Insurance Approval - CHECK!

'Rounding error'.

I saved one pair of 22's to remind me of where I came from. I'm in a 2/4 and my size 6/8's are in a box 'just in case', because that's reality and life. I'm truly terrified of regain but the biggest thing that keeps me vigilant against it is acknowledging it's an incredibly real possibility.

Not to be harsh, but you yourself just mentioned eating for comfort/eating what you want related to the death of a pet. How will you mentally prepare yourself for something like that post surgery? Because the desire to eat during those situations won't go away by having your stomach operated on.

Yes, and that's why I've been in therapy since December and am continuing it post-op. Comfort eating / bored eating are things I've always struggled with and I know that surgery isn't going to take those impulses away.

Thank you Erin, your response was not at all harsh.

I've gone from a 58-60 waist down to a 42 waist. I've gone from 4XL and 3XL shirts down to XL or just plain L depending on the fit. Of course I tossed all my larger clothes - tossed as in donated for someone else to wear. I do keep one size up from what I am currently wearing, mainly because I am too lazy (or disorganized) to get rid of them.

In the back of my mind, there is the specter lurking that I may regain some. After all, the "experts" here tell us it is so. I am determined not to, but I?m not quite two years out, so according to them, my opinion (and my experience) is of no value. Screw that.

I've lost 218 lbs. I am lean and healthy. I eat very closely to the plan laid out by my bariatric team with very little difficulty. Do I deviate from time to time? Sure I do. Pizza and bourbon for dinner isn?t exactly bariatric Utopia. But it is RARE.

I have lost all that weight in two years, as of next week. There has been no regain. What about the stress of "life happened", the catch phrase we all see here on a regular basis? Let me tell you all about life happened.

In January I arrived at my parent's home for a planned visit. I discovered my 83 year old father dead on the front porch from a self inflicted gunshot wound to his head. I had to climb over his body with Police and EMTs to see if Mom was still alive inside the house. I had to explain to her right then and there she would never see her husband of 60+ years again. Then, because of her Alzheimer's and other health issues, I had to find some personal care for her THAT DAY.

Since then I have become her primary caregiver, with the help of the folks at the personal care home. I drive hundreds of miles a week, blah blah blah, to make sure she is well cared for and gets to all her appointments, etc. I lost weight (12 lbs) during the process and have maintained within three pounds since the day of Dad?s funeral in January. I am down a net of 22 lbs since my one year surgery anniversary in October 2017.

Life only "happens" if we let it. If you really want to succeed, you can. Determination is a huge part of it. Picking yourself up and continuing on after a short term failure is also a huge part. The only two groups of people who don?t experience failures are those who never try and liars. Don?t be in either group. Be in the successful group where you keep on toward your goal no matter what life throws at you, and no matter what the naysayers say. You can do it if you really want it.

I don't mean to minimize anything you have been through because it is clearly very distressing, BUT the "life happens" isn't just dealing with psychological stress.

MEDICAL happenings can often affect weight even more than psychological/situational ones. Being inactive for extended periods of time due to illness, injury, or surgery (and therefore not burning anywhere near the calories you normally do)... having to take medication that significantly increases your appetite... the metabolic changes that women undergo after menopause... just to name a few. Dealing with physical issues while still dealing with the rest of life -- including being able to work and/or just being able to accomplish all the mundane things like laundry and grocery shopping -- AND having to remain diligent about what you are eating (and, in some cases, having trouble eating the very things that you know you need to be eating) can easily result in regain.

I wish I had a dollar for every post that I have seen her in the past 12 years where someone who isn't even finished losing yet (or hasn't even started!) swears that they won't allow themselves to regain any weight... that they have "x pounds gone forever"... that it is just a matter of determination/willpower (some things simply knock your weight off the top of your priority list)... etc..

Maybe if you are still dealing with everything you are currently dealing with another two years from now, you will have miantained all of your weight loss. Maybe not. Only time will tell. The statistics are against it, though.

Having lost massive amounts of weight on multiple occasions, both without WLS and once with, I have tried both approaches. Keeping bigger sizes and not keeping bigger sizes. I happen to be financially in a position to rebuy clothes, but a lot of people are not. And even if you can afford it, it sucks. And then I remember how hard I am to fit (tall and apple shaped when I gain) and hung on to a few things that would be hard to find again.

I am currently a mystery size after plastics. I literally have no idea what size I wear. But before plastics I was a 10\12. In anticipation of plastics, I kept 10s through 14s because I have read how much swelling messes with your shape after plastics. So if you have any plans in that direction, hold on to some stuff as you get to the low end of your range for that and for potential dreaded regain. As for the big plus sizes, I didn't like wearing any of it in the first place, so I was happy to see it go to someone else.

But this site has taught me something important. I may not like the message or the delivery, but all points of view are important to consider even the Debbie Downer ones!

To add to this - she did not have the surgery yet. And as we know, surgery can be cancelled or postponed.

I decided to keep some items I liked from 4-12. Tough sizes can be missleading.

I have a size 12 dress, that fits like today's 6 or 8.

After my surgery, and after I lot over 50 lbs, I got rid off most of my xxl clothes.