I'm losing hope and I don't know what else to do

[RehabNurse]

I'm starting my fifth week, not third.

You are proving everyone's point: if your weight has been stalled for two weeks and you are currently five weeks post-surgery, then your current stall began around the third week.

It is the classic three-week stall. Believe us. Mine started at two weeks. Some people stall at four weeks. The main takeaway is most sleeved peoples' weights plateau at three weeks, plus or minus a week.

In those early days I was frightened I'd be one of the few people for which the sleeve wouldn't work. I have/had health problems that result in a slower metabolic rate such as hypothyroidism, insulin resistance and pre-diabetes. However, I continued to plug at it and finally got to goal in 17 months.

This is going to be a lifelong process for all of us. Obesity is not curable; it can only go into remission. The weight loss phase doesn't mean nearly as much as the weight maintenance phase. The success stories are the folks who can keep the weight off for the long term.

Good luck to you!

[tinman]

Stalls are normal for the first couple of months because you really can't do much to bust them or prevent them. However, in my opinion, you have all of the control in the world over busting them and preventing them all together once you are eating normal foods. It's my opinion and experience that if we listen to our bodies and feed it what it's craving, you will avoid getting stalls all together. This is pretty controversial and always gets the board stirred up when I offer this advice.

Long story short, I lost 265 lbs doing it the way I described. I lost that weight in 14 months and have kept it off for the last three plus years. I stalled and stalled the first eight months and lost 120 lbs. Once I discovered the secrets I just typed, I lost 140 lbs in the next 6 months and never stalled...not once.

I would encourage you to go to my profile and read over my posts concerning stalls. In there, there is good information on how to bust one once you get one and how to avoid getting them all together. You'll also see posts from other big time losers who also did it the way I did.

In the end, I believe we all have to try different approaches until we find one that works for us. Each of us is individual and as such, each of our plans will be just as unique as we are.

As for now, be patient and wait out the stall. The advice you've been given so far is good. However, after a couple of months, if you aren't trying to find the best way tailored for your specific needs, then you're shortchanging yourself. Feel free to pm me if you need advice or questions answered.

[Christie13]

That is excellent advice Tinman!

[Katrina]

I'm just curious as to what exactly you mean by give up. This surgery was for life. It's not like you can go ask for your stomach back. So do you just mean that you're going to give up on following plan and eat whatever you want? I say go for it! I do. I always have. I start my day out with a Monster Muscle energy protein shake and from there I eat or drink anything I want. Now granted most days I don't eat any real food until dinner time, but nighttime is a free for all. I eat everything in the damn house. It never slowed me down and I'm skinnier than I need to be. Eat what you want. See how that works. If it doesn't work, you can try something else. Your new tiny tummy is for life.