I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE ABSOLUTE ANSWER FOR US, BUT AS FOR MYSELF I DRINK AT LEAST 1 SPORTS DRINK A DAY BECAUSE IT HAS THE ELECTROLYTES AND POTASSIUM IN IT THAT WE NEED...I FEEL THIS WAY THAT IF NOTHING ELSE I WON'T RUN THE RISK OF GETTING DEHYDRATED AS EASILY AS SOME PEOPLE I KNOW DO THAT HAVE HAD THE WLS, AND EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS. HOPE THIS HELPS!! BARB

Wow, 2 posts in one day is probably a record for me... just wanting to talk I guess. So I was wondering if anyone else has kept their WLS a secret from most of their friends/family like I have. It's funny because I'm not really that private of a person, I gab like crazy about things, but with this, I'm still pretty secretive. There are a select few people who know about my surgery... like my mom, my in-laws, my hubby, and my closest friends. My dad, my siblings, and the majority of my friends still have NO IDEA. They all think I've been dieting and exercising like crazy (which I have, also). My sister was here over the weekend and her hubby, who's definitely morbidly obese was talking about WLS b/c his buddy's wife had it and has lost 120 lbs. and is looking awesome. I told him I knew people who had done it and the results were amazing and they'd never change their choice for ANYTHING in the world. But then he and my sister started talking S*IT about the "LOSERS" who choose to have WLS and how it's the easy way out. I quickly changed topics before I got too upset, especially since I would never want them to know about my surgery. HA! "The EASY way out"... That's funny. It certainly didn't feel so "EASY" being wheeled into the surgery room, not knowing whether or not I'd make it thru the surgery and ever see my baby again. It wasn't "EASY" drinking liquids for weeks while the people around me were eating everything normal... it wasn't "EASY" walking around with a drain tube sticking out of my side, or walking around period for that matter. It wasn't "EASY" the following months dealing with changing EVERYTHING in my life. In fact, there's not been anything "EASY" about it. The "EASY way out" is to continue stuffing your face and gaining more and more weight every year until eventually you die. That's the "EASY way out"... doing NOTHING to change your situation. I hope someday people's views of the surgery really do change. I know every year it seems to get more acceptable as a form of weightloss. I know the people I've told have all been very supportive (to my face), and I'm sure if I had told my sister and her hubby, they would have been too, to my face at least... then behind my back would've talked smack about me, just like his buddy's wife. It's funny because I've always been so self-conscious, and never wanted anyone to know I was obese (as though they couldn't tell by looking at me). I was in denial of my weight, and hoped that those around me were too. Last month, my surgeon (THE ABSOLUTE GOD THAT HE IS) asked me to be a model in his upcoming fashion show/ informational meeting, but I turned him down because there were going to be news reporters airing the show and the thought of my "secret life" getting out made me absolutely sick. Maybe I need some good head shrinking to work through this. I should be proud, not embarrassed. Sorry to vent, just wondering if any of you have experienced the same thing and how you've dealt with it. thanks for listening, Dawn

I wish I knew what to do to get rid of those.......... they're so gross!!! I agree... tight clothes seem to be the best deterrant right now, but whenever I get naked I feel so gross cuz then they're out there flapping in the wind. And bathing suits.......... FORGET ABOUT IT! I tried them on thinking the size 10 I'm now in will make me look great in a swimsuit... HA!!!!!!!!!!!! That was a laugh... I think I'm going to try weight lifting and see if that helps. If not, there's always the magic of plastic surgery... maybe I'll even get on extreme makeover!!!!!!!! Dawn

Hi Judy, Don't give up. I know right now is hard because our weightloss is slowing down SIGNIFICANTLY!!!! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FAIL!!! I was soooo excited last week b/c I got down to 163, the very next day I weighed 165 and the next I weighed 166. Now I'm stuck there. This is hopefully just a plateau... remember to stick to the basics... water + protein + exercise are our friends... high salt/high sugar/high carbs are our enemies!!! I'm sure if we could go back, we'd remember hitting similar plateau's around the same time (I think at like 2 months out most of us just stopped losing weight all of the sudden, and then started back up again). Try not to get down on yourself... maybe just go back to the basics, this party's not over yet!!!!!!!!!!1 Dawn

YES! And I think everyone else is right... it's got to do with getting enough water in... I remember a few weeks after surgery I had problems with this and increased my water intake and it went away. Now I'm having the same problem again. I think as long as I drink more water (especially now since I work out a lot more) it should go away. Try it and see if it helps! Dawn