in it as Ozempic (semaglutide) just at a different dosage for weight loss. I have been taking Ozempic for almost a year now and I no longer have cravings and rarely ever even feel hungry. It is funny how Ozempic, Bydureon, and Saxenda are all in the same drug class but I only experienced weight loss with Ozempic. I just flat out couldn't tolerate Saxenda. Slowed my gastric emptying to an unbearable level. Bydureon worked for my diabetes but didn't have any effect on my weight. Of course, these are all injectable drugs (Ozempic/Wegovy/Bydureon are only once a week though vs daily for Saxenda). Contrave is an oral weight loss drug that contains wellbutrin (bupropion) as one of the ingredients. It seems like it would be a good option for those who can't stand the thought of using an injectable medication but honestly, I. Rybelsus is the oral equivalent of Ozempic. Phentermine is probably the most popular weight loss drug but I have known of people with poorly controlled hypertension to have strokes while on phentermine so I don't recommend it unless I know that the person either does not have hypertension or they take their BP meds and check their blood pressure frequently. Best of Luck

I always feel bad for my waiter when I go out to eat because they will usually come over and ask me if there is anything wrong with my meal. I just tell them that I had a stomach surgery and don't feel like eating and then I take my meal to go. When I am out with people outside of my family, I usually order something small and cut it up and use my fork to mix everything on the plate together and move it around to try to make it look like I ate more than I actually did. (This is a technique that small children often use to try to convince Mom that they have eaten enough dinner. I have often wondered how many other bariatric surgery patients have done this in an effort to not offend a host. ) You can also just box up half of your meal before you even start eating and just say that you are trying new eating habits if anyone asks. Buffets are just a no go for me unless they have to go options (pay by weight of meal). Even though I am several years out from surgery, after my doctor started me on Ozempic last year (for diabetes, not weight loss), I have been unable to eat more than a few bites of food at a time. My stomach literally feels just like it did a few weeks after surgery. Consequently, I have lost more weight which is great but I have to say that the daily nausea is getting old at this point.

Yes, there are odd things that I have to manage with my sleeve but there were things I had to manage with what I ate before surgery. I had a dodgy digestive system with sensitivities & intolerances. Still dodgy with a couple of other considerations now. Some of the changes I made to what I eat can limit my options but generally I can find a few options I can eat or can eat around. I’m also much more aware of my body’s response & reactions to various foods & situations then ever before. I look at it as being a good thing & part of eating mindfully. I think much of the portion size issue is really about people’s inaccurate perception of what is an appropriate portion size. We are confronted with what are jumbo size portions that are 2, 3 or more what is a recommended size & we think they are normal. Take note of how much & what other slimmer people eat & you’ll realise you are much like them. The reality is the portion we eat is about what everyone should be eating. It only looks small because of the excessive portion sizes. Sure, I have days when my energy is lower. Some is because of my low blood pressure. But when I stop & reflect before surgery I had days when my energy was low too but then it was because of my weight. Generally though I’m certainly fitter & stronger than I was before & that outweighs (pun) the odd day I feel weak or need a nap. Most of my family & friends are aware of my food preferences & portion needs. They make allowances for them much the same way as they would with someone with a food allergy or who was vegetarian or vegan, etc. It just all takes time. From you understanding your body, needs & changes to others understanding the changes you’ve made. You don’t have to explain your surgery if you don’t want to. Sometimes just saying I’m not hungry or I’m seeing a dietician or I’m trying a new way of eating is more than enough if you feel you need to explain. Ultimately what you choose to put in your mouth is nobody’s business but yours.

