Hi Gene, I haven't been on the website for awhile and thought I'd check in on everyone! saw your e-mail and thought I'd join in on the weight loss. Everyone seems to have done soooooooooo good!!! I am very proud of all of you. I have NOT done as good as y'all!! but I did lose 75 lbs. I had my surgery on 5/28/03(weighted in at 287) and as of today 1/06/05 I weigh 212. I know I should have lost more, but I don't know what I'm doing wrong that I seem to have come to a stop on losing any weight. I haven't lost any for about 5-6 months. if anyone has any suggestions PLEASE feel free to let me know, I'll be more than glad to take any advice!! Again , I'm very proud of all of you, we've all come a long way!! God bless us all. candi R.

I am thinking this pain has to be connected to my menstrual cycle in some fashion OR I'm going nuts. One of the two. I did contact my surgeon's office and we did all the tests - the upper GI, exrays, etc. Nothing appears to be wrong with the 'plumbing' of the surgery. However, the day that I went to the dr. I started 'spotting' - and with that 'spotting' it seemed the stomach problem, while still there and very real - subsided some. Then for a few days I had NO spotting or anything and the pain was there again. THEN finally a full fledged period started and the pain in my stomach went away. I seem to be seeing some type of pattern, I think - in that the week prior to my cycle I have this pain. I don't GET IT. ONE bite of food sends me into spasms of pain. ONE sip of water does the same. The pain wakes me up in the night even when I am NOT eating anything for HOURS. But it all seems to be 'gone' or diminishes greatly upon the appearance of the monthly 'visitor'. What the dr. said we should do - (his eyebrows raised high when I mentioned there could be a connection to the menstrual cycle) is that I need to record/document/DIARY (yuck) the pain and such for 3 months. If it does indeed appear that there is a connection, we'll pursue looking into the 'menopausal' thing. (I am going to be 50 in January.) He also said that in any type of surgery - WLS or any type that interferes with the bowel/intestine - there are THREE places that a kink can occur. When they do the RNY surgery they automatically secure two of the three places so they don't kink. However with the 3rd place, there is only a 6% chance of it kinking. There is more danger in them working with that 'potential kink' than if they take the 6% chance. What can happen, if I understood him correctly, is that in this area if they mess with that - it can interupt the blood supply to the 'tiny tummy' and make it die. NOT a good thing! So that is why they take the chance. He thought perhaps I have a periodic kink - and if that is what we determine, they CAN do a little lap surgery that would secure that as well. He said IF the pain came back - I should probably STOP eating while that is happening. (Makes good sense, but STOPPING FOOD is one of my big problems, right???? *smile*) That is what happened - I'm enjoying a couple weeks now of no pain and eating and drinking farely normally now.

Congratulations, Grace!!! You must be euphoric. I just had my surgery on November 2, 2004, and have lost 28 pounds so far. I weighed 378 when I started, so I obviously have quite a bit to go, but I have started. I have always been heavy, and "morbidly obese" for the last 25 years. I wish you all the luck in the world in achieving your goal, and I plan to follow you in achieving mine! Take care. Pam

I'm trying to find my way around this site. I hear you about your plateau. I am 14mos post op and haven't lost anything in 5 months BUT I am eating way too much junk! It scares me that these old habits keep coming back. It's so much easier to digest a nice carb or even mini candy things over the day than to eat meat! I am not happy with myself. I have lost 130 and want to lose at least 70 more. My right knee is shot, too. I have been avoiding surgery as I am only 50 but have decided that I want to move NOW not when I am 60. Think I'll have it done in April when I get some sick/vac time saved up. Who else is struggling with their food choices??? Ouch on the torn meniscus! Did you have surgery?

Congratulations Jeanette! Pregnancy for me has been going very well. I'm 22 weeks + 1 day today. It's going by pretty quickly, but doesn't make it go any faster. I still can't wait!! I found out I'm having a baby boy. We are going to name him Dawson Royce. I'm slowly getting things ready for his room and trying to stay organized. The ole tale of losing your mind while being pregnant is the truth. I can't tell you how many things I've forgotten and have trouble keeping track of. LOL I have a hard time keeping up with the OSSG pregnancy group as well, but there is another yahoo group for March Mommies. It's not geared towards those with gastric bypass specificially, but I've learned a ton and found my pregnancy is very normal. You might try that group. It's a busy one as well though. Feel free to keep in touch with me privately - [email protected] I love to talk with other pregnant moms and would enjoy the exchange of experiences. Hope everything is going well for each of you! Sandy RNY 5/21/03 Dawson EDD 3/17/05