Topic One: I Wish I (knew, did, etc.) Before WLS...

If you all don't mind, I would like to start posting a topic each week that all of you experienced ladies and gentlemen can help with your wisdom, insight, etc.  Doing just one a week should give everyone here plenty of time to jump on board and share.  I already have several topics and thought I would start with this one first...

Before your WLS, is there anything you know now that you wish you had known then?  Is there anything you wish you had done differently before, during or after?  Is there anything that you knew or did then that you are so thankful for and want to share with others?

If I had known earlier that this would be a real possibility for me I would have done this sooner. This is a great idea BTW. Thanks for thinking of it!

Reading the boards really helped me so there wasn't any great shock.  I think I learned more from these boards then I did the doctors office.  I found that is is normal for the first month to be tired, weak, and almost to the point you wish you hadn't done the surgery.  The only thing I wish I would of done different is started walking on the treadmil sooner(like from the start).  I started walking around the neighborhood.  Let me tell you it isn't the same as walking on the treadmil.  The difference has been major.  I walked in the neighborhood and I get about 1.5 miles in a hour, I walk on the treadmil and get 2.5-3 miles in an hour.  Other than that I'm only two months out and that is all I can think of at this time.

I was in constant contact with the boards and started going to support group meetings well before I had my surgery, so nothing really came as a surprise.  I wish I would have lost more on my pre op diet as that would have been that much less to lose on the other side.

Rahsheeda

Great idea! 

1.  I'm really glad I found OH, especially the NC Board.  I have learned so much from all the great folks here and elsewhere on the OH site.  The support from my OH friends has been so important as I went through the entire pre-op and post-op process.  There is nothing to compare actual real-life experience. 

2. I'm glad I read everything i could get my hands on.  I bought several books, some were more useful than others.

3. I'm glad I had and continue to have 100% support from my family, friends and co-workers.  That is crutial.

4.  I wish I had not tried to eat everything I could get my hands on during the 3-4 months before surgery.  I was in the "last meal" mentality.  The truth is that now at 9 months out, I can eat pretty much anything I want; I just don't want very much of it.  That is one of the best things about my new life.  I don't feel deprived at all. 

Congrats on your new journey and I look foward to your future weekly posts!

Alice

Hi Shauna,

What a lovely thread! I look forward to more in the coming weeks.

* Behavior Modification is necessary to ensure that you can maximize the weight loss opportunity in the short term and maintain the signicant losses and associated health and quality of life gains in the long term. I found a program called the "Beck Diet Solution" that comes as a book and workbook that are not a diet at all, but a behavior modification program that helps you learn to 'think thin.' It's definitely a process, but I'm getting there. I think that learning recognize my negative behaviors and modify them will be at least as important in my longterm success as my surgery was in helping me to strip off the excess weight. I think that next to the surgery itself, this is probably the biggest thing I need to address because everything else falls in place behind this.

* Support is invaluable and hard to quantify, but absolutely essential. As others have said, I am so glad that I found OH because I have not only learned a great deal, but the support and friendships I have made here I expect to last many years to come. I think that support is key to your short and long-term success and the statistics appear to bear that out. Those who attend support groups in the long term are much more likely to achieve a 'successful' WLS outcome and maintain it.

* Information is necessary to ensure that I know where I'm going and how I"m going to get there. I read everything I could get my hands on and always went to my appointments armed with a plethora of questions ... many would come from postings on OH where I wanted clarification on something I'd heard.

* Moderation is key when it comes to food for me. I have been fortunate and I'm able to eat just about anything I want in moderation. I was afraid that I'd never be able to enjoy some favorites post op and I'm glad that I am able to enjoy them now. I just have to employ moderation, which was never a significant part of my 'vocabulary' when it came to food pre-op.

* Accountability is another major key to success in the short and long-term. I log what I eat and it really helps me keep my 'eye on the ball.' I tried several of the logging services and find that www.mydailyplate.com works best for me because it has such a comprehensive database which allows me to quickly and easily track what I'm consuming. As I track it, I find that I generallly make better choices and I definitely am much more informed when I'm making a selection now.

* Exercise has always been a 'dirty' word to me. I've never enjoyed it and I'm not sure that I ever will, but I have learned to accept it as a necessary 'evil' that allows me to live the life I want to lead. I find that it's much easier now than it was when I was hauling an extra woman around with me.

Thanks again for the wonderful thread and I truly look forward to seeing the responses and future threads.

Barb

After reading Nancy's post, I realized I probably overstepped ... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be 'educating' people. I just meant to list those things I wish I'd known before and I'm grateful that I know now and wanted to share. I'll try to edit myself more in the future .... :-/

Barb

No worries, Barb!    I can't imagine not wanting to shout from all the rooftops the knowledge you have gained in order to help others the way you have been helped.  We love you for that.   

Thanks Shauna ... I just don't want to be 'preaching' or overstepping bounds and I kinda thought maybe I'd done that.

B

Thanks for starting this thread....I will not stray off the topic with trying to educate everyone, I will just state my "I wish I had...."

I wish I had known enough to wait to drink before and after eating so the nutrients got a chance to absorb in my system, allowing me to stay fuller, longer!

Thanks again for this thread., Nancy