6 week anniversary -- and still on the stall. No weight loss since surgery. In a dark place.

Hi All -- I'm back from 2+ weeks of travel. I tried hard over the past 3 weeks to forget the stall, heal, focus on work, and be positive. I have been struggling quite a bit. I came back yesterday to find the scale hasn't moved a bit. Tomorrow is my 6th week anniversary of the surgery. I've not lost anything (in fact, I've gained) since the surgery. I've spent nearly 6 weeks at this weight; I'm heavier now than I was at my 2 week follow-up.

I hesitated even coming here at all, because reading about other people's successes is too hard. I am endlessly encouraging and will celebrate others happiness with a full heart. But this? All I see now is my own apparent failure. I can't believe I can fail at something so quickly. And YES, OMG, I am not being noncompliant. Even with weeks of being overseas. My diet is healthy. I'm active. I eat very small portions consistent with my stomach size. I carry around protein bars for small snacks. I mean, I guess everyone can do better all the time, but this is a solid month plus of no weight loss. How can I not feel like there is no hope? Is it hard to shove out of my mind the thought that nothing in this life will release me from my weight. How can I not feel that I put my body, myself, and my family through this expense and pain for an exercise in vanity that has had no impact?

Please, someone, tell me that you went MONTHS after the surgery with no weight loss? Tell me that a 6 week post-surgery stall is normal. Talk to me about getting out of it. How can I do this without extreme dieting, obsessive self-control, and starvation? Following the guidelines is clearly not working for me.

Have a mentioned that I hold MPH and PhD degrees in Public Health? That I've worked all over the world and taught and written public health curriculum for top universities all over the world? I *KNOW* how calories and weight works. I REALLY KNOW IT. My weight is a constant on my mind in my field because the healthy shape and healthy life is central in much of the field of public health. The fact that nothing I do slims me down is devastating to me; a constant embarrassment. And now I've gone this far and it still doesn't matter. I feel disgraced and humiliated from this surgery -- just like every other weight loss experience I've ever had.

I am really trying to stay positive. Does anyone have similar experiences and can give true experiences?

Hello,

I was a very slow loser and actually gained ten pounds on the day of the surgery (it's always that way) because meds do make me gain weight.

Sometimes I would see months long stalls, so annoying....but at the end each little loss did add up.

Do you take meds?? what kind?? prednisone made me regain a lot very quickly. The day I stopped my PPI when I was around 14 months out, I lost suddenly, and was eating more because back in France after two years in Asia where I couldn't always find what I needed and was sometimes not eating enough.
Many things could be an issue, it's hard to know what...drinking enough? when I was not able to drink enough (nausea for months) I was not losing either..

Guidelines...since I had surgery in Asia I add to change the diet because I couldn't eat that much carb or was losing nothing. I did study nutrition for two years and I'm not a state certified nut because I couldn't do a six month unpaid internship (and was not planning on changing job anyway). Right now I study naturopathy. So I knew other factors did affect my weight loss...not my diet..

All that to say that if you did many many weight lossdiets like me, your BMR could be low. You might need to increase your exercise regimen (just simple walking) to see the scale moving.

But you just traveled, I always have a lot of water retention after a flight. Wait a few day, your scale might move after all.

Protein bars I would avoid, go for real food (I always carry almonds)...they put some much chemicals and weird stuff in protein bars, most are too high in carbs too, many can derail weight loss...I stopped buying those early because I felt it was slowing my weight loss.

If nothing works you should contact your surgeon..but I think may be you are just a slow loser too, like me. Let me know if I can help. I could check your daily food intake/supplement and let you know if I see something that could explain it.

Take care

Sorry to hear abut that stall, that is very frustrating.
I too was a very slow looser.

But can you give us a example what a typical day of eating looks like, including drinking?
Like:
B:
S:
L:
S:
D:
S:

That would give us something to work with.
How much and what are you drinking?
Do you take your time eating your meals?
What is your calorie intake per day?
And what does obsessive self control and starvation mean to you?

Stalls are the worst, but they will pass...

Sorry, how frustrating! Are you following the sleeve rules, starting every meal with protein, then veggies, then good carbs if you're still hungry? Are you eating any junk food, sweets, bread, etc? Are you grazing? Are you not drinking before or after meals?

If you're doing everything right, I would go back to your surgical team to see what's up. It sounds very unusual. Best of luck to you.

I’m so sorry you’re experiencing this frustration. Meds after surgery may be a contributing factor.

Please remember this is a marathon, not a sprint.

I spent 4.5 months in hospital after surgery (and had 4 more surgeries) with NO weight loss even though I vomited every other minute. At the 6 month mark I was dropping 2 sizes every week. It took a full year to reach my original goal. The 2nd year I dropped another 15 lbs and I’ve stayed at this weight since then.

I was advised by my Dr and Nutritionist not to eat protein bars and look for low carb protein shakes if I couldn’t substitute real protein foods. And drink a gallon of water.

What does your Bari Team advise? Are they concerned?

Please keep us updated ;-)

Stalls are not uncommon and weight gain comes from many factors. You've been traveling and that's a challenge, the different climates, atmosphere, foods, etc. there can be many reasons for thiss ituation and some we might not even be aware of at times. Take your inches, they might be shrinking as you've not been losing weight because that often happens. Protein bars are not the best things for snacks, nuts, jerky, cheese sticks, are sometimes better choices. Also, fluids are important and you can always go back to the pre op diet to "jump-start" the body. Don't be so hard on yourself as stress alone will cause weight fluctuations.

You got this and just take a step back, journal, breathe, hydrate and get some exercise; you'll figure it out. Good luck:)

Now that you are back home, you will be able to get back to a routine. I would start by writing down exactly what you are eating every day. As someone stated, if you can come back to this thread and give us an idea of what your daily eating looks like, that would be great. Remember to start with protein--that's the most important thing. Leave the protein bars alone. Go for a protein shake instead. Take a walk, which will give you movement and will also help you to relax. The weight will come off, don't worry.

You must be so frustrated!
I want to echo what others have said- avoid the protein bars- they are actually pretty high carb and high calorie.

Please log your food and post it here. I'd cut protein bars and replace with no or low sugar shakes. Protein bars have significant sugars and carbs. If you are doing shakes make sure you aren't dumping lots of sugar in that way. Cut out snacks and if you have them make them 100% protein based, no sugar no carbs. Try and get less than 25g of carbs a day.

Are these answers helpful?

I'm genuinely sorry that you are experiencing this frustration and anxiety. I can't help but believe it may be a combination of meds/traveling and your body adjusting. Everyone is different and I know that probably doesn't make you feel any better.:(

If you're following the post op diet, getting some exercise and drinking plenty of water, I truly believe it will come off even if slower than what others have experienced. Have you shared all of this with your surgeon/team?

Hang in there Hosh, I'm pulling for you!

I think you must be extremely busy, since you do not answer any of our questions...