2 years post op - bittersweet (with pics)

I think you have done and are doing fantastic.  I wouldnt be caught up with the numbers, first of all 200 is fine!  You look like you have the height and build for it at least, I think society today pushes people to be a little too thin anyway (you are gorgeous, and certainly not fat!).  :).  But more importantly, you seem to really be embracing life (even with some ups and downs) ... i think that is the real goal of WLS and you are a rockstar there from what i can see!

ok, out of pure curiosity ... is that a ziplock bag or water in your lap in the last pic?  collecting guppies or sometihng?  i'm so confused.  lol

I didnt trust the people renting the kayaks to keep my phone and wallet so I put them in a plastic bag and took them with me - and so I could take some pics :)  (if youve never been kayaking, you can get pretty wet)

You are amazing! I hope one day you will give yourself the credit you deserve for losing over 200 lbs. I think one day you will get to goal. No one says our sleeves stop working, just sometimes we stop working our sleeves. Sometimes maybe we need a mental break, or sometimes the mental breaks us. But finally a bright light shines through, or something clicks, and we get back  on the wagon, so to speak. You can do anything you set your mind to. It's not easy to be in WL mode all the time, or constantly thinking about maintenance, or whatever. Recovering from extensive plastic surgery is hard work in and of itself. I have seen some close friends go through it personally. Your body went through a lot, and of course the emotions that go along with that recovery is hard too. Big hugs to you. You are one of my biggest inspirations and I love reading what you have to say--EVEN if it's Debby Downer :-) That just means you're HUMAN!

So many things to say, but I'll try to keep it short. Happy Birthday/Happy Surgiversary/Congratulations/Hugs!

You have been an inspiration to me since day one of joining this site and you continue to be every day! I wasn't convinced on having surgery before I joined this site, because I didn't really know if I could ever get to a normal weight or even close. Being a "heavyweight" I thought it was hopeless. People like you and Candy have given me hope and I'm down 130 lbs because of people like you and other vets on this site!

I'm so inspired by how you've shared your successes and struggles - you are REAL! If I could sum you up in one word, it would be tenacious!! You fight so hard and have been through so much... I wish that you could see what we all see... someone that is truly amazing!

Thank YOU for all of the hope and confidence you've given me in the past 6 1/2 months!!

Happy Birthday Allison, I want to thank you for all the honesty you have shown during your journey. When I started this journey myself in the beginning I always looked forward to the posts by you and Jenn, Ms.Shell and a few others. We all struggle in some way and at times feel down but I just wanted you to know that after reading your posts you would make my struggle a bit easier to endure. Enjoy life embrace the future. :)

Happy Birthday Ms. Allison!!!  You are such an inspiration to me and so many people out in this cyberland!  It's hard to look at ourselves from others perspective, but I'm glad this weekend was a chance for you to see and remember that hey I did a lot of fun **** that I would have NEVER done at 400+lbs!  I can completely relate, both to the feelings of hey I should be further along, and those nice moments of joy when I can comfortably sit on a center plane seat with my seatbelt synched in. 

I think we just get used to being smaller and don't remember those times when we're worried about breaking a folding chair, or asking the flight attendant for a seatbelt extender, sweating too much at a summer wedding, or just being out of breathe from walking a block.  If you're like me you probably told yourself then that you would be happy if only you could survive one of those things without completely embarrassing yourself.  So here you are!!!  You're definitely on the other side of those events, so I'm glad your weekend lifted you up, and that you're taking care of yourself again!!!

Have a great year with lots of ice skating, kayaking and other fun ****!  

You're amazing. Beautiful and amazing. I'm so glad you're starting to feel more like yourself :)

Oh, and happy birthday!!

Happy Birthday! I'm sorry you are struggling. I know its hard to get out of your own head once you are seated comfortably. You don't want to unravel all the hard work you have put in and all the pain you went through. I am very impressed with your story and you have always been someone whose posts I have read since I got on this site. I can't believe you lost as much weight as you did before your surgery, that is incredible. That shows how focused and dedicated you were.

You have a lot going for you, you are attractive, it looks like you live in a place where there are things to do, you clearly have friends, so think about that when you get depressed. I went through a period of depression about 10-12 years ago and I was miserable. Nothing and no one could make me happy. When I got something I wanted I just moved on to the next thing like it didn't mean anything. One day I made a conscious decision to not be like that anymore and it was like a light switch. I can't say I don't have my moments now where it would be really easy to go back to that but I didn't like me when I was like that. I don't like me now, but I like me now better than I liked me when I was like that. Some things you just have to set aside and ignore them.

Since you were 420 you know all too well that eating is not going to do anything but make things worse. I am very happy you hopped on the Whole 30 program. I can't wait to hear how you do on it. I have considered it but have not pulled the trigger just yet.

I really hope this is a turning point for you. I obviously do not know the things that are going on in your life but you have an amazing story and I think you have a lot to offer the people on here for what to do and what not to do. I would hate to see the VSG and plastics go to waste and I hope you can find some peace and comfort. This might be a weird thing to say, but if there is anything I can do to help out, please do not hesitate to ask.

Happy belated birthday/surgiversary Allison! You continue to inspire me. It's the struggles that will make your victory sweeter. You are amazing and I really hope to meet you at the OH conference. 

Happy Re-Birthday.  As bad as current binging and depression is, at least you are not 420lbs and you now have a fighting chance!  You story is so impressive, and please try to think positive thoughts. 

 

To illustrate: My therapist told me the story of a freshman class of women at Harvard. They were all different nationalities, races, social-economic backgrounds - a total mix of bright young women. The researchers divided them up in half and put them in separate room for a test.  In one random half they told the women that the math problem they were about to do was extremely hard, and they probably would not get the answer correct. They said, "We know women are typically not that great at math, and we really don't think you can get this figured out". Most of them did not get it correct - most in that room failed. With the other half, they said, "YOU ARE HARVARD WOMEN! You are the cream of the crop, this is a hard math problem, but because of who you are and where you are, we know and EXPECT that most of you will figure the math problem out and get it right".  Guess what?  Most of them did. 

 

Now, let's just apply this to ourselves ;-)