Those of you who have lost over 250lbs

I am 29 months postop and I started out with a BMI of 73.  I weighed in at 425 and now I am 151-153 and having a hard time maintaining. I keep loosing and the more I eat the more I loose. I am having plastic surgery to remove my abdominal skin and my PS said do not loose anymore weight.  He will remove 28-30 pounds of skin. I was told I look malnourished the other day :( While I am thrilled with the weight loss of over 275 pounds, I don't want to look skeletal either. My SO did not know me preop, he told me when I am dressed I look like I never weighed 425.  Of course undressed the skin tells a different story. Anyone lost a huge massive amount of weight and now having a hard time maintaining? I posted a simalar post on main board and got "wow I wish I had your problem" answers :( I truly am worried I will be too thin.  I wanted to loose weight but my gosh not become malnourished and anorexic looking.   I have not had hunger return.  I wonder if it will ever come back.  I wi**** would as I forget to eat alot and my blood sugar bottoms out and I get very emotional and dizzy. Just looking for some answers here..please don't tell me you wish you had my issue, walk in my shoes and you'd understand :( Thanks in advance, Donna

First off let me say congratulations on your weight loss! It's just amazing. I know that I too am one that has not regained my appetite, but I am at a point where I'm not loosing much a month anymore. My DR has told me if you start loosing too much they change your diet, add in higher calorie/fat items to help you maintain. How is your health? Are your blood test normal? After your plastics I say see how you do and then go talk to your surgeon if you continue to loose.

Thanks Jandell :) My bariatric surgeon only follows people for 18 months.  I now have to rely on my Primary, he is knowlagable about my surgery. He's not said anything about me being too thin, but he did mention every time he sees me (about twice a month) he says I am thinner. My labs are actually really good. My WBC count is a bit low as well as my hemoglobin but just both of them a few points under. I pretty much know what to eat and maintain...I eat carbs and still focus protein. For some odd reason I am one that cannot stop loosing. I will continue to be monitored by both primary and PS I'm sure between them I will find answers. Congrats on your weight loss as well. Are you near goal? I don't have a goal really, my initial goal was to be able to breathe when laying in bed, take a bath and be able to get out, wash my privates and walk without feeling like I'm dying. I've achieved all of that so I guess I'm at goal :) Many hugs, Donna

HEY DONNA,        HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU! I KNOW YOU ARE ALOT MORE HAPPY THIS ONE IF ARE LIKE ME. I WAS LIKE YOU AND WAS A HEAVY WEIGHT FOR SURE... IF YOU WERE TO HAVE WEIGHED ME WAY BEFORE I STARTED WLS I WOULD HAVE TOTALLY WEIGHED MORE THAN 397 FOR SURE. JUST COULDNT FIND A SCALE ANYWHERE. I WOKE UP THIS MORNING WEIGHING IN AT 149 AND THATS  A FIRST FOR ME. DONT KNOW HOW LONG IT WILL STAY THAT WAY BUT WILL TAKE IT WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. I AM HAPPY AT THIS WEIGHT BUT I STILL SEEM TO LOSE A LIL HERE AND THERE. AND I HAVE TO SAY THE ONLY ONES THAT SAY I AM TOTALLY THIN ENOUGH IS ALWAYS FAMILY. YOU HAVE TO FIGURE.. CRAP. THEY HAVENT SEEN EVEN BONES ON THIS OLE BODY AT ALL SINCE WAS BORN LOL... I NO LONGER HAVE THE SAME ISSUES WITH FOOD AS USED TO. I STILL WOULD LOVE TO EAT ALL THE GOODIES I DID BEFORE WLS BUT DONT GO THERE. I CANT EAT ALOT OF THINGS STILL BECAUSE DONT AGREE WITH ME. MEAT AND BREAD WILL ALWAYS BE AN ISSUE IM AFRAID. I WILL BE TWO YEARS OUT NEXT MONTH AND JUST TAKE IT DAY BY DAY. I HAD A LIL OVER TEN POUNDS REMOVED WITH PANNI, TT AND MONS LIFT AND DONE GREAT. I HAVE NEVER SET A GOAL FOR MYSELF BECAUSE I ALWAYS WOULD FAIL AT THAT KIND OF THING. SO HEADING OUT OF THE GATE I SAID ILL RIDE THE WEIGHT TRAIN TILL THROWS ME OFF. BUT..... IF YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING TO THIN YOU NEED TO RETOUCH YOUR DIET.MAYBE. I KNOW YOU MAY NOT BE HUNGRY STILL  AND I STILL ALSO HAVE DAYS LIKE THAT AND THEN OTHERS WHERE I COULD EAT THE BARK OFF A TREE LOL JUST CANT DIGEST BARK YET LOL... MIX IT UP A LIL AND SEE WHAT WOULD MAKE YA STAY MAINTAINED... SO FAR IT HASNT BEEN TO HARD... THOSE POUNDS THAT ARE LOST NOW COME AROUND NOT SO EASY BY NO MEANS...IF I LOSE I DO IF NOT THATS OK. I WEIGH EVERYDAY AND HAVE SINCE WAY BEFORE SURGERY AND SO ITS PART OF MY LIFE NOW. IT KEEPS ME HONEST AND ON TRACK... GOOD LUCK WITH PLASTICS AND YOU WILL LOOK AMAZING! CONGRATS ON THE WEIGHTLOSS... MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENT....HUGS MARGE

