Question:
Hi i am 1 year post-op as of April 8th i started @ 309 and i am 209 as of last week.

i am very discouraged and feel alone with this weight lose. I cant see the diffrence from before to now Everyone thinks i am nuts. I am not happy with my self image right now. I found myself back to old habits of snacking and dont excerise but deperatley need to...any words of encouragment would be great!!!!!    — roxxyblue72 (posted on May 4, 2004)

May 4, 2004
Hi. I think people get discouaged because they think of this as some sort of diet. It's for the rest of your life. So add a bit of exercise and cut back a bit on the carbs, but don't drive yourself nuts. I got sick of the gym so I started walking to and from work. Not that great in 100 degree heat and smokey air from wildfires, but I am committed to it for now. It's a total of 3 miles. Then I still try to get to the gym a few times a week as well.
   — mrsmyranow

May 4, 2004
At my psy. eval. before surgery the therapist told me to be careful and pay attention to my feelings after surgery because it is very east to fall into a depression and a lot of people do. Maybe you should seek prof. help from your PCP. I have a pres. for wellbutrin left over from before surgery and my dr. said to keep it just in case he feels like I need it. 100 lbs. lost...that is so much to be proud of so don't take it lightly. Best of Luck.
   — Angel E.

May 4, 2004
Roxanne -- I started at 325 and got to 225 by my first anniversary. There are lots of us around who only lost l00 lbs the first year and some who lost less. I went on Atkins at about my 16th month and lost another 25 lbs in my second year. Now I waver between 200-205 and at 5'8" I look OK. I'm 27 months out now and will be 70 next month; cannot exercise and am housebound a lot due to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. BUT I feel much better with the loss, no HBP, don't have to have my hips and knees replaced, can climb stairs (one at a time). Try to look on the brighter side of things. Also, having your mechanics checked and talking with a nutritionist might be a big help. Good luck. Nina in Maine
   — [Deactivated Member]

May 4, 2004
You have lost 100lbs! That is so awesome. Get back to the high protien lots of water way and you will do great. I know a lady who is 15 months out and still losiing.
   — catleth

May 4, 2004
Hi there, I had the same problems when I had lost 100 lbs. I knew that I looked better, but I still didn't think I looked good. I started exercising even harder, which helped me control my eating as well as my wt. Now I'm down to a size 4-6 and I am really happy with myself. Please don't go back to your old habits, you've come too far for that and nothing will make you feel worse than gaining your wt. back. I'm a fitness instructor now and just 18 months ago I weighed 280 lbs - you can accomplish anything you set your mind too. Email me anytime you feel like you need support. Good Luck - it's a hard road sometimes, but it does get easier.
   — kandi S.

May 5, 2004
OMG! Congrats on loosing 100 lbs! That is SO fantastic! I can't believe that we can think 'only' sometimes when we think of loosing 100 lbs. OK, so you're down about it right now. Hey, you're still loosing! You still have your tool! I know about having the poor body consciousness/image after the weight loss. At 100 lbs I FELT better, but I didn't SEE a diference in myself. So, I can relate. Try playing the bigger than/smaller than game at your local mall with a friend or family member. This is where you park yourself on a bench and discreetly and QUITELY compare your self to others who walk by by the person you're with saying 'bigger than you' 'smaller than you' or 'same as you'. It will help you get a better picture of where you are. Some other tips: get yourself some full length mirrors and USE them EVERY DAY. Post a before picture in the corner of it, so you can SEE the difference. Take more pictures of yourself and compare them to older ones. Sooner or later, you WILL see a difference. It's been a long road...one year is a long time to be on a journey, but you're still moving in the right direction. Try to re-affirm your own success and dedicate yourself to continuing your success. You window is WIDE open still! Good luck to you! You've come so far, I know you can continue.
   — LMCLILLY

May 5, 2004
Hi Roxanne, you started just exactly where I did. I was 309 lbs the day of my surgery. It has been 17 1/2 months for me and I've been at 185 (plus or minus five, mostly plus) for the last three or four months. I also was discouraged when I was just down one hundred, about at the same point you're at, because it seemed to be going so slow. So it has been going down. I have to struggle daily now against my old habits (have to face it, I'm an addict for chocolate and sugars). Someone recently suggested starting the day with proteins instead of carbs and holding off on carbs as long in the day as possible. I've been trying that and it helps. I have found the easiest form of exercise is an exercise bike. You can ride it and watch TV, don't have to get dressed up, and can do it anytime. For a year before my surgery I could barely walk, my knees and back hurt so much. Shortly after surgery I got my exercise bike and could only do like 3 minutes at first, but just added a few minutes every week. I now do 30 minutes twice a day (I know I could and should do more, but I'm working at it). If you look at how far you have come, how much better you feel, you should pat yourself on the back. I also have problems with self image. I love to look at the before and after pics and see others who are at about my current weight and think they look so nice, they look so "normal" yet i still see myself as someone who needs to lose weight. We shouldn't be so critical of ourselves. It also helps to think in terms of how little you still have to lose compared to what it was when you started. For me it is only about 30 lbs. . . that doesn't sound like so much, does it? Good luck, don't give up, and heed the good advice you'll get from our other friends on this site. Donna
   — Donna S.