What do you like about OH?

This is going to sound weird, but out of all the thousands of posts I've replied to, I actually remember that one!!!!

Probably because it was so stupid, lol!

Not at all. I thinks it's because you got a few pretty dumb replies and I was like, WTF???? So glad we were able to become friends x

I lurked at OH for almost 10 years before I decided to have my VSG surgery. It was actually someone's blog here (can't recall the name, I think it was Bob?), that made me finally decide to go ahead with the surgery. Reading his successes about losing 200 pounds, and how great he looked, was the final piece I needed to move forward.

I love that the vets provide so much real-life information. My surgeon/support group is 2 hours away so I don't have anything local. I'm not a big "group" type in person, but I love feeling a part of something here where everyone understands what I'm going through. My family and friends have been super supportive, but sometimes you really need feedback from someone who is living the process.

I really like reading the VSG menu threads. I like getting ideas for new things to try to get in my protein.

I also really like the variety of discussions in the General Information forum...I have learned so much from it and VSG!

Well, I've only been on one other site, and I'm not going to tra**** I will however make a comparison that I hope isn't over the line. This site seems to have a lot more people who are longer-term "veterans" than the other one. I put "veterans" in quotes because the term is used a little differently here. There, if you were a couple of years out from surgery and in maintenance, you were a vet. And there were plenty of vets using that standard, but only a few (that I saw anyway) that were much longer term vets. As I'm coming to understand here, the vet status is five years post op? And there seems to be a lot more of those longer-term vets here than at the other place. Which I think is AWESOME, because:

I'm a nurse and a research fiend, so I don't need a lot of the basic questions answered. I don't need education on basic nutrition, or on the physical aspects of what to expect at stage whatever. What I gained from the vets on the other site, and what I am looking for here is more shared experiences about what life looks like once it gets back to "normal". How to keep this tool working day in and day out a year from now, 2 years from now... how to recognize when things are going the wrong direction early enough to stop it, and how to deal with it... or how to deal with it when you look up and you've put back on 30, 40, 50#. Tips and tricks to keep waitstaff from hounding you in a restaurant "didn't you like your meal?" and dealing with holidays and cruises. You know, the LIFE stuff.

I am hoping to make the next OH conference to meet some of y'all in person. I like that option, too.

I don't feel like I've found my niche here, but then I haven't been here very long. I do like that most of the posters here seem to be straightforward and no-nonsense. Calling 'em like they see 'em. I have somehow missed out on the drama threads, so I know there can be conflict. But I've been online a very long time, and I think drama is unavoidable. It's how the community deals with it that is the most telling for me.

Generally, I just like having a place where I can talk to people with the same general focus, and get exposed to a lot of experience and information about it.

I believe post surgery cruising is always a relevant topic. I love people bringing me dense protein.

I've found a lot of community on the menu threads (if you're at all interested). I didn't "do" them for a long time, but I started about six months ago for the accountability. I've met some great people on there - including one of them in person! I'm now Facebook friends with several of them, too.

I will be forever grateful that I found this site. When I started the six month supervised diet at my weight management clinic, I felt hopeless and lost. I wasn't convinced surgery was right for me. When I found this site, I "met" some really inspirational "heavyweights" that had lost 200+lbs from surgery. The before and after photos of those people gave me the hope I was searching for - I figured, if they could do it, so could I!

OH was a great outlet during the whole process. For a couple of years I came here daily. I tried my best not to bore my friends and family with endless weight loss talk (good and bad), so I came here to share my successes, failures, and pictures. Everyone here has always been incredibly kind to me. I am forever grateful for the endless support.

Meeting people in person has been an added bonus as well!

Honesty. I didn't want to hear all the real bits of info that the Hags had for me back in 2008. I tried to listen but their advice was hard and wasn't very fun. It didn't include pizza and pie. I lost some weight and I left the boards because I was cured! I was making it work on my own and I was different than everyone else. I was only fat, and now I wasn't, I didn't have any food issues!

It only took me 8yrs to find out I was NOT a special little snowflake. I did have food issues, I did gain all that back and a few more for good measure. I went for a revision medically but I also had to do a life revision too.

So back to what I like best about being on OH. It keeps me thinking about my food issues and helps me not allow those demons back in my life. I like telling people the truth, some will listen, and some won't. I tell the truth though because I don't want others to waste any more of their precious life being fat. I wasted 8 years in my 30s unable to do amazing things because of food. That is about as miserable as it sounds, food kept me from amazing things. This site and those who tell the truth helps make amazing things possible.