At goal weight - two year out!
I use to be a member of this club prior to surgery and a little after. I got some negative feedback on a post I made after the surgery about not losing weight. Someone had judged me by what I was eating on here and said "no wonder you are not losing any weight!!" I was upset by that so I decided to close my account on here (not wanting negativity) and just focus on me. I kept doing exactly what I was doing and decided to come back only to encourage the newbies now.
To the newbies: You will love your DS!! It is hard at first sometimes because you cannot eat as much as you use to and the weight loss is super fast the first few mths and then it slows down, so your mind can stress out over that. BUT, the weight does come off. Try not to focus on the short term losses but rather per month. And you will have lulls... don't stress. There were times that I didn't lose anything for a whole month or longer during my first year. I started out 291 and I am now 148 and have been maintaining for at least 6 mths or longer.
One thing I have read on here a lot is that a lot of people lose weight and then gain back 20 pounds when they hit goal. A friend and I were talking about that and she thought because I never banned any foods, maybe that was why I never had that ending gain thing. I always ate whatever I wanted. I just made sure to get my protein and vitamins in and take the labs. I am healthy.
It has been a wonderful two years! Now, I can eat whatever I want and I eat a lot. About the same as I use to prior to the surgery only I do not gain any weight. It is GREAT. I exercise when I feel like it and actually enjoy it since I don't really HAVE to do it.
Dr. Teel was excellent! I highly recommend him. I had it done laparoscopically. My scars are small and have gotten lighter.
The only challenge are the vitamins but even with that, it's not bad. It's not a deal breaker. It is totally worth never having to diet again and feeling so much more energetic, happy and stress free. It is so fun to shop now because clothes look great. There were so many random happy moments too like it being roomier in my car or movie theater seating!
I do get tired of people saying how great I look and talking about my weight loss but it could be worse! LOL. I think people are finally starting to forget how I was before because I am getting less and less comments. I really just want to be me (not that chick who lost a ton of weight) and I want to move on with my life and not have comments. It sounds funny but it really does get annoying. BUT, like i said, there are much worse things in life.
The surgery itself was not bad either. You kind of forget the pain. I had pain on the first day but after that, I was just soar. Again, not a deal breaker. I had family and friends who were there for me and I really appreciated that.
SO, just remember to focus on your protein and vitamins and then you can really eat anything else after that. I even drink regular Coke on a very regular basis and have NO issues with that. I don't eat any other sugar though so I get my sugar from my drinks. I may have slowed my weight loss by chosing that but I love it and i still lost the weight and continue to enjoy my one bad habit. I started drinking pop at the 6 mth point.
Feel free to ask me any questions! I am hoping to pay it forward to at least 1 person! I am in the closet in real life about my surgery just because I own a business and don't want constant questioning there. I have told my family and friends though but they don't ask me anything any more.
My only regret is that I did not get this surgery done sooner. All of those years I spent overweight, I was so unhappy with it.
I am VERY happy with the DS. I love it. I told my friend about it as well and she ended up having it and she is also so very happy with it. DS is awesome!
To the newbies: You will love your DS!! It is hard at first sometimes because you cannot eat as much as you use to and the weight loss is super fast the first few mths and then it slows down, so your mind can stress out over that. BUT, the weight does come off. Try not to focus on the short term losses but rather per month. And you will have lulls... don't stress. There were times that I didn't lose anything for a whole month or longer during my first year. I started out 291 and I am now 148 and have been maintaining for at least 6 mths or longer.
One thing I have read on here a lot is that a lot of people lose weight and then gain back 20 pounds when they hit goal. A friend and I were talking about that and she thought because I never banned any foods, maybe that was why I never had that ending gain thing. I always ate whatever I wanted. I just made sure to get my protein and vitamins in and take the labs. I am healthy.
It has been a wonderful two years! Now, I can eat whatever I want and I eat a lot. About the same as I use to prior to the surgery only I do not gain any weight. It is GREAT. I exercise when I feel like it and actually enjoy it since I don't really HAVE to do it.
Dr. Teel was excellent! I highly recommend him. I had it done laparoscopically. My scars are small and have gotten lighter.
The only challenge are the vitamins but even with that, it's not bad. It's not a deal breaker. It is totally worth never having to diet again and feeling so much more energetic, happy and stress free. It is so fun to shop now because clothes look great. There were so many random happy moments too like it being roomier in my car or movie theater seating!
I do get tired of people saying how great I look and talking about my weight loss but it could be worse! LOL. I think people are finally starting to forget how I was before because I am getting less and less comments. I really just want to be me (not that chick who lost a ton of weight) and I want to move on with my life and not have comments. It sounds funny but it really does get annoying. BUT, like i said, there are much worse things in life.
The surgery itself was not bad either. You kind of forget the pain. I had pain on the first day but after that, I was just soar. Again, not a deal breaker. I had family and friends who were there for me and I really appreciated that.
SO, just remember to focus on your protein and vitamins and then you can really eat anything else after that. I even drink regular Coke on a very regular basis and have NO issues with that. I don't eat any other sugar though so I get my sugar from my drinks. I may have slowed my weight loss by chosing that but I love it and i still lost the weight and continue to enjoy my one bad habit. I started drinking pop at the 6 mth point.
Feel free to ask me any questions! I am hoping to pay it forward to at least 1 person! I am in the closet in real life about my surgery just because I own a business and don't want constant questioning there. I have told my family and friends though but they don't ask me anything any more.
My only regret is that I did not get this surgery done sooner. All of those years I spent overweight, I was so unhappy with it.
I am VERY happy with the DS. I love it. I told my friend about it as well and she ended up having it and she is also so very happy with it. DS is awesome!
