Hi all,

I am celebrating my 8th birthday today!  I feel so empowered and free!  I walk 4-5 miles 7 days a week and don't eat big portions.  I can do things now I never believed I could do, like work again, take care of my family and myself.  Things are not always easy.  I do get sick sometimes (dumping) when I eat too much sugar (not thinking) and when I overeat.  One would think these things would pass by now, but there are still times when I indulge and forget that I am not that person anymore.  My weight is 115 lbs., so I have maintained a weight loss of around 110 lbs. since my gastric bypass surgery on December 1, 2005.  I feel like a totally different person.  My lifestyle has changed 100%.  Sometimes people don't understand the things I go through, like getting sick and having to abstain from certain foods, but I don't care...I feel like a million bucks!  Please, if you're reading this and you are trying to decide whether or not to have this surgery, know that if you follow your surgeon's instructions, you'll do great!  If you continue to try and eat like you did before, you will stretch  your stomach and regain your weight.  Also, you need to do some kind of activity, both for the mind and body, like working out (walking will do just fine) and some hobby, like knitting, to keep your hands busy when watching TV.  I want to pay it forward and this is the only way I know how to do it...writing down my success with my weight loss journey...the biggest challenge in my life!  And I am doing it!  I do wonder where all the other people who had surgery 8 years ago are, but am hoping they are busy with their new life!

Janet

where is everyone?

Whoever still reads these posts, celebrated my 6th year out of gastric bypass surgery yesterday and it feels good, great, fantastic!  Life is much better for me than it was 6 years ago.  I have had no complications since my surgery and am at my goal weight of 125 lbs.  I still walk at least 4 miles a day 7 days a week and watch what I eat (most of the time).  I do go on my binges every once in a while, but do get sick when I eat lots of sugar or fat.  It's a great life living the way I do.  I feel very liberated and not like a prisoner in my own body.  I can look in the mirror and feel empowered about who I am and what I'm doing each day to help myself with my food issues.  I check this site often and don't see a lot of postings from this forum which makes me think that a lot of people who have been out for a while aren't doing well or are just too busy to post.  Congratulations and happy birthday to all of us!  

Wants to win too!