Keeping going when you're so close to maintenance...

So essentially you have fifteen months to lose 11 pounds.

I'd SERIOUSLY considering shifting into a true maintence program through April 15, allowing yourself a little bit more to eat, but staying controlled about it.  I think I'd put a date on it, how long you're going to do that, and know that you'll go back into more serious "losing" mode after that date.

If you still need to. You may be very astonished to find that you have already lost it, and then the question you'll be asking yourself is do you want to go lower or not? 

Yeah, I've done that a few times actually already. I'm actually okay right now with keeping the momentum going food-wise. I think when I do hit 150, I'll start adding back calories and see where I land long term. Honestly, I never thought I'd hit my original goal of 175 so this is all kind of icing. LOL.

Oh, and 9.8 pounds to go now. Just sayin' ;) Stair step losing. LOL

You're rockin', girl!

I have no doubts you will shed your 11 lbs in no time. You are freaking rock star.

I will say though that by the time you go for plastics, you should be okay with where you are at on the scale and have zero expectations of weight loss or anything of that nature. I was so close to my goal when i had PS and was sure I'd come out lighter afterwards but with swelling and all that BS, i instead found myself 20lbs heavier and it ****** with my head. You probably will lose a few lbs - just dont expect and/or need it to happen (at least within the first 6 weeks - 6 months)

Im so proud of you - and this was a great thread, so thanks!

Yeah, I want to see what a PS has to say too. My stomach is still huge, skin or no, so I know I need to lose a little more. We'll see what happens. But I remember you being shocked you didn't lose more and we have similar ****** up heads so... LOL. I'd probably camp out with a crate of chocolate and a bottle of scotch.

Let me second, third or fourth - go get the consult.  I felt the same as you last year.  Looking at my abdomen and convinced there was still fat to lose.  Plus, the thought of running around naked in front of a PS wasn't exciting.

Ten seconds into the consult, it struck me that they'd seen it all before, seen worse, seen a lot, and they weren't impressed.  Two minutes in, I was grabbing my stomach, stretching it out and waggling it at the surgeon wanting to know whether he thought I still needed to lose weight....and he told me no.  I ultimately scheduled the surgery for 6 months later, which gave me plenty of time to vacillate between a LBL (which the surgeon recommended) or a tummy tuck.  And I knew right up to the end that I could change my mind, cancel, reschedule, run out of the room screaming.

The consult was a way of having an objective third party (actually 3, since that's how many surgeons I interviewed) tell me that what I was seeing as fat wasn't really fat.  It was skin.  To be exact, it was 6 pounds worth of skin. 

Thanks. I'm going to go in by the end of June - you guys call me out if I don't - LOL.

I think the recovery and the narcotics is holding me back most right now. The WLS wasn't too bad, but the neck fusion was horrid. 3 months of hydrocodone sounds more fun than it was. Just the thought of ANOTHER Summer of being doped up. Sigh, but yeah, I need to suck it up and go in and see what I'm dealing with. I just don't wanna. LOL. *stamps foot like a 3 year old*

I ended up getting the LBL 6 weeks ago.  The first 2 weeks sucked.  And it's not the skin removal.  It's not the drains.  It's the muscle tightening.  OMG!  I coughed once in recovery and willed myself not to cough again.  But I'm at a point now where I really think it was worth it.  It's such a psychological boost to look down and not see belly!

Drugs - at least the three surgeons that I saw all had the same pain control plan - Lortab and valium.