3 Months Post-Op Update - gained again

It's three months today and I gained. I am not down 46.6 pounds from pre-op. I'm down 7" for the past month and only 8.6 pounds in a month. I know it's because I have been going to the gym and not eating enough calories. I'm only getting in about 400 calories. I need help with food ideas that are low carb, low fat, high protein that has calories. 

I went to my general doctor today to talk about my anxiety meds. He put me on celexa from sertraline and Valium instead of xanax for panic attacks.

Here's a picture from day of surgery and today- three months post-op.  

 

13 Weeks Po-Op VSG - Gained 3lbs

Today is 13 weeks post op. I haven’t been doing very well because I have been gaining instead of losing. Earlier in the week, I was down 49.8 since surgery. Now I’m down 46.8 since surgery. That’s three pounds gained. I haven’t been doing anything differently. I haven’t been eating any better or worse, I haven’t been going to the gym any less. In fact, I went two times more. I am going to yoga this week to try to get back into it. I wish it wasn’t so expensive though! I started my Instagram for this journey, so you should follow me: jen.vsg. 

Tomorrow is 3 months post op. Gaining 3 pounds is not the way I want to go into my third month. I impulsively bought an apple watch, so there's that. I was supposed to have my 3 month post op surgeon appointment tomorrow but the nutritionists is going to be out of town so it was moved to October 6th. I am getting bloodwork done tomorrow though, not sure for what because the surgeon hasn't ordered anything because I haven't seen him in a while. 

Instagram: jen.vsg

Hey everyone, I finally got a VSG instagram! It's jen.vsg

12 Weeks Post-Op - Birthday Cake

It looks like I'm in a stall. It was a rough week last week and I gained a pound and lost a couple. I am down 47.2 pounds since surgery. I didn’t go to the gym at all this past week and lost pounds. When I go to the gym, it seems like I’m not losing anything. It doesn’t make sense. I threw my husband a birthday party this past Saturday for his 30^th birthday. I made so much food. Meatballs, cheese ball, chicken, and a bunch of more stuff. I also ordered this amazing cake. It was too expensive not to taste. So I did. I ate cheese and crackers like it was going out of style. I was convinced that I gained 2 pounds from eating cake and crackers. I also had a bite of a Panera turkey sandwich at work – yes, with bread. I feel guilty, but when I see the scale go down, I feel better and I justify the fact that I ate like shit. I feel like I’m repetitive, but this is my journey.    

11 Weeks Post-Op - Gained a pound, lost confidence

Today is 11 weeks post op. I gained a pound this week. I'm not happy at all. I'm quite pissed actually. I had someone tell me I look good and like I'm losing weight for the first time since surgery. That's pretty good since I'm down 43 pounds. I don't know, I guess I thought I'd lose faster by taking all my vitamins like a good girl, eating perfectly on track, getting all my protein in and going to the gym. I guess I was wrong. 

10 Weeks Post-Op VSG - Labor Day Weekend

Today is Labor Day. It's also 10 weeks since surgery. I'm down 43.4 pounds. I spent the weekend at my in-laws lake house in Lake Geneva, WI and basically ate like shit. I made a chocolate eclair cake for a work party Friday and for the lake over the weekend. I had a bite of it Friday and Saturday. Saturday morning my mother in law made these baked ham and cheese sandwiches on Hawaiian bread so I baster insides of one and a small bite of bread because that's where all the flavor is. We went to dinner Saturday night and I had a few bites of grilled hot dog, few bites of grilled chicken, caprese salad, Caesar salad and mushrooms. Then Sunday morning my mother in law made cinnamon roll French toast casserole. Delish. I also had a small bite. We spent the day at the beach and I got so burnt. Then my husband I met up with some friends at a hot air balloon fest. We had some chicken fingers there. Then came home and had skinny pop. I literally ate like shit ALL WEEKEND. I came home and dreaded weighing. I lost 2.6 pounds Friday-Monday. I don't understand how that can be. But I'll take it. 

