reality kicked in

I am new to this group and really since my surgery had never really come back to chat with others.  I had my surgery 9/07 and weighed 236. I went down to 170 and today I am at 177.  I was 188 last week.  Last week I came to terms with the fact that the surgery was just a tool and not a total solution.  I basically was eating anything I wanted, not in huge quantities but I had anything, fries, half a hamburger.. even drinking wine with friends (downing several glasses)  then I started working from home and found myself eating all the time..grabbed a few cookies here, some chips there.. and I gained almost 20 pounds in 4 months.   Now I realize that from the very beginning I was not taking the surgery with the care I was supposed to and paying the consequences.  In the last week I have been eating low fat, high protein and drinking tons of water. I am also working out for 30 mins.  I hate the fact that it took me so long to get to this point and at this point I am not even sure that I will lose the weight I need to since it's been over a year and a half since the surgery.  :O(

I am hoping that I can still take advantage of my surgery, which we all know is a blessing because there are many folks that haven't been able to have it and really need it. 

and I am looking forward to losing some weight again with the proper mind-set this time :O)

Not sure if anyone has shared my experience- not really losing much after the surgery and then gaining weight.. would love to hear from you and your story

First of all, WELCOME!   I'm so glad you're here!

We've all been there and done that.  You know what - it DOES NOT mean you are a really, wretchedly rotten person - it simply means you are a HUMAN BEING.

Can you lose the weight you want to?  Of course, it's really very simple (simple does not = easy (:0) )  First, you have to quit putting yourself down.  Then you have to make yourself and your food your highest priority.  Then you have to respect yourself enough to set limits.  I like to use the example of being a parent (don't know whether you have children or not, if not indulge me here for a little while and imagine you do)  If your child was doing something to hurt themselves, because you love them, you would tell them to stop.  You would not say, "Stop if you want to" or "Stop if it's easy" or "Stop when you are comfotable stopping"  or "Oh, it's OK because you just didn't realize you needed to stop"  You'd say "Stop" and expect them to mind you.  You have to love yourself enough to be that firm.  And, the biggest barrier to being that firm is not loving and respecting yourself just the way you are.  One of the paradoxes in life is that if you are not free to be who you are, you are not free to change.  If we are not acceptable as we are, we have to run away and hide from ourselves, and if we run away and hide we can't change.

It is also nearly universal that reality sets in about 2 years after we reach our goal weight.  Whoa, we say, maintenance REALLY is forever.  Yes, we know that with our "thinker" all along, but that isn't worth a whole lot until we also get our "feeler" on baord.  So, what you've experience kind of makes you "normal" (Whatever normal is LOL)

I had my lap band surgery 3+ years ago and am now in the process of successfully re-losing the weight I gained over the past year.  Being a part of this BOTT group has made all the difference in the world in my success at getting back on track and staying on track.  These are undoubtedly the most positive, caring, supportive and accepting people I've ever come across!

Again, I'm so glad you've joined us - please reach out to us whenever you can use some support.  It's been my experience that I vitally need to give and receive support to stay on track and the really nifty thing is that it's impossible to give support without also reciving it at the same time.