I agree with everyone else. Those protein shakes and vitamins are not the #1 priority in the first month. Just staying hydrated IS the most important. I am SO sorry you are going through this. It's a HUGE transition. I remember some time after the second week I thought I was DYING for some egg noodles or ice cream. Stuff I definitely should have never been eating. I didn't eat them, but I had this mental picture in my head of them! I, too, felt hungry. It took a while for the hunger to die down some. Our fat brains are not used to restricted calories! LOL! I think it freaks out at first! I had to get on Prilosec as well. Sometimes I have to take 40 MG a day to keep it at bay. It will get better, I promise. I'm proud of you for throwing away the crackers! Stay away from them! 

I think maintenance is more like 10 calories by your body weight. Some people may even need LESS than that depending on age, muscle mass, metabolism, and etc Some people may obviously need more. Those people are lucky :-)

Steph! I haven't seen you on in AGES! The last time I saw you on, I think you were down around 53 lbs? And you stayed there for quite a while! I am IMPRESSED you've dropped another 17 lbs! Those workouts and dropping carbs must be working for ya. I am happy to hear that you are doing well. I guess dropping that husband is helping too ;-). Glad to see you on and I hope to see more updates from you in the future. Keep it up!

I honestly think the lap band is the WORST choice you could make. You are absolutely right that most people have them removed. It's a temporary weight loss band aid, at BEST. At worst, it can cause PERMANENT DAMAGE as so many people who have had the band have stated. If I just HAD to choose between RNY and lapband, it would be RNY easily. The sleeve is great, as you already know, but I would have had the RNY if I didn't have a choice. Only reason is because my sister has done SO WELL since having her RNY with her weight loss. . She has some complications though, which is why I chose VSG. She has to get iron infusions quite often and she is 8 years post op. However, she has kept off ALL of her weight for 8 years. I

I can't stand catty, jealous women! Most of the time the people who are snotty and rude are, let's face it, other women! Men are usually cool and supportive. This is why I only have a couple of female friends who I've known since, like, forever. I am sure my stepmom told my nosy Aunt and of course that my nosy Aunt probably let it slip to a few people that I don't necessarily like or care to know. Luckily, I am miles and miles from any of these annoying peeps :-). I don't have to worry about explaining myself to anyone. I steer clear of telling most females anything. Sorry to any of the ladies on here. I know most of you understand this because we had VSG and we've struggled with weight! But most women out there--they get really testy when it comes to losing weight and the jealousy starts flying.  I just don't like being judged or having to explain myself nor do I have to. I don't tell people when I get my blood pressure checked, or when I get my wisdom teeth pulled, or any of that other stuff so NO I don't feel the need to tell people I got VSG. If someone who is obese asks me how I lost the weight, and they are genuinely curious, then I may tell them the truth. That hasn't happened yet.

I know exactly what you're talking about. At first, I didn't want to tell anyone but my husband. I ended up telling my parents. My mom, as sweet as she is, can't really keep a secret very well. I think it just eats her up. She ended up telling my loud mouth Aunt who probably told everyone in town. Thankfully, I no longer live in that small town LOL. I only go there once or twice a year and make sure to never run into anyone unless it's a family member. :-)

WOW! You look great! And you look so happy! :-)

You are amazing! You've done far more than many have with wls. Of course when it's your own feelings, it's hard to see what OTHERS see. I wish you could see what others see in the same light. We are our own worst enemies. We are all the hardest on ourselves. Learning to be easier on yourself is a life-long process just like maintaining weight and keeping lifelong habits of health. It's never over until we're not on this earth anymore. We have to make our best choices minute by minute but if we screw up, we have the next minute or hour or day to make better choices. That's all we can do! Strive to be our best, pat ourselves on the back when we screw up, and keep on truckin'. Good luck to you. I have appreciated your inspiration and input since I've been on here and I want to say thank you. 

Alright guys I am at a crossroads here. I was wondering what the best birth control is for a woman over 35? Obviously not hormonal birth control. It's riskier when you're older and pardon me but I don't want to start gaining my weight back that I lost after VSG. Soooo the copper IUD maybe? But I keep hearing about 2 week periods and cramps. Ummmm really? These are the options for women? I am scared of all the damn birth control TBFH. So what are you guys using? Positives and negatives? Thanks ladies! I hate being a freaking woman sometimes!

You look beautiful! I haven't been around much the last two weeks due to some family issues and this is the first thread I saw. You are definitely a determined lady. You look slim to me! I would have thought you were more like an 8/10. Congratulations

A LOT of us went to Mexico. I know I did! :-)

Hey Elina. I can relate to you a lot. I lost a bunch of weight in my 20's very unhealthily. I was either only eating 300 calories a day being starved all the time and popping ephedrine pills; or I was eventually being bulimic on the days I would eat and then back to the 300 cals a day and ephedra when I wasn't eating! It should be no surprise that when I eventually started eating normally, I gained back everything I lost PLUS quite a bit extra! AND any attempts at normal dieting never did much to help me after that. I could only lose 20 lbs because I had screwed up my metabolism and body so much from the starvation and then the bouts of bulimia. I was skeptical that VSG would work for me because I thought my metabolism was beyond wacked but I was unwilling to do a more radical surgery. Fortunately, it has worked fabulously for me and I certainly eat a more normal diet and amount of calories than when I was bulimic.anorexic. I finally feel fit and healthy! It's so important to remain vigilant! And excessive exercise only worked for me for a short time! MOST people can't work out 3 hours a day for life. I lost some weight doing excessive exercise but once I stopped doing it for that amount of time--the weight came flying back on! I have only exercised moderately since surgery so my body would not become accustomed to that amount extreme of exercise for life. I have done a routine that is acceptable 30 minutes 4-5 days a week.