 

Two Month Post-Op VSG

I'm two days late only two month post op update. So I'll do my two month and two day update. I did my measurements and have lost some decent inches. I am down 39.6 pounds - so close to 40. I feel like I've been losing b wet slowly. I went to torrid in a size 22 and bought size 18 purple skinny jeans - who am I? So weird, I haven't been an 18 in so long. I hope I keep losing at this pace. According to my app, happy scale, I will hit my goal of 145lbs in 7 months. Hopefully shortly after that I can try to get pregnant! That's the goal for all of this. 

8 Weeks Post-Op - It Doesn't Fit

Today is week 8 and I'm down 37.8 pounds. I'm pretty frustrated that my clothes still fit the same. I started out as a size 22 and I am still a 22. I start a new job tomorrow and tried on a size 20 and they fit the same way as before - which is barely. I went out to dinner for my anniversary and it's a place that I used to love and clean my plate every course. An entree comes with soup, salad, veggie, meat, and side. I had a couple sips of the cream of broccoli, a few bites of salad, a piece of the chicken picante, and picked at the mashed potatoes. I brought the rest home which I've been eating every day, every meal since. 

Overall, 37.8 pounds is good, but I wish I saw it. And I wish my clothes fit. 

7 Weeks Post-Op - Wedding, Drinking

This weekend I went to a wedding and dranik for the first time since surgery. When I woke up, I took my regular meds and was so sick I was throwing up. We had to drive an hour and a half to the hotel so I ate a peach and threw three dresses in the car. When we got to the hotel I tried on my three dresses and two of them were too SMALL. I just wore them last year… and then lost almost 40 pounds. I was pissed. I ended up wearing a purple dress. It wasa cute, me and my husband matched. I will insert a picture. We had a friend take the picture and when I looked back at it, I was shocked at how decent I looked! During cocktail hour, I had a glass of wine (watered down with ice) – but I only had half of it. Then for dinner it was a buffet so I had salad, the insides of a twice baked potato and one bite of my husbands prime rib. During the rest of dinner and dancing, I had a vodka lemonade. I thought it was going to hit me fast but it didn’t hit me at all. We danced a bit then they made brick oven pizza, and I had a little bite of my husband’s. After the reception, we went back to the hotel and hung out in the bar. I had water. We also got cheese curds because Milwaukee. The day after we drove home and I weighed myself. I lost .8 pounds for a total of 36 pounds.

 

 

 

 

6 Week Post-Op FOOD HAUL

I realized that at my 6 week post-op, I'm allowed to have fresh fruits and veggies! I went to the gym (ugh, felt like crap but did it anyways) and after I went to the grocery story. I got some reduced fat cheese-itz, apples, peaches (not shown), peanuts, cherry tomatoes, lettuce to make lettuce wraps, and lite mayo for said lettuce wraps. What are other yummy snacks that I can have??

6 Week Post-Op - acne?!

Today is 6 weeks post op! I am officially down 33.6 pounds. I will do measurements at my 2 month mark. This week I have been going hard at the gym and decided to go golfing Sunday. Bad idea. I was fine for the first hole then by the third hole I was throwing up. I'm not sure why. I also didn't realize that the constant bending over would take a toll on me. I took it easy Sunday. On Saturday I went to my friends house and hung out with her and her baby. I am way too anxious to have a baby. I want one so bad. I know I have to wait. 

In other news, I have been getting pretty bad acne lately. It could be because I started birth control again but I've never had this problem when I took this birth control last time. I was thinking it could be from sweat, but I'm not sure. At this point, I'll take acne instead of the 33.6 pounds I lost. 

Here is my video.

https://youtu.be/Cx4mXXEMlNo

Time For A Change

So I spontaneously decided to dye my hair. New me - starting with surgery and now red hair! 

 
 

Going To A Bar

On Friday, my husband and I went to his best friends bar's closing day. I'm so used to drinking there but I wasn't able to. This is a bar we would go to for most of our relationship. We would take the train 45 minutes from our house. I only really drank at this one bar and at weddings and some holidays (Christmas parties, New Years, wine on thanksgiving). I'm going to a wedding in two weeks and I'm thinking I will probably have a glass of wine. 

I don't NEED to drink, but I am more fun and I have more fun when I'm drinking. At weddings I only dance when I'm drinking because I don't care what people think. I'm also not telling anyone really about my surgery so if I'm not drinking they will just assume I'm pregnant. 