Hello! Long time lurker, first time writer. My question is as the title suggest, what am I feeling? I keep getting this almost rumbling feeling in my belly that kinda feels like a painful version of stomach growls when super hungry. It makes my stomach feel heaving and tight and comes a goes randomly. I'm trying to tell myself it's gas pains and it will go away soon but it takes my breath away when it happens. Just want to make sure I havent signed myself up to living with this feeling forever. Thanks bunches! 1day po Starting 290 Surgery weight 238 Cw 241 Goal 175

I always get my "official" weight first thing in the morning after I wake up. But I almost always weigh myself last thing before I go to sleep as well, and it's actually helped me get more sleep. I've noticed that the longer I sleep the more weight I lose (I've lost up to 2 lbs overnight sometimes), so I have been actively trying to get more sleep, going from an average of 4 or 5 hours a night to 7 or 8.

I weigh myself at least once a day too. If I am at home all day, then I weigh myself several times a day. Stalls and fluctuations do not bother me at all. I meticulously track my food real time, so I know whether I am doing something wrong or not even before stepping in the scale. Too many factors play into weight. Like if I eat too many pickles, I will gain water weight for a few days. I understand others though. If the stalls and fluctuations bothered me, I wouldn't weigh too often either.

Just wanted to share a little NSV. I realized last week that I had to do some shopping because once again my clothes were getting too big on me! When I started my weight loss journey, I was wearing XXL shirts that were getting too snug, and size 42 pants that were also getting too snug. As of this week, I'm wearing Medium shirts and size 32 pants - holy cow! I found one of my old XXL shirts that used to fit me tightly, tried it on with a little help from my daughter, thought some here might enjoy:

Don't feel bad for weighing in, there's literally no right or wrong way to do it. Except I'm probably doing it wrong, I weight myself multiple times a day because I'm a crazy person. Not always all the time, but I weigh myself at least once a day in the morning and I don't think there's anything wrong with that at all - unless it starts driving me crazy, otherwise it's not a problem.

So, we’re jumping forward to May 2021. Picture this: I’m about to talk to my cardiologist at my 1 year surgery follow-up and am getting nervous. Mentally I’m going through all the things I’m going to say to convince him I’m fine, and that he should definitely approve me for WLS. Turns out, I was worried about nothing. He went through the standard checkup stuff and at just about the point that I was ready to go into my well rehearsed sales pitch, he actually asked me if I was still considering bariatric surgery. Imagine my surprise at that one! When I said yes, he didn’t hesitate to say he was fine with it and didn’t see the heart surgery as an issue at all. He just became my new favorite doctor. I walked out of his office ecstatic and ready to call the bariatric center to get the weight loss surgery scheduled right then. I mean if they would have taken me in tomorrow, I was READY. It was late in the day though, so I decided to wait. Turns out waiting was a bad choice. I woke up the next day with horrible back pain. I’d had back issues for many years, but it had been mostly stable for a while. Now I was experiencing a bout of sciatica that was so bad, I had little to no muscle control in my legs. Great, more health issues to deal width and once again bariatric surgery would have to wait. Let me jump forward a bit here. It took a few months, some new meds, some injections, and some aquatic therapy, but the back was feeling tolerable, at least. I was finally ready to call the bariatric surgeon’s office. Remember me saying I should have called sooner? It turns out they had a 2 month backlog for “new” patients. You see, because I had been out of the program for almost 18 months at that point, I basically had to start over. Fast forward to September 2021 and I finally get to meet with a PA and start the “intake” process. I then did the standard psych evaluation and 6 months of dietitian visits required by my insurance company. The surgeon also decided that I needed to do an abdominal CT scan with contrast. Not sure if this was typical, or something “special” just for me. Unfortunately, once again something wasn’t right. This meant the surgeon wanted a closer look, which meant more testing. Pro tip, if you ever get told you need to do a fluoroscopic swallowing exam, see if you can get out of it. Seriously. This was probably one of the top 5 worst exams I've done. I went in thinking it would be no big deal and was much more worried about the endoscopy they also were planning. Turns out, I had it completely backward. I slept through the endoscopy, but the swallow study just was miserable. After a few tense days of waiting for results, my surgeon’s office said they found a couple of issues, including a hiatal hernia, but I was okay to proceed to surgery! Now it became a waiting game for insurance approval and surgical scheduling. (Apparently they are still way behind and not able to accommodate a full surgical schedule due to a COVID-19 induced backlog.) After an eternity waiting, I finally, finally got scheduled for September 20th. I just thought I was anxious before. Now the waiting really begins!

