5 months out!!!

hello everyone, I am 5 months out as of yesterday and i am down 99 lbs. I am soooo excited that i can't stand it. It's amazing how much better you feel when you are not carrying all of that weight around. If i have to say there is a downfall to this surgery, for me it has been the hair loss and the new clothes that i have to buy every 3-4 weeks, but hey, that's a small price to pay for my new life. I seem to be wanting FOOD all the time, and i sometimes don't feel satisfied. I also find myself wanting sweets (chocolate, or just candy like skittles, etc.) and i am wondering if anyone else is having the same problem or any suggestions on how to handle the so called "head hunger". Most of the time i know i am not hungry, but i feel like i need to eat something. I am so afraid of going back to my old ways of eating, and i most definitely don't want to do that. I would like any suggestions or advice if you can give any. Thank you in advance and good luck to everyone!!! ~Missy~

Wow on your weight loss that is just awesome...I am now having the head hunger, but not with sweets...it is cheez-its, pretzels, chips...no where near the amount i would have had...i did find some cans of carb fruits and i have had those...trying to make better choices..but i am human and sooo weak...and same here i do not wanna get into old bad habits...but hard to pick that fruit if i have other things in the house...so guess i gotta say NO... Angie 5-4 293/265/185/?

Great job Missy! You are going to be in the Century Club by tomorrow probably! That's wonderful! After 2 months of shedding, my hair seems to be normalizing now. I hope yours does soon also. As far as the hunger and the craving sweets, I've noticed this seems to come and go for me. What helps me is to have either hot tea or coffee (hot or even better, iced coffee, you can make yours a decaf if you're worried about it.) This nips the hunger for me many times, and if I am really craving sweets, I keep some low sugar protein bars on hand, several varieties, and I will eat anywhere from a quarter of a bar, to a whole bar to satisfy the cravings. I'm getting in some protein and not blowing it, so I can feel good about that. There are some that are quite good, you have to experiment to find some you like. And watch the sugar grams... The protein will hold you for hours, unlike a real carbo loaded sweet, which will only leave you feeling guilty and hungry again in an hour or less. Again, you are doing great! I'm so happy for you! ~Sue

Hey you are doing great. A new woman for the new year. It does feel great not carrying the extra weight around. Having to buy clothing use to be a drag because nothing would fit now it sucks cause nothing fits. LOL But that's because I don't know the right sizes, i get them to big and they don't fit. I am trying to buy stuff now because I need it and I really can't keep wearing what I have. I am down to 3 pairs of pants that fit, and maybe 3 shirts. I am doing laundry all the time and it sucks. I bought a Large shirt at walmart in the regular section of the store for 5$ last night and haven't tried it on yet. To afraid I will open my eye's and have woken from the dream and be back in my 26 pants and 3X shirt's. As far as the wanting sweet's. I haven't had that problem. I think it is honestly because about a year before surgery I cut out all sweets from my life. Candy, cookies etc you name it. I did it because I was looking into having the surgery and I knew it was a huge downfall for me and I just wanted to do something and be successful at it. However I have crazy head hunger for just food sometimes. Like how can I eat such small portions and survive, I must be hungry still, I can still eat some more but the pains from being overly full aren't fun and I remind myself that my stomach isn't big enough and the food just won't fit. If it get's real strong I honestly grab a bottle of water. If I just ate, an hour later have hungry thought's I grab tha****er and drink it. If I still feel hungry I drink more water and if it hasn't subsided by then, then I will eat a little more of what ever it was I was eating before and ended up sticking back in the fridge. Usually does the trick though. I hope you find something that works for you.... Shannon

Hi Missy!! I am 4 months and 1 week out today and have lost 75 lbs. I am VERY happy about that, but I too am hungry all the time!! I was hungry my first week!! I almost paniced, but my nutritionist told me not to worry!! (Easy for her to say, she's never weighed over 100 lbs!!!) LOL Anyway, I am still hungry a lot, but like some of the others, I drink water to quell my appetite. I eat six small meals a day, and drink only water in between. My big thing is that I crave sweets so badly. I don't "dump" either!! I worry about that, but try not to "focus" on it. I focus on the things that I am doing right. I also try not to eat many carbs because that seems to increase my sugar cravings!! I've been given LOTS of clothes by former surgery patients, but I also shop at GoodWill, Salvation Army, and garage sales. I can't see paying "full price" for clothes that are only going to fit for one month!!! If you "haunt" the "thrift" stores pretty regularly, you can find some pretty good things!!

I, too am 5 months out, I have lost 83 lbs. Today was my first day at the gym. I have had extreme hair loss (for about a month now) I have tried everything from Biotin, extra Vit. C, doubled up on vitiams and even increased my Protien intake. I am getting scared! The head hunger has been bad lately and I find it is worse when I don't keep busy. I tell myself I am not hungry and just dig in doing something. The best way to avoid the eating is not have it in the house in the first place...I have not had to buy alot of clothes ( I have 4 sisters and have been raiding thier closets for the last 5 months) the time is coming though. My biggest problem in a huge hernia (I call it my half baby) I hate the awful way it looks. I wear a band alot to hold it in, it looks awful! I am concerned about dealing with this for the next year! The great stuff is how wonderul I feel, the energy I now have ( I run circles around my husband). Don't give up! keep telling yourself you are not hungry and remember all you went though to get to this point... Brenda (Bradenton, Fla)

Your"wanting" the sweets n junk food... is something you need to do to re-condition your mind. Not only is it a body change , but a mental one as well. If you don't , you will eventually eat the same junk that got you here in the first place. Condition the mind for sure