I know I'm not supposed to but we'll see. I think I know what I'm going to do..

5 Weeks Post-Op - Mall

Today is 5 weeks since surgery. I have lost 27.8 pounds. I went to the gym everyday since Thursday (when I was cleared to go) except Sunday. I have been consistently been doing 2-2.5 miles on a combination of treadmill, elliptical and/or bike. I used to be able to go 5 miles in an hour. Friday we went to a friends bar. On Sunday I went to the mall with my mom and I didn't get tired at all walking. I was able to wear pants that I currently have that are a size smaller. I was a 22 at the time of surgery and these pants were a 20. I went to Old Navy and tried on slacks in an 18 and wasn't able to get them up at all. I also tried on18 jeggings and the band wasn't tight at all. I guess I will hold off on buying new clothes for a while. 

One Month Post-Op Appointment

I had my one month post-op appointment with the nutritionist and surgeon yesterday, 7/28. I met with the nutritionist first and she said that I can move on to soft foods. I thought I was already on soft foods but I guess I was only on purees. I can have saltines with cheese, so that’s exciting that I can have something crunchy now! Anything I eat has to pass the “fork test” which means if a fork can break it, mush it, or pull it apart, I can eat it. I’m pretty much clear to eat most things except rice, pasta, bread, dense meat, and of course no deep fried, fatty foods. I was told about the 20/20/20 rule which means every bite needs to be 20 chews, wait 20 seconds between bites and then a meal should take 20 minutes. I am also taking calcium pills now too. I need to get 1000-1200mg every day so I can take 2 Viactiv per day. They actually taste pretty good, almost like tootsie rolls. She said I was doing very well. I am officially down 25 pounds according to their scale. According to mine at home I am 23.5 pounds down. I’ll take the extra weight loss. 

 

I also met with the surgeon and he looked at my scars and said they look great! The glue all came off and they are almost all the way healed. He cleared me to go back to the gym and any type of exercise. I can also golf again! 

 

After the appointment and after work I went to the gym by me and signed up again and did 2 miles on the elliptical in 26 minutes. I used to do 5 miles in an hour or less. I’m not super thrilled that I couldn’t get past 2 miles without feeling like death. I keep telling myself that I just had major surgery and will take time to get back into it. 

 

I also went to the grocery store and I got some essentials. I got Viactiv, Weight Watcher’s string cheese, chicken salad, ham salad (I didn’t like it), saltines, bananas, and some more stuff that I’m forgetting. For lunch at work I have been bringing some deli turkey slices and some 1/3 fat cream cheese rolled up. It’s super good. I was also cleared to have cheerios and milk. 

 

Overall, I’m happy with -25 pounds in a month. I go back on my 3 month surgiversary.  

 

My First NSV - My Wedding Rings Fit

Today I noticed that I got my first NSV (non scale victory). I used to not be able to get my wedding rings off most of the time. If I was lucky, I had to take them of one by one and by the time I got them off, my finger was bright red and stung like crazy. I just realized today that I can take them off with ease and all at once! Here is a picture of before surgery and one day shy of 1 month post-op.  I think I see a difference!

 

Puppy's Cone of Shame

My puppy had to go to the vet this week because he has been chewing his feet like crazy. He chewed them so much that his feet were bleeding and he ripped out all of the hair. They gave him antibiotics, anti-inflammatory meds and a spray for his feet. I know I'm not supposed to be lifting more than 5-10 pounds by my puppy needed help getting in my car. He's 44.8 pounds. For a reference, here's a picture. He doesn't look like it, but he's heavy! 

