Long time no update!
So I realized I hadn’t updated in a reaaaaally long time. My weight loss ticker is also incorrect because of this. :- I will update that soon (hopefully)…
Bad (and embarrassing) news: I regained a few pounds. 😦
Good new: I’ve lost some once again. 🙂
I had nearly gotten down to my BD (before Damian [my 8 year old]) weight by Christmas day. But then I gained almost 20lbs back during Damian’s winter break. During this time, I was walking MUCH less and my eating was not so great. I wasn’t eating more (still am not), just wrong things. I could have (should have) made better choices. Point is: I gained back 20lbs quickly. Although I am, for the most part, back on track… the weight just isn’t coming off as “easily” anymore. It’s taking alot longer and requiring alot more work now.
I have yet to get back to my Christmas weight, but my goal for the summer is to get back there. I am still 100lbs down from two summers ago and 82lbs down since surgery day… and that is awesome. But, I will feel so much better once I reach this mini goal…
Numbers… so far:
Weight lost since high weight on 06/07/10 (24 months ago): -99.4lbs
Weight lost since pre-op on 11/01/10 (17 months ago): -90.0lbs
Weight lost since surgery on 11/23/10 (16 months ago): -81.6lbs
A Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy performed live…
A Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy performed live…
The Feeding Tube Diet?!?!
Am I CRAZY for thinking this would be worth a try? Especially after already having been sleeved? :-
http://www.hulu.com/embed/lPT9v9d1MRFIWKft9yP-YQ/575/1055/i584
The Protein Obsession : thedavisclinic.com
February 13, 2012
The Protein Obsession
Posted by: Dr. Garth Davis (Edit) at 6:18 pm
I have written articles and given talks all over the country on topics from behavioral therapy to surgery for weight loss.  All are met with nods of approval, all except one: my talk on the benefits of the vegetarian diet.  Invariably I will get looks of shock and horror.  How dare I suggest that people, especially weight loss surgery patients, should not eat protein.  Open any magazine or ask any doctor and they will suggest that the most important nutrient we could eat is protein.  Protein, Protein, Protein!  It’s everywhere.  I even saw protein infused vodka the other day.
ORLive, Inc.: Gastric Sleeve Surgery
A gastric sleeve performed live in a webcast online yesterday.
1 year surgiversary!!
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year already. My 1 year surgiversary was this past Wednesday, November 23. My surgery last year was TWO days before Thanksgiving! I remember sitting at the table with everyone last year, but not eating ANYTHING. I was on clear liquids at the time, being so soon after surgery.
This year, I had a “normal” Thanksgiving dinner, just a MUCH smaller portion! I did still have some pie, but was not able to finish my slice. Yay! I have lost quite a bit of weight this past year, but I still have quite a ways to go.
I’m also realizing that no matter how much I lose in my stomach area, there will always be loose skin left there. :- Ideally, I would get plastic surgery (tummy tuck, boobs, etc) but unfortunately, I don’t have an extra 25 grand laying around. 😦 I think I’m ok with it though. Maybe. I’m not even sure yet. Just glad I made it one year post-op. Looking forward to many more….
Numbers… so far:
Weight lost since high weight on 06/07/10 (15 months ago): -111.2lbs
Weight lost since pre-op on 11/01/10 (12 months ago): -101.9lbs
Weight lost since surgery on 11/23/10 (12 months ago): -93.4lbs
ABC Nightline: Thu, Nov 10, 2011
Another VSG story in the news…
Vitamins may be harmful? – ABC World News with Diane Sawyer: Mon, Oct 10, 2011
This segment is not focused on weight loss surgery patients, but it still makes me think twice about the vitamins I take. It is highly recommended that weight loss surgery patients take multivitamins and many other vitamins and minerals. This segment says vitamins and other supplements may be harmful rather than helpful. Another scare tactic?
9+ months post-op – 08/29/11
My 9 month surgiversary was August 23. Tomorrow will be my next (at home) weigh in. I haven’t been looking forward to weigh-in’s recently. Most have not been great. The good news is that i’m still losing weight. The bad news is that the weight loss has slowed to a super-slow-motion-crawl!
As of today, I have lost a total of 106.2lbs from my highest weight (06/07/10)… 96.9lbs from my pre-op weight (11/01/10)… and 88.4lbs from my surgery date (11/23/10)!! Check out my weekly weigh-in info under the “My Progress” link.
