So...how does it feel to be at goal?

Yeah, I can't get my mind off of it...and it's going to drive me nuts until I find out IF I can have the surgery or not. I came up with a few questions earlier that are kind of intriguing. (to me anyway) So how does it feel to be at goal weight in your mid 30's? Do you feel like you can do a lot of those athletic type things you did in High School? Or is there still limitation? How do bathing suits feel? Do you feel light on your feet? Take any naps in the afternoon...or do you have so much energy that you need to burn it off? The inquiring mind wants to know. Thanks! Kelly B.

Well, at 202 lbs., and 31 yrs old...im still not at goal (im only 10 months out) but I'll tell you what.. i weight less now than i did at 12 yrs old.. (yes 12 not 21... i ment to type 12!) I feel GREAT! I still get tired...yes...i have diabetes and it's alot better but still affects how i feel...but i can outwalk my husband...and i can keep up with my kids! I walked up a really steep long hill..and i was breathing a little harder than normal..but i kept going fast! It was amazing! I get onto the floor and attack my girls.. tickling them...without thinking "will i be able to get back off the floor???" I can dance all night long...i can shop all DAY long (much to my husband's dismay!) I can keep my house clean...all the time..even after a hard day at work! I can fit into booths at restarants.. i can fit through the turnstile at the entrance of Menards without turning sideways! I can fit into some regular sizes (larges in some clothes...extralarge in others). It's all these little things that make this surgery worth it if i dont lose another pound (heavan forbid!) As most women..i still ***** about all the NEGATIVE things about my body...my boobs...thank GOD for good bras! lol ... my thighs ..ug..loose skin...thank GOD for tight jeans that mould us!...And most of all..thank GOD for my loving husband who tells me constantly how skinny and sexy i am I wish you all the luck in getting your surgery approved! ~~Dawn Phillips Fort Dodge, Iowa

Kelly, i had my surgery in dec. i had lots of complications so i was in the hospital from dec 11th to jan 2nd. and again jan 20 to jan 24th. i had a really hard time getting back on my feet. but almost 4ths out i feel great. i went to a concert and loved it. i am walking more now then when i first came home. i can go shopping and not worry about my back hurting when i get home. i do take naps in the morning. when i am not at work. what amazes me is how much better i feel about myself. i am down about 70lbs. if you would of asked me awhile back if i regretted having this surgery. i would have to say yeah i did. but now i dont i am glad i had this surgery and i would do it again in a heart beat. you have to believe in yourself. and get all the support you can.....good luck on finding out if you get approved for this surgery.......lynda

Hey Kelly...I was 348 and now !'m 225....I am not at goal either...but I will get there. Before I wasn't so sure, but now I am certain. I think I will always wear a bathing suit with a skirt, because all my weight is setttling in my hips and thighs...but I feel so much better in a suit. it's really weird not being the biggest person in my social group....at work and like in the mall. I am the same weight as HS and I can do anything I did then...I even did a cartwheel the other day! I'm always oushing my body to see what it can do. In a few weeks I'm doing a rock climbing wall. I do not take naps anymore...when i work out I have more energy that day...yes my house is cleaner, working in the garden is more enjoyable now...and my feet have not hurt since my before surgery! My activity level has skyrocketed..it is amazing and I LOVE IT!! Deb Paul Good Luck..I'll keep you in my prayers

Thank you so much folks! You guys are great... I'm trying not to get my hopes up about anything...but...it's really hard NOT to. You know? I had just wondered the other day what it would feel like to weigh what I did in HS again. I remember doing so much then and having so much energy that I didn't need 8 hours of sleep a night, let alone a nap. (my house work could use a boost as well Tomorrow is the informational meeting!!!! (I feel like a kid counting down the hours til we leave for the amusement park!) Yippeeeee! Thanks again, Kelly B.

Kelly, Hi, I certainly am not at goal weight. I'm sure that that will be a while. But,... I do have a lot more energy than before surgery. As a matter of fact, the other day we walked to the town's civic center to play with my kids on the playground and I actually chased my 21 month old up on the playground. (I didn't go down the slide because I had on good clothes, but wanted to.) I am not overwhelmed with energy just yet. But I do do more during my days than I used to (including walking 2 miles at least 3 times a week). Good luck in your quest! God bless, Andrea

Well I have been at goal or below for over a year. I am in my early 40s, I'll take a shot answering some of your questions. It's a strange feeling; I still catch myself looking in a mirror and thinking who's the skinny blonde??? I no longer am totally ashamed to wear a bathing suit, at Thanksgiving I went to a indoor waterpark with my family and wore a Tankini. I looked d@med good for an old broad... LOL More importantly I was able to go on all the slides with my neices and even was allowed in the childrens' area... (a 100 lbs weight limit, but the lifeguard smiled and said go ahead you can't be much over that....) anyway my 4 year old neice and I went on all the slides and it felt great. 3 years ago I wouldn't have never been able to do any of this. I fit in an airplane seat with room to spare; same with movies; the TV is no longer my main companion. I go do things now. I am so much more active and healthy. I am working out twice a week, I walk every day all because it's lots easier to move now. I even take the steps at work...4 flights 3 times a day. It's so much easier to move 129 lbs than 300 lbs...so I feel like I have more energy. I still do take naps though... LOL That's because I have a social life now. I have replaced my entire wardrobe including shoes... who knew I could carry that much weight in my feet. I went from a size 10 to an 8 or a 9 Narrow... My last purchase was a new bathrobe. I threw out the old one finally; my son and I both fit in it. People treat me different and sometimes that makes me hurt/angry, I have lost some friends and family over the changes I have made. This surgery makes you look at your life and examine what you want out of it. It's not an easy fix but if you make it work it changes your life. I know people who have had the surgery and gained the weight back, you have to look at the surgery as a tool that you must use properly; don't think of as an EASY WAY OUT. It's not it takes commitment for the rest of your life, BUT IT IS SO WORTH IT! Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels... Theresa puts that on support group notes; it's mostly true. I still have yearning for hot fudge sundaes; evey once awhile I eat a couple bites from of a Buster Bar and remember fondly. My love affair with food ended but a love affair with life began. Enough of my jabbering; bottom line I feel great, and God willing it's gonna continue for the rest of my life. God bless, Paula RNY Nov 01 300 lbs/129 lbs Size 26 to a size 4 or 6

Well I just turned 51 and at two months out lost 52 lbs. I won't know what else I lost until April 20 when I go weigh at the surgeons. I have never regretted this decision. I am not missing food, I am not in mourning like one of my friends who just had the surgery. I am working out at the gym, and my son say he sees me smaller every day. I was afraid it wouldn't show so soon, since I began at 376, but everyone is commenting and I am in smaller clothes. I am starting to clean my house and I have more energy than I did before the surgery.