Before my VSG, I only lost 2 lbs during my 2 week pre-op diet! Talk about discouraging! They had me only eating/drinking protein shakes and greek yogurt. I never eat yogurt because it’s too high in calories and carbs. I think that is what kept me from losing any weight. However, my surgery went very well and I recovered quickly so there’s that… This time around (I’m getting ready for a revision from VSG to RNY) I’m drinking protein shakes but not eating much greek yogurt. I’m sipping on chicken bone broth a lot instead. I started my pre-op diet 4 days ago and I’ve lost 3 lbs. so far. Hang in there! It’s all going to work out great! Just stick to your pre-op diet and everything will be fine. You’ll start dropping weight after your surgery. I lost almost 80 lbs in about 3 months after my VSG.

I could not weigh at home for about the first 2.5(ish) years, so that would certainly kill some of you. Once I could, I did it for a couple weeks until I drove myself crazy (not a far trip), then gave it up. Once I stopped my monthly follow-ups, I didn't weigh between annual doctor visits. Still don't. The scale no longer has power over me. I guess when you go through a couple/three years of only weighing monthly you learn it's not the end of the world not to know your EXACT weight. Just keep following your plan, then rest happens on it's own. Oh. Scales lie. There! Good luck, Tek

Well I commend you for your fortitude liveaboard but no way could I wait a month or even a fortnight between weigh ins! OP it is totally normal to see no loss in a 4 day or even a 2 or 3 week spell. These are stalls. We all experience them on our weight loss journeys. I hope you start to lose again soon - I suspect you will *really* soon!

LOL yea I can see it bothering people not knowing. But i like doing it this way that way i see huge changes instead of weighing myself everyday and seeing a pound gone here and a pound gain there. I weigh and take body measurements on the 4th of every month. Once in a while i may weigh myself half way to see how i am doing

I had a revision in March From sleeve to rny due to GERD. I dont suffer from heartburn anymore which is great however I feel a lot less restriction with food and I find i am able to eat more than I was before and have actually gained 15lbs since my lowest weight after my sleeve in 2018. I’m feeling scared that I will continue to gain and feel like I shouldn’t have gotten the revision :(. Anyone else go through this?

It's normal. If you didn't lose weight for another couple weeks it would still be normal. Get off the scale, it doesn't make you lose weight faster. See? I didn't do the "scales lie" routine. I can change! Good luck, Tek

I am 6 weeks post op from gastric bypass and have not lost weight in 4 days . Is this normal ?

Hi there! It's nice that you have so many people wanting to do such nice things for you! Maybe try and distract them- I don't need food, I'm on a particular post op diet, but you could pick me up the new book by whoever/or the new movie/or stop by and take a little recovery walk with me? Congrats on being on this side of the surgery! That first holiday can be a little rough, but knowing it will be different helps you plan for that. My Mom literally sent us a 7 lb. cinnamon roll cake for the first holidays after my surgery. No joke. I was really firm in explaining that I wasn't going to accept these type of gifts from her going forward and we were able to get rid of it. Even knowing that I had the surgery, she still sent this(?!) it helped when my nutritionist pointed out that this kind of thing says more about the gifter than the recipient (truth!) Half the holiday will be putting food on your plate and moving it around. That's part of the social aspect of the holidays + food. Don't worry about everyone and what they're thinking- just take the food and toss it (or give it to someone else as you can) Put things in your napkin. The good news is that at holiday gatherings, we tend to move around a lot to socialize, so you're not usually at one table with one person, so they don't get the opportunity to super judge your plate. Most people won't notice or care, but you'll wind up with one person who just wants to be extra special about it all. Bring some snacks and things you CAN eat easily for yourself or to share with everyone else if it's a potluck. People didn't really notice the weight loss on me until I got to the 40+ lbs. mark. Then the comments started (but so did the compliments!) As I got further along, I felt braver (I originally planned to tell no one except immediate in my home family) and was able to tell extended family, a few friends (lost a few, but whatever- again, it's a reflection of THEM) and a few strangers like neighbors who got really needle-y about what was wrong with me/how I was doing it. The first time I was in a restaurant and said "xyz.......because I'm a bariatric patient." I thought my poor hubby was going to fall over! Let me know if you need anything!

