Question:
I am 1 month post-op today and am feeling discouraged already.
I am only down 21 lbs. I lost the first 15 in the first 12 days post-op. I'm getting my protein, vitamins, liquid, watching what I eat, etc. I'm walking too. Any ideas to jump start my weight loss? I'm getting really sad. Thanks, Lisa — Lisa D. (posted on October 10, 2003)
October 10, 2003
I can totally understand where your coming from....I will be 2 months
post-op on the 25th and I've only lost 22 lbs...the first 14 was in the
first 2 weeks...my only difference is I was NOT getting all my protein and
water in...just in the last few days have I found a protein that I can
drink with out gagging on...I hope I will start to lose again! :o)
— Lisa F.
October 10, 2003
Lisa Lisa Lisa ... Its way to soon to start worring about your loss now
:) Just keep drinking and eating the right things and relax ..the weight
will come off I promise .I worried my self sick comparing myself to what
others had lost. It varies month to month and person ..but in the end you
lose the weight . I know this is hard but stop weighing ..judge by inches
and how your clothes feel . I am 6 and a half months out and have lost 94
lbs .. I started at 242 and Im 5 ft 4 . One month I didnt lose anything at
all . Your body place catch up ..so be patient . Good luck to you ..you are
in for a glorious year ..enjoy it . Love Ruthie N SC
— ruthie
October 10, 2003
The 4 weeks blues. Anesthesia and estrogen are packing up and leaving with
those pounds. Kinda leaves a "hole" when they go, huh? There are
support groups here in Puyallup next week. I see you're up the road a
piece, but support group NOW might help you pull out of the blues and
prevent doing something silly, like eating wrong things to try to feel
better. Please email me privately if I can help. You've already lost more
than I did in that time period, BTW.
— vitalady
October 10, 2003
I lost 25 in the first two weeks then nothing for the next three. Also,
you can ask your nutritionist, but 20 pounds is avarage for the first
month. A word of advice, the number will never be enough. If you lost 30
you'll wish it was 40. It is not a number, it is a new beginning.
— mrsmyranow
October 10, 2003
Don't feel discouraged. The downfall from weighing frequently is that you
get discouraged. My surgeon asks us not to weigh except at his office or
if we can't wait that long, at least only at the monthly support group
meetings. The worse thing you can do is watch the numbers - you WILL get
discorgaged. Try weighing only once a month and you'll be surprised at how
fast you are losing.
— Patty_Butler
October 10, 2003
There is a good side to this! You are just about out of the stage where
all of these things are really bothering you. I was an emotional yo-yo
after between weeks 3 and 7! I kept thinking "what the heck did I
do?" I felt down and discouraged and just plain miserable. Around
the seventh week things started picking up. I came off of my plateau and I
started feeling better mentally as well. Give it time - it will all come
out ok! Oh - by the way - Your weight loss is better than mine was for 1
month!
— Pambylah
October 10, 2003
WLS is about the long haul, not the short-term. I've seen so many of these
posts, I'm beginning to think people should be *required* to get rid of the
scale for the first six months, and do nothing but weigh in at the doctor's
office. (Shhhhyeah right, like most of us could stand to do that!). You
know that if you're not eating much, you will lose weight. What's critical
here is not how fast, or on what days and in what order, but that you (1)
heal up properly, (2) avoid getting sick as much as you can (harder for
some than others during the early stage), (3) re-learn your eating habits
(a biggie ... and an ongoing battle for most of us, for life), (4) get an
exercise program going, for life, if you can (never too soon if you're
physically able), and (5) remember that the purpose of this surgery is to
help you KEEP weight off, once and for all, not lose it at a
world-record-setting pace. Losing means nothing if it's regained. So take
the blinders off (meaning, pull your eyes off of the scale for awhile),
focus on the other objectives and on not being hyper-critical of yourself,
don't let your raging hormones bring you down (if you *have* raging
hormones -- I think mine were too tired to rage at one month post-op), and
take it easy as much as you can. We all want the weight *OFF* as fast as
possible, but it just doesn't work that way.
— Suzy C.
October 10, 2003
Do not be discouraged. I only weigh myself 1x a month. If you weigh
yourself constantly you will drive yourself crazy. This is an 18 month to
2 year process of weight loss and a lifetime of trying to maintain your
final weight. Have faith and redirect your energy.
— soloco3
October 10, 2003
I feel for you Lisa. I am three weeks post op today and have lost 26
pounds since surgery (I also lost 11 poounds the week before surgery). I
know that you might think that I am doing better than you ,but believe me,
I don't feel like it. I am wondering if you are having the same down
feelings as me in thinking that the weight is not "falling" off
like you wanted it to. I'm not sure any number would make me happy right
now unless it was a ridiculously high number. Just know that I am thinking
of you and if you would like to talk you can e-mail me personally.
[email protected]
— Tamara B.
October 10, 2003
Lisa- A few things to keep in mind. First, in the early months, only weigh
yourself a couple of times a month--- the normal changes of a pound or two
that occur to our bodies on a daily basis will drive you crazy. Secondly,
if you have adjusted your carbs (trying to keep them under 40 grams a day)
and you are getting in at least 60 grams of protein a day, appreciate that
you may just be a slow loser-- nothing to discourage you, just a fact to
help guide you in estblishing reasonable expectations for your weight loss.
Lastly, never lose sight of the wonderful progress you're making toward
living a long and healthy life and let the lifetime goal of eating healthy
and not letting food control you be the ultimate goal of your journey.
Good luck.
— SteveColarossi
October 10, 2003
Don't worry, Lisa. That weight WILL come off. More important than the
'numbers' is the feeling. The undies! OMG, the undies say it all. LOL I
just kept buying smaller and smaller undies. If the scales are depressing,
I'd stay off them. Fortunately, I couldn't get a weight on my scales for
quite a long time. But I sure felt the weight dropping. You are almost
past that blue time too. Better, healthier days ahead. Your energy will
abound! Good luck to you.
— Ginger M.
October 10, 2003
My doctor set me straight on this one. I am a "lightweight"
(whoever came up with that must have been on a drunk), anyway, I am seven
weeks out. My first month I lost "only" 19 pounds. Boy, was I
bummed. I was almost in tears when the doctor walked in. He asked me what
was wrong and I was bellyaching about what I had (or rather hadn't) lost.
He looked at me with the most sincere look that I have ever seen from a
doctor and said, quote, "Let me see if I understand you. You have lost
almost 20 pounds and you are discouraged about what?" From that point
on, I really tried to look at things through a different positive aspect.
Was my blood pressure now normal? Yes. Have I not had to take my blood
sugar medicine and my blood sugar been normal? Yes. Has my sleep apnea
improved? Yes. Has my depression improved? Yes. Do I feel better about
myself? Yes. Have I already had to buy new clothes? Yes. Can I move around
better? Yes. I think those are the answers that you should look for. That
is success. Success isn't a number, it is an improvement in health. I'm
down "only" 29 pounds since surgery on 8/19. Although I'd like it
to be more, the answer for me has been to "accentuate the
positive." Don't be too hard on yourself.
— Denise B.
October 13, 2003
I was exactly like you, at 1 month postop, I had lost 21 lbs, 11 of that
was the first week. But at 5 months today, I have lost 82 lbs. So don't
worry, it will come. I was a lightwieght too. At 260 lbs, 5'0. Even now
I think I'm losing slow because I'm still FAT. It's my impatience though,
LOL.
— Michelle A.
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