It's been awhile - Hello again!

Hey there old friends. I've been off the boards for a couple years and it has really been a huge mistake! I should have gotten back on at least a year ago, but just kept my head in the sand and wasn't emotionally ready to get back in the game. Long story short, DH was diagnosed w/Double Hit Lymphoma cancer in late 2014 right when I was ready for plastics (yeah, canceled that)...glad I spent those medical $$$ on more important things...treatment was long, many hospitalizations and Nurse Ratchet (me) got to give him shots twice a day (lucky DH) for over 7 months. Needless to say, it was very stressful and we collectively decided to live life to its fullest every single day - cuz you really don't know if there is going to be another day....Guess what happened to my weight while eating/drinking and grabbing all the gusto we can? Yup, you hit the nail on the head. It went up, up and up. Good Grief! I watched it climb with sadness after all my hard work but wasn't ready to get my sh*t together until a couple of months ago.

I started working out again and tried to keep my calories at/under 1,000 per day. Well hell, that didn't work. The stupid scale just kept inching up still. I would do really good during the workweek and then blow it on the weekend with DH. BTW, he's doing fabulous after 6 rounds of chemo (5 days each in hospital) and a stem cell transplant. I'm so thankful and blessed that he's still here with me.

So, here we go again. I started a "reset" diet today. Clear liquids today, full liquids tomorrow and next, then pureed and then soft foods - just like our post-bariatric diet while our tummies are healing, but on a much more abbreviated timeline. I'm hoping this will jump start both my weight loss and my motivation. I know this is drastic but desperate times call for desperate measures. I know my tool still works so I'm gonna get my hands dirty and use it.

I hope all of you are well and I'll be lurking around so you should hear from me again from time to time. This site was instrumental in my first round of weight loss and I know that just seeing all of you dealing with the same issues will help me not feel so alone in all of this.

Have a great day all!

Deb

Hi, debk21. Welcome back. :)

I'm fairly new here to OH -- joined a few months ago and am active mostly in this VSG Maintenance group.

Congrats to you and your hubby re his remission. Sounds like whatever he's doing is working well.

I can relate ... my hubby was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma 2 months after my VSG. He's been through chemo / radiation twice. Both times it has wiped out the tumors. But the hits to his strength have been rough. And because he's older (78) gene therapy isn't indicated (results just aren't there for older patients).

Like you guys, we are living in the moment and loving it. Breathing in and out. Trying to stay as healthy as we can.

I hope you find this group as helpful as I have. There are some lovely, lovely people here.

Thanks for the response Ann. I can't imagine trying to heal and get in the right head-space right after surgery and then getting hit with that news. I feel your pain and understand about the loss of strength. That's really hard for a man to deal with. I was his rock through it all but positively debilitated emotionally, although I covered it well on the outside. The veritable picture of strength to others.

I'm glad you are here and we'll visit more I'm sure. I posted frequently from 2010 through 2014 until all the sh*t hit the fan, so to speak. I'm excited to meet new online friends and connect with old ones and get back to my bad skinny self. Hope you have a great day!

Deb

Welcome Deb. Lots of people here with regain issues. Go through and read old posts - especially those by Kairk who has a lot of insight on this issue.

My surgeon told be he does a juice cleanse a couple of times a year with green juices and eats bariatric tomato soup to get some protein. You might try a day or two of that to kickstart. I found one juice bar here that has tolerable stuff. There are lots in bottles in health stores but some taste like S---. Gl and check in here often. Diane S

Thanks Diane. It's great to be back. I've already tracked down Kairk in my lurking and I've been reading his advice. It helps. I think I'll break out the Vitamix again and get juiced! Have a good one!

Deb

Welcome! This is a great supportive group! On the topic of resets, I know the RNY group uses all meat diets to reset vs going back to the WLS diet, since the tool works best for most with dense protein. Search for AMAW (All Meat All Week) to read about it - they do it as a group every few months (those who feel they need it participating).

Thanks Liz! I think I'll check out AMAW and see what it's all about. Thanks for the tip!

Deb

Welcome Deb! Glad you are back and that your husband is doing well. I'm just starting the cancer journey with my husband. Week 3 of chemo and radiation. I too am putting my plastics part 2 on hold for now. Need to save PTO and FMLA for him - wouldn't have it any other way.

You will find this group warm, supportive, caring and downright funny! We are a great little family here!

Thanks Paula! I'm so sorry you're going through the cancer journey. It's positively heartwrenching when your spouse is being treated as a human pin cushion by the medical community and you can't punch them in the nose for being mean to him because as they pump him full of a derivative of mustard gas (seriously, in my hubby's case), it's ultimately gonna save his life. Keep your chin up and try to stay strong for yourself, him and your family. Try to maintain your sense of humor through the ordeal and know that there is sunshine on the other side when healing begins. Thanks so much for welcoming me back! I'm sending happy, healing vibes to you and your DH!

Deb

Welcome to the group or back to the group. I'm sorry you have been through so much stress in your world. Glad your DH is doing better. I have regained and am currently in a weight decline trend. This group has been a tremendously helpful support for me.