Im no expert as far as any of the surgeries or diets post-op....since I havent had my surgery yet.. however, as an RN, Ive had to monitor weights of my patients and when they begin losing alot, we would have to work on that really quick. People can become malnourished and dehydrated really fast. Its great that your labs are normal and that you are able to recognize that you could have a problem. My advice would be to add more calories to your diet. Even if your not hungry, add in a shake like Ensure once a day...that will add more calories and more nutrition. They arent particularly high in protein, carbs, or calories...they are a combination of all of them. There are also powders that can be added to your drinks or foods that add more calories...body builders use them. I really applaud you for doing so well. You are a great inspiration. Im not going to say I wish I was in your shoes....altho truthfully, I wish I was post-op and losing...but my day will come.  Hope this helps.

It sounds like you need to eat.....you obviously need to eat on a schedule rather then eat based on a feeling of hunger.  Perhaps it's time to get some counciling  and find out why you won't eat.  Because unless you physically can't eat , you are purposely starving your body by not eating.  You body is giving you signals that you need food i.e. blood sugar crashes and such....and you are not heeding your own bodies warning system.   I had a sister that became like this after she did OA ...the issue wasn't that she couldn't eat, but that she didn't want to eat.  She'd complain about how she coudln't maintain her weight and such .....but secretly got a thrill out of "losing" weight and peopel telling her how thin she was.   It's a form of anorexia....not a problem with maintaining. Scott

Hello Scott, Thank you for replying. I am unsure where you got the idea that I am not eating based on my post..although when I posted that I forget to eat alot I can see where you can come up with this. I am consuming 3 meals a day (protein focused) and two snacks also protein focused the majority of the time. I am in the health care profession, and I am very aware of what not eating can do for a person. That is not the case here. I am NOT purposly not eating.  I AM indeed consuming food and I track my intake daily on fitday.com. I also test my blood sugar daily as I am type 2 diabetic, although it is under control with WLS and diet.  I actually do eat on a schedule(most of the time)  Bfast at 7a, snack at 9-10 a, lunch at 12-1p and dinner at 5-6p and snack before bed. I also do suppliment some protein shakes w/ skim milk if I've not consumed enough calories for the day on the days that I get to busy or forget to eat.  I am a EMT with a hectic job and it is somtimes impossible to eat on a schedule.   I can assure you, the weight loss is amazing to me, but looking like a bag of bones is not. I do not in any shape or form get a "thrill secretly" out of losing weight. If I see this happening, I certainly will begin therapy, although I can tell you, this has never been the case with me in my entire life. I appreciate your replying, and your thoughts into my post. Donna

Hi, Donna - sounds like your metabolism is working overtime.  Have you looked for other medical reasons that you may be continuing to lose (I'm thinking about thyroid issues, but know that other things can also affect your metabolism)?  As WLS patients, I always tend to think about my surgery first and often forget that other things can cause our metabolisms to go wacky.  But it may be worth exploring other medical reasons for what's going on.  If you can rule out other medical reasons for your continued weight loss, you may truly just need to increase your caloric intake.  It sounds like that may be a challenge with your schedule, so you may need to look for more calorie-dense foods (think nuts, dried fruit, peanut butter, etc.); things where you get a lot of calories for relatively little intake.   One other thing you may want to look into is having your resting metabolism rate (RMR) tested.  Although our metabolisms vary somewhat day-to-day, knowing your RMR can help you determine roughly how many calories your body needs to maintain.  (Sort of like knowing how fuel efficient your car is!).  This type of testing is available from New Leaf Fitness - you can google them for a local franchise - but it costs around $200.  Not sure if that's an option for you, but the information may be helpful if you can afford it.   Good luck on your continuing journey! Kellie