Feeling strange

[acaswell]

So tomorrow will be two weeks and I have only lost about 9 pounds. I'm not horribly frustrated but that is going to change if I don't see a little more progress soon. Haven't lost anything in several days. I know I am getting enough protein, but might be coming up a little short on other fluids. I am walking daily. So far I have tried scrambled egg, cottage cheese and some broth. Kind of scared to introduce new stuff. Honestly, I'm afraid of adding calories and fat, especially since my weight isn't moving. My recovery was pretty easy with very little pain or discomfort. The issue is always when it is time to put stuff in my belly. I take little sips but ya know, sometimes some air gets in there and you are screwed. I never feel like my thirst is quenched, I just want to drink a nice big glass of cold water. Then there are the emotions. I just feel so weird. My surgery was on a Monday and I cooked dinner for the family on Wednesday. I think that I am still in shock. I feel like I should be doing something differently but I don't know what...And sometimes I just get hit with pure exhaustion. I have no real complaints and absolutely no regrets but I am trying to figure out how to make this new lifestyle work. It feels very time consuming right now. I know it will get easier as I am only just about to start week 3 but I definitely need to vent to a group of people who understand what I am going through. Thanks for listening

[ltlsqueak]

Don't give up on yourself just yet. From what I've read, everyone is different. Give it another week or so and I bet things will be different. Keep your head up and hang in there!

[lisaloves1]

I really heard if you add more calories you will lose weight, because you're body is already in starvation mode. Look it up, it was somewhere in this forum.

[cherrob]

Don't be too hard on yourself. I have plateaus pretty regularly. It is like my body tries to hold on to every pound. Some people lose easier than others. Just keep following the plan. Also, maybe up your calories just a small bit because it seems if I do that when I hit a plateau, I will start losing again. You will be fine and the scale will move.

[niamh]

I don't understand what you were expecting. You have a relatively low starting weight, 9lb in two weeks is bloody good. I lost around 17-18lb in my first month post-op, so you're doing fine.

10lb per month average is thought to be a good rate of loss, and for someone with a lower starting weight you can expect it to be slower because your body needs fewer calories for resting metabolism.

Be happy instead of creating an unreasonable fantasy to live up to.

[Narasweet]

It is major surgery, and takes time to heal, I still get the exhausted feelings at times too, but I know I am walking a bit more every day too....progress is what I look for, I only weigh every few days, and even when scale does not change I can see my body change...it is not a race...and it can be an emotional roller coaster..best of luck

[Socaldixiegal]

You are actually doing extremely well and it's not uncommon to have a mini stall in the second or third week. It's hard not to have unrealistic expectations from seeing reality shows, biggest loser, etc and seeing those ridiculous high loss rates. Also, you'll see folks who need to lose 150+ drop lots initially, but that's because of starting weight.

Think about it this way - you have 71 lbs to lose and in just 2 weeks you've lost 12.6% of your excess weight and 4.3% of your starting weight! It's not going to happen overnight and these small stalls are very common. THis won't be the first one you'll experience but before you know it you'll be inching closer and closer to goal.

[Msvetrn]

RA-LAX and take one day at a time. Enjoy the journey instead of trying to second guess everything. You will have more fun.

[acaswell]

I don't understand what you were expecting. You have a relatively low starting weight, 9lb in two weeks is bloody good. I lost around 17-18lb in my first month post-op, so you're doing fine.

10lb per month average is thought to be a good rate of loss, and for someone with a lower starting weight you can expect it to be slower because your body needs fewer calories for resting metabolism.

Be happy instead of creating an unreasonable fantasy to live up to.

I totally needed a reality check! I guess its from watching the progress of others too much. Thanks

[jleecole]

I think you're being to hard and expecting too much. I know how you feel though - it seems like I should be down into smaller clothes by now at least!! But when I weighed in two weeks out, I was down about 10 pounds so you are losing at about the same rate as me. But you shouldn't compare to others anyways!!

[rdt210]

I agree that you need to look at your expectations. Try not to compare yourself to others and don't weigh every day (at least not in the beginning) - these are two things that are guaranteed to drive you nuts. With a low starting weight, you're not going to have huge losses like the folks who are heavier to start with. I have averaged about 10 pounds a month, so I'd say you're doing pretty darn good!

[Sweetessa]

Make sure you are getting your protein in, the closer you are to your protein goal, the better you will feel and the more you will lose. Hope you feel better soon

[NTV TXN]

I've got to ask you, what did you expect? Nine pounds in 2 weeks. Enjoy that, more than likely, there will be times when you lose nine pounds in a month, not TWO weeks. We didn't get fat over night and we certainly cannot expect to lose half of it in a couple of weeks. It just isn't realistic. You're still healing, there is a staple line in your gut that is swollen and delicate.

You caloric intake is probably just a few hundred. I've never bought the 'Increase your calories, your body is in starvation mode' - upping calories made the scale move prior to surgery, so I don't think the game has changed now. Just a few weeks ago at a support group meeting, a doctor said, unless we are a prisoner of war, our bodies aren't going into starvation mode. He said we had this surgery to eat less and our caloric intake should be well under 1000 when we are losing. I averaged 450 - 650 after my first six weeks. During the first six weeks, I was getting 300 - 400. I never got over 800 when I was losing, and I didn't hit 700 - 800 calories until the last month when I reached goal. Some people set a caloric goal to 'meet' - I had a caloric goal that I didn't want to go over. I was healthy, labs were perfect. I never lost my hair and it didn't even thin out.

You will not believe what your life is be like a year from now. Sit back and enjoy this journey, it's a wild ride, but OH SO FUN!!!!