Enjoyed one more sunny day before the rain!

Spent the day at a potluck picnic B.B.Q. for my daughter's gymnastic team. Since this is an annual event it kind of made me remember where I was a year ago. I was five months post-op and the weight loss was starting to show. When you are over three hundred pounds I think the first fifty pounds can be kind of lonely. It boggled me that I could drop fifty pounds and still wear a lot of the same clothes (stretchy) and not look dramatically different. Anyways......at the five month point I was working on the next fifty pounds, and it was starting to show. I do remember wearing a new top that actually buttoned and wasn't stretchy. Eating away from the safety of my home routine was something I was still having to learn. A year later I am struck with how far I have come. I guess the point I would like to make to new post-ops is how really normal life can get in not such a long time. Everyone knows the pleasure of facing a long table of homemade dishes and treats (especially my husband)! I do eat differently than I did pre-op, but the feeling of facing that table has the same pleasure for me as for everyone else in the line. I took a little bit of everything I wanted. When I step back and look at what I ate I reflected that I am so used to my modified eating that I don't even realize that I'm not actually eating like I used to. Still, I felt like I pigged out, enjoyed the yummy food, and my plate didn't look all that different than the next person. I skipped the burger and went down the table and sampled the salads and dips. I don't want to feel deprived on days like this so yeah there were a couple of chips, a cookie, a piece of french bread. All the behavior modification and risk of consequences did not prevent me from going back for seconds, but I just took a little bit of the two things that were especially good. Any more and I know I would have not felt good. I do still need and count on the surgery to help me stay on the course. I'm still trying to not be scared to allow myself a "normal" plate of food though. I guess the good thing is that unlike pre-op, a normal plate of food is very satisfying. I guarantee last year I was not in the middle of the field amongst little and big girls trying to beat the boys in a tug-o-war. I also didn't swing on the swings with my daughter. I really feel that the greatest difference is being able to enjoy a family event for what it is - instead of experiencing it filtered through my thoughts of how much bigger I am than everone else, how much my knees hurt, how I'm going to eat today because it's a pot-luck and start that diet tomorrow, etc. For those of you still on a soft diet, measuring your meals in 3 oz. increments....life gets so back to normal! Hang in there! Patty

Thanks for sharing that, Patty! It's true and I am starting to experience it already. In just 2 1/2 months since surgery, I often look back at those "pureed days" and I am so grateful that I can eat fairly "normal' now. I really admire you for swinging with your daughter and playing with the kids. It's never too late and we deserve to have that kind of fun. Keep up the great work you are doing. You've come a long way, baby!! Joy

wow, just think how long it would take to lose the weight had we not had that "momma's little helper" . if at all. I'm still fairly new at 1 1/2 months so my pouch has not had the opportunity to do it's stretching exercises yet. I still have trouble getting much solid stuff down, yet I seem to have no problem eating fruit. Maybe cause they are mostly composed of water. Things like watermelon, cantaloupe, and peaches. I can eat a scad of shrimp too. But mostly i get too full before I can eat much or what I'm eating doesn't seem to suddenly appeal much. I used to love chili, but tried eating just 1/4 can and couldn't fini**** Can't stand the protein drinks so I try my best to get the protein in through other foods. It's good to see by your posts that I will be able to eat more normally a little further down the line. And congrats on your weight losses. I'm sure it's a, er, well, a "load" off your minds. My 45 lbs sure is. LOL Jerry

Wow 45 pounds already! That has to feel great! When it comes to some of the foods I used to really enjoy I think of the song "The Thrill is Gone". Your appetite will return, so be patient in working with it in the mean time to get the protein in. So people were tortured pre-op with the "cottage cheese and tuna diet" (I wasn't but most of Dr. Patterson's patients were) that I hesitate to even suggest it.....but I find that cottage cheese has just about the biggest bang for the buck from a protein stand-point. For breakfast I often eat 1/2 cup with about 10 blueberries (the canned ones in light syrup). I never liked it pre-op but I find it really easy on my system. God forbid the sugar in the blueberries get anyone sick! I like to share thing that have worked for me, but I realize we all work with somewhat different systems post-op. I did O.K. with the protein shakes, but I am much more happy getting my protein from regular food, and find it keeps me full longer.

I love cottage cheeze with cantaloupe or peaches. Fresh peaches are just great. I buy them just a little soft so that they peel easily and are ripe. My question is what kind of cottage cheeze do you eat? I have been going with the non fat and can't, for me anyway, tell the difference between regular, low fat, or fat free. Maybe if I had a side by side comparison I could . Is there any more protein in one than the other? Jerry