lizzzie_07

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I think I'm literally the slowest loser in DS history. I've lost 50lbs total (43 since surgery), which I'm happy about but I have to admit I expected to lose a LOT more by now. I read my surgical report from Dr. Gagner and he had mentioned in it that a piece of tissue in my stomach prevented him from using a 37 fr. bougie, so he had to make my stomach large, to APPROX. the size of a 60 fr. bougie. So the fact that I can eat a good 3 cups of food already kind of makes sense. I've tried to compensate for this by eating only 2-3 large meals per day. I've always been a large meal kind of person, not a grazer, so this does suit the way I prefer to eat. I think if I had a really small stomach I would never eat anywhere near enough food throughout the day. I just hope this is as big as my stomach is going to get...

I've now figured out why I never succeeded with dieting in the past on a long term basis. If you look at my weight loss tracker, I lose weight for maybe a week or so, and then only lose a pound here and there during the next 3-5 weeks. It has consistently been this way since surgery. And boy is it frustrating!! But now that I know that this is my pattern of weight loss, it makes those stalled weeks much easier to get through. Although every time I'm in a stall I start to get worried that this one will never end.

Beyond that life is pretty good. I'm still dating here and there which has been fun. And I feel more and more confident as the weight comes off. I think the DS has given me an amazing quality of life. I never feel weird eating in front of people like I did with the lapband, and I can enjoy all the foods I love. I do have to stop eating so many carbs though. I get all my protein in no problem, but carbs add up REALLY fast! Especially when you can eat as much as I can. So instead of 1 burger with half the bun, I'm eating 2 (or 3 if they're small) and therefore double or triple the carbs. That's all for now. Looking forward to what the future has in store!

I love my DS!!! =) I'm down 39lbs total (7 pre-op) and for the first time in a long time I'm actually enjoying taking pictures again. I've been this weight a million times before, but after being 290lbs I appreciate this weight so much more. Being less than 200lbs seems so much more obtainable now. I'm still a slow loser, but I'm so happy that the scale is moving. I seem to lose a few lbs, then stall for a couple weeks, lose a few more, etc. And if I don't take all of my vitamins, my weight loss stops completely. I need to monitor my carbs more closely, because I've allowed that to get a little out of hand this last month. And with Christmas here, that isn't helping things. But overall I'm very happy, and I know that the DS was the best decision I've ever made. I never feel like I'm on a diet or being deprived. I can eat high fat things guilt free, which is amazing. I have no food intolerances, although certain carbs do give me gas, but generally not the painful kind. I eat less frequently than your average DSer, but with my larger-than-average sleeve I feel it's the best way to keep my eating from getting out of control. If I allowed myself to eat every few hours I would easily eat as much in a day as I did pre-op, probably more. Anyways, I feel fantastic. Can't wait for the next few months to pass =)

I've lost 27lbs since surgery, 34 total. I'm really happy to have lost 11lbs since my stall. It's a little concerning how much I can eat at once, so I'm trying to make up for that by eating less frequently. I'm not a grazer and more of a large meal person anyway, so I can live with this. I just bought a gazelle, which seems like fun! So I'm hoping to actually follow through with working out more now. On a side note, I just bought a house!! =)  It won't start being built until Jan, but I'm soooo excited. I feel like I WILL reach my goal with this surgery, even if it takes me a little longer than the average person. So that hopefulness combined with buying my first house is making this a really exciting year. I also went on my first date in a while, but I think I'll hold off for a little while longer before I start dating more seriously. Still not in love with this DS because of my large stomach, but I'm almost there...It's sure as hell the easiest weight loss I've ever experienced!

My weight loss was stalled for 5 weeks total. On the forum everyone told me it was normal and not to worry, but it's so hard not to! So my vitalady order arrived (finally) about a week and a half ago, and since taking her full set of vitamins the scale has started moving!!! =) I've lost the couple of pounds I kept gaining and losing over and over again, plus 6lbs (for a total of 22lbs since surgery and 29lbs total). I changed NOTHING with my diet or exercise. So either it's a coincidence, or my body was holding on to my weight for dear life because I was lacking nutrients. I'm just happy to see the numbers going down. It's such a relief. On a side note, my 6 month supply of vitalady supplements cost me $600 plus $100 for duty (I'm from Canada). I knew it was going to be expensive, but wow. That was a shocker. It's well worth it though for my health. Other than that, I'm doing great. I'm back to work and am actually less tired than I was before surgery. I can eat anything and everything (except things high in sugar), and I can eat a good cup or more of food in one sitting. It's actually surprising how much I can eat at once. But I emailed my surgeon and he wasn't concerned and seemed to think I was normal. Anyways, I'm finally beginning to like this DS. I'm not in love yet....once the scale is moving for a few weeks I may feel differently.