Thank you for the positive post! I am a little under two months out still from my DS and I have found that I am really doubting whether I am doing the right thing. I was eating a hoagie for dinner and I turned to my husband and said "After Aungust, I will never have another one of these." It really bummed me out and I started thinking about all of the things I won't be able to eat: cookies, cakes, pies, candy bars, PASTA! He said "You will, just very small amounts and not every day. Not that I eat those things every day now, but I can if I wanted to. I do know that this is what is best for me. I have tried every diet under the sun and all have failed. I am very apprehensive so I really really appreciate your encouragement 
Thankfully I am not a soda drinker (can't stand it) but I am a coffee lover. Oh Starbucks, how I love thee
Thankfully I am not a soda drinker (can't stand it) but I am a coffee lover. Oh Starbucks, how I love thee
"Switched" 8/20/12
HW: 419
SW: 403
CW: 359
HW: 419
SW: 403
CW: 359
You are still new to it. Your stomach is small now but it will stretch out. The bonus of this is that even though your stomach will get bigger (and allow you to chow down on all the good stuff like pasta!!), you will still lose and maintain (later) because the malabsorption will allow that.
I didn't go crazy with sweets until I started drinking pop again. I would say I probably get all of my sugar from that. Honestly, I am drinking probably 6 cans or more a day! I know that is not healthy but I am able to maintain. I have cupcakes every now and then. I feel that as long as I get my protein and vitamins in and other healthy stuff, then if I can fit it in, I eat whatever extra's I want.
On a typical day, I have a protein shake for breakfast. Then I stop at McDonalds and get a hashbrown and a large Coke. At lunch, I either have a grilled chicken salad with reg ranch and a coke or a 6" cold cut sub or turkey or chicken from subway. I can eat more than that but i am good with that amount. I might have another Coke before I leave. And then for dinner, I have some meat - 1 or 2 chicken breats or maybe steak or something with hamburger and then we have a veggie and salad and some starch like pasta or rice. I can eat a full plate. I am just telling you all of that so you know you will be able to eat normally eventually. The first 6 mths are smaller amts but you slowly add to your amts. And then later for a snack, I might have chicken noodle soup or ice cream or whatever or both. It really doesn't matter. It seems like even if I pig out and have a few snacks or another serving of dinner, I still don't gain weight. BUT, at first you aren't able to eat like this. It takes time. After 6 mths, you will notice gradual changes. And if there is anything that upsets your stomach just try it again in another month. Eat everything slowly too and no liquids at first right after you eat... I learned that one the hard way.
You will love it when you start to be able to eat normally.
I didn't go crazy with sweets until I started drinking pop again. I would say I probably get all of my sugar from that. Honestly, I am drinking probably 6 cans or more a day! I know that is not healthy but I am able to maintain. I have cupcakes every now and then. I feel that as long as I get my protein and vitamins in and other healthy stuff, then if I can fit it in, I eat whatever extra's I want.
On a typical day, I have a protein shake for breakfast. Then I stop at McDonalds and get a hashbrown and a large Coke. At lunch, I either have a grilled chicken salad with reg ranch and a coke or a 6" cold cut sub or turkey or chicken from subway. I can eat more than that but i am good with that amount. I might have another Coke before I leave. And then for dinner, I have some meat - 1 or 2 chicken breats or maybe steak or something with hamburger and then we have a veggie and salad and some starch like pasta or rice. I can eat a full plate. I am just telling you all of that so you know you will be able to eat normally eventually. The first 6 mths are smaller amts but you slowly add to your amts. And then later for a snack, I might have chicken noodle soup or ice cream or whatever or both. It really doesn't matter. It seems like even if I pig out and have a few snacks or another serving of dinner, I still don't gain weight. BUT, at first you aren't able to eat like this. It takes time. After 6 mths, you will notice gradual changes. And if there is anything that upsets your stomach just try it again in another month. Eat everything slowly too and no liquids at first right after you eat... I learned that one the hard way.
You will love it when you start to be able to eat normally.
This was a very good post. I will be 2 yrs out in September and EVERYTHING you mentioned in your post is sooooo true. Almos my exact feelings about people, food, exercise, and loving the DS. You hit it right on the nail. I ve lost 155 lbs and have never felt better. The only thing I crave now are porn star boobs : )
your words are so positive and I really appreciate reading every word you had to say I am almost 2 months out and I had a person reply on one of my posts kind of rude telling me I only need to weigh myself when I go to the dr and not focus on numbers but I rarely come on here anymore and when I do I fell better seeing posts such as yours congrats on all of your success
Awh, thanks! Yeah, sometimes people on here can be super anal about things and really go overboard with comments. I mean, of course, you want to be healthy but really the DS allows you a lot of flexibility with foods which is the perk.
Honestly, I weighed myself almost every day! I think whatever makes you happy is good. Just don't worry if the scale does not move. Sometimes I had lulls for a month or longer. But, overall, the weight loss kept happening over time. I think most people will lose around 100 or more in the first year. With me, I kept losing for the first year and a half approx.
Honestly, I weighed myself almost every day! I think whatever makes you happy is good. Just don't worry if the scale does not move. Sometimes I had lulls for a month or longer. But, overall, the weight loss kept happening over time. I think most people will lose around 100 or more in the first year. With me, I kept losing for the first year and a half approx.
NYer
on 6/24/12 1:45 pm
on 6/24/12 1:45 pm
Thanks for the encouragement! I'm having the DS tomorrow (6.25.2012). I've not had any WLS because I *knew* I would gain all the weight back. When I heard about the DS, I decided it's time!
There are still many questions, of course. Not looking forward to the first week post-op, but in the long run it will be worth it!
There are still many questions, of course. Not looking forward to the first week post-op, but in the long run it will be worth it!
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