My life 2.5 years after surgery

[Tina2705]

So I have had my surgery in August 2012 and it was the best decision and I regret not doing it earlier!!!

I started with a weight of 265 lbs and I am now between 155 and 160 lbs. I am still considered overweight, but I can somehow live with that. My life has totally changed. I work out 5 times a week for at least 2 hours and really enjoy it.
Looking back, I would have done some things different, so maybe I can help some of you with my experience!!!

1. Start working out as soon as possible, even if it is only walking!!!
2. Be careful, if you like snacking - it will come back if you are not careful!! So no snacking!!!!
3. If you suffer from an eating disorder (like I did/do) find someone to help you. I went through really hard times and I am still a little bit in this stupid disorder!!!!
4. Sometimes it is better not to tell that you had surgery. People still believe it is an easy fix. They don't see how hard I had to work for it and I am still working!!!
5. If you are lucky, you won't suffer from hairloss! But if you do, it is normal and it will grow back...

If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer. I always appreciated when someone would tell me, what could be expected!!!

All the best!!!!
Tina

[Ms. Jupiter]

I love your post Tina. Get advice for everyone.
Thank you for sharing
Congratulations on your success.

[Aymie]

Very encouraging

[Lee6Lee]

Thank you for proving we can have long term success...if we try!

[MrsSize4]

Wow, thank you for taking the time to share. I am 27 days out and have a lot to learn. I will confess that eating right now sucks! I can only have greek yogurt, hard boiled eggs, soups, and string cheese. Outside of that my stomach hasn't handled it well. I am bored with eating the same thing. Some stuff makes me nauseous. I just hope it gets better. I appreciate when experience sleevers post their wisdom. Thank you again!

[Lee6Lee]

Wow, thank you for taking the time to share. I am 27 days out and have a lot to learn. I will confess that eating right now sucks! I can only have greek yogurt, hard boiled eggs, soups, and string cheese. Outside of that my stomach hasn't handled it well. I am bored with eating the same thing. Some stuff makes me nauseous. I just hope it gets better. I appreciate when experience sleevers post their wisdom. Thank you again!

MrsSize4, this is going to work for you. I started out pretty much the same weight. I've only been out a year and am still learning. But seeing that I can be a success story has been the best of all the things I've learned!

[Ann2]

Tina, bless you for this post. You vets several years out are the ones we want to hear from the most. I'm 8 months post-op and have thus far had an easy time of it. But now (2 pounds from goal), I believe everything you've said will be true for me as well.

Thanks for your encouragement and counsel. Continued very best to you.

[Tee35]

Tina - Thank you for the encouragement! It helps. I hope to have the same long-term success.

[Tina2705]

Thanks everyone!
Here are 3 pictures.

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[Nancy23]

Tina you look great and healthy. Thanks for sharing this.

[stargazerlily]

Thank you for sharing!! I wish you continued success and you look great! Definitely great words of advice.

[maritza104]

Thanks so much for this! I will be having surgery soon and this made me feel great about my decision!

[Blessed2]

Thanks for your post. I am 13 months out and 23 pounds from my goal. I KNOW that I will get there! You look great!!

[aboutime4me]

Hi there, I will be 3 yrs post op this May 1st and have not been here on the forum for quite some time. I was attracted to your thread because of your length of time post op and that you've stayed at a great weight and your advice is "spot on." I would say many of the very same things. NOW... to confess, I have not taken my own advice. I've allowed old bad habits back into life and have regained 15 lbs. So, that being said, I am now trying to back track and refuse to regain any more. We didn't go through this to put it all back on.

I'm here for support and to share with others my journey, struggles and successes too. This is a life long journey for all of us. As I've gone through this whole process I have had to deal with various issues at different times. The one real blessing in all this is that I know it is bad habits that I have let get out of control. My battle is not HUNGER, as I've really never been hungry since the day of surgery. I'm not driven by it.

Thanks for your post and I'm back and will continue to deal with my issues as they surface. Wishing you all the very best, and even before my weight gain I never made it into the normal weight category. I started with a BMI of almost 41 and am now I think about a 28.

Have a great week!