5lbs in 7 days is great! Keep in mind the pre-op diet is to help you shrink your liver not necessarily lose weight.

I’m brand new to my sleeve but already I’m feeling what you are saying. Most people know I had a hiatal hernia repair, only very limited few know I had a sleeve done at the same time. Most people also know that I have been working with a nutritionist to try to reverse my fatty liver and that I have been eating differently even before the surgery. Since coming home from the hospital - I keep getting calls like “how are you feeling? When you’re up to I’ll stop by with a jello cake or cheese cake”. Or some other comfort food I couldn’t have had even if I had not been sleeved. Or even offering to bring me a meal. Which is very sweet … but then I need to explain that I’m on a limited diet for a few weeks while I heal and they understand - but they don’t get. I’m nervous about going forward. I’ll be back to a normal diet with smaller portions around the holidays… and I’m scared silly how to navigate those gatherings. That aunt that always comments about your eating (too much or not enough). Hopefully I will have lost a noticeable amount of weight by then - to which that same aunt will be over the top about noticing. I may still be too new to have the “what have I done moment”… I certainly wish I had done it sooner. I’m not sure how I can help - but I’m here if you need moral support! Best of luck. I have no doubt that we’ve got this!

I went into my surgeons office expecting her to want me to choose bypass because of my hi bmi and the fact I’m already taking Pepcid for reflux. She reviewed my medical history and asked me what I wanted. My reply to her was “after reviewing my medical history and your vast experience, what would you recommend for the most successful outcome for me”. She smiled and said I’m so glad you asked me that. Given my high BMI, if my goal was weight-loss alone she would have recommended Duodenal Switch. Then she went over the reasons why she doesn’t recommend that at this time. She then explained why she wouldn’t recommend a bypass for me. And then explained why she would actually recommend the sleeve for me. I was actually relieved because I really preferred the sleeve because of the lower risk and complications out of the three. She told me if I wanted to convert to the DS later we could. But if I put the work in and used my new tool to it’s fullest advantage - I might find that to not be necessary. My husband and I were both on board with what she was saying so that’s the direction we went in. She did a hiatal hernia repair at the same time as my sleeve so the hope is I will be able to transition off of the meds for reflux at some point, but if I can’t so be it. And down the road if I feel like we need to go with another option that’s open to me as well. I’m not really looking forward to another surgery - so I’m hoping this is it. Only time will tell. You have time to decide. No two people have the exact same outcome - so the best anyone can tell you is look at all the information and make the best choice for you. Best of luck.

i am going to be getting the sleeve in late sept or early october. i decided against bypass because of outcomes of people i know. 2 people i know had sleeves with no big complications (very minor issues like nausea directly after surgery) and two more that had the equivalent of a sleeve for ulcers with the same positive experiences … all four of them kept the weight off but i also know 3 people who got bypass (different places/surgeons) and all three have had complications that keep sending them back to the hospital and have developed major nutritional problems and health issues from those too and, honestly, all three of them ate their way back to 3/4 of their original weight… (they are all from different areas of the country too!) reading medical literature i know the sleeve is better for me because i feel it’s safer, less drastic and has less inherent problems… but only you know what is right for you! there are successes and “failures” on both sides… educate yourself and make the best decision for you

The stalls are the WORST! Congrats on your weight loss though!