Well, physcially I feel good. I'm getting stronger (although I need to start making working out a priority) and it doesn't take much to make me exhausted. I seem to tolerate all foods well, other than getting gas and bloating from foods high in pure sugar (not starchy carbs though for some reason). Mentally, I'm feeling very very discouraged. I've lost about 16lbs since surgery, bouncing up a pound or 2 every once in a while. That's only 5lbs since 10 days out. I keep hitting stalls, and they seem to last much longer than any periods of weight loss. People on the DS forum said this is a normal stall, but I see how much others have lost by 1 month out and I feel sad about my progress. I'm very very glad to have had a successful surgery with no complications though, so I'm trying to focus on the positive. I suffer from depression so I'm hoping I'm not slipping into the common post-op depression. I'm still so glad I had this surgery, just disappointed, and don't know whether to direct it at myself for doing something wrong or just my body for holding onto every ounce of fat for dear life. It can only get better though, right?...

This week I made the turn around and feel like I'm back to my old self again. My breathing issues and nausea completely went away this week. My surgeon said he thought I was collecting fluid in the "third space" of my lungs, so I went to my family Dr. and was put on a diuretic, which did the trick. I also went for a chest x-ray which I will find out the results of tomorrow. I find I can eat quite a large amount of food at this point, which is really surprising. I still have to force myself to eat, but not being nauseous is a big help. I was told I have a 150cc stomach, and I can eat about that, even with the swelling. I worked really hard to up my food intake this week, but it's been a little harder increasing my fluids. I'm up to about 50g of protein per day, and 6 cups of water. Bad part is that I'm probably getting in 50g of carbs a day, which I need to start decreasing. I lost 7lbs at the beginning of the week, and didn't lost a single pound since! Infact I've gained a pound back. I don't get it. Very frustrating. I think maybe I had too many carbs this week, and not enough water? I don't know...I certainly hope I'm not in a stall already. One more reason why me and the scale need to part ways. On the msg board I always see the vets posting to increase protein and fat when you're not losing weight, so I feel like I've done that. But it goes against what I'm used to doing to eat more when I'm not losing. I'm really starting to get fearful about this surgery working for me........I'm going to try to not weigh myself this week (and actually follow through this time). I'm so glad to be feeling better, but if this weight would start coming off a bit faster I'd feel like a million bucks!

Well, I returned home from Montreal yesterday and am SO happy to sleep in my own bed. I'm off pain meds but still get nausea daily. I had a rough go at the hospital, as I was awake for the surgery (horrible experience) and had to fight so hard to get the nurses to properly manage my pain and nausea. I've been hungry since the day of surgery, and everything tastes normal to me which I'm really happy about. The nausea is the only thing holding me back at this point, but I still get hungry when I'm not nauseous. I got to the point in the hotel where I couldn't think of anything to eat there that appealed to me, but now that I'm home I'm finding it a lot easier. I'm probably progressing my diet a wee bit fast, but I'm paying close attention to my new stomach's reactions to everything. So far, I seem to be tolerating everything =) Even lactose, real sugars, sugar alcohols, and starches aren't causing me any issues that I can tell, although I'm still keeping them limited. I only lost 4lbs since surgery, and I'm thinking it's because I haven't been eating or drinking enough. So my goal for this week is to up my protein, fat, and fluids (and obviously limit carbs). I'm hoping that will do the trick. Even though I am confident in this surgery, I still have this fear right now that I won't lose the way other people have, especially after seeing how little weight I lost this week. Me and the scale are going to have to start parting ways I think...I get really obsessive about it every time I try to lose weight, and it always leads me to feel disappoined. I'm trying to start taking short walks every day (about 10 mins each time) because I'm finding that it's hard to breathe after sleeping, like my body is crushing my lungs or something. I know Dr. Gagner said the surgery causes my lungs to be partially deflated at the bases, so I'm assuming that's still impacting my breathing now. I do find the walking helps though, although it's very frustrating how winded and drained I feel after only 5 mins of walking. I'm hoping this will improve this week as well. Overall, it's been a tough week but it keeps getting easier each day, and I hope this week will be when everything turns around for the better and I start to feel like myself again. =)