It seems like these past four months flew by since I had gastric bypass surgery.  The six months leading up to surgery went a lot slower.

I weighed in today at 211 lbs, which is a total of 95.5 lbs lost ( 49.5 lbs in preparation for the surgery and 46 lbs post op).

Overall everything has been going well and I feel good.  My family and friends have been very, very supportive, for which I am extremely grateful.   It is so much easier to keep my calories where they need to be for weight loss - between 600 and 800 a day now and I rarely get hungry (before the surgery I was on 800 calories a day and was starving all the time).  I still keep a daily journal of everything I eat, which I have done for years now.   I also continue to never ever taste anything, never lick a knife after making my daughter’s lunch, etc.  and it is lot easier now to resist any and all temptations.

I’ve learned to adjust how I eat and what I eat.  A couple of times in the beginning, I would have a bite or two too much or ate too fast, but the consequences were unpleasant enough I learned to be more careful.   Mostly the consequences were just feeling bloated and bleching a lot, but sometimes I would get discomfort and pain in my stomach, and I did throw up a couple of times. 

Highlights: 

  • I have a lot more energy and  a lot less pain in my joints, I no longer get out of breath just from walking from my car in the parking lot to my desk at the office.
  • My size 3x, 2x and 1x clothes are extremely baggy and unwearable.  I’m currently wearing extra large, (but I did buy my first pair of size large pants yesterday as a reward and I look forward to wearing soon - they are tight right now, but I got them on and should be able to wear them in a couple months.)
  • I am sleeping a lot better and getting about 5 to 6 hours of solid sleep a night – I feel like a million bucks compared to groggy, brain fog I lived in before.  Prior to the surgery I was lucky to get 3 to 4 hours of  broken sleep all together because I was constantly getting up to go to the bathroom all night.
  • I was able to go New York and walk around and had a great time with my family without hurting every where and being so exhausted that it took days to recover.
  • I’m looking forward to the holidays and I’m actually excited about Christmas for the time in years.  I’m done my gift shopping and can’t wait to wrap and decorate the tree.  In the past, I was so exhausted all the time I dreaded the holidays because it meant pain and even more exhaustion then usual.  I also hated having to face days of temptations with all kinds of food to resist while feeling like I was starving constantly, but now I can bring my bottle of water and a protein snack and not even give a second look at any sugary goodies or fattening snacks.

 The Down Side

  • I have to take a handful of chewable vitamins every day for the rest of my life, but they taste ok and I have them automatically delivered as needed so it’s convenient.
  • Talapia (fish) and ground turkey (two of my favorite lean proteins) still don’t settle well in my pouch, but I’m sure eventually I will be able to have a small amount. For now I have found other tasty things to have.
  • I had two skin infections last month, mostly likely because my immune system was down from the surgery and not getting in enough nutrients from fruit and veggies, but I’ve recovered completely and feel fine.  I’ve been having a clementine every day and taking other supplements to build it back up.

The postives and health benefits far out weigh any minor negatives, and I’m so glad that I has the gastric bypass surgery.

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