Really Sad--What am I doing wrong?

I know we are not supposed to compare ourselves to other people but that is so dang hard not too.

 

I just do not get what I am doing wrong. Seriously!

 

Before surgery and when I did Weigh****chers I lost more weight thus far into my program. (Well when I followed it to a “T” that is.) And now with having surgery  (Sept 19th) it sure is not coming off like I thought it would be.

 

I have talked to quite a few people who have had this surgery around the same time as me and many of them have lost 60+ pounds. I am just at 43. I know..I know..be happy with that but I just am not. I do aquafit faithfully 3x a week, I have not cheated and I just don’t get it. I lost 30 pounds my first 2 weeks and then stalled from weeks 3-6 and then lost another 13 pounds but for 5 days a big stall again.

 

Am I eating enough? I know I need to drink more..on average I get in 48oz and on good days 64oz. My pouch isn’t crazy abou****er for some reason..it hurts when it hits my pouch but I pu**** in anway. I am so careful what I eat. I concentrate on mostly protein and I measure everything to ¼ cup. I try to eat 6x a day but sometimes it works out to 4x a day..just not enough hours in the day to reach 6x a day! I have not "dumped" because I am terrified of doing that, hehe.

 

So what am I doing wrong? From years of doing Weigh****chers I know I have the ability to lose quite a bit of weight in the beginning. Doctors keeps telling me because I have over 300 pounds to lose I will drop weight really quickly in the beginning due to how much weight I have to lose and I know this being true because when I did Weigh****chers it was nothing to drop 10 pounds my first week and 8 the next week and 6 the next week. That is what my body did. But I see those who weigh 100-150 and even 200 less than me drop weight faster than I am after surgery?

 

I know we cannot compare ourselves to eachother. I just feel like something is missing. I know I need more water but I drank less before surgery and still lost weight so I know that is not it. I just don’t get it.

 

What am I doing wrong? *sigh*!

PS

Not sure why it puts in *****? Weird, LOL

At the beginning it's pretty normal to get frustrated and feel like nothing is working - I think we have all been there! But how you manage it is key, because if you don't it could make you even more discouraged and make it difficult to stick with the program.

For me, I lost 28 pounds the first 3 weeks, then nothing for 6 weeks... not even an ounce. Like you I have always lost fast but all of a sudden it was different. I ended up putting my scale out of reach and just set my mind to what needed to be done. When I finally stepped on the scale (a month later) I had lost a total of 65! That was a nice surprise and I am SO GLAD I stepped away from the scale!

It sounds to me like you are not so much comparing yourself to others, but to yourself. Your body has gone through such a major change that it most likely will never be the same and won't react the same way it did before.  For me, those first few months were all about getting use to my pouch and the new rules and then I really concentrated on how my body worked and what it likes - it was totally different! My mom always says that she can't believe how different my tastebuds are now - I'll eat stuff I never would of eaten before. (primarily heathy :-)

Along those same lines, your body may need more water now than from before. One of the most common problems I have heard from people is how they got so dehydrated after surgery - it's as if there body can't get enough. You might want to look at that and since you have a hard time getting water down, maybe try something different like crystal light. The taste may help it go down smoother. I remember how hard it was to ge****er down those first few months but it does help! Promise :-)

Just keep doing what you are doing and it will eventually come off. This isn't a race, it's a day by day journey that will challenge and stretch you in ways you never imagined. 6 months from now you won't even remember this, you'll be so happy with how much better you feel and look.  Just sit back and enjoy!

You are doing what you are supposed to be doing, the weight will come off. Your body is in shock right now, holding on to everything because it thinks its starving and it knows its been injured.

For water, sometimes changing the pH or temperature helps. A lot of people do better with room temperature or warm water at first, I did best with ICE COLD water. Sometimes adding just a little lemon or lime juice to make it more acidic really makes a difference too. It definitely did for me, just don't over-do the acid. I would put a lime wedge in 12 oz of water - and when I finished the whole lime I'd know I got my water in. I couldn't comfortably drink straigh****er for a few months, now its not a problem. I still do better when its either hot or cold though, lukewarm water doesn't settle well.
If you can, get off the scale, weigh in once a week or every 2 weeks. You'll cause yourself less anxiety that way.

Good luck!

My bmi was over 60 when I started.  At my 2 month check up I was told the norm is 38-40 lbs at that point.  I'm not sure who you are comparing yourself to, but it seems that you are setting yourself up frustration.  Weighing yourself all the time will do that too. 

If you still have concerns, you should talk to your doctor.

Good luck.

-Dawn

Thanks so very much for your responses. I appreciate it so much :)

I guess I just need to keep plugging along and doing what I am doing! Wish my body would just release the fat already, LOL!

One day at a time I guess :)

Thanks again so much for taking the time in responding to me! Was beginning to think it was all and ONLY me, hehe! Glad to know its not.

I am 5 months post op. ALOT of folks at that point have lost signifigantly more than I have. I just realized this recently...seeing posts from poeple who are down 100 some odd lbs at 5 months out (just from the surgery). I thought I should have lost more but my Doc thinks that because I had to lose more than 80 before the op my body is just slowing down my loss....like a survival thing. If you were losing pre op you could be having the same thing happen. I have lost about 80 lbs in the 5 months since my RNY. I am at peace with that now. It's hard not to compare ourselves with other BIGGER LOSERS but try not to. You are a HUGE success! Keep up the good work

Just 43 pounds??  Girl you need to be happy!  Your body is in such a state of shock right now that it's trying to figure out what's going on. Take a deep breath and quit worrying about it.

Water can be tough, I loved it before surgery, but afterward it messed with me. Turns out when I'd drink something cold it would cause my pouch to spasm. So for awhile room temp or warm stuff seemed to go down better.

Be patient and don't forget to measure yourself. I found when I wasn't loosing pounds I was loosing inches.

Don't be a slave to the scale!

You my dear are being way toooo hard on yourself. Be very happy wtih what you've lost so far... it's kind of like the boyfriend and baby thing....

When all someone wants is a boyfriend, a husband, to get pregnant etc. The more they keep focusing on it.... It seems like it NEVER HAPPENS.... As soon as they stop worrying about it.. Whammo, suddenly their's a man in their life. Or how many times do you hear that so and so was trying to get pregnant for 10 years and as soon as they stopped trying WHAMMO  she was pregnant. Its the same thing.. Stop worrying about it.. It will come off.

I had to not get on the scale for a few days to make it start moving again. And, ohhh not to make you feel bad.. those last few lbs when you're trying to reach the 100 + mark. They don't want to come off either and it seems like it takes forever...

Good luck and know were all here plugging along with you.

I remember seeing a really great explanation of a stall (esp an early one) posted in their profile by someone in the DS forum. I remember thinking "I need to bookmark that" but now I can't find the bookmark. It was a really good explanation of what's going on in your body.

I'll see if I can rustle it up for ya...

Basically, it makes total sense medically. It's just frustrating not to see the numbers change. As others have said - "step away from the scale".