I had my 9 month post op follow up with the new surgeon, Dr. Brian Smith, in early August. I mentioned my bout with constant nausea, vomiting and worsening heartburn/reflux and bile. The surgeon believes it may be an ulcer and/or reflux, which is common after VSG. He prescribed me medication and said it should help with the reflux/heartburn. If this does not help with my symptoms, then let him know asap and we’d move on to something else (like an upper endoscopy). So far, it has helped some, especially in the vomiting dept. I was puking everything I ate or drank for the week+ prior to my appt. My nutritionist told me to immediately start taking a Vitamin B-50 complex, because so much vomiting depletes the body’s B vitamins, especially B1/thiamine. She also said that if the vomiting continues for 2 days in a row to immediately call and let them know! I went almost two weeks of daily vomiting. It has since calmed down since starting the ulcer medication. My surgeon believes it’s a combination ulcer and reflux because: reflux is commong after VSG, BUT, it usually happens soon after VSG surgery. Mine started several months after my surgery, pointing to an ulcer. He did not request any blood work this time. He said he would at my next appt scheduled for mid-December, unless my symtoms continue or worsen with the medication.
TMI Warning: STOP reading here if you are not interested in” well-woman appt” talk**
I also had “one of those” yearly woman exams in mid August… ten days after my VSG follow up. I only lost 2lbs from one appt to the next. But my ob/gyn was very pleased! That was the ONLY good news from that appt. Turns out they forgot to get authorization for something they were supposed to do at this appt, so I have to return, yet again, to my ob/gyn in a couple weeks! I was furious and the dr kept apologizing for their mistake and inconvenience to me. I guess it’s good so I can see how much i’ve lost since. :-
Numbers… so far:
Weight lost since high weight on 06/07/10 (15 months ago): -106.2lbs
Weight lost since pre-op on 11/01/10 (9.5 months ago): -96.9lbs
Weight lost since surgery on 11/23/10 (9 months ago): -88.4lbs
8 month surgiversary – 100lbs down – 07/19/11
So it’s been a couple months since I wrote an update. Decided to do so right now, since the end of this week will mark the 8 month anniversary of my weight loss surgery!!
I have lost a total of 100.2lbs from my highest weight (06/07/10)… 90.9lbs from my pre-op weight (11/01/10)… and 82.4lbs from my surgery date (11/23/10)!! Check out my weekly weigh-in info under the “My Progress” link.
Just a year ago, I weighed 100lbs more than I do today! On the one hand, I am thrilled to have hit this milestone. On the other hand, I think how much i’ve lost and how much more I have to lose. If my weight loss completely stopped right now, I think I would be ok with it. But ideally, I would like to lose 40-50 more pounds (76 to reach my fairytale weight…lol).
It is still a struggle but I take it one day at a time. I go to bed thanking God for getting me through that day. Then, I wake up thanking God for allowing me a chance at another day. Meal times are not that bad, but when I get hungry it feels like I haven’t eaten in days. I feel nauseas and my stomach aches rather than growls. I dry heave as well. At almost 8 months post-op, I still can only eat literally three or four bites of food and i’m full, BUT… I am hungry again within 2-3hrs! And these in-between-meal-snacks are where I could be doing better. My nutritionist recommends no more than 1200 calories a day at this point. I’ve found that when I get to 1,000-1,200ish calories a day, I go to bed feeling uncomfortable and sometimes with a stomach ache. So, I feel the most comfortable staying at around 900 calories a day. I am not even a year post-op, so I am sure my calorie intake will increase as time passes.
I remember around my 6 month surgiversay I had sort of celebrated by drinking several drinks over the course of about a week. That phase passed – the weight loss stall, caused by the alcohol, makes drinking not even worth it. Just this past weekend though, I drank again. Not anywhere near as much as last time! Two months later and the alcohol still hit me. Hard and fast. I really do not see the point in drinking anymore. The empty calories make me go over my daily calorie goal and stop my weight loss, sooooo NOT worth it!
Also, this past weekend I chopped my hair off! This is something I’d wanted to do BEFORE I had WLS. I really wish I would have done it before. Since surgery, I have lost ALOT of hair! The hair loss was at it’s worst around February/March (about 3 months post-op). It has since calmed down alot, but I no longer have a thick, full head of hair. Hopefully, it grows back nicely and quickly.
Numbers… so far:
Weight lost since high weight on 06/07/10 (13 months ago): -100.2lbs
Weight lost since pre-op on 11/01/10 (8.5 months ago): -90.9lbs
Weight lost since surgery on 11/23/10 (8 months ago): -82.4lbs
mozmonq 