4 Weeks Post-Op - What I Eat In A Day

Today I am four weeks post op! I finally kicked that stupid stall I've been in for the pat 6 days and had a 2.4 pound loss this week for a total of 22.4 pounds since surgery. I haven't really noticed any clothes fitting better or looser. On Saturday I had friends over and we ordered pizza so I had the toppings off a small square of plain cheese pizza. It was so good and went down smoothly. I wish it made me sick so I didn't want it. What hasn't been making me sick is watermelon. That stuff has been going down amazingly. Everyday for breakfast I have a premier protein shake, then for a snack I have a weight watchers string cheese. For lunch I have cottage cheese and a sugar free pudding cup. Then I have watermelon for dinner when I get home at 5:30pm. For dinner I usually have mashed potatoes with cheese or soup. At work someone got tacos so I had a bite of the inside of a pulled chicken taco and I didn't like it. I know I haven't been eating enough calories (200-400 per day) so I will be talking to the nutritionist about that. I go back for my 1 month post op visit with the nutritionist and surgeon on Thursday. 

The glue on my incisions are almost all gone! Only 1 and a half still have glue left. I have been laying on my stomach for like half an hour at a time at night, so sleeping has been more enjoyable. I mostly sleep on my side still with a pillow across my tummy for protection in case puppy decides to jump on me. 

I have lost 22.4 pounds since day of surgery and 21.3 inches total. 

First Support Group

Today was the support group. I’m so glad I went, I almost didn’t go because I was nervous. There were about 40 people there. 30 post-op, 5 pre-op, and 5 supporters. Online it said that 9:30-10:30am was an informational session for pre-op  and then 10:30-12pm was the support group. I got there at about 9:40am and watched the rest of the informational session presentation then the group started early at about 10. For the first hour we went around the room and introduced ourselves, where we are at in the journey, if post-op, how it’s going and then why we had the surgery we did. There were people who had bypass, Roux-EN-Y, and the sleeve. It took a long time because we took time to clap at least twice per person. I wish there were fewer people there so people could have their questions answered. It looked like I was the youngest one there besides two daughters who were there for support for their moms. Pretty much everyone had the surgery with the same doctors as I did, so that was interesting. Everyone was from everywhere. After the year long introductions, a psychologist from the area came to speak and answer questions. He asked a couple questions to get an idea about what he is going to talk about. I raised my hand to ask him to talk about deciphering between head hunger and actual hunger. He talked a lot about body image issues and about self love. Then he also talked about boundaries. How to set boundaries with family and friends. I don’t have a lot of people that know about my surgery so I was very interested to see what he was going to say about that but he didn’t really talk too much about it. We ran out of time. He did give some good advice about how to tell family why you aren’t taking leftovers, or eating dessert. He said to tell them that you are really watching what you’re eating. You are in charge of what you put in your mouth. I think I might start seeing him on a one on one basis. I've been thinking about seeing a therapist for a while and I think now is a good time to start going.

One person in the group brought her protein shake and she was able to find a new flavor, Caramel! She got it at Walmart so after the meeting I went to Walmart and got the caramel and the new bananas and cream. If I like It I’m getting more!

Overall, I’d definitely go back to another meeting next month.

After I got home, my husband and I took the dog out for a long walk. It was really refreshing to be able to walk as a family. He comes home very late so we don’t get to do that often. By the time he gets home, I’m already in my pajamas and tired. And lets face it, when the bra comes off after work, it’s not going back on until the next morning. AMIRITE?!

2 Weeks Post-Op - Pain, Poop, Free Protein?!

Today is my two weeks post op. I weighed myself this morning and am down 17.2 pounds since my heighest recorded weight (two weeks before surgery). I also am down 9.5". I measure my neck, waist, hips, biceps, forearm, wrist, thigh, calf, and ankle (right side only). I didn't count the left side in my 9.5", by I probably should. I was in a lot of pain in my biggest incision today because my puppy jumped on me this morning and then I sneezed for the first time since surgery this afternoon. Then I was laughing with people at work so it hurt more. I also had my first poop yesterday! It was pretty exciting, and quite painful. That's all about that. 

About a month or so ago, I signed up for free protein from some site. Then I forgot about it. Today, I got a huge package in the pain that I couldn't lift but it said InsireNutrition. When my husband came home from work he brought it in the house and we opened it to find FOUR full  size (18 bottles) cases of Premier Protein (two vanilla and two strawberry). Of course yesterday we went to Costco and got a case of Vanilla Premier Protein. In the box was also some Optisource vitamins. Pretty cool! The I read the slip and it says congratulations, this is the first of your monthly subscription. I didn't pay for it, I think